Day 83: Impromptu Singing +Cheesiness+Ukulele

It just happened. Sleep deprived insane girl does a crappy rendition of a cheesy song. What's new? So maybe this little project helped with spontaneity and putting myself out into the world...? Something like that. Enjoy if you're into that sort of thing, and excuse the bad lighting and off-handed laughter.

Day 82: Morse Code Notes

September 20, my mission of the day was to write a message in morse code. Funny because I used to write love notes to a boy in morse code. Nerdy, cryptic, and romantic much? Having memorized morse code a few summers ago, this one was easy. So, if you're up for it, try deciphering these little messages. (Not love notes this time.)

Ciao, internet friends and stalkers.

Day 80: Rest & Meditation

Today was my day off. I woke up with some kind of throat infection and after visiting the doctor about strep for the umpteenth time, I came home and relaxed. Is it weird that I even have a playlist for these rainy days at home? Is that lame? Pfft, what do I care. At this point, my sociological well-being is not even existent in my mind. ("I don't even consider myself a part of society anymore". The Office? Anyone?)  So when I looked in The Book and saw that my mission was to sit in the lotus position and meditiate for thirty minutes, I was more than enthused. I won't lie, I cheated.
15 minutes of an inner soliloquy backed with an indie-ass playlist was all I could take.
Still don't believe me? Here's photographic proof. BAM!
Never meditated before? It's quite awesome, honestly. Try it and be well, guys!

What I meditated to: the rainy day/meditation/hipster-y playlist

Day 78: Express Yo'self

What are your views? Gah, what a loaded question. Let's see. I'll make this easy for you guys and separate this by the levels of controversy, shall we? Be prepared for some radical views.

1) Life: I think that life is a collage of memories, thoughts, and experiences. But if you put my physiology, views, experiences, devious smirk, (excellent) music taste, and personality, it will not add up to Trinity. I think we're more than all of that, and the essence of oneself is truly ever-changing and will forever evade a definition. Your life is an accumulation of all your decisions.

2) Music n' Media n' Shit: Music is what feelings sound like. As far as my musical preferences are, I love so many variations of rock, and it all correlates with where I am in life and what I'm feeling. Makes sense, doesn't it? I mean, if you're raging you want to get a healthy dose of Nirvana. And when you've just left home you want to listen to some Noah and the Whale. And off the charts emotions? Definitely get me some film scores. Recently I've been addicted to Ingrid Michaelson, Sondre Lerche, and The Who.

Film. Asdfghjkl. The first movie that I really fell in love with was probably Ferris Bueller's Day Off, for obvious reasons. A list of movies that have, ignore the cliche, changed me: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Dark Knight, Fight Club, Amelie, and so many others. Movies are near and dear to my heart and movie theaters will forever be my haven. My favorite movie right now is definitely Midnight in Paris, because WOODY ALLEN.

Oh, Tv. Uhm, Freaks and Geeks, New Girl, Doctor Who, The Office, and Friends are pretty much me.

3) Politics. Eek! This one always manages to stir the pot and get me at least a few dirty looks. Basically, I think politics are so corrupt. Anyone could tell you that. I don't believe in big government, and the fact that we're debating about issues like gay marriage and abortion makes me mad. It frustrates me that we're still so stupid about such things. When it comes to social issues my views are a little radical. But fiscally? Conservative. I politically identify as a libertarian, and NO, that does not mean I'm a liberal. I'm all for personal freedoms and liberties. Thus, the two-party system makes me a little mad.

4) Religion: Ooh. The biggest controversy. Essentially, religion bothers me. There's a great quote something along the lines of "With or without religion, good people will do good things and bad people will do bad things. But for a good person to do bad things, religion gets involved." I want to stay as far away from propaganda as I can and I feel like religion infringes on being able to think for yourself. When you take away all the doctrine out of religion, you have philosophy, and that's something I like, something I can live with. I like the communal aspect of religion, but I can't handle the doctrine. I can't believe it. It's too hard for me to deceive myself by believing in things that have no basis on things that I can observe. It's too hard to ignore the things that are blatantly in front of you to believe in something that has no evidence. I also think that it's horrible to believe in an after-life. In your belief that you will live eternally, you are forgetting to live now. It's like immortality. Limits can make us do amazing things, forcing us to live.

5) Love: Hahaha. Such a tricky thing. The way I see it, there are so many different kinds of love, different shades. For instance, I don't love my mom the same way I love my dad, nor pizza. Love is hard for me. The way I feel and what I say never seem to match up. But if I'm particularly sarcastic around you, rest assured it's because I like you. Sarcasm makes the heart grow fonder. I don't know all that much about love, honestly. I think I do, but of course my knowledge stems from The Graduate, couples I see in public, and books. "If love is just a game how come I've never won?" I don't know, Charlie Fink, you tell me. I think love comes when it wants and leaves when it must, and I'm completely okay with that. 

Also, on a slightly trivial note, I'm not a big believer in zodiacs. Compatibility and personality based on the position of the sun when you were born? No thanks. I don't think everyone born in the same month could be the same person and live the same life. Call it what you want, but you see what you want to see. 

I didn't offend you too much, did I? 

Day 69: The Definition of Life

Today my challenge was to find the meaning of life by looking it up in the dictionary. I decided to also ask some friends and teachers of mine what their definitions were!
Some great definitions I found were:

"The most fascinating yet challenging story a person can endure, because it can only be written once."  -Natalie Taylor, my dear brilliant friend

"The period of active time spent by something with DNA."-the fabulous Hannah Gibson

"The general or universal condition of human existence"-Merriam Webster

"I think life is a series of chances we either decide to take or pass up. For example, right now I'm at school. I could decide to go outside, get in my car, and drive to Alaska (after picking up my wife and dogs, of course). I could find a job on a tour boat, or in a school, and we could live in Alaska until the end of our days. This is an option, always. There are other things to consider, of course, but it's an option.

So are drugs. So is suicide. You can see the good and bad here.

That's why I have no sympathy for people who don't like where their life is. Where you are now is a product of where you have been, and that's a beautiful and complex thing. Where you're going to be is a product of where you decide to go, and that is a daunting and exciting responsibility." -Mr. Hancock, the English teacher I have no words for

"Life: Is living in such a way that you don't have to be famous to be remembered. Make friends, laugh, cry, get your heart broken, join a sport, laugh again. Be yourself! Love your family and respect your friends. Be kind, helpful and thoughtful. Just live to the fullest. Life is learning."-my sweet friend Sammie Ellingsworth

"Life is the ultimate test. You must challenge yourself and push your comforts to reach the summit of existence."-Tarryn Ballard, the one and only

"Life is not wondering what life is, I think. Just accepting everything."-Gaby Escobar who is so in touch with her emotions, love her!

"Laughing, loving, and knowing yourself. That's life, or what I want mine to be."-Josiah Ranger

And my definition was : "Life is an ever-changing process, not an event. It's this collage of all the decisions you've made and people you've met, all the things you've thought. It's meant to be experienced, not observed. It's a collage!"

Was that good? Was it good? What is your idea of life?

Day 54: Romance Day

Today I was to come up with an original compliment/pickup line.
I must of course mention my mentors, Ron Swanson: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=widD8jm-b-I And the classic cutie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6XGUhzfutc
What I came up with was: You make Joseph Gordon-Levitt wish he was you!
Hermione Granger would be jealous of that brain!
Obviously I suck at pickup lines, but hey, I tried.
In other news, I'm pretty in love with the world right now and I'm just happy to the core. Soul is soaring, can't stop smiling. Love will do that to you.

Day 43: Proper Journaling

Today journal about your day.
Today was a wildly unremarkable day. Like any other day, I followed my routine: getting up, scrolling through  Tumblr, showering, eating a delightfully unhealthy breakfast and whatnot. When I saw my challenge for the day I was instantly aware of how many thoughts we have per day. It's incredible how we humans can fill up our days without truly doing anything. I mean, we can go through many 24 hours, periods where we occupy the world and never really create, go through, or do something we'll remember years from now. Like many days, today passed by unnoticed and unremarkable like heartbeats. But perhaps cataloging the ordinary can make these things somehow extraordinary. We get to step back and see the small glimmers of beauty that we otherwise would not take note of.
I enjoyed the warm summer day this afternoon and then spent the day at Barnes and Noble. I got I Am the Messenger, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and How I Met Your Mother season one. I ate pancakes for dinner and realized just how off kilter my diet really is. Good thing I'm a runner and I've got a nice, steady, teenage metabolism.
I watched The Breakfast Club which made me laugh and cry and think. And of course I admired the genius of George Watsky. Oh, and Sour Patch Kids. Damn. I need to eat a more balanced diet.
A remarkably unremarkable day, but in seeing this, I realized just how much I want to make my days count. Because, though small joys can be nice, you can only go so long before you have to free fall.