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 I started re-reading the Harry Potter series again. I do this a lot. Actually, mainly the Deathly Hallows this time. I dunno, reading those books always make me feel better about things. I guess I kinda get lost in their world and whatever my current reality falls away. Not many book series do that for me-- I think this is the only one, really. (You can tell me the Lord of the Rings series over and over again, which is very good and I recognize that, but I never quite connected to it like I did with Harry. That's just me.) I dunno, I just like everything about it: the characters, the plots, and how everything really does fit together. It still blows my mind how JK Rowling set everything up in book one. While it is a children's series, it does reach every age. I'm a twenty-something and I'm still (and will continue to be) a huge fan. The first four books I have are in paperback, and they're pretty worn now. The last three I have in hardcover, so they're still in pretty good shape. At the core of it, the idea of love is something I'm drawn to. It's complex yet simple in its meaning. Doing things out of love, having more love in this world... love, above all. I dunno, I just like that.
—Tuesday, June 30, 2009 0 comments Dunno
 - Saddam's Palaces: An Interview with Richard Mosse - Infinite Summer (let's finish Infinite Jest together!) - Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland photos (!!!) - Art by Mike Stimpson - Sorry I'm Late - My Milk Toof A farewell to the departed: Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, Michael Jackson, and Billy Mays. Goodbye, and thank you. (Previously: Lists, part 24)
—Sunday, June 28, 2009 1 comment Lists, part 25
 I don't know what to say. I grew up listening to him, all the way from the Jackson 5 to Off the Wall to Thriller to Dangerous. Everything. He shaped and defined the world of pop music; he was the King of Pop. I'm shocked, sad, and all sorts of emotions all at once, you know? It just came out of left field, and now... he's gone. Goodbye, MJ. You are a legend. » Michael Jackson videos » Michael Jackson, Pop Icon, Is Dead at 50
—Thursday, June 25, 2009 1 comment Goodbye, Michael Jackson
 "Excuse me, I saw you walking down the street and I thought 'She's got a great sense of style!' and I just had to stop and ask who you are!" Well, that's definitely something I never expected to hear. I was walking to work like any other morning, looking around and enjoying the nice weather (hey, no rain!) when this man, who was jogging, stopped and said that to me. I immediately thought, "Uhh... what?" I must have had the most amused look on my face, but I stuck out my hand and said, "I'm Amy." "Amy? My name is Keith." I kind of looked at him oddly during the awkward pause. He continued, "So are you on your way to school?" (For the sake of this story, I will tell you that I look really young for my age.) And just the way he said that made me feel uncomfortable. It was a little creepy, and the smile didn't help. Needless to say, I was concernicus. I shifted my feet and said, "No, I'm going to work..." I pointed in the opposite direction as I started to move away. "So I'm going to... go..." He smiled, slightly disappointed and said, "Well, okay then. Bye!" He slowly jogged off as I walked away, quietly laughing, puzzled and curious all at once. I've had some really weird interactions around here but that one was just bizarre. Like, I can't even... it was just really bizarre. In retrospect, I probably should have kept the conversation going but that instinct kicked in and I went with it.
—Tuesday, June 23, 2009 1 comment A sense of style...?
 Well, I don't think it's going to stop raining anytime soon. I think we had a brief respite on Friday before the clouds rolled back in. I guess I could make some kind of analogy with rain and washing away things, but... well... maybe not. (I'll leave that up to you.) I'm just going to keep wondering, "Where's summer?"
—Saturday, June 20, 2009 2 comments Raining away
 I used to, at the end of each year, do this annual clean where I dumped anything I didn't need into bags and donated them to the local charity. I haven't done one of those in a long time, and sitting in my room the other day, I looked at all the clutter and thought, "There's too much." I wanted to free up space physically as well as mentally. More space, more room to breathe, more room to think clearly. I have no problem clearing out clothes and shoes, especially the ones that don't fit me anymore, and random odds and ends. But for the most part, a lot of the things I own have sentimental value and it's not easy for me to let those go. So I end up keeping them because I'm afraid I won't remember once they're gone. I think when they mean "living with less," they mean to rid yourself of the unimportant things, the things that aren't pertinent to you anymore. Maybe one day I won't want or need those sentimental things, and I'll smile sadly thinking, "It was good... it was good." Until then, out with clothes and shoes! I made my first of many donation drops yesterday, and I'm starting to feel lighter already.  I finally joined Readernaut and you can find me here! At the moment, I can't stop adding books and quotes; it's just the initial rush, you know? More importantly, I have a place where I can keep track of my reading and quotes that I like (though, technically that's what the Tumblr was for... hmm, too many places!). Too often I start those books I've read lists and misplace them. If you're on it, feel free to say hello! It's been slow and steady, but I'm officially hooked on Bones. (Well, Bones McCoy also.) I watched it in passing when it first started, and I liked it then but I never really got hooked on it. So since most TV shows are on hiatus until the Fall, I've been catching Bones on TNT and Fox when it airs. Man, it is addictive and I love it. I love the whole forensic anthropologist and social awkwardness, and yes, I may have a thing for David Boreanaz (hello, Angel from Buffy! And of his own show... aww, Spike!) and randomly, John Francis Daley? Sam Weir, all grown up! I did a complete double take when I first saw him on the show. Bringing back some Freaks and Geeks memories! I love it. So that's what I've been doing. Besides life. And reading.
—Thursday, June 11, 2009 0 comments Readernaut, Bones
 It's no secret that I admire many people in life. They inspire me, whether to be a better person or to simply remind me that it's okay to indulge once in a while. But, while admiring is great, it's important not to lose yourself within that. I think it's easy to want to be like someone simply because you like their style and how they are as a person. You kind of start wanting their life and how they live it (in a non-creepy way). The truth is, that person is that person. And you are you. You're unique in your own way: the way you do things and why. So I guess what I'm trying to say is that, it's great to admire and be inspired but remember, always, to be true to who you are.
—Tuesday, June 9, 2009 0 comments Be you
 She gave me a marble on the last day. As I started to hand it back, she said, "Keep it." Most of time I found myself tripping over my own words, rambling on about this and that. I spoke fast, my mind on fire. Sometimes I apologized for complaining, and she said, "It's not complaining; it's figuring it out." She always sat across from me, looking right at me, interpreting, rephrasing, making connections I never saw. She had that voice, that calm voice that balanced out my fast-paced chatter. I was nervous, anxious and tired at the beginning but somehow, I managed to find some peace of mind and slowed myself down. By the end, I talked how I normally talked and felt how I usually felt: calm, patient and collected. "It's a process," she said. She told me I had the answers inside me, that I just needed to let go and trust my intuition. "I overanalyze a lot, I know," I said. She said my self-awareness is refreshing and it's good I know this about myself. "Let's work on going from here (points to the head) to here (points to the gut)," she told me. It was like riding a bike for the first time without training wheels. I spend a lot time in my head, just in there, evaluating any situation or reaction I'm faced with. Human intuition is something we don't give enough credit to, our "sixth sense." I tried it out on small situations like deciding what kind of cookie I wanted from the local bakery. Normally I would look at all the choices, think about what I'm in the mood for, and try to decide on one cookie. Instead, I went in and said, "Oatmeal raisin, please." I didn't glance at the selection; I went with my gut. When I walked out of the bakery with cookie in hand, I slowed down and thought, "Well, that was... easy?" I have a terrible habit of making simple things complicated. On the last day, she taught me some exercises on how to get out of my head. It was weird, focusing on minute details and losing myself in a different but quiet place. Then she gave me a marble. It's a greenish yellow color, shiny and smooth. It might have been from her collection or she might have gotten it from a street vendor. She told me to hold it in my hand, to feel it, to focus on how it felt. Again, I lost myself in a different but quiet place. "Keep it," she said. She smiled at me and nodded.
—Thursday, June 4, 2009 The marble
 Honest to blog, I have no idea what happened. One minute I was editing some code, the next a bunch of stuff disappeared. (I think it was a combination of my computer and Safari flipping out on me or I did something weird, I don't know.) Naturally I thought, "Well, I backed up this layout so I'm good!" I went looking for it on my external drive and... couldn't find it. Surely I was tired and must have missed it. I went looking for it the next day. Still, nothing. At this point, I was thinking, "Oh nooo..." You know what I most likely did? In my daze of coding that layout back then, I probably thought I had backed it up (but really didn't) and went ahead and deleted that folder off my computer. So this golden oldie is back in action, ya dig? (I hope?) At least I took a screenshot of version 4 before this all happened (and remembered which lyrics I used)... a silver lining in every cloud, right? So anyway, I'm no longer in rhyme! I have to say, writing a poem a day was pretty tough. It started off okay [sidenote: whoa, it is really raining outside right now], and then I hit a rough patch in the middle of the month. I spent a lot of my time thinking in rhyme! On the subway, I'd jot down things and sometimes while I walked-- little instances, things overheard, how I felt, etc. There were a lot of things I wanted to write about, but couldn't because I was limited to rhymes and, as you can tell, I'm not the world's greatest poet. (I'm sure all those things will slowly make their way out soon.) I think the harder part, weirdly enough, was taking photos because I had to write everyday! At one point, I forced myself to take a bunch of photos all at once because I needed photos. They weren't that great, but I did end up using them. It was a good experience, though! Now I can go back to writing when I want and, you know... webjournaling. (I feel old when I say that.)
—Wednesday, June 3, 2009 0 comments Well, there that goes
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