Welcome


Welcome to a world of poetry and soliloquoy-

A world of dogmatic digressions and serious exhortations on frivolity and grandeur.

My brain is like a circus. These are chronicles of the circus-freaks and sideshows and mysterious wonders which I carry with me on a daily basis.

I am, therefore I write.

I write, therefore I arrive.

Friday, March 25, 2011

Works of Art

I went dancing with Natalie and Anna Knight on Monday night and learned how to foxtrot, waltz, and east coast swing.
All of which I quickly forgot how to do by the next morning. But that doesn't really bother me, I've got plenty of time to re-learn and retain dance steps in the future, when I have a solid partner who won't disappear after one evening.
I do love dancing, though.
I hope I get to do a lot of it in my future, especially when I'm old.

There was this exuberant, vivid old couple, well into their nineties, who were dancing in the advanced class and they absolutely captured my attention and irretrievably stole my heart.
He wore a blue sweater vest and khakhis, she a purple scarf and matching violet pants. Together they made happy smiles fantastically haute-couture.
As soon as I saw them I was struck with awe-inspiring wonder. Together since the flood, greatly advanced in years, taking dance classes for the simple fun of it, because their impressive health allowed them to do so!
How great it would be to even be alive, or even just barely walking at ninety-five, and there they were.
Foxtrotting arond the dance floor with more vibrance and vitality than some of the couples half their age.

It made me think of that Eleanor Roosevelt quote, "Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art," for that is what they truly were. Beautiful. A stunning, detailed work of unforgettable, inspiring art.
A picture representing 100,000 words. Words of love, wisdom, happiness, and unfathomable teamwork. They were a perfect pair of sweet, earthly angels.
I only wish I could have known them!
I can't imagine what the story of their lives must be like. So revelatory of true sacrifice, I'm sure. And real, honest, unpretentious love.

That is what I want out of life. To have loved so fervently the same person for the span of a decided lifetime, to share with one person a lifetime of happiness, heartbreak, earth-shattering joy and faith-breaking blows.
To be healthy enough to dance with the only one I've ever truly loved when I'm only five years away from my own birthday centennial.
I guess that would be the diehard romantic in me, but I'm fairly certain I'm not the only one who feels like that.
Age is beauty. It really is. And love is eternal. And life is worth living if only to find that one true love.


My loves,
my doves,
my eggs.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

It's Okay to Be Irish Every Now and Then, Even If You're Mostly Dutch

I woke up this morning to my alarm blasting Galway Girl at 8:30 AM.
This is a wonderful way to wake up on St. Pat's day.

I lazily turned my alarm off and went back to bed for another hour and a half, because I felt that if I was truly going to celebrate Ireland today, I might as well start it off by doing whatever I darn-well wanted too, and at that moment all I wanted to do was go back to sleep.
Bonny morning, indeed.

After waking up a second time, I spent the remainder of my morning meditating on Irish poems. As a beautiful Christmas present, Beks bought me a *slightly-used* first edition (from 1908, people) book of Irish Countryside Poems, Songs and Ballads by Alfred Perceval Graves.
I'll leave it to your imagination skills to bet on how excited I was upon opening that dear Christmas present....
Anyways. I came across a few gems, especially of note one titled "The Exiles", and another known as "Come, Sit Down Beside Me". Pretty much, Irish poetry is so beautiful. I'd like to expand my collection of it.

After that, I spent a leisurely hour 'watching' QVC's St. Patty's Day Celebration as Celtic Thunder were due to perform live, and was almost brainwashed into buying one of those hideous Aran sweaters that they advertise so blatantly well. You know, as I was watching, thinking all along "That is so unbelievably ugly" and alternately, "Oh my gosh, I really want one", the lady who was marketing them said that something like 6,000 of them had sold in the past 12 hours. 6,000. And that was only that particular style. They must have had about 27 different styles of Merina wool Aran sweaters, all selling roughly the same numbers.
I wonder if those QVC presenters get paid on commission....... Sign me up, if they do, please! I can pretend to like ugly sweaters and even uglier jewelry if it means I get a percentage of every single ugly sweater and ugly jewelry item I sell!!!!! Especially if I'm selling 6,000 of each in one single day.
... I didn't mean for this to turn into a marketing rant, I digress.

Anyways. So I got to watch "the boys" perform some of their new songs live on tv, which really, now that I think about it, was kind of pointless because I've already seen them live in concert singing the exact same songs. Only it was still cool. Because I am just that big of a dork and get that excited about something as cheesy as Celtic Thunder. ;)
(I am planning on going to see them again in concert this fall, by the way. Thought you oughtta be in on every part of my slowly increasing digression into insanity and lifelong loneliness...)

The rest of the day I sort of tinkered around, baking Irish Cream Cake and listening to classic folk pub songs and daydreaming of future St. Patty's Days spent in Ireland with real Irish people and Guinness on draft, instead of from a can.... I also spent an absurd amount of time getting ready for work tonight, donning some particularly heart-stealing shamrock spattered-tights, and making-up my eyes with four different shades of glittery green eyeshadow. It was a lot of fun getting dressed up for the holiday, seeing as I actually had somewhere to go this year.

And work really was amazing. Everyone's in a good mood on St. Patty's Day, you know? Everyone is just happy. This is because Irish people are just happy, and being able to celebrate all that St. Patrick did for Christianity is happy too. Even though nobody really celebrates that anymore, they just all go out and get drunk. To each his own.

Patty had Irish music playing when I got there, and everybody had a little bit of green something on, they stocked up on Guinness for tonight only, and everyone who came in ordered some. The kitchen smelled like Corned Beef instead of pizza (tonight's St. Paddie's special), and all the customers were flooded in different shades of green clothing.
A soft, soothing rain started to fall outside, and when I looked out the window down the street, it looked just like a cozy, wet street in the middle of Donegal.
"Happy St. Patrick's Day!"s were being tossed around lovingly, and everybody was in such a beautiful mood.
It felt like home. It felt like Ireland. And that truly put me in the best mood of all.

So really, in the last few moments of this glorious St. Patty's Day, I've just been reflecting on the gift of this beautiful country and beautiful culture that God has given to our world, and the influence it's had on my life.
To be Irish is to have lifelong friendship, love and loyalty, and if you have all of those things, you don't need a lot of money or a lot of non-starchy foods.
St. Patty's has always seemed like such a familial holiday, and I think that's why I love it so much. It's like Thanksgiving, where you celebrate all that you have to be thankful for, only instead, you're just celebrating the fact that you're alive and that you're surrounded by people you love. Which is cause enough to throw back a few Guinnesses anyday, but while we're at it, let's also remember the amazing sacrifices and bounding leaps made by one of history's greatest Saints, and wear some green for good luck.
Win-win situation all around, in my opinion!

I hope you've all had a wonderful St. Patrick's Day so far, and may you continue to have a safe night ahead, wherever you are.
Xoxo


My loves,
My doves,
My Irish eggs.


"Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

I bind unto myself the Name
The strong Name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.
By whom all nature hath creation,
Eternal Father, Spirit, Word:
Praise to the Lord of my salvation,
Salvation is of Christ the Lord."
- Taken from St. Patrick's Breastplate



"O! If for ev'ry tender tear
That from our aching exiled eyes
Has fallen for you, Erin dear,
Our own loved Shamrocks could arise,
They'd weave and weave a garland green,
To stretch the cruel ocean through,
All, all the weary way between
Our yearning Irish hearts and you.

And oh! If ev'ry patriot prayer,
Put forth for your sad sake to God,
Could in one cloud of incense rare
Be lifted o'er your lovely sod,
That cloud would curtain all the skies
That far and near your fairness cope,
Until upon its arch of sighs
There beamed Heav'ns rainbow smile of hope."
-The Exiles, Alfred P. Graves



Health and long life to you,
Land without rent to you,
A child every year to you,
And if you can't go to Heaven, may you at least die in Ireland.
-Irish toast.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

I Wrote This on March 15th and Forgot to Post It

March 15th.



Today I got locked out of my house for 30 mins while I waited in the wind and rain for my dad to come home with the key. He had forgotten I wasn't already at home, but he remembered to lock the doors. Oddly enough, I got home and after running pell-mell through the golf-ball sized raindrops checking the doors on all sides of the house finding to no avail that all of them were locked, I collapsed on my front porch and I started laughing.

It was like a scene from a movie. Stranded on my front porch with my guitar case in one hand and a starbucks in the other, laughing alone in the rain.

It was at that moment I realized I am exactly who I want to be. My life is so wonderful, despite the rainstorms every now and then, and I'm living the sort of life I've always wanted to live. I've always wanted to be that girl stuck in the howling rain, laughing, and there I was today; I was her. I am her.

I have not a doubt in my mind that I will get myself into these sorts of situations many'a'time again in the future. And instead of having dear old dad around to bail me out 30 minutes later, I'll have to rely on my own intuition and wit to get myself through the trial. To be honest, I don't mind much. In fact, I wouldn't have minded today if my only option was to walk in the rain down to the nearest public convention and ask for some kindly assistance. I probably would have started channeling Mary Poppins, and broken into song, as the wind howled and the water swelled in miniature waving floods below the edge of the curb.

I would have had to leave my guitar case on my front porch, though. No point in risking Kensington's safety for a jolly, rainy 2 mile jaunt into town.

It's been one of those sorts of days, ever since.

The kind where anything that could go wrong will, but I'm in one of those moods where none of it matters anyway, and all I can do is smile, and laugh. And possibly start singing, if there's a song that goes with the moment... Which, there inevitably always is.

And so I leave you with a song that I have been singing all day long. (Get ready for a blast from the past...;)

Cheers, loves.
Two days 'til St. Paddie's!

My loves,
my doves,
my eggs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlDPPu53V80&feature=related

Friday, March 4, 2011

Favorite Morning

As I'm sure you all know by now that my favorite food is pancakes, I thought I should preface this post by telling you that I made the most delicious pancakes EVER this morning.
Not an exaggeration, I promise you.
Spiced Whole Wheat Pancakes with Cinnamon Honey topping.
The absolute best thing about these pancakes is that they're made with whole wheat flour, honey, and applesauce instead of enriched flour, sugar and vegetable oil. So they're healthy for you. And you can stay away from the high-fructose corn syrup she-devil (Aka Mrs. Butterworth), by making use of the delicious honey topping, flavored with cinnamon and a little butter for richness. So good.
I served it with a juicy, sweet, blood orange. Heaven.

I love blood oranges. I haven't had a whole one in almost three years. The first time I ever had one was on an overnight ferry from Italy to Greece, and I fell in love. It was a great experience. I remember sitting there, chowing down on some highly unimpressive cafeteria-style ferry food, and suddenly one of my fellow tripmates caught my eye. What on earth was she eating? Bloody stomach?? It looked disgusting as it was dripping and oozing and just, well, "guts-ing" all over the place. "What IS that???" I asked incredulously, unable to keep my aghast opinion to myself. She grinnned. "It's an orange.."
I looked down at my platter where I, too, had grabbed an innocent-enough looking orange. Say what. That should be orange on the inside. It really should. Hello. Why do they call it an orange?
Tentatively, I sliced it open, and to my immediate surprise- blood red insides.
"WHOAAAAAA!" .... I had to try it.
I popped a small wedge in my mouth and it exploded into robust, sweet, overwhelming flavor. I had to try it again. And again. And again. And- oh. It's gone now. WHERE CAN I GET MORE?!

And yeah. That's pretty much how it went down. After that, I ate as many of those as I could find. Which wasn't hard to do, really. They're very popular in that part of the world, much to my immediate appreciation.

Sweet, sweet memories.

I also had coffee in my favorite mug this morning.... "All You Need is Love." And I've been listening to my favorite playlist on my iPod. It's called Skinny Love, (Named after that amazing Bon Iver song) and it has 39 of the greatest soul-searching, soft, easy, rainy day songs on it. And a few non rainy day songs. Like Firework, by Katy Perry. Which, in my opinion, is an everyday sort of song. I love it.

In conclusion, my morning has been one of absolute favorites. Which is exactly how mornings should be I think.
Now, on to more productive and livelier things!
But first:
As I believe in sharing music, I'm going to outline my Skinny Love playlist below for you, in hopes that you will try a few of the songs and enjoy them. If you don't, that's okay. I like typing lists anyways. ;)

Skinny Love.

I'll Be Your Man- Mcfly
Truador- Neil Byrne
The Hill- Marketa Irglova
Trouble- Ray Lamontagne
Jar of Hearts- Christina Perri
Whiskey in the Jar- Thin Lizzy
I Need a Woman- Mcfly
Hold You in My Arms- Ray Lamontagne
The Dutchman- Steve Goodman
Adieu Sweet Lovely Nancy- Mick Mcauley and Winifred Horan
Firework-Katy Perry
The Homes of Donegal- Paul Brady
Falling Slowly- Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova
Pencil Full of Lead- Paolo Nutini
I Would Be Sad- The Avett Brothers
Raoul And Her Ladyship- Neil Byrne
Won't Go Home Without You- Maroon 5
Incomplete and Insecure- The Avett Brothers
Shine a Light-McFly feat. Taio Cruz
To Make You Feel My Love- Mick Mcauley and Winifred Horan
Kick Drum Heart- The Avett Brothers
Sadie Jones and I- Neil Byrne
Cherish- Neil Byrne
Laundry Room- The Avett Brothers
Skinny Love- Bon Iver
Rolling in the Deep- Adele
At the Beach- The Avett Brothers
Souls Like the Wheels- The Avett Brothers (My current fav of this playlist)
For Emma- Bon Iver
Sun It Rises- Fleet Foxes
Say It To Me Now- Glen Hansard
Far Away-Ingrid Michaelson
May You Never- John Martyn
Where Do You Go To My Lovely- Peter Sarstedt
Hannah- Ray LaMontagne
All the Wild Horses- Ray LaMontagne
Light You Up- Shawn Mullins
It Means Nothing- Stereophonics
I Hope That I Don't Fall in Love With You- Tom Waits

My Loves,
my doves,
my eggs.
Xx