Art Mail

A few months ago a little girl moved in across the street from me, and she happens to be incredibly friendly with the big personality. I'd say she's about 9ish? Well, the other day, Jamie came over while I was gone to talk to my mom about something and she spotted a drawing of a dog I did in an art class when I was right about her age. Apparently she thought it was awesome, and told my mom that she wanted to learn to draw better. With that, my mom took around the house and showed her ALL of my paintings and drawings from ages 8 to 15, which, keep in mind, were very good. So good, that I can't do anything close to it now since I stopped almost every art form but photography. BUT regardless of my lack of skill right now, she got excited about my drawings so I told her I would try and give her a few lessons. If anything I can teach her to focus on the basic art elements nailed into my brain from school. 

Well, That was about 2 weeks ago and I still have not had the time to go over an show her anything. She sent me an adorable letter in the shape of a book with a little note and a few drawings she did. SO cute!! 

Cute right? So that made me feel REALLY bad about not having time yet, so I decided the least I could do was give here an art letter back. I sent her a note apologizing about taking so long. I also gave her a little book I made with sketches of flowers, bugs, food and trees that she can practice with and try to draw if she wants. That way she can start without me.

I hope she likes it, I dropped it off this morning. Maybe she'll make another one back!

Well, I've finished my coffee and bagel, time to go Nanny for the Gus-meister. Hope ya'll have a great Thursday!

Daisy!

I get to be friends with this pup for the week! She's staying with us while our neighbors are out of town. Her name is Daisy and she makes me miss having a dog around the house! More to come soon, I have to nanny right now, but I'll update again soon with more adorable pictures! 

The Very Hungry Caterpillar named...Joe.

Because every cool living being needs a name. So the other day my mom asked me to pick lettuce from her garden while she was out. When I went back into the kitchen to wash it off, I found a well camouflaged caterpillar nomming on a piece, a piece that happened to be the biggest and most delicious looking. Even though he was kind of a jerk for eating my mom's lettuce, I can't blame him because it's pretty yummy, so I thought I'd transfer him to another leaf in the front yard and let him be. Apparently he wasn't too happy about leaving the piece of lettuce because he tried pretty hard not to. It took FOREVER to move him, so in the process I took pictures! I really have no idea why this would be interesting to someone, but if you want to look at pretty lettuce and a cute caterpillar here ya go!

I went back outside after washing the rest of the lettuce to see what he was up to, but he was no where to be seen. Guess he didn't like the new real estate. Sorry Joe, but it's better than being eaten right? 

Have a great friday!

How Amy Got Her Groove Back

Well, I haven’t really. But did you miss me??? It's been almost a year!!! I totally missed you, whoever you are. Really. If you're a 40 year old man who's lonely and living in Queens, NY but for some reason you have enjoyed following me, I missed you! It's time for a change. A new blog, reborn from an old one, keeping the old posts. Like internet Inception.

With this blog, I’m hoping I will get my groove back in several ways. One is photography. I spent this past semester taking my camera everywhere and shooting everything. I spent my photo classes working hard on ideas I was passionate about and in those general ed classes, I basically ignored the professor and attempted to come up with fun concepts and different ways to express myself photographically. Now that the semester is over and money has become my priority, I’m completely out of it artistically. I haven’t picked up my camera for over two weeks. While that may not seem like a big deal to a lot of people, that’s like an eternity to me! So maybe having a new and exciting place to share my photos may be able to get my groove back with photos.

I’m also hoping that using this will help me reflect on my life and pay better attention to relationships, the simple pleasures in life, and hopefully just finding a new way to appreciate my blessed life. It will also pose a therapy as I watch a 2 year old wild child Monday through Friday with a heart of gold and the energy of a chipmunk on crack. 

What will this blog entail? Photos, videos, music, thoughts, rants, cool info… basically it’s gonna be where I let my mind throw up all the randomness that may be worth sharing with the rest of the world. There’s really no point to this blog except to reflect awesomeness. I’ll be writing most of these while drinking coffee mix with milk, chocolate, and deliciousness while I prep my mind for a busy day. Today with my coffee, I also happen to be eating the most delicious croissant on the planet. You jelly? You should be. 

 So, if you’re reading this, and it may only be 3 really bored people for all I know, I hope you enjoy my caffeine-driven blog.

Sincerely,

Me!

Vacay?

The past 3 weeks or so have been physically and emotionally exhausting for a few reasons. I've lost sleep, I've been down, I have had a list of things to get done that never seems to get even close to the end. But now I'm finally gone from all of that for 10 days, where I will rarely have internet or cell reception. I started in Boone on friday and I've just arrived in Tennessee with my best friend and about 50 family members for a family reunion until Sunday. I can sit on a porch swing and do absolutely nothing but hike, sleep, eat, take pictures, swim, and spend time with family that I never see. 

Boone was great. Both of my best friends made it for the weekend.  We stayed in Kat's apartment and spent some quality time together. Here is a list of memorable highlights because I'm too lazy to go into detail:

 Day one.

- Had dinner at Coyote Kitchen and when on a long drive along the back roads of Boone.

- Made some yummy drinks.

- Roasted marshmallows using microwaves, candles and a lighter, and ate s'mores

- Found my new addiction: Organic Cinnamon Crunch cereal.

Day two.

- Slept in past 10 which was a first this summer. Not too mention I didn't  actually get out of bed until 11:30.

- Made the best smoothies ever.

- Went to a party and played Mario Kart

- Beat an undefeated team at beer pong, my first game in 2 years. Score.

Day three.

-Bestie's car wouldn't start. The headlights were on all night.

- Called AAA  to jump my bestie's car.

- AAA failed to jump bestie's car and couldn't tow it to the dealership bc it was sunday. Lame.

- I lost my keys. Not as lame but making the day more lame.

- I thought we would be stranded in Boone all week with my lack of keys and her dead battery. Super lame. I want to go hiking.

- I found my keys and hour later. Sweet.

- Got on the parkway and took a gorgeous hike and watched the rain clouds move in.

- Nicole left for home because of work the next day, we showed off some sweet dance moves in the rain as she drove off.

-Packed up Kat's place in boxes for her big move.

Day four.

- Got coffee at Panera and got on the internet.

- Towed bestie's car and left it there.

- Made a few trips to move Kat's stuff to storage.

- Storage guys decided to go on lunch break without the checking cameras and locked us in.

- Kat escaped through a side door and manages to open the gate through the outside, thus freeing us.

- Ate Chickfila sitting in the open trunk of my car and reflected on the weekend.

- Then headed to TN., where we are currently going to bed after dipping peanut butter cookies into hazelnut coffee on the front porch. 

Actually I'm the only one awake and even though I don't have internet I felt like writing. But because my laptop is the only light around, I'm being attacked by moths and gnats who apparently have secret passageways to get into this cabin, meaning the light's gotta go. But there are quite a few fireflies that have gotten in too, and it's pretty wonderful to look at.

More to come  soon.

Leave. Don't worry. Everything will still be here when you get back. It is you who will have changed.

      That's the encouragement I took from a book by Donald Miller in high school, when worrying about my future, college, dreams, etc. The advice is wonderful and it's tugging at me again, for when I graduate. Before age ten grew up thinking my life would be graduating college, getting a job, living in Charlotte and getting married and having children. When I realized that wasn't required of me in society anymore, I decided that path for me personally was absolutely crazy. At least until I'm much much older. There is way too much I want to experience before any kind of settlement happens. I've rarely given any thought to a wedding or children since then. Not that it won't happen, maybe one day, but definitely not anytime soon. I always told people that when I grew up I'd be a photographer or artist. But there are so many other things I want to learn and make a living from. How can people just choose one thing to do?        
       I only have one life to experience, so I may never know what I want to be. I really crave experiencing every place and culture the world has to offer, finding true love in nature and living simply, and make my career in life to become selfless, help those who need it, and to find God in everything I do. This may be a bit too Eat Pray Love for some people, but to me it sounds like the most rewarding life out there. It may not be realistic, to be honest not many of my dreams have been. But I don't want to let this one that I love so much slip away.

I have a long to do list for my life. I won't list all of them but here are a few.

-Work in a vineyard
-Learn to sail
-See the northern lights
-Spend at least a month in New Zealand
-See a sunrise in the Grand Canyon
-Have a sweet six pack, but I'll settle for a flat stomach
-Learn how to be completely self-sustainable
-Own a piano
-Take a road trip across the US
-Inspire someone
-Become slightly domesticated (aka cook)
-Improve my spanish by spending a few months in South America
-High-five a monkey
-Work with marine life like dolphins, seals, etc, even if it's just feeding them dead fish.

So... If you see me in seven years living in Charlotte and I've only done two or three of these things, please poke me in the eye and remind me that I really wanted a cool life for myself. I may need a reminder, especially if I'm poor.

"It's a living book this life... Soon the credits will roll and all your friends will fold out of your funeral and drive back to their homes in cold and still and silence. They will make a fire and pour some wine and think about how you once were... and feel a kind of sickness at the idea you will never be again. My hope is that your story will be about changing, about getting something beautiful born inside you, about learning to love a woman or a man, about learning to love a child, about moving yourself around water, around mountains, around friends, about learning to love others more than we love ourselves, about learning oneness as a way of understanding God. We get on story, you and I, and one story alone."
Donald Miller.

This post is dedicated to my grandpa who passed a year ago, July 7th 2010. One of the most inspiring and spiritual people I've ever known.

It's also dedicated to my friend Ted who still manages to travel the world without the use of most of the muscles in his body due to ALS.

Pitch Black Porch Jams, Featuring Fela Ellis