2013: Half & Half

This year was half and half. Half really bad, and half really good.

January got off to a bad start, when I realized how exhausted I was by a sport I used to love, and my laptop was stolen. That being said, I had a long winter break that resulted in a lot of thinking. I tried to keep my head up and hope for a less stressful semester but that resulted in a big NOPE.

Overall, I was in a bad mental place. I was the most homesick I had been in school, I was struggling holding onto friendships, and just unhappy. In February I had some fun at a concert (where it turns out we set a Guinness World Record for the largest Harlem Shake) and some fun with my hair color. While the semester drug on, I was able to come home for a week and also meet Maggie, who is an amazing individual. She probably doesn't know this but she got me through a lot of stuff  I was dealing with and I cannot thank her enough for that. As March came to a close I started to try and rid myself of all the negativity and embrace change no matter how strange it seems.

However, the semester from hell continued and I attempt to find a new perspective borrowed from the lessons of an English teacher.

Things turn around eventually. I helped a friend out, returned to a job I enjoy, and was able to exhale for the first time in months. My summer was filled with coffee, pie, fantasies of an apartment, and a return to personal style. I spent a week in Hawaii which involved a lot of great food and great weather. I was able to venture into Seattle for various reasons; always an adventure. At one point I convinced some of my friends to do an impromptu photo shoot with me! Most importantly I was able to visit some extraordinarily special people in what we now know as the Awesome Austin Adventure.

I returned to New York and started to get into the swing of things. It was a whole new time for me; I wasn't swimming, I was living in an apartment, and starting my third year of college. The past was behind me and it was time to move forward. And time to spend more time (and money) in New York City.

October rolled around and everything was well, I was content with where I was, even though there were a few more things I'd like to immerse myself in. And then all of a sudden...
I was published in a newspaper. Not just one, but two actually.
Natalie came to visit me!
I turned 21.
I went back to NYC for Thanksgiving and had an amazing time.
I had an amazing 5th semester actually. Only 5 more to go!

A Poem.

Since Christmas has happened,
a few days has passed,
and the things I received ,
are ones that will last.

New luggage, some shirts, a few books and an umbrella,
sure has made me one happy fella'!

Dogs were walked and Elf was seen,
ham was eaten, and Rachel was mean.

I've seen some old friends,
updated my website,
donated blood,
and now I'm ready for New Years night!

Friday the Thirteenth, Wine Tasting, Phuket, and an Interview

That's how I would sum up the past four days.

I flew home on Friday the thirteenth. I didn't think anything of it, until storm advisory warnings started appearing. A delay on ground before we even took off and a delay in air before we landed almost caused me to miss my connecting flight, but it was a good thing that one was delayed slightly too, because I got on with only a few minutes to spare. Even though I left school quite hurriedly -only a day after my last final- I'm glad I did because a winter storm on the east coast dumped snow, which I'm sure affected flights.

And if I didn't make it back, I would have missed picking out a Christmas tree, and the gourmet cookie making and wine tasting with my mom.

And I probably wouldn't have been able to visit with some friends and get great Thai food at a restaurant called Phuket (pronounced poo-kay for those of you who would pronounce it how I pronounced it at first) and then watched the second Hobbit movie afterwards.

I probably would have made it back in time for my 11:00 am interview though. I'm glad I did because I got into the city over an hour early and was able to get my first seasonal Starbucks drink in Seattle, go into Barnes & Noble and browse, and then wander though Pike Place Market while I was waiting. I had my first interview for a job that wasn't at the summer pool near my house. And I think I got the job. I mean, they said that after HR went though my paperwork they would contact me to start training so I'll take that as a good sign.
Ridden of anxiety, I was able to Christmas shop downtown for a while. In the future, I need to go downtown with my goals in mind because I was going to get a holiday bouquet and I forgot about that after passing it, and I was going to go to the Seattle Central Library but somehow that passed my mind too. It's okay though because I picked up some great finds today.

Also, appreciate my new blazer but ignore the fact that these looks like stills from a Twilight movie.

<< quilted jacket by Frank & Oak >> blazer by Topman << button down by J.Crew >> skinny tie by H&M <<

 jeans by Levis >> boots by Florsheim >> not shown: awesome constellation socks from Amy >>

Gobble Gobble

It snowed. Sure it's late November now, but it finally snowed.

I am flooded with nostalgia. The past few weeks have been full of new experiences and  inspiring moments. I went to MASS MoCA - the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art - the other weekend with some friends and one of our professors 'chaperoned' us. Except what I didn't know was that he had work exhibited at the museum, and he knew most of the artists who had exhibitions and was able to describe the thought process behind such contemporary art. One of my favorite exhibits was the collective work of Sol LeWitt. He produces huge paintings by writing a set of instructions for someone else to follow, and the end product are these monolithic wall paintings that are just fantastic to experience.

I have also asked my grandparents if they would be willing to fly me out to visit them during my spring break next year. So guess who is going to Phoenix in March! I'm so excited to see them, and to be able to visit Amy. But, part of the reason I had wanted to visit them was also to visit one of my friends who goes to school in San Diego, and I'll be spending a few days with her too. It's going to be an amazing spring break.

I spent the Thanksgiving Holiday in New York City. It's so kitschy to be there for the holiday but it's also one of those once-in-a-lifetime thing so I tried to experience as much as I could. The Macy's Day Parade, Black Friday on 5th ave, Times Square, Rockefeller Center, the holiday market in Union Square which is basically a street fair dedicated to Christmas. (File under: things I am definitely okay with.) My friends and I did a contemporary take on the traditional Thanksgiving meal by making turkey burgers and fixing them up with stuffing, gravy, and cranberry sauce - which is actually kind of delicious. I'm thankful to have found friends to share the holiday with.

Side note: hibiscus margarita.

Second side note: I vehemently despise Tuxedo, New York. But that's another story. 

The Weekend Came

What a week it has been! Unnecessarily stressful, really.
Over the course of it I have run into some things online that I have been saving and decided to share.

I actually made the image above... Couldn't be possible without this guy and his processing software!

Make your own bagels

Interesting recipe... one pan pasta

And finish off the meal with a chocolate chip cookie kahlua milkshake

While we are discussing alcohol, check out these diagrams explaining wine

This dog is more fashionable than you are

8-Bit Architects make me laugh

How to take photos at parties

After trying an earl grey cookie at the wine bar I want to try and make some...

Thinking about the holidays already? Love Star Wars? You want these

The perfect night alone


Enjoy and have a great weekend!

Saturday.

I woke up at 8:00 am, wide awake, and feeling hungry. Upon getting up and realizing that we didn't have any breakfast food because we haven't gone grocery shopping in approximately three weeks, I immediately showered and decided to make the most of my morning.

Fall has hit upstate New York at full force; brisk winds and piles of leaves galore. So I bundled up and walked downtown, where I got breakfast and coffee at The Daily Grind, one of the handful of awesome coffee shops that are around here. After my egg, bacon and cheese on a croissant I walked over to the hardware store and picked up some electrical tape for my Halloween costume (which was not worn on Halloween, but on Saturday night to the annual architecture party: Creepy Crawl.) I meandered over to the farmers market where I got a giant head of butter lettuce for $3, some cherry tomatoes, and locally made peanut butter that is infused with maple and honey. I ran another errand, and headed back to my apartment.

The entire time I was by myself, but it was one of those mornings that was perfect for being alone. I was able to collect my thoughts and smiled to myself as I walked up the somewhat treacherous hill home.

And then the Halloween party. I went as a Mondrian painting, which I had been planning out for a while now. I used electric tape and duct tape on a pair of white pants and a white tee shirt to mimic his aesthetic, and continued the look up my face just for flair. It was a lot of fun, and a great way to end the week-long celebration of turning 21.

Hope everyone had an awesome Halloween!

Twenty One.

I had what was probably the most low key twenty first birthday of any college student ever and I loved every minute of it. I was thrown a "surprise" birthday party that involved the coolest cake ever that my mom set up for me, and all of my closest friends were there. Halloween + Birthday = Amazing cake. It included black and white stripes that reminded me of beetlejuice, eyeballs all over, and a wine glass covered in gore. Chocolate cake, of course. Delicious.

And to celebrate my new ability to go out to bars, at midnight on the 31st some of my closest friends took me out to one of the iconic bars in our area to celebrate, The Ruck. Then on my birthday I wanted to go to this wine bar called The Confectionery to celebrate because I had heard some great things about it. In the end most of my best architecture friends were there celebrating with me, and as a birthday treat the waiter gave me the most expensive glass of wine on the menu for the cheapest priced one. There was conversation, cheese tasting, and wine drinking that made my night. After that, one of our friends made us sushi while I was served glass after glass of bourbon, and it was truly an enjoyable night.

So thank you guys, all of you, for making my birthday a wonderful one.

In addition, since a year has gone by, consequentially so have another year of goals. In the past year I have achieved a few of my 21 before 21, so I decided to do 21 before 22, because it's one less and I would really like to check everything off this year.

21 Before 22

- Develop a work-out schedule
- Become LEED Accredited
- Have one vegetarian meal a month
- Read/Watch the Game of Throne serires
- Submit an entry for a design competition 
- Travel somewhere new (Canada?)
- Read Subculture
- Go to a winery
- Draw more
- Learn how to use sketch-up and AutoCAD
- Have my grandma show me how to crochet a blanket
- Get an architecture internship
- Go to the Seattle Public Library 
- Take a yoga class
- Run a half marathon
- Grow a mustache
- Go to Beth's Cafe & get a 12 egg omelet
- Go paddle boarding
- Start regularly recording my outfits
- Use and develop at least 1 disposable camera
- Get my motorcycle drivers licence