Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Barcelona: Day 8 : Ending a Vacation .

So while some people were off gallivanting in Valencia for La Tomatina Festival, we slept in a bit and got through a workout in the morning. Going to bed at 4am will make you a bit tired... Since the Barcelona weather is practically perfect, we decided it'd be a great idea to just make it a beach day. Nothing too special, but I took a serious chance and went without sunscreen... which is a big deal for me.


Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Barcelona: Day 7 : Queen Vic

So today we decided to explore the cable cars a bit today, and decided to go up to Montjuic, where there is an old fort that we could check out. I was happy to know that we survived entirely on groceries that we bought for the day, which left some extra money to do various things. The visit up the mountain went without a hitch, and we found the metro and the funicular train that went up to the cable gondola just fine.


Monday, August 29, 2011

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Barcelona: Day 5 : Golden-Roasted .

So, in all honesty, I've never given two shits in my life about being tan. My 'natural' skin color is an unnaturally bleak hue of what cannot be any better described by anything other than the word "white." I've always been the guy with super tan sleeves, and a white upper body. I've always been the guy with the ghostly thighs, and the silly sock tans. I've always been the guy with the ridiculous V-neck tan from wearing polos at work outside and white V-neck undershirts every other day of the week. Weird and silly tans happen, and I've learned to accept that being white is perfectly okay. I rarely go to the beach anyways, and thus it is not really a big deal. Howevveerrrrrr.....


Saturday, August 27, 2011

Barcelona: Day 4 : Lazy Saturday .

Today we all sort of came to realization that it has basically been a vacation, and will continue to be until we start our class orientation on the 1st of September. Vacationing in Spain for a week? Stellar. It's been a great way to get our bearings and find our way around a bit before classes start, and we actually have to (oh my gosh don't say it...) do. work. (shudder)


Friday, August 26, 2011

Barcelona: Day 3 : New Arrivals .

Today was the first day that we had almosttttt everybody here. It's almost hard keeping track of the days when you don't have work to keep you on schedule! We had decided the night before that a group of us were going to go to the beach today. The main ones are down in the Port OlĂ­mpic area, and that is the same place that I had been before when I came with the Student Ambassador group. It is absolutely gorgeous, and I'll post some pictures here since the one that I choose for picture of the day won't be enough to capture the whole experience. This houses two defining towers, in addition to a sculptural work of Frank Gehry's, El Pez.


Thursday, August 25, 2011

Barcelona: Day 2 : In the mix .

So today we decided that we were definitely going to have to find some sort of grocery to get some food at. My first remark when I woke up though? Good Lord it is hot. No sooner did Ryan nod his head in agreement, then we heard from across the courtyard (someone must have been on the phone), "OH MY GODDDD IT IS SOOOO HOT!" We both got a good laugh. Despite the humidity and the heat, the flight must've taken a ton out of us because we both slept until at least 11am, even though we went to bed at almost 10pm. Seems pretty ridiculous doesn't it? It seems to be that a combination of the sun, humidity, and walking around all day really tires a guy out.


Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Barcelona: Day 1 .

Well, we arrived here at about 915 this morning, Barcelona time, which is about 3am home time. We're 6 hours ahead over here... which can make communicating a bit difficult. Although, because of the flight last night, it's 915pm now and I am plenty tired!


Tuesday, August 23, 2011

adios .

So it's a mere couple of hours before I roll out to the airport. By this time Ryan should already be at Newark, and I have but to gather my final things to put into my backpack as my carry on. It is an absolutely perfectly gorgeous day, and all things have more or less gone according to schedule and plan. It still hasn't hit me that I'm leaving for so long yet... but it sure will soon! And then of course, while I am pensively staring out the window, the house starts shaking...


Monday, August 22, 2011

Music Monday #31

This week's song is Determined by Mudvayne. Be forewarned, if you don't like the heavy stuff, this is probably not one to listen to...


Sunday, August 21, 2011

life update .

I have one full day left in the States. It's pretty unreal -- I've started packing, but let's be real, regardless of what I do, it was going to end up being a last minute ordeal. This may sound absolutely insane given the amount of time I'm going to be gone.. but I don't think that I'm going to fill the 2 suitcases that I've set aside for the trip. Let's just put it this way -- I'll have plenty of room for whatever I decide to bring home with me.


Saturday, August 20, 2011

the last work day .

Summer jobs are just so weird. You get to know all these people, and at Trump that is particularly the case because people seem to come in and out so much. When you only work the summers like I do, you end up seeing a completely different group of people every season. Regardless of whether or not I was going to Spain, I would still be going 800 miles away to go to school. People from work are usually tough to keep in touch with -- you just sort of remake friendships when you come back with the same people. It will be especially hard keeping in touch with people this year, because I will be overseas and so I'll have to try to remember to email all sorts of people both at home and at school and at other schools and such. So guys, I apologize if we sort of lose touch -- I'm doing my best though! Just don't take offense. I still am planning on writing tons, and maybe even starting a 3rd blog just for the pictures and little captions and things from Spain. Not sure yet though. Of course, I'll let you know if I do.


Friday, August 19, 2011

oh, canada .

So I have this map thing on my blog that sorta shows where views are coming from, and recently a good number has been from Canada... Given that I don't know anyone from Canada, it's kind of interesting to think that maybe I caught someone's eye, and they decided to follow along. I was never really sure if the whole blog thing was going to catch on... I think that for a lot of people it was a chance to break from studying at school; when I first started writing I used to see views all over the place. Those drastically dropped off over the summer. But the friends who I am close to and know where they live, well, I see their views all the time. You know who you are -- and guys, I'm flattered that you find what I write to be interesting enough to be constantly reading about my life.


Thursday, August 18, 2011

let the rain fall down .

It's storming right now! Without a doubt, storms are awesome to watch, to feel the house shake when it thunders and the flashes blind you when the lightning hits the ground outside your window. Okay, maybe the house shaking is a bit unnerving... but it's still cool to listen to.


Wednesday, August 17, 2011

living without regrets .

Upon seeing this title you may have thought that this would be all about how I've lived my life to the fullest, and embraced even my mistakes, living without regret in all that I have done.

Well I'm about to get real; I think people who think they can live without regret is complete bullshit. Some will argue that it's possible... I just don't think it is. Some may say that because they've learned something from a mistake or something similar, that they don't regret it because of the thing that they learned. In my eyes... even if I learn something new, a tidbit of wisdom, I might very well still regret something I did.


Tuesday, August 16, 2011

seagulls .

Seagulls, to me, are a reminder of being home. It's been forever since I've actually been to the beach during the day... I'm more of a 'walk along the shore while it's night time with a cool breeze thinking about everything and anything in the world under the moonlight' kind of person. But I used to have this inkling that seagulls were absolutely the most annoying bird in the world. I remember chasing them as a kid the few times that my parents actually took us to the beach (well, my mom would take us, as my dad absolutely detests it).


Monday, August 15, 2011

Sunday, August 14, 2011

today & tonight .

Of all the things I had originally planned to do today, I got to to but one of them. Work. How fun. Torrential downpours have been going nonstop (literally) from the time I woke up, which was 5am, until about an hour or 2 ago. That is pure insanity. Ponds raised almost a foot, and other ponds were created in the middle of the roads. But that was earlier today. I got home from work so ready to just get out and do something. All plans for the rest of the day quickly slipped through my fingers, and all because of the weather. By the time we lost power, I couldn't stand being in the house anymore. I had to get out.


being ginger .

I know, the title of this sounds absolutely ridiculous. I don't know exactly what it is, but it seems that ginger people are just a bit outcast sometimes. I read an article the other day (link is here: click meeeeee to read it!) that someone wrote about being a redhead. Sometimes we are described as having a fiery personality, or having a short fuse. I can't really deny those things... but as with all other stereotypes, they can get frustrating and downright annoying. None of us can control the color of our hair, unless you dye it. Funny thing though, if someone dyes their hair red (and often times, it's that fake sort of red) they get told it looks great. But having natural red hair is not generally a desirable thing.


Friday, August 12, 2011

quotables ; vol2 .

Oscar Wilde once said "When a man is old enough to do wrong he should be old enough to do right also." This all starts from a very young age -- and unfortunately generally I feel like you learn what is wrong by what you get in trouble for. As much as I might hate to admit it, my parents had (and probably still have at least somewhat) a huge influence on who I became, and potentially even who I am to become in the future.


Thursday, August 11, 2011

quotables ; vol1 .

Miguel de Cervantes once said that "Love is invisible, and comes in and goes out as he likes, without anyone calling him to account for what he does." I love the way that these people metaphorically describe things. I feel like love can bring out the best or the worst in people. And people as much as they like may try to blame their actions on love, but in the end, it's the people who are blamed. Love gets off scot free, and lives to feed the dreams of the hopeless romantics.


president-less .

With all of the things that are going on in London and across the UK, I wanted to sort of divert from my usual personal profound-ish posts and talk about politics a little bit. It's incredible what a mass of people can do. Whatever their motives may be, the young generations of England have sent a message to their governing representatives and everyone across the face of the Earth. Now, that's not to say that I condone lighting up entire rows of houses and lines of cars while chasing after the police with baseball bats... but there are some things to be said about all of it.


Tuesday, August 9, 2011

dreamvision .

So last night I had two of the coolest dreams ever and amazingly enough I must have woken up in the middle of both of them, and thus remember pretty much the entirety of both! I figured I'd jot them down... both for personal amusement and perhaps reader entertainment

Monday, August 8, 2011

Sunday, August 7, 2011

emulation .

It has been said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. But sometimes, it may just be a bit much. I remember when I first got involved in music... at least in writing and recording my own. I was originally inspired by the sort of things that I listened to, and so that sort of set the boundaries that would define how I wrote, what I wrote, and what I used to make it all. I would be like a sponge, trying to soak up what the artists did, what their methods were, what their thought processes were. It's kind of like the media obsessing over celebrities, or kids wanting to know the warmup routines and nuances of professional athletes, except that I had my own little list of 'celebrities' to follow.


this is my life .

I feel like the typical college experience (if there even is one) is completely null and void when it comes to the life of an architecture student. First year is probably the only chance we have at a normal semester, let alone a normal year.


Saturday, August 6, 2011

dave lee .

Dave was my professor for the entirety of last year in studio. For those of you who are either not a part of architecture and/or have no idea what studio is... well, it's a class. It's the most fun course that an architecture kid could take, but at the same time it's the most demanding, stressful, exhausting, confusing, difficult course EVER. But I think that's what I love about it -- the challenge, the excitement of new ideas coming into your head and the long long nights shared with many a colleague overnight in the studio. You never realize that you've been there so long until the sun comes up again... and you soon realize that you're walking to the dining hall on zero hours of sleep, hoping some cafeteria coffee will wake you the fuck up, while so many others are well rested, dressed crisply and appropriately, happily heading to class on a full night's sleep.


Thursday, August 4, 2011

vacation....? .

I can't remember the last vacation that we've been on as a family. But, that doesn't seem to stop little ones from happening. One on one's, or partial family vacations. On that note, my parents are leaving for a weekend. It's kind of... shocking. They really don't ever do this. But, I'm looking forward to the peace and quiet that the parentless weekend will hopefully provide.


Wednesday, August 3, 2011

walmart .

After living down at school for 2 years now, I've come to have an extreme love for Walmart. The main reason? They function on college time. Aka open 24 hrs a day. And even better? They have self-checkout. What a novel idea. I love self-checkout, it lets me fly through the checkout line without having to deal with anyone! No bullshit. Amen. And even better, Walmart has just about everything you could possibly ever want. Food, clothes, sleeping things, home items, appliances, electronics, restrooms, pharmaceuticals, skin and hair care products, toiletries, it's truly got it all!


Tuesday, August 2, 2011

perfection .

Some days, everything just falls into place. Everything goes smoothly, and it's fun and everything is just exactly what you needed it to be. I'm not going to go into details, but let's just say last night was exactly that for me.


Music Monday #28

This week's song is Sleepyhead by Passion Pit.
 

anesthesia .

I am subscribed to several email posts that send out daily Bible verses, sometimes along with descriptions, explanations, thought-provoking questions, and personal experiences. Though I'm not always on time reading them, and probably should put more thought and effort into making sure I read it and meditate upon it all instead of just skimming over it, sometimes there are verses and lessons that really catch my eye. The title of a recent email devotional was 'Anesthesia.'


little pleasures v. grand scheme .

Every day that we wake up we have to make a choice. Unfortunately there is only so much time in the day with which to do things, and every day you have the opportunity to be incredibly productive or incredibly lazy. It may seem like one day doesn't mean very much, but they seem to add up quickly and fly by even quicker. Here I am sitting typing and the summer is already almost over. It doesn't feel like I've been home for 3 months already.


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