allegro

Snow day

2012-01-15T11:26:00.000-08:00

It's been a dry winter here for us, and yesterday we had our first snow of the season. It wasn't too much yesterday, but it's been coming down hard all morning today!
*Edit: These were taken around 11 a.m. It's gotten so much more snowy since (and precarious to drive!).

2012

2012-01-01T16:19:00.000-08:00

i.
tiptoe forward,
reaching through the dark --

ii.
we light up the sky
but we can't see ahead.

I hope the new year surprises you in all sorts of wonderful ways. Happy New Year!

Have yourself a merry little Christmas

2011-12-25T11:43:00.000-08:00

I hope you and your family are having a wonderful holiday season. Merry Christmas!

On Consumer Technology

2011-12-19T17:32:00.000-08:00

The feeling of productivity, to some, is exhilarating. I am unashamedly one of those people. And because doing one thing at a time is not good enough, we've redefined the concept of multitasking.

Now you can chat with a friend, catch up on the news, and write your English essay all at the same time. Why bother flying to visit relatives when you can save time (and money) by Skyping?

Not to mention all the new verbs that have stemmed out of this new technology. Nowadays, we can Skype, Google, IM, text, and Tweet. And it is a testament to the rapid growth of the young technology industry -- one that has been around for only 50 or so years -- that terms like "IM" and "GameBoy" have already gone out of vogue, and companies like MySpace have crashed and burned in a matter of a few short years.

Things move fast in the Internet world. News travels at the speed of light. If you're not enlightened within a few hours, you're already behind. The world is starting to run on "Internet time."

Multitasking is the new modus vivendi. If your brain isn't wired to move a million miles an hour and juggle five different things at once, life in modern society is going to be tough for you.

For our generation, that's life going on as normal. The idea of a world without iPods and iPads, video games and smartphones, Windows and Xbox is an unfathomable, archaic one. To me, there's no better indication of the frightening power of technology that, when we lost our power in December 2006 to a storm, we were utterly lost and bored without our computers and cell phones. After all, what is there to life if you don't know what every one of your friends is doing every second of the day?

November PAD Challenge!

2011-11-02T18:11:00.000-07:00

Hello poem-ers!

I completely forgot about the November Poem-a-Day Challenge until I happened to visit Poetic Asides and realized that it was in full swing. So I've jumped on the bandwagon!

I won't be posting my poems here because I won't be able to submit them to journals, magazines, and the like, but I would encourage everyone to jump in headfirst. (Especially if you didn't do the poem-a-day challenge in April or weren't pleased with your April results.)

I must say, although both of my poems thus far have been about the Halloween aftermath, it has still been very fun getting back into the swing of writing a poem a day for a month. Do come and join in!

Poetry in Letterpress

2011-10-19T13:48:00.000-07:00

I have always loved the look of letterpress -- it has such a beautiful crispness to it. So of course I was thrilled to find one of my favorite lines of poetry ever ("Do I dare / Disturb the universe? / In a minute there is time / For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse.") printed on letterpress here. Heaven!

{photo credit}

Fire on Her Tongue

2011-10-04T19:22:00.000-07:00

Here's a sneak peek at something I've been very lucky to be a part of. Fire on Her Tongue: An eBook Anthology of Contemporary Women's Poetry is an anthology containing work from over 70 amazing contemporary female poets.

Kelli Agodon and Annette Spaulding-Convy, the talented editors behind Crab Creek Review, are in charge of this project, which looks to be really wonderful. You can see more information and a full lineup of the women featured in the anthology at twosylviaspress.com.

As an e-Book, Fire on Her Tongue was produced with zero carbon footprint. Every part of it was done electronically in a commendable effort to save trees. Slated for e-Book release in late fall.

Watch TEDxRedmond on Livestream

2011-09-09T15:43:00.000-07:00

Hello!

Since many of you don't live in or near the Seattle area, we've created a way for you to still watch TEDxRedmond 2011 (www.tedxredmond.com) even though you can't be here in person.

We'll be streaming the event live tomorrow (in pretty good quality) at www.tedxredmond.com/live/.

The livestream begins at 1 PM PST sharp, so be sure to log on! :) And, of course, let me know what you thought of it at the end.

Hope you all can make it to the livestream tomorrow!

Sign up to attend TEDxRedmond

2011-09-04T22:38:00.000-07:00

If you'll be in the Seattle/Redmond area on September 10th, TEDxRedmond is an event you won't want to miss. Click the button below to register to attend. (You MUST register in order to attend.) P.S. Priya and I will be co-hosting!

If you can't be there in person, watching it via livestream is the next-best thing. Click HERE to access the livestreaming page. Currently, there's a placeholder video, but on September 10th at 1 PM PST, the livestream will begin.

Let me know if you'll be there (or will be watching via livestream)!

August firsts

2011-08-26T18:28:00.000-07:00

We just got back from our Cancun vacation just a few days ago. It's an absolutely beautiful place, and there is so much to do there. It was a memorable trip for me because it was the first time I...

went parasailing.
touched (and kissed) a dolphin.
saw and played on a white sand beach.
went in a submarine.
saw stingrays and sea turtles.
went to Mexico.
heard a Michael Jackson song (yes, shame on me).
tasted saltwater.
set foot in the ocean.
went to a restaurant where there were no prices on the menu.
stayed at an all-inclusive hotel (which explains the previous statement).
drank a Shirley Temple (and lots of them, might I add).
sat under a beach umbrella.
held a baby sea turtle (and released it into the ocean).
swam with a life jacket on.
went to a water theme park outside the U.S.
tried a habanero pepper salsa (bad decision).
and rode the Mexican public bus.

Did you travel anywhere this summer? How was it?

Happy Birthday!

2011-08-19T05:58:00.000-07:00

Happy sixteenth birthday to my amazing sister! She is the funniest, sweetest, and most talented person I know, and I hope her sixteenth year (and every year to come) is incredible for her.

In this moment

2011-08-12T12:33:00.000-07:00

A suitcase is
a temporary beginning.
I listen to you fold
your clothes in,
stacking piles of armor.

TEDxRedmond 2011 Trailer!

2011-08-08T12:38:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited to share this with you! As you may or may not know, I'm helping organize a youth event called TEDxRedmond. This will be our second year, and last year's event was incredibly successful -- we had over 700 people in attendance.

We've been working hard to get the word out for this year's event on September 10th. This year's theme, coined by Priya, is "The Spark in All of Us"! The event is organized entirely by youth and targeted towards youth, but adults are still welcome.

We just finished the promotional trailer for TEDxRedmond 2011, and I personally think it looks amazing! Of course, I'm a little biased, but I think you'll really enjoy it. It's only a minute long, so it won't take too long to watch...

so sit back and enjoy!

What I loved about July

2011-07-31T22:29:00.000-07:00

Independence Day fireworks. Quirky passengers on the public buses. Walking around a beautiful college campus. Whipping out turtlenecks and jeans while the rest of the country is sizzling hot. Planning a vacation. Laughing with my mom. Playing Kinect for hours on end with my sister. Biking on a river trail. Sunsets. Sleeping late and waking up late. Obsessively cleaning up my room. Wandering around downtown Seattle. Eating up to six nectarines a day. Writing a story. Watching the final Harry Potter. Rereading and rereading the Harry Potter books. Reminding myself irresistibly of Petunia Dursley when I wipe down the bathroom counter twice a day. Loving my family. Laughing so hard I cry. Living.

credit where credit's due: photo credit.

those stars burn like diamonds.

2011-07-04T11:59:00.000-07:00

Here are some snapshots of what I've been seeing around for the past couple of months. The weather has been gorgeous! Hope you're having a wonderful summer.

Happy Independence Day!

2011-07-04T08:13:00.000-07:00

Happy Fourth of July. Hope it's a good one!

Flight

2011-06-11T16:36:00.000-07:00

*poof*

I am planning to take this one down in a couple of days. Just wanted to put it up for your critique. :)

Manhattan

2011-06-05T11:44:00.000-07:00

Mindrelic - Manhattan in motion from Mindrelic on Vimeo.

I saw this on someone else's blog and was captivated! It is so beautiful and I think it's worth the four minutes. It makes me want to visit!

Happy (almost) summer!

2011-06-04T12:02:00.000-07:00

Hello there! It's starting to feel quite a bit like summer over where I'm at. Although, being a Washington girl inside and out, the seventy-five degree weather is a little too warm for my liking, it's still beautiful. I have a handful of pictures that I'd like to post when I have more free time (after all my final exams are over).

In other news, I'm blogging for the TEDxRedmond site! Feel free to stop by and check it out! The event takes place on September 10, 2011. If you'll be in the area, you can register at www.tedxredmond.com.

Here's to sunshine and beautiful summer days!

A question

2011-05-28T10:21:00.001-07:00

Do you participate in the world or do you simply observe it?

Hogwarts, everybody.

2011-05-22T14:14:00.000-07:00

WHAT. Somebody please get me on the next plane to India.

A day in Paris

2011-05-08T10:07:00.000-07:00

A day in PARIS from Benoit MILLOT on Vimeo.

I love this video! It's so whimsical and beautiful! Everything about it is so lovely...I absolutely love sweet little clips like this.

On college degrees...

2011-05-05T18:15:00.000-07:00

Reading this post (and also hearing about the corresponding Newsweek article from my sister) made me upset. It's one thing to rank college majors based on availability of jobs and how much these degrees pay on average, but to call them "useless"?

Apparently the top 10 majors that don't pay are, in order:

1. Journalism
2. Horticulture
3. Agriculture
4. Advertising
5. Fashion design
6. Child and family studies
7. Music
8. Mechanical-engineering technology
9. Chemistry
10. Nutrition

I'm sorry. I was under the impression that in order to survive and live a healthy and happy life, it was necessary to eat right, grow crops, and have clothes on your body. Apparently, these are the most "useless" college degrees. Oh, and let's not forget the chemists, the writers, and the engineers.

Another thing that upset me about this article was the fact that these are the top 10 lowest-paying jobs. WHY? These are some of the most important jobs. Some of the most critical ones to our survival. Yet they're some of the lowest-paying ones.

It's food for thought (no pun intended).

A few goodies

2011-04-29T20:06:00.000-07:00

Hello! It's been a while since I've swung by. I hope everything's all right with you; things have been pretty smooth for me, with some pretty sun-breaks in between.

These past few weeks I stumbled across some memorable videos that I thought I'd share with you, if you haven't seen them yet.

I can't do a video post without this trailer, being the little Potter fanatic that I am. This trailer is incredible in so many ways I can't even begin to explain. Although I must admit that seeing it makes me very sad that such a fundamental part of my childhood is coming to a close.

I may not be Christian, but you don't even have to be religious to fall in love with this performance. I'm truly in awe of her...what a voice.

And there you have it. Have a good weekend, everybody!

A note

2011-04-20T17:12:00.000-07:00

Dear schools,

Please don't give us an assignment, put a hundred thousand restrictions and rules on it, and still call it "creative writing." And grade it.

Most sincerely,
Someone who enjoys actual creative writing

on insomnia.

2011-04-12T19:10:00.001-07:00

the things of the night
are more beautiful than the things
of the day.

genevieve.

2011-03-24T16:59:00.000-07:00

The light combed through her hair, the reddish-brown of each strand glimmering and fluttering. It was a spring-but-it-feels-like-summer kind of day, the sun barely brushing the top layer of her skin. The dash of chill that wrinkled the air (taut with warmth) rippled and fell away: the world moved slowly past, not knowing, not wondering, beautifully ignorant.

This Afternoon

2011-03-21T22:08:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's rain trickles down the sides
of the windowpane.
The sky thunders past.
The minutes tick, tick, tick.

Happy Weekend!

2011-03-11T21:55:00.000-08:00

Sometimes you just need a little reminder. (image via)

Chariot

2011-03-04T16:31:00.000-08:00

The Rugby Poets Club Presents: "Chariot" by Joshua Bennett from Ralph Lauren on Vimeo.

Someone sent me this video today, from Ralph Lauren's Rugby Poets Club (such an awesome idea, by the way!) and I absolutely love it. Everything about it is so incredible, the poem is just perfection. I've just found my new favorite poem, ever.

Happy Monday!

2011-02-28T08:28:00.000-08:00

My poem 'Negative Four Hundred' [a title I've always loved, by the way] has found a home! More to come on that later.

And in other weekend news, I saw Justin Bieber's "Never Say Never" for the second time yesterday and loved it!

Hope you all have a lovely week! How was your weekend?

Snowflakes

2011-02-24T13:39:00.000-08:00

Here are a few snapshots of the snow from just a few minutes ago. We have had on-and-off flurries for the past few days but nothing really major until yesterday evening and early this morning. It's been melting all day but it's still beautiful.

Live the Language: Paris

2011-02-20T22:32:00.000-08:00

EF - Live The Language - Paris from Albin Holmqvist on Vimeo.

This Paris clip [for EF's Live the Language campaign] is so quaint and sweet and everything about it is just perfection! See the other clips for London, Beijing, and Barcelona here (they are all so lovely!).

2 years!

2011-02-12T13:01:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I forgot to post about the 2-year anniversary of "Apologies to an Apple"! It was released on February 7, 2009, and I could not be more thankful for the opportunities it's brought me. 150% of my effort is represented in that volume, and I'm so proud of the final product. It's available for purchase here. (A portion of the sales will be donated to charity.)

Priya and I also were the featured guests on the Bit by Bit educators' podcast on Thursday night. We had a blast and feel very lucky to have had such a wonderful opportunity! Click here to listen to it.

Hope you're all having a great weekend!

Happy February

2011-02-01T19:49:00.000-08:00

Happy February, everybody! I know there's some cough/cold stuff going around that's pretty nasty, and some of you have potentially-record-setting blizzards coming through your neighborhoods, so here are a few things to cheer you up and make today just a bit less depressing:

I wish every house were as awesome as this one. (I know you do, too.)
Blueberries are back in-stores again! Aside from being nutritionally amazing, they're also so delicious I could live off them. (No, really.)
The Stuttgarter Kammerorchester & Karl Munchinger version of "Canon in D" is heavenly.
Speaking of music, you haven't truly listened to "Hallelujah" until you've heard Kate Voegele's rendition.
This might just be the coolest street ever.
Sometimes you just need a little inspiration.
This is kind of an old post, but it's still lovely eye candy.

And there you have it! Here's to a wonderful month!

that rebel moon is shining

2011-01-28T16:58:00.000-08:00

I feel the pulse of breath under

my collarbone, steady --

like the pulse of my steps, tracing a circle in

the grass where I can't find an exit.

Fall down the rabbit hole and I know I'll find you

when you land.

and the time is now

2011-01-15T14:45:00.000-08:00

image credit: http://www.democracycellproject.org/

After doing a sliver of research yesterday for a Spanish essay, all I can say is: thank you to the American Congress for dedicating a holiday to such an inspirational man, and it's an honor to live in a county dedicated to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

(on a side note: Similar to what my sister wrote a handful of days ago, I won't be blogging for about a week. Studying for and taking seven finals in the course of five days will really wipe a person out, I expect.)

just like a dream to me.

2011-01-07T13:36:00.000-08:00

the old wicker chairs out on the back porch
sing sweet home louisiana,
catching and filtering sticky-sweet sunlight.
you throw a few wilted roses back out into the yard
-- the same color as the tomatoes
growing by the side of the house --
and turn to the window,
you watch the light catch in the colors
of the empty mason jars on the windowsill and
turn red and blue and orange.
laughter and a smile drift by, darting
like fireflies.

2011.

2011-01-06T18:28:00.000-08:00

I hope you all are having an incredible new year. I know that for me, the starting of 2011 has been more than just the change of a digit at the end of the date. It has meant something so much more: a new beginning, a new opportunity, a world of chances.

I'm hoping to share my poetry a lot more this year, something I think I did miserably on in 2010. I'll try to post more "snapshots" and more of my own poetry on this blog as well as submit to online journals and magazines, something I've struggled with a lot in the past because of my perfectionism obsession when it comes to my poems.

I'm also starting all over again on another resolution -- especially since this time of year is the "starting over" time of year. Since January 1, I've been staying away from all artificial sugar in any form. I tried to do this back in 2008, but I didn't make it past Valentine's Day (I cracked when I was given Smarties). I've always been a really healthy person -- I can't stand most junk food (marshmallows, gummy bears, any kind of Doritos/Cheetos/onion rings-type things, and gum, just to name a few, disgust me), I'm a vegetarian, AND I'm allergic to food coloring -- so this shouldn't be too hard for me...or at least, that's what I thought. I never realized how much plain white sugar goes into my mouth in its raw form! There have been a few run-ins with that (we made fudge around Christmas, and it's absolutely delicious, and there are still quite a few pieces left!), but I've been staying committed to my pact with myself and have abstained. It's surprisingly not as bad as I thought it would be, though.

Another thing that has been really important to me lately has been exercise. I certainly don't get enough of it. I don't really play sports -- I'm decent at almost all sports but have never really committed to one or played one seriously -- with the exception of badminton about once a week and about 20 minutes of P.E. (usually not very cardio-esque at all -- my heart rate barely ever goes into a good exercise zone during that class) per school day. I don't have much time on weekdays because of the enormous load of work we have each day, but I'm really trying to get my heart rate going as much as I can when I have time, especially during the weekends. I'd like to be more fit by the time 2012 shows its face.

And...lastly, I'm just sticking to the resolution I've tried to keep for the past two years: be happy. That's all there really is to life, if you think about it -- everything traces back to happiness. If you're happy, that's all you'll ever need. I'm putting on a positive attitude and taking things in stride. I've learned life's not long enough for you to get worked up or upset about anything. Even if something might seem life-shattering, it's just a test of how strong you are. (Think about it that way. :) ) So, if you will, join me this year in staying happy. As long as you know God's on your side and you're alive, you should be happy.

And that's it for my goals for this year. What are some of your thoughts and hopes for the double-one?

Happy Holidays!

2010-12-23T20:06:00.000-08:00

I've been so swamped in gift wrap and cardmaking these days and I LOVE it! Pictures to come after a few days.

A safe and happy holiday to you and yours.

some people

2010-12-20T00:57:00.000-08:00

hide behind their shadows
and walk in blurry fire
whispering
(whispers dissolve)

are you really
all that?

Vote for me? ;)

2010-12-13T19:37:00.000-08:00

There's a really cool contest that just closed up at Figment.com, and the top 5 most "hearted" entries will be submitted for the final judging by Lauren Oliver (the author of the YA novel Before I Fall).

My entry is here: http://figment.com/books/5560-Fabric. You have to make an account to "heart" something, but if you have the time to do that -- or if you already have an account -- I'd really appreciate it if you helped me out :) Thank you!

A winter treat

2010-12-11T12:41:00.000-08:00

We sang this song in my choir at school last year, and I loved it so much I had to look it up on Youtube. It's one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard.

So I somehow woke up today...

2010-12-10T23:29:00.000-08:00

and realized there was a PAD challenge in November that I completely forgot about/missed/didn't do. Stupid me. Will try to go back and find the prompts and write that stuff as fast as possible...maybe I'll have a few up on here.

But in other news, the lovely Beth Kephart introduced me to Figment.com, which is a site (almost) as lovely as she is. It's a whole new twist on your typical online writing community -- it reminds me of a ramped-up ReadWritePoem. Check it out!

Today was...

2010-12-02T19:32:00.000-08:00

Danielle's 18th birthday! Happy birthday, Danielle! Please stop by her blog to wish her a very, very happy adulthood. :)

Elvis the king.

2010-11-29T21:02:00.000-08:00

My sister and I wrote this story back and forth over e-mail together last month and had so much fun doing it! Priya suggested I share it here, and I'm glad she did...here it is. :)

Each person's words are in a different color -- guess who wrote which part! (Forgive the red and green...I clearly have Christmas on the brain.)

"Why, yes," said the dog, smiling. It took a bite out of its banana and threw the rest at the king's feet. "Would you like to share some with me?"

"'Fraid not," the king replied solemnly. "Bananas give me the wiggles."

"That's too bad," the dog mewed. "Bananas are the most delicious. I eat them day and night, and I never get wiggles."

"But scones give you the wiggles," reminded the king.

"Sir, I've a-just met you!" exclaimed the dog. "Scones might give other dogs the wiggles, but I'm a pretty special dog."

"Really," said the king skeptically. "Well, all the other dogs I've seen have gotten wiggles when they eat scones."

"How many dogs have you fed scones to?!" cried out the dog in shock and horror. Scones were NOT GOOD for a dog's digestive system! (He'd had to learn that lesson first-hand.)

"All of them," replied the king calmly.

"Dog-killer!" yelled the dog. His shout echoed throughout the land.

"OMG," muttered the king sarcastically. He tore off his kingly attire to reveal a glittery gold pantsuit. He took off his wig and crown and revealed slicked-back hair.

He was...

Elvis.

"You ain't nothing but a hound dog!" he sang.

"I'm not a hound dog!" the dog retorted, severely offended. "I hope you know that."

"All dogs are hound dogs in my world!" Elvis said.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-24T15:29:00.000-08:00

It has been really snowy and cold out here, which is fabulous for all us students because we got a six-day weekend out of it! It is absolutely gorgeous!

To celebrate the snow and holidays, I've added a new layout -- complete with header and snow. A special thank-you to Priya for helping me out with the header!

Stay safe and have a happy happy Thanksgiving weekend!

Burnt yellow

2010-11-06T15:57:00.000-07:00

In mid-October, Priya and I went out for a little walk to capture the fall foliage:

priya.

and a couple of other shots from that day...

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T13:37:00.001-07:00

Wishing you a safe and happy Halloween! Have fun!

Watch my TEDxRedmond speech!

2010-10-19T15:18:00.001-07:00

My TEDxRedmond speech is up! I was really happy with the way it turned out...hopefully you'll enjoy it too! Click HERE to watch it.

TEDxRedmond Photos + Videos!

2010-10-11T20:32:00.000-07:00

I was really proud to be a part of the TEDxRedmond event a month ago, and it was a huge success. Now, photos and videos are being released from the event!

You can find pictures from the event here, on Flickr! Photos may continue to be added later on. If you weren't at the event or couldn't watch it on the online stream (the servers crashed but were up and running later on), the videos of the speeches and performances from the event are gradually being added to the TEDxRedmond website and the TEDxTalks Youtube page. You can click here to watch the videos that have been uploaded -- more will continue to come later! Priya's speech is already up, and I'm so proud of her! She did a wonderful job, and I hope you all will enjoy it as much as I did!

Be sure to check the photos and videos out!

[refill necessary]

2010-09-29T21:31:00.000-07:00

My mother always tells me to use the forks, not the spoons, when stirring milk. We are not always running out of forks like we are with spoons, she says.

I sometimes run out of words. But I didn't tell her.

[p.s. A really great friend, Beth Kephart, recently sold her 13th novel! Stop by her blog to congratulate her, won't you?]

13

2010-09-25T21:59:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my 13th birthday. I was sick -- and still am -- so I was sleeping most of the day (got home from school and crashed). It was probably the worst birthday I've had, but I'm thirteen now and happy to be where I am and who I am. :)

RWP anthology released

2010-09-21T21:22:00.000-07:00

The title is self-explanatory. The NaPoWriMo anthology from ReadWritePoem released yesterday, and it looks really good! My poem "Baggage" is included in the collection.

Hop on over to www.readwritepoem.org to read the anthology online.

TEDxRedmond!

2010-09-19T14:46:00.000-07:00

The incredible TEDxRedmond event was held yesterday in Redmond, WA, and it was really just astounding. I was so honored and so proud to be a part of it, as a speaker and as a planning committee member.

I've never been asked for my autograph before, and it was amazing and so humbling for me to be able to sign people's programs and books. I was overwhelmed entirely by the recognition that people gave me -- in one instance, I was just walking down the hall to get a Sprite (I don't drink soda too much, but my throat was hurting a little and the sugar felt good) and someone tried to high-five me. Not realizing that he was holding out his hand for me to hit, I walked past him and he turned to look back, somewhat offended. (I was quick to apologize :) )

People would walk up to me and say really positive things and everyone was so supportive and did a wonderful job! I was impressed by every single person's speech and students in attendance told me that they were so captivated by each speech that they couldn't focus on anything else.

It was such a success; it was entertaining, we had a fabulous dinner, lots of pictures were taken, I got to do some interviews, and, very excitingly, I got to touch an actual segment of the Berlin Wall. Kind of random, I know, but Microsoft actually houses a fairly large piece of the Berlin Wall at their conference center, where the event was held.

There were so many famous people there and so much talent housed in one room that I'm sure many people did feel insignificant (I know I did occasionally). But overall, I think people -- both the students and their parents, who sat outside of the main theater in separate rooms, watching a live stream -- came away from the event feeling like they could make a difference, feeling really inspired, and feeling positive about a future where they could make it big and where they could really do something to change the world.

That was our goal. And I think we reached it in a very successful way, without glitches or hitches of any sort. And as for me, I walked away completely starstruck.

On the Radio!

2010-09-13T23:11:00.000-07:00

I was on KUOW 94.9 FM in Seattle this morning -- my very first radio program! -- and it was so much fun and a great learning experience.

You can listen to the online stream here: http://kuow.org/program.php?id=21342 (Click on "download" on the right side under the picture, and you don't have to upload it to your computer or have any media player whatsoever. It should buffer pretty quickly.) It's about a 50-minute segment. Enjoy!

google chrome + kate spade =

2010-09-10T16:49:00.001-07:00

this fabulosity.

is it not a heavenly internet browser?

Still alive!

2010-09-08T18:28:00.000-07:00

I am really sorry that I haven't added more pictures from our Florida vacation! It was a lot of fun, and it looks like you enjoyed part one of my photo recap. Thank you for reading that!

Since school started things have been pretty crazy! I am in a pretty advanced class this year, which in turn means that I need to devote more of my time to schoolwork. I'm going to be putting blogging on the backburner this year so I can focuse more on school, so posts will be really slow.

I am working on part 2 but it most likely won't be up in the next few days; you can expect it sometime next week. My birthday is coming up as well (on the 24th) and I will be turning 13, so I'm excited about that!

Anyways, I just thought I would stop in and let you know where I've disappeared off to :) I hope to blog a lot more during holidays and breaks...but in the meantime, hopefully I can have all my vacation pictures posted by the end of October!

-Maya

Orlando, Florida!: Part 1

2010-08-27T20:52:00.000-07:00

Magic Kingdom! We got to watch the Main Street Electrical Parade and the Summer Nightastic! Fireworks (both were incredible, the latter being the most outstanding display I've ever seen) on two separate days -- it didn't get old at all!

The Move It! Shake It! Celebrate It! street party...super fun to watch!

Eco-friendly Dumbo? :)

We ate at Tony's Town Square our first night in Orlando, which is a fancy little restaurant off the side of Main Street, U.S.A., in the Magic Kingdom. But it's not any restaurant -- it's straight out of The Lady and The Tramp! Fun!

Whip out your wands, folks...

Hogsmeade is self-explanatory. Incredible, incredible stuff here.

"The Flight of the Hippogriff," the easiest coaster here. It's not an overly kiddie coaster; it's still a lot of fun if you're older.

Hogwarts. We took so many pictures, and I can't post them all, so it was really hard to pick which ones to put on here! Trust me, the place is worth a visit, although it's only a one-day thing. It's so amazing.

The detail on the castle -- just everything inside and outside -- is impeccable. It's absolutely brilliant on Universal's part. The hilarious thing was our wait in the morning to get in (only about a half hour, actually) -- the rest of Universal Studios was absolutely deserted and the only lines were for the WWoHP park. :)

Along the sides of the lines for Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, which is the most mindblowing ride there. There are lots of goodies, but it's dark so it's hard to take pictures. Priya managed to get this one of the Mirror of Erised, but we gave up afterwards because you just can't take anything properly.

I'm sorry I couldn't rotate this one -- it's when you're walking towards the loading dock for the ride. If you haven't figured out what it is yet (shame on you!), it's the staircase to Dumbledore's office. (And if that still puzzles you, you haven't watched the movies enough times!) But the fabulous thing about the wait is that you get to walk through the castle, literally, and they basically themed it around a Quidditch match; so there are Daily Prophet clippings with "Gryffindor vs. Slytherin!" headlines, and the moving portraits (they're actually screens, but they are freakishly oil-painting-like) are chatting about Harry's chances of winning...etc. :) It's every die-hard fan's fantasy. Absolutely fantastic stuff.

The ride is sort of like the Back to the Future ride, says my dad, but I don't know if you've ridden that one either. You're in a little buggy-type thing (if you've ever been to the Haunted Mansion attraction at Disney World, you'll know what I'm talking about), and you levitate. You go through the castle in the air; parts of it are giant contact lens shaped screens where you get to follow Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint as they take you flying around the castle and onto the Quidditch pitch and you come face-to-face with a Horntail, and parts of it are actual real objects that move -- for example, you see rising Inferi and ghosts and "acromantulas" that spurt blood on you (it's just water), and there's a big dragon that looms towards you and breathes hot orange fire on you. It's all so wonderfully lifelike that we were all screaming and I closed my eyes in parts out of fear. It's really not scary, but just not knowing what to expect kind of makes it frightening. It's spectacular, though; it features Emma Watson as well. There's a part near the end where you dive straight down, plummeting towards the lake, and I still remember my mom screaming as we all "flew" downwards. AWESOME. We got to go on this three times, and I think it would have been unmagical if we went on it any more times, but the one word to describe this ride is AWESOME (in capital letters).

The entrance to Dragon Challenge, which is also fabulous! The big blue thing you see there is the coaster; the seats are attached via the top, so it's like you're sitting in a hanging set of seats rather than in a car-type setting, and that's actually good because there are corkscrews and dangerous-seeming turns, but it's so thrilling and an absolute BLAST to ride. These two coasters (there's a blue Horntail and a red Fireball) are vying for my favorite ride(s) of all time. Note, though: the Fireball is way more fun and way more scary. :) Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful all around!

Can you guess?

No?

Still no? Come on, the "chocolate" sign has to be a dead giveaway. Plus, there's all sorts of candy...

Honeydukes!

Honeydukes is so colorful and so tantalizing, yet so pricy that you feel bad to buy anything. Brilliant and fabulous to look around, though.

Part 2 coming up soon!

Collaborative poem

2010-08-23T13:58:00.000-07:00

My heart beats like smoke:
thin-armed prescience inside my chest
more of nonbeing, more
than threaded sorrow and fluid chambers
manifestation of emptiness, sing saccharine love songs
to blank-faced old men
wearing paper-airplane folded souls underneath,
hidden under fading footsteps.

I love this poem so much. It turned out incredibly well, so thank you to Holly, Q, Maxie Steer, Julia, Erin, and geekspawngirl for participating!

I'm organizing a post of Orlando pictures, so definitely stay tuned for that! We had so many fabulous experiences while on vacation, and I can't wait to share them with you through our photos!

Happy Birthday...

2010-08-19T07:15:00.000-07:00

...to one of the most fantabulous people I know.

I would be lying to myself and her if I said that she's the perfect sister, because half of the time she's funny, helpful, and entertaining, and half the time she's annoying, upset, and irritable (but only because I bother her). But the thing I like about her is that she's unapologetically herself and still very grounded and very human, and she's extremely young at heart.

On our vacation to Disney World, from which we just returned, she was so excited about meeting Mickey and Minnie and stood at the end of Main Street, U.S.A., watching the castle for about fifteen minutes as it changed colors against the night skyline at the end of our last day at Magic Kingdom. She scoured every newsstand and every shop for just the right pair of Minnie Mouse ears and was made thoroughly happy when I pretended to be Gustav, a fictional personal assistant to Mickey Mouse (she even gave me requests to give to Mickey, to which I pretended to relay a response).

This is what makes her so Priya -- that she can be this young and still call herself fifteen, that she can be a 4.0-GPA student and still find time to watch episodes of Arthur, and that she can be traveling everywhere on all sorts of school trips and still be the best sister I could ask for.

Happy fifteenth birthday.

Lots of love from
Maya

Back!

2010-08-18T16:57:00.000-07:00

I had a fabulous trip! I have so many stories to share and lots of pictures! The butterbeer was delicious and we had so many fancy meals...not to mention the fact that we got to meet Cinderella's family and all sorts of other Disney characters as well. :)

Thanks for participating in the collaborative poem -- if you haven't already done so, be sure to join in on the fun by Friday, August 20, at 12 pm Pacific Time (3 pm Eastern), and I hope you enjoyed the guest posts!

Lots more to come soon!

Guest Blog: Holly from 'Eating a Tangerine'

2010-08-16T09:07:00.000-07:00

While I'm off on another humid, sweltering, waterslide-chasing adventure of my own, Holly agreed to stop by and share her travel experience -- to none other than Berlin, Germany!

Berlin Death March

June had come, and we were exchange students. Our summers and our futures were bright. We were the cream of the our generation's crop, emissaries of cross-cultural goodwill and exemplars of the well-rounded high school existence, full of youthful enthusiasm and idealism (maybe). We were headed for the real-deal experience of German culture, full drinking-age privileges, linguistic immersion, and some epic profile pictures to make our friends back home jealous.

The woman next to me on my San Francisco - Washington, D.C. flight asked was I getting off in Washington? I informed her I was flying on to Germany to be an exchange student. Was I going to live in a German family's home? she inquired. Oh yes. She must have felt honored to be sitting next to me, the bright hope of America's youth, a perfect embodiment of amicable globalism.

We had converged in Washington, D.C. from our respective hometowns, crossed the Atlantic, been shepherded through the Frankfurt airport, and then flown east to Berlin, where we would receive our orientation into German culture. The only thing left standing in the way of our destinies were the dozen or so Berlin miles between the airport and our hostel.

I should have expected we might not have the smoothest transition onto the streets. The relative uneventfulness of the past fifteen hours were due mainly to our confinement to the airplane. I had already run into a little trouble with a Dulles security officer for leaving my bags unattended. (actually, I had left them in the company of my fellow bright-hopes-of-America's-youth, who had abandoned them when their time to board came. My time, too, actually, only I was running around the airport trying to sort out some lost papers.) Fortunately, he seemed to sense my status as an emblem of hope for international cooperation, and so did not hinder me any further.

Oh, and the lost papers, that's right. In accordance with my mama's advice, I had placed all of my significant, likely-to-be-required papers in a plastic document holder that I was carrying on my person. Which I managed to leave behind at a pay phone kiosk in the airport terminal. Inventory: plane tickets, traveler's checks, contact information for my host family and exchange organization that I would need upon landing, or if I should happen to run into any difficulties like, oh, I don't know, lost documents. Fortunately, I was carrying my passport and cash separately, even more closely to my person.

Additionally, one of our number's suitcases appeared to have gone on a vacation of its own to Rome, and another, who held Peruvian citizenship, had had some difficulty with the passport control in Frankfurt.

Not to mention we'd already been traveling for more than twenty-four hours and our brains were distinctly worse for the wear.

So we land. Into the sweltering, damp June heat, jetlagged and travel-grimy, with as cringe-inducing an excess of luggage as you'd expect of American teenagers, plus some, minus that one guy's stuff—we land. We are met by Hannah! and! Jana! who are to be our intrepid volunteer shepherds. Other than Ned's AWOL luggage, we have it together enough to catch a bus, on which we catch our first ground-level glimpses of the metropolis.

Next comes a transfer trek to a subway station. We learn there are, for our purposes, no escalators in Germany. Approximately 700 lbs of luggage make their way into the Berlin underground under the alleged guidance of approximately 1500 lbs of American teenager. Trains are ridden, and then it is time for the stairs to be ascended. O, stairs! 2200 lbs of American hopes and consumerisms lumber back up into the beating sun. We roll across the plaza and begin to follow a side street. That is, the lucky ones of our number roll. A certain couple of kids were on top of their aesthetical game enough to be using those big ole vintage hard-shell suitcases which could ostensibly be carried by their single mannerly handle, but in order to keep up with the Berlin death march must be clutched in both arms across one's front with all the desperation that twenty-six hours of travel and ninety-some degrees Fahrenheit engender.

After a half mile, our fearless leaders order a halt. They confer over a map in rapid German, and announce that we have been marching in wrong direction; we must turn around and go back the way we came. Hannah and Jana have not lead us aright, and the spilling of this sweat, the lugging of this luggage, have been for naught.

Back into the subway. Despair begins to tickle at our minds. If Hannah and Jana fail to find our hostel, who could stand in their stead and succeed? How could we have been so trusting of them, pretty as they were and with their rhyming names? God of exchange students, lead us not up more unnecessary stairs. There are more stairs, both up and down, and then there is another half a mile at least, more trekking, with our suitcases in our poor incredulous arms or clattering along behind us on their cheap wheels which send them toppling every time we face a curb. There are bike lanes to cross too slowly and thoughtlessly with our American ignorance and jetlag-numbed minds, and opportunity to be on the receiving end of warning yells from Germans who must swerve to avoid us.

And finally, there is a hostel. Four stories up, but there is an elevator for our baggage. We pile it in. We send it up. We send ourselves up, through the stairwell's cigarette smoke. And we are arrived.

Holly

Collaborative poem!

2010-08-13T13:00:00.000-07:00

I haven't done a collaborative poem in a while, and since I'm on vacation it's a perfect time to give you long enough to chime in with your line!

Here's how it goes:

I'll kickstart the poem with one line (below). Go to the comments section of this post and submit ONE line to add to the poem. (If you submit more than one, I'll take the first one I see so that it's fair for everyone.) If people have left lines before you, make sure you submit a line that allows the poem to flow well. Feel free to use punctuation, and keep it relevant. At the end, I'll wrap up the piece with an ending line and post the poem in its entirety.

This time around, I'll take everyone's lines that are submitted before August 20 at 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time.

Here's the opening line.

My heart beats like smoke:

Write away!

Guest Blog: Danielle from 'Sesquipedalian'

2010-08-10T09:07:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

Since Maya is presently out gallivanting on fabulous adventures, I thought it seemed appropriate to write about travel as well. Recently, I was able to spend three weeks in France (all over) and England (mainly London area). In both places, I was able to partake in one of my favorite tourist activities-- scouting the local English bookstores. There are a million different things I could write about but instead I'm going to focus on one particular site-- a bookstore. Shocking, I know.

The first time I visited France in 2006, I stumbled across Shakespeare and Company Bookstore across from Notre Dame in Paris, completely by accident. Upon my second trip this summer, it was the first place I wanted to revisit, as well as the one I remembered the most. My first thoughts upon seeing the exterior are best described as mouth gaping awesomeness. It is the kind of store that makes you believe you have accidentally stumbled into Heaven. Pictures are definitely the best way of describing this:

the first cashier desk, with lovely books

a view of the main store area, with the wishing well in the center

the second cashier desk, and of course.. books

the store was filled with rich colors

an example of the vintage artifacts in the shop

the shop's motto

one of the beds and the lovely piano

lovely boxes of lavender, just strewn about

the classic old fashioned typewriter in the writing nook

a very creaky and narrow staircase-- good fun!

the shop made me just a little bit happy

Now that you've seen just how special Shakespeare and Co. is, you can read the official history here if you so desire. This, however, is my condensed and specialized version of the story.

The shop was founded by an American named George Whitman in 1951, with the motto of "BE NOT INHOSPITABLE TO STRANGERS LEST THEY BE ANGELS IN DISGUISE." The most exciting part of this is that he would let friends and strangers alike stay the night in the beds he conveniently placed throughout the shop (you can see one of them in the pictures above). The only conditions were that they made their beds in the morning, helped around the shop, and read a book a day. On Saturdays, he would make pancakes. To this day, you can still make an appointment to stay the night in the shop. The book selection is also superb, branching nearly every subject of interest you could possibly have-- not an easy task for a shop this small. As if that were not charm enough, the random assortment of eclectic and whimsical items such as a wishing well where coins of all nationalities are thrown, street signs, attached moving ladders similar to Beauty and the Beast style, an abundance of well loved armchairs, reading rooms, lavender, picturesque views of the Seine river, a playable piano, and an authentic old fashioned typewriter in perfect working condition are all characteristic of the shop and its history. In the writing nook, visitors write and leave little notes expressing their joy in stumbling across the shop, their dreams and aspirations, and sometimes even a secret or two. It was incredibly inspiring to be sitting where you know thousands have come before you, breathing in the magic of a classically wonderful bookshop.

In closing, I can express only two things more. First, is that you absolutely must visit this shop if ever you find yourself in Paris. It's very easy to find-- directly across the river from Notre Dame Cathedral. Secondly, always keep an eye out for the hidden bookshops you might see along your adventures. They're usually the most magical treasures.

Happy reading!

Danielle

Hermione!

2010-07-28T12:49:00.000-07:00

Many years ago, I wrote a story with the characters and setting of the Harry Potter books. While rereading this 206-page, still-unfinished story recently, I found this. :)

“Oh, it’s you,” Hermione replied. “I’ve been up since three rereading the question sheet and trying to find the answer. I’ve also gone to the library almost eight times and I still can’t find the answer to question twelve.”

“Let me look.” Harry peered at question twelve.

Question #12: How did the Sorting Hat come to be?

“Hermione! I expected you to know this! The Sorting Hat came from Godric Gryffindor! He took his hat and put brains in it!”

Update

2010-07-27T17:36:00.000-07:00

We're going on vacation very soon! While I'm gone, as I said before, you will see a couple of scheduled posts, so please do swing back around and check that out. I will probably post very little if at all from now until I get back...

So until then, have a great summer!

Summer days

2010-07-20T17:03:00.000-07:00

(first photo by my sister; second photo taken by me. editing done by me. click for large.)

You know you're from Washington

2010-07-18T14:49:00.000-07:00

From the "You know you are from Washington when..." Facebook group (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2210864929):

God was missing for six days. Eventually, Michael, the archangel, found him, resting on the seventh day.
He inquired of God, "Where have you been?"
God sighed a deep sigh of satisfaction, and proudly pointed downwards through the clouds, "Look, Michael. Look what I've made."
Archangel Michael looked puzzled, and said, "What is it?"
"It's a planet," replied God, "and I've put Life on it. I'm going to call it Earth and it's going to be a great place of balance."
"Balance?" inquired Michael, still confused.
God explained, pointing to different parts of the earth. "For example, northern Europe will be a place of great opportunity and wealth, while southern Europe is going to be poor. Over there I've placed a continent of white people, and over there is a continent of black people. Balance in all things."
God continued pointing to different countries. "This one will be extremely hot, while this one will be very cold and covered in ice."
The Archangel, impressed by God's work, then pointed to a land area and said, "What's that one?"
"Ah," said God. "That's Washington State, the most glorious place on Earth. There are beautiful mountains, rivers and streams, lakes, forests, hills, plains, and coulees. The people from Washington State are going to be handsome, modest, intelligent, and humorous, and they are going to be found traveling the world. They will be extremely sociable, hardworking, high achieving, and they will be known throughout the world as diplomats, and carriers of peace."
Michael gasped in wonder and admiration, but then proclaimed, "What about balance, God? You said there would be balance."
God smiled and said, "There is another Washington...wait until you see the idiots I put there."

New look!

2010-07-16T16:30:00.000-07:00

I've officially remodeled my blog! There has been so much work and time put into this remodel, and it has taken me days to finally come up with a product that I love and am proud of!

This blog will also feature slightly different content next month! I am so excited because I will be in Orlando the second week of August, and I will have many many fun stories to tell once I get back. To keep you busy reading while I'm gone, I hope to have a couple of scheduled posts, so keep an eye out for that!

I hope you like the new look; thank you for being so patient and for being a reader!

Your type

2010-07-15T17:37:00.000-07:00

What kind of person are you? Go to http://www.41q.com/ and take their personality test if you haven't already, then let me know. I find such things fascinating.

I'm a "dreamy idealist."

Quiet, reflective and idealistic. Interested in serving humanity. Well-developed value system, which they strive to live in accordance with. Extremely loyal. Adaptable and laid-back unless a strongly-held value is threatened. Usually talented writers. Mentally quick and able to see possibilities. Interested in understanding and helping people.

Careers that could fit you include:

Writers, artists, counselors, social workers, English teachers, fine arts teachers, child care workers, clergy, missionaries, psychologists, psychiatrists, scientists, political activists, editors, education consultants, journalists, religious educators, social scientists.

Who are you?

Today's kind of summer

2010-07-10T11:18:00.000-07:00

Capris and shorts,
lemonade in the refrigerator.

Yellow heat spins us
towards cups of ice water
as we drown in waves of sun.

Splash

2010-07-05T16:56:00.000-07:00

cerulean water
wipes the bodies
of laughing people
(ages 5 and 6, beginners'
swim class at the pool)
and flutters past
(like a crayon drawing
now alive)

Independence Day

2010-07-04T13:17:00.000-07:00

Happy Fourth of July!

(photo credit)

Cirque du Soleil's "KOOZA"

2010-07-01T16:50:00.000-07:00

If there were one word to describe this show, it would be something like "incredible" or "amazing," but that wouldn't just be enough. You'd have to add phrases like "unlike any other" or "refreshingly exciting." Because that's what the show was: all of these words coming together and creating an out-of-this-world blend of acrobatics and fearlessness.

You come away from the show in awe of these performers' talent and sheer boldness. Some acts keep you on the edge of your seat, hoping the performers stay alive and don't fall and break their necks; other sections of the show are beautiful and so fluidly enchanting; and others are pure comedy and slapstick humor that you can't help but laugh at.

There is one common thread throughout the whole show, though: a celebration of world cultures and an acceptance of every performer up there onstage. KOOZA was without a doubt a culmination of many nations, with music and costumes reflecting different languages and ways of life. And through all of the diversity, there was a deep love for acrobatics and performance that you could sense in the air and in the performers' bodies.

It was worth every cent of the ticket price, and I feel so lucky to have been able to go. It's one of those shows where, as soon as it's over, you want it to start all over again.

KOOZA

2010-06-26T23:14:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday, we're off to the circus for the Cirque du Soleil production KOOZA! This will be the second Cirque production I've seen, the first being Corteo, which was amazing.

The thing I love about Cirque du Soleil is how, through everything, without words, the dancers and acrobats are able to communicate and weave a whole story and tell it with such grace and apparent ease. It possesses such an irreplaceable, unsurpassed artistic quality that makes every moment of the performance worthwhile. I'm so excited to be going to KOOZA because it has the same kind of quirky, artistic look and feel to it as Corteo (at least, from the video clips and photos of KOOZA on the Cirque website).

I don't know if photography is allowed inside; I would expect not, but if they're permitted, I'll try to see if photos are possible. Nevertheless, the troupe provides some pics and videos on the site (see the link at the top of the post), if you're interested.

Wizarding World of Harry Potter

2010-06-19T13:31:00.000-07:00

If the freakishly huge popularity of Harry Potter wasn't enough to convince you that the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, the theme park that opened at Universal Studios yesterday to recreate the Harry Potter experience and world for fans, was -- and is -- going to be insanely crowded, here is proof (from a Twitterer who tweeted this photo of the line to get inside). I guess we all know what the moral of this picture is: You get there early, you get in early. But judging from this, we'll have to get there extra-early. (click photo for large)

The End and the Beginning

2010-06-18T21:30:00.000-07:00

Beth Kephart's latest post briefly touched on yearbooks, and with the ending of school (subsequently, the distribution of yearbooks), these retrospective, autograph-filled books have me thinking about the past year and its captivity in glossy pages.

Beth mentioned that you learn about yourself, who you are, and how others see you from the notes friends and classmates write to you. I hadn't thought of it that way before reading her post, but her perspective has really opened my mind up to a new outlook on these notes. I remember a moment a few days ago on the second-to-last day of school when I was standing in the hallway, reading what someone had written in my yearbook, and almost exploding with a kind of pride/happiness/satiation. I've never been able to see what my personality looks like from the outside -- none of us have really been able to -- and have therefore had my second thoughts about myself (like many people). I have wondered if my personality is unattractive or if I come across as weird or standoffish to others.

But, reading what people have written in my yearbook (regardless of whether it is true or not -- I admit that I have written untrue things in the yearbooks of people whom I dislike but whom are under the impression that we are friends), it's kind of hard for me to ever admit to myself that I had those doubts. It's like a mirror, except this time you're shown your character and personality rather than your appearance -- it's almost as if you're given a mirror to look at what's underneath instead of what's on the surface.

And for me, yearbooks have always been an opportunity for a person to express gratitude, appreciation, and to simply (in some cases) sing others' praises -- as well as encourage them forward and onward for the next year. Within their pages they capture the memories and history of the past year, and in the autographs and between the lines of friends' comments, you are pushed on: toward the summer, toward the next year, toward a beginning of something brand-new...simply on.

TEDxRedmond

2010-06-16T18:16:00.000-07:00

TEDxRedmond is an independently organized speaking conference that follows the basic structure of a normal TED conference -- except for the fact that all its speakers are all children in grades 6 - 10. If you're familiar with the TED series, TEDxRedmond is a branch of it. If you're not as familiar with TED, you can visit their official site at http://www.ted.com/.

Here are the official details for TEDxRedmond:
September 18, 2010
Microsoft Campus,
Redmond, WA 98052

You can sign up to attend TEDxRedmond at http://www.tedxredmond.com/ (click the "Attend" button). You can also sign up to speak there by clicking on the "Attend" button and filling out the form at that link, but all speakers will be students in grades 6 - 10.

If you're in the Seattle-Redmond area, be sure to come! It will be a lot of fun, and there's going to be entertainment (and food, I believe) as well.

Step

2010-06-11T20:23:00.000-07:00

Right now,
the sun stamps the shadow
of my window blinds
onto the wall.
I listen to voices
in the next room,
cadence and nuance
flowing.

Poetry Friday roundup here.

Harry Potter!

2010-06-07T19:02:00.000-07:00

If the trailer is any indication, the first installment of HP7 is going to be out-of-this-world. I have to agree with what Priya said, though: Daniel Radcliffe isn't looking like the regular, normal Harry anymore -- he looks a little funny. Either way -- funny-looking Harry or not funny-looking Harry -- this movie is going to be brilliant.

edit [8:49 p.m.]: The video has now been trimmed to fit my post space, since it was previously cutting across the sidebar. Thanks Priya for spotting the mistake I'd made in originally trying to trim it!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-06-06T15:29:00.000-07:00

Blogger in draft has an amazing custom template design tool, and it is absolutely HEAVEN. I think I'm dying from excitement.

I may just have to change my template every week now.

Do you believe in dreams?

2010-05-28T17:14:00.000-07:00

I'm lucky to live in a town where, if you pay attention and look around just a bit, you'll see the most wonderful sights. I usually make a mental note of such things. And a week and a half or so ago, I saw this bumper sticker on a passing car:

"Help make 'starving artist' an oxymoron."

Cold Chair

2010-05-22T10:53:00.000-07:00

Next to me on this cold chair
there is no paper ghost,
no laughing smoke,
although I am told that we are well past
the days of imaginary friends.
Get real, everyone says,
but there is no one here to get real with.

*Just like last week, this next week will be full of tests and deadlines for me, and I don't have any posts scheduled, so I won't be around much, if at all.

5 weeks!

2010-05-13T19:00:00.000-07:00

I'm summer-bound! In exactly 5 weeks I will be free to waste a perfectly good two and a half months. Sounds like fun, right?

As the weekend approaches, and I get down to work fixing up the failures and not-so-failures of April's poem-a-day challenge, here are some quick things:

1. My website was remodeled and has been up and running since April 26, and you're very welcome to stop on by and check it out. It looks really lovely now, with a news section, updated press section, updated/refurbished/improved bio, updated homepage, and updated events page. Long story short, the whole thing has been revamped. And I love it.

2. I'm going to be in the ReadWritePoem NaPoWriMo anthology! Yay! I believe the anthology is due out late May, and it's so great to be a part of the "final tribute" kind of thing for such a wonderful site.

3. Erin posted a video of a beautiful cover of "Paparazzi," and it's worth the listen.

4. This weekend, I'm keeping my eyes and ears open -- as I always do, but moreso now -- especially in accordance with Big Tent Poetry's weekly prompt. Of course, the prompt is for us to link our pieces tomorrow, but I think I'll use the prompt to propel me into next week. Try listening a little more intently and see what you find. It's really very neat.

5. SUNSHINE in Washington. Summer is coming!

Letters

2010-05-11T20:33:00.000-07:00

Early this morning, in the car next to us, there was a soldier in his complete uniform. His little Honda car was fairly old and, to an extent, dusty and somewhat rundown. I didn't think anything of this, other than the slightly startling fact that he was fully dressed in uniform, including his hat. Then I saw the stack, stuffed into the cassette-tape-holding space, and his facial expression, and it nearly broke my heart. He'd stuffed a huge stack -- several inches thick -- of letters and envelopes into that little space, and he looked sad, the saddest person I've ever seen.

Thank you, whoever you are. You're amazing.

Happy Mothers' Day

2010-05-09T10:48:00.000-07:00

Thank you to my mother and grandmother for everything they've done for me. Lots of love. :)

Happy Mothers' Day!

(photo taken by my sister on her photo-taking spree)

Missing in action

2010-05-08T12:47:00.000-07:00

Will be back after everything has cooled down -- I'm not sure when that will be, but hopefully soon. On a happier note, I've been on a roll in terms of writing...plenty of editing, writing, and messing with words whenever I get the chance!

NaPoWriMo #30

2010-04-30T22:22:00.000-07:00

Texas Gratitude

Rusty sunlight
in my hair and a three-sixty
of yellow-green grass.

A good morning.

Every heartbeat
is a stretching tide,

the sound tangles
in the open grass and
places left behind.

I fold wasted maps
into paper airplanes.

They set sail,
headed for sky,
headed home

heavy with crossouts and
outlines.

I find notes in my pocket
full of cities,

Nashville, Seattle,
Cincinnati.

I start a new beginning
and a brand-new ending.

*****
I can't believe I just made it through April writing a poem a day. It has been so much fun and such a cool experience for me, and I come away from the month with many potential-filled drafts. Congratulations to everyone who has pulled through the month successfully as well, including my sister, a first-time NPWM-er! If you didn't stop by her blog throughout April to see what lovely poetry she's been writing, you really should -- it's so worth your time.

On a sadder note, ReadWritePoem is leaving! Today was its last day as a fully-functioning social networking and poetry site, and RWP has left such a footprint on the world of online poetry sharing that I'm sure there will be sites to fill the gap but nothing quite as big. Big Tent Poetry has started up, and it's worth a look around as well, although it's fairly new and expanding day by day...it looks quite promising and I think BTP might just cover up the gap -- after all, it does sport many of the same team members/staff.

Nevertheless, thank you to everyone who's commented this month and provided encouragement and support! I really appreciate it!

NaPoWriMo #29

2010-04-29T22:11:00.000-07:00

Marimba-Playing Robots

Metal slaps
in your ears closing in,
an army of feet
and sound.
Garage-band melody
thumps its way outside
and the air trembles
with the shake.
Robots march,
march,
wide-open, wide-awake,
feet stomp along.
Marimbas left in the dust,
robot hands slapping
robot quadriceps,
robot feet displacing
earthy sand.

*****
The prompt over at ReadWritePoem was to use headlines from news sources, and I was on the LA Times blog, where there was a headline that included the words 'marimba-playing robots.' Come on...you couldn't honestly expect me to leave that delicious phrase lying around. This poem was hard, though -- way harder than I expected, but I just tried to focus on that throbbing beat and the sound of robots moving, since I'm not too much of an expert on marimbas. I will admit that I didn't know what a marimba looked like until today.

And on the subject of good news, tomorrow is the last day of NPWM -- and April! Can you believe it?!

NaPoWriMo #28

2010-04-28T22:39:00.000-07:00

Ride-In Direction

Morning. One-way
street, you better go
left or turn back
the way you came,
two hundred dollars in
your hands.
Hold on, the ride
hasn't stopped yet,
the roller coaster still
hasn't finished its
loop-the-loop. You
better go now,
left or turn back
the way you came.

NaPoWriMo #28

2010-04-27T22:42:00.000-07:00

Sand

Stardust is
every word, every
part,
the
end and beginning of
my body, a
breath of
effervescence like
rain.

NaPoWriMo #26

2010-04-26T18:20:00.000-07:00

Cigarettes

Your radio refuses to pick up
signals, it fades into
the air like a cigarette

from one of the empty
Marlboro boxes in the corner
you're too scared to touch.

But inside you are full.
You don't hit the dust
until revolution twenty-one,

after you let go.
You don't burn blue,
you're open like tide on the shore.

NaPoWriMo #25

2010-04-25T22:40:00.000-07:00

In Place

Flight cancelled,
turn around and go back home

with your full-to-the-brim luggage
you thought you were
taking somewhere.

Don't drive home:
run home instead,

run for
Chevron next exit and
population: 99,

the place you wanted to leave.
You know yourself too well,

you don't find trouble, but
trouble finds you.

NaPoWriMo #24

2010-04-24T21:27:00.000-07:00

Baggage

The past runs high
in the terminal,

wheels and feet
tell you, We're in transit.

We equal movement
and full hearts:

we are the faces of this layover
and the next and the next,

airport Starbucks and
unheard-of cookie stores. We are

the tax-and-duty-free gift shops
and the gossip magazines;

we are the perfumes and
the Photoshopped magnets,

every souvenir known to man
wrapped up in our bodies.

We are not tempted,
but we are loaded with the weight

of flight and hope,
air hostesses in navy blue,

coiffed hair, and
perma-smiles.

NaPoWriMo #23

2010-04-23T22:43:00.000-07:00

The High Road

I take the high
road, not knowing
where it leads.

My body swims
into unknown territory
like a jumping diver,

bones free and loose,
soul miles ahead of feet.

The route is stitched out
in plaid guess-and-check fabric,
bending, twisting,

and I lose and re-find
myself along the way,
right foot, left foot, right foot, left.

Tangled and untangled,
I am fearless:

this is the story of a girl
whose heart lives in
New York.

side note: poem inspired by "the high road" (broken bells)

NaPoWriMo #22

2010-04-22T22:42:00.000-07:00

Anorexia

I linger in my
shadow-spangled
square of life

while winter trees
gently wave their
night-hellos

beyond my porcelain window,
anorexic rust-colored branches
tilting in refusal.

My square comes alive
in the dark, overflowing.

*****
45 followers?!?!?!?!?! Thank you!

NaPoWriMo #21

2010-04-21T22:44:00.000-07:00

Fortune

I wake up
and take a breath and
I am lucky,
not for the first
but for the
four-thousandth
time
in my life.
I am blessed.
I have been rained upon
with invisible angels:
I know
I'm going to
be safe.

*****
Today is a very special day in our lives here at home...it's my mom's birthday! She has always been there for me, no matter what, and she's supported me and had my back since day one. I owe her everything I have today, so please make sure you stop by in the comments and wish her a very, very happy birthday because she's an absolutely incredible person. I couldn't do half of what she does; I'd probably go insane. So, if you're reading this, Mommy, I love you! You are such a light in my life and I am truly, truly blessed to have you as my mother.

NaPoWriMo #20

2010-04-20T22:52:00.000-07:00

High Heels and Umbrellas

In the thirsty darkness you lie
awake listening

to a hundred
taps on your
window as you

fall to sleep.
A river of

umbrellas
floats by in the dark

past your curtains:
people come and go
in heels like rain
that cut away at the street.

You are a stranger
and they are strangers:
the world is upside-down.

You are cold.
You hide under the
sheets like women hiding

under umbrellas
out in the pouring rain.

NaPoWriMo #19

2010-04-19T22:01:00.000-07:00

Freefalling

I am a flier
in the middle
of the sky, caught
between cloud and city
and falling to
the ground.
I learned that the first
second after
you jump
is the best part.
I learned
that bodies
like mine
are made
for air,
for tasting
that cold open blue.
I learn now to take
the last
seconds and
hold
them. You can't
freeze time,
so let yourself
fall closer
and
closer
to the
end.

*****
I really like the shorter lines: they help me think the poem out better. I'm playing with my Alice in Wonderland theme in my head; hopefully I will be able to dish one out this month, but if not, I know I'll have some fuel to run on after the NPWM challenge is over.