Live the Language: Paris

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!

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

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

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



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.

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.

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 when it comes to my poems.

I also just want to stick 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?