resolutions.

be myself.
be honest.
be original.
be inspired.
be courageous.
enjoy.

a few things that made it on my list in 2012...

unnerving city living.
courageous open minded traveling.
fearless cambodian living.
authentic vietnam friendshiping.
elephant bathing.
fancy camera buying.
suburbian transitioning.
genuine roommate loving.
amsterdam ginger festivaling.
red rocks revelationing.
hide and seek playing.
future figure outing.

acupuncture for the first time.

well, i did say i was gonna try to live more asian like. so - i had to try it. i didnt have any significant issues to go in for. some stress here and there perhaps? indigestion? lower back pain? i didnt really know what to say. they bring you into a room and ask you a million questions. do you have trouble falling asleep? how long do you sleep for? do you have trouble waking up? do you go pee in the middle of the night? how many times? what time? what color is the pee? its pretttty detailed. with her soothing nature she guided me into the room where she puts needles in me. in my head, in my ear, my feet. yep. totally normal. then she leaves, saying to, you know, relax - and she will be back in an hour. an HOUR. i cant move. and at first all i can think about is that there are needles all over my body and there is no way in hell i am gonna fall asleep or relax like this. the hour went by pretty fast and since then my whole family has tried it, and have loved it. im glad i did it, but it might be one of those things you have to get used to.

oh adventure.

adventure, to me has always been about traveling and discovering new places. and usually this time of year i start to get stir crazy if i haven't gone anywhere in a while -but i am learning to take on other forms of adventure. learning how to be a photographer and buying a house are both huge adventures that i am very excited about. and sometimes i need to focus on what is going on here and not on the other side of the world :)

november is the WORST.

november is my least favorite month.

i dont think its always been this way - or maybe i just wasn't as effected before but I have officially declared november as the worst month. despite just feeling like there are more bad things than good that happen this month. there are other reasons to justify this statement.
I do believe that the sun makes me happy. and so i believe seasonal affective disorder is real. it is a fact that people in the northwest get depressed. so first reason why the time of year is hard - daylight savings time. all the sudden the sun goes down at 5. the days feel so short and it makes me so sad. second reason - its cold. cold and no snow. i know i live in colorado but you know it takes a month or so to "warm up" to the idea of wearing long underwear to bed. also, i think this especially effects those people who are homeless and wondering around looking for any way they can to find money to find drugs and make their life a little less bad. thus breaking into housed and cars. and so it makes sense that my car was broken into again this november. third reason - it is the beginning of the holiday season. for some this is "the most wonderful time of year" and for others it is stressful, lonely, and awkward. Or a reminder of someone they have lost.

i think december will be good. i honestly dont mind snow and who doesn't like sitting around the fire drinking hot coco!

Calvin the Chemist.

I met him at matchbox on a tuesday night.
The music was loud so we had to yell,
"SO WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO FOR FUN?"
I yelled.
He liked to drink IPAs and watch football.
Typical.
He was obsessed with the book "On The Road" by Jack Kerouac, and I am certain that is the reason he moved to Denver.
He kept the periodic table in his pocket.
One time he asked me if I would like to go on a "hammock date."
"Hammock?"
Yeah, like the thing you lay in.
"A hammock date?"
yeah - dammit - just meet me at Cheesman park at 6pm. I will be....in a hammock.

I did. And he was.
We drank wine and ate cheese and it was the best hammock date I had ever been on.

advice for a twentysomething.

I recently read this article in Elle magazine about "how to make it in the world" and i tend to agree with most of these.
1. never waste time looking for a job when you can invent a job.
2. never invent a job that does not help solve one of mankind's problems.
3. never forget, as you prepare your Facebook marketing campaign: women want to be thinner, and men want to be taller.
4. never go with what you love. go with what obsesses you.
5. never worry about failing. you will fail. just fail smarter the next day.
6. never listen to your boyfriend when he complains that you're working all the time. keep working.
7. never wear black. wear red - hot, cheeky, dangerous red. people will be less likely to forget you.
8. never aim for catchy. aim for true.
9. never ask customers what they want - as steve jobs said: "people dont know what they want until you show it to them."
good to know ;)