truth.

I'm thankful for...

my family. 

my family is always there for me- so constant and supportive.  i would not be where I am today if it weren't for their love and support.

my friends.  your friends are the family you get to choose, and i've chose a wonderful, supportive group of people to surround myself with.

my pets.  i'm so thankful for my cat, neo.  he is the most amazing son any kitty-mommy would want.  i am also thankful for apollo, zeus, and athena- they are the best puppies in the world!

my voice.  i am thankful to have a gift, and smart enough to know i need to share it with the world.

nature. i am thankful for the wonderful world we live in, we just now need to learn how to take care of it better. 

love.  love is everywhere, and i love it.  i'm thankful to have been in love before, and excited for the next round.

laughter.  laughter makes the world go round.

literature. i love escaping to another world through reading, there is really nothing better.

music.   no need to elaborate.  music keeps me going.

cinema.  might seem shallow, but cinema makes me SO happy, I can't even express.  it is similar to literature, escaping to another world through the screen is priceless.

Suffice to say,  I'm very thankful for my life.  Life is TOO short to not live every day to the fullest, and be the best person you can be.  I am excited to eat delicious food with my family tonight.  I hope you all have wonderful Thanksgivings! 

kindergarden romance.

sandbox romance began

in the early morning rain

kindergarden started

as little hands held tight

recess came and went

bus ride home, too fast

kiss goodbye, see you tomorrow.

never saw him again.

a blast from the PAST!

  7th heaven (n):

1. A state of great joy and satisfaction.
2. The farthest of the concentric spheres containing the stars and constituting the dwelling place of God and the angels in the Muslim and kabbalist systems.

  I love the show Seventh Heaven.  I grew up on it, and though I'm not religious I really think the show helped teach me some of the same values my parents worked so hard to hammer into my head.  Honestly, if the show is one thing...it's real.  They are a HUGE family, (7 kids, 2 parents, a dog, as well as the hundreds of people who are in-and-out of the Camden house as "charity-cases" persay throughout the series. 

I think what I love so much about it, is you won't find a show targeted for people of all ages that is so "G" rated now-a-days.   We're all so used to the shows of Showtime and HBO, raunchy sex-filled episodes with profanity, nudity, blood and violence. 
Sometimes, less is more and alluding to things is more effective than exposing them in their entirety. 

When I see their happy faces, smiling back at me!

I know there's no greater feeling, than the love of a family.

Where can you go?  When the world won't treat you right?

The answer is home, that's the one place that you'll find....

november sibe.

photo credit

betsy peyreigne

http://peyreigne.smugmug.com/

poem.

fire sunsets set on a creamy topaz sky

pelicans fly.

words unspoken

life unexpected?

time away

is time to play

touching soft skin as the waves crash down

in the moment, no need to worry

i'll be there

there for you

nine months pass.

lies.

harry potter and the deathly hallows- the legacy of dobby (the house-elf)

TEARS.   

Tears, I tell you STREAMED down my face towards the conclusion of the first installment of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince when loving, dear Dobby sacrificed himself to SAVE Harry Potter and his friends.

When we were first introduced to Dobby in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets I thought he was just a strange creature that would be in a few scenes now and then for our entertainment.  But, when Harry freed Dobby from his duties as a house-elf, by giving him socks I knew that this was a friendship that would last throughout the series.  

Those of you who believe I have gone badshit, devoting an entire blog post to Dobby the house-elf and his "legacy", please hear me out.   

After the death of Sirius and Dumbledore, I believe that the death of Hedwig shook Harry.  But so shortly after, it is the death of Dobby that sparks a darkness in Harry that allows him to have the courage, finesse, and the ability to kill Lord Voldemort.  After all, it was the followers of "He-who-shall-not-be-named"  that lead to Dobby's demise.  If these "people" (if you can even call them that) can kill an innocent creature like Dobby what is stopping them from killing EVERY witch, wizard, goblin and creature that supports the name HARRY POTTER??????  Harry knows what he has to do- for the sake of wizard-kind. 

 The scene where they buried Dobby portrayed such a humanity to this magical world.  It was such a raw scene, you almost forgot for a second they weren't burying somebody at a "muggle" funeral.  It is scenes that like that make the story of harry potter as "fantasy" as it is, believable, because SO MANY of us have gone through the death of somebody we love.  It doesn't matter Dobby is a make-believe creature that was killed with a wand, he was someone IMPORTANT to Harry and his friends, they LOVED him.  The fact he is gone is going to haunt Harry for the rest of his life.

All of this loss is alot for a 17 year old to take, and Harry deals with it the only way he (or anyone) can, and would.............waiting for sweet revenge.

harry potter and the deathly hallows- the fearless trio.

~*~

"It is a curious thing, Harry, but perhaps those who are best suited to power are those who have never sought it.  Those who, like you, have leadership thrust upon them, and take up the mantle because they must, and find to their own surprise that they wear it well."  

J.K Rowling is a very powerful woman who deserves our respect.    She LITERALLY owns the phrase "from rags to riches".  When you think where she started-- a poor-single mother, with a dream of inspiring  children everywhere by helping them escape from the cold, harsh realities of OUR world into the magical world of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry--inspiring them that ANYTHING is indeed possible.

     Just last Friday at Midnight I went to the showing of the first installment of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.  I realized that for the past 11 years  I have grown up WAITING for either a new Harry Potter novel, or movie to be released.  This woman has created a legacy, and though I still stand by my reasoning that the books are A MILLION times more influential and moving than the movies, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was fantastic.  So fantastic in fact-- I plan on seeing it again!  

(Those of you who know me, know that I only spend an additional $13.95 to see a movie in the theaters for a second time, if it's going to be one of those to join my Buffy the Vampire Slayer DVDs on my shelf! :-)

"Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?"

    May I say, our three fearless friends, Harry, Ron and Hermione have grown up to be BEAUTIFUL people.  Emma Watson, now a model for Burberry and a student at Brown University encompasses Hermione's intellect, compassion, and fearlessness so eloquently thats really all I can say on the subject.  That girl has GROWN UP playing the role of Hermione and subsequently the development of her character throughout the movie saga is flawless.

     
Rupert Grint is a personal favorite of mine.  He plays Ron with such a level of "goof" and charisma that it makes anybody grin cheek to cheek.  The impending relationship of Ron and Hermione is evident throughout the entire movie....you can see they truly care for each other.  The way he looks at her especially- (with that pensive longing), is so convincing- I really have to give Grint props for that.  He has to have been in love before, or he's the best actor in the world.

     And last (But NOT LEAST OF COURSE)  is the one, the only DANIEL RADCLIFFE!!!!!   That boy,  golly-gee......he is such an inspiration to us all!  Radcliffe plays Harry with such a level of modesty throughout the series.  Him, much alike Watson really encompassed character development in their acting in such an influential way.  (Not excluding Grint per-say, I just believe CHARACTER wise Watson and Radcliffe used "changing-times" to their advantage in an obvious manner) I'm proud of the actor he has become---he really became a man in this past movie.

"It was, he thought, the difference between being dragged into the arena to face a battle to the death and walking into the arena with your head held high.  Some people, perhaps, would say that there was little to choose between the two ways, but Dumbledore knew - and so do I, thought Harry, with a rush of fierce pride,and so did my parents - that there was all the difference in the world. "

~*~


Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows- The Legacy of Dobby will be up shortly :)

being a duckling

Be a leader, not a follower they say.  It all depends on how you look at it, and what you are "following".  For six months I followed a passion for outreach, fund raising, and raising public awareness on major social issues.  It was wonderful, but like anything only time tells if its the best place for you to be. 

So my time as a canvasser is over.  It was a wonderful, enlightening, fufilling six months.  But unfortunately after months of pouring everything I have into campaigning I have realized some very important things.

1)  When you're working full time canvassing, you cannot sing on a regular basis.  I was BLOWING my voice out every day trying to speak over cars, buses, and the general public of New York.  (New York is a LOUD place).  I loved every moment of it  (well maybe not EVERY moment, but most). For the sake of my health as a singer the time came to resign.
2)  I love outreach work.  I love Campaigning.  I love making a difference.  The people I met at Grassroots inspired me every single day I was there, this is why I stayed for so long.  Grassroots made me realize my love of being an activist, but I don't think canvassing is the way I am meant to express my inner-activist.   I see myself finishing my schooling as an opera singer, and continuing to organize and execute concerts for major non-profits (just like the ones I canvassed for).
3)  Planned Parenthood Federation of America does some of the most amazing work of any non-profit out there.  I am planning on organizing a concert in their honor this coming spring.  I think pieces composed by female composers, or operas and songs with strong female-roles will be the focus of the concert.....it's still in the works though.  If anyone has any ideas/suggestions please let me know.
4)   Life is wonderful, and too short to be stressed beyond words at 21 years old.

So yea.  Those are (just a few) things I learned.  I plan to blog more about my time as a canvasser, and certain CRAZY, AMAZING, and plain FRIGHTENING interactions I've experienced.   It's seriously the best and the worst job in the world.

I'm back in the saddle as they say as far as focusing on the reality that is my life.  I want to be a singer.  I don't know if that means opera singer, choral singer, subway singer, or karaoke singer (HAHA- just kidding, sorta LOL), but I want to SING.  Expressing the passion and faith I have in myself and the world through music IS my calling.  I'm not sure EXACTLY how I'm going to get there, or where I'll be in ten years but I KNOW that if I give it my all and follow my dream like ducklings follow their mother I will be somewhere that is exactly where I'm meant to.   From now on,  I'm only going to follow MY dreams, not dreams others have for me, not someone elses dream, not a campaign, just me.  I want to be a singer,  I'm going to use my skill and passion to make it happen, for MYSELF.

Anyway,  Thanksgiving is soon.  I'm so thankful for my life, my family, my friends, my pets, and my voice.

Till next time.

Nichole