party like its 1999

So last night I was up pretty late, as usual, just wondering the social networks of the World Wide Web, as usual, and I decided to relive some recent memories via my facebook tagged photos; and it got me thinking about partying.  Since I have been in Spain I have partied harder than I ever have, and while of course my opportunity time has been short, considering I am a mere 21, I have concluded that is NO excuse.  I had been in college for two and a half years prior to coming to Spain and I am only now realizing my Thursday through Saturdays were not being spent wisely; I mean am I serious? I go to effin Umass Amherst, also known as like party school capital of the Northeast! 

Thinking of my friends back home I am realizing there are just too many excuses. I can't count the number of times we were turned off by a party because it was too crowded, or the line was too long… I mean would we even be interested if it was empty, no one was in there so we could breeze right through? 

Then there is the whole concept of being sweaty, which I will admit isn’t the best feeling, but who the hell cares? I mean is there any reason to think that you would not have access to a nice hot shower afterwards? "No." And I don't know about the rest of you all but I could stand to lose a solid ten pounds in water weight, and if all it takes is a night of dancing, well then that sounds like an epic workout plan to say the least… come one ladies, water weight gone after a consistent party agenda!  

Then there is the issue of having nothing to wear, but everyone has a friend with clothes they can swap, a little big or a little small, it all looks the same in a dark club.  I mean me and my best friend Kendra go as far as shopping around eachothers wardrobe, hmmm this dress will go great with Kendra's pumps, so, "Throw it in the bag!" 

Another huge concern can be money and yes I understand we all deal with that especially with the pay of campus jobs, I know, but ladies are most often free before 11pm.  Yes I realize that many times no one is there prior to the gratuity start time, but if your'e looking good, out with your baddest chicks and maybe even have a drink or two in the system, there is no reason you can't wait it out shootin the shit and posing for a mini photoshoot (and truly it's the best time because once the men come the cameras are forgotten about and outfits go unrecorded! Ugh, waste!)  And if you do spend the money, realize that there is little else you spend your money on during the week especially when you are on a dorm living/dining hall lifestyle, or at work and school all week and then right home to sleep.  

I mean the way I see it, being young is a temporary in both its physical and mental state, and regardless of how young you stay at heart, there will come a time when work, marriage, bills, kids and adult obligations won’t allow for the carefree partying ways of the college youth.  Plus old people in the club equals not cute, sorry it's true. So use the present to do what won't be available to do in the future, party like its 1999, hold up, that passed, so that means you should have been partying since way before.  

 
It’s not to late to make up for lost time so put on your friend's top, spend the $10, wait in the long line and sweat your hair our because before you know it you'll be wishing you had! 


Written During: #nowplaying 1999

don't stop the rain

So after a late start to my day, and time spent in Camille's (my long lost sister I found in Spain) room with the shades down, creating the allusion that it was still night; I made my way outside in what I hoped was sunlight and warmth.  To my dismay, like many days in Bilbao, it was raining.  Without my fabulous 5euro umbrella from a gypsy vendor in Algorta or much needed footwear, I began my 35-minute journey feeling unprepared and hence unenthused.  Trudging to the metro station my thoughts we elsewhere, daydreaming with the help of an epic ipod playlist is always a suggested way to pass the time.  After a quick eight minutes of waiting underground, the Plentzia metro pulled up and I was on my way.  

Being welcomed by a surprisingly full metro {considering Sundays in Spain means stay at home and do nothing} I found a seat in a booth accompanying three other women.  These women, like the rest of the passengers on the metro that afternoon, didn't seem phased by the dreary scenery as we glided along the tracks to the rhythm of a steady rainfall.  In the Basque Country it actually rains more days than not, so I imagine years of residency has made for indifference towards the rain amongst its inhabitants.  I on the other hand come from the Northeast de Estados Unidos where it does not rain more than not, though from what I hear as of late, the area had been experiencing some heavy downpours, mother nature does not make a habit of unleashing her watercan wrath over the region.  Needless to say I continued to keep much of my attention directed out the window as I rode to my destination.  And somewhere in between my long hatred of the rain and the Bidezabal metro stop, I realized that I must be real self involved to hate the rain.

I am not sure if it was where I was sitting on the metro or if it was the tranquil presence of my fellow passengers, but during this twenty-minute ride I came to the conclusion that I should be ashamed for my loathing of the rain.  I mean, my goodness, who am I to say or dare judge how Mother Nature or meteorology chooses to function.  I am so minute in a world full of so much more, and most times when it rains, my greatest concern is the well being of my hair, because I like most, am prone to frizz.  My last entry on how much I loved the beauty of spring and summer's flawlessness could not be made possible without the rain to hydrate the plant life that I love so greatly. 


If we didn't have rain who would be the waterers of all plant life? Not a job that I would like to do, and thought right now in a jobless economy, a plantwaterer trade might be perfect for the countless unemployed, but then again it may also be something that is cut back on, thousands could be laid off and the world would have to deal with being a little less green. 


On that note, I like to eat, like so many do of course, and even if that weren’t the case, eating is a must …without the rain, vegetation seems dismal, and really the whole of the food chain would be off, somehow starving more people than the vast number there already is.  So with these new enlightened thoughts filling my head I got off the metro at my stop and during the walk to my apartment I saw the once gloomy surroundings in a new light.  

The sound of the raindrops hitting the pavement made a greater impression than any song on my playlist and the roll of the thunder made for an even greater rhythm.  The gray of the sky was no different than my favorite tee shirt, the water trickling from blades of grass and running down flower pedals was a sight for sore eyes, the hurried shuffle of the people made for a unique people watching session. Truly I took in something beautiful that walk home, and while this entry may seem a little hippie or go green of me, I think that it should be more of a wake up call to realize how much we all in fact need the rain.  And if nothing else, understand that when you can't beat it, join…and the rain isn't going anywhere, at least I surely hope not. 
  


Written During #nowplaying: Please Dont Stop the Rain by James Morrison

La Primavera

Now, whether is is because my name is in fact the expression of an epic day in June ...when the warmth of sunlight hits exactly where you are on Earth so perfectly that you wonder if there had ever been a better moment? And so you smile because the fact that you cannot open your eyes without squinting and the anxiety of being followed by a black and yellow predator doesn't quite bother you because you take that risk as you enter a public museum of nature's flawlessness in the presence of an endless floral wonder.  ... or because I am just a warmblooded human being... I do believe there is little in this continuum of time, better than a delightful spring day.  This dia de la primavera I find myself in Bilbao, Spain, where the last few days have been equally as wondrous.  The beauty of this city reminds me of the glamor I see in episodes of Sex and the City or The Hills, and while Boston is of course breathtaking as well, the city has yet to have a major pop culture series filmed within its limits.  

I started my day kayaking in the Nervion River that runs through the gorgeous city of Bilbao, and as the sun hit the water and I looked around, I truly felt happy to be alive.  Later my amigas and I wondered down the Gran Via; the bustling crowds of the area made for an ideal movie set.  Loving this weather, just two days prior I found myself very Alice in Wonderland esc as I sat under the limited shade a tree on a hill of grass outside my University and fell asleep to the narrative of James F Cooper, waking as a fell down a rabbit hole, no not really, actually waking to the laughter of students playing Frisbee and a caterpillar joining my alone time.  Soon after I gathered my stuff, ipod in tote listening to my new favorite- Dom Kennedy, to walk along the river and take an impromptu Guggenheim photo shoot.  Walking the cobble stone streets of this beautiful city and gazing at the sun through the architecture of creatures nothing less than artists, puts a smile on my face and makes me appreciate life even more. 


Advice, study abroad if you have the opportunity; travel, live! 


Written During #nowplaying: 500 Day of Summer Soundtrack        

 

curls as of late

So last March right before a fabulous Spring Break getaway, me and the bestie decided that it was time for a fresh start, in our terms, this means saying goodbye to all the overheated, dyed, permed hair etc.  Though at the time the results seemed dramatic, it is a widely known fact that your 20's is the best time to experiment with hair, so we took our seats in the over priced, yet fabulous Bangz Salon http://www.bangz.net/, of Montclair NJ.  Pleased of course, i walked out into the basking sunlight with natural curly locks springing into action and I knew at that moment that my curls were beyond the rest.  I vowed that I would steer free of alcohol based products, gels, dyes and the like. 

At the time I had no idea that day would spark the beginning of a cutting spree for myself.  Only months after I found myself longing for the A-line bob that was sweeping fashion magazines and trendy females all over.  Soon after that fix I was back in the salon chair desperate for and angle more acute...within weeks I woke and the back had diminished at the unstoppable edges of the clippers.  As I entered August, I did so with minimal locks.  At the climax of my cutting spree I walk into the salon and told my hairdresser I was at her disposal, my only request being, "I want it all gone."  Pleased with my Rihanna rendition I up kept the cut until November when the harsh colds on New England baring down on my neck, made me miss the sanctuary provided by my formerly flowing locks.  

Holding strong for some time with the help of curling creams and organic products I finally gave in to the temptation of the wonders of mouse.  And ringing in a new year and a new look of course called for a an escape from the awkward new growth with the evil seductions of the ceramic flat iron and the satisfaction guaranteed propaganda of Garnier Nutrisse Nourishing Color Cream haircolor.

Needless to say now I am in another awkward stage full of regret and uncertainty for the welfare of my curls.  For now I turn to new styles in hopes that the creativity will mask the inability of my hair to stand flawless in its most natural state. 






Written During #nowplaying: I am Not My Hair by India Arie