A Fairytale Wedding

There's nothing better than a fairytale on a Friday morning.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William and Catherine were married this morning at Westminster Abbey in a gorgeous ceremony, bringing people around the world together in collective smiles and celebrations-- beaming at the grace, love, and excitement of the couple as they exchanged their vows.

So here's to Will and Kate: live, love, and be happy-- we all adore you.

Discovering New, Really Really Good Music

You know that instant when you first hear a brand new song, and you suddenly-- instinctively, just know that it's going to be good? 

That's where I am.

You immediately feel it pulling you in-- the bass pulsing in your hands and the melody curling around your head, captivating your imagination and tapping into your core as you find yourself singing along to the chorus only halfway through. Maybe it's the question presented by a thoughtful piano or the determination of a frustrated guitar-- the seduction of a drum's hearbeat or the quiet whisper of an introductory violin-- there's something unearthly about it, beyond the lyrics-- a thrill and a smile and a fluttering rush that tells you "This is amazing."

This is music.

Happy Earth Day!

The world is pretty ridiculously awesome.

Think about it-- it's this giant ball of life, just floating around in a big black void, containing everything we've ever known.

All of our music, all of our food, our cars, our hobbies-- all of our TV shows, cultures, idols, and religions-- all of our landscapes, inspirations, dreams, friends, and family-- all of our jokes, notes, accessories, and stories-- everything we've ever seen or done or experienced has been on this planet.

This 4.5 billion year old rock has been good to us, giving us air to breathe, water to drink, and habitable climates to live in-- sidling up with organic life in an effort to give us one really cool place to call our own.

It's about time we return the love.

Earth Day is about celebrating the awesomeness of our planet, and working to conserve it-- because Earth is all we've got.

So, from one Earthling to another, let's hug a few trees, clean up our act, and treat our planet to one heck of an awesome day. Turn the lights off, turn the A/C up a few degrees, and go vegetarian a for a few nights each week-- the Earth will love you for it.

Happy Earth Day!

Inventing New Words, Faux Shiselle.

We've all done it.

You and your bestest bud are sitting around, innocently eating chips and pizza, catching up and chatting-- and then WHAM!

You say something, or they say something (but probably you say something) a little silly, a little incoherent-- definitely embarrassing-- and it sticks.

Before you know it, you've invented yourself a new language.

Suddenly you're always using phrases like "psy-kwon-do" and "dooblah", ending every sentence with an emphatic "FAUX SHISELLE!" and using invented words unwittingly in conversations with other people, getting quizzical looks and raised eyebrows from the stranger that you just met from down the hall.

But you OWN it.

So here's to all the unabashed, self-proclaimed bilingualists:

We are bosewesome, and BRP, I'm psy-kwon-do-ing you all of the un-confuséd awesomeness that I can, faux shiselle. And that may have been a bit of bouche-fullness, but in cheese, you know that it just means we're the best-- uncontested philosophically with our dooblah thinkers, Nietzsche and Lyotard, behind us.

Really Unpredictable Weather

Call me crazy, but I really love unpredictable weather.

The sort of weather that leaves weathermen dumbfounded and everyone else soaked in sunglasses and t-shirts-- that's unseasonably hot for November-- that pulls in a blizzard when all of the flowers have already bloomed.

Yes, spring is generally all about things warming up, birds returning, and green things growing-- but aren't things more exciting with a sugar-dusting of snow? It ups the ante (will spring actually come?), spices up conversation, and really just looks cool.

So the next time it snows in the middle of April or storms on a 'guaranteed' sunny day, just think: it wasn't likely to happen-- but the fact that it did makes it pretty ridiculously awesome, shaking probability to its core, giving meteorologists a profession, and everyone else something in common to talk about. Long live climatic chaos!

Calvin and Hobbes

I've long been a fan of Calvin and Hobbes. It is the single funniest and sweestest comic strip I've ever come across, EVER.

Case in point.

http://www.calvin-and-hobbes.org/  Enjoy!

Finding a Dog's Lost Owner

There's really nothing better than helping a stranger. Epecially when there's a puppy involved.

Walking my dog today, running to catch the green light across the major intersection by my house, a Yorkshire Terrier poofed into existence.

Yes, poofed.

One second it was just my dog and I-- and the next there was this little brown furry thing bouncing along beside us. I really have no idea where it came from, but it took an immediate liking to my dog. They sniffed, they barked, they wagged tails. It was puppy love at first sight-- but the owner was missing.

I looked everywhere for someone with a leash, a look of amusement, or even an unsightly little plastic bag, but the streets were empty--  this puppy was following me down the sidewalk, ready to elope with my pet at that very instant, but I had no idea where it lived or who it belonged to.

I continued walking, pausing at every tree, every bush, and every fire hydrant. There had to be someone around somewhere.

Then I came across a family sitting outside on their porch.

"Excuse me, do you know if anyone on this street owns a little Yorkie?"

"I don't know what a Yorkie is, sorry?" the man replied, getting up from his seat.

The little dog had run into the neighbour's backyard.

"A little brown dog with pointed ears," I said, "it just ran into their backyard." I pointed to the white house next door.

"Oh, well, I know that they own a dog, but I'm not sure if it's the one you're talking about," he said.

"Ok, well, thank you anyway. I'm just worried about the little guy."

I smiled, and continued on my way, trying to ease my fears by telling myself that the puppy probably belonged to whoever lived in the neighbour's house-- why else would it have run into their backyard?

My dog and I continued down the street, crossing over into the park around the corner. Gallantly trotting, tongue out, my dog was pleased to find himself nearly home-- when a woman ran up to us.

"Sorry, have you seen a little brown dog?"

I couldn't believe it.

"A Yorkshire Terrier?"

"Yes!"

I told her I'd just seen it on the street adjoining the park, and offered to meet her there to look for it.

"Oh my goodness, thank you so much!" she exclaimed, running for her parked purple car.

I turned on my heel and bolted back to the street-- my dog, if anything, would bring the Yorkie back out of the neighbour's backyard.

I made it just as the car pulled up, and pointed to the white house. The woman got out of her car and called to the puppy-- garnering the family's attention that I had just talked to.

As my dog and I walked closer to the house, sure enough, the little Yorkshire Terrier came running around the corner, first towards us, and then towards it's owner. It was even bouncier than the first time I'd seen it-- full of kisses for the woman, and tail wags for my dog.

The woman picked it up and ran back over to me.

"Thank you SO much!" she said. "We'd given him away a few days ago, because the upkeep is hard, you know? But we couldn't bear it anymore, so we took him back, and he's just been a little different since. My son didn't lock the door properly this afternoon, and he got out... Thank you SO, SO much!"

She turned back to her dog and smiled at it.

"I love you, you know?" she said as it perked its ears. "I really, really do."

She smiled and thanked me one more time, and then returned to her car to head home.

I looked at my dog. There really wasn't anything better that could have happened to us all day.

Doodling in Retrospect

Let's face it. Studying can be boring.

If you're a student, you understand.

Note after note, page after page-- reviewing everything you've EVER learned can be more than a little tedious.

With finals looming just around the corner, I resigned my day to doing just that. Flipping through my notebook, reviewing past tests, struggling to keep a disciplined focus-- when I realized that my notebook is perhaps one of the best things ever.

Seriously.

I'm one of those people with a constant need to be doing something-- I'll be sitting in class, waiting for my lecture to start, and find myself doodling. That's right, DOODLING.

My notebook is full of cartoons and scribbles and absolute nonsense-- it's ENTERTAINING!

It's like I've illustrated my notes-- I have all of the important stuff (I could tell you about dark matter and Einstein's theories of relativity any day), but I also have these wonderful little pictures giggling up at me, cheering me on!

Doodles are the mascots of the learned scholar.

And the best thing ever, where notebooks are concerned.

Baby Trees

I don't think my best friend believed me when I told him that baby trees are "the BEST thing EVER!" today. I don't understand why, I said it with conviction-- but fifteen enthusiastic head nods can probably only get you so far.

Really though:

It's SPRING. The grass is green, the flowers are blooming, and the birds are loud. Worms are finally mucking their way out of the ground again, and thunderstorms are making a comeback. T-shirts are permissable without a jacket, and people are starting up their barbeques-- music is playing, and porches are being used. The sun's up longer, and windows can be opened. The soil is thawing, branches are budding-- and new trees are growing. Everything's colourful again!

Baby trees are the heralds of spring.

They really are the BEST thing EVER!

Hi, Incredibly Awesome People!

I'm not sure I have any credibility anymore-- I'm a perpetrator of perpetual hyperbolicism.

But guess what? This blog is the best thing ever.

Welcome :)