Song of the Day

Todd tried to teach me parts of this today:
"Death to Los Campesinos" by Los Campesinos 

You Are Still Yourself

For the past year I've had long hair. And by long I mean that I came down over my neck and nearly to my shoulders, if it didn't actually touch them. Before that, I had short hair for a long time. Yesterday I had scheduled a haircut and had planned on merely getting a trim, but before I knew it, I had envisioned a short haircut that I really, really wanted and I decided that there was no reason to wait. Although many people - like my mom - are afraid to cut too much off their hair or branch out with a different style, I find that it helps to remember that you are still you, no matter how your hair looks or what color it is. And keep in mind that no matter how bad it gets, your hair will always grow back

 So what does your hair look like? If you could have any style at all, what would you want? Once you've considered that, now ask yourself: why not?

Heart Chakra

Photo from: HowToOpenChakras

The fourth chakra - anahata in Sanskrit - hovers around the area of the heart and is represented by a lotus flower with 12 petals. These petals represent feelings of lust, indecision, repentance, hope, anxiety, longing, impartiality, arrogance, incompetence, discrimination and defiance. The heart chakra governs these feelings and keeps them balanced within our hearts. It governs the sense of touch and thus primarily rules the hands and the skin. The color green, also a very potent color for growth and healing, represents the heart chakra.

When this chakra is balanced, we feel unconditional love and compassion for those around us and for humanity. We strive for peace with all of our actions and we interact easily and naturally with other people. If your heart chakra is blocked, however, you will feel vengeful and unnecessarily mean or harsh towards others. You will feel overwhelming guilt and paranoia, and ultimately you will either drive others away or rely on others for happiness, rather than feeling it deep within yourself. This emotional turmoil may be physically manifested through heart problems, trouble breathing, and upper back pain.

To unblock your heart chakra, learn to give and share more generously and love others for their flaws as well as for their positive qualities. For some tangible exercises to open this energy center, try practices yoga poses such as the Locust, the Fish, and the Camel. Carry around emerald or rose quartz gems and fill your house with poppy and holly flowers. Donate to a charity or give some unused clothes to the Salvation Army. Next time you want to criticize someone, try to give them positive feedback instead and remind yourself to love them. If you feel jealous or paranoid, try deep breathing technique and press your palms together to stimulate energy flow between them, which links back to the heart chakra. Some mantras to practice daily:

• "I do not need others to be happy, but I am thankful for the love that others bring to my life." 
• "I will think about each action I take and make sure it leads to peace."
• "I love those around me." 
• "I am strong and I respect myself and others."
  
  

Book Review

 I recently finished reading "Love Begins in Winter," a collection of five short stories by Simon Van Booy. I really enjoyed the author’s writing style, with short choppy sentences broken by one twisting, long one with semicolons. Lots of similes and metaphors and strange contrasts. It read very poetically with a strong sense of rhythm. I liked his portrayal of characters, how each of them had some kind of darkness beneath their surface. Each story weaved together threads of parents, children, guilt, and hope to form a mosaic that, when viewed from afar once finished with the book, really showed the intensity and power of love to change a person.

Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 

Excerpts:

(12): “They will only be my parents once. They are the only parents I will ever have in the history of the universe. I wonder if they feel me thinking about them here in Quebec City in the rain – I wonder if they feel me like a small animal gnawing at them affectionately.”

(48): “From my pocket I took a large stone and set it squarely in his open hand. If there is such a thing as marriage, it takes place long before the ceremony: in a car on the way to the airport; or as a gray bedroom fills with dawn, one lover watching the other; or as two strangers stand together in the rain with no bus in sight, arms weighed down with shopping bags. You don’t know then. But later you realize – that was the moment."

Nightmare

when we fall asleep, the blankets swaddle our bodies into a single form, like cotton candy around a swirled paper tube. together, we are a multi-limb monstrosity. we are happy. but the sweat leaks out from our shoulders, our stomachs, and the soles of our feet. droplet by droplet, we unravel. you are the water and i am the vinegar and slowly we slip away from each other, eyelids flickering with dreams we won't recall. when we wake, we scrabble across the emptiness and clutch each other to our chests. we grasp and clutch and kiss and murmur and hold and clasp and clutch and promise to never let go.

Creating a Charlotte Russe Community

I can't deny that I like to shop. Some of my favorite excursions are the ones I take with my mom to the mall or into Manhattan to look for new dresses, sandals, or lingerie. Charlotte Russe, a retail store targeting teenage girls and young women, is always one of our first stops. The clothes there tend to be tight and flirty, but never reveal too much. The brand's style is similar to that of Forever 21 and Wet Seal: trendy, modern, and inexpensive yet chic. In addition, Charlotte Russe stores often offer money-saving deals, such as the current offer for a free pant with any $20 purchase.

Recently, I learned about a Charlotte Russe fan site, which is currently in development and looking for suggestions on design. If I were designing the fan site, I would focus mostly on creating a community for supporters of the brand. I would have multiple pages on the site, each serving a different purpose. For example, I'd design one page that provided fans with updates on the brand: newest styles, which celebrities are wearing those styles, and what deals are going on and coming up at the stores. Another page could feature a comment space, where supports can post their thoughts and ideas. Yet another page could perhaps give fans a way to meet fans who also go to their favorite stores. 

In this way, the Charlotte Brand fan site wouldn't only create an online community; it would bring together supports of the brand in person. And those people would tell others, who would tell others, until the Charlotte Russe fan site became nearly as influential as the brand it promotes. 


Direct link to the site: http://charlotterusse.org/

Photo Post

I haven't gotten a chance to take many photos so far during the month of May, but here's a few that I have taken. These photos are of my boyfriend, Todd, playing drums with his band Friday's Nightmare. He's been playing drums for about five years. You can download his band's demo here. They soon plan to record a "much higher quality, less shitty one," according to Todd, so once that happens, I'll be sure to post it.

Solar Plexus Chakra

Photo: Oracle and Tarot Goddess Blog

The third chakra is called Manipura in Sanskrit and is located a few inches above the navel. It is best represented by the color yellow and is symbolized by a lotus flower with 10 petals. Also known as the solar plexus chakra, it governs the liver, the stomach and the intestines. 

When balanced, the sacral chakra helps to strengthen our discipline and self-control, as well as keep our egos in check. An open third chakra will make us feel organized and at ease, both with ourselves, others, and the world around us. But when this chakra is blocked, we become manipulative and egotistical, believing that we are superior to everyone else. We may have difficulty concentrating or completing tasks, and as a result of a sluggish mental state, we may make poor decisions.

In order to open and balance this chakra, try yoga breathing techniques. Breathe from your diaphragm, not from your stomach. With each deep breath, try to get in touch with your feelings. Consider peppermint or lemon grass scents and oils, or start carrying around topaz or tiger's eye gems. Try belly dancing or exploring in the warmth of the sun to give yourself a sense of renewed freedom.

Most importantly, we must try to release our emotions. Stop holding in your anger or your sadness; let it all pour through you and out of you. Don't be afraid to show happiness or love, and don't let fear hold you back. Of course, this isn't easy and takes a lot of work, so try some positive affirmations, such as:

• "I will feel everything and express my feelings honestly.."
• "I am open to learning new things."
• "I know that I can do whatever I set my mind to."
  

Song of the Day

American Idol season 9 winner Lee Dewyze with his most popular single. Todd and I are going to see him in concert on June 29! I can't wait!

Song of the Day

Here's a short little song called "Writing a Letter" by Smoking Popes. Todd and I are going to see them in concert on Thursday and I'm really excited because they're one of the first bands he introduced to me when we first starting getting to know each other.

First Signs of Spring

We picked white dandelions

and made wishes on the seeds,
blowing to scatter them in the wind.

I blew, and blew, but still some

refused to fly from the stem, so I 

hit the flower until they fell off.

Would my wish still come true?

I smiled and looked at you.