House of the Day

Today I just want to share with readers a really great gem on the Wall Street Journal website: the House of the Day. This feature, which isn't religiously updated every day but pretty often, showcases luxurious homes in the United States and around the world. Although I can't afford any of these houses (and might not ever be able to), I really enjoy looking at the different styles and interior design schemes. And I love to imagine what I would do with that space, like in today's highlighted English Manor house.

Video Poetry

Here are some videos from poetry open mic night last Friday. They're sideways, but I decided to put them up anyway. Apparently I still haven't figured out the video function on my digital camera.

The first is me, doing a short piece.

The next is a clip from my friend Sean's song:

And this last one is one of the poetry open mic regulars... "Satan"... singing his amusing and political Christmas carols:

Growing Up

Adventure is waiting
For the birds to announce
The first day of spring
And then waking up early
To jump in the watering hole
Or shitty plastic baby pool
That killed the grass in the yard

You watch the ants hoof it
Along the gum-strewn pavement
Nature hides its fragility behind force
But death always finds a way
To take us up to heaven
Or into the black nothingness
That fills a hole in the ground

In the morning Mom hears you leaving
She climbs out of bed to kiss you off
Some days she's stuck in dreams
And you open the bedroom door
Softly, with a niggling fear
Or actually a stab of panic
That she might not move at the sound

New Record!

Before I dated Todd, my longest relationship was about one year and two months. It was nearly one year and three months, if you counted times of momentary separation into the total. That's a pathetically short range, I know.

But I'm glad that all of those relationships ended, because I was never as happy as I am now. And, my relationship length standard has reached a whole new level: one year and four months. I hope that the ease, warmth, and passion of this relationship never end.

Here are some photos from our one year and fourth month-iversary dinner:



i know, we're so classy



i think i awkwardly took this right after he finished chewing

i was much more excited about that frosty than i look here

One of the Blessed Ones

When she was younger and growing up on Long Island, the former chair of the NYSSCPA Not-for-Profit Organizations Committee wished she could perform as a modern jazz dancer. Then, in her college undergraduate years at SUNY Binghamton, she studied English and prepared to teach literature. But her ambitions changed and she became a CPA, working as Eisner LLP’s director of not-for-profit services and as an adjunct professor of auditing at Baruch College.

Julie Floch doesn’t regret that decision at all. 

"I feel like I’m one of the blessed people,” she said. “I don’t know a lot of people who would say, day in and day out, that they really like their lives. And I really like mine."

...Read the rest of my Tax Stringer Member Spotlight article on CPA Julie Floch.

New Year, New Opportunity

In 2010, I had 54 posts, up from 49 in 2009. In 2011, I wrote 93 posts. This year, I want to break 100 posts. I'd like to start posting more often, both about experiences I'm having as well as about interesting or educational tidbits I read in the news or online. To me, sharing information and ideas is one of the most important activities we can engage in, and I'd like to take an even more active role in making that happen among my followers, family, and friends. 

On that note, I'm going to share with you my other resolutions for this year - a year that some believe will bring about the end of the world. Whether it will or won't isn't for me to decide, but I'd like to make it the best year yet, just in case. I want to try and show more appreciation for those around me who impact my life in positive ways, and I hope to spend more time exploring activities and studies that interest me.

First, I resolve to actually work on and finish editing through the novel manuscript I've written. I'd like to tighten my writing into a blend of Fitzgerald's spot on descriptions and vocabulary with Atwood's storytelling knack and restraint. Not that it will get anywhere close to that, but I figure that having high standards probably can't hurt.

Second, I resolve to be the best girlfriend I can be: understanding, interested, and most of all honest. I will try my best to show appreciation for the many things that Todd does for me, and I will try to never make him sad. In the same vein, I'd like to be a better daughter to my parents and a better friend to those who have been there for me.

Third, I will figure out a plan for school. For anyone who doesn't know, I'm wavering right now about going back to school and what I should go for, and how I should approach it. By the end of the year, I want to at least have a focus and a direction to take.

Fourth, I want to start brushing up on my Hungarian language skills again. I haven't been able to speak the language or practice for quite some time, but I want to start reading and translating again, listening to Hungarian radio on my phone, perusing Hungarian news, and maybe finding someone to speak the language with so that I don't lose it.

Fifth, I want to further develop and realize my own identity and abilities. I want to dig even deeper into my soul and mind and release all of the potential that lies in waiting. I want to remain true to myself and to the things I love. I want to avoid being swayed by popular opinion or crowds. I want to remain firm to my beliefs and strengthen them. Lastly, I want to delve into my psyche and heal up any old wounds that still linger.

Whew, that was an exhausting list, just to type. But I'm up for the challenge of trying to achieve all of those goals. And I hope that you've come up with some good goals for the new year too. Even if you don't believe in "resolutions," as such, it's always good to have goals. By striving to reach new heights, we can be surprised by what we might find. What are your goals for 2012? Maybe we can help each other succeed. 

looking forward to a year of laughs and love.

holiday

glass loses reflection in the predawn

morning fog veils building peaks

and we cross the street despite

the taxis

working from darkness to darkness

venturing out into afternoon sunlight

feels like the state between dreaming

and awake

tourists impede pedestrian traffic

we twist one scarf around our necks

with hands clasped we're like two gifts

in ribbon

too quickly the lunch hour passes

there are no windows in our office

look around-- it's a solemn masoleum

of goals

bags get heavier the longer they're held

to our myopic eyes the lamplight slurs

we miss the details for shiny circles with

hazy edges

but we can see the essence of everything

back into ground

they say the city is a jungle. do they mean arms and ankles and eyebrows and teeth? the colossal steel hands lift the limbs up behind the neck, up into reflections of the waves above our heads. we're all animals at the core. with the deepening of our days, we will all start to feel fur or feathers, scales or sandpaper skin. we'll grab each other and run toward the forest. little monsters trying to find our way out of a world of distorted reflections in glass. let's build our homes in the trunks of the giant redwoods. we will morph into the xylem and phloem. the up and down processes will slosh our blood around in our mouths and we'll swallow each other down for nutrients. where are the rings of age on skyscrapers? what will become of the arms and ankles and eyebrows and teeth?

For What It's Worth

More often than not, I wonder what I was thinking when I decided to pursue a journalism degree. I have inner anxiety when it comes to talking to people, and I always stress about each article to try and make sure it's as perfect as it can get. But then sometimes there are interviews that really make me appreciate my decision to follow this career track; not only are they interesting, but the person on the other end is super friendly and makes you feel comfortable asking them questions. 

John K. Samson of The Weakerthans falls into that category, along with others like Stephen Kellogg and Josh Ritter. And now that I've finally interviewed the singer of my favorite band, I feel like all of my hard work has been worth it so far. Check out my interview below:

Photo Post!

Lately it seems like it's always one thing after another. Thanksgiving, hanging out with friends visiting, work, more work, writing articles, and now upcoming concerts and then Christmas. Here are some photos that explain what I've been up to better than I can: 

giant plate of Thanksgiving food and a salad drenched in dressing

Union Square

chocolate pizza from Max Brenner... mm I love those marshmallows

group photo: Kayla, Sean, Jo, Beyza, me, Todd

 getting into the Christmas spirit even though he's Jewish

i love Rudolph

it makes me happy to look at this beautiful tree