blog

80

I don’t know how you are so familiar to me—or why it feels less like I am getting to know you and more as though I am remembering who you are. How every smile, every whisper brings me closer to the impossible conclusion that I have known you before, I have loved you before—in another time, a different place, some other existence.
— Lang Leav

"Rain-fed wildflowers have been sprouting from California's desert sands after lying dormant for years — producing a spectacular display that has drawn record crowds and traffic jams to tiny towns like Borrego Springs.

An estimated 150,000 people in the past month have converged on this town of about 3,500, roughly 85 miles northeast of San Diego, for the so-called super bloom.

Wildflowers are springing up in different landscapes across the state and the western United States thanks to a wet winter. In the Antelope Valley, an arid plateau northeast of Los Angeles, blazing orange poppies are lighting up the ground.

But a "super bloom" is a term for when a mass amount of desert plants bloom at one time. In California, that happens about once in a decade in a given area. It has been occurring less frequently with the drought. Last year, the right amount of rainfall and warm temperatures produced carpets of flowers in Death Valley." 

"Each spring, the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve comes alive with the seasonal surprises of the Mojave Desert Grassland habitat.  The duration and intensity of colors and scents vary from year to year.  The wildflower season generally lasts from as early as mid-February through May, with a variety of wildflowers creating a mosaic of color that changes daily."

78

be easy.
take your time.
you are coming
home.
to yourself.
— Nayyirah Waheed, “The Becoming | Wing”

 

All photos are mine. The full original content of this post got deleted somehow, so I attempted to recreate it as best I could.

XO

77

Just to be clear
I don’t want to get out
without a broken heart.
I intend to leave this life
so shattered
there’s gonna have to be
a thousand separate heavens
for all of my separate parts
— Andrea Gibson

I am sorry to ignore my blog. I will try to continue to do at least one post a month. Some changes have occurred in my world, and the journey is great, but also very personal. Life is gloriously busy, and I will try to write more about that soon.

In the meantime, you should listen to Maggie Rogers' EP (my favorite is Better), read Charles Blow in the New York Times as often as possible, follow Dan Rather and Robert Reich on Facebook (these 3 men are keeping me sane from POTUS), watch the final season of Girls on HBO (for nostalgia purposes), follow @Judeliana and @CaitlinJStasey69 on Instagram (they are brilliant artists who are also huge activists), watch the movie Her again (to feel something unusual), read a book on your list (for me, it's The Girls by Emma Cline).

Xxxooooo

 

72

When we really dive into the reasons for why we cannot let something go, there are only two: an attachment to the past or a fear for the future.
— Marie Kondo

 

A few months ago, I started The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. Several people had recommended it to me and said it had truly changed their lives. I was intrigued. "Kondo, Japan's expert declutterer, will help you organize your rooms once and for all. The key to successful tidying is tackling your home in the correct order, keeping only what you really love, and doing it all at once."

I read about 50 pages before I started on my journey (not recommended). But the moment I started reading it, I felt such relief, like I was finally getting permission to get rid of all my stuff. I have had too many things for as long as I can remember. Living half of my life on the East Coast and the other half on the West meant I had two wardrobes, two rooms, two lives, which allowed for a lot of accumulation. So after I got 50 pages in, I invited over some friends and went through my closet. We filled 6 garbage bags up with shoes and clothes and organized my drawers and closets. I felt like I could breathe again.

But since I didn't finish the book, or continue it after my start, I am back to a messy room and life. Just as Kondo predicted! Thus, I have started her book again with the intention of doing it properly this time. I am now at the part where it gives you the task to visualize the life you want to live. Visualize your future space. Visualize what you will be able to do once you no longer live in clutter. As much as I love physical mood boards and collages, I do not have a printer right now, so I will be creating my mood board on this post.

I recommend checking out the book if you think you could commit to a massive cleaning. And you should! Getting rid of clutter is something we could all use. As Kondo says, "When you room is clean and uncluttered, you have no choice but to examine your inner state." 

71

You do not need saving.
Only reminding of who you are.
— Tapiwa Mugabe

At age 7, I traveled to Ireland by myself for the first time. The emerald isle quickly become a second home to me, and each summer I would return to live with my extended family for weeks on end. It was a tradition started by my father, a first generation American who left the rush of New York to work on his uncle's farm in the quiet fishing village of Courtmacsherry, Eire until school started again. Like my Dad, some of my favorite memories are from those summers.

This trip was the first time I had been back in the summertime in 5 years. I was an emotional wreck who was constantly crying of happiness and confessing my love to everyone. Being there again, I realized how much Ireland means to me, how significantly my time and the people there have shaped who I am.

Thank you to my Dad for enabling Rob and I to go, we had an unforgettable trip with you. Thank you to Rose and my cousin Neil for inviting us to your beautiful wedding, it was absolutely incredible. Thank you to Aunt Kathleen and Aunt Margaret for the advice and wisdom you shared with me on the trip, I am so grateful we bonded the way we did. Thank you to Robby for coming with me, meeting (literally) 100s of my family members and making them fall just as deeply in love with you as I am. Thank you to Deirdre and Siob for being future bridesmaids and forever my sisters from another mama. Thank you to Marie for always making me feel so welcome and being down to stay out way after we should be in bed. I could give a million thank yous. This trip was truly the time of my life, I could not have had a better time, and I could not feel more blessed than I do coming away from it. This trip solidified that my wedding (far in the future) will be happening in Ireland. 

We were in County Kerry at the Park Hotel/Samas Spa and then in County Cork in Courtmacsherry, Kinsale, Clonakilty, and Cork City. 

Trip highlights include:

  • Brunch with 25 of my Dad's cousins the moment we stepped off the plane.
  • Park Hotel desserts outside at 10:30 pm before the sunset.
  • The 7 mile hike through Killarney National Park.
  • Taking a horse and carriage through the Gap of Dunlop.
  • Treatments and spending time at the pool at the Samas Spa.
  • A boat tour of the Lakes of Killarney.
  • Aunt Margaret dropping her phone in the river and our guide retrieving it.
  • 5 hour dinners with my parents, Grandma, and Aunt Kathleen and Margaret in Kenmare.
  • Dad and Neilus singing at the pub the night before the wedding.
  • Grandma eating 3 ice cream cones after the reception at Rose and Neil’s wedding.
  • Watching my Dad's face as Nelius spoke at the wedding (he looked like a kid on Christmas).
  • Everyone and their mom stealing Robby away from me on the wedding dance floor.
  • Having a 99 at the Clon Street Fair.
  • The madness at the Courtmac Hotel the night after the wedding.
  • Robby and I staying out til 4 am on our last night, forcing us to go directly to the airport for a 18 hour travel day.

And so much more. Here are some photos taken in the 10 days. All iPhone.