Music Memories

"Music is a total constant. That's why we have such a strong visceral connection to it, you know? Because a song can take you back instantly to a moment, or a place, or even a person. No matter what else has changed in you or the world, that one song stays the same, just like that moment." - Sarah Dessen

This quote came up while I was Stumbling today, and it really made me stop and think. I have always known that certain songs have special memories for me, but I want to take a moment and reflect on some of those songs.

 1) "I Gotta Feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas - This song is leaving dinner each night on the Grecian cruise Natalie and I took last spring. Our table was the last to leave the dining room every night but one. We had tried to wait out the other table, but just couldn't do it and yelled at them as we left. Every night, one of the husbands of the two couples we sat with would sing "I gotta feeling..." and the waiters would respond "wooo hooo" and then we would all sing. Silly yet fun, and I will never forget the joy I felt leaving dinner each night.

2) "Hey Soul Sister" by Train - This one has multiple memories, but each is strong and they both run through my head when I hear the song. The first is cooking dinner with my Italian roommate. It was the first real conversation I had with her because we finally had something we both could relate to...our love of the song. That's usually a quick memory, however, that's followed by dancing in the neighbor's kitchen one night before going out in Verona while Renaud was visiting. The simple, loving sways and dance moves are forever en-grained in my mind. As long as it always makes me smile like it does now, forever is fine with me.

3) "Club Can't Handle Me" by Flo Rida ft. David Guetta - Just like the song says "You know I know how, To make em stop and stare as I zone out," I literally become entranced when I hear this song. It is on every one of my running play lists because of the almost unnatural burst of energy and focus it gives me. I just hear the first few beats and am instantly taken back to London in August, running down one of the major roads in Putney. I thought I knew where I was going but soon realized another road I thought was going meet up with the major road didn't. The run ended up being a lot longer than I expected, but was exactly what I needed. I ran so much farther than I thought I could at that time, and it felt absolutely amazing. At a time when I felt helpless and lonely, it reminded me of how strong I am. Every time I hear it, I am reminded of that run and sometimes feel as if I am running down that street once again.

4) "Shine On" by Needtobreathe - This one takes me back to a road trip to Indianapolis Kati & I took after freshman year of college. We each had made a few mixed CDs to listen to, and this was on one of the CDs Kati had made. I don't really remember the first time I heard it, but I always remember sitting in the back seat after we had gone to dinner with her grandma and hearing it play a few times over because we had decided for some reason it was necessary. To me, it's a summer song of friends and letting your light shine no matter how down you may be.

5) "Suddenly I See" by KT Tunstall - Another song with a running memory. This one is sprinting at the end of a run in Martha's Vineyard through all of the cute gingerbread cottages where we were staying. I felt so alive and really did feel that I was who I wanted to be and where I needed to be at that time in my life. I love when this song comes on, but have noticed that I will skip it if I don't feel happy with where I'm at at that time in my life.

I know there are many more songs I have powerful memories linked with, but these are the ones that usually come to mind. The original memories aren't always even technically happy memories, but just the ability a song has to take me back somewhere is inspiring and usually leaves a smile on my face and a warmth in my heart.

Thankful Thoughts During a 5 Miler

Some of my random thoughts yesterday while running...

- Thanks brother for picking me up from Murphy's yesterday to pick up my fresh, new Nikes!

- Wow, all the ice on the ARC pool is finally melted. Is spring really just around the corner?

- Foam Roller, thank you for making my muscles feel so loose. My knee hasn't hurt at all during this 5 miler.

- I love this song on my week one running mix from Nat, Ambling Alp by Yeasayer. I listened to it 3 times in a row around mile 4. All the lyrics are empowering, but these especially stuck out to me yesterday...
     "And if anyone should cheat you
      Take advantage of or beat you raise your head
      And wear your wounds with pride
      You must stick up for yourself son
      Never mind what anybody else done

- Bahaha, that's a funny shirt! - in reference to a kid wearing this shirt while running...

- 5 miles for the first time since I was in Italy...wow this feels good :)

Spring

"No matter how long the winter, spring is sure to follow." - Proverb from Guinea

At my job this summer, working for a missions camp, we had the campers play a game where they had to randomly choose a card with a proverb from around the world on it then explain the proverb and how it related to the week they were hoping to experience at camp. I liked a lot of the quotes, but this one was always my favorite. If I was ever having a bad day, I would try to keep this in mind, and it often comforted me good times would follow no matter how long the bad times seemed to last.

I'd like to be able to announce that today was a beautiful, sunny, 60 degree day where I ran outside and wore my sunnies all day, but in actuality, it snowed last night and I spent most of my day bundled up inside. No, the spring I'm referring to today, is a creative spring.

I've been trying to spend more time sketching, developing my writing, and feeding my creativity, but even though I've been trying to do more creative activities, I didn't always feel exceptionally inspired. Today, however, the sun broke through the winter clouds, and I felt overwhelmingly creative and productive. I am so thankful, and hoping this creative spring sticks around for a while because I'm really enjoying this smile it's put on my face.

Thought for the Day

I found this while Stumbling today and think it perfectly sums up my goal for this blog.

"Blessed are those who see beautiful things in humble places where other people see nothing." - Camille Pissarro

A mixing bowl we accidentally broke that looked like diamonds.

Homemade Pizza

After a long day beginning with a phone interview, then doing some internship research, going on a 4 mile run outside (!), and meeting up with Jane to do more internship research, I was extremely excited to relax with Julie and Natalie and enjoy homemade pizza. The other day, I had a craving for pizza made with Julie's delicious whole wheat crust and realized I hadn't had pizza in a long time, so I quickly set up a girls' night to make the pizza.

The menu was:
  - Sweet onion, Granny Smith apple & Gouda
  - Pesto, Tomato, mushroom & fresh mozzarella

Almost like a menu at San Matteo's...only not in Italy and about 50 pizza options short. But close :)
PS, please note the song playing on San Matteo's website once you enter the main site (click "Entra"). I literally laughed out loud. Still the best pizza in Verona though.

Me & Nat at San Matteo's

While cutting up the toppings, we realized the onion I was planning on using was disgustingly moldy, so we headed on an adventure over to County Market. Thankfully we ran in to Natalie on our way there so she didn't go knocking on a door to an empty apartment, and she brought these lemon bars which were delicious!

Both pizzas were delicious, but the Gouda pizza was by far the winner in my book! Thankfully there was extras of both, so I have leftovers for tomorrow.

P.S.
It's official, my first big girl purchase after a new computer will hopefully be a nice camera so my pictures don't turn out so dark and blurry.

P.P.S.
I just received a message that my Picassa is out of space...guess I'll need to purchase more so I can keep using pictures on my blog.

A Single Girl on Valentine's Day

After reflecting on a long, kind of rough week last week, I decided my absence from the blog may have a little to do with my low spirits. I knew I wanted to take a short break after my month straight of posting and was really busy with school and activities at my sorority, but making the time to stop and enjoy something in my day and blog about it really helps me slow down and relax. So, in other words...I'm back.

I realized today that I haven't had a Valentine on Valentine's Day since I was a senior in high school, so honestly, I'm pretty used to spending the day alone and instead reflecting on relationships and enjoying my singledom. Today it was 40 degrees and sunny for most of the day, and I started off the beautiful day with a great 3 mile run. Even before my run, I received a thoughtful poem texted from one of my good friends I grew up with that put a smile on my face before I even got on the bus for the gym. Natalie made me a mixed CD in celebration of completing our first week of half-marathon training which kept my run this morning interesting, and for some reason, I couldn't help but smile. I felt strong and knew I was doing something good for my body on a day when many single women eat chocolate all day and feel sorry for themselves.

One thing I do enjoy about Valentine's Day, even when single, is the cute care package my mom puts together for me. Usually it includes candy hearts (I think I'm the only person in the world who actually likes them...) and some fun Valentine's Day themed gift like a red shirt my freshman year or other random heart inspired goods, and she even sent me a really cute card last year when I was in Verona that made me cry.

I forgot that she usually does this for me, so I got really excited when she gave me my bag of goodies last Saturday after my Dad's birthday dinner. Everything was in a giraffe print bag since giraffes are my favorite, and there was quite a mix of fun things :) This year's bag included cuticle softener since I usually try to convince her to let me get a manicure whenever we get pedicures because they're better at cleaning up my cuticles, some Mary Kay makeup and other goodies, 2 jars of the homemade apple butter I love that she gets from a friend (hello delicious oatmeal mix-in!), a cute notepad with a heart design because for a girl who makes multiple lists everyday, I can never have too many notepads, and a really cute dish with hearts on it. Also, since I lost my aviators on Thursday (one of the many random things that went wrong last week...), she let me pick out new shades when we went to Kohls after dinner, which I had fun wearing around campus today.

My bag of goodies :)

The cute dish I put on our coffee table for decoration.

Sitting in the media lab for my night shift this evening (yes, really romantic...), I was reflecting upon past Valentine's Days, and although today wasn't really out of the ordinary, it was a really great day. It didn't beat my day last year posting my love letter on Juliet's Wall and watching a proposal under Juliet's balcony in Verona, but it was a really great day none the less and I am hopeful of great February 14s in my future. 

I think it's good to remember that although not every day may be extraordinary, each day has the potential to be great. Even when you're single on Valentine's Day :)

Via Mazzini decorated for Valentine's Day last year.

Day 30: Crossing Something Off My Bucket List

52. Write down something I’m grateful for each day for a month

I know this was technically posted a day late, but I was away from my computer most of yesterday so we're counting it :)

30 days. 30 things I'm grateful for. I'm really proud of myself for sticking to this and posting something every day for a month. It was one of those things I wrote on my Bucket List that I thought wouldn't happen until I was much older because it's an easy one to put off. It's also, however, a fairly easy one to complete because it was completely in my control and was free to do.

It's been a little while since I was able to cross something off my Bucket List, and it feels so good. While in Italy, I was crossing things off left and right, but now that life has slowed down a bit and I'm back in the routine of 'real' school, not so many things get crossed off. Life slowing down, however, is exactly what helped me cross off #52. If I had been super busy, I wouldn't have had time to post each day. I love being busy, but I'm glad I was able to take advantage of this down time from traveling and what not to express what I appreciate each day with words.

Thinking about what I was thankful for each day this past month has really helped me slow down and appreciate both big and little things in my life. Some days I could have written about multiple things, and other days it was genuinely a struggle to think of something to write about. Some posts were heartfelt while others were just plain silly. Some were a few sentences sans photos while others seemed to go on forever and included as many photos as I felt were appropriate. They were all a bit different, but all mean something special to me and are special as a group.

I often scroll through the entries and reflect on what I've posted about, so here are a few reflections about my 30 days of gratefulness.

- My nails have been a lot of fun colors. Silver, pink, mint...
- I've read a lot of books!
- I am so much more in shape than I was a month ago.
- My mood is a lot different from when I started. I'm a lot happier, more reflective and peaceful, and most importantly, my bubbly personality is back.

I've really enjoyed posting each day what I'm grateful for and definitely want to continue doing that, but I also want to focus again on where I find beauty in every day life. I want to keep my camera more readily available the next few weeks so I'm able to randomly snap photos while walking around campus. Hopefully I'll have some fun photos to share and I'll be able to continue developing my writing skills in prep for that great American novel I'm going to write some day....

Until then, I'll continue working on other things on the Bucket List. Hopefully by the end of the semester I'll be able to cross off, 7. Run a half marathon, 61. Learn French, finally feel comfortable crossing off 14. Become fluent in Italian, 43. Graduate from college, and maybe even 53. Go on a blind date.

Day 29: My New Curling Wand :)

A girl I studied abroad with and who has the shift before me in the media lab on Thursdays told me about this amazing curling wand she bought over winter break, and after seeing pictures of her beautiful hair when styled with it and learning it only cost $25, I decided I should probably get one too. I drug my brother to Target with me, and after getting over the shock of the store being completely rearranged, we found the curling iron/straightener/blow dryer section (I don't actually know what this section is called...hmm) and quickly found the curling wand. There were 2 to choose from, but I decided on the one with a full handed heat protecting glove rather than the one that only covered 3 fingers since I sometimes have clumsy/burning issues. At home we have oven mits that come almost up to my elbows because I used to burn myself all the time...

Curling wand! 

After spending too much money on other purchases (although they were all good purchases!), we headed back to campus. I helped Nat dig her car out of the snow then headed home to try out my sweet new curling wand. There was a bit of a learning curve, but honestly, it was quite easy and didn't take very long because the wand gets really hot. I was definitely thankful for the heat glove!

When I was all done my hair looked amazing and I felt sassy. I wasn't planning on going out that night after the dance performance I had to go to, but I felt so good once I was all ready, I decided why not? While waiting for the performance to begin, I texted Kati and Nat to spread the news of the amazingness of the curling wand. Nat just laughed at the picture I sent her, but seriously, everyone should go buy one! I wonder if they call it a "wand" because it's magical. I bet every fairy godmother has one now...haha

Feelin' sassy with my curling wand curled hair :)

Day 28: The 2 Guys Who Spent All Day Scooping the Sidewalk

I really enjoy Kati's blog where she just writes letters, so I'm going to steal that format for the day.

Dear 2 men who spent all day scooping the sidewalk,

I'm glad we became friends today since I walked by you 3 or 4 times. First you were just trying to make a flat path for all us walkers, but the next time I walked by, you guys were hard core shoveling the icy snow off the sidewalk. You moved out of my way each time so I could pass and we exchanged friendly words. You guys made my day since it was comedic how many times I walked by. I was a little sad you were gone by the time I came back from dance, but I'm so excited that you guys finally worked your way to each other and scooped the entire path from my apartment to the bus stop! Thanks, I'll think of you guys each time I walk to the bus stop.

Sincerely,
Jessica

Day 27: Snow Day!

Yes, the University of Illinois actually had a snow day! Only 2 within the last 30 years then we got one today. The last 2 were when I was a senior in high school around Valentine's Day, and I seriously doubted I would ever see one during my time here. Tuesday afternoon they canceled all class from 5 pm onward, which was a good sign but I was still a bit doubtful although I put off doing my Italian reading until after they announced at 10 pm. I checked my e-mail every 30 seconds and tried checking the Illinois website which was down due to too many people trying to check if we had school not. I ended up finding out thanks to my neighbors above me screaming "Snow day!" over and over, who then continued to party all night long. My night, however, was a bit more relaxed, talking to Sara online, watching TV, and finally catching up on filling in my blog posts.

My favorite part of the day was not setting an alarm. It's so freeing and relaxing to not have to set my alarm and sleep as long as my body needs to. I wouldn't want to do it every day, but I enjoy getting to do it every now and then. Ultimately, I woke up around 10 am but didn't get out of bed until around noon and that was only because I was hungry, so I got up, made some oatmeal with banana and walnuts, and got right back in my warm bed. I left my heated blanket on and watched How I Met Your Mother in bed all morning aka best morning ever.

Not too long after finishing my oatmeal, Clair came over to watch 500 Days of Summer and painted our nails. Mine our mint green/turquoise!

Minted from Revlon, which I went to Walgreens looking for
almost every day for a week before it was in stock.

After the movie, we ventured out to County Market to get her some lunch and honestly, I kind of wanted to go out to see really how bad it was. There was more snow than I realized by just looking out my window, but it still wasn't nearly as bad as I expected from the original forecasts. I was a bit disappointed we didn't get as much snow as the rest of the areas around us, but at least we still got a snow day!

The "stairs" to my building...aka a snow ramp.

I don't know if you can see him, but the kid in the left
of the photo was wearing shorts haha

Clair walking in the snow in her loafers. Gotta love her!

We convinced Natalie to trek across campus to come hang out with us which was nice since once she got here we realized we hadn't seen each other since Friday, which in Natalie and Jessica world is a really long time. We had talked so much online and the phone that we hadn't even realized we had actually seen one another since then. Nat did her nails while Clair ate and I made the delicious looking spinach gnocchi recipe I found the day before and my favorite cake mix cookies with strawberry cake mix!

The gnocchi was extremely easy and even though I had my doubts for a bit, turned out to be very tasty! I'm going to somehow try to cut my spinach up even smaller next time so hopefully the gnocchi will stay together better, but for a first time recipe they turned out extremely well.

My spinach gnocchi, yum!

They make look a little goofy, but they were so good!

My cookies were delicious as always. I've made plenty of bad batches of chocolate chip cookies,  but honestly, I don't think I've ever made a bad batch of cake mix cookies. The strawberry mix is my absolute favorite, but I also want to try the confetti and carrot cake mixes some time. Sadly, I didn't snap a picture of the cookies, but here's a gem of a photo from a batch of chocolate chip cookies gone wrong...

Chocolate chip cookie disaster during senior year cookie project for Econ.

We sat around sharing funny stories and looking up country songs on YouTube for a while before deciding we should all probably start on some homework which was not going to get done if we were all together. After the girls left, I sat down to do my Italian which turned out to be a lot more difficult than I even expected, but I got through it and even got to watch Off the Map before heading to bed early for a good work out the next morning.

This song isn't a country song, but it pretty much explains my day...The Lazy Song by Bruno Mars

Dear snow day,
Thank you for being both relaxing and fun. I enjoyed you and am okay if you come back again sometime :)
Love,
Jessica

Day 26: My Pink Winter Hat

I bought my pink winter hat to go skiing in Italy, which turned in to an interesting event...but I'm still so glad I purchased it. I've never been a big hat person, since I have a big head, but I love the idea of hats. I didn't originally bring it to school, but after I remembered just how cold it gets in Central Illinois during the winter, I had my brother bring it from home for me.

Normally I'm able to get by with a scarf, my thick mittens, and my long, wool peacoat, but on days such as today, the big guns had to come out. Today I broke out both my big wool sweater and of course, the pink hat. I hate the cold, but a strange part of me loves getting completely bundled up and heading out in to the arctic tundra. I'm much more content sitting in my warm apartment blogging and watching television, but sometimes it's fun to throw yourself out in the elements too.

What I looked like walking around campus with the ice rain pelting me in the face.