Another night to remember

I have a group of friends. In this particular group, somehow, we always end up having to run for something whenever we're all together. Tonight we ran for the car, lost in a parking garage, just trying to find our way out.

As dramatic as that sounds, it really wasn't. We're just easily lost and confused sometimes. Anyway, tonight was amazing. I was given the opportunity to go to "First Date" - a new musical at ACT Theatre in Seattle, WA - with three amazing women. I'm so lucky to have them in my life.  There's even talk of a band in the making ... But that's a story for another day.

Honestly, I am incredibly blessed with the friends I have. They all have their particular places in my heart and my life and I wouldn't have it any other way. I've gone on so many crazy and amazing adventures this past year and each person has played a role in making each adventure what it was.

Isn't that what this year is supposed to be like - running around with friends, sometimes without a plan, just enjoying ourselves? It may have taken me a while to figure that out, but I'm glad I finally did.

Libraries to visit

"The world belongs to those who read." ~ Rick Holland

"A room without books is like a body without a soul." ~ Cicero

"You know you've read a good book when you turn the last page and feel a little as if you have lost a friend." ~ Paul Sweeney

For those who know me, I am quite the bookworm. I always have, at the very least, two or three books going at once, only because there is so little time in the world and so many books waiting to be read. Right now I'm in the middle of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, The Collected Poems of Sylvia Plath by Sylvia Plath, Tokyo Vice by Jake Adelstein, and The Ballad of the Sad Cafe by Carson McCullers.

I have compiled multiple lists of places to go, things to do and people to meet in my lifetime. For an avid reader like me, a list of libraries to visit was inevitable. So, fellow bookworms, eat your heart out:

The New York Public Library

New York, NY

 The Monastery Library

San Francisco Monastery and Church

Lima, Peru

Joanina Library

University of Coimbra

Portugal

Fayetteville Public Library

Fayettevill, AR

Geisel Library

University of California-San Diego

La Jolla, CA

The Long Room

Trinity College

Dublin, Ireland

The Library of Sorbonne

Paris-Sorbonne University

Paris, France

Radcliffe Camera

Oxford University

England

Shibo Ryotaro Memorial Musem library

Osaka, Japan

These aren't all of the libraries on my list - not even close. But they are some incredibly amazing places I wanted to share with you. If you're lucky enough to be graced with a sunny day today, pick up a good book and find a nice place to read outside. Leave your iPod and cell phone indoors and immerse yourself in a wonderful piece of literature. But if you're like me - living in one of the rainiest places in the world - sit yourself in a quiet corner. Curl up with a cup of tea, a blanket and your book.

 Read. Exist. Be.

(All photos belong to their respective owners)

Beginning of the end

Spring quarter 2012 began on Monday. There's always a rush that runs through me at the beginning of every quarter. It's a mix of excitement and nerves.

Somehow, excitement has overtaken the nerves this quarter and I'm feeling ready for the new quarter. Maybe it's because I feel experienced enough in my field that I no longer need those nerves. Maybe it's because this is my last quarter as a high school student, my last quarter until I'm fully launched into the world of adulthood.

Sure, being in college the last two years has put me in that world. But after this quarter, the training wheels will be off and I'll be making my way through a world that makes no sense right now.

I've seen friends walk into that world and find success. I've also seen friends who are still wandering, lost in a world they weren't ready for. Everything that I've done and everything that has happened to me over the course of my life will come together in June to guide me out of the safe walls I'm hidden behind and into a world of chaos and wonder.

I've been told I already have the mind of a person in their thirties (although, that's debatable...). I'd like to think it's because I've experienced quite a bit. But understanding that there's still so much to see is one thing we can all learn, no matter how old you are.

Monday marked the beginning of the end of a chapter in my life. Soon it will be time to start writing a new one. When the time comes, I'll be ready. There are fears to be conquered and fun to be had. So let's get to it.