I return to Canada in about a month. My once in a lifetime experience is almost over... which makes me want to experience more than one "once in a lifetime experience".
I've met so many people who say; You are only a kid once, its the time of your life... or high school is the best years of your life... and now everyone is telling me they wish they could be 20 years old again...
I don't want to be old and sad. I want to be old and satisfied. so in the meantime, no matter what age I am, I'm going to be having fun, experiencing life... there's no point in looking back and wishing you could do it over again.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Pride
I'm a pretty passive person. So I have a hard problem with the idea of pride.
But I’ve realized that pride is a collective experience, and to be truly proud of yourself is hard.
We are living in a pretty scary world right now, everything natural is being destroyed, or manipulated or contaminated... but we only see the facility of our lifestyle. Choose to look at any of the items you "own", ask yourself "where is this from, who made it? what is it even made of? and how can this cost so little if it took so many people to create?" If you can find one item in your room that you know the answers to all these questions, I am impressed.
Now before you decide stop reading this blog because it sounds like another extremist point of view on how we should be saving the world... stay with me. I'm not saying that we should all get together, hold hands and sing "O siem".
I know that we all need money. We all need a job. We need to be successful. We need to payoff student loan debt. We need live quickly in the world right now. We need to provide for our family. But we also need to be proud to be alive.
This is my personal opinion I might be wrong. But if you can't prove me wrong, can you help me by doing something we can be proud of? Can we show the rest of the word that the youth care about our future and the future after that?
But I’ve realized that pride is a collective experience, and to be truly proud of yourself is hard.
We are living in a pretty scary world right now, everything natural is being destroyed, or manipulated or contaminated... but we only see the facility of our lifestyle. Choose to look at any of the items you "own", ask yourself "where is this from, who made it? what is it even made of? and how can this cost so little if it took so many people to create?" If you can find one item in your room that you know the answers to all these questions, I am impressed.
Now before you decide stop reading this blog because it sounds like another extremist point of view on how we should be saving the world... stay with me. I'm not saying that we should all get together, hold hands and sing "O siem".
I know that we all need money. We all need a job. We need to be successful. We need to payoff student loan debt. We need live quickly in the world right now. We need to provide for our family. But we also need to be proud to be alive.
This is my personal opinion I might be wrong. But if you can't prove me wrong, can you help me by doing something we can be proud of? Can we show the rest of the word that the youth care about our future and the future after that?
Thursday, March 24, 2011
LOVE
I’ve been thinking a lot about love lately. Of course being the age that I am, you may assume that I’m talking about romantic love. But for the first time in my life… that idea is at the very back of my head.
I’m thinking about the people who I love in my life. The ones that make me feel 100% better after hearing their voice. Being away from these people has taught me how much they mean to me. And how wonderful my life is because of them. And I am so excited to see you all when I come home.
It seems that this world is getting sicker and sicker everyday… multiplying in disease, war, violence, starvation, nuclear disasters and extinction of nature. And we humans are to blame. I’ve been struggling to find balance in life because of this.
There is no doubt in my mind that the majority of people have the ability to Love. And there are some very strong people out there who can love through any situation, no matter how difficult. So I question where all this virally destructive action comes from. Of course ignorance is a part of it. But we can only be ignorant for a certain amount of time until we get slapped in the face by our own mess.
We’ve managed to pollute in every sense; Air, Water, Earth, even sound and light. We are making this world more and more difficult to live in. Our oceans have great garbage patches,The water we drink is contaminated with fluoride and chlorine and many other not so wonderful things. And we are the lucky ones who have access to potable water.
When I sleep at night I am disturbed by the constant noise of traffic and I’ve only seen a starry night 3 or 4 times this year. We need darkness, we need silence.
Plastic covers everything we touch, eat, consume.
Purity has become a luxury… and it should be our birthright.
We are in such a hurry to find a new source of energy, which is a good thing because nuclear energy is hurting people and the world, and the after affects will never leave the earth. But we forget that we have energy inside us. And there is energy in nature. And that energy is self sustainable and pure. We seem to have forgotten that it was possible to survive without all our so called “luxuries”.
Love. It is a source of energy. It may also be a choice, or fate, or whatever, but there is no denying that it is also energy. We can create it, give it and receive it. And I’m not only talking about the love between people, But with the world.
I know I sound like a hippy. And you may find some flaws in my message, because for our industrial and consumer world to end, none of us would know how to survive. We would all die. And I don’t want that. But with every love relationship, it takes time for the love to grow strong. So please take a minute today and every day, to give some love.
I’m thinking about the people who I love in my life. The ones that make me feel 100% better after hearing their voice. Being away from these people has taught me how much they mean to me. And how wonderful my life is because of them. And I am so excited to see you all when I come home.
It seems that this world is getting sicker and sicker everyday… multiplying in disease, war, violence, starvation, nuclear disasters and extinction of nature. And we humans are to blame. I’ve been struggling to find balance in life because of this.
There is no doubt in my mind that the majority of people have the ability to Love. And there are some very strong people out there who can love through any situation, no matter how difficult. So I question where all this virally destructive action comes from. Of course ignorance is a part of it. But we can only be ignorant for a certain amount of time until we get slapped in the face by our own mess.
We’ve managed to pollute in every sense; Air, Water, Earth, even sound and light. We are making this world more and more difficult to live in. Our oceans have great garbage patches,The water we drink is contaminated with fluoride and chlorine and many other not so wonderful things. And we are the lucky ones who have access to potable water.
When I sleep at night I am disturbed by the constant noise of traffic and I’ve only seen a starry night 3 or 4 times this year. We need darkness, we need silence.
Plastic covers everything we touch, eat, consume.
Purity has become a luxury… and it should be our birthright.
We are in such a hurry to find a new source of energy, which is a good thing because nuclear energy is hurting people and the world, and the after affects will never leave the earth. But we forget that we have energy inside us. And there is energy in nature. And that energy is self sustainable and pure. We seem to have forgotten that it was possible to survive without all our so called “luxuries”.
Love. It is a source of energy. It may also be a choice, or fate, or whatever, but there is no denying that it is also energy. We can create it, give it and receive it. And I’m not only talking about the love between people, But with the world.
I know I sound like a hippy. And you may find some flaws in my message, because for our industrial and consumer world to end, none of us would know how to survive. We would all die. And I don’t want that. But with every love relationship, it takes time for the love to grow strong. So please take a minute today and every day, to give some love.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
hello world! (long blog...)
Ok well I'm back from my adventure!
I have some wonderful stories, I’ve met some wonderful people, and I feel really good.
It might be that spring is soon to come... and if you take the time to look at the birds today, you will see that they are acting really strange lately... haha
With the combination of my trip to Britany and my trip around France, Spain and Italy I have this brand new feeling about my life situation. I learned in Britany that it is possible to live with a dry toilet, a wood stove, compost, recyclable water, and energy efficient electrical appliances when you just had your second baby. That you can be in the middle of building your house and still and make it the most comfortable home and then invite company over.
And when you need to spend money, spend it on things that will last, spend it on things that were made by one or two people, spend it on materials that are natural and didn't harm anyone to make, and if you can... make it yourself. Paint, Write, Dance, Sing, Grow, Build, Cook, Clean, Nurture
I think its fact that people need to create, or express. And if technology takes all the creating away from us... how will we feel useful? If we go back to our instincts I think we will be able to live more naturally instead of against nature.
After Britany, I had a week to pack for my mini euro-trip. Then I got on the night train to Perpignan. I met up with my friend Elise, who I used to work with two years ago in Canada. I spent 3 sunny days with her and her friends. Very nice, very friendly people. Elise was so generous, she had her final exams the next week, and then she was moving after that... and she still agreed to have me over! Then she made some amazing meals and yummy anchovies with roasted red peppers (first time it was very good). We went to the coast which was sooo beautiful, the mountains on one side, the meditearanian on the other... dark grey cliffs and sailboats.... ahhhhh... that day was perfect. Thank you Elise.
Barcelona. well it’s great. Of course there was a lot of partying involved. But the conversations that were shared were so interesting! I swear we spent hours talking about "the brain". Personal stuff was shared with strangers, food was shared, wine was shared, hugs, smiles... everything was shared... as long as you were sharing yourself too. I really liked the people I met... and I ended up staying longer then I planned. I learned that I need to give more. I'm the type of person who does everything myself, for myself. And this is obvious to the people around me, and it’s not a very lovable characteristic. So new direction... Give. Thank you Barcelona. (Tash, Sarah, Lyz, Anna, Joao, Rafa, Luis, Polish, Guy who took us to the beach and name I can't remember...)
Valencia, was a hard switch... truth be told, I didn't want to ever leave Barcelona. So of course it was hard to appreciate the beauty of the city and the hostel this time (which was like a really smelly hospital). But I was lucky again, and I met three Italians. The first Italians I've ever met! haha... we (they) spoke mostly in Italian, with Filippo translating the conversation into English for me. We then met up with a Spanish girl and there was a time when we were mixing French, Spanish, Italian, and English. It’s actually pretty incredible. But all of our heads were exploding because we were all trying so hard to understand each other, and to be understood. Such inspiration for me to continue learning French, and to try to learn other languages as well... I'm thinking Portuguese will be the next one... so I’m going to start that right away. Thank you Trieste (Flo, Filippo, Steven)
Venice. By the time I got here, I was sooo incredibly tired and lost. I didn't do any research about Venice before going, because I was going to meet Steph there later at night. So I arrived in the ghetto, of some city that is beside Venice, because Venice is actually pretty small, on an island. (that’s why it’s soo expensive to stay there) So I found the hostel in this ghetto town, and slept. Then the next day Steph and I and Andrew went across the sea to Venice. It’s beautiful. But it’s Disneyland to me. You can choose to eat shop or take a ride on a gondola... for 100 euro. So we walked, for I think 7 hours. It was a sunny day, and the view was beautiful. And it was nice to see my sister again.
And now... Paris. Ahh it feels so good to be back, with clean clothes. I missed my host family, and it was great to see each other again.
I miss you all and I send you my love!
-Adie
I have some wonderful stories, I’ve met some wonderful people, and I feel really good.
It might be that spring is soon to come... and if you take the time to look at the birds today, you will see that they are acting really strange lately... haha
With the combination of my trip to Britany and my trip around France, Spain and Italy I have this brand new feeling about my life situation. I learned in Britany that it is possible to live with a dry toilet, a wood stove, compost, recyclable water, and energy efficient electrical appliances when you just had your second baby. That you can be in the middle of building your house and still and make it the most comfortable home and then invite company over.
And when you need to spend money, spend it on things that will last, spend it on things that were made by one or two people, spend it on materials that are natural and didn't harm anyone to make, and if you can... make it yourself. Paint, Write, Dance, Sing, Grow, Build, Cook, Clean, Nurture
I think its fact that people need to create, or express. And if technology takes all the creating away from us... how will we feel useful? If we go back to our instincts I think we will be able to live more naturally instead of against nature.
After Britany, I had a week to pack for my mini euro-trip. Then I got on the night train to Perpignan. I met up with my friend Elise, who I used to work with two years ago in Canada. I spent 3 sunny days with her and her friends. Very nice, very friendly people. Elise was so generous, she had her final exams the next week, and then she was moving after that... and she still agreed to have me over! Then she made some amazing meals and yummy anchovies with roasted red peppers (first time it was very good). We went to the coast which was sooo beautiful, the mountains on one side, the meditearanian on the other... dark grey cliffs and sailboats.... ahhhhh... that day was perfect. Thank you Elise.
Barcelona. well it’s great. Of course there was a lot of partying involved. But the conversations that were shared were so interesting! I swear we spent hours talking about "the brain". Personal stuff was shared with strangers, food was shared, wine was shared, hugs, smiles... everything was shared... as long as you were sharing yourself too. I really liked the people I met... and I ended up staying longer then I planned. I learned that I need to give more. I'm the type of person who does everything myself, for myself. And this is obvious to the people around me, and it’s not a very lovable characteristic. So new direction... Give. Thank you Barcelona. (Tash, Sarah, Lyz, Anna, Joao, Rafa, Luis, Polish, Guy who took us to the beach and name I can't remember...)
Valencia, was a hard switch... truth be told, I didn't want to ever leave Barcelona. So of course it was hard to appreciate the beauty of the city and the hostel this time (which was like a really smelly hospital). But I was lucky again, and I met three Italians. The first Italians I've ever met! haha... we (they) spoke mostly in Italian, with Filippo translating the conversation into English for me. We then met up with a Spanish girl and there was a time when we were mixing French, Spanish, Italian, and English. It’s actually pretty incredible. But all of our heads were exploding because we were all trying so hard to understand each other, and to be understood. Such inspiration for me to continue learning French, and to try to learn other languages as well... I'm thinking Portuguese will be the next one... so I’m going to start that right away. Thank you Trieste (Flo, Filippo, Steven)
Venice. By the time I got here, I was sooo incredibly tired and lost. I didn't do any research about Venice before going, because I was going to meet Steph there later at night. So I arrived in the ghetto, of some city that is beside Venice, because Venice is actually pretty small, on an island. (that’s why it’s soo expensive to stay there) So I found the hostel in this ghetto town, and slept. Then the next day Steph and I and Andrew went across the sea to Venice. It’s beautiful. But it’s Disneyland to me. You can choose to eat shop or take a ride on a gondola... for 100 euro. So we walked, for I think 7 hours. It was a sunny day, and the view was beautiful. And it was nice to see my sister again.
And now... Paris. Ahh it feels so good to be back, with clean clothes. I missed my host family, and it was great to see each other again.
I miss you all and I send you my love!
-Adie
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Denial
I guess I could use this blog as some sort of diary. A place to throw up all my emotions and thoughts just so I know its out of me.
So let me just go find my real diary and add some of my last entries into this blog...
Oh right that stuff is private.
why?
The truth is I'm tired of being a private person. Always protecting myself. And right now it would be really great to be heard.
To be quite honest I don't feel completely myself here in France. And I haven't felt completely myself for a while. And with all this solitude I've been blessed with, or indulged in... or perhaps suffered with... I have become pretty closed off. I didn't really know what I was doing. But I was closing all my doors for opportunities. (and physically closing my door of my room -and locking it too)
I want to hug people. I want to say hi to strangers. I want have a coffee with a Parisian. I want understand my host parents better.
I'm tired of believing that the only solution to finding a real human connection is to travel to the countryside of france on the weekends. This type of thinking makes the rest of my week so much harder to enjoy.
Preconceived ideas, and denial of my own unhappiness is what is eating me alive. The funny thing is that I go to Paris, and I believe that everyone there is miserable and lonely and bitchy... sauf moi. But in reality I'm the one who woke up bitchy, lonely and miserable... and I'm projecting that shadow on my surroundings.
So I'm lucky to have noticed this only after 5 months. I will be more honest from now on; there’s really no need to stretch the truth... To try and please other people by putting on a cover...
I also wanted to thank all of you who read my blog... because you are my friends, And you have all been open with me. Some of you have been very honest with me... told me how it is, and it’s not always good...
but the honesty is what made closer.
So enough about me...
How are you doing lately?
So let me just go find my real diary and add some of my last entries into this blog...
Oh right that stuff is private.
why?
The truth is I'm tired of being a private person. Always protecting myself. And right now it would be really great to be heard.
To be quite honest I don't feel completely myself here in France. And I haven't felt completely myself for a while. And with all this solitude I've been blessed with, or indulged in... or perhaps suffered with... I have become pretty closed off. I didn't really know what I was doing. But I was closing all my doors for opportunities. (and physically closing my door of my room -and locking it too)
I want to hug people. I want to say hi to strangers. I want have a coffee with a Parisian. I want understand my host parents better.
I'm tired of believing that the only solution to finding a real human connection is to travel to the countryside of france on the weekends. This type of thinking makes the rest of my week so much harder to enjoy.
Preconceived ideas, and denial of my own unhappiness is what is eating me alive. The funny thing is that I go to Paris, and I believe that everyone there is miserable and lonely and bitchy... sauf moi. But in reality I'm the one who woke up bitchy, lonely and miserable... and I'm projecting that shadow on my surroundings.
So I'm lucky to have noticed this only after 5 months. I will be more honest from now on; there’s really no need to stretch the truth... To try and please other people by putting on a cover...
I also wanted to thank all of you who read my blog... because you are my friends, And you have all been open with me. Some of you have been very honest with me... told me how it is, and it’s not always good...
but the honesty is what made closer.
So enough about me...
How are you doing lately?
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Scratch
Last night I watched a video on Ted talks about a guy who wanted to make a toaster from scratch... this meant finding the minerals in the earth and melting them into certain metals and making plastic from oil.... stuff like that, the link is on the post before this one. it took him 9 months to make a toaster and it almost worked.
After watching this, I of course looked at everything differently... - my plastic keyboard of my computer, my doorknob, every single item in the grocery store.... really depressing actually, once I understood that if i were asked to reproduce any of these "man made" items from scratch I would have no idea where to start and would likely never succeed in completing it.
This upsets me, because I would like to believe that human beings are intelligent beings, and we can create incredible things. Which is true, unfortunately none of us seem to remember how to create something out of nothing anymore.
I'm going to borrow some words from the video clip, and say that I don't think I could make a sandwich from scratch. I have no idea how to grow wheat, or raise a cow, I think I could make some sort of instrument that could churn butter... o man and if I could make my own cheese, I would be sooo happy...
My point is that after all this "reflecting" I did today, I ended up going to the grocery story, buying milk in plastic cartons , cereal in cardboard boxes, beans in tin cans...
I wonder how many of us can successfully create a tin can.
... Just so we can throw it out after we use whatever it was containing.
After watching this, I of course looked at everything differently... - my plastic keyboard of my computer, my doorknob, every single item in the grocery store.... really depressing actually, once I understood that if i were asked to reproduce any of these "man made" items from scratch I would have no idea where to start and would likely never succeed in completing it.
This upsets me, because I would like to believe that human beings are intelligent beings, and we can create incredible things. Which is true, unfortunately none of us seem to remember how to create something out of nothing anymore.
I'm going to borrow some words from the video clip, and say that I don't think I could make a sandwich from scratch. I have no idea how to grow wheat, or raise a cow, I think I could make some sort of instrument that could churn butter... o man and if I could make my own cheese, I would be sooo happy...
My point is that after all this "reflecting" I did today, I ended up going to the grocery story, buying milk in plastic cartons , cereal in cardboard boxes, beans in tin cans...
I wonder how many of us can successfully create a tin can.
... Just so we can throw it out after we use whatever it was containing.
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