From the moment the sun woke me up this morning I've been enormously busy. For the past few days my house has been like an ant colony, with everyone frantically dealing with chores to get ready for the trip. In a matter of hours I am heading off for some European mountain adventures, and I am very much in traveling mode. I love the going to unknown places and for the past few weeks I have been longing for a change of scene. My bags are fully packed and I await the horrid smells of airports/airplanes. They smell of stress. I'm going to miss the blogworld and people for a while. Arrivederci!
Your English is Good by Tokyo Police Club

I don't feel like blogging right now, but since I do everyday I feel the need to. If I hadn't gone to Comet Pond today, everything would have been terrible. Swimming eased my feverish head and I felt newly energized. When I got home I became tired, hot and surly once more. It started to thunder and rain so hard you couldn't see much. I ran outside and let the drops hit me, feeling like the man at the end of Shawshank Redemption, but far less so. Why do I always try to relate myself to films?
Like Dylan at the Movies by Belle and Sebastian

The best thing that happened today was going to the doctors office, as unusual as it sounds. I was sitting in a chair, directly adjacent to a colorful aquarium, waiting for my appointment, when Latino family with about five kids entered. As they walked towards a desk, their little boy sprinted directly towards me, drawn to the vibrant fish. He couldn't have been more than ten years old, and he was the funniest looking kid. He had slicked back hair to match his extremely cartoonish face. This face was a big head, with a pointy nose and large, protruding ears. His smile instantly made me smile and made me feel better. He was wearing ridiculously long shorts, a sleevless shirt with a huge jesus piece around his neck. He unabashedly walked up to me and asked me "Which fishie is your favorite?", and began to talk to me hurriedly as if we were old friends. I told him that I liked the starfish the most and he started tapping the glass trying to get it to move. After losing interest he started to name all the fish and abruptly asked me if I thought large shell in the tank 'would be a nice place to live'. The conversation lasted until the nurse called me in. I am on so many meds right now.
Her Morning Elegance by Oren Lavie. I recommend watching the video and listening to this song if you have a moment.

Since I have been not feeling well the past few days and it has been raining constantly, I decided to watch all three Lord of the Rings films in order. I felt like a forty year old nerd who has a house full of mint condition action figures, but on the other hand it took my mind of the agony of my throat. I don't have strep or anything, but whenever I breathe I get a sharp and jarring pain, but enough about that for now. I had a brilliant idea today when I was thinking about the fact that I will be missing about 3 weeks of blogging when I go to Europe. The idea is to actually write a journal by hand of my travels in a little old notebook my grandpa gave me, and then put them on here when I get back!
Random thought of 12:01. Everyone has there own ideas, stories and problems and the fact that we all try to understand each other over the course of our lives is intriguing. I wish I was better with words to describe the maze of thoughts in my head right now. Summer Skin by Death Cab

I woke up this morning and felt just as shitty as I did yesterday, so I lay in bed for a few hours, staring at the ceiling, which did the trick and I felt much better. My family went to the beach today with the Friedman's and it was a fantastic day. It was by no means stereotypical beach weather, but I prefer the ocean when it's cloudy and windy with a 70% chance of rain. I really want to go to the beach in the winter sometime, like in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (thats a link to see it). The sound of the surf hitting the shore and the gulls shrieking are ones I can't go long without, I realized. Imagine living in Kansas and never seeing the seaside. I found that the hour and some car rides each way were almost as good as the beach, as we listened to so many songs. If this day was a facebook status I would 'like it' probably twice, if thats even possible.. My street cred and self-respect is in tatters after that last sentence. Lua by Conor Oberst is my favorite song of the voyage to Plum Island today.

Right now I am 'knackered', to steal a word from Alexander. I woke up this morning with a sore throat and this evening I was shivering cold and have a painful headache. My ailments could not derail what has been a superb day. My head feels so tired that I cannot possibly describe the evening justly. Canoeing/kayaking was lovely and the sunset was picturesque. My head feels like its floating oddly now, probably due to the NyQuil I just consumed. Spending time with friends that make everything perfect is hands down the best part of summer. My head is nearly using the keyboard as a pillow. One ending note, there has been a bizarre question afloat in my head since I arose this morning: Why do films never involve sneezing? People sneeze A LOT, and it is never on the silver screen. I'll end this random series of tangents while I still moderately can.
A Whisper by Coldplay

I've wanted to blog so badly the last few days, but I haven't been able to for a combination of reasons. My cousin arrived from England a few days ago so I have not been alone much, and some family friends with little kids are staying, so my duties as a host have overwhelmed any chances to blog.
It's 1:04 and I thought I was tired about ten minutes ago, but as usual, waves of energy surge and keep me up. It is really nice having my cousin here. We never see each other during the year, but during the summer we do, and catching up with the contents of a year always makes us very close and really good friends.
The past few days have been surprisingly filled. Since a bunch of people are here I am making a big effort to always find something to do. Tonight we had a big monopoly game and I never lose. I had some qualms about being so gleeful beating a ten and seven year old in the game, but I had spoiling little kids and letting them win at everything. It's not a good preparation for life is it?
Yesterday I realized how atrocious I am at tennis, even though I had a good time in my struggles. As it was rainy today, the nine people at my house decided to go see Harry Potter, FINALLY! It was extremely good, and definitely the best so far. People complain that it was lacking 'action' and such, but I think the relatively slow pace (compared to the previous films) allowed for much more character development, and better captured the brilliance of the books. As a huge fan of the books (reading each at least ten times), I always feel the movies are bittersweet, as they are often unfaithful to the books or like the earlier ones, catastrophic to the images created in my head. This time I just sat back and enjoyed it greatly, especially because of all the little things. Movie Review of the Day. For the past two nights I have been sleeping on the porch and it's the best thing. The rain at night in the past few days has been beautiful. It's so peaceful listening to it and feeling it against your face as you drift into sleep. Overall these past few days have seemed busy and satisfying, although I haven't done very much. Summer in a nutshell for you. Plans by Bloc Party

My cat Isabel strutted onto the newly finished screened porch as if she had always owned the place. She had a spring on her step and an intent look in her cattish eyes that seemed to disdainfully say "What are you doing here on my turf joseph?". God, I'm odd, inventing non-existant conversations between me and a small feline creature. Her brother Mister Fred was tentative and cautious, silently moving, alert to the most miniscule of noises. I was so glad they are getting to experience a bit more of the outdoors, as they have seemed lethargic the past few months.
I sat outside and read all day until my cousin arrived. Then we went to the roof and chatted.
Just Like Heaven- The Cure

One whole calendar month of blogging woohoo! I've only missed three days so far and I wasn't going to be able to blog tonight, so I decided to right now. It's 6:03 and it feels odd. I usually begin writing my entries at closer to midnight. I realized how much of a problem my nocturnal nature has become when for the past week, it has been physically impossible to go to sleep before 2:30am. The screened in porch is done and its fantastic. I have never painted more in my life. My cousin from England, Alexander, is coming tomorrow and staying for 10 days. I am glad since we are really close, despite only seeing each other a few weeks each year. Plasticities by Andrew Bird. I never get tired of this song.

This morning I walked to a pool and heard a jarring and shrieking sound, which I soon discovered to be two hawks fighting high above in the sky. After a refreshing swim and non-descript afternoon, I was home alone for the evening. I blasted music and cleaned the whole kitchen. A song came up called Sleepy Shores by Michael Price. It has no words, and I had never heard it before. I sat down and put it on repeat. It's from the soundtrack to Children of Men and something about it is so powerful to me, as if it tells its own story or something. If I had to see one film for the rest of my life it would be Children of Men and if you haven't seen it please do, or at least listen to the song. You have to be in the right mood though, I guess.

I struggle to come up with titles for my entries, so I have decided to adopt the practice of naming my posts with relevant lyrics from my song of the day. Every day this week has felt the same as the day before, as if I am living a loop. It's fine though. I haven't been bored, and the whole week has been devoted to screening and painting my porch. Physical work can be dull, but it is something to do and today the fruits of labor were beginning to appear, as the porch was looking more like I had envisioned it would. In my drivetime today I drove all the way from Big Y to my house, it felt like a big accomplishment. My hands are covered with white paint despite my best efforts to scrub it off and I have two very painful cankersores that I usually only get in the winter. I often get them on the bottom of my tongue, and they kill every time I bite or talk. The doctor says they are from stress. But I have had zero stress today. No siree. Oh god, I must be dying from herpes then, its the only logical explanation. Sike.
A Hard Day's Night by the Beatles, who I have been listening to all evening. Oh and please take a look at these pictures in large if you so desire.

Today started off with the promise of a good day. It wasn't. My mum went to the beach with my sister and her friends and it struck me that I haven't been to the beach at all this year, and funnily enough I don't mind at all.
I hate people who are stuck up, self-centered and think they can get whatever they want. That is why my day was lacking. The highlights were painting my porch in the sun and seeing Bremilyan (lame nickname for bryan and emily '09 oh yeahh). It was really nice seeing them, but I was caught up with this stupid argument over money with a kid. He kept bullying me to try and get what he wanted. It was a saga and half. Gahh. I look forward to a carefree day at a lake someday soon with people! I had a nice chat with my dad over dinner. When we had done talking it was starting to get dark out. Tomorrow I have a drive time which will be most likely unpleasant but hopefully the day will be salvaged if I am able to see Harry Potter. Those books are such a big part of my childhood and early adolescence, and they were always a constant. The song of the day is And the Hazy Sea by Cymbals Eat Guitars

My car arrived today! My dad got into a slight argument with the delivery man who spoke no english, and I tried throwing in random words that sounded right. It was so satisfying unscrewing the old Florida liscense plates and putting on the brand new ones. 219 AX6 has got to be the easiest thing to remember. Just say it, it has a ring to it.
After the excitement of the car faded, I tried to kill the evening by wandering around town with a kid. We aren't particularly good friends, but it was something to do. Then the unexpected happened. A hulking black bear sprinted across our paths. It was terrifying yet exhilarating, and I almost laughed at how ridiculous the idea of a bear in Princeton is. When my days stay at the same pace, I get listless. Paris is Burning by St Vincent.

There are summer days when you really don't do much and simple tasks become that much more fulfilling. Backtracking to last night for a second, the skunk smell made my room smell so bad I couldn't bear it. In the middle of the night I went across my hall and settled in a makeshift fort my sister built. It was a bunch of blankets draped over chairs and such. The flashing and blinding lightning looked surreal in my little tent, kind of like when you accidentally look at the sun and see spots. Rain plummeting down from is the best soundtrack for sleep.
This blog is very narrative today, so I might as well continue. I painted the railing on my porch today and mowed the lawn. We are officially in 're-doing' mode at my house. I feel quite content with this day although it was very uneventful. Itprovided such a necessary contrast to the stress-filled days of school. The song of the day is The Man Who Would Be King by the Libertines.
I'm deciding to volunteer at a Jewish elderly people center. I miss being around old people and there stories, and I miss my grandma.

I feel like I haven't blogged in forever, and it's only been about a day. Yesterday I went to Boston with some friends, and it was a lot more enjoyable than I thought it would be. We went to the store bodega which is hidden behind a vending machine. After we exhausted all of our money (in a matter of hours), we headed to the duck pond on the common and just sat down. One of the pictures of the day is of a squirrel that scavenged an abandoned ice cream cone and brought it all they way up a tree! Going to boston just never gets old. The activities of today were solely scrubbing my porch and swimming. Fast paced days are the best kind. Right now my room smells like dead animal as the skunk that has been plaguing my neighborhood met its demise and is slowly decomposing. I think its corpse is stinking up the all available air as if to insult us from beyond the grave. It's probably lol-evatoring. The song of the day is Let's Dance to Joy Division by the Wombats. Link of the Day

Kayaking and islands are the coolest. Today was a rather glorious day because it was comprised of both. Before heading out to paradise pond I cleaned my room, and it settled my frenzied mind. The water was so still and the thousands of lily-pads looked so beautiful. This summer has really made me appreciate nature a lot more, as corny as that sounds.The island we went on will be prime for a nice camping adventure in weeks to come. I felt so refreshed being there, like the weight of the past few days had been lifted. I could spend a whole day in that place easily. It was real nice just drifting in bryans badass canoe while talking and failing at the art of fishing. Part of my brain likes pretending to be the boy from My Side of the Mountain, a important book to me when I was a young laddie. During the evening, emleaf's fam joined mine for some din din and I became obsessed with last.fm. We were eating (in the new coffee shop) when a girl who only has one hand walked by and my sister sardonically said "well, it must be hard for her to text". Although it is slightly mean, I think it's the funniest line. All in all, a good day. The song is Partie Traumatic by Black Kids
Link Of The Day

I wish my blog today was a painting that conveyed my emotions more deftly than my words. I feel like a splatter painting of perceptions. Like http://jacksonpollock.org/. Today was fine, in terms of being event-filled I guess. I ran in the rain, went to the mall, and hung out with friends, and I also had a two hour drive time that was extremely stressful, as I had never driven before, despite having my permit for months. This is the first time I have had writers block on this blog. I need to write whats in my head.
I realized today how sad insecurities are. Everyone has them, to different extents. They make us settle for less, and hide behind different and fabricated guises and facades. I wish people acted as if they were five. Arcade fire can put it better than I ever will:
Children wake up,
hold your mistake up,
before they turn the summer into dust.
If the children don’t grow up,
our bodies get bigger but our hearts get torn up.
We’re just a million little god’s causin rain storms turnin’ every good thing to rust.
I guess we’ll just have to adjust
My head is really muddled presently and I can't move my fingers on the keyboard at the pace of my thoughts. I feel so ____ ( confused, exhausted, contemplative, uncertain, complacent).
Tonight I plan on watching The Godfather until very late. Nothing better than watching the vendetta's of timeless Italian mobsters in order to fall asleep.

Today was a feeble day. Shit, I didn't do anything and I just felt so useless today. I'm not even going to describe how bland it's been. When I stay at home, I often just lie around wasting time or go on the computer rather than doing something interesting. I sometimes feel so isolated here in Princeton. Today I could have hung out with some people, but I was too lazy to go anywhere. Rain sucks. The only concrete things that happened were my sister stumbling across a black bear near our house, and lightning almost hit a tree next to our house. Oh yeah, I attempted (and failed) to clean my room as well. Right now I'm nervous because I have a drivetime scheduled for tomorrow morning, but I have never driven a car outside of a tiny road. Should be 'fun'. My mood throughout the whole day has been like the weather, constantly changing from sun to clouds to violent thunderstorms. I am adding a new section to my blog. Link of the Day. It won't necessarily happen everyday, but only when I find something worthwhile.
The song stuck in my head right now is London Calling by The Clash.

After I was harshly woken up by my cat that crept into my room and started licking my face, my dad handed me a brush and I was forced to scrub the porch, in the scorching rays of the sun. I wasn't very pleased to do this menial task and it put me in a very bad mood. That changed when I went on a hike with B-Diehl. On the ledges I felt all my senses heightened and it was wild. Being around nature and letting it encompass you is crazy. I'm finding it hard gathering my thoughts about today, partly because my mind still feels like it is racing. I'm in peculiar mood right now. I feel I am watching my own recent life in slow motion. It's not a bad thing. Like it is as if my brain is trying to keep up with pace of my summer. It's hard to explain.
The pictures were taken at night, and the top one is yet again of the mysterious car. Upon further inspection the keys were left inside it, but it didn't start. The song for today is People Got a Lot of Nerve by Neko Case.

I was mowing my lawn today, an activity I relish as it provides me ample hours of uninterrupted listening to my ipod. Today an unexpected and hilarious thing happened while I was mowing, it was movie-like. I was cutting grass in front of my house, near the sidewalk with my back turned to the road. I was listening to some Justice and doing a funny little half-dance, when my nose was assaulted by the odorous stench of skunk. Apparently a pair of skunks had gotten into a fight in my front yard and run wild. It wreaked. So surprised by the smell, the strangest grimace formed on my face, with my nose extremely scrunched up to avoid the smell. I was in the act of turning the lawnmower around when I almost hit someone walking by me. It was a girl, and she was gorgeous. She looked my age and was walking a husky puppy, and she had clearly been watching me . I did a double take, waved at her as she passed me, while my lawnmower hit a tree, making a earsplitting crunching noise. She did not return the wave, probably a little startled by the sound and the terrible skunk smell, but she smiled. It was so awkward, which in turn made it amusing and comical. I learned she is new to my neighborhood, and I will commence a mission to woo her shortly. Exciting stuff.
After the my yard work, I sat on the roof of my house, staring at the fine job I did. A fresh mow can put you in a good mood. I proceeded to read Catch 22 for the rest of the afternoon. The song for today is For Reasons Unknown by The Killers.

I met Bryan in the center of town this morning to watch his uncle in a bike race, and it was a good time. When there were no riders, or just the shitty ones we read National Geographics, and I realized I need to resubscribe. Now. The afternoon consisted of a trip to the sanctuary, comet pond and alltogether it was a lovely day. I am having trouble these days choosing pictures of the day, as I have taken so many shots I like this week. Cross Country shout out '09 to Emglick who we all miss! I am going to go to the Sanctuary a lot more now. It is so picturesque in summer, like the rest of princeton right now. It is such a nice place to walk and mull things over with some ace friends. This blog is severly out of characer of my other blogs, but I can't really put words to how happy I was the whole day. El song de la day is Candy by the Raveonettes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQoPAXIvLyA

The sun shone down for a bit today, and the temperatures went up to about eighty. It felt like summer weather for the first time in a while. Enough about the flippin weather though. The car in these pictures is really old and has been parked near my house for over a week. The back is open and exposed to the elements, and there is a small pool of water in the back seat. Everyday I had walk by and wanted to take a picture, so today I did. Today wasn't very good. My best friend is leaving for the cape for a few weeks, and we got into an argument and fight. It has kind of been brewing for a while because we are drifting apart even though we both won't admit it, but friendships have their ebbs and flows, and that's just a reality of life. Hopefully we'll be fine again when he gets back, but I'm finding it harder and harder to relate to him on things. The best part of the day was doing backdives into a pool. I love the feeling of swimming under the water. The whole world seems distant and I pretend to be an otter. A little odd, I know. I've been listening to a lot of songs today and I have an unprecedented three songs of the day: Sleepless by the Decemberists, Warning Sign by Coldplay and The Prayer by Kid Cudi (on the radio and stuck in my head)
Last night I watched American Beauty at 2 am, and it made my whole day yesterday feel worthwhile.

Today was dull and dreary. I went on a run and after about a mile my lungs started to tighten, and my knees began to ache. I despise asthma. To settle down, I walked for a while and found a small bench to rest on. It was in the center of town, set far back a little. It was dedicated to a girl who died from cancer about ten years ago. The little plaque read, "Ali Pierce is the beauty in every radiant ray of sunlight". Around the bench were a lot of painted stones, that were slowly peeling. Something about the little bench made me sad at first because it looked completely forgotten and ignored. After sitting down I allowed my heart rate to slow down, and go back to normal. I sat there, deep in thought about a lot of things, until long after I had recovered.
Tonight I was looking for the book Into the Wild, and I couldn't find it anywhere! After rummaging through many boxes of books I came across my dads yearbook and it was hilarious, but also fascinating. My dad looked funny, as did many kids in his class, but looking at all the young, hopeful faces and imagining their futures is intriguing. The song of the day is No Cars Go by Arcade Fire
I forgot to add that I found out that Where the Wild Things Are is coming out a week after my birthday! Exciting.

Tonight was a cool little night. After a yummy yummy meal in woosta, we drove towards a statue of a little boy doing unspeakable things to a turtle. A skater kept asking me to take a picture of him doing a trick, and it was funny how awful he was. In the car we listened to Paul Simon, and the feeling his music gives you is so satisfying. The African beats in some of the songs lift you up. After a stint at Laurelwood Road we departed for Princeton. The first place we went was the Sanctuary, a place of many trails and trees. The only light was from the parking lot, and it projected a very eerie incandescent glow. We walked along a path, through a field, towards a small pond. Everything was so still, and the fog was full of small neon-emitting fireflies. These were the first fireflies I have seen this year, and they have always marked the beginning of summer for me ever since I was a little kid. We all sat on a bench looking out onto the water in front of a huge tree, with a fog-covered backdrop. It was almost unreal. Everything was magnified, and I found myself wondering why I don't go outside to sit at night more often. I also felt very connected with Emily Bryan and Emily on the bench. It's been muy bueno getting to know Bryan this week and it feels effortless hanging out with those people. Conversations and laughter seem to come very easily. Sitting down, things seemed to slow down, save the croaking of frogs.
After that, we headed to an ancient cemetery nearby, and it was surreal. The lights from the car shinning onto the graves and fog looked straight out of an old horror movie. Our dark silhouettes would appear extremely sinister to a passerby. The only thing missing was seeing a ghost! I took a lot of interesting pictures like the one above, and they will all be on fbook shortly. Overall, today=great success! Fittingly, the song of the day is: Is There a Ghost by Band of Horses
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JK716RqoUms
Play it!