Fall Antiques

There was something about the fall air that always warmed her heart - to the core, as deep as she could possibly feel it.

It could have been a combination of things - the brisk air, the smells of the decay that rose from the forest, or the lack of colors in the leaves that remained on the trees. She always felt at peace, almost somber - as loose as one could be while still in control.

She loved walking through the woods when it was this time of the season - the leaves crinkled below her feet, crunching and snapping, letting her know that soon the dark clouds would be approaching and bring forth the walls of white that would drench the forest. Maybe it was that she felt safe in the woods. The dull colors harbored her, surrounding her with browns, oranges, and deeps reds, like one giant blanket that was coiled around her, hiding her from everything else.

Deep down though, she knew what she loved - the look that came with dusk. It happened when the sun began to set early, casting a brown haze over everything it touched, blurring the outlines of shapes, dulling the vibrant colors of the trees.

It made everything look old, delicate, worn out.

Except for her. It made her feel as alive as ever.

Fast Forward

It was his favorite spot to run.

His friends would always want to play tag behind his house. They'd play for hours, laughing and cheering each other one as they ran, pursued by whoever was it. From sun up to sun down, they'd be in the yard, zig zagging, back and forth, running from one another - not a care in the world.

He loved it, how the wind would howl in his ears, pushing his hair back away from his eyes as his legs pumped below him like pistons in a revved up motor.

He was never worried. Not many could catch up to him and for those who could, he'd run to his spot. The edge of the property where the trees made a enclosed path, like a hallway.

He'd sprint as fast as his little legs could carry him, darting in and out of the trees - sometimes doubling back, but always returning to the center, to run pure and free, gain as much speed as he could.

There was no greater feeling for him than to be charging down that leaved, mossy tunnel, the wind whooshing, trees whipping by - that's when the world seemed to blur around him.

That's when he felt invincible.

Dreamscapes

Whenever she closed her eyes, she would make sure she'd end up where she wanted to be - in her world, alone, left to wander the hillsides, tiptoe across the streams, and lay in the bright sun.

In her dreams she could end up anywhere. But she always ended up in the same pink field. She never got tired of it - never felt alone. She was always content, relaxed, lost amongst the bright hue of the grass that sprouted around her, rolling through endless hills - waves of magenta.

It was soft to the touch. Not like normal grass. She could lay in it for hours, breath in it's sweet scent. The streams that meandered through the hills were bright and clear. The most vibrant aqua she had ever seen. The water was cool to her bare skin, but never cold - the perfect temperature to take her first breath away, but never powerful enough to make her uncomfortable. It would lap at her ankles, tickle the back of her calves - coax her to flow downstream with her.

Sometimes she wanted to - lay back and let the current taker her down, around the bends, to wherever it flowed - hidden beyond the horizon.

But she never could - the grass held her close.

It was what she looked forward to every night as she lay in her bed and shut her eyes.

Pools

There was something about her eyes that sucked him in.

Those large, perfect brown eyes - edges tinted with green. He'd have to always be careful, otherwise he'd fall in and be lost for days.

Growing up, people always told him that "eyes are the windows to the soul".

When he looked into hers, he knew he was home.

Nicotine Dreams

It was something about how the smoke drifted out from between his lips and danced with the fresh air in front of his face that calmed him.

Many thought it was the nicotine, seeping deep into his pores, flowing through his system, numbing his brain. The haze before him was what lowered his heart beat, brought him down, relaxed his core.

The long day of work seemed to drift behind him, forgotten amongst the swath of smoke. His back didn't hurt anymore, the dirt lodged under his fingernails didn't matter. Deep inside his lungs, the smoke churned, coating everything it touched - he'd begin to drift.

With a Marlboro between his lips - he could take on the world.

Dark Side

I want it.

Minus the diapers, food spills, and probably crying all night long.

I hope this video cheered all of you up.

I'm tired. I'm getting over a cold. I promise I'll write a story or two tomorrow.

Two Coins of Your Eyes

I'm in a mellow mood.

Chillin' out. Relaxed.

I've been cutting spots all week while at work - trying to get notice, get some practice in. Move up to editor status and I'm really content from it all. It's weird that only after a few, I can feel myself growing, stylistically and visually.

To sum up how I feel, I'm going to simply post a song. It's very serene. The lyrics are beautiful and the melody just carries you away.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Happy listening.

Two Coins by DISPATCH

(Yes - by clicking the play button, and pop-up window appears - but no worries. Trust it! It'll play you the song!)

Sea Foam

It was always the first thing he woke up to in the morning.

The smell, lingering in the air, thick and ever present hung outside his home, waiting for him to begin his morning walk around the village.

Every morning he knew it'd be there, ready to invade his nose and pull him towards the coast. Light and frothy - it was never overwhelming. Rather comforting.

He didn't need to hear to rolling waves in the distance, crashing against the wharf to know it was there.

All he had to do was take a deep breath to know the sea foam had rolled in on the tide.

Dark Passage

Every time she walked down the road that cusped the village, it felt like she was in a nightmare.

As she wandered further into the wood, the colors seemed to fade from around her - bleeding out to the world that lay beyond the gnarled, tangled tree limbs.

The light at the far end of the road was all that ever kept her going.

She'd hold her breath as made her way through - waiting for the sunlight to fall again on her skin.

Walking Haze

Many of her friends were scared of it.

It'd creep along the ground, following them as they briskly walked down the soggy road. Pace quickening to get home.

They didn't want it to catch up to them. They could feel it, catching up to them, on the back of their necks, grasping their ankles.

When they had a choice, many of them avoided this section of the woods.

She loved it. Walking down the path, the haze made her feel welcome, like someone was traveling with her.

She'd drop her hand low enough and she could feel it, coiled between her fingers - letting her know she wasn't alone.

Four Paths

Sometimes he'd just like to walk down the dusty road - kicking and churning the dirt below his heels, letting it waft up into the air.

He'd walk until he'd reach the four corners, up the road a ways from his house.

There was no plan, no map laid out before him, but he knew one day he'd pick one of those roads and he'd follow it.

He wasn't sure where it one left, but maybe thats what was so appealing to him.

Unsure of what lay down each one, the only thing he knew was that it'd lead him to a new life.

Who Did It?

I know it's a long way away - but someone (I'm not going to name drop here) already planted the seed in my head for a perfect time to return to Ithaca...

For that one final trip.

In May, my birthday happens to fall during their senior week - when I'd be able to see my best friends from school graduate with the doctorate in physical therapy, and my other undergrad friends graduate with their degrees.

It's a long way off and there are many factors that lead into it.

But I'm not going to lie - that little seed, sitting in the back of my mind is certainly going to grow.

And boy, it will most likely grow into something massive.

Ithaca Reboot

Let me start off by saying I am a blessed person. I'm not one to brag about how things are in my life or how lucky I feel, but in this instance, I will.

This past weekend may very well go down in my memory as my best weekend thus far alive. Now, I know it seems like a stretch, but it really isn't.

Everything about Ithaca was perfect.

I'm not going to go into detail about everything I did - but rather, why I feel so lucky.

I have an amazing support system of friends. I arrived in Ithaca earlier than I planned, around 9 am, and I already had a friend waiting at the airport to get me - one who had class later in the day and was still willing to wake up early and drive to get me.

My friends that are still at school - almost all of them tennis, then allowed me to stay in there home for four days - no questions asked. Seriously? Let me crash that long? They are such wonderful people.

On top of that, my entire "house" from my senior year, those who I lived with, heard I was coming back to Ithaca and all met me there Friday night for the weekend -traveling from Rochester, Buffalo, Long Island, and New Jersey. It's not often that people would be willing to drive those distances for such a short period of time. It really touched me. I'm lucky to have the friends that I do.

Speaking of traveling, then there is my Mom, who drove up late Thursday night, to only spend Friday with me, to drive all the way back to Boston. That's 12 hrs of driving, in less than a 24 hour period. That's not just dedication, that's pure love. Even though we had such a short amount of time together, we walked the campus, shopped in the commons, but most importantly just sat and talked...the whole day. It honestly felt like I had never left home. We just clicked and caught up. What an amazing woman. I can't wait to do it again.

I also got to see someone who is near and dear to me. During my senior year, in the second half of it, I grew close to a woman on the tennis team and I built a strong bond with her - to the point that I felt robbed that I only got to hang out with her for a number of weeks before school ended. I don't know why we hadn't clicked before but to me, it felt like a cruel joke since everything was just so easy with her. Hanging out, laughing, doing absolutely nothing - it still all felt right. Lucky for me, she was one of the people I was staying with. So, we caught up, and nothing more than that happened, but hearing her future plans, how well she is doing in school and on the team just made me so happy. As much as it sucks knowing that if I was a year younger, I would have had more time with her - it's nice knowing I was given to opportunity to create that kind of bond.

And finally we come to Les, my main man. Best friend shall I say? Absolutely. We picked up right where we left off, with a hug. We never had said our goodbyes when I graduated, but only a "see you later." My mom had always been right. College friends are the ones who stick with you. The ones who matter. Who last. Even though it had been a year and a half since I had left school, and I was living 3000 miles away, it felt like I had been hanging out with him the previous night. We laughed, we horsed around, we drank together. It made me feel like I had never left school. I have no doubt in my mind that we will always be friends and I hope at some point we can live close to one another. With all sincerity, we talked about it - aside from our respective brothers, we will be each other's best...best men at our weddings. He'll always be a life long friend and there is no greater feeling than what I felt the moment I walked into his apt and saw him - knowing that no matter how long we haven't spoken or seen each other, all the distance that had ever separated us, will automatically disappear. He's like family to me. I love the kid.

So what happened next? I had to leave and it was probably the single worst feeling in my life. The weekend was my love letter to Ithaca - after this year, all the remaining people I know will be gone so I essentially will have no reason to return, but that alright - I had my 4 years there, it is time that I let someone else have theirs.

It's also tough knowing I may never see some of my friends I saw this weekend again, or that by leaving,  I knew the bond I shared with Becky would always be there, but the opportunity would most likely be forever gone.

Sure - all these feelings suck. Some of the worst I've ever felt. But reflecting on the weekend, I know that I have those lifelong friends you always dream of having. I know I have a mother who will literally do anything for me, who loves me unconditionally, and will always be there for me.

More importantly, I know that Ithaca was the right choice for me.

It gave me the life I lead and the people that populate it.

East Coast Bound

Well, I've been talking about it for a while - who would have honestly thought it would have taken me over a year to make it back East.

That's right - I'm returning home...well, not my real home, but one of my many homes - Ithaca, New York.

I'm really excited to go back. The main reason being one of my best friends from my time at school is still there as a grad student and the second reason being that it is Cortaca weekend. It's the big rival football game between Ithaca and Suny Cortland, so we'll have a good time going to it.

It also helps that while I am there for 4 days - my mom is coming up for one of them. It'll be the longest I've gone since seeing her - by a lot. It'll be a short, but well worth, and well deserved visit with her. Plus we'll squeeze in a meal at Joe's :)

Another good addition is that my entire house from senior year is coming up during the weekend to visit me as well, driving in from everywhere from Rochester, NYC, and even DC. It's going to be so great seeing everyone. Hell, hopefully I'll even get to catch up with my old tennis coach while on campus.

To be honest though, I am a little scared. I haven't travelled alone in 3 years and I havn't been on a plane in almost that long. Don't get me wrong, I love planes and I love traveling, but since it's been so long, I feel like I'm going to forget something important.

Oh well, if I do, it's part of the adventure right? I'll have my credit cards and ID - so I could make it anywhere if need be.

But on that note - I need to go to bed and make sure I'm well rested for tomorrow. I have a red-eye to Newark then up to Ithaca for 9:26am.

Wahoo!

Oh right - this also means I'll be on a little bit of a hiatus until next week.

Catch you then!

Disappear

She loved coming here - sitting on the cool shale sticking out from the glistening sand.

She'd pretend the Sun was a giant eye, watching her the entire day. And when it slowly began to set over the horizon, her escape would soon arrive.

For when the darkness fell, she could just disappear.

Up Here

Was it even possible for them to see that high?

It was something she always did when she was a kid while staying at hotels - standing on the windowsill in her underwear.

Still, today, she wondered if anyone below could see her.

Would they like it if they could?

Down Clouds

She loved falling onto her down comforter.

There was something magical about it. No matter how high she threw herself, the moment her skin touched it's surface, it felt like she'd float down into the bed. It'd cushion her, envelope her. It smelled soft and light.

It soothed her after the longest and hardest of days.

It made her feel like a little girl again.

Haulin'

Did she feel guilty?

Of course she did. She really wished there was a way she could isolate it. Really personalize it. But, she couldn't, so she just rode with it.

It was after those nights when the neighbor's kids would stay up late, yelling and running through the house, uncontrolled by their parents that she'd bust out her bike.

It was her form of payback - tearin' ass down the street, peddling as fast as she could, roman candles whistling through the early hours of the morning, leaving a smoking, crackling trail behind her. They never seemed to figure out it was her.

On some level she felt bad for what she was doing.

But it just felt so good.

Post Halloween Fun

Sure, most of these kids (in my mind), especially the older ones (one even reminds me of Andrew Allen...mom) come off as brats, but at the same time, this video is completely cute and endearing.

Don't worry - the last video makes everything worth it:

Video Extravaganza!

It's official.

I'm turning grey.  Work has done it...pushed me over the limit. One of my coworkers pointed it out to me. I have legit grey hair(s).

Noooooooooooooo!!!!!! Alas, but tis the life of an assistant editor.

Anywho - I'm home late since I was at work doing some overtime, editing together a sizzle reel, which was really really fun. Not really "assistant" work since they let me edit some of it to make it into the finished product.

So...wahooo!!

But on a fun note - let's watch some more fun videos shall we?

Everyone love the beach, and water, and beach bums, and awesome camera tricks - so why not enjoy this video?


More Surfing Videos

How can you not love Conan?! He's back in New York (yayaya) and he's up to his old shenanigans:



Awesome montage of "God's view" shots in movies.  How many do you recognize? I'd say I probably recognize about 75% of these:

Spiked Animation

I can feel it creeping up upon me. That time of the week where it is hard to drag myself out of bed in the mornings. When it is hard to keep my eyes open at work depending on the time of day.

Ugh....feel.....so...lazy. Don't...have........energy.....to....write.

I don't plan on making this a routine - so don't worry. But, some weeks just reek havoc on my body (this week being one of them).

So what do I have to offer you today? How about some good ol' felt stop-motion animation. Exciting right?  Sound pretty straight forward? Well, it isn't. This short film is by Spike Jonze.

And if any of you know me - you're aware of how I worship the ground he walks on. So when I discover something like this little jewel - my mind is blown. How in the world does he manage to come up with such crazy ideas? Not only that - he executes them so damn well.  It's beyond me how he managed to manipulate the felt as much as he did.

Just and FYI....this pice might be a little NSFW (aka felt skeleton sex - nothing too graphic, but suggestive).

Enjoy!


Spike Jonze: Mourir Auprès de Toi on Nowness.com.

Baby Boomers

Today we're stemming away from the typical stories and creative world.

Instead we're going to (briefly) talk about world population.

The following video essentially sums up everything in a neat little video presentation, but I was surprised with all I had learned by the time it had stopped playing.



I really can't believe the rate and which we've been growing. It's absolutely nuts. It's also scary thinking about how crowded the planet is getting - we're already in a sense killing the Earth, so as we continue to grow as a population, we're going to keep damaging our home. It'll be a major problem we will have to face down the road.

On a completely different note - how friggin' cool is the device they built? Whoever came up for the schematics for it deserves a pat on the back. While I doubt it is extremely accurate - it's a genius way to use water to easily depict population growth.

While I can't say I have a solution to combat our growing numbers - I hope this video made you stop and think about it. It's something we haven't seen the last of.