I like Ray Bradbury quotes (because I imagine a wily man with silvering hair that shakes as he emphasizes his points

read them out loud, it is hard not to make a fist pump or a face one associates with playful wisdom.


"We are the miracle of force and matter making itself over into imagination and will. Incredible. The Life Force experimenting with forms. You for one. Me for another. The Universe has shouted itself alive. We are one of the shouts."

"Stuff your eyes with wonder, live as if you'd drop dead in ten seconds. See the world. It's more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in factories."

"We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The trick is, knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out."

"You fail only if you stop writing. "

"You've got to jump off cliffs and build your wings on the way down. "

BUBBLES

I like bubbles. Bubbles make me happy. I have a blue bottle of bubbles and a pink bottle of bubbles and sometimes I bring them places. These are new things I have learned about bubbles in the past year:

-Cars can easily be turned into bubble machines by rolling down the window, dipping the bubble wand into the bubble bottle and holding the bubble wand out the window. No heavy breathing necessary!

-You often use your own breath to blow bubbles, therefore, if your breath is tinted with smoke, you can fill a bubble with smoke! Although this usually implies the use of an illegal or harmful substance, it is still rather beautiful! When you pop the bubble, the smoke floats in the air for a bit before dispersing. Honestly, it reminds me a bit of an octopus fart. If octopus farts were visible and air born, they would look like popped smoke bubbles. 

-When you blow bubbles from great heights, they float up! I have blown bubbles out of my dorm window, which is on the 9th and top floor of the dormitory. This phenomena could have something to do with the way the wind hits the building, or maybe bubbles, which are so happy to be so high in the air, decide to stay awhile and enjoy the scenery. 

Bubbles are cheap, make things sticky and make me happy. Maybe they will, or already do, make you happy, too. If you discover any new bubble facts, please, let us know!

i want to live like the blonde

therapy

ewok

this makes me happy

WATER

Stressed? Drink some water. Depressed? Drink some water. Fatigued? Drink some water- and get more sleep. Depending on your emotional state, certain toxins are released into your bloodstream. Harmful toxins are often released while in a negative mood or following an especially harrowing situation. One of the simplest ways to combat these toxins and, in turn, improving your mental and emotional well being, is to drink water. By drinking a good amount of water, your body is more capable of flushing out these toxins. Water will, literally, wash away your worries. I was first introduced to this idea while I was taking a self-defense class. Every weekend I was faced by a man who was trained to play out situations of sexual assault. I was pushed, pinned and cursed at and, even though this was a staged situation, it was incredibly terrifying. Nearly everyone who attended this class burst into tears at one point and would find themselves having nightmares involving rape. Our teachers encouraged drinking water to help our body deal with the stressful situation and emotions we were experiencing. It seems silly that water, something so readily at hand and taken for granted, could possibly solve your problems. But then again, humans often take for granted the power of nature, even thinking they are above it. But that's a whole different story. Moral of the story: drink more water and you will feel better, emotionally, mentally and physically. 

etty hillesum

"Why shouldn't one feel an immense, tender ecstasy of love for the spring, or for all humanity? And on can befriend the winter, too, or a town or a country."

"I stood on the little bridge and looked across the water; I melted into the landscape and offered all my tenderness up to the sky and the stars and the water and to the little bridge. And that was the best moment of the day. And I felt this was the only way of transforming all of the many deep and tender feelings one carries for another into deeds: to entrust them to nature, to let them stream out under the open spring sky, and to realize that there is no other way of letting them go."

"It is possible to suffer with dignity and without. I mean: most of us in the West don't understand the art of suffering and experience a thousand fears instead. We cease to be alive, being full of fear, bitterness, hatred, and despair. God know, it's only too easy to understand why."

"This morning, while I stood at the tub with a colleague, I said with great emotion something like this: "The realms of the soul and spirit are so spacious and unending that this little bit of physical discomfort and suffering really doesn't matter all that much. I do not feel that I have been robbed of my freedom; essentially no one can do me any harm at all. Yes, children, that's how it is, I am in a strange state of mournful contentment."

One observation- from the observation journal of patrick james gill on the day of April 25th

A man with a brown bagged beverage (at 2:04 in the afternoon mind you) relinquishes his seat to stand and sway by the door so that a mother of two surprisingly docile toddlers can sit together.
The red line smells like sweetly cooked artichokes if that is at all possible.

Three Observations- From the observation journal of patrick james gill on the day of April 24th

To sit in the sun is a simple, yet revolutionary action for the self.

________________________________________

I am starting to believe that progress is a relative term:
expansive cities vs slowly engineering a perfect potato

___________________________________________

There is a crumpled paper beneath the heel of the disproportionate statue.
I imagine it to be a love letter or a treasure map

AND IT REALLY IS (drum roll please) :
[this is when I put my notebook back in my breast pocket, walk over to the statue, my my observation then return to my bench to write its true form]

a soiled and grease stained sandwich wrapping paper

I think I have found a perfect place to hide prizes.

excuse me, mr. allen...

watch this trailer for sleeper- I promise it will make you laugh.

let's recreate an easier time because i still cant find you

As I climbed down from my shaky bunk bed, stepped onto my desk and onto the floor, I was still consumed by a fussy mood from the night before. I opened my computer and "Easier" by Grizzly Bear began to play. My frustrations were instantly melted away. Try it, it's a perfect morning song. 

I have come to recently realize the strength of empathy. Sympathy is feeling compassion for someone because you have been in a similar situation whereas empathy is imagining yourself in their position and actually making yourself feel what they are feeling. I believe the words are often used in difficult times (Jacky felt sympathy for John, who had spilled his oatmeal all over his pajamas). Lately I have been finding the majority of my happiness pouring in from the success and bliss of those close to me. When they tell me the news I will stomp my feet and squeal with delight, as if the great news had actually happened to me. Each step is a little lighter and I have to squish my face in order to hide my goofy smile (It seems I'm usually on the bus when this happens and smiling to myself would probably prove to others that I am a complete loon). It seems like many people, when having a bad day, would rather not hear of others' triumphs because. In their eyes, it is just a cruel comparison to make their situation that much worse off. For the sake of everyone's happiness, just try to imagine the excitement, energy and adrenaline pumping with electricity through your friend's heart when they giggle, whisper or yell through the phone receiver about how they passed their French test, kissed on top of Twin Peaks or found Nirvana. That was a mouthful, but I just want to convey to you that if you just try to imagine these things they will usually make themselves felt. 

san francisco, ca

On multiple occasions I have witnessed an eccentric man speeding in his volvo down Turk St. in between campus. His Dali-esque mustache wind blown over his cheeks as he careens up and down the city's hills.

A man with two hip-height dogs walking through Alamo Square (dog park), one bounding by his side while the other is regally strolled around in a child's wagon. 

An elderly woman walking off the bus with springs on the bottom of her shoes, probably for orthopedic purposes, but springs nonetheless!

One observation- from the observation journal of patrick james gill on the day of April 13th

Observations made (while walking through the South Loop area [ of Chicago IL] while holding two pinatas)

-Latino children with wide eyes, eyes like saucers with dark chocolate irises. and their parents hush them and hold them to their hip or mid thigh.
-an androgynous figure in a baseball cap wears a sly smile.
-a shaky handed old black man asks for candy and says please after his fingers already collapse around the candy.
-murmured stories about third grade teachers stringing the bright beasts, stars, and pleasing shapes across the ceiling of their classroom.
-conversations that are inaudible until you hear a brief elated "pinata?!".
-a drug store employee who (while i was searching for the cheapest and yet still tasty candy) strikes up a fun yet almost incomprehensible conversation in which details were immediately forgotten, possibly about never growing up or college being expensive. Bless that cheerful soul I was not in my best state for it was early on a Sunday morning.


the world is wild and poetic
just take a double take every once and a while

Two Observations- from the observation journal of patrick james gill on the day of April 23rd

The traffic directors whistle echoes like a triumphant Valkyries horn off of the canyon walls the high rises create.

___________________________________

Today my classroom smells like imitation fruit scent, but not the cloying and abrasive kind, its more gentle, its actually kind of pleasing

introductions

Several years ago, I had read an interview with an aging actor. When describing his life situation, he simply and almost sadly stated, "I'm just trying to live my life... I mean, it's not like everyday is a big trip to Paris." Hold on, hold on, I know that may come off as cheesy and unnecessarily poignant, but it hit me hard at the time. I was an adolescent and I had my whole life ahead of me, which was exciting. All of my thoughts for the future went about the same way: "I can't wait for this weekend", "I'll be so happy when I finally graduate", "I'll finally start really living once I get a real job" and so on and so forth. But for a while something was out of place, and this actor's statement helped me see what it was. The majority of people in the world, or at least that I have come into contact with, have placed more or less value on their life based on the big, exciting and 'important' things that they experience. Their happiness depends on getting their license, prom, graduating, become a big important famous person, or traveling abroad as the actor said. Not only do these events and activities only last for a few hours or days at most, but once they pass you by you usually feel unchanged, a little empty and fairly disappointed. It was about six months ago, my friends and I had been in college for a month or two at the most. "This is it," we all though, "this is college, this is where our lives are going to change completely, and for the better." However, college proved to be simply college. It was dorms, bad cafeteria food and long lecture classes. We were all growing restless, and I was having a heart to heart with a friend who was especially fed up with the whole experience. One of the things that really got to him was "the emptiness in every right of passage." And it's true, from a young age we are all taught to look forward to this big, life changing events. But once you get to them, there you still are. 

So, finally, to the point. Life is everyday, and everyone needs to learn to live that way. It is the big things, too, but most of it is made up of small occurrences: the flowers on display at the corner store and a stranger holding open a door. As my mom once told me, "You have to learn to find happiness in the details. I may have had a terrible, exhausting and monotonous day at work, but I come home and walk in the house to be greeted by my dogs. Their barks and wagging tails are all I need to be happy for the day. Just that moment makes everything worth it." Every now and then, Patrick and I will help remind you to find happiness in these details. Sometimes we will make lists, reference our own experiences, use multimedia technology. Think of this blog as a pep talk for your thought process. 

And for your enjoyment, a video of an elephant painting. What does it mean? I don't know, but it makes me happy and that's all that matters.

Holy High Flying

http://news.aol.com/story/_a/missing-priests-balloons-found-in-ocean/20080422065509990001

In pursuit of spectacular display, and fund raising for spiritual truck stop, Rev. Adelir Antonio di Carli made attempts to break the world record in miles traveled by a balloon. In the process he has become lost among the clouds and created quite the spectacle.

The video shown on the link about displays some beautiful pictures
pausing at 11 seconds, 13 seconds, and 23 seconds in to the video you will see what I think is beautiful.

God Speed Rev. Carli
for you have the audacity and the free enough mind to float into the clouds.

[Edit/Response/Oh hai best friend: Although it is a serious matter, being that Reverend Carli's life is at risk, you can't help but smile watching the video as he is lifted into the air by thousands of balloons. I hope he returns safe, but to be honest, what a way to go. Life, and death, what an adventure. - Jenny]

COMING SOOOOONNN

once patrick calls/emails me back. he has important papers write and books to read and people to love!