Life is Distracting

Well, life distracted me from this blog, how ironic? It's a good things though, it means I'm living in the world and not in this computer screen.  School has begun, meaning a hectic couple of days, and then a hectic couple of months.  My roommate has agreed to do a lot of cooking, yay! This means less planning dinner while trying to focus on economic development and global politics.

I'm going out swing dancing tonight...it's been so long (well 2 weeks, but that's too long).  I can't wait! If you don't swing dance, you should, it's so wonderful. Anyway, that's all for now, I'm off to study worldly topics.

And the cooking begins...

On the menu for last night: Dal with basmati rice. Yum!

This recipe is so simple, though it does take some time (and patience when you're hungry). To begin make rice: 1 C rice to 2 C water...boil and then simmer for about 45 minutes. Done!

Now on to the Dal. Pick any lentils and then boil them for about 10 minutes...1 C lentils to 4 C water.  In frying pan, heat up A LOT of butter. Then add a bunch of Indian spices. This time around I used coriander, ginger, pepper, salt, and curry powder.

Then, add your lentils to the butter and spices and simmer for a while, occasionally stirring. 

Have a quick taste and then your set. I like to sprinkle a little feta cheese on top too! Delicious!

The Weather is Changing

It's that time of year again.  School begins in a week and the smells of fall are beginning to inhabit the morning...along with brisk temperatures. This is the best time of year; September is right around the corner! This time of the year offers so many new beginnings and fresh starts, more than January does.

Here are some of the wonderful things about fall:
- School starts...or a new work year
- The leaves change colors and fall from the trees...offering ample piles to jump in
- Cool mornings and nights
- Sweatshirt weather
- Crisp air
- Bon fires
- Thanksgiving
- Coziness

And so much more...

As I did last year at this time, I will post my favorite song, September by Earth, Wind, and Fire, because I believe it best encompasses these feelings in music.

Consuming Hours of My Time

My new favorite website: http://dearblankpleaseblank.com/

Some samples...

"Dear Shakespeare,
Poetic talent is easy to fake when thy sentence doth no freaking sense make.
Sincerely, confused high school student"
OR
"Dear readers,

You will read this a second time just to hear it in my voice.

Sincerely, Morgan Freeman"
OR
"Dear Gangstas,

We'd like our waddle back.

Sincerely, Penguins"

Education

I was going through my old notes from an incredible class I took last year, To Infinity and Beyond and I came upon this point I wrote down, which I find to be very accurate and I try to live by in my own pursuit of education:

In our society the purpose of education is for job placement and money.  For Plato, to achieve virtue you must be educated and enlightened (or perhaps only those who are virtuous pursue education?). Education was a spiritual journey for him.

My own goal in attending college is merely to be educated...to learn how to think and problem solve, and learn about the world.  I'm not in school to attain a high income after graduation or be placed in a particular job. I'm an International Studies major because it offers me the most well-rounded curriculum; it's like majoring in the liberal arts. Seeking an education is one of the best things you can do for yourself...it makes you a better person and keeps your mind in motion. I've walked away from my classes with more questions then I went in with and they've left me with lifelong intellectual curiosity. Education offers us a lifetime of learning!

Rainer Maria Rilke

I have just finished one of the best classes I've ever taken: The Dilemma of Existence. We touched on so many topics regarding death and living a happy and truthful life. Anyway, our final reading was Rilke's The Duino Elegies, a must read for everybody! I do not want to discuss the ending, because the process of getting to the final conclusion is as important as the end itself. All I will say is that it gives an incredible perspective on life and how we should be enjoying every moment of it; we are lucky not to be perfect and flawless, our imperfections prompt awe and wonder.


My next read is Letters to a Young Poet (in hopes that it will fuel my research project as a supplementary resource). Before we left our last class, my teacher gave us the following excerpt from the book and I find it to be a great inspiration:

"You are so young, so before all beginning, and I want to I beg you, as much as I can, to be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms and like books that are written in a very foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live along some distant into an answer." - Rainer Maria Rilke

I think I live a life full of questions and this quote will continue to urge me to keep asking and seeking questions. Humans are lucky to have curiosity about the world and about life.  We will be asking questions forever, for there can never be an end to what we desire to know; this is the beauty of being imperfect creatures (read The Duino Elegies)

Yoga

What an incredible form of stress management, exercise, and flexibility and strength training. I've just started taking yoga classes again and I'm super excited about it. A local studio offers a class that is unlike any other form of yoga, thought most closely resembles bikram or hot yoga. The teachers describes it as "a non-traditional form of yoga performed on a BOSU, which provides the opportunity to challenge the body to do more work than it has ever done before" (http://theyogafactory.com/Yogasu.aspx).   The balance was difficult on top of the BOSU and my muscles were screaming (my 30 mile bike ride yesterday didn't help); I can't wait to try more. Plus, the room was 90 degrees and humid, which was perfect for stretching, but was accompanied by mass amounts of sweat - sorry to get graphic.

Yoga is so vital to dealing with stress for me and I think everybody would benefit from doing a bit of it every week. Connecting the mind and body is so important for our wellness, especially if we're anxiety prone; what better and more fun way to do it than yoga!!!

Ireland

One of the places my sister and I plan on seeing together someday is Ireland. I came upon this website, which is great for anyone that loves to travel...it has lots of info, pictures, helpful suggestions.  It's a perfect starting place for planning a trip.

I love to travel and cannot wait to take on the world!

Check this out, if you love to travel: http://www.worldtravelguide.net/