making my own silver lining

i have been feeling particularly bad for myself over the past few days.

it is my belief that feeling bad for one's self does not help any situation.

in fact, i truly believe that it only makes things worse.

so, in the spirit of healing and happiness, i submit to you, dear readers:

my grateful list

1. my mom

(who has been taking super good care of me even when i'm cranky).

2. extra time away from performing reminds me how much i love + need it.

3. amazing friends

(who have been sending well wishes full of love).

4. not getting what i want

(because it makes me work even harder).

5. other people's blogs who keep me company during days like these

(like this one + this one + this one).

6. creativity! + good ideas

(which keeps my mind moving even when i want it to be still).

7. NYC, LA, Austin, NJ

(+ the other beautiful and interesting places i've been this year).

8. adventures + future adventures.

9. pretend designing my future homes.

10. the ability to learn new skills

(+ crossing things off my to-do list).

i feel better already :o)

what are you grateful for today?

xox

right now ...

i am supposed to be in DC

getting ready for my next opening night

going to the gym and exploring a new city

where there are so many things to do, see, try, learn

and instead

i am stuck in bed.

in a whole lot of pain

waiting, waiting, waiting

for my sickies to go away.

this is not good.

you see, for me, being sick is a prison sentence.

everything i love to do requires me to be healthy.

yes, i know that no one likes to be sick and it causes everyone to miss work.

but for me, it's not about missing work. i love my work but it's more about not being able to sing, to move and dance and stretch, to sit up long enough to read and write and create. to work on all the projects i have in my head and on my computer and in my life.

also, i'm terribly dramatic and make a big deal out of everything

but really, being sick is literally the worst thing that occurs in my life.

(maybe this should be a reminder of how lucky i am..)

anybody have a good recipe for vegan chicken noodle soup?

did you know ...

... this Thursday, April 8th, 2010 is One Day Without Shoes?

TOMSshoes (which i love, love, love!)

has declared this Thursday a day to rid your feet of shoes and spend a day learning what it's like to be without shoes. they've recruited many a celebrity to make videos to promote the day and have set up events all around the country (world?) where folks can get together and support each other and their barefootedness.

check out www.onedaywithoutshoes.com

for more info and for nifty little banners like the ones i've got posted here.

you can even replace your current facebook/twitter/tumblr/blogger/etc icons

with the stickers and banners and so forth that are found in the toolkit.

i changed my facebook and my twitter!

see, all the cool kids are doing it!

and these kids over at TOMS are no dummys

(they are the opposite)

and know that lots of people can't go shoeless all day

and so they covered that little issue with this logo:

cause sometimes it's not about doing everything

it's just about doing something.

spread the word

BUY TOMS

(vegan!!)

and spend a minute, hour or day learning what it's like

to walk in somebody else's (non-existent) shoes.

give. give, give, give.

xox

and we're back!

... from FLORIDA!

we had a grand time, relaxing on the beach, trying to catch some shade sometimes and basking in the glory of the sun for most of the time. the first day it rained like crazy but we didn't mind. this gave us lots of calm, down time to nap and read in the afternoon followed by a nice evening stroll (read: 3 mile walk - sorry mom!) to a yummy restaurant.

the second day was absolutely gorgeous! we were on the beach by 10 (after a super long wait in the hotel starbucks) and didn't move until 2 for a quick lunch of edamame and hummus and then back to the beach and then headed up to the pool at 430 where we stayed until 6. that night we headed to SUBLIME which was the BEST VEGAN food i have ever eaten. yes, i am yelling IN CAPS because it was that good. i can't even explain. it's getting it's own post.

the third day was another long round at the beach followed by a few hours at the pool. my mom ordered some drinks and carried them down on a tray, laughing about how she was working at the resort now. i am a big dork and did not drop a drink of alcohol on the trip but i don't love drinking and i hate it even more in the hot sun. i have to realllllly be in the mood for a drink and i'm already so deliriously happy on the beach, why would i need anything to lift my mood?

we were up at the crack of dawn for both flights and neither was particularly pleasant but these were minor details to our delightful days in the sun. it was strange to relive some memories from the other times i've been there. the last visit was while i was performing in the fall when i ended up being rushed to the ER in an ambulance and spent a full day facing my biggest fears otherwise known as lots and lots of needles. the time before was when i was roughly ten minutes from ft lauderdale in hollywood while visiting my college roommates home in miami. while we were in miami, we drove to hollywood to hang with a bunch of my roommates hometown friends (read: lots of cute boys who were worth the hour long drive to our 19 year old minds). one of those friends ended up being someone who has played an incredible significant part in my life over the past 5 years and is still ridiculously important to me. this person has taught me things that i'm not sure anyone else would have had the patience to teach me and has helped me in ways that i still can't explain. he has done all of this with an open heart and in a way of caring about me that i still don't understand. so naturally i couldn't help but think about him especially with all the commercials advertising the very place i met him :o)

this is what i learned on my trip: vacations are important.

sometimes you really need to take a break for a few days and do nothing but think, read, lay and eat. it is totally and completely okay to skip working out for a few days. the sun can cure any and all of your problems. time with your mother spent talking and learning things you didn't know is really fun and important. AND for heaven's sake, leave your computer at home! what a freeing feeling! i was surely aware of my addiction though as i missed my computer the way one might miss a pet or friend. i think i should work on limiting my time spent with it from here on out.

it's back to tour for me next week and i'm heading to washington DC where i haven't been since i was 13. i'm excited to have the chance to explore the area again as an adult. until then, there are more adventures to be had here at home and in the city --

xox