Earlier this week, I tweeted about this new Lacoste advertisement:
Since first seeing the commercial, I’ve watched it about 30 times, shared it with all of my closest friends and downloaded the song featured (“You & Me (feat. Eliza Doolittle) (Flume Remix)” by Disclosure). Initially, I couldn’t explain why I was so captivated with this particular ad. Sure, it is powerful and beautifully composed, but there was something more to it than that; the romantic narrative was sweet, but also not the reason I couldn’t stop thinking about this video after watching.
I realized over time that this feeling of taking “the big leap” doesn’t just apply to relationships. It is an essential part of every crazy dream we have — the fear, the anticipation, the magnificent jump, the free fall, and the landing. Whatever the dream is (a first kiss, a move across the country, telling someone you love them, or accepting a new job) it’s an inexplicable fixation; we see it in our minds when no else can. And when the dream pulls at you hard enough, you know that the choice is clear: it is far better to take the leap than to live your life wondering what would have happened if you had jumped.
The end of the ad leaves us with the message “Life is a beautiful sport.” These conclusive words are what brought the idea full circle for me. Leaping is risky. You aren’t guaranteed a soft landing which is why most of us choose what is safe and what is certain. Why take the chance of getting hurt if we don’t have to? But through these experiences (even the ones where we end up getting hurt) there is beauty. It is what shapes us. We won’t win them all, but I am of the mind that our lives will be richer and our character stronger if we choose to chase the dreams that drive us.
For the first time in a long time, I felt inspired to write. As college draws to an end, I have found myself having to make the decision to leap. It is a scary one, but I am certain it will be worth it.
More to come in the next great adventure, stay tuned.
Ninty: the number of songs posted to See. Like. Blog. since its inception last August. It is odd to think about time relative to number of posts published, words written or songs discovered. Compiling this Spotify playlist was both cathartic and a little eerie; there are still memories closely tied to these melodies and replaying them in succession was like sorting through a stowed-away box of old photographs. The moments are a bit faded now, but nonetheless preserved, snapshots that, when assembled, provide the progression of my life. This feels like a good, almost serendipitous, way to start out the new year — looking at the past, living in the present and imagining the future.
Here’s to another year and another ninty songs to add to the list. More adventures and sweet music to come.
A little less than a week from now, we will kiss 2013 goodbye and usher in 2014 amidst clinking glasses, confetti and fireworks. It is around this time that we often hear phrases like “clean slate” and “blank canvas” used. While in the past I have welcomed the fresh start that a new year offers, I’ve opted to change my frame of mind for 2014.
This past year has been a dazzling, exciting, at points terrifying, crazy awesome, beautiful adventure. The lessons learned were some of my hardest yet; the highs were higher, the lows a bit lower, and the in between moments were meaningful and memorable. Adhering to one of my resolutions (more on that in a hot second), I tried to think about what my year would look like in a doodle. Here’s what I came up with:
Colorful, a little chaotic and filled with big themes and big dreams.
The idea of trying to wipe away any parts of 2013 to prep for my “clean slate” doesn’t make much sense to me. I’ve always believed in resolutions, but we shouldn’t just crumple up our old year and toss it away every time our calendars mark January 1st. This cycle is exhausting and doesn’t allow us to reflect on what we are doing right. We’ve all got changes that need to be made, things we want to do differently, goals, and aspirations. But all of these hopes and dreams don’t just follow the cut-and-dry 365 days per year pattern. We are constantly learning, growing and evolving; the things we discover and experience each passing year always carry over, whether we like it or not.
So, in the spirit of this new frame of mind, I’ve come up with a few of my own resolutions, based on what 2013 has taught me. Some are fun, some a bit more serious, but undoubtedly all will inspire positive change.
1. Add a pair of colorful frames to my accessories collection.
While this might seem like a pretty silly and minor resolution for most, it stems from and embodies a bigger goal. This year I chopped off my hair, wore some pretty outlandish outfits and made sure I had fun getting dressed every morning. I want to maintain this joy in my wardrobe in 2014 by pushing the sartorial envelope even further. These frames from Warby Parker are at the top of my list of must haves, along with more hats and crazy hippie jewelry. Since this year will be my least predictable yet (anything after May is a big, bold question mark), why not roll with the theme and start dressing like a vagabond consistently lost in a field of wildflowers?
2. Master a handstand (and other crazy balance poses) in yoga.
As mentioned before, yoga has become one of my favorite things. Once I’m back in the district, buying a month long unlimited membership to my neighborhood yoga studio will be the first thing at the top of my to do list. Namaste ya’ll.
3. Learn to budget.
As I stand at the brink of adulthood, I’ve realized I should probably start to actually manage my money, rather than just cast my fates (and bank balance) to the winds every time I pull out my debit card. Better to start now to save myself from one less rude awakening on my road to fiscal independence.
4. Kickstart spring cleaning.
It was recently brought to my attention that some of my nearest and dearest feel that I am a bit of a pack rat. Now, in my opinion the word pack rat is just north of hoarder and harbors a pretty negative connotation. I like to think of myself more as a collector of things that I really like: sweaters, shoes, costumes, candles, art, yarn, coins… you get the gist. However, considering I am going to be packing up and moving somewhere fairly soon (and hopefully won’t need a super sized UHaul to do it), it might be time that I start to curate my various collections with a more discerning eye. Just like budgeting, this will no doubt save me from a lot of additional work and dust bunnies in the months ahead.
5. Add a bit of design (and other cool things) to SLB.
As mentioned above and shown in my 2013 doodle, I want to actively work to include more design related things on SLB. This might be just a documentation of my current projects (some of which you can see here) or simply sharing something from the interwebz that catches my fancy. Considering it has become such a huge part of my life, it doesn’t make sense not to include it. I also want to start rolling out little mini upgrades for you all (perhaps a SLB Spotify playlist anyone?) so get excited.
6. See more shows.
If you guys hadn’t noticed from the frequent music heavy posts, I really love discovering new artists. I love going to concerts. Even if I’m not familiar with the band playing, there is something so magical about joining a bunch of people for this collective experience. If I do know the artist, that feeling is that much more powerful and resonant. I’ve been fortunate enough to see some pretty cool shows in 2013, and I want to keep that trend going and growing. The pie in the sky concert dream? Coachella 2014 would be a pretty sick grad gift. Just saying in case you’re reading this mom and dad.
It’s the day after Christmas and I am vacationing with my parents in southern California. For the first time in a long time I am relaxed, well fed and have fully caught up on sleep. It’s moments like these when the world stops spinning quite so fast and I get a chance to just exhale. It is a blessing in disguise to not know where exactly I am going to be a year from now; it allows my imagination to wander even further, trying on all sorts of possibilities to fill in the “what” and “where” blanks. January 1st will mark the start of my next great adventure (otherwise known as facing the imminent “real world”), and I can’t wait to share that crazy ride with you all.
Hope everyone has had a fantastic holiday season filled with laughter, love and well wishes.
Many more adventures to come in 2014, but none forgotten.
