Thursday, April 24, 2014

A Grand Generation

My grandmother just passed away. She was 92 years old. Her name was Philomena Vuozzo. Her health had been fluctuating for the past year. She fought hard. In fact, the last time my family visited her at the nursing home, she had seemed to recover from a recent condition.

Only a couple of weeks ago, she was suffering from an unknown problem that made her very sleepy. She was unable to stay awake and it seemed as though she wouldn't be able to pull through; but she did. Then, today, for some strange reason—a riddle as old as time itself—she went to Heaven.

Maybe she missed Grandpa. Now she is an angel; at least, an angel in a different place, a better place. She is sitting next to Grandpa, hand in hand, making her friends laugh while God makes us cry. Yet, we are lucky; for her own laughter forever echoes in our hearts and her smile is stamped on our souls.

And now, four beautiful souls that touched my life like no others are together in Heaven. They are the grand generation, in every sense of the word.

I love you, Grandpa and Grandma Stevenson. I love you, Grandpa and Grandma Vuozzo. I love you. I love you. I love you. Ti amo.

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Cookies

So...

I am in very good spirits today. I had a splendid workout this morning and have stuck to my healthy diet (oh, wow, one day). Anyways, in all of this cheer, I want to bake cookies. Yes, right after I mention how I am being all healthy, I have a desire to not be healthy. What a predicament I am in. Oh, well. I suppose I'll just get by on tea and a good time. That reminds me; I wrote a song and some of the lyrics were, "We'll get by, on love and wine." It's funny because I don't drink wine.

Where was I? Oh, yes. Cookies. I'll battle it out. If I make them, then I can only have a couple and maybe it'll do me some good to exercise my will-power. Then again, if I don't make them, that is also exercising my will-power. Blahhhhh.

Monday, April 21, 2014

Weight Off My Shoulders (And Everywhere Else on My Body)

I want to lose weight and tone up. I know I'm quite healthy and I have a decent body, but I want to be, well, hot. I'm sick of kicking myself in the (fat) ass every time I eat a piece of candy. I love to run, but then, I love to procrastinate too. It makes the whole idea of getting fit a little illogical. So, while I've had my short-term good spurts and my long-term failure periods, I'm going to just get to it.

I once tried this diet plan and let me tell you: It works. Of course, I wasn't going as hardcore as they suggested, but I wasn't in a hurry to lose ten pounds in a week. Seriously, though. Now that Easter is over, I don't have any holidays to get in my way and mess with my self-control.

http://voices.yahoo.com/bikini-emergency-lose-10-pounds-week-6224706.html

I don't have that much on my plate anymore with school winding down so I'll be able to exercise much more. It's a good time of year to buy fresh produce so I won't have an excuse for eating unhealthy, processed foods. The weather is nice so I can't say that it's too cold to run or be outside. Just with those things in mind, I think I'm in a good place. However, we all know that we make these decisions and then we counter them. Well, I'm going to do my best not to. So, if it's not too much trouble, comment whenever you feel inclined. Thank you.

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Country Music (Don't Ignore This Just Because You're Not a Fan Because You Might Gain Some Respect For It)

Maybe you don't drink a ton of beer or drive a pick-up truck, but the messages in country music are universal.

Country music speaks for itself. What does the word "country" mean? It means "the people of a nation". Country music is music about the people of a nation. Now, while there are some people who don't comprehend this (ethnicity is not the same as nationality or nation of citizenship), it cannot be disputed that Americans share a set of core values: family, friendship, and the love that those two things encompass. That's what country music is all about. It's about life in its purest form.

Some songs talk about squirrels ("Country Girl" by Luke Bryan), some about wine ("Strawberry Wine" by Deana Carter), some about trucks (too many to pick one), and even more about beer (obviously). These are just symbols of family, friends, and love.

Squirrels seem a bit ambiguous, but, when you think about it, and this may be a tad absurd, squirrels are a common part of life (at least, for me and for most people in the Northeast). That's a symbol of stability and, the more obvious symbol, silliness.

Then, we have wine. Wine is characteristic of people. Wine is deep. Wine is alive and laid-back. Wine is sweet and bitter; strawberry wine is bittersweet. So, maybe, wine is more a symbol of life because we all know it isn't always sweet.

Trucks and beer... now, those aren't exactly symbols, but the songs that they are written into are stories about life. We all have those. Trucks and beer seem to characterize a lifestyle. We don't all have the same lifestyle, but we can relate to those that things that make us reminisce about our childhood or our first love or our people—those that make us who we are. Maybe the truck that Kip Moore talks about in a farmer's field with a girl in a red sundress is your grandma's Honda Civic in the movie theater parking-lot with a girl in UGG boots. But there was something about that night, something in the way that girl looked at you, that made you remember every detail of the whole evening. So, trucks and beer just might be what connect people to, well, people.

Maybe you don't drink a ton of beer or drive a pick-up truck, but the messages in country music are universal. Country music is about life and it's your challenge to translate someone else's story into your own. How much more enriching can music get?

Saturday, April 12, 2014

Vision Clouded by Your Smoke

Go and search in the clouds
Try to find what's in the mirror
When it's all fogged up
Somehow things seem clearer

And maybe it's for the best
Your vision is blurry
But you can't see where you're going
Yet you're running, always in a hurry

So when you fall
Don't dare say it's my fault
That would come across as a joke
'Cause your vision is clouded by your smoke

Since when did blindness become
Just another state of mind
The state of affairs is getting complicated
And we're running out of time

Just another night
But if you reach into the haze
Realize you could be jumping
Into hell all ablaze

So if you drown
In your sea of smoke
It's not a sea 'cause you can't see where you're goin'

And when you fall
Don't dare say it's my fault
That would come across as a joke
'Cause your vision is clouded by your smoke

Maybe for the best
Vision is blurry
Can't see where you're going
Yet you're in a hurry

And when you fall
Don't dare say it's my fault
And when you drown
In your sea of smoke
It's not a sea 'cause you can't see where you're goin'
'Cause your vision is clouded by your smoke

Sunday, April 6, 2014

If You Ever Thought About Me...

If you ever thought about me, you should know that I thought about you more.

I've thought about you every day. And today, I was overcome by a feeling. It was a moment of weakness, in one sense, and a moment of sense, in another sense. A sixth sense, if you will. It was the feeling that I couldn't keep you out anymore. So I opened the door a crack and you stuck your foot in the opening.

Even if this isn't something, it's everything. You know what I mean.

The next step will probably be harder and easier. I'll have to tell you that I'm sorry and I'll be lucky enough to talk to you, if I do.

Thank God for moments of weakness that make us stronger.