A Week of Music, Art & Sporting Events

It's been an incredibly busy week of music, art and sporting events... So busy I haven't had time to sit down and write my daily gratitude journal here until today. So here it goes before I have to move on to other home responsibilities before another art show tonight:

24. I'm grateful to have witnessed the amazing band that is The Airborne Toxic Event in Downtown Los Angeles at the Mayan on Wednesday night.

25. I'm grateful to have attended the Art Los Angeles Contemporary Opening Night at the Barker Hangar on Thursday night.

Here's a picture of the sunset that night:

26. I'm grateful to have experienced Downtown Los Angeles for a 12 hour day/night of work, fun and play yesterday including the California Gift Show and the LA Art Show at the Los Angeles Convention Center followed by happy hour at Flemings and my first Lakers game of 2013, which of course they won! (I had no doubt but my friends were skeptical given their season record.) I have no pictures because my phone didn't survive the day, but GO LAKERS!

I love this city and all the angels in it.

Blooming begonia

I was gifted a Rhizomatous Begonia plant during the holidays and when I checked on her last night, she has fresh new blooms! Happy, happy, joy, joy!
Next step, learn to take a leaf and propogate it...

2013 Critics Choice Movie Awards

I had the honor of attending the 2013 Critics Choice Awards at the Barker Hangar last night.
#11 Today I'm grateful for the people whose creative vision, passion and actions are inspiring the world to make dreams come true.

The Sunsets in Los Angeles

#8. Today I'm grateful for the sunsets in Los Angeles.

The only thing standing between you and your goal

I'm going to post this picture in my bathroom, 
right over the toilet next to the mirror as a "note to self". 

A bit of history on the picture, friends were visiting me while I was living in Ireland in '07 and during our tour of the Ring of Kerry I took this shot right after my car overheated and the engine blew stranding us for several hours. Talk about getting stuck at a crossroads... my car had lost power steering going downhill towards a cliff and this is the spot we safely managed to land. But what started as a mishap ended up being one of the greatest adventures of our trip. The rest of the story can be read on my travel blog.

This image reminds me of a time frame where I continuously pushed and challenged myself and those around me to grow in ways that many questioned as impossible "because it had never been done before". But what kind of excuse is that anyways? So while the naysayers were busy neighing, we gathered the right people (ones that were willing to say yes and just do it), set goals and deadlines, and pushed ahead in leaps and bounds accomplishing things daily that had never been done before. 


What is most great is it's not just true of those experiences but a lesson to be reminded of repeatedly anytime I stop myself from staying on track as it speaks loudly to me, "Nothing is impossible. If I can accomplish "that"-- ie. taking the first step and moving to Ireland alone for 2 years, learning to cross the street by looking right first instead of left and then learning to drive  in the opposite side of the car on the opposite side of the road, eventually stopping that car from driving us off a cliff all while meeting new people, learning a new culture, successfully relocating a company abroad, and most important maintaining a sense of humor and a sense of adventure through all it was & wasn't according to my expectations at step 1 (moving to Ireland) -- I can accomplish anything."

Love is Everywhere...

~ Photographer Unknown 

For the love of fruit and veggies... I had to share.

A (wo)man travels the world over...

A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it. ~ George Moore.
Photo Credit: Vanessa Gibson

This is your life.

A Song In Loving Memory of My Dear Friend Kindred Khan Nguyen

A dear friend of mine, Kindred Khan Nguyen, was doing one of his favorite and most enjoyable things, camping in Kings Canyon in the Sequoia's over the 4th of July holiday weekend when he left us unexpectedly in a tragic hiking accident on the 4th of July. I've been searching for two weeks to process this and to find the right words to give proper meaning to how special his life was to me and so many others, as well as searching for the right song to dedicate to him. His services and memorials are today and tomorrow. Today I finally found the right song. I'm still speechless in words as to how this great friend impacted my life and the life of the many people he encountered over the years. You can read the blog with some of his writings at http://kindredkhannguyen.blogspot.com/ as well as visit his memorial dedication site at http://www.khannguyen.com. I know I will have much more to share about the tremendous impact he has had on my life over the last few years as soon as I am able to process the part of me that is hurting, grieving and feeling such a great sense of loss... but for now, enjoy the song. It reminds me so much of what he stood for, love and life.

"I am a c'ode of Song. The moments are notes--strung together becoming a song of life. Consciousness is the melody. Tempo, the heart beating." ~Kindred Khan Nguyen 1970-2010

The Life Of A Snail ~ A Photo Journal