make room

Settled in.

That's what I feel like. The first day back was the hardest, without a doubt. I'm not ashamed to admit that I shed more than a tear for my emptied out room, for the fact that I had survived (just barely) my first year of college. For the roommate that became one of my closest friends. For the realization that my ticket back home was one-way. Two days later, I'm sitting comfortably on my bed, typing my thoughts away, just as I would in my dorm room.

A room is something you make your own.

That's where you wake up in the morning, that's where you close your eyes at night. It's your safe haven. You put things on the walls - your scent is everywhere. All around, there's evidence of you. There's a crumpled bedsheet, a discarded sock. I guess that why it killed me to see my dorm room bare. I had a flashback of when I first set eyes on it. I'd scoffed at it - small, cold, different, uncomfortable. In a year, it had become my home.







- Ai

Home

Hello, blogger. It's been awhile since I've seen you. :) These are my thoughts, lately, expressed through the songs I haven't been able to stop listening to.

`sing for me again?`

Open up your mind and see like me
Open up your plans and damn,
You're free
Look into your heart and you'll find
The sky is yours.



I'm Yours - Jason Mraz

`You find what you're looking for
when you're not looking for it.`

To walk with me
All summer long
We sang a song
And strolled on golden sand
Two sweethearts
And the summer wind




The Summer Wind - Madeleine Payroux


'I didn't think I could feel the butterflies again.'

Now that she's back in the atmosphere
With drops of Jupiter in her hair,
She acts like summer and walks like rain, reminds me that there's time to change,
Since the return of her stay on the moon, she listens like spring
and she talks like June



Drops of Jupiter - Train

'There's no way I could resist you.'

Fingers trace your every outline
Paint a picture with my hands
Back and forth we sway like branches in a storm
Change the weather still together when it ends













Sunday Morning - Maroon 5

'Peace, Love, Unity. I forgot how much I liked to hold hands.'

Spinning on that dizzy edge
I kissed her face and kissed her head
And dreamed of all the different ways I had
To make her glow
"Why are you so far away?" she said
"Why won't you ever know that I'm in love with you,
That I'm in love with you?"



Just Like Heaven - Katie Melua

`I don't know how you do it, but I'm falling fast.`

But of all these friends and lovers
There is no one compares with you
And these memories lose their meaning
When I think of love as something new














In My Life - The Beatles

`How is it time to leave already?
I'm not ready yet.`

Another aeroplane
Another sunny place
I’m lucky, I know
But I wanna go home
Mmmm, I’ve got to go home







Home - Michael Buble

It's my final day living in NYC until next semester. God knows I'll miss this place dearly. This Monday, I'm hopping on an airplane to the Philippines for almost a month. I'm excited, but I wish everything was timed a little differently.. then again, I believe everything is meant to happen precisely when it should. So we'll see what happens. Starting next Monday, look out for my posts .. I'll try as hard as I can to post a picture everyday.

I still have the jitters,

Ai

It's been awhile...

I know it's been awhile since both Aisha and I have posted but this is the end of the semester and the workload has yet to cease. However, I've raked up many topics to discuss and write about in the next few weeks. For starters, my friend Brandon just introduced Kitsune Noir to me the other day. The creator, Bobby Solomon, makes these amazing weekly themed mixes. I'm going to periodically post my own themed mixes free to download.

For now I'll leave you with Envy On The Coast, from their new album Lowcountry.

The Great American T-Shirt Racket - Envy On The Coast
Made Of Stone - Envy On The Coast

R.Dearlove

Clear Skies When I Think of You.

Exactly.

Clear Skies - Keane

That's all today,

R.Dearlove

reprogram

What happens when you abandon emotion? When you dead yourself off to the world, why do you do it? Is it because you are afraid of being hurt? You've toughened your skin so much that it feels like steel, almost impossible to penetrate. Your walls are far too high - you're only sentencing yourself to life in isolation. And then what? When you were young, what were your dreams? Did you have any?

When you were young, did you say, "When I grow up, I want to be a robot"?

Objects can't feel like people, but can people feel like objects? Used, neglected, loved .. or dead, emotionless, unfeeling, only serving to carry out its proper functions? I'm seeing it in people I love, and I'm afraid they'll never find their way out.





I've been a fan of WongFu Productions for years now. I even met WongFu when they came to Rutgers (they signed my sketchbook!) and it was wonderful. Their new short film, When Five Fell, is a story so bittersweet. It poses this question: Can everyday objects we love, use, and often neglect love us back just as much ... if not, even more?

Check out their website -
Watch their other short films -
Fall in love.

Ai

I've just lost my mind, but I still got you

City Series Rennes #1.1 - Last Morning Soundtrack from KIDAM on Vimeo.

In a time where everything is supposed to be winding down, my life has become even more chaotic. Yes it was my choice to leave projects unfinished until the very end. Yes it was my choice to change my major last minute. And yes it was my choice to email every music internship that craigslist had to offer and now have to go on interviews. My choices. How quickly we agree, rather it be right or wrong. How quickly our choices impact later decisions and so forth. I cannot even fathom what's in store for me in the next few years, nor the next few months. Any slight decision could change everything. I just hope I'll be ready for this change, whenever it shall reach me.

Stay Awake - Lydia
One More Day - Lydia


R.Dearlove

struck.

This short film made me happy during this terrible week. I hope it does the same for you.
I think, right now, I'm moving too fast to be struck by an arrow. Sometimes I wish I'd slow down.

- Ai

aged to imperfection.

College (Etherea Remix) - Animal Collective

Lollipops turn into cigarettes. The innocent ones turn into sluts. Homework goes in the trash. Mobile phones are being used in class. Detention becomes suspension. Soda becomes vodka. Bikes become cars. Kisses turn into sex. Remember when getting high meant swinging on the playground? When protection meant wearing a helmet? When the worst things you could get from boys were cooties? Dad's shoulders were the highest place on Earth and Mom was your hero? Your worst enemies were your siblings. Race issues were about who ran the fastest. War was only a card game. Getting in trouble meant getting put in time-out. And the only drug you knew was cough medicine. When wearing a skirt didn't make you a slut. The most pain you felt was when you skinned your knees, and goodbyes only meant until tomorrow?

And we couldn't wait to grow up.

- Ai

Your Eyes are Like Billboards.

Lisa Solberg, check her out here.

Today, a bit of everything. Things I love. Things that bring me happiness and inspiration.

Go ahead,

scroll down,

and enjoy!

I'm desperately in love with this song by Radical Face.
Welcome Home - Radical Face

A little Rogue Wave to start your day. Such a magnificent song.
Salesman At The Day Of The Parade - Rogue Wave

One of my favorite Blogotheque takes, Bon Iver:

Have a beautiful day,

R.Dearlove

face the facts

I'm doing a reevaluation of my current lifestyle: late nights (or no sleep at all) due to projects, lack of a consistent diet, a little less hydrated than I should be, etc. I've come to the conclusion
that all of us attending any type of art or fashion school will have looked like they've aged about 20-30 years over the course of just 4. Unless you take action in order to prevent such a horrific idea. What with work and busy schedules, I had no idea how I'd accomplish such a feat.

Until the other day, when I stumbled upon the grounds of the Fashion Nation blog. What I discovered were simple, easy tips and tricks to prevent this expedited art-school-aging syndrome.


Food Your Skin Will Love



Aloe Vera.

It's best to use products such as Banana Boat's After Sun Gel, according to Fashion Nation blogger Stephie. Usually used for sun burns, it also nourishes dry patches of skin.

Others also say that you could actually just use the extract from the aloe as a face mask -- I know what I'm doing this weekend!

Avocado.

I love this fruit already and have actually made avocado milkshakes in the past. All you do is add milk. Of course, you can also mash up the avocado and use it as a face mask. The fruit isn't badly priced, and the benefits would be all worth it.












Olive Oil.

This one I knew about already : using 100% virgin olive oil, apply to your skin (around nails, hands, etc) to moisturize. According to Loreal make up artist Michelle Phan, it's also a great way to remove eye make up, cleanly taking off debris while simultaneously moisturizing your skin.

Michelle also has a great Olive Oil Sugar Scrub formula with honey, olive oil, and sugar. Leave on for two minutes, and voila!












Acai Fruit.

No, they are NOT blueberries, as I originally thought by the picture. Stephie buys Acai-based products from Kiehl's. According to her, this is an extremely powerful fruit when it comes to skincare. Drinking the juice and eating the actual fruit wouldn't hurt, either!


Four Things Your Skin Will Hate

Smoking. Ages you quickly. If you do, either take very good care of your skin or quit.

Dehydration. Lack of moisture, dryer, bumpier skin. Drink plenty of water!

Lack of Sleep. You should be getting 8 hours of sleep every night.

Exposure to the Sun. Always use a good sunblock, indoors and out.


Always glowing,

Ai