A Smattering of the Many Things I'm Grateful For this Thanksgiving

Christmas Trees     Chuck Palahniuk novels     Live music     Spotify     Jello     Mom's homemade mashed potatoes     Late nights watching How I Met Your Mother with Delia     The Thanksgiving Day Parade     Considering myself a part of two of the most beautiful cities in existence     Holy Cross Roman Catholic Church     Doctor Who     How Dad never complains about picking me up from the city     That Sandy killed my backyard but left my house and family in perfect health     The incredible amount of support I've had from countless friends and family lately     Starbucks     Gustav, the most beautiful bass I could have asked for     Halloween candy     Being a part of Company     Every tiny, insignificant thing about Northeastern     That I didn't make the kick line team in ninth grade and became a music kid instead     Slippers     My adorable little cousins     The advice and guidance from my older cousins     Skiing     Drummers     Flat irons      Shredded cheese     Harry Potter books     That of all thirteen schools I applied to, I ended up at Northeastern University     Husky Hunt     Crepes     The Pep Band     Nutella     Northeastern Hockey Games     That Nonni and Nonno and Grandma Mary are healthy and happy as ever     Lifeteen     Seinfeld     e.e. cummings poetry     Cozy sweatshirts     The friends who hugged me when I cried at the cemetery yesterday     Buona Sera garlic knots     That Alice in Wonderland exists    Musicals in and about New York City     My correctly aligned jaw     That my parents met and fell in love and got married and had me to begin with     That Laura is so accommodating about my messiness and wacky music schedule     Wedges and high heels     That 2 am no-boundaries conversation with Meredith the other night     Chinese food     Bruce Springsteen music     Nerdfighter culture     New York pizza     Being Italian     That Eric texts me goodnight, every night    That I loved Smithtown High School West so much     Pit orchestras     Flip Flops     Breaking Amish   Aunt Grace and Uncle Kenny, my godparents     That Chris, Charlie, Peter, Lauren V, Lauren B, Laura, Ryan, Sarah, Andy, Harrison, and Alfred came to see and hear me in Company     Blogger     Disney magic     That Chris would rather spend three hours tutoring me in Stats than be bored while I spend one hour at the professor's Office Hours     Yearbooks     Everything I learned from Aunt Maria while she fought cancer     Billy Joel     Mr. Nolan's English class     EVERYTHING from the Romantic Era     Easter eggs     That I could have made things work at any university, but that things just work beautifully at Northeastern     Delia's dance recitals     Andy's unbiased and unabashed honesty and advice     That Christie, Brianna, and Alissa are at Northeastern too     David Tennant     My beautiful and sexy 616 apartment and even sexier roommates     That Alaric gives the best hugs known to humankind     Orange soda     How beautiful everything looks when it's snowing     Holiday decorations     That Mom cares enough to bug me for every detail of my life     That I've had my heart broken so few times     The unfathomable potential of every human being     Board games     Chick flicks     My room at home     All the wonderful things Sarah bakes     The picture perfect memories from the Last Day of High School, Prom, and Graduation     That there's never been anything I can't confide in my sister     J.K. Rowling's entire life     Crappy magazines like Rolling Stone and Cosmo     Cheesy flamingo memorabilia     Woodloch Pines     My fairy-tale Sweet Sixteen and all the amazing things I learned from having it     That Lauren Bell never gets annoyed at me for asking for Accounting help     Husky Hunt the second time around    That Dad was so thoughtful to pick me up a 7-11 coffee this morning     Cinnabons     June Claire Dance Centers     That even though we're stressed like crazy getting ready to have 18 guests over, we do have 18 happy and healthy guests we love and can't wait to see     Wicked the musical, but also the book because it gave someone the idea for the musical     That Lauren V is always telling me how fantastic and perfect we all are     That Nothing Changes     That I have the two legs, feet, arms, hands, ears, and eyes; ten fingers and toes; and a nose, mouth, and brain that God gave me to appreciate the world with     Finnish power metal     Mark Twain's writing     Tampons     Eye lash curlers     Converse sneakers     Facebook     That Shannon visits so often even though she doesn't live with us     That Ginger could come to both my and my sister's Sweet Sixteen     When Mom gives me a back scratch     Harry Potter World     What the Pluck?!    Living next door to the Geriens     Marshall Half Stacks     That one time I got to play a Juzek bass in a hole-in-the-wall jazz shop     IV Dining hall pizza     Elevators, ramps, the wheels on my bass case, and all the sympathetic people that hold the door open     Eleven years of bus rides with Jacqui     Stetson East cookies     Every piece of music I've ever listened to and every piece that's waiting to be heard     That I have a bed to sleep in every night     Books and sheet music that smell old     Paws the Husky     That my family misses me when I'm gone, and that I miss them too     Fourth of July Fireworks     Italian ices     Everything that's caramel-flavored     Music     Too many perfect Blue Flamingo vacations to count     Rebecca's Cafe brunches with Christie     That Northeastern's campus is so beautiful, especially for a city school     The Charles River    That picture-perfect moment when Train was singing "Drops of Jupiter" and I was standing alone in the rain     The sights, sounds, odds, ends, and quirks of New York City     Every confused morning when the story of last night gets told to me     That Marianna is only ever a text away when I need her     That Delia asked me to be her sponsor     Twitter     Stephen Sondheim     That Uncle Vic married Aunt Terry     Apple picking as a family tradition     Woodloch crumb cake     That so many people cared enough to check on me this summer when my jaw was banded shut     That my jaw was banded shut and my liquid diet lost me fifteen pounds     Rubber ducks     Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky     The fantastic family vacations Mom and Dad work so hard to take us on     That I had my nineteenth birthday this year     102.3 WBAB     My mac     Grimm, Perrault, and Andersen fairy tales     That Gustav and I played at Staller Center, Carnegie Hall, and Lincoln Center together     Sade, my creamsicle colored bass guitar     That Delia still asks for my help picking out outfits     My crazy curly hair     Secret brand deodorant     Aerie underwear     Glitter glue     That I'm part of the Honors Program at such a good school in such a wonderful city     Rebecca's Cafe sandwiches     My job at Au Bon Pain     That I'm so in love with my major, literally every day of my life     The bright walls in my room     The Cousins Day we had at Lorella, Danielle, Bob, and Justin's this summer     Those vacations we took to Montauk with Aunt Angela, Uncle Mario, Marianna, and Alessia all those years ago     That Nonni and Nonno care about their time and resource-consuming grandkids as much as they do     All the Tooth Fairy, Easter bunny, and Santa Claus stories Mom and Dad fabricated so well for us     Cursive handwriting     That I was School President in fifth grade     That Mr. Roth, my middle school orchestra teacher, had such a positive influence on my appreciation for music     The Smithtown West Music Department family     That the twelve basses I was Section Leader to still call me Mom     Old photos     The Doll House Nonno made for me and Deels     That Nonni taught me how to sew     Grilled cheese sandwiches     Leonardo DiCaprio movies     All the hours they tolerate my presence in the Duplex     All the classy literature and art and music Danielle and I obsess over     Everything I learned my freshman year of college; in the classroom, about life, and about myself     The entertaining antics of Alfred and Harrison     My friendship with Mary, even if it's so much more difficult to maintain since she moved to North Carolina seven years ago     Sweet Sixteen Season     My twin, Brian     Thelemon-scented candle Mrs. Ralph bought me     The purple V neck that Richie wears     That Brianna, Rebecca, Danielle, and Sean called to check on me last Thursday     Ms. Riccoboni's Italian class     Winky, my little Nissan Altima that's as old as I am     Springy beds     Fan fiction     Bananas     That Mike is so good at pestering me to keep in touch with him     Family Gatherings on every Holiday we can     Lindt chocolate     New York bagels     Becca-Brina Christmases     That Tasha was an awesome freshman year roommate     The Blue Flamingo Tradition     The Northeastern bass family: Peter, Colin, Jason, and me     Cold weather     That Lauren kept me company when I sadly and slowly packed up my life in 933 IV last April     That Rebecca knows how much I love and need her, even when I'm God awful at keeping in touch     That Deels and Alex became friends, and then so did Sarah and I over a Play-Doh bakery in fourth grade     That Kimmie and I grew a beautiful friendship out of seeing each other once a week at tap class     Rod McKuen's writing     That Alyssa lived around the block from me in Kindergarten     Sudoku     Carlsson bass rosin     Centennial Quad     How beautiful and quirky Beacon Hill is     New England Clam Chowder     The memory of Deels and I staring jaw-dropped at each other when Daniel Radcliffe got hoisted into the air for the Opening scene of How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying     Condiments with Joanna     The Port Jeff ferry     Huntington Avenue     Upton Basses in Mystic, Connecticut     Diaries     My signed copy of Diary, the book     Reeds from Palm Sunday     Northeastern's Husky Hockey team and the hot hockey players     How beautiful Boston is     The T     The way Rebecca and Mike wiped away the tears during our last Adoration together     The fantastic inside jokes Paige and Danielle and I had in Mr. (CrapICan'tRemeberHisName)'s AP Euro class Tenth Grade     Harry Potter as a cultural phenomenon     Eoin Colfer and the Artemis Fowl series     Gas stations     Vanity Plates     Paved roads     That I've never had to go hungry     Charities     The BSO and Boston Pops     The Lilac-themed tea house Brian and I went to for lunch one time     The feeling of being a Goddess when you shave your legs     The color of Dan Frank's hair at prom     The Lifeteen Core that still inspire me     The amazing evening the five of us girls saw Legally Blonde together     That there's a Heaven waiting for all the loved ones I've lost     Rosaries     That Aunt Maria, Aunt Ruth, Uncle George, Grandpa Ken, and Katie will always be a part of me on some level     The feeling of being hugged by someone who loves you     The number of family members and friends I love and who love me back     The way two people's faces light up when they see each other after a long time apart     All the things I take for granted     Every kind of love

And most importantly, I'm thankful for everyone I've ever met because whether you suspect it or not, you've influenced me along the way to becoming the person I am today.  I can't thank you enough for helping me into living the life I do.  

Thank you.

"I growl when I'm pleased, and wag my tail when I'm angry. Therefore I must be mad."

Evidently I'm just as good at getting hacked in my own house as I am at school.  Cheers, guys.

I'm not quite sure where to start since I've never gone 4 days without blogging before.  I suppose I'll just recap the highlights of the last few days.  

We baked brownies on Saturday.  Let's be clear here: I cannot cook.  I can make anything in a toaster or microwave and I make a mean grilled cheese but I thought that was all.  However, as evidenced by these brownies and my cinnamon streusel Christmas morning, it turns out I can also make anything that comes in a box and has instructions on the back.

Mass was nice that night.  Father Jim sang O Holy Night as per usual, and the reason for celebrating Christmas finally sunk in, and I got my holiday spirit back after that.

Christmas Eve is just as exciting as Christmas Day if you ask me.  It was excellent seeing Aunt Grace, Marianna, Uncle Ignazio, and (Nonna) Marianna, watching Home Alone, and reminiscing the year we got nineteen people to sing I Dodici Giorni di Natale, or the Twelve Days of Christmas in Italian.  Also, the baccala, linguine with clams, and penne  all a vodka were absolutely to die for.

Santa spoiled me so badly this year.  I got an iPhone 4s, Diary AUTOGRAPHED BY CHUCK PALAHNIUK!!!, a shot glass that reads "This is not a horcrux," seven CDs (Scorpions, Boston, Bruce Springsteen, Guns N Roses, Tchaikovsky... the good stuff), stuff for my guitar, and a ton of clothes and makeup.  "Happy" isn't even in the ballpark of how happy I am.

I'm testing out the Scorpions at the moment.  They are freaking fantastic.

I love seeing all the little cousins at Christmas.  There is now Robbie, Bella, Mike, Luke, Dario, Ava, and Sebastian who are all under eight.  They are generally cute and mischievous in a fairly even ratio with each other.  Then of course there's...

Cassie: Cassie is probably my closest cousin.  We have this tradition where we go apple picking in Brewster every year and see each other a handful of times in between holidays.  In the old days we used to play Super Mario 64 on Nintendo like it was our job.  We're never at a loss when it comes to keeping ourselves entertained and we are legendary at the games Spit and Spoons.  

The best cousin moment was definitely when Ava threw her temper tantrum.  Ava is two years old and the most gorgeous child you've ever seen.  She's absolutely adorable and she's wicked smart. At Thanksgiving, she was making this pout-y face she makes when she's thinking hard about something, so I made it back at her.  After a minute, she blinked and looked at her mom, my Aunt Ang, and say, "Mommy, Sabrina's mad at me."  Two years old!! Anyway, when she has tantrums, it quite literally takes two people to hold her down and one person to go around picking up all the things she throws.  It's terrifying.  Her parents are used to it though, and make light of it.  It was absolutely hysterical.  Uncle Mark tackled her and screamed, "SATAN, IN THE NAME OF GOD, YOU WILL LEAVE THIS CHILD ALONE! AVA, WE'RE HERE FOR YOU!  DO YOU SEE THE LIGHT?  GOD IS IN THAT LIGHT. IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, SON AND HOLY SPIRIT, I HEREBY PURGE YOUR SOUL OF THE DEVIL. GOD LOVES YOU, AVA," to which Ava replied "AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!" for several prolonged minutes.  After about twenty minutes of this, she just stopped.  Her dad, my Uncle Mark, just carried her back out and we resumed life.  He suggested that she apologize to everyone for acting up, and she looked ashamed of herself, hung her head, and told us all she's sorry, effectively melting our hearts again.  After this, she proceeded to run around to everyone and individually say she loved them, [insert name here].  UNFAIRLY LOVABLE.

So take a shot in the dark, what losers do you think I spent my night with?  Rebecca and Mike think they're really hot shit.  And of course, they are.  Rolls eyes.

Really though, we spent a delightful three hours Harry Potter-ing and Doctor Who-ing and David Tennant-ing and generally merry-ing all over the place.  Also, Rebecca brought donuts.  Lessons of tonight:  Mike needs to have respect for girls smacked into him, Rebecca will lick or bite anything you put in front of her face (boys, get at her), and no one is above hacking anything I leave unlocked.  Overall, a perfect night.

Seriously though.  I kind of want to write all of tomorrow's blog as a serious analysis of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two.  When I read the book I blatantly sob.  The movie is alright, but not nearly as good, yet I continue to weep pretty openly.  I will never, ever get past Post-Potter Depression.

Danielle pointed out to me that there was a perfect Cheshire Cat Smile moon out tonight.  That kind of moon gives me chills.  I can practically see the cat poised mid-air and feel madness coming on.  

"Still she haunts me, phantomwise,
Alice moving under skies
Never seen by waking eyes."

"No, I do mean impassible. Nothing's impossible!”

If I remember correctly, I'm starting off today by writing about the Amazing Eight.  Though we've all been friends in various smaller groups dating back to 2001, this group solidified about a year ago.  Since we arrange ourselves in no particular order, I'll introduce the stunning seven ladies in the order I met them. 


Alyssa:  Alyssa and I go way back to kindergarten.  We've been through many adventures together such as the Fifth Grade talent show, Jonas Sisters Era, Sweet Sixteen season, proms, and Graduation Party season.  Whenever I think of Alyssa, I clearly see her beauteous smile and hear her laughing.  Loudly.


Chelsea:  Oh, where to begin?  I don't remember meeting or becoming friends with her, but I do remember meeting her mom at someone else's birthday party in first grade.  Her mom and my mom started bonding from day one, and our dads and sisters would shortly follow suit.  Our families have vacationed at Woodloch together eight times, and we go skiing together once a year.  This girl is certifiably weird.  She'll speak in a Russian accent for the hell of it and is NEVER afraid to make herself look like a door publicly.  This is fortunate, given the frequency at which this occurs.


Sarah F: We spent our very first playmate in fourth grade creating play-doh bakery goods, and the rest is history.  Our most intense bonds come from AP Bio, Badminton, and Stacy's Pita Chips/proper eating etiquette.  Also, there was Nolan's English class, in which we made fun of each other and got graded for it.  She also has a Sabrina Strand in her hair, AKA the most purdy piece of hair on her head.  


Christie:  It's a wonder Christie hasn't come up before now, seeing as she's also a Husky.  She's about a foot taller than I am, and consistently has been since we met in fifth grade.  We share a love for tap dancing and Broadway musicals, but otherwise have very little in common.  I think this speaks for the strength of the friendship though, because it means we can make conversation out of anything.  Evidence: two hour lunches like twice a week.


Paige: Firstly, let's set the record straight.  Paige is definitively a Gryffindor.  Plus she's a ginger, so she MUST be a Weasley.  (Underlying message, she's as obsessed with Harry Potter as I am.)  She loves anything and everything Disney and is incapable of smiling with her mouth closed.  This isn't an issue though since we love her big smile.


Cristina: I'm fairly certain the first conversation we had was about Twilight in tenth grade BUT she has successfully been converted to a Harry Potter fan, so there is no need to hate on either of us for having read and mildly enjoyed Twilight.  Cristina is a hugely supportive and thoughtful friend, who shares my passion for reading (particularly during class).  


Sarah D:  This is weird because we went to elementary school together and she lives closer to me than any of the other six do, yet we got to know each other most recently.  She's the most organized (and a tinyyyy bit OCD) person you'll ever meet.  I promise. 


The Amazing Eight!




Moving on, I spent six and a half hours baking Christmas cookies at Nonni's today.  We made tricolored cookies and rugalas.  If you don't know what either of those are, you are severely missing out.  (I am speaking partially to my mac because it keeps trying to tell me I misspelled "rugalas.")


I was looking at all the family Christmas cards when Nonni pointed out how much my little cousin, Ava, age 2, resembles Aunt Maria.  Aunt Maria lost her second battle with cancer a little over a year ago.  Nonni's comment caught me off guard.  Although I'm saddened to be thinking about how much I miss Aunt Maria, it's a wonderful comfort to look at Ava's face and see her there.  




On a lighter note, Matt, Sean, James, Aaron, Brian, and I got to go see the Trans Siberian Orchestra tonight!!!  I've known every word to every one of their Christmas songs inside-out since I was ten, so this was a childhood dream fulfilled for me.  TSO perform and write Christmas carols in a rock style.  They even have Christmas-themed rock operas.  Half of tonight's show was the Christmas Eve and Other Stories rock opera.  The other half contained songs from their other albums, including one called Beethoven's Last Night, which draws inspiration from the musical mastermind's own compositions.  The show tonight included re-arranged pieces by Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, Tchaikovsky, Lizt, and Grieg.  It was more wonderful than I can articulate.  I could honestly die satisfied right now.  This is the grand finale of the show.  Go watch it.  Beethoven's Fifth into Siberian Sleigh ride into the finale of Sarajevo 12/24.  Their best three compositions to date.  There were tears in my eyes.  


Matt: We've been in each other's lives for fifteen years, despite the fact that he's a Transformers fan.  He's a talented artist and shares my affinity for metal.  Also, we shared Lifeteen for a solid three and a half years.  We are the definition of "antagonistic," church or no. 


Sean: It's a shame we only got to know each other this past summer, but we became good friends relatively quickly.  Also a Transformers fan, however.  He is a technology junkie and has poor taste in music.


James: James is a music person.  This makes me happy.  He's a singer, and therefore earns a fair amount of respect.


Aaron:  Enjoys making fun of teachers and people he dislikes in a fairly cruel fashion.  He makes lots of racist jokes, including a fair few about himself.  He's a cellist and is teaching my brother at the moment.  


Brian:  I wish words would begin to describe how lucky I am to have Brian in my life.  He is my twin.  We talk about anything and everything for hours at a time, share music, bond over orchestra (he's also a cellist), and generally offer lots of support when one of us needs it.  Also, I could talk to Mrs. Ralph for hours too if we're left unchecked.  She's the sweetest lady you'll ever meet.  Really though, Brian is honestly the reason I have any sanity left in me at all.  He's also the hardest working student I know, and works as a full-time genius.



In the light of the fantastic ensemble I was privileged enough to see, I offer a prayer in remembrance of Daryl Pediford, former lead singer of TSO.   

“Well, now that we have seen each other," said the unicorn, "if you'll believe in me, I'll believe in you.”

My mother seems to have mistaken me for a digital art major because she keeps employing me to design the invitations for my sister's party.




Additionally, the only other things today consisted of were doctor's appointments related to the braces and next summer's surgery.  It was a really lighthearted day.  




The pretzel I just ate looked a lot like a chromosome.  Maybe that's just residual daydreams from trying to help Deels study for AP Bio yesterday. Here's to never needing another science class in my life!




Is anyone else having difficulties getting into the fact that Christmas is only 5 days away?  I've been listening to Christmas music since two weeks before Thanksgiving (ask the Ninth Floor Common Room, they would know), and I've had my room decorated since then too.  My shopping is essentially done, and I'll be spending this week wrapping things, going to a Trans Siberian Concert, and helping bake Christmas cookies.  There's still no recognition of the rapidity with which Christmas is coming at us.  I'm just musing, but it may be because I've missed two out of four Advent masses.  My attendance to church has been miserable while I'm away. It's just so much more enjoyable to go when I'm home and know the band and priest and at least half of the congregation by name.  I'm not sure what's up. Some extra prayer and wearing of Santa Hats should do the trick.
Also, my nails are now green and red.  I'm giving it everything I can over here.  




You must all know of my preoccupation with fairytales and Disney magic.  Anything the slightest bit ethereal or dreamy can capture my attention like nothing else.  I'll refer to my quest for "grandeur in the struggles of everyday life" in a previous post here; I'm always looking for things that don't align with the logistics of this world.  I want to be a part of something larger than life, something absolutely otherworldly.  Alas, I digress.  I just wanted to explain my passion for magic before showing you what I came across today.  I'm in love.  Check out the other princess pages as well.  Be forewarned, it's very girly.
Princess Inspired Clothing