Saturday, January 30, 2010

The Keep Calm Playlist


So I recently decided that I needed to make a really chill, mellow playlist to put on while I am drawing or writing. These songs really get my creative juices flowing, and I highly suggest downloading each and every one of these songs if you haven't already. I figured it was about time I shared some music with you, I haven't really in a while.

The Keep Calm Playlist

White Winter Hymnal- The Fleet Foxes
I'm Your Puppet- Gregory and the Hawk
Gypsy Rose- Ben Kweller
Green Eyes- Coldplay
Boats & Birds- Gregory and the Hawk
World Keeps Turning- Brett Dennen
Classic Cars- Bright Eyes
A Lack of Color- Death Cab for Cutie
Banana Pancakes- Jack Johnson
Lua- Conor Oberst and Gillian Welch
Better Together- Jack Johnson
Train Song- Ben Gibbard and Feist
We Are Nowhere and It's Now- Bright Eyes
January Wedding- The Avett Brothers
At the Bottom of Everything- Bright Eyes
You Ain't Goin' Nowhere- Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova
Alameda- Elliot Smith
Maybe- Ingrid Michaelson
Ragged Wood- Fleet Foxes
Pretty Girl from Chile- The Avett Brothers
Closer to You- Brett Dennen
Real Love- John Lennon
Murder in the City- The Avett Brothers
First Day of My Life- Bright Eyes
Tiger Mountain Peasant Song- Fleet Foxes
Cape Canaveral- Conor Oberst
Shampoo- Elvis Perkins in Dearland
You and I- Ingrid Michaelson
Summer Skin- Death Cab for Cutie
Bottom of the Barrell- Amos Lee
Two of Us- The Beatles
The Moment I Said It- Imogen Heap
Ain't Gonna Lose You- Brett Dennen
Let It Be- The Beatles

To hear what I'm listening to and to see what I'm currently listening to, check out my

Thursday, January 28, 2010

JD Salinger


Rest in Peace, JD Salinger.
It is incredible how much you influenced my life.
I can safely say that you are the reason I became an English major, and your books will always hold a special place in my heart.
I am forever in gratitude to you for helping me discover my love of literature.
Thank you. You will not be forgotten.

"Certain things they should stay the way they are. You ought to be able to stick them in one of those big glass cases and just leave them alone. I know that's impossible, but it's too bad anyway."

My favorite quote ever, and it's from The Catcher in the Rye.

I Miss My Best Friend!


A couple of my friends and I have gotten into the habit of writing each other cheesy e-mails.
My bffaeae Melina decided to get in on the action, and I just got this wonderful message in my inbox!
She's starting a blog soon! So you'll get to enjoy her all the time, but here's the email:

Dear Jewel,

Hi julia, its me Melina, your best friend in the entire world, well at least I hope. I am currently listening to the song you sent me, and am trying to avoid looking out he window at the snow covering my car, its depressing. The days have been cold, the nights dark, and you are not here. Its a sad sad thing.
I can't wait to see you, so we can be best friends and make everyone jealous of how awesome we are, because lets face it, we are awesome. I do truly believe that sometimes. I hope we have cool lives where we live in an apt with a reading nook, and a little pupper puppy. I also want you to come on bike rides with me to get the groceries, and flowers for the week.
Ok listen I have to get ready to get the snow off my car, AWESOME.

I love you dearly.

Melina Frances


Anyway, that's a picture of her sitting on our friend Stephen. relatively standard.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Good Morning!


Good morning, friends!
I don't really have much of anything to say right now, but I wanted to check in and say something, because though I've been checking on your posts regularly, I've been so busy I've been at a loss of things to write about.
I just wanted to let you guys know all of my classes are great so far, but since I am taking a drawing class and a writing class and two other interesting classes, my brain is fried most of the time! But I am sure that I will get back in the groove soon. This is the first semester that I've truly fully enjoyed (as of now). I like all of my classes.

It's also gotten to the point where I am dying for some warm weather.
I just found out my parents rented a 3 bedroom apartment in Florence for a week in June, and I am so excited! When I see pictures I will be posting them to show you guys! I can't wait to go there and explore and eat and take pictures.
But for now, I'm in Boston, and it's January, and it's flipping freezing.
We'll get through.

Monday, January 25, 2010

Quote of the Week


The whole world, it loves you, if you're a chic chameleon.
Intersecting circles, she could hang with anyone.
But when conducting business, she would lie about where she's from
saying ,"Life is how it is, not how it was."

I learned to listen, felt like I was back at school.
She talked forever about the phases of the moon.
Saying, "Everything's a cycle, you gotta let it come to you.
And when it does, you will know what to do."

Bright Eyes Classic Cars

Sunday, January 24, 2010

RIP Lucy





I was just informed by the family I babysit for that their adorable chocolate lab, Lucy, had to be put to sleep recently. She had an aggressive form of doggie cancer :( One of my dogs had to be put to sleep for the same reason. Lucy was the sweetest dog, and she was very smart and loving. I am so sad that she is gone. She even let us dress her up in princess costumes. She will be very missed.

Such a cutie.

Friday, January 22, 2010

ROARRR!!!!!


ROARRRRR I HATE THE SNOW!
I'm ready for some sunshine, and to romp around in pretty dresses again.
Anyone with me?


Wednesday, January 20, 2010

My First Drawing Assignment

Our first assignment in drawing class was to draw 3 self-portraits on 3 different days.
We completed those and critiqued them in class.
The teacher taught us about proportion, line weight, etc.
Our next assigment (due tomorrow) was to do one more self portrait, taking into account everything we learned in class.
Heres the sequence:

First day, first time drawing in a long time

Started out awful, I actually cheated and went back and tweaked it the next day

Third drawing. This is my least favorite, and my teacher asked if I was high when I drew this because my pupils look so dilated.

This is the one I just drew, after the lesson. All in all, I think this one actually looks kind of like me, as opposed to just a cartoon of some girl with dark hair. I think this kind of makes me look like a man but... it resembles me. It kinda looks better in person too. But yeah, this one also has a facial expression of some kind, which is something I failed to capture in the last ones. All in all, I think I'm making progress!


This stuff is hard. Harder than I thought. I thought I was already good! HA! I was mostly delirious.

Cauliflower Gratin


So if you love cauliflower, and you love cheese, life doesn't get much better than this. It's essentailly steamed cauliflower that you cover in cheese sauce made of the following:
1/2 cup gruyere
some parm
2 cups milk
3 tablespoons flour
salt, pepper, nutmeg to taste

and then you bake 25-30 minutes.
bingo bango!

this is my dinner tonight, there's too many calories in this to really eat much more, or so i would suspect...
I added a lot more cheese than I was supposed to.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Quote of the Week


I like to see people reunited, I like to see people run to each other, I like the kissing and the crying, I like the impatience, the stories that the mouth can't tell fast enough, the ears that aren't big enough, the eyes that can't take in all of the change, I like the hugging, the bringing together, the end of missing someone.
Jonathan Safran Foer Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
(there will be a lot of these.)

(photo via tumblr.com)

Sunday, January 17, 2010

New Name


Just FYI, I have changed the url of this blog from juliadelbalzo.blogspot.com to borninthedoorway.blogspot.com

Sorry if this inconveniences any of you!

Love, Julia

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Homework Season


Well, the time has come yet again to start doing homework.
My schedule this semester is quite unique, so I expect to work hard but also have fun!
Here's what I am taking:

Women, Race, and Gender in the Media: The title is pretty self explanatory. It has a similar format to an English class but it seems much more casual in the whole atmosphere of discussion. The class is all women, so we can pretty much talk about whatever we want! In the first day, we already talked about waxing. There seems to be a hell of a lot of room for creativity in the assignments, which I'm pretty excited about.

The American Revolution and Its Afterlives: This is a senior seminar, and fulfilling my last English requirement. The material is not the most current or exciting, but my professor seems very clear on that and he has already shown us some very humorous, yet relevant contemporary connections to the material. All in all, I was a bit worried I wasn't going to like it, but it actually looks like its going to be a class I look forward to going to!

Introduction to Drawing: Another hilarious professor who said on the first day, "We aren't going to get stoned, look at naked people, and have a bunch of feelings." It seems like its going to be very rigorous- 6 hours a week of line drawing and at least 3 outside of class, but he guaranteed that we will all be better drawers once we leave. I'm excited to work hard on something that I find enjoyable.

Creative Writing: I haven't been in this class yet, but we already have an assignment to write a few poems for the first day of class. I really look forward to having a reason/opportunity to write creatively. I used to write things all the time, but then I ran out of time, since my classes have consistently demanded me to churn out paper after paper each semester of literary analysis. It fries the brain. I'm actually a little nervous, because I have been writing essays for so long I hope I can break out of that pattern to do something more interesting.


Anyway, you'll definitely hear more about this. And when I have some interesting drawings/ writing to show you I will post it and you can all witness my progress. However, if I keep sleeping in this late I'm never gonna do well! I don't EVER sleep till noon so I don't even know what to do with myself. Do I eat breakfast?

Friday, January 15, 2010

Delicious Creations

While I have the time before the craziness of the semester kicks in, I decided to go on a little trip to Whole Foods, and I came back with a hell of a lot of fruits and veggies.

For Christmas, my mom made me a really cute gift. It was a homemade cookbook of all of my mom's favorite recipes, as well as the really basic recipes for things that I often call her asking her how to do correctly. I decided to look through it today and try out a few of the recipes, here's what happened...

This dish is called ceviche. It's a South American dish that can be made in a variety of ways. My best friend's mom is from Ecuador and she makes the most AMAZING ceviche, which I try to replicate. My mom made her own version, inspired from Maria's ceviche and Ina Garten's. This is my first time making it myself, but I'd say it was a success! You can put whatever you want in it, but I chose to keep it simple for the first time and just stick with shrimp instead of fish or squid or anything else. Maria's secret ingredient is to add a couple tablespoons of Heinz ketchup! It sound's weird, but it totally makes a huge difference.

Here, we have the yummy guacamole. In my opinion, gaucamole simply isn't worth it unless it's fresh. And when it's fresh, it is my all time favorite food. This is also a recipe my mom gave me, but guacamole is truly something that needs to be tasted, tested, and tweaked in order to achieve perfection.

So. Good.
Both are served cold and eaten with an entire bag of tortilla chips.

Let me know if you want recipes!


Thursday, January 14, 2010

Grilled Cheese Boy

What a cute little grilled cheese boy!

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

It's Been Done


So, they're all in.
All 5 grad school applications.
And now all I can do is wait the 4-6 weeks for the results.
I'm so nervous! Wish me luck :)

I hope by the beginning of March I will be jumping for joy!

Monday, January 11, 2010

Quote of the Week


We laughed and laughed, together and separately, out loud and silently, we were determined to ignore whatever needed to be ignored, to build a new world from nothing if nothing in our world could be salvaged, it was one of the best days of my life, a day during which I lived my life and didn't think about my life at all.
Jonathan Safran Foer Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

(photo via tumblr.com)

Sunday, January 10, 2010

The Countdown...


Well, its almost time to go back to school for my LAST SEMESTER AT BU!
I can't even tell you how thrilled I am to finish my undergrad and move onto bigger and better things. Though I have learned so much from my experience there, it hasn't been the easiest time in my life. Good or bad, I've learned a lot, and at this point I think I've learned the bulk of what I am going to. I could be wrong. but, now that I am 100% sure of what I want to do after BU, I am just excited to get to it!

Yesterday, I went to an information session at Columbia University School of Social Work.
Going there, hearing about the program, asking questions... after it all I felt this overwhelming sense of relief. I thought to myself, "I am making the right decision."
Finally, some direction! Even if I don't get into Columbia, just knowing what path I want to pursue and being so positive about it... it feels amazing.

It's weird, on the inside I feel like I am done with undergrad. I keep forgetting that I have 16 more credits to fulfill before I can even be considered for grad school. So in the few days I have left before heading back to Boston, I have so much left to do:

1. Finish my applications. I have already submit my applications to NYU, Sarah Lawrence, and Fordham. I have to finish my Columbia application, which is a little more specialized, and also complete my application for CUNY Hunter.

2. Clean out my room. I am getting it repainted and refurnished for when I move back home. New start, new room, new productivity. Right now, as you've seen in previous posts, my room is a dark teal color. I am going to paint it a light yellow color.

3. Pack my things. I feel like this break went way too fast, so I am totally not in the mindset of gathering my belongings, saying my goodbyes, and driving back up to school. This break, this past semester, these past few years, they have really flown by.

I know that a lot of people say, "People never change."
Though people may never change, they certainly do learn, and I have learned so much. Mostly about myself and the world and how life really works. Though I haven't been completely thrilled with my experience at BU, I am afraid to think about what things I wouldn't have learned if I had chosen a different school, made different choices, etc. Weird to think about, isn't it?

(photo via tumblr.com)

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Vermont

I just spent the last 2 days in Killington, VT.
I only had one full day there, and I decided to spend it relaxing, napping, and playing in the snow with my friends.
The drive home today was gorgeous, but of course since I was driving I couldn't really get awesome pictures using my iPhone, but I'll show you some of the better ones, plus a couple others.
it was a lovely trip, but I'm looking forward to a good night's sleep tonight.


red wine and a fire.
friends by the fire
on the drive up, some guy had a bunch of these life-size cow statues attached to the back of his truck.
in the mountains!
apparently the highest elevation point- those are clouds, touching trees.

Monday, January 4, 2010

Quote of the Week


Load the car and write the note
grab your bag and grab your coat.
Tell the ones that need to know
we are headed North.

One foot in and one foot back
but it don't pay to live like that
so I cut the ties and I jumped the track
for never to return.

The Avett Brothers "I and Love and You."

(photo via tumblr.com)

Saturday, January 2, 2010

A Piece of Me in... January 2010

This will be short, because I'm not feeling too hot and I am deeply immersed in a book that I want to get back to reading. Isn't it weird how quickly the month of december went?

This month....
I like: that I have almost half the month off from school, and then I start what will hopefully be a fun semester.

I don't like: that it's going to be SO freaking COLD!! and that I am going to have to walk around in it on a daily basis.

I want you to know: that I'm ready to move on. Not from this blog, but a lot of other things.

I've planned: to finish my grad school apps, get better from this weird illness i have, and get my life back on track.

I want to say to someone special: Whoever you are, I can't wait to meet you, because I'm bored.

Friday, January 1, 2010

So This is the New Year...


So this is the new year,
and I don't feel any different.

For some reason, these lines from one of my favorite Death Cab for Cutie songs come to mind, as it has for the past few years.

But for once, I want it to feel different.
Yesterday morning, New Years Eve morning, I woke up with a terrible feeling in my stomach. Turns out I had some sort of bug. I also ended up not having any plans, so as a result I hid out in my room and fell asleep before the stroke of midnight.
Though it was a little depressing to be stuck in bed on New Years Eve, it occurred to me that this time last year, I probably would have forced myself to go out and do something, just for the sake of being able to say that I did.

So, through all the difficulties, loneliness, and stress of this year, I have learned that simply being comfortable enough to say, "You know what, I'm going to stay in. I don't feel good," is something good that came out of this year.

I went through a lot of experiences that forced me to grow up in 2009 (some bad- a nasty breakup, some good- six weeks on my own in London), and though I didn't end 2009 on the most positive of notes, I can definitely say that I truly feel things will only get better in 2010. After all, I've got goals, I've got personal strength, I've got some wonderful friends and family, and I've gotten through some trying times a little worse for wear, but I'm still pushing through. I've got perseverance, and as long as I've got that, I've got nothing to worry about. I'm so proud of myself for staying true to who I am through most of this year, especially recently.

I don't want to be naive and say that 2010 will be the best year of my life, because it might not be, and why pressure myself to end up disappointed at the end? Chances are, some really great things will happen, and some really hard things will happen. Either way, things will change, I will grow even more (hopefully just mentally and not physically!), and I will be in an entirely different place in my life by 12/31/10. So much can happen in a year, and it's always the things that you don't plan on happening to you that end up being the most influential. That is also something I've learned. For all challenges I've been through in 2009, many of them have been unanticipated. Little things turned out to be big things. People I thought would be there for me ended up letting me down, and people I thought I would lose touch with ended up becoming the dearest of friends. Funny how that goes.

This year, I think, will be a year of big changes.
I'm graduating from Boston University in May.
I'm moving back home.
I am (hopefully) going to make it into grad school for Social Work in the New York City area.
Then I will be moving into said city eventually.
I have one more semester to go, and then its time to start a whole new phase of my life that will be completely different.
And I am SO ready for a new scene.

Bring it on 2010!
(bedazzled oven mit?)

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