Day 367 - June 18th 2011 :)

One year ago I started a blog. A blog that would comprise of me writing EVERYDAY for a year. A blog that would be the most consistent attempt at following through with a task that I have ever done in my life. A blog that make me become courageous yet vulnerable. I started this whole idea but I turned 19 and I was little angry at the condition of my life. I got out of a very emotionally draining break up and I just needed to find myself. I needed to reanalyze who I was and I wanted to do something special with the last year of my teenage years.

I can honestly tell you that this whole project has been one of the most fulfilling things I have ever done. In no way was my intention for this blog to be a vessel for my own self-gratification. The more I shared with you guys, the more I felt I shared with myself. It was like meeting a whole new side of me that I have yet to tap.

I know that although this is the end of this project, this is the beginning of another, probably the most important project, my adult life. I love blogging. I don't think I could live without it. I have started my music blog (scratchandmix.tumblr.com) so you can find me there. However, I think I rest my mind for once knowing that I'm not confined to a time limit. In a way, I earned my freedom to blog.

Lastly, I want to leave you with a quote. This blog has been very sentimental to me and my "journey" of life. And it is very fitting that I found this quote because it talks exactly of the journey, otherwise known as the "Physics of the Quest."

"In the end, I've come to believe in something I call "The Physics of the Quest." A force in nature governed by laws as real as the laws of gravity. The rule of Quest Physics goes something like this: If you're brave enough to leave behind everything familiar and comforting, which can be anything from your house to bitter, old resentments, and set out on a truth-seeking journey, either externally or internally, and if you are truly willing to regard everything that happens to you on that journey as a clue and if you accept everyone you meet along the way as a teacher and if you are prepared, most of all, to face and forgive some very difficult realities about yourself, then the truth will not be withheld from you" -Liz Gilbert, Eat. Pray. Love.

I know that this only the beginning but probably the most influential steps I ever took on my quest. Thanks for being a part of it.

Day 366 - 6/17/11

Well, I guess this is it, huh? On the eve of my 20th birthday with 30 minutes to go. I guess I feel the anxiety that any child would have on Christmas Eve if that is fair to compare my birthday to Christmas. I am excited but I'm nervous. I spent the WHOLE year blogging about my life day after day and it comes down to tomorrow. As I was running all over the place at work tonight, this idea of everything in the end being a blur struck me. I waited 11 tables tonight. The most at once time would be 4 tables. Part of me doesn't understand how I judged it all. It just seems like a blur to me. And in a way, the point I'm trying to get to is that this year just felt like a blur. I don't intend for that to be a disheartening or sad statement. At the very least, it could had been the best thing I ever learned. Let's think about it... I spent the whole year attempting to track my life. To track the finale of my teenage years. And what it all boils down to is that even if you physically attempt to record you actions or your thoughts, life still happens way too fast. There are certain memories about this year I will remember forever, like going to Vegas or all my adventures at LSU, but for every moment I remember there are probably 100s more I forgot. If I think about on a spiritual level, this idea of remembrance and non-remembrance lies upon the fact that I am no God. It is not my right to know everything. I can't. I can't be bigger than the biggest. I just have to be the biggest me I can be.

Also, I had this interesting thought I want to elaborate on because I feel it is fitting as the clock continues to tick away. I once heard somewhere that as humans we like to think of ourselves as diamonds. With age, pressure, and stress, we become more refined and sharpened. However, although I wish it was that way, I feel like it is in reverse. I feel as children we are as pure and beautiful as diamonds can be. It is with age and experience that roughens out edges. It's the pains and the struggles that are inevitable in our lives that hardens us. And you know what? The real tragedy of life is that we get older and become roughed up. That is just how life is. But I certainly know that there are people who have grasped as long as they could to that sense of purity and lived long and happy lives. What I'm trying to say is, I really don't want to harden up too fast. I can say that even though I will be 20 tomorrow, I don't feel 20. I'm not sure how to feel 20. Or if there's a way to feel 20. All I know is that I desperately want to enjoy the life I have. There is no better place to live that in present because there is no other place you can physically, mentally, and spiritually be.

This blog is a testament to that.

Lastly, I know I have said this countless of times before but I truly mean it. I really want to thank the readers so much for joining me on this journey. I wish I could had gotten to identify each of you individually but the anonymity of you guys is so humbling to me. I don't need pages of comments and publicity to know that there are people who are interested in not only this blog, but me. And that is all I can ever ask for. Thanks.

Day 365 - 6/16/11

Buying the new Owl City album and having two full trays of cookies to eat makes for a good day. I'm getting ever so closer to end.

Day 364 - 6/15/11

I have been trying all year to get a decent picture of the moon and I guess this is the best I can do. I got a whole of my mom's digital rebel camera and took a shot at it. As I look back on all the pictures I took, I feel that although they were the most photographically beautiful, they were decent. Remember that most of my photos came from a simple point and shoot. I did that on purpose. This year wasn't about the photos. They were merely a placeholder for the memories and events that I went through. I hope you found my photos to be interesting regardless.

Day 363 - 6/14/11

It's time for me to talk about soccer one last time! Tonight, I got home from work early to catch the second of the USA/Guadeloupe match and I was very pleased with the turn out. The US is currently playing in the CONCACAF Gold Cup. It is a international tournament of the Americas, north and south. Which brings me to one of birthday wishes. The next game is on Sunday, the day after my birthday, and I would love a late birthday present in the form of watching the US beat Jamaica and advancing to win the tournament. The winner gets a bid for the Confederations Cup which the winner gets a FIFA World Cup bid. Confusing? Maybe, but all you need to know is that if we win, we win. Come on Team USA.

Day 362 - 6/13/11

I keep inching closer to the end. This is the beautiful Kincaid Lake. This is where Tunk's is located. I drive everyday to work in hopes of make good tips. Some days it has been good, other days it has been bad. Regardless, it is such a lovely view. Today was a decent day for Monday. I made about 50 bucks in tips on the slowest day of the week so I can't complain too bad.

As this blog winds to an end, I have started the transition to my next project. My new blog will be on tumblr and it will be a music blog. Here is a sneak peek. Enjoy.

Day 361 - 6/12/11

This is the last week. Wow. I seriously can't believe it. Blogging has become such a involuntary habit for me this past year. It feels like blinking to me. There have been nights that I would try to fall asleep but it just wouldn't feel right before I feel I forgot to do something. I am going to try to finish out this last week strong and get some quality content on here.

Tonight, I got together with two good friends of mine and finally watched the Hangover 2. Yeah I know I'm about 3 weeks late seeing this movie but with work and people being out of town everyone finally got on the same page to watch it. My impression of the movie? Utterly ridiculous. The first Hangover left me speechless because it was just crazy and reckless fun. This new movie has left me mentally scarred. They seriously went over and beyond the top. I found the cultural aspect of Thailand to be an interesting dimension. And the closing credit photos may leave you speechless and scarred. I hope you aren't squeamish. The movie definitely lived up its hilarious predecessor.

Finally, I have been thinking a lot about my next venture in the blogosphere after I finish this. After some consideration, I have decided that I want to start a music blog. I want to share music with the readers. Not necessarily music that I have created but music that I really enjoy. There are a lot of interesting people making music in this world and I want to find it. I want to know what inspired the song. I want to know about the artist. It is my thirst for knowledge about the origins of what I listen that I feel this new blog of mine will potentially quench. I am currently in the process of constructing the layout and thinking of a blog title. Most likely, I will unveil my next project after I finish this blog so I will keep you updated.