"Never wear your destiny outside your smile..."

There are so many things that I have learned over the last four years that no institution taught me.

People are an invaluable resource, and we rarely take the time out to express how much we care. It's not that we are being selfish or don't appreciate the people who get us through each day. We have just become too busy to share these feelings on a regular basis.

I'm very fortunate to have people in my life from various stages of my development. There are people I talk to who I have known for anywhere from a few months to nearly 22 years. And regardless of how long I have known each person, they are all precious to me in their own ways.

I've been thinking about this a great deal lately, and wanted to share my appreciation with the blogging community. My family is going through some tough times right now with health concerns and other issues. Without the network of people I have the extreme pleasure to be a part of, I could never make it through.

Take some time today, and everyday, to share your feelings with people who matter to you. If not for these wonderful beings, we couldn't achieve our potential and would never be in control of our own destiny.


*blog title taken from Des'ree's "Strong Enough"*

"Cuz I feel so mad, I feel so angry..."

I just returned from a performance of Twelve Angry Men at the Shubert Theater in New Haven. WOW.

I've loved this drama for years. Theater is something that I have enjoyed for as long as I can remember. When I was in high school my English class acted out "Twelve Angry Men" rather than just reading it (I was Juror Five most of the time, but I believe I was fortunate enough to spend a day or two as Eight).

I've seen (and loved) the 1957 movie version of the play, and it has always held a special place in my heart. Today, seeing it on stage for the first time, I love it even more.

These actors are brilliant, led of course by Richard Thomas and George Wendt. Randle Mell was brilliant as Juror Three, and all of the other actors are to be commended. They found a way to make me laugh, feel compassion, grow angry and be genuinely moved in less than two hours, something that most films cannot do.

I think the entire audience was moved by this compelling drama which deals with the nature of racism and justice in modern times. Even though it was set in 1954, the same ethics and principles hold true today - if we can erase prejudice from our hearts, we can seek truth from the world.

Bravo!


*Blog title taken from Boxcar Racer's "I Feel So"*

"I'm holding out for a hero..."

I saw my friend Ray today for the first time in 10 months.

No, I'm not just a terrible friend who neglected him for almost a year. Ray (or should I say, Lance Corporal Raymond Mattson) is a proud member of the U.S. Marine Corps, and has been stationed in Okinawa, Japan. I last saw him in November '05, and have been corresponding with him via telephone, AIM and MySpace while he is away.

Ray and I met my junior year of high school. I was a teacher's aide in his Spanish class, and then student director of a musical which he landed a leading role. We grew close, and have been close ever since.

I'll be the first to admit that I didn't want Ray to join the Corps. I was worried that he would be sent to war (which he still may) and get hurt - or worse. I hated the thought of him being so far away, and didn't want to have to figure out the 13-hour time difference every time I wanted to call him. Selfish? Yes, but I'm sure you can sympathize.

I'll also say that I have strong opinions about the ongoing war and political policies currently in place. I won't share these, however, for the sake of my journalistic integrity and for Ray, but they are still in my heart.

With all of the aforementioned info, you can imagine how excited I was to see him today, if only for three hours. I drove to NYC last night after work and had to return to CT today for a night shift at the Register, but the journey was well worth it.

Even though I didn't want him to be a Marine, I'm still so proud of Ray and all that he has accomplished. I can see a definite change in him, but deep down he's still the guy I know and love.

So to Ray, and all of the other men and women who are serving this great country of ours, I say a profound and heartfelt, "Thank you." Every citizen owes you all a debt of gratitude, and I will gladly be among the first to pay mine.


--title taken from the lyrics to Bonnie Tyler's "Holding Out for a Hero"--

The day the towers fell...

I was in third period PreCalculus at my high school in Queens, New York. From our classroom windows we could see the Manhattan skyline, but us "city kids" took this for granted. We never even gave it a second glance on a normal day. But this was no ordinary day.

The dean of students came into our classroom without knocking, interrupting our lecture. She whispered something into the teacher's ear that caused her to run out of the room. That's when the dean told us.

The second plane was about to hit as she said the World Trade Center was under attack. She didn't know much more at that point but urged us to remain calm.

An announcement was made that we would still switch classes until further notice to try and maintain some sense of normalcy.

Televisions were on in every classroom that was so equipped, and radios and TVs were brought into the cafeteria. Role boundaries were broken as teachers and students comforted each other. Nothing we learned that day came from textbooks.

The glorious NYC skyline was quickly being replaced by a dark cloud. In Government class, the teacher said she needed some air. She went out onto the roof only to rush in a few minutes later - she watched the second tower fall.

A heavy cloud spread out over the city that day, and didn't leave for a long time. Smoke billowed from where the towers once stood...I saw this as I went home for weeks and months after.

That day and the days that followed were dark days in New York City and around the globe. Many students at my school were directly affected by the tragedy. My eyes were opened that Tuesday, and I hope they never close again.

On this fifth anniversary of one of our nation's starkest tragedies, tell people that you care, take nothing for granted and, above all, make your life an example of what could be if we could all just open our hearts to the idea of peace.

"All we are saying is give peace a chance." (Lennon/Ono)

Could someone please pass the Korn?

Remember that Family Values Tour show I had mentioned a few entries ago? 'Kay, now remember the insane wind and rain that the area saw this past Saturday? Yea... that was the day of the show. The outdoor show on Jones Beach on the Long Island Sound. See where I'm going with this?

All of the images in this blog are courtesy the cell phone cam of Jesse Elgarten, the valiant man who helped both another femme and myself endure high winds, crazy rain and a three-hour rain delay (he was also fabulous as a chauffeur -- you rock!). Above, you see the Long Island Sound raging over the side of the venue. The top section of the Nikon at Jones Beach Theater - where we were supposed to be sitting - was closed due to dangerously high winds after four bands played.

This is the other side of the venue as the water continued to rise. Delays between bands increased and we knew that something was going on. A major powwow of roadies, stage hands and assorted other rock tour folk gathered on the stage. The equipment was getting soaked even with the plastic coverings that had been brought on stage, and the waves were crashing precariously close to the mixers.

Here you see the entire front section of the venue... flooded. The water rose to the height of chair seats, and that section was closed off as well. At 4:30 p.m., they announced a three-hour rain delay. When we returned at 7:30, the show was cancelled.

Hopefully they will reschedule. We did, however, get to see Bullets and Octane, Deadsy and 10 Years (Bury your Dead came on before we arrived). The three bands I saw totally rocked, and even with the insane weather, I had an awesome time.

Now I'll just hope that Korn, Deftones and Stone Sour reschedule something cool (I'd love to see more of the other bands on the tour, too, but I can only hope so big). Craziness!

In response to my last comment...

Thank you for your comment, whoever you may be. I wanted to say that I would love for the blogs to become the new forum for our readers, as TownTalk once was. The variety of topics discussed under our blogs offer you, the readers, a chance to engage in discussions with both the bloggers as well as each other. And if we aren't talking about something that you want to discuss, then let us know. We'd love reader input and encourage you to share your thoughts with us.

Please do comment and send messages to the bloggers. We would be more than happy to chat!

I look forward to respnding to you soon!


Also, please check out NHRegister.com for a call out for submissions from you, the readers, to be a part of our "Remembering 9/11" section. I hope that you will take part in this interactive memorial that we will launch starting sometime next week.