the final installment of the harry potter series came out this weekend, and i have to say i was more than impressed with the visual effects, acting and adherence to the books. no matter how old i get, i still love these stories. the growth of the characters from young kids into adults and the mischief, love and joy they all share makes you fall head over heels for them. to think that jk rowling came up with this whole tale is absolutely brilliant. makes you wonder what you can imagine if you let yourself.

anyway.. i would strongly recommend the second movie. bring your tissues... and a snack.

so i have this friend, and he is on this amazing adventure in south america.. i could not be more jealous.. or happier for him! sometimes i think it takes going to a whole new place to realize how many wonderful amazing people there are in the world. when you've been hurt, let down and heartbroken, it's important to remember that there are people out there in the whole wide world that want to see you smile. its even better when these people are strangers.

when one door closes, another opens. or so they say. whoever they are. i always try to remember to look for that new open door. often it doesnt look exactly like you would expect it to look. the door might be hidden behind lots of old fears. it might not even look like a door. like for my friend, it looked like a three month trip to the amazon. a trip where he can find that the wonders of the world are the people, love and kindness, and lots and lots of tasty beer.

good luck on your adventure, my old friend. look for all of the doors you can find.

sometimes life should be a fairy tale

to be happy on a rainy friday is no small feat. to be happy on any day, as a matter of fact, is quite an accomplishment. far too often we forget what it is to relish in the moments of happiness and think to ourselves 'well, isn't this lovely.' how easily we forget that there are small bits of happiness all around us all of the time.

like me, for example, this morning i woke up next to someone i am head over heels in love with. he was just there, sleeping beside me. how wonderful is that? he wasn't anywhere else in the world, he could have been someplace far away, but there he was, right next to me. and this man, well, he's amazing. and then, he hugged me. well, hugs are great gifts. hugs are warm and cozy, they save you from the outside world and shelter you, just for a moment in a tiny happy place where nothing can go wrong.

so today, i am happy that i got a hug. there should be more hugs. lots more hugs.

this blog is a mid summer gift to myself. i feel as though i am reaching a point where i can write down my thoughts and hopefully they will be of some help to others. if not... well than at least i am writing them down.

today i bought a mug with a smiling cupcake on it. this made me happy. today was not the best of days and this cupcake mug made me smile. i have decided that some people consider only their own feelings when acting. they don't realize, or don't care, how they are affecting the world around them. these people make me sad. they are not the sort of people who buy smiling cupcake mugs. i feel sorry for these people, the people without the smiling cupcake mugs. if they had a smiling cupcake mug, maybe they would be kinder. maybe not.

today i read a quote by kurt vonnegut that i think is one of the most insightful things i have ever read. the quote is from an excellent book called 'god bless you mr rosewater' and it ends by saying 'there's only one rule that i know of - goddamn it, you've got be to kind.' kindness is underrated, in my opinion. today i am going to be kind to everyone i encounter. i'm going to smile at a stranger and hope it makes them happy. today i am going to try to muster all of the kindness i can from my insides. today i hope i meet someone kind.

if not, i hope i meet them tomorrow. because there is always tomorrow. even if one day i am not here to see it, there will always be tomorrow. and i hope there are kind people tomorrow.