I'd rather be in Paris

In case you didn't see the news, or notice 99 percent of Facebook statuses saying things like "Snowmygosh!" or "no school AGAIN!", or if you've just been living in a cave, the Northeast got slammed with another huge snow storm last night.  And, this storm brought about a new experience for me- Thunder Snow!  I didn't even know that was possible, but there it was; lightning, thunder, rain and snow, all intermingling outside my apartment window.   I have to say, it was really quite a beautiful sight at first.  Once the rain stopped, and the heavy snow set in, the city was under a thick blanket of white, everything was quiet, and those who were out walking were taking pictures, throwing snowballs and laughing.  This morning, I helped (watched) my friend dig her car out, and two very sweet young men came armed with shovels and did in 5 minutes what would have taken us ages.  And, they did not solicit payment.  They simply said "pass it on, pass it on".  Oh, the world just felt so full of joy and happiness!  I would have skipped to work if it was not dangerous and I was not wearing my Yaktracks!  

And then an hour later the sun came out, and started melting and ruining everything.  Some estimates said we got 17 inches, which in a city with cobblestone streets and trolley lines spells out MESS. So the streets are now filled with slush, and people are honking and driving too fast, their wheels spinning up huge splashes of dirty brown sludge water on to pedestrians.  At lunch, I stepped in puddles, I slipped on ice, I had a chunk of snow fall on my head off of a dripping rooftop.  It's not pretty anymore and I do not want more snow!  

So, rather than complaining and dreading the walk home, what better way to cheer myself up than to look at some beautiful color theme shots of Paris from Little Brown Pen?

nothing here has any reason

They say journals are good for the soul.  Keeping track of ideas, emotions, events and thoughts about life has overwhelming benefits; it can help one process big questions, reduce stress, stimulate personal growth, bring world peace... yada yada yada.


Those things sound great, but truth be told, I am a complete failure when it comes to the good ol' pen to paper journaling. I have tried time and time again to start (and restart... and restart...) journals.  I've tried to carry notebooks around with me so I can write down that brilliant (wtf was I thinking when I wrote that down?) thought! That inspiring song lyric! That article title I have been meaning to read! But what I end up with is a notebook filled with things like "look up skim milk" or "mail order vs. virtual" or "!!! SO GOOD!!! NYT aeghahdfsh" (that is when I spill coffee on the page and it smudges and the article is lost forever...).  It becomes a mix of personal thoughts, class notes, phone numbers, you name it.  Not to mention I have terrible writing and sometimes simply just cannot read what I wrote.  I have even started the oh-so-cliché New Year's Resolution Journal (which lasted well into the first week of the New Year, thank you).  Despite knowing all the benefits a journal may bring, I just cannot seem to stick to it.  So with many failed attempts behind me, it seems only logical to start an online place for me to dump my thoughts (I can't spill coffee on the internet, so that is a plus).  

There's no "theme" here, just whatever the hell I feel like writing about, sharing, or  throwing out into the world wide web.  In the words of the Jean-Paul Sartre: "I shall write tomor­row of Paris. But why? For no rea­son, because it amuses me. And noth­ing here has any rea­son; it’s all a game".  

Thanks JP, for the title of my new blog.