SIgur Ros, Tegan and Sara, and Okkervil River...OH MY!!-- or Year 27...

THE YEAR 27

My birthday was on September 18th, and I have wanted to blog about so much that comes with that...but as always I have avoided facing what I really want to say. Every year I dread my birthday, and not because I fear aging, but the time of year is so transitional... and with birthdays I am forced to reevaluate my year, myself, my future..."Virgo" nature I suppose...Perhaps because I am a product of the grunge era I feel '27' is a pivotal year...an "uh-oh, what am I doing with my life" kind of year...there is the realization that, "whoa, I am not a young 20-something anymore"...soon my quarter-life crisis will become my mid-life crisis will become my life..there have been a lot of epiphanies, some sickness, some heartache, some stress, and some amazing little glimpses of beauty in the past few weeks...and I am determined to focus only on the beauty...LIKE:

HOW MY FRIENDS ROCK:

Cyndy made me this awesome eye pillow and organic (yummy smelling) soap. It's hard to see, but the soap has an owl on it!!

Cristyn bought my this gorgeous bag with Matryoshka dolls!! Love how LeSportsac has become so cute!!

My official birthday present from Angelo:

SIGUR ROS at United Palace Theater

We had about five alarms set to get these tickets!! They were as magical as I had hoped. A few tears shed..yep...THAT GOOD!! The lighting and backdrops were works of art as well!! I was lucky enough that this show was on my exact day of birth!! Even cuter that day was that two of my students wished me a happy birthday over the loud speaker during the morning announcements! Again, there were plenty of things I could gripe about from the day, but my new saying is "I could complain but I don't." Haha.

THEN, to add to what my cute brother Chris calls: "Jenn and Chris's Infinite Playlist, we went to see TEGAN AND SARA at Terminal 5 for the second time this year!! Once for his birthday and once for mine!! They were as cute as always and played everything I could ask for!! AND, the two of them are Virgos too!!!

AND THEN: as a present from Adam, we went to go see OKKERVIL RIVER at Webster Hall. They were exactly what I hoped for and played "For Real" off of BLACK SHEEP BOY!! Yay! The band is really just the Will Scheff show, but they were still great. I am so lucky!! 

So, until my next post about art inspiration/experiences, and THE YEAR LIST...Here are a few more reasons I am happy despite some lemons in life:

THIS awesome TV tray I inadvertently bough on EBAY!! It makes me smile!!

This little cute thing who likes to hang out in the bushes next to our sunporch and flirt with Jasper. She/he is so beautiful!!

...and this moment that shocked my soul the other day...just when I am contemplating leaving my career, this happens:

As journaled right after the moment...

Today (10/3) , Cynthia Liu, who I had as a student for her Freshmen and Sophomore year saw me and said, "Ms. Hermus, I wanted to say something to you." And then I smirked, wondering what silliness this sweet thing who loves to squeeze me and generally "annoy" mehad to say, but she paused and said, "Thank you." I asked, "Thank you for what?" She sheepishly responded, "For being my teacher." I smiled and laughed, not sure how to take her words. I asked her what brought this on and she told me that she was in Costco with her mother and her mother is kind of "crazy" (in her words! I told her I have a mother like that too!) She continued to tell me that her mother got into a fight with a kid who had been staring at her. Cynthia revealed that as her mother was yelling, "What are you looking at?", she asked herself where she got her own morals from. In her typical Cynthia stammering she came and said, "Well, I started to think and I asked myself, where did I get morals from, and then I realized it was from Ms. Hermus. It was from you. So thank you." If I wasn't super sick right now and generally in shock I would have squeezed her and spun her around. What a beautiful thing to hear and carry with me on this arduous road!!

So, to the unexpected beauty in the world and little treasures that keep you trucking through the hard times...lots of love...

AND, to other Virgos who rock:

Ani DiFranco
Fiona Apple
Tegan and Sara
Rachel Ludwig
Nubby Twiglet
Gala Darling
Heather Bailey

and a friend, fellow Islander, and so far only male to make this list:

Izzi Ramkissoon

I don't know why, but this list gives me a sense of validation...perhaps I will add to it...YAY, lists....