http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zD7Ad4VU6Dg

Marching Band <3

A Realization

You know those times in life where you just... realize something important? I am starting to open my eyes to what really is important in life. The other day, I felt as though my fate was staring at me right in the face, and I didn't want it there. I wanted it to fade away, but it had been for too long and I knew that I needed to deal with it. Life is full of choices, and it is hard to realize that one little choice really can affect the rest of your life. I narrowed my path the other day. I know what I needed to do, and although it was hard, I know it was worth it in the end.

I needed to realize that everything that can ruin my life, or doesn't fit into what my ultimate goals are, then it needs to be eliminated. All those bad habits, friendships and choices need to be weeded out. Although we may like those things, it is won't lead to where you thought your life was headed.

On top of all these thoughts, I watched a movie called "Pay It Forward" which is about a kid who had a goal to change the world by helping 3 other people. And by helping those other people, he expected them to "pay it forward" and help 3 more people. I think it is so important to live your life for the good and not to be selfish and waste your life on yourself. I want to be like this child, who had the love in his heart to sacrifice his life for his friend. I do not wish to die, but I do wish to help others with the same love in my heart. So, I challenge everyone to do something good for other people. Hoping that maybe we too, can change people's lives.

Here I Am!

Home sweet home. (sorry the mountain has snow on it. I'll get a better picture later!)

Rockets, Trumpets, and Famous Composers

Hey everyone! I hope everyone is having a wonderful summer. Things are going pretty great here. I miss NJ more than anything right now. Well, not the state, but my friends and all the wonderful things we did together. I definitely miss band. I wish I could be right there with you.

I have been very busy here, which is why many of you have not heard from me. That and there is absolutely no

cell service here whatsoever. This past week, I have been aiding a man named Paul lead a group of 15 10-year-olds build rockets. 10-year-olds and rockets are VERY hard to handle, but we did alright. Today was launch day and the kids

had a great time. No one had a faulty take-off, and all of the rockets survived their landing. Most importantly no one got hurt. It was a miracle. And on such a lovely day too. I hope those kids are proud of themselves. It was a lot of work making those things. I have also been helping out with the drama class. Tomorrow, the class is presenting the Bible story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Very exciting if you ask me. I am going to use the trumpet that Mom is borrowing to teach trumpet lessons to announce the arrival of King Nebudchanezzar.

Mom and I have been honored to volunteer at the MacDowell Colony in Peterborough. I am so excited. This is wear Leonard Bernstein and Aaron Copland have gone to compose. It is where "Porgy and Bess," "The Lovely Bones," and "Our Town" was written. And that is only to name a few. We are hanging up posters for "Medal Day." Medal Day is a day to award a certain artist or writer with a special award. This year, the man receiving the award is Edward Albee, who wrote "Who Is Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" And we get to be there for the ceremony =) I am so glad to be a volunteer at a place as cool as this =) It will be a lot of fun =) Well, I suppose that's all for now!

Boston Adventure!

My dad said that he had some business to do in Boston and asked if I wanted to tag along. Up for a crazy adventure, I said YESSSS! The reason he had to go was because he needed to sign a Haitian vehicle over to this guy named Franceli (who is in Haiti.) My dad talked to a “man” on the phone who said that all he had to do was come in, and sign this document at the Consulat d’Haiti.

After about 3 hours in the car (thanks to traffic; my dad INSISTED on driving into the city… bad idea) we got to Boston. It took a while to find a parking spot. But once we did, we see that it is a parking meter, which is always how you pay to park. We look at each other, “did you bring change?” “No, did you?” … “no.” So we scrounge around in the car and dig up three quarters. “That ought to be enough” …or so we thought.

We walk about 6 blocks to the Haitian Consulate. We made it in perfect timing because it was just starting to drizzle out. We go up the elevator to the second door and walk into the office, which is about the size of two practice rooms. Turns out the “man” was actually a woman who had like a baritone voice. WHOOPS! Anywho, Dad walks into the office ready to sign a paper and be done with it. Of course, that would have been too easy. “Oh you can’t do this, you need a seal from the state office.” The lady said that we had to go to the State House to get that done. Well, after all the arguing and attempting to comprehend what the other person was saying, we walked back to the car so that we could drive to the state house. We barely had enough time from the meter. We walked fairly quickly also because it was lightly showering.

Using Bwadley, the 5 yea owd voice on the gps, we negotiated the streets of Boston. We found the state house and when we got there we asked a guy where a parking garage was. (yelling) “YOU TAKE A WRIIITE AND A WRIIITEE AND THAT’S PUBLIC PAAKKING” okeedokee. So, we took a right and a right and made it to the parking garage. Once out of the parking garage, we had to find our way to the building again. We were walking along the street, and a guy in a little hut pointed us where we needed to go. I couldn’t figure out what his job was, it was fully stocked with computer equipment and a desk, but on the outside it looked like wooden kids’ playhouse. We followed his instructions, and walked up the hill to the building. I thought it had stopped raining when we got out of the car, so I only brought one umbrella. I was wrong. We walked up the main steps and as soon as we got in there I felt as if I was in an airport. We passed through many security checks and made it through drenched.

We were to go to the 17^th floor, and to so and so’s office. We got into the elevator, and as the doors closed, we realized that there were only 12 floors… Apparently, we were supposed to take a different set of elevators to get to the really high floors, because it would be too easy to have one set of elevators. So we got off at the 12 floor and found the other set of elevators. We get to the 17^th floor and go all the way down a REALLY long hallway to see a lady with a really interesting perm.

“Hello, may we please get a seal for this document?” (and when I say document I really mean a little thing about the size of a large index card) The lady takes it, looks at it, looks at us and says no. “This is registered from New Hampshire. You need a notary so that it can have a seal from the State of Massachusetts” Because, it would be much too easy to have it just get sealed. I ask, “So where can we get a notary?” My dad looks at me funny and tells me, “oh, well I am sure that they do that right in the building” Because, after all it is a government building. “Oh you can’t get a notary here! You have to go to the courthouse to do that.” And she said that you can take a right after a couple blocks, then another right.

SO THEN, we take a right and a right and get to the courthouse. Before walking through more security, Dad was smart in thinking that we should ask the guard if they even do notaries in the building. This really large black guy leaps out of his chair and walks outside, and motions us to join him. “No, we don’t do notaries, but there is another courthouse that might. See that bent parking sign? Take a right, head down those stairs and make another right? Okay?! Good luck folks!” It would be too easy to have notaries at the closest courthouse. He walked back into the building. By now it is POURING rain and we have this one tiinyyy tinyyy umbrella that is covering both Dad and I and the bricks are suuper slippery and we slipped a few times haha.

We get to the next courthouse and walk in. There is yet another large black man at a security post. Following the example Dad set earlier, I asked if there were notaries in the building. “No.” Because that would be too easy. He pointed us right and right to get to the Bank of America. We walk in, and asked Michael, “Do you have notaries here? We have been everywhere, in the pouring rain and…” “Yes, of course we do notaries!” Good ol’ Michael took the document, notarized us and gave us directions to get back to the state house. Apparently we walked about a mile and a half away! So, back to the state house we went. Through security again, and up to the twelfth floor, then the seventeenth floor down to the end of the hall and back to the lady with the interesting perm. We showed her the notary and she told us, oh you need to pay for the seal first… which was ALL the way at the end of this really long hallway. I was pooped and sat down while I made him go do that cause I am lazy lol.

He came back got the seal and it was time to go back to the Consulat d’Haiti. Of course, Dad didn’t want to go get the car because there weren’t any parking spaces by the consulate and besides, we had no quarters! He thought it was close by… =P It was NOT close by… We walked over two miles through Boston in the pouring rain in nice clothes. But, it was fun =) We got back and of course, the lady we had to meet with was on her lunch break =P Because it would be too easy if she weren’t. Once she came back, Dad went into her office and I stayed out in a chair to wait. While I was waiting, a Haitian man came in and sat down next to me. So, friendly little me decided to be friendly. I said hello, and asked if it was still raining. He said yes, a couple other things in English and then I couldn’t understand a single word he was saying. I think that he was trying to speak English, but it came out in Creole or maybe even French, I have no idea. He was going on and on, probably telling me a story. I just nodded my head and listened politely. Then he asked me a question, which I didn’t have a clue on how to answer. So I said yupp, my Dad and I just walked about 5 or 6 miles through Boston in the rain. And he sat there with a puzzled look on his face and thank goodness my Dad came out and it was time to go, the papers were signed! This little tiny sheet of paper had about 6 like indented seal type thingies, one being the notary and the seal, 2 stickery things, and about 5 signatures. We walked away praying that the other half of the vehicle transferring in Haiti works.

We walk out of the building, I have blisters on my feet from my wet converse rubbing on the back of my heels, it is still down pouring and the car was 2 miles away. Since the camp was paying for our trip, I begged Dad to let us take a taxi. AND WE DID! It was my first taxi experience. It was really entertaining. This man was Slovakian, he is from the err Soviet Union, you know you know err Russia. He was telling us “Me? I no have rrregular job. My seester, my wife, my brrother. They all have rrregular job. Me, no have rrregular job.” Then he showed us where John Kerry lives lol. It was hysterical, you would have loved him =) He dropped us off at the parking garage and we went home and I went to bed. Then a couple days later, I wrote you a letter!