Back on the 23rd, Heather posted about having a life list... It inspired me to create one of my own, and though I haven't yet added 43 things to my list, I have reached the halfway mark with 21... And since this is a list to build on, to grow from, and create one's own reality with, I think half a list is a good start... As Heather noted in her blog, these aren't resolutions - they are what I want to see and create in my own life... These are the things that are important to me... If you want to try this too, go to 43 Things and begin your own list...
My Life List
1. take the next step in my relationship with my Beloved
2. learn to let go of the things that hurt and embrace fully the things that bring joy
3. devote myself to more of my solo music projects
4. be a better writer - both blogging and my private journalling
5. take a long distance cycling trip
6. go home to Romania one last time
7. be a better foster mom
8. have a child of my own
9. get together a 10 year financial plan
10. learn to live like today is the only day we have
11. weave more enchantments for *myself*
12. run a marathon for charity
13. record a solo album (even if I don't sell a single copy)
14. laugh at least once a day
15. teach my Beloved to dance (even if it's only slow dances)
16. learn more Mexican Spanish
17. get a kanji tattoo
18. complete my thesis and get my masters
19. hone my archery skills
20. go back to Japan - with my Beloved this time
21. Work on the band's dynamic
In spite of my absences from this blog, my friends here are never far from my thoughts... So whether you've given up on reading me (because my updates have been so damned infrequent) or you still linger to hear whatever I might say when I happen to wander by... You're all in my thoughts this holiday...
I wish you Happiness, the freedom to pursue it and the success of achieving it... I wish you Joy, the simple pleasures and the complex ecstacy... I wish you Peace, in your lives and in the world around you... I wish you Fulfillment, of your dreams and in your soul... But most of all, I wish you Love - love of family, love of friends, love with your lovers, and the love of strangers, too... Of all the gifts I could offer, these wishes for you are the best I know...
May you never know sadness, and if you must, may it quickly pass... May you always have Magic, because life is nothing without enchantment... and may you and yours have a *very* happy holiday season...
My love to you all...
Angelia Rian
I love you... With all of me...
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Make a Smilebox greeting |
My friend, bandmate, and brother, Denver Patrick O'Reilly passed away on Friday at 11:42pm... His funeral is in 40 minutes, and I'm still not ready to say goodbye... Perhaps I never will be... His passing has left a broken, empty space in my heart... And part of the music has died...
But there is still my Beloved, who held me upright this morning, and who will again tonight... And though he never got to know Denny well, I think he grieves his passing too... For what might have been, and now never can be... And for the pain he feels when my heart feels it...
The Smilebox (ironic name) above is for Denny... And the song below for my Beloved... The song fits what he speaks to me, the words he speaks that comfort me...
Breath In Breath Out by Mat Kearney
Breath in, breathe out
Tell me all of your doubt
If everybody bleeds this way - just the same
Breath in, breathe out
Move on and break down
If everyone goes away - I will stay
We push and pull, and I fall down sometimes
And I'm not letting go
You hold the other line
'Cause there is a light
In your eyes, in your eyes
Hold on, hold tight
From out of your sight
And everything keeps moving on, moving on
Hold on, hold tight
Make it throught another night
And everyday there comes the sun - with the dawn
We push and pull, and I fall down sometimes
I'm not letting go
You hold the other line
'Cause there is a light
In your eyes, in your eyes
There is a light
In your eyes, in your eyes
Breath in and breath out
Breath in and breath out
Breath in and breath out
Breath in and breath out
Look left, look right - to the moon and the night
Everything under the stars is in your arms
'Cause there is a light
In your eyes, in your eyes
There is a light
In your eyes, in your eyes
There is a light
In your eyes, in your eyes
There is a light
In your eyes, in your eyes
Heather wrote a rather thought-provoking entry today... And I related to it well... It brought to mind my own thoughts about blogging and why I blog...
She mentioned that her blogging started because of the deeply emotional things in her life she had going on... I relate to that - I started blogging over heartbreak and guilt myself... She mentioned she became a comment-whore for awhile... I had that phase too... And she mentions her blogging tapering off because she is happier in life now... Which I have so obviously done...
I have come to the realisation that pain brings out the words for me... I write because I am so choked up I can't even speak... And I can't suffer in silence - I'd go mad... And while that's all fine and good (catharsis is a *good* thing!) it's not what I want my writing to be... And as Denny mentioned to me, it's not the place I want to lock my creativity in... He felt that if I isolated my writing to when I was in an emotional dark place, that eventually, that would be the only time I *could* write... And that it shouldn't be about who might be reading... If when I'm happy, I just want to write brief blog entries of mushy happy crap - I *should*. For *me*.
And he's right... Too long I've neglected to write in my blog, for two reasons:
I've been, while not deleriously happy, happy enough that nothing was troubling me enough to turn into a blog entry... And I felt like that wouldn't interest anyone to read...
But my blogging shouldn't be about other people... It should be about me... Whatever matters to me at the moment, whether that's despair or giddy joy... If I want to blog an entire entry on how captivating I find my Beloved's eyes - I should *do* it... (He might have a different opinion on that, but while he's a bit embarassed and self conscious about my praises, I'm pretty sure part of him also enjoys it *smiles*) I should always feel free to blog about whatever I want, regardless of who might be reading... The readership was always a secondary thing anyway... I started blogging just to set my words lose in the world, to let it out so I wouldn't have to keep it inside... That my words found hearts and minds that gave a damn what I thought was just a bonus...
So I'm turning a page here... I will always be mindful that there are those out there reading my words (and I love some of you very much) but from now on, I'm not going to hold myself to the task of always being entertaining, interesting, or thought provoking... I'm just going to write... If you don't like the day's entry, feel free to skip it... I won't hold it against you... And I *will* eventually write something that isn't the literary equivalent of fluff... I'm not a fluffy bunny person, after all... I have my deep thoughts as you know, and I'll still express them... I won't be writing *every* day, but I will be writing several days a week... Even if it's just "Greetings...! I'm still hanging in there, how about you...?"
It's going to be about me again... And that's really what you loved reading about anyway, isn't it...?
I haven't written, *really* written, in such a long time... So much had been going on in my life that it was difficult to know where to start... I've been over in this blog before how I feel about our foray into fame and fortune... And I covered my Mother's diagnosis of leukaemia... But this most recent blow is the hardest to deal with... I hesitate even typing it out, because that almost seems to make it more real... And I don't want it to be real...
Our drummer, my bandmate, my *brother* in all but blood - our laughing joking goofy Denny - is dying... It seems he's been dying a long time, we just didn't know it...
A little over a month ago, he starting having severe stomach pains and occasional bouts of nausea... When he collapsed backstage after a gig, we got an emergency appointment at the clinic... They did some tests, and set him up with an appointment for a gastroenterologist, for what they believed was an ulcer... He never made that appointment, because he had another attack at a gig, this time coughing up blood, in addition to the stomach pains and nausea... So we went to the ER... Many hours later, after some extensive tests, they were still unsure how to definatively diagnose him, but made him an appointment with the hospital's oncologist... When his diagnosis was in, it was nothing we'd expected... He has gastric cancer, which had already metastisised to his liver, and caused large ulcer-like lesions in his stomach... He's since undergone surgery to remove part of his liver...
The prognosis isn't good... He will also have to undergo surgery to remove parts of his stomach as well... And as his liver has been compromised, he runs a risk of liver failure... He will also have chemo or radio, or both... But all of these are palliative, they don't generally result in a cure... They only extend his time...
He comes home from the hospital today, though, and I should be happy about that... But I'm not... I know that sounds horrible, but it was hard enough to put on my happy face while visiting him... With him home, I can't afford to break down... I can't afford to cry...
Not that I always want to cry, either... Sometimes I want to scream, to shout at the top of my lungs... I want someone to blame... Not this damned impersonal disease, someone I can hit and bludgeon to pieces for stealing our Denny away... That's how it feels... Like he is being stolen away from us, a day at a time... And I feel helpless, because there is nothing I can do, or say... "It will be alright..." But it won't, will it...? I can't reassure him, because there isn't a happy ending... I can only pretend that a few months is enough time to say goodbye to a decade and a half of friendship, love, and brotherhood... I can only smile brittle smiles and say "I love you..." and ask him what he wants to do today... Because now every day is the only time he'll ever have to do it...
I want to make a great magic - like the ancient tales, not the feeble glimmerings and glamours of the magic I possess... I want to weave the torn threads of his life back together and bind it to him so strongly that he could never die... But I can't... I don't possess such magic... I doubt anyone ever did really... And it's no solace at all that I *know* he will still exist even after... I want him *here*... With us...
I don't know how to end this entry... There's so much to say, and no words to say them...
And you, my brother, there on that sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray
Do not go gentle into that good night
Rage, rage against the dying of the light
I know - I promised to keep up with my blogging, and I didn't... But ever since we've started this little adventure, things have been so intense, I've only had time to cater to my basic needs, and a few obligations... You wouldn't *believe* how much I sleep these days...! Or the sleep of utter exhaustion it is... I barely even have time to think...
So, in spite of how it may disappoint some of you, I must report that I'm going to finish out my contract and let the Boys move on recording without me... There are multiple reasons for this, but mainly, I can't live like this... And the music is no longer fun when it becomes something I *have* to do... I won't abide that... But don't dispair...! I'm *not* leaving the Boys or the band, my role is just changing... I won't do lead female vox, I'll do background vocals, and I'll still be writing music with them... I just need a different schedule, before this one makes me ill...
In other news, my Mother got into a car accident... Don't be alarmed...! She's fine, but she broke her scapula and her femur (the femoral neck of that bone, actually) and a crack in her pelvis... She's had two surgeries, some physio-therapy, and is still in a wheelchair, but hopefully will soon progress to a walker... There was some mixed news that came along with this though... Her blood tests, taken when they were repairing all that damage, showed signs of leukaemia... That diaganosis has since been confirmed with a biopsy, but it's not quite as terrible as it might sound... Firstly, they caught it relatively early... Secondly, the type of leukaemia (chronic lymphocytic leukaemia) is a slow growing one... Mother is 68 years old, and so by the time this illness might require agressive treatment, she may have reached the end of her natural lifespan... I know that doesn't *sound* like a "good" thing, but she may avoid having to take chemo meds, and will not really suffer from the disease, except for being a little less active than she is now...
So I've had a good deal to stress over lately, but it hasn't been quite as bad as I might have had to suffer through... And in any case, I hope it partially explains why I've been so silent... I didn't mean to be (I never mean to be), there were just a lot of things going on...
I *have* enjoyed the recording experience, though... I'm glad I got to be a part of it, and it has been an exciting ride... But although I've devoted my life to music, I've learned I can't devote my life to working at music... And that was something I needed to learn, otherwise I always would have wondered... And I'll *still* have my name in the lead credits on one recording, so that's also a good thing... *smiles* But I think I'd far prefer short trips and quick afternoon recording sessions, to turning my life upside down and taking the enjoyment away from that which I love... And there are other things I want in life now besides a career, and this set up would never give me time to have it...
So here I am... A little more tired, a little wiser, and more clear than ever about what I want out of life... And who can say no to that...?
No, I haven't stopped blogging again...! I've just been away in Los Angeles... *smiles*
Why was I in Los Angeles, you ask...? (Well, you didn't - but let's just make the presumption shall we...? Otherwise I'll never get to my news...) The band and I were off recording in a studio - making music is now my full-time job! So it will be a lot of back and forth, to and from L.A. as we play, record, and process tracks for our first professional CD... After that, we'll tour a bit, promoting our music, coast to coast... No major cities, but plenty of neighbouring minor ones (i.e. not NYC, but Jersey City) ...
Our first bout of recording went well, and we were all very impressed by the facilities... This is a *professional* recording studio, so it's of a calibre and demeanour we've never actually encountered before... We all felt a bit awkward at first, and the boys felt really under-dressed in their street clothes, but no one seemed to pay it any mind... I get the impression they see all kinds around there...
Tomorrow we head back and work begins in earnest... Then we'll only be coming back to Portland on Friday, Saturday, Sunday... Monday - Thursday we'll be in L.A., at Angel's flat there... It's a total of 14-15 hours between cities (though only 5 - 6 to cross into Cali) so it's a hell of a commute, but worth it... People keep asking us, "Why come back at all...? Why not stay in L.A. til you're finished...?" Clearly these people have never been to L.A. - it's smelly, dirty, noisy, crowded, and the crime rate is appalling... We *need* to come home just to refresh our spirits and get a break from all that is rotten about Los Angeles...
If it weren't for the music, it wouldn't even be worth being there... But for music, our music, I'll suffer the consequences of that dismal place... My music is important to me, and being able to do this as a full time career is just a little bit like heaven... It complicates things I'd rather have uncomplicated, but the possibility of success could make all those things brighter than ever.... And if we don't do well, at least I know we tried... No might-have-beens... And that too will pave the path for a better future...
So though I'm in Portland now, I'll end this with "From Los Angeles, with Love..." as the blog will be updated erratically between recording sessions... Still - stick with me... I'll have a lot to say as things progress...
Okay - so I promised a new layout, but it might not be immediately forthcoming... As I can't find one I like enough to switch to... *laughing* Eventually, I will though, so keep an eye out... I *did* change some things around in the sidebar, and deleted some outdated links and incompatible code though...
And while I *will* get into what I've been up to during my months of silence - right now I just want to get back into blogging every few days...
This month is the start of the Portland Rose Festival, and as the Rose Festival Wa-Mu Waterfront Village is right across the bridge from our place, I've been taking the neice and nephew over every day... One of the big highlights was getting to show them the Lady Washington, a tallship whose crew I know of old... They were *very* impressed, and it was good to see the Lady again... She is truely one of the most beautiful sailing vessels afloat... Fun has been had by all thus far, with the exception of a tummyache on the part of my nephew (which is entirely his own fault)... Fleet Week begins on the 6th, and we'll get to tour some U.S. Navy, Coast Guard, and Canadian Maritime ships too, which will please my nevvie to no end...
There's also the 119th Annual Spring Rose Show, which I'm very excited about, even though I don't have an entry in this year... I just haven't been able to spend enough time on my roses to produce a truly spectacular specimen.... It's also about time to renew my membership in the Portland Rose Society, but I'm fairly sure I can do that at the Rose Show...
So there's a lot more to do during Rose Festival month, and I don't want to miss any of it... And the gigs are lucretive this time of year as well... Mainly because of all the tourists pouring in from Northern California, Washington state, and Idaho, as well as other parts of Oregon... In two nights, I made over $400 in tips alone... But I'll miss the Festival of Flowers this year, because next Monday we're off to Los Angeles for work and recording... (And I'll have more to say about *that* later...)
So the last couple of days have been a fun ride, and a welcome break from the crazy it's been this year... And while I know this post isn't my typical thrill-a-minute prose, forgive me... I'm relearning old habits and I promise I'll pick it up again quick... Thanks for hanging in there...
(Oh - and scroll down to my Evocations... The Art Quote of The Day is one I believe with all my heart...)
It's not that I've been so busy (though I have been), it's just that lately I come home so exhausted I have no ambition to blog and my thoughts are so scattered I'd ramble like a madwoman anyway... So here I am, blogging from work, because that the only time I'm awake enough to even think...
First things first: I opened my last post to questions about me, and I've gotten quite a few (which have been sitting in my mailbox until I had time to post this), so here are two (and more will follow in upcoming posts) -
Charley asks: "Who are you? I've searched and admit to being overcome and I yield! So my question is, who are you?"
Wow... Start off with the hardest ones first, why don't we...? Who am I - a complex question... It's something I struggle with every day, actually... Especially since I am never really the same from day to day... But there are things about me that remain constant in spite of my variable nature... I generally like to use metaphors for these aspects of my nature, which most of you have heard me use before, but here's you chance to see the metaphors for what they mean to me:
I am an Angel - in this I mean I have a gentle and loving nature to those I care for, I am protective of those people, and have an endless ability to forgive them any transgression... My faith in those I care for can be unlimited, and at times I can end up believing in them more than they do in themselves...
I am a Demon - As gentle and loving as I can be, I have some serious flaws... I am prideful, arrogant, selfish, and to those outside my charmed circle I can also be *terribly* cruel... (Sadly, there have also been moments in my life I have been cruel to those inside that circle - and I have always lived to regret it bitterly...)
I am Faery and Witch - Perhaps it's growing up in a culture with such rich superstition, or perhaps it's just my nature, but I have that nature that can best be described as "fae"... Not only have I experienced certain aspects of the supernatural on an involuntary basis (such as seeing spirits, feeling what others feel, dreaming dreams that come to pass, etc.) but I am a regular practitioner of what some have termed "magic" or "witchcraft"... This is not a religious-based thing as some who call themselves witches these days practice, but a folklore/cultural thing... I have a thousand potions and elixirs for good and ill health, a hundred charms for good luck and bad, and many different types of mental disciplines that are very efficient at changing the nature of the world around me... Even if only to my perceptions - and that's really what magic is, anyway - the ability to shape one's world in whatever fashion one can dream...
I am a Princess - Above and beyond the literal sense of the term, I strive to have a nobility of spirit, a sense of justice and fairness, and a deep caring for those I consider "my people"... Qualities that perhaps few of my more notable ancestors possessed, but nevertheless qualities I think they would be proud of my having... Though I have some of the "traditional" shortcomings of the "blood royal" as well - I can be elitist, self centred, and much concerned with material things and image...
But mostly, who I am is Angelia - a mix of the best and the worst a person can be, given to extremes of mood and temperment, but always trying to be better than I am... I am every sweet woman one could want me to be, and every wicked bitch you fear... And I am both all at once... I can't be any one thing, as some other women can... And I can't be satisfied with the hum-drum, mundane world that seems to be enough for others... For me, I must bring a little magic, a little of the extraordinary, into the world around me... Perhaps that's because of the extraordinary life I've led so far, but I'd like to think it's more because I've seen what life *can be*, if only you reach for it...
Well *that* was a long answer, wasn't it? *smiles* Next question, which promises to be no less long -
Brandy asks: "Okay so you definitely seem "happy" now so who do tell is the beloved??? You must answer it you said you would, lol. Love ya!"
I *did* promise to answer... But I didn't promise to give you his name... *winks* But I will give you enough about him that you can know what he has done for me, emotionally, spiritually, and every other way...
A few of the basics: He's only a couple of years older than myself, intelligent to an extreme, witty, charming, funny, and *incredibly* handsome (think tall, dark, and handsome) ... He's also one of the kindest, understanding, most empathic men I've ever met... And he doesn't believe any of that about himself... *soft smile* In fact, I think he gets a bit abashed and embarassed when I say so... He thinks of himself as pretty much the average joe, "nothing much special"... He says I'm the special one - but I know better... *smiles*
What he has done for me: He came into my life at a time that I was feeling pretty much worthless... He shared some of his own experiences in that regard with me, and told me that I *was* worth something... To him... At first we were "just friends", mutually sharing our sorrows... And somewhere in there, we found that compassion for each other had turned into a deep interest in each other... He cared about what I thought, how I felt, especially about myself...
He never lets me talk down about myself (except in a truly joking sense) ... And he looks out for me... When I am apt to do something foolish, or push myself beyond my limits, he gently tells me what he thinks and almost always convinces me to try another way... Though sometimes I am still stubborn, and must learn the hard way - and when that happens, he is there to listen and never says "I told you so" (except with humour) ... Sometimes I think my more adventurous side causes him a little worry... When I take my long walks through the night alone, it makes him uneasy... And though I know he thinks he doesn't think he has the right to give his input on what I choose to do, I value his opinions... And that he wants to keep me safe, means more to me than he'll ever really know...
And he's brought laughter back into my life... He has the most wonderful sense of humour, though sometimes it's irreverent... I love that about him... Let me repeat that - I *love* that about him... Even when things in his life have him down, he never forgets to take the time to laugh... And he shares that gift with me... Sometimes I take things far too seriously, and get obsessed with problems - he's shown me that nothing is so serious that I can't relax and laugh with him... He's thoughtful, too... In little ways, every day... And he never forgets to remind me how he loves me... (As if I could ever forget!) I'm not used to a man being so open with how he feels, but it's wonderful...
And he spends long hours with me... Even when I want to ramble on about silly things, he's happy just being with me - even if sometimes he thinks I need my head examined... *grin* He'll stay with me until I fall asleep, he's the first thing when I wake, and he'll even let me "annoy" him at work... *smiles*
In short, he's brought light back into my life, helped me believe in myself again, and is a true *partner*, rather than someone I worship or fear... And that's really why I'm so happy... Because he is that partner... Because he is a *friend* while being a lover... And because there really is a future there...
And I'm going to end the questions there for now, (Don't kill me!) but I promise to get to the others in more timely fashion than I have been in lately... Since this summer, I've just gotten off track with a lot of things... Part of it is I've been so busy, but really, mostly it's been because I've been a little burned out with the writing... It's hard to do coherently when I'm tired, but I'm trying... And in the meantime, go ahead and send me more questions if you want... Just zap them in an e-mail to angeliarian@gmail.com ... I won't post tomorrow, but look on Wednesday for a little post about what I've been up to... Until then people...! *blows kisses*
I had the thoughts to create this post back on 9/11, but considering the emotional temperature of that date, I decided to hold my tongue for a few days... There's a reason for that - what I have to say is probably going to anger and/or upset a number of people, I'm sure... And it's going to confuse others, who won't understand my line of reasoning here... But as it's my blog, I'm going to say it anyway, and give everyone a chance to argue the point with me if they like...
Let's start from the very top - the top of this entry, that is... See that tag up there...? The Ernest Hemingway quote...? "Never think that war, no matter how necessary, nor how justified, is not a crime." Wow... Strong words, no...? And easily taken out of context if you allow them to be... So I'm going to explain what that quote means to *me*: It doesn't mean the justified warriors and defenders are criminals - it means it's a crime that anyone should have to slaughter their fellow human beings... That the essence of war itself is a crime against goodness, peace, and life... War destroys both parties - not just the aggressors, but those that resist them, because it subverts the good nature of those defenders and forces them into committing atrocious acts for the sake of their people's safety and continued survival...
But war is a crime without a solution... War is ignited by hatred always, and hatred is only ever countered by love... And you can't sit back to love and forgive those who make war on you - they will care not, and destroy you... But by meeting violence with more violence, one's enemies destroy you anyway, in a more lasting fashion, even if you win... So what is one to do...? It's all very well to say all these many wars are an evil in the world (they are), or that peace bought with rivers of blood is a travesty (it is) - what do you *do*...?
Peace is not in the emotional nature of the human animal... No matter how much we crave it, long for it, strive to cement it, there is always within mankind that "fear of the other"... And George Lucas had it right: "Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering." And since one cannot destroy fear, avoidance of war seems impossible...
You can't destroy fear... But you can counter it, hold it at bay, if you choose... A commitment to peace may seem a flimsy and easily crushed thing, but it could be stronger than fear if one committed in one's soul to it... All one has to do is *believe* in the cause of peace strongly enough... Suicide terrorists do the inverse of this, actually... They overcome their fear of dying by being committed to their jihad... And what a shame they waste their will and fortitude in that, when they could use that strength to forge a legacy of life, peace, and prosperity - instead of a legacy of death, war, and despair... And what sadness that they turn Allah from a God who loves peace and life ("Assalamu alaikum" - "Peace be upon you"), into a God of hate, war, and death...
In truth, there are no "jihad", no "holy wars"... There is *nothing* sanctified in murdering people by the thousands... The weeping of widows and orphans is *not* a heavenly hymn... There is nothing beautiful and holy in the sight of bodies blown to pieces or blood on the floor... The scenes of tortures and murders stink of corruption because it *is* corrupt... And it corrupts the souls of those who participate in such things - willingly or not...
What would the world be like if we would set aside all the little things that make us different, and instead focus on a lasting peace...? If people would channel that zeal that causes wars to linger on endlessly into a zeal to keep one's temper with our neighbours and find ways to live in harmony...? You don't have to agree with your neighbours or do as they do to live next door to them... What would the world be like if I could do my thing, and you could do yours, and we could respect each other even if we don't agree...? I can imagine such a world - but it takes everyone working together to give an imagined dream true birth...