Birthdays and Favorites!!

Hello all of you beautiful souls,

I shared a post a couple of days ago explaining the tradition behind my monthly birthday celebration and how I want you to celebrate with me!

If you missed that post, you may read it by clicking the link below!

It’s November! Let’s celebrate!

I would love it if all of you would participate by sharing some of your favorite things with me. It will help me get to know you better, and I’ll have new music to listen to, poems to read, and food to try.

To kick things off, I am going to share some of my favorites with you. I have already shared 1 of my favorite poems, but here we are on the 4th day of November, and I haven’t shared anything for the 2nd and third days. I’m going to make up for that with this post!

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As many of you already know I am a HUGE lover of music!! And I think it’s something that connects all of us, and I can get lost in the music that I love, so I thought I would share some songs that have a special meaning to me.

1. Haunted House by Jumpin’ Gene Simmons

My dad used to sing this song to me when I was a little girl. He would put me on his feet and spin me around the living room. This song always makes me think of him.

2. Old Time Rock & Roll by Bob Seger

I’m sure you’re all familiar with the scene from Risky Business where Tom Cruise slides out in his socks to this song. Well, this song was one of my mom’s favorites, and she and I decided to create this scene one winter night when it was just the two of us. It ended up with bruises because I couldn’t stop myself in time and ran into the wall (classic me,) and my mom ended up falling because she was laughing so hard, at me! Her own daughter!! Lol! It was a really fun night, and it’s one of my favorite memories, and I can’t hear this song without thinking of my momma. ❤

3. When I’m Sixty Four by The Beatles

The Beatles have been one of my all time favorite bands for as long as I can remember, and this is one of my all time favorite songs. It makes me so happy!! ❤

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I also love poetry, both reading it and writing it. There’s just something so deep and special about it. Poetry touches parts of my soul the same way music does, the way that nothing else can. I think it’s why when people share music and/or poetry with me, I feel a deeper connection to them. It’s a special thing to share a piece of yourself with someone, I mean if a song or poem touches you, and you want to share that experience with me, I don’t take that lightly. I’m the type of person that will close my eyes and listen to the song, or immerse myself in the poem, so I can get a better understanding of you you are!

1. Somewhere I have Never Traveled Gladly Beyond – E.E. Cummings

This is one of my favorite poems of all time!! It’s one of the first poems that really made me fall in love with poetry. E.E. Cummings is one of my all time favorite poets, and has been since I was a teenager.

2. The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe

I believe this was the first poem I ever read, and I’ve been taken with Poe ever since. It’s just such a marvelously written piece of poetry!! I will never tire of it.

 3. Sonnet XVII by Pablo Neruda

This poem holds a special place in my heart. One day while I was on a lunch date with a girlfriend of mine, Neil sent me this poem, and he said “I’ve never been good with words, but I watched a movie today where a character recited this poem, and it explains how I feel about you.”

I broke down in tears, right there in the middle of the restaurant, and my friend, looking concerned for her friend kept asking what was wrong, so I showed her the message, and she too started crying! Neil included the last two stanza’s of this poem in his wedding vows, which made everyone who attended our wedding cry! Both of those memories give me heart squeezes, and I can’t read this sonnet without smiling now. It just means so much to me. ❤

And lastly, I will leave you with one of my favorite things in the world, which is a London Fog. I drink this throughout the year, it’s so good and comforting, especially on long, rainy days!

My cousin, Caitlyn told me about this drink called a London Fog. I immediately went to the local cafe in downtown Oakland to see if they made this drink, and much to my pleasant surprise, they do!! I have gotten it a few times since then, it’s such a nice pick me up in the afternoon, especially on rainy days, there’s just something about this delicious beverage that brings me comfort. I don’t have an exact recipe, but when I searched for one, all of them pretty much said to add as much milk, sweetener, etc… to suit your taste. Here are the ingredients:

Earl Grey Tea

All of the recipes I read said to make a strong cup, so if I were to make this myself, I would probably use 2 tea bags.

Steamed Milk

The amount of milk depends on how creamy you like your tea.

Lavender Syrup

The cafe I go to uses a shot of this, and I think it’s perfect, but if you are making it, adjust it to suit your taste.

Some recipes said some people add sugar and vanilla, you can make it however you like, but I prefer just the tea, steamed milk, and lavender syrup, because the syrup is sweet enough for me, I don’t think it needs anything extra.

Starbucks also sells this drink, but they don’t add lavender, they just use vanilla. It is good, but I love the shot of lavender with the Earl Grey. They compliment each other very well!

Please let me know what you think if you try this. I may just have to treat myself to a cup this afternoon!

Enjoy!

I will stop here before this post becomes entirely too long. I would love it if all of you would help me celebrate my birthday by celebrating your favorite songs, poems, quotes, recipes, birthday memories, and anything else you would like to share. You may either simply comment on this post, or create a post of your own, just please make sure you let me know that you posted it so I don’t miss it!

Thanks so much!! And I’m wishing all of you a wonderful November!!

Love & life lessons,

Kristian