make it happen.

well. the past week has been a little crazy, in a good way. i've apparently decided that after 26 years of sitting on my butt waiting for stuff to happen, it's time to make it happen.

so, i guess that's kind of my mantra for the next year or so. i had a friend who used to always say "if you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten." so. it's time. time to be bold. time to face my fears. time to risk.

i have read so so so many things lately about risk, passion, going forward, etc. books, movies, tweets, blogs, etc...

it's time.

andrew belle

let me just take a moment to tell you about andrew belle, and his new cd, "the ladder". this was released on itunes yesterday, and you absolutely must purchase it. i promise there are very few better ways you can spend six bucks.

andrew had a show here in nash about a month ago, and i was able to purchase a physical copy there, so i've had the privilege of owning this music for the past month, prior to the itunes debut on tuesday. and let me tell you friends, in the past month, i've listened to it 18 times, according to my itunes play count. eighteen.times.in.one.month.

and that's just on itunes. that doesn't count the plays on my ipod, or the plays on my cd player at home. just itunes, which i really only listen to while in the office.

do you get the point yet? this is good stuff. really good stuff.

you need it. that's all. you're grounded until you get it.

here's a little video of the title track, just to whet your appetite.



now that you've seen that, go get it for yourself!

questions and coffee

it seems to me that most of life's toughest questions, at least for me, are pondered, discussed, written about, asked, and answered over coffee. whether alone, with a book, with a journal, with a friend, or with a stranger, this has always been true.

this evening was no exception.

and it was good.

the following questions were taken from dan allender's book "to be told":

-what moves me most deeply?
-what do i most enjoy doing?
-where do i find the greatest pleasure and joy?
-what is it about this activity, idea, or person that brings me such a sense of life?
-what is my "ideal self" in the following areas: worker, friend, spouse, parent, child, citizen, believer?

wow. talk about questions that made me think. maybe for some of you the answers are obvious. for me, they took some time. but when i discovered them, i finally started to see my story unfold, starting to see some of the common themes throughout my life.

there is more to be thought of, more to be asked, and more to be answered. but for now, it's a start.

just for the record...

27 so far is pretty freaking amazing.

also, so far, 27-year old holly is a lot more bold than any previously aged holly.

more on that later. hopefully.

birthday blog

well. it's my birthday. my friend katie is in town from chicago to help me celebrate, and to try to find a job so she can move to nashville. i thought i'd write out a quick blog while she's in the shower (though it'd be easier if the cat would stop giving me birthday kisses).

three and a half years ago, my friend stacy told me that 27 would be my "perfect year". it's just something she pulled out of thin air, but it's been ringing through my head ever since. and because of that, i'm determined to make it true. (not to say that it will all be down hill starting this time next year).

26 was a good year, the best yet. i learned a lot, loved a lot, grew a lot, discovered a lot. i went to 53 concerts in the past year. many of my favorite musicians, i had no clue who they were a year ago. same goes for most of my favorite people. overall, 26-year old holly was a lot happier than 25-year old holly.

27, you have a lot to live up to. bring it.

mr. ben rector.

so, ben rector released a new album yesterday, called "into the morning". i tweeted about it quite a bit, trying to encourage friends to purchase it, even though i hadn't heard it yet. but that's because i pre-ordred it and was waiting for it to arrive in the mail.

well friends, it came today. it's perfect. simply genius. so now i can honestly say: you need this record!

the first time i heard ben was... awkward. it was a live show, my friend and i were late, it wasn't a typical venue, the people there were, well, interesting... it was just an awkward situation. for me, probably not for ben. but i immediately fell in love with his music, and when i got an itunes gift card for christmas, i bought "songs that duke wrote", which i also highly recommend.

just... buy his music. you won't regret it. but you'll regret not doing it.

here's a little clip from one of my favorites off the album, called "moving backwards"

risk.

risk is scary. of course it is. but it usually pays off, even if it's just another lesson learned.

the past few days i've been thinking about risk. and today has been one of those days where i've heard the same answer several times, from different people, who are all unrelated to each other.

and with that, i spend another night tossing and turning, contemplating the "what ifs" and "hows" and "why nots" of life.

"and the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." - anais nin