life in surround sound and process color.

LISTENING TO: Chris Cornell - Nearly Forgot My Broken Heart Do you ever get the feeling that you don't realize how much you miss sleeping until you actually go to sleep? The truth is, I really do prefer flying overnight if I can, but as I sit here in my mom's living room in Pennsylvania, the last thing I want to do is drive home on about 4 hours of sleep - which is why after I post this and take a shower, I'm taking a nap. With that said, my last hours on the west coast were fun. I finally got my first (and only!) local craft beer at the airport waiting for my flight, which was a nice way to cap off the first of my planes home. Everyone I know in California seems to really hate the Fresno airport, but maybe since it's literally my first memory of California I really think it's kind of cute (although that could always be the craft beer on my way home and the coffee on my way in tinting my memory, but I digress). I always appreciate taking different routes be...

LISTENING TO: Bring Me The Horizon - wonderful life (feat. Dani Filth) Paso Robles is hands down one of my favorite places on earth right now. I feel like I've said that a lot this week, but it really is true. Our second day spent there started out at J. Lohr Vineyards. I've enjoyed their wine for years, and although their tasting room is a bit off the beaten path (even for Paso standards), it was absolutely beautiful and the wine was amazing. They had a gorgeous outdoor patio that allowed you to take in the sights surrounding the vineyard, which was a really great atmosphere. From there, we headed back up the highway to Tobin James Cellars. My aunts have been talking about this winery since we got here, and it has one of the most unique set ups of any winery I've ever been to. You know you're in a good place when you walk through the door and are greeted by the sight of an old school saloon. I honestly could have stayed there all day. Their wine was also delicio...

LISTENING TO: AJR - 100 Bad Days We're about to head out to Paso Robles again this afternoon, but I first wanted to recap what brought us all together - my cousin's graduation yesterday. For the record, I can't remember ever being in a place with such dry absolute heat. It's such an absolute switch from back home. I remember my high school graduation as a really humid, rainy day (that eventually ended in sunshine). This is the first real outdoor graduation I've been to where I could swear you could fry an egg on the bleachers (and we were on the shady side of things). It was also the largest high school graduation I've been to - it reminded me more of my college graduation more than anything else... with the big exception that neither my high school or my college had a stadium surrounded by palm trees, which was a nice touch in Ridgewood High's favor. I am so proud of my cousin Jason. He has done so many amazing things and has worked so hard to get...

LISTENING TO: Iggy Azalea - Sally Walker When my mom first visited my aunt in California, the one of the main takeaways from her trip was that I would love Paso Robles. And you know what? After spending the day there, she was totally right. After such a great first day in California, I was really excited that our first full day was going to be spent in Paso. Not only because of the great wineries and food (although that's never a bad thing), but because I've never heard a bad thing about it... and in terms of traveling, that's always a great thing. The drive into Paso from Visalia takes around two hours, and it was such a beautiful drive. The mountains reminded me a lot of New Mexico, although there were subtle differences that made the trip in all the more interesting. Our first stop was the Jada Vineyard & Winery. Driving into Paso on the main highway, there are vineyards as far as the eye can see. What was cool about Jada is that it's a bit off the beat...

LISTENING TO: The Glorious Sons - S.O.S. (Sawed Off Shotgun) I always remember people being really surprised that I had never been to California, which is why I’m so absolutely thrilled to be here now. My aunts and my cousin have been out here for a decade now, and I’ve never quite been able to make the trip, which is why it’s so exciting to be out here now, for my cousin’s high school graduation. But I guess I should start from the top, which leads us back over on the east coast and the Philadelphia airport at 6am this morning. Although I don’t normally sleep on planes, I was not about to take advantage of the extremely early timeframe I put myself in (especially since after my trip to New Mexico earlier this year started the trend of ungodly early flights across the country); Add in one of the most unappetizing cup of airplane coffee I’ve ever had (and trust me, my love of caffeine had had me consume some really awful drinks cosplaying as coffee over the years), and by the tim...