Her Favorite Color is Green, Actually

My friend Alexis came over for the day. She is one amazingly talented (and humble) professional photographer. Caleb and I had had the audacity to ask her to bring her camera for our daily photo-shoot but...It was raining. Cats and dogs. So our previously imagined picnic and any other outdoor activity had to be nixed. But alas, against all odds, what seemed to be a gloomy morning gave room to a very enjoyable time. Here are some highlights:

-My dogs kept trying to attack Alexis. One of them successfully bit her. It didn't hurt, so you're allowed to smirk and I'm allowed to write about it.

-We had tacos for lunch and my dad's papaya cream for dessert. In one word, amazing.

-My sister and her husband were playing Super Mario Wii when his character Luigi died. As he came back to life, floating in a bubble, my sister accidentally killed him again. Domestic violence?

-Alexis and my little brother Johnny kept teaching Caleb wrong Portuguese words (i.e guitar=catarro, which really means phlegm) and he believed them! Johnny, in turn, still believes Alexis' lie about her medical condition: She has an irrational fear of green eyes :-).

-We finally went outside just before sunset and took some good pictures, out in the lamp-lit street.

Alexis leaves in 19 days, because her tourist visa is expiring. She is trying to figure out if she should come back on a student visa or not. One of those times when we just need to understand what God has planned. Please pray for her as she makes these important decisions.

When Things Go South

Why do some things in life turn out so completely different than what we had imagined? Sometimes it seems like it doesn't really matter what we hope or expect or maybe even what we pray for. These are the days when God decides to close the door hard and give you a cold NO. And it hurts. And you cry 'till your pillow's wet and wonder why things can't be the way you dreamed they'd be.

“He must have known what He was doing”, said Lucy in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

...I agree. And pray. 

And wait...

Item #28

Taking advantage of our amazingly long 9-day carnival break, I've decided to get started with my Bucket List's item #28: "...a picture every day for a year". Sounds exciting, doesn't it? I shot this first picture near my house, just before sunset. I am planning on keeping this up but it is astounding how much discipline is needed to be consistent on simple daily tasks. Every time I try to do push-ups and sit-ups before heading to bed there is a temptation to just go to sleep. I guess little things take their toll... I figure if I can force myself to exercise my muscles every night, I can most definitely push down a camera button. These pictures are going to my PicasaWeb album. I'll make the link available on this blog. Feel free to download and pass on :-)


Update: Here is today's picture!

My [UPDATED] Bucket List

My name is David Moraes and I am a 20-year old living in Brazil. I decided it was about time to start a new blog. Hopefully it will be filled with interesting observations about life in general and personal stories of mine. If you would like to, feel free to leave a comment and drop in a few lines about yourself. I hereby invite you to embark on this little adventure.

Yesterday afternoon I went out for a walk with my friend Caleb Hunter. In the midst of our random threads of conversation we talked about making bucket lists. I do believe I had previously thought about doing this, but had never really made it happen. So, motivated by Caleb, we both sat down and carefully concocted our 50 items. This is how mine turned out:

1. Get married.
2. Do something really spontaneous at the top of the Eiffel Tower.
3. Learn how to say “I love you” in at least 20 languages.
4. Get a book published.
5. Go to Israel.
6. Prepare a picnic for your girlfriend at the beach, at night.
7. Turn 50.
8. Go scuba-diving.
9. Roll in mud with a good friend.
10. Write at least 50 songs.
11. Watch all James Bond movies.
12. Go to Disneyland.
13. Be told you made someone's day unforgettable, in his or her own words.
14. Let your hair grow as long as your shoulders.
15. Save someone's life.
16. Learn how to make good sushi.
17. Personally meet a celebrity.
18. Get a driver's license.
19. Speak German fluently.
20. Buy a good camera.
21. Make someone cry tears of joy.
22. Stay up all night with a friend, just to watch the sunrise.
23. Throw someone a surprise party, just because you care about him or her.
24. See the day Cherry Coke comes to Brazil.
25. Drive a jet-ski.
26. Finally watch Avatar in 3D.
27. Raise money for an important cause.
28. Once in your life, take a picture every day for a year.
29. Be someone's best man at a wedding.
30. Learn how to play an instrument.
31. Graduate from college.
32. Go on a cruise.
33. Buy your parents an expensive gift.
34. Read The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
35. Take your wife overseas on your wedding anniversary.
36. Make a crop circle.
37. Raise kids to be fluent in at least 2 languages.
38. Swim with dolphins.
39. Convince a friend to roll in snow with you wearing nothing but shorts because of your bucket list.
40. Cook a candle-lit dinner.
41. Row a boat down a lake with someone.
42. Be hugged by someone who doesn't want to let go of you.
43. Grasp the theory of relativity.
44. Write an excellent fairy-tale.
45. Celebrate an off-season holiday with your family.
46. Make your kids a secret passageway in the garden.
47. Tape-record everything said around a camp fire.
48. Go on at least 3 roller coasters on the same day.
49. See the Mona Lisa.
50. Secretly buy someone chocolate every day for a month.

None of these are really life goals but rather things I would like to do before I die. Questions, comments? Got your own bucket list to share? Then please comment :-)