Hello everyone! I decided to post the official video for Imogen Heap's "First Train Home" off of her new album Ellipse. It's in stores now! And if you want to give it a preview first, you can check out my previous post.

Today was an exciting day because I gave blood for the first time! It was really kind of cool because I got to see them stick the needle in my arm and then proceed to give a pint of blood! I don't feel nauseous or anything, I've been drinking water all day and I feel great. :) The people at the drive were really nice and I enjoyed the company. Who knew donating blood could be so much fun!

Today was also an eventful day because it got me thinking about how I operate and what that means for people I interact with. I think a lot -- apparently :P -- and I just made the connection today between thinking and stress. When I get stressed, my default response is to start brainstorming outcomes to events as they stand. This includes thinking about what I'm going to do in the next few days, how I'm going to interact with friends over the course of the year, or even crazy things like getting married or whether some random stranger is going to knife me on my way to class! A lot of it can be in good fun, no doubt, but it can also be a large headache and a disaster for when I want to operate successfully in the real world. I begin to worry, and then... well, it usually doesn't spell anything super fantastic.

While I may encounter problems here or there, this part of my personality is extremely useful. It allows me to be creative by pushing the boundaries of what is possible and definitely allows me to always be prepared for situations when they occur. Now that I'm aware of the pros and cons, I'm going to work actively to deactivate this stress response when it causes me to worry or lose my head. I don't like freaking out -- no one ever does -- and I'm sure no one like seeing me freak out.

As much of a pop culture noob as I am, I'm still able to make these crazy obscure connections to stuff, as long as I'm familiar with the material. I feel that if I actually paid attention to the greater world around me, I'd be pretty good at playing Taboo or making small talk. As I am not, I kind of just mill about, thinking to myself and pondering what's out there.

Huh.

If I was able to write down every major thought I had today, I'd be able to write at least a dozen blog posts of decent length. Really, the only things that keep me sane are what I like to call "distractions," which is basically just my simplified, objective name for the activities that make up our day to day life. In other words, I need things to keep me from thinking. Really, I do! So when a conversation lulls or some time frees up in my rehearsal schedule, I need to be on alert for an influx of ideas and thoughts. Some will be insightful, others will be deadly, but now I'm a lot better off knowing the difference. Things will by no means be easier on the road ahead, but they will be more fulfilling. I feel like I've made a lot of progress today and I'm excited for the future.