Born to Fly.

I've been telling my dreams to the scarecrow

about the places that I'd like to see

I say, friend to you think i'll ever get there?

and he just stands there smilin' back at me

so i confessed my sins to the preacher

about the love i've been prayin' to find

is there a brown eyed boy in my future

and he says, girl you've got nothin but time

sarah evans. ive rediscovered my love for country music. especially when songs can help tell your story. 

in other news, apparently, pandas are repopulating in the woods of my backyard. i had a dream last night, where for some reason or another, i was running away from something, and ended up going into the woods to run away from it (perfectly nonsensical thing to do for a scary movie) and then when i got there, there were pandas everywhere. i mean everywhere! liek thousands of black and white furballs rolling around the pine needles and chewing on sticks, being protected by their superelhugo mommy panda bears which, when they saw me, began to charge at me, and then just out of no where, they poofed. when they got to close that is. all the babies were fine because they were very content just chewing on things like babies do. but the mommas-man watch out. but it was so weird! like i had this insanely good panda bear repellent. dreams are so awkward. i mean, i dont even remember the last time i saw a picture of a panda bear let alone a real one. 

classes are going great. and im discovering that this is what school and learning is supposed to be like! its not half as painful to listen in class when its about training your ear and understanding how to work with the entire ensebmle, or listening to performances and critiquing them. really. i loved penn state, but this is just so much more fun  =] so loryn way, you need to come into my ear training class for a period-then were even. i loathe economics, and then im pretty sure you'll loate eartraining. concerning classes- my schedule was slightly terrible for a while, but it's all fallen into place and i'm pretty stoked about it. i picked up principals of business management, so that ya know, in my ideal perfect life, i can open up my bakery/cafe with a stage in the corner, and studio in the basement, and let kids come in and get their feet wet in the studio. i mean, in some far away perfect alternative lifestyle. ;)

im going to take some pictures of mass ave this coming week, so you can see the "berklee beach". it's pretty crazy. and you cant walk down the street without seeing someone you know. everyone here is so social. well here as in berklee... bostonians on the other hand. i've decided they find it inapporopirate to smile in public. so in most scenarios, i stick out like a sore thumb. but, it's my mission everyday to brighten someone elses day, make then laugh, and in most cases, because its just the way my life naturally flows, it happens out of me doing something completely mindless and goofy, which wasnt even meant to be funny. eh-such is my life. =]

one of the friends that ive made since ive been here is a singer songwriter, with a really soulfull voice.... but he doesnt even go here. he lives in nashville. he is a friend of taras (my roomate) and we started video chatting and last night we wrote some stuff together. it sounds pretty sweet. acoustic guitar is by far my favorite. and its in almost every song i listen to, so performing at berklee makes things harder, because there are only pianos in the labs, but-that gives me a more well rounded education, right? sure. anyways-back to the song. its actually more of a prayer. which is how a lot of the stuff is i write.  it's to God. talking to Him. so anyways, it was the first time i really put my heart out there in my music, so im exited to see how it sounds. tara keeps bugging me to put up a music myspace.....so maybe ill get on that soon. =]

as for now, im gonna go run. and listen to sarah evans. because we have the same brain. 

loveyoubunchesbye!

my heart skipped a beat on more than one occasion today.

im sitting on my futon,

and my feet dont touch the ground.

it's not even a tall futon.

anyways-concerning my skipped heart beats and near death experiences.

today, i was painfully owned by Berklee and then it reedeemed itself, all in the same day. a one of a kind school i assure you. so, the first skipped heart beat was the result of a new course i am taking, or was taking rather. let me explain. i was told that this course was a "basic" guitar skills class for the non-guitarprincipal... well friends-an understatement to say the least. what it actually is is basic guitar performance  skills for the non-guitar principal. which means, all the kids taht are doing music business, songwriting, film scoring, what have you, but still play guitar. may i remind you that it's berklee, so naturally theyre all very experienced guitarists. and this class doesnt teach you guitar basics, it teaches you how to perform them. well, i checked out the class anyways, to see what it would be like, and when i got there asked the teacher what i could expect from teh course and what i should be able to do in order to do well, explaining to him my background (uhhh, i can play G? and the basics. but still. pretty much useless) and he sort of answered my question in that annoying round about way... and then class started. story isnt over. out of all people to continually call on in the class for answers....me. its like he was trying to kick me out of the class. not a very nice man. well, he was nice. which was weird. i debated making him cookies. and when i say debated i mean, it poppped up in my mind like one of those mole games. but remember, im good at beating inanimate objects, so i quickly pounded the cookie eating mole with my mallet. 

win.

with that said, im dropping guitar performance skilled, and hopefully picking up principals of business management. that is neat.

the second time my heart skipped a beat was outside of the 15o building today. i saw a kid with his guitar on his back (surprise surprise) and for a split second, it was phil wickham. then reality set in, and it wasnt. some strangely distant realative. but still. phil is the man.

the third time my heart skipped a beat i was inside the 150 building, and i saw that kid again.

one day. one day it really will be phil wickham. by the way, if you havent listened to his music yet, do it. his Singalong album is fantastic- he's best live. simply nothing, acoustic and vocals. thats all. brilliant, simple, worship. 

so, berklee owned me via GuitarPerfSkills, but toootally redeemed itself (name that movie plug. i'll send you a pixie stick) in my last class of the day- Background Singing. um, can i get a woopwoop for background singing!?!! and my teacher? ahem- his name is Jamale. and seriously awesome. we just grooved and talked, and he was really stoked to be working with us. it was just fun. a good ending to a semi annoying day. 

oh. i did however have another near hour conversation with someone today. it's relentless. but good. i dont' mind one bit of it. we talked about how he didnt understand how if no one has ever even heard of the name Jesus, how can they believe, and if He is the only way, how is that fair? these are the kinds of questions that our society asks aaallll the time, and i told him a few times throughout the conversation that i simply dont have all the answers for him. i'll continue to seek and learn, but i ask for your prayer. for myself, that the Lord would continually reveal to me the ways in which He sees things, and how I can then explain that to others. and most of all, please pray for all of the people here. the people that God has created are all so wonderful and unique, and i am so exited to get to know them. 

loveyoubunches=]

87 Days.

87 days until the Boston Marathon. im getting exited.

theres a countdown in a running shop across from the finish line on boylston that i pass every day. that ones for you daddy. =]

so remember that pop/rock/country lab i was so stoked about for today? yea, not so stoked anymore. turns out that its basically a performance class...which isn't so bad, but its a full out performance in front of only your class. which is 10 people. im not kidding. since i have been little, small groups and singing freak me out. they just always have. its more intimate, more seemingly judgemental. something i need to let go of, because they are my own ideas and inhibitions about the situation. but at any rate, i am required (for this class) to prepare and memorize a pop/rock/country piece every week, with sheet music for the pianist. it's like mini-american idol. oh Heaven help me. it just seems so different for me becuase all eyes are on me, and on the song.... it's so different than what i am used to, and what i want to do. but even in CCM i'll need to balance performance with worship.... but i know that it will be great experience for me. Berklee is going to do that in so many ways for me...prepare me and make me a much better musician all around, which is why im here. wow anna, way to state the obvious.........

my vocal lesson was great. ive only taken 6 lessons before coming here, and they were in the summer. she was a great teacher, and i learned a lot in just those 6 sessions. my vocal coach this semester is super nice. i sang At Last by Etta James for her just so she would get to know how my voice was. i had never sang it before then, but it was fun, and went pretty smoothly considering. its encouraging to know that everyone here is here for music. and when im on the 3rd floor of the 1140 building, everyone is pretty much there for voice. i feel like i can let loose a little more, because everyone else is doing the same thing. its pretty neat if i do say so myself.

last night, i had yet another opportunity to talk about faith with someone. my roomate and i had a friend come over for a movie night. we watched across the universe, which was very good by the way, and then afterwards, i dont even know how it came up, but we started talking about faith and why he(our friend) decided that he could call himself agnostic more than anything really. at first he said he was catholic. then jewish. i was confused. but he said something that really struck me. he said that he wasnt sure of an afterlife, and in all honesty, didnt care that much. so in that case, whatever choices he was presented with here on earth, he was going to choose whatever it was that made him happy.... my heart just broke when he said that! throughout our entire conversation i was just asking for wisdom, and for the Lord to place words into my mouth to say to him, but in the end i just told him very simply what i stood for, in and inviting and loving way. we both agreed on some things, like how the division of Christianity is sort of annoying, but in all reality, if you know who God is, know He died to save your life, loves you, and you love Him??? then i'm a pretty happy camper, and we can discuss the other things. 

but if you think of my friend pray. all of my friends really. but i get along really well with this kid, and the deep conversation started so quickly, so i know that we can talk more. i dont want to "convert" anyone. that's not what my life is about. i want to love them, and through that i want them to discover that there really is something bigger and better than the things here, which i too have very much experienced,  only bring empty living. so it sounds sort of flowerchildish, with all my love talk, but just pray for a softening of hearts here. and continual experiences like those of last night. i am only close with one Christian girl here (who is completely awesome and her placing in my life is 100% by the hand of God, but i'll talk about her later =] ) my enitre life as it is right now is a complete and total, very obvious, mission field.  i am so exited of how my Jesus is using me. and so exited for what He has in store for His people here. pray for the lost. 

loveyoubunches =]

Rock N Roll.

if he wants to rock he rocks

if he wants to roll he rolls

he can roll with the punches 

long as he feels like he's in control

if he wants to stay he stays

if he wants to go he goes

he doesnt care how he gets there

long as he gets somewhere he knows.

eric hutchinson. boom. outta here.

so. i have been very spoiled. there is a gym in the very next building to mine, so i am very quickly becoming friends with the guys at the front desk..because i go a lot. i may or may not loose it if i didnt exercise. dont believe me? have you seen my "dance pants" video on facebook? that my friends is the fine, fine product of Anna deprived of running for a long amount of time. ahem-back to subject. i woke up early this morning to go running, and as i was running, about halfway through a man wearing a blue shirt came into my peripheral vision. i just kept running, listening to Merideth Andrew's new album, but was very quickly distracted. this guy, my inspiration for the day, and probably a constant reminder in my life, was blind. blind. first of all, kudos to him for working out. second, he's blind, and making his way to an arc trainer machine himself--he's in a gym, without anyone to explain things to him,, the only thing he has with him is his stick. i watched him pass in front of me, his right hand sliding over the right side of one machine, then the left, right, left, right left, until he finally found the machine he wanted to use, and folded up his stick. at that point i began to look ahead again and thought about it for a while, admiring his diligence, and then went back into my zone. a few minutes later, he got off of his machine, pulled out his stick (im sorry if there is an actual name for them... im just ignorant.) and walked past me, making his way to the paper towels and sanatizers. 

this is where God swooped in, in all His gentle mysteriousness and creativity, and opened my eyes. i am an extreeeemely visional person, so i know, without a doubt, that He places things in my life, both in my mind and my daily occurences, to help make sense of things. 

i watched the red pole wave left to right as he moved forward, and i was in awe. he has complete and total faith in it. he walks boldly. he trusts himself with the end of that stick. and if it should come in contact with some sort of object in front of him, hes warned, and slows down, and moves out of the way. the whole analogy of the faith of a blind man became so much more real to me. imagine if we truly lived our lives with the faith of a blind man. like our Father was the end of that pole, always guiding, looking out, protecting, steering us in the right and wrong directions, and we walked very boldly, completely trusting, behind it. now imagine if the blind man held his walking stick by his side, and continued to walk. how would he know where to go? how would he know what to avoid? how could he be protected? i think that this is an insanely simple, yet perfect analogy of how we try to live our lives. Jesus is at the end of the pole, being our fearless leader, and we are trying to be right next to Him. how does that make any sense whatsoever? we're only going to cause ourselves a lot of hurt, and a lot of confusion. what if we truly had the faith of a blind man, and werent in control, and werent sure we knew of where we were going? i just love the fact that i am a visual learner-its makes for insanely instructive people watching.

as for school--its a pretty unreal experience. Berklee is located (mainly) on Massachusetts Ave. there are a few other buildings, with a group of them on the very next block on the intersecting street. the entire section of massave on this block is overflowing with skinny jeans, thick rimmed glasses, emo/urban hats, starbucks cups, guitars on backs, and truth be told, a lot-ALOT of cigarettes. Berklee totally dominates this section of Boston. it's like pollock or curtain road. except every single person is a musician. it's the coolest experience. as for my classes? the ones i've had so far are probably some of the most dry i'll have while im here, but i am still so iterested! for some of these kids, im sure they're hating it because they've already learned most of it. for me...well liek i said, in all actuallity, im musically retarded. so far i've had writing skills (which is just a class on how to actually write music, which i already know a lot of, but i'm still learning more.) ear training one, and harmony one--which will be extremely influential classes for me, so im pretty stoked to take them. i have intro to music tech tomorrow, my vocal lesson, and writing skills again. on friday i have my pop/rock/country lab, which i am so so stoked about, and then on monday, amongst other classes, im starting my ensemble with my friend tara from santa barbra--that is neat=]

also-im trying to find a way to work as a volunteer at the childrens hospital down the stree. so if you think of it pray---i have this vision of using the friends i have here at Berklee to play music for the kids there. if all i can do it chill with them, watch cartoons or do crafts, thats cool too. but as far as i know, there arent any programs that Berklee has which do that, and i think that music is something that they would just love. music is a relational business.

wonderful isn't it?

Frodo goes to Mordor, Anna goes to Boston.

welp, today, i did absolutely nothing.

my printer and i are currently caught up in a rather heated tiff..... he's redeculous. so now im royally miffed. 

i have a talent for defeating in animate objects however, so dont worry.

kudos to dad for the title. 

loveyoubunchesbye!

For You, i sing, i dance. I rejoice in this Divine Romance.

Phil Wickham is a genius. i could end right then and there. 

but, lets be real.

also, in knowing that this entry is titled with a Phil song, you should know how the rest of this is going...........

my first weekend here has been completely and totally incredible. so much music. so much diversity. so much talent. so much knowledge. so much learning. so much laughing. so much fun.

so much of my Father continually revealing Himself. so much of His sweet whispers in my ear. so much encouragement. so many opportunities. it is so mind boggling how much He has been working. do you realize that i have been here just one week, and yet there has not been one day, not one day, where He hasn't given me an opportunity to blatantly share His story, His opportunity, His life and love. every single day since my family left, i have had a conversation (short or long) with one, or multiple people about who He is, and what He is about. how incredible. completely, and totally mind blowing-i just can't believe it. and the beauty of all of it is that people are genuinely interested. they are seeking. they are very willing to talk, and usually bring it up. now, that is probably the good work of my Jesus, making things easier on me to start, but at any rate, there are opportunities for people to discover the character of my Jesus! how exiting=]

as i write this, i wonder how often those opportunities really are there every day, and we pass them by. (sidenote, i totally just had a scene from Pirates of the Caribbean flash through my mind, where Jack Sparrow talks about seeing the moments of being a good man...seeing the and liking to wave to them as they pass by... how true=]) is this because we are too busy, unwilling, or worse in my opinion, using only our own eyes to see the world, and are therefore blinded by what it is that He is really trying to show us? i feel as though the last one is  the most probable. so if you remember, pray that they hearts of the people here would be yearning-and that they would find it in Him, and if He choses to use me, how blessed am i!! (dude, that was so King James of me right there....)

i am very quickly realizing that there are probably veeeery few people here that share the same vision as i do for music. the sort of"motto" i guess you could say that i have taken with this whole journey "Ministry First"--i felt like it encompassed everything all in one, to remember that my Father always comes first, and from that His people, and their lives, stories, hearts, and relationships, and then music. music is the outlet that i've chosen, or rather been called to, in order to see all of this come to fruition. but in this Ministry First philosophy, i am noticing that not many people here share the specific vision of seeing all this come through contemporary Christian music. i have been fortunate enough to have met some pretty cool Christian kids already, and very musically talented, but no one yet who pictures themselves going in the same place that i do--CCM. they all want to live lives worthy of His name, and use music to that, but not directly into the industry like i do. (another sidenote- i may or may not be the only lover of pop music here, which could be an elhugo reason why no one wants to go to contemporary Christian. i mean, who doesnt like a little mmmbop???) hmmm. but then again, God is God and i am not, and however He wants to use me and music together to call to His people, i will do so gladly=] (easy to say now, huh?)

and even still, its early. only a few weeks in. something  i learned over the summer is that His timing is perfect. it wasnt an easy lesson, but suuuuuuch and important one. so right now im taking it one step at a time, loving people, listening to His voice and His gentle nudges, focusing on what i can do in the here and now, and what i can learn and how i can improve musically. starting classes on tuesday, which are insanely sick by the way. ear training 1, harmony 1, pop/rock/country vocal lab, rhythm ensemble, intro to music tech....and some others. ha-be so jealous. what are you taking? oh, econ? id rather give myself a swirly, thanks.

thanks for putting up with this slightly bipolar entry.

and sorry that they're always so long.

but thanks for following and caring.

loveyoubunchesbye!

Dude. That is so legit.

we had Convocation today.

usually extremely boring.

but wait.... we had a rock concert. yea thats whats up. actually, it was a pretty eccentric meeting.... we had the usual, "Welcome to our school" speeches, but then afterwards, they invited the new entering class by showing off some of the school's talent, which was, if i may say-legit. straight legit. no going around it. a vocal student, graduating in '11, gave a short speech, and then she did short set during the show afterwards. myspace.com/emilyelbert  she has incredible talent. probably the best female guitarist i've seen, and apparently voted one of '08's best new artists? sick.

from listening to the speakers, and watching everyone's talent, i was reminded yet again of how completely incredible it is to be here. and i keep asking myself why i am here. and when i do, i know, deep within all that i am, that this is where i am supposed to be. i feel so unworthy do be here, in all honesty. but that's where God so gently whispers in my ear and reminds me that that is why He's God, and im not. =] 

apparently, there were only three hundred fifty students granted admission this semester.... so unreal. Berklee is this incredible melting pot, full of immense creativity and stylistic differences. i've noticed that in my general makeup, i tend to take little bits of things i enjoy and somehow apply them to myself, whether thats in fashion, music, or people i honor and respect. i think that this is extremely applicable within Berklee.... everyone brings a little something, and it is so exiting! taking bits of everything, and puting them together, to make one, united, completely original and unique sound. how is that not awesome? 

it's going to be a very interesting semester=]

loveyoubunchesbye!

Free Fallin.

she's a good girl, loves her mama

loves Jesus.

and America too.

shes a good girl,

crazy bout elvis.

loves horses,

and her boyfriend too.

John Mayer's version of this is rediculous. before you keep reading. stop- and go listen to it. now. hes sick. oh, and yea, did i mention he went to Berklee?? (for a little ;] ) hmmpf. im finished with that plug for today. =]

"We should jam sometime" has been officially added to my vocabulary and daily conversation. tara and i sat with tara and mariah at a meeting this morning with the heads of the 4 departments, and sat next to a kid, Dan, who is here for guitar. nice guy. from Nashville. we talked for only a short while before those four words came from his mouth....how inevitable.

inevitability.... it really follows me. which, i suppose is completely reasonable, right? i've discovered that i have been completely submersed into a world which i was, in a way, running away from all my life until now. i am surrounded by music nerds. i'll try to explain...i'm not unthankful, it is an incredible thing to have people playing and singing, constantly, all around you, and you know they understand when you just start singing, loudly!, and then they join in with harmonies.... its a cool fit. a cool niche, to have this entire part of me finally feel a little more accepted, understood i suppose. music kids can be a different breed. but where the running away and inevitability comes in is with looking at the music itself.... one, theory is rediculous, which i found out today because i answered maaaaaybe 20 questions on my harmony/arranging exam? pfft. but there was a point in the day today where i was to the right of the piano, trying to nail down an alto 2 part with my friends, and realized that i was with the chorus kids. the band kids. and to be completely serious?- i hated it.i dont mean that in a stereotypical type of dislike....its just that i dont really find it fun to talk about augmented intervals and perfect 4ths, 5ths, ten billions, i dont even know.  i was never the girl to goof around with the choral director, or get in random clicks in class and start singing out pieces from the spring concert on thursday night, or debate which part was which, when it split from the other ones, or what beat went to what lyric.....i wasnt that kid. i'm the kid thats going to go back to high school and everyone's pants will fall to their ankles when they hear whatever it is that comes out of my mouth. im the kid that breezed through high school by talking a whole heck of a lot, and laughing... not the kid that did a whole lot of music, at least, not in school. but God wanted it that way, and He wants it this way now.

it's interesting to look back at the way my life has panned out. i didnt like chorus then, and honestly, i still i dont really like it now. i suppose it's more the idea that comes along with it. but let me tell you, Berklee is very quickly changing perspectives on anythign music. it's really an insanely awesome place for anyone who likes music. i realized that deciding to be with only the worship team really allowed me to expand, to explore, to sort of, come into my own. but i love to sing. i love music. i love when people learn and live through music. and that is all that matters. i will be stretched, and i am willing, i am exited. 

as for boston today, stinkin cold. biting cold. stings. like a million tiny little dust mites that magically grew pinchers, and they're all pinching your face at the same time. gooooooood times. also, im finally keeping my guitar in my hands as long as possible, and my left hand fingers are feelin it, so typing is a strange feeling. i mean, just FYI. 

i thought of the ACFers tonight.   7:46   8:16    9:27    ---the times i looked at the clock and pictured worship with the lights out... small group with the creepy old man and women staring at us from their frames on the walls, meghan and phils rediculously sarcastic banter, an empty noise which i realized was A-the lack of Phil's sarcasm to something stupid that i would have said, B-the lack of my noise/space filling banter that slips all to frequently from my mouth like word vomit, or C-on the way up to small group, Phil fell down the stairs, where he then knocked robbie down 3 flights, flew off the rail, into the drinking fountain, and caused a flood, and therefore no small groups.

ehh-havent decided yet. but i like the name carter, so maybe its c. 

loveyoubunchesbye!

cockney accents, music nerds, and mourning the loss of tivo.

very superstitious..... writings on the walllll.... very superstitious, letters bout to fallll.....

steeeeeeeeevvvviiiiiieeeeeeeeeeee. yupyup. great.

um, rocking the stevie wonder right now.  yup. so went there. 

so, uh, boston. kinda sweet. tara, my roomate, is seriously awesome. we laugh all the time, and both of us are pretty easily excitable so its a pretty positive environment all around. yayness for being happy. oh wait-school hasnt actually started.... but on that note. i had my orientation today, at least the first day. which was a ridiculous whirlwind. it made me appriciate going to a big university where everyone is real legit. pahh-not that Berklee kids arent... but the staff organization is terrrrible. as of last week i still wasnt an official student, and as of this morning, berklee hadnt recieved any money, and so i wasnt going to take any classes tuesday.... but, horray for persistance and sparkly eyes and smiling. taha-i kid i kid. i really jsut asked a lot of questions. it literally took one click of a button to fix all of my problems. i have my new computer, and am ready to go for classes on tuesday.

i have my placement examinations tomorrow, and placement auditions. the examinations are simple. ill take them, they'll tell me i am musically retarded, i'll say "i know", and be oh so quickly put into every level one class that ever existed. which, i am extremely not worried about. i hung out with a bunch of other girl vocalists tonight at my new friend tara's apartment (not my roomate, different tara.) and they were all speaking some foriegn language to me... it was pretty insane. one of the girls, mariah, looked right at me when i told her i had never taken any theory, and didnt really do any chorus or music classes in high school, and her eyes got huuuge, and said, rather loud and surprised, "how did you get in??!?!?!"

this, my friends, is the question that i have been asking since september. God's hand is so involved, and He is so deliberate about His will coming to fruition, and His love and Name being discovered. ---How mysterious, and good He is.

we had meetings tonight with our peer advisors and a then there were other students in my group, most of them transfers like me. we had so much fun! i realized that i was surrounded, not only my music nerds, but some of the most eclectic people. ever. eathan, from rhode island, didnt say much at all. sat quietly in the corner of our sortofsemi horseshoe, hands folded, fingers intertwined, resting on his legs, ankles crossed. he wore the classic black skinny denim jean, with a bright yellow shirt and black hoodie, and thick, square, black rimmed glasses that matched the same color of his wavy hair that had been in a hat way too long.  if you cant tell, he was one of my favorites of the group. he was one of those kids that didn't say a whole lot, but when he did, it was epic. hilarious. sort of reminded me of emily, my sister. he had a dry humor, and just a goofy look and laugh, but man oh man was he awesome. 

speaking of awesome-my second person of which i was particularly fond of was a boy, sammuel (um, just for reference, there were only two girls in my group. myself and moriah that i wrote of earlier. im not boycrazed, just religiously outnumbered here.) sammuel is from london. so of courses, i was immediately captivated by anything he said. he said to words and i flew my hands in the air, in front of the entire group, and shouted very happily, "i looooove your accent!!" he smiled, laughed, and said, well i guess i'll just talk more then." baaaaah. so loverly. anyway, he had a very obvious cockney accent, which in turn led to an entire conversation on accents in the united states and his recent taking to the American saying "awesome" and "rad". apparently we sound cool when we say awesome. he made our peer advisor say it a few times. good times all around. they're a really cool, eccentric group. we're having some group activities this semester, so we'll see eachother more=]

afterwards, i met up with tara, tara, and moriah was in my group (coincidentally, the other tara and moriah are roomates) and we went back to tara and moriah's place to watch idol and look over sight reading....... this is where my love and lack of tivo kicked in. i've been mourning the loss of tivo for a few days now. what a wonderful thing. really, truly. tivo is boss. 

we were interrupted a few times, and traveled to other rooms a few times to look over some things for tomorrow, but theres really no reason for me to look at things. like i said earlier---in all reality, im musically retarded. God gave me a gift, but it's certainly not showing on paper quite yet. but thats why im here. 

as of tomorrow, for my placement audition, i think ive decided on "walkin in memphis" and "how deep the Father's love for us". it'll be a good time. in every step i take, even as small as a placement piece, i want to be continually reminded who i am living for, who is my life, who is the love of my life. that's why i chose the second one. It's all about Jesus, if not, it's all for nothing.

as for my Jesus...my goodness-He never, ever, ceases to be faithful. and He is speaking, in pretty unreal ways right now. its been exiting. but in all of what He is doing, and in all of the prayers He has answered, doors He has opened, and promises He has made, i know that right now, i will live in the here and now. i have 4 months here, to dedicate my time to become a much better vocalist and musician. along that journey i know that my Father will mold me, shape me, prepare me for the ministry which He is calling me to. so i suppose, pray for that-that i would become to see the world through the eyes of our Jesus, but more importantly, pray for the people who will hear whatever it is the Lord is preparing musically in my life. pray for the lost. we need to love them. really love them. pray for a discovery in their hearts, and a return of prodigal sons and daughters all over the world to hear their Father's voice call to them. 

Live. Pray. Love.

Loveyoubunches

Anna=]

Boston.

at my church, we have these services called "Unplugged" services-and they are by far one of my favorite things about my church. i love the people, the community, the family and the learning it brings, but the Unplugged services are really special to me. stripping everything away, keeping only an acoustic guitar and a couple of voices- it's so refreshing. one of the things that my Jesus really desires is that i come to Him with a genuine heart. i feel like sometimes unplugged services get me back to that. to take everything but our hearts, and His heart, out of things. there is so much beauty in simplicity. i recently made a playlist on my itunes and titled it unplugged---naturally it's filled with supremely chill songs about my favorite topic of all time, Jesus. =] im listening to it right now, and it seriously awesome. playing right now is Nichole Nordeman's version of We Fall Down--incredible. check it out. 

so, that first paragraph pretty much describes my mood right now. just very ready to let my pen and pages of my journal get together and just be.

as for life? i am in boston. and it isnt much colder than home. when the sun goes down in the evening however, and the wind is still going, it's bitter, bitter cold. the kind of wind that stings. fun times. we are starting to get some snow too. which is exiting. i want to go take some pictures in the park across the street tomorrow. snow and photography are like peanut butter and jelly. they were just made for each other. speaking of the park, the area that im living in is pretty sweet. i really like it a lot. there are a couple movie theaters right down the street, along with the Ritz-Carlton, chinatown is a few block behind me, a dunkin donuts on either side of my block, a starbucks right in my building, with a fitness club in the very next building. i am so spoiled! i have pretty much anything i need right here. besides Berklee of course. which is probably about a 20 minute walk... but i havent ridden the train yet to see how long it is on there. but its ok. i like to walk. more time to think and people watch. people watching is a seriously enjoyable activity. speaking of people! theres a homeless shelter or some kind of help for the needy down the street which i am stoked about helping with. God has really put it on my heart to really help the needy lately. i am so completely blessed, people need love, and need to see the love He has, and i want to help=] 

my apartment itself is completely adorable. and phil, if you're reading this, there's a fireplace=] there are crazy high ceilings, (i just spelled that with an "s" and spell check came in and told me i was stupid and changed it. just FYI.) which is fantastic. im actually writing this from my extra high loft bed, with the lights turned off, using my little mini-clip light. emilys asleep on the floor, and she gets crabby when shes sleepy. who doesn't. really? also- fun fact. emily has officially slept with Joe Jonas for the past two nights. how scandalous! (no offense Joseph.)  i received an incredibly sparkly, beyond tacky Camp Rock pillow with Joe's face on it for Christmas....it's a bit of a running joke in our familia. long story......

we were all really tired today. we looked at some properties, and then ate some foodage around 2 or 3, and then shopped and walked all down boylston until we were home! then, we were actually so lame as to literally sit around from 6o'clock until 8 or 830, where we all proceded to fall asleep on the air mattress in the middle of the living room! what fuddy duddies. my goodness. mom stayed awake and followed the meet. gooooo PSU! but at any rate. i am here. i am safe. its cute, entirely overstocked with food, couchandchairless, but home. at least, for 4 months.  

hmmmm. my pages are calling. and my Bible. thanks for praying. 

loveyoubunchesbye!

v-neck tees and mix CDs.

so i have only a few days left. im off to boston on friday. as of right now its only my mom and myself, so, the trip up and the actual move in will be a challenging task in itself. but nevertheless we'll get up there and somehow try to make the apartment cute. as of the here and now, break has been loverly. for the past few days my brain has been working on overdrive. which is great. for a writer, or just someone who really enjoys writing, a few things always work to your advantage. if youre c.s. lewis its being a brainiack. if youre j.k. rowling its having an overimaginative mind. or, if youre me, or King David, it's emotion. its probably a musician thing too. writing, especially in lyrics, is really like a vent for me. a vent, or a healer. in reality, Jesus is my healer. but there are some htings that i need to write out to discover about the state of my own heart. thats where music comes in. 

this past semester was a tough one. but the beauty of it is that God is so good, and so incredibly faithful, and dispute our own views,  His timing is perfect. so i know that He has a plan for me in Berklee, taking me just the way i am. pretty sweet huh. what did we do to deserve Him??

but anways, back to the music. i realized that this whole semseters collection of music that i had written was completely emo. and in a seriously bad way. so i decided that the i needed to convey teh same message that i was trying to get across, and trying to vent out, but in a happy way. so i came up with the most fun, summertime song, but it still sends out the same message. i've had the this lyrical phrase stuck in my head that ive been dying to use in a song "v-neck tees and mix CD's" because they are some of my favorite things- they make me happy. along with those summer nights that shine like a million little diamonds-you know the ones that look like a bazillion engagement rings resting in deep blue velvet? or in the summer when i always drive with teh windows down. and wear one of the ten girly white tank tops i have...... its a really fun song. and im exited to get it all finished=] 

in the big scope of things, such a small change can be applied in a seriously big way to our lives. pastor aaron said soemthing a few weeks ago that really made me look at my life in a new way. what if we continually asked for our perspectives of our lives and situations to be replaced with God's perspective? everything does a 180. brandon heath's song "give me your eyes" is so perfect. check it out if you can. i feel like this is a never ending lesson. dont you? but thats whats so great about our Jesus-He is relentless. and kind of my favorite.=]