Hello Sole.

I’m seeing the sights through a loving camera’s...

Wed, 30 May 2012 09:13:12 -0500

I’m seeing the sights through a loving camera’s eye.

Italia! The first transmission.

Mon, 28 May 2012 09:55:36 -0500

Whoa, hello there, blog! I’ve been in Italy for about a week now, and I’m getting used to the spotty Internet situation. As I begin posting my writings, I apologize for the significant delay. Below is something I penned on my last flight. Enjoy!

It’s been a long day: from waking up at 5:15 a.m. to shower, dress and eat breakfast; my parents and Cameron dropping me off at the airport (which seems like a million years ago, naturally); catching two connection flights (one with a significant delay); and - perhaps this should be the money shot - doing all of the flight stuff on my own, for the very first time.

I’m already very proud of myself.

The whole trip has been a maelstrom of emotions. As my parents drove me to the airport, the sun was peeking over the valleys and cornfields with an eager and reassuring face. Sunlight in pinks and dawn peaches spilled in through the car windows.

And then there was the radio. Like a cheesy movie from the mid-90’s, Coldplay’s “Paradise” ended up making me happy-weepy in the backseat.

Here I was, going to that place I’d dreamed of, fulfilling my wanderlust. Going to Italy, not just seeing pictures in a textbook or online or my dreams - going.

Maybe it’s just because I’m a huge softie-smushball, but I had a similar reaction on my second flight this afternoon. As we touched down in Chicago, I was making mental notes of where my next flight gate would be in relation to our destination. Then it hit me: the flight I’m taking in Chicago is taking me to Italy.

Why is this so hard for me to believe? I have no idea.

I’m a pretty big believer of most things - aliens, chakras, palm readings, luck and superstition. Not Italy, obviously.

I kid.

But honestly, I cannot wrap my mind-space around the idea that in eight and a half hours I’ll be sitting in one of the world’s oldest cities and eating breakfast.

Toodles for now, lovelies. There’s no Internet signal up here in the air - although there is tea and fantastic istruzioni in Italiano - so this will probably be posted after I land. Follow me on Twitter @hellosole to see more current updates.

Obviously I made to Italy, but what now? I’ll be posting more frequently, stay tuned for pictures and updates. Hope everyone’s enjoying their summer!

Running away in my sleep.

Tue, 15 May 2012 22:57:41 -0500

It’s officially less than four days until I’ll be in Italy.

Maybe it’s because I’m endlessly sappy and have a habit of romanticizing damn near everything, but something about this trip begged for an intention. When you begin yoga practice, most instructors will invite the class - warm, vulnerable, committed - to devote the moment to something or someone.

Honestly, most aspects of planning this study abroad venture have been terrible. I don’t know how I did well in my classes while making such a spectacular amount of phone calls, emails and trips to the (off campus) International Office.

The whole thing was a bit of a fiasco. It continues to be so.

And then I listened - really listened - to this song on the radio.

When she was just a girl, she expected the world
but it flew away from her reach, so she ran away in her sleep -
and dreamed of paradise, paradise, paradise
every time she closed her eyes.

My intention? Finally realizing that place that I’ve been running away to - finally seeing il paradiso mio.

Watch Coldplay’s Paradise below.

Speak - Carrie (Official Music Video) I’ve officially...

Fri, 11 May 2012 11:29:00 -0500

Speak - Carrie (Official Music Video)

I’ve officially finished everything for the semester, and I’m so excited to start off my summer with a Mother Falcon / Speak show tomorrow night. Kayla and I will be going, so if you’re there, be sure to say hey!

Want to read more about these guys? Check out this review.
Also: stay tuned for a Mother Falcon viddy tomorrow!

The Weekly Walt: "What am I, After All?"

Wed, 09 May 2012 15:27:31 -0500

The Weekly Walt is a weekly series that includes a poem from Walt Whitman.

What am I, after all, but a child, pleas’d with the sound of my own name?
repeating it over and over;
I stand apart to hear - it never tires me.

To you, your name also;
Did you think there was nothing but two or three pronunciations in the sound of
your name?

232. “What am I, After All?,” from the 1900 edition of Leaves of Grass.

Dare alla luce - a sweet and necessary rebirth.

Tue, 08 May 2012 22:25:00 -0500

As I was playing my ukulele (Clementine!) earlier, I had a horrifying realization: today is the eighth of May, which means I’m leaving for Italy in ten days.

Which means tomorrow the countdown is going to be in the single digits.

As I described in my Good Things post, I’ve never traveled internationally alone. Hell, I’ve never driven across the state alone.

But in ten days, I’ll be getting on a plane (several, really) and flying to Rome, from which I’ll be driven to Perugia to take classes on creative writing and photography.

This summer I’m running away. Or, at least, I think so.

To be honest, the whole thing seems like some fantasy dream that’s going to dissipate the night before. Maybe it’s because I’ve daydreamed of this scenario so many times: walking on sun drenched cobblestone streets, ordering un gelato, per favore, hearing the flapping of sweetly drying laundry above my head. How about seeing the Trevi fountain where Sylvia and Marcello held each other? Or fields of sunflowers?

Or the churches, or the art, or - God, help me - the food.

It’s all I can do to go to sleep at night out of excitement.

It’s Doosday Tuesday yet again! This picture cracks me up...

Tue, 08 May 2012 21:37:04 -0500

It’s Doosday Tuesday yet again! This picture cracks me up because Doo’s hiding beneath the camera lens the way she usually would with any cuddle-worthy blanket.

There are so many thoughts bouncing around in my head this week....

Mon, 07 May 2012 13:51:57 -0500

There are so many thoughts bouncing around in my head this week. How do you cope when you’re stressed? Do you have a ritual that helps you calm down?

Send your answers to mail@kaylamoses.com and I’ll feature you in a post!

Good Things: May Edition.

Mon, 07 May 2012 12:59:29 -0500

Good Things is a monthly series in which I highlight a theme for the month focused on a single facet of personal growth.

It seems April has taken its leave, and now we’re left with May. May, May.

This month has me by the shoulders, and it’s shaking me out of my senses - definitely a continuation of April’s Good Things theme: Follow your heartlines.

And where have my heartlines led me? A creative retreat, a harem - Italy.

In fifteen days, barely over two weeks, I’ll be sitting on a plane flying from Chicago to Rome. From there I’ll be lost in l’aeroporto until someone comes to save me. I keep having to work through that situation in my head: You are going to a place that doesn’t speak English. You are going to be alone, responsible for all your own bags, tickets and money; your cell phone will cost more to turn on than your usual Chai habit.

Oh, Christ.

It’s taken me a few days to decide how I should frame this month. This gaping, horrifyingly exciting trip is yawning before me like a haven, but I’m quaking in my loafers.

Well, there it is.

May’s Good Things theme? Fear not.

I have to admit, this intention is paradoxical: Part of what makes taking a risk worthwhile is the fear involved. Once you’ve acclimated yourself to your fear, your confidence soars - you can do anything.

A few weeks ago I called my mother in a flighted frenzy, trying to understand if I needed a work visa and how I was going to read signs at said l’aeroporto. Everything in front of me on the road was sort of a greenish-mustard color. I was that girl - the one who had literally made herself ill with worry.

I sobbed into the phone, “Ma, I can’t do this. I just can’t. It’s too much: school, and my thesis, and my job at the paper, and trying to figure out who I am, and trying to get published, and now I’ve got Italy! And how am I going to pay for any of this? What am I going to do? What if I can’t remember any of my Italian? What if my thesis proposal gets rejected? Maybe I just shouldn’t go.”

And she sat through the whole thing, because - being my mother - she’s the Patron Saint of Anxious Young Women.

Her sage advice?

“Fine then, don’t go. We’ll only have lost your program deposit. You can just take summer classes, relax, you know?”

And that’s all I needed. Suddenly it became clear to me: I needed this trip. I needed to run away; I needed to be scared.

Sometimes fear is the most beautiful of motivators. And as much as I’m horrified by the idea of traveling internationally alone, I’m also so ready to respect myself for being so independent. I’m ready to walk down city streets and hear Italian spoken by Italians. I’m ready to write in the hills, surrounded by girasoli.

And I’ll stomach this fear to get there.

Apologies for this being a week into May! My finals schedule has definitely superseded my blogging intentions. No worries; I’m all done on Friday afternoon.

Vampire Weekend - Cousins (Official Music Video) Whenever it...

Thu, 03 May 2012 11:56:28 -0500

Vampire Weekend - Cousins (Official Music Video)

Whenever it starts to warm up outside in the Spring semester, my first inclination is to turn on Vampire Weekend. Their music has such a summery, prep-school holiday feel. Pop your collars, folks; let’s ditch our finals and go play tennis at the country club.

Or we can just listen to Contra and wear a blazer and get all of the same feelings.

The Weekly Walt: "Debris."

Wed, 02 May 2012 07:29:34 -0500

The Weekly Walt is a weekly series that includes a poem from Walt Whitman.

He is wisest who has the most caution,
He only wins who goes far enough.

Any thing is as good as established, when that is established that will produce it and continue it.

307. “Debris,” from the 1900 edition of Leaves of Grass.

Vintage Finds: the Minnie Mouse dress.

Tue, 01 May 2012 17:36:09 -0500

Although I’ve tried to make Hello Sole. as representative of myself as possible, I’ve found over the past two months that there’s one thing I’ve never broached in blogging: fashion. That said, I’m a bit of a vintage geek. It’s not out of character to see me in a thrifted wool skirt from 1940 on a regular school day. Red lips, either. But that’s another story altogether!

So! Expect some posts in the future about vintage stylings and thrifting in Austin. Most of my best finds so far - the grey skirt from ‘45, for example - have been from Goodwill. This beauty only cost me fourteen dollars (level up!) at Buffalo Exchange. It was too happy to put down and absolutely tugged at my heartstrings: when I was about five years old, I had a dress in the exact color and pattern that was my favorite of all time. My parents took a vacation to Mexico to go diving that summer, and I wore it when my aunt and I met them at the airport. Now I can relive that adorable memory whenever I please!

Also: can we talk about how completely perfect this messenger bag is? It fits my 11-inch Macbook Air, so I can finally blog on the run in style! And it’s so very Italian-chic. I can’t wait to tote it around on my European adventures! I can fit a watercolor set, my sketchbook and an extra DSLR lens in there, for sure.

Dress, unnamed vintage - $14.00 at Buffalo Exchange.
Shoes, Seychelles - $18.00 at Buffalo Exchange.
Leather messenger bag, unnamed vintage - $15.00 at Buffalo Exchange.
Pooch, the Doofus.

The last photograph is my parents holding a squishy five-year-old version of myself in my most favorite green dress. See the resemblance?

Like this first vintage fashion spread? Let me know in the comments or like the post on Facebook! Thanks, guys.

It’s Doosday Tuesday! Me and the weenie are cheesin’.

Tue, 01 May 2012 17:00:44 -0500

It’s Doosday Tuesday! Me and the weenie are cheesin’.

I’m pleased to report that as of BlogathonATX, I’ve...

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 13:38:41 -0500

I’m pleased to report that as of BlogathonATX, I’ve set up a Facebook page for the blog. I’ll like you if you’ll like me! Apologies for the pun, y’all. That was totally uncalled for.

Eventually we all grow up - but you, first.

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:52:00 -0500

As a preface to this post, I’d like to introduce Kayla, not myself, obviously - one of my best friends that I met through my fraternity. We always joke that we’re the same person because we’re both English majors at the University of Texas named Kayla. But it’s so much more that than that:

It’s the last two weeks of school, folks. May is such a home stretch. No one - and I mean no one, professors or students or assistants alike - enjoys the final fourteen days of finals, all the studying and endless coffee runs followed by frantic bathroom breaks.

This year is even more stressful because not only am I wrapping up the course material from my third year of college, that same statement also means I’m headed into my final year of school: the dreaded senior year.

Many people can bypass this horrifying set of semesters by taking an extra year (is a fifth-year senior as anxious as a four-year? Maybe that’s a misjudgment) or, in the case of my fellow Hermiones, by graduating early.

One of my best friends of all time is graduating in two weeks, on the day I leave for Italy.

I honestly can’t wrap my mind around her imminent college graduation. And not just hers - mine, as well. With the onset of 2013, I’ll be staring adulthood in the face beyond my meager mortgage and electric bill. Suddenly I’m in need of a job, a real job, and life skills, like how to change a tire or how not to flood my kitchen when the temperature drops below zero.

It may go without saying, but those examples are explicitly specific because I am so screwed at adulthood, guys.

Luckily I’ve got a year to figure my beans out. She, being the goliath-ly cool lady that she is, has totally got her cookies in order. She’s going to be teaching, writing in her spare time, all while maintaining that endlessly lovable dorkiness that makes us soulmates.

I’m so proud of you, Kayla No. 1 - congratulations on your upcoming graduation. Make me proud out there in the real world!

Mixtape Monday is a series where I share a mix on...

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:37:36 -0500

Mixtape Monday is a series where I share a mix on both Spotify and 8Tracks.

Mixtape Monday - Verdegris

1. The Alder Trees - Alela Diane

2. My Wandering Days Are Over - Belle & Sebastian

3. Lover’s Carvings - Bibio

4. Her - Cardinal

5. Green River - Creedence Clearwater Revival

6. Companions - The Dodos

7. Ceremony - Dry the River

8. Caught by the River - Doves

Click through to listen on 8Tracks, or listen to Verdegris on Spotify.

The summer’s creeping up on my part of the city, and the creek behind my house is smelling of old pennies and growth and ivy. Here’s a selection of songs that remind me of its presence.

On living the dream.

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 00:46:14 -0500

Today marked my very first day as an officially published writer.

Something about this experience - sending in my work, having it selected for publication, and then engaging in a public reading today (although it was to a sparse crowd, natch) - feels very organic. Maybe, just maybe, I was meant to be a writer.

Me, posing with my copy of Analecta 38.

Have you ever dreamed something long enough that when it began to materialize, it almost caught you by surprise? I’m living my life to the chronic barks of recognition inside my heart; every so often, something strikes me in the oddest way - you’re living the dream, it murmurs.

I’d love to hear how you felt about your dreams growing up. Feel free to share your story in the comments section!

Finding the quill in the middle: I'm published!

Sat, 28 Apr 2012 14:11:00 -0500

Ernest Hemingway once called a solemn writer a “bloody owl.”

And what constitutes a solemn writer? This concerns me. I’ve read eccentric writers, loving writers - the nihilistic, pessimistic, witty and sardonic. I’ve read writers that give you everything - Whitman, who “contains multitudes,” and then the authors that give you nothing at all (I’m looking your direction, Faulkner).

Now that I’m trying to adopt this identity of being a writer, I’m wondering what it is about writing that constructs the identity of the artist - is it the act of writing? Or is it the finished product?

What does this matter, necessarily? I have news: In early March, I received notice from two journals - the Analecta and HotHouse - that they would like to publish my poetry and short stories. As if that weren’t enough goodness for a budding writer, the Analecta also chose me as their featured prose writer to the tune of one hundred dollars.

So, I’m technically an award-winning, published writer.

Apparently this means I’m also a writer who gives readings, as bizarre as that seems. The first of which (!) will take place tomorrow afternoon from 2:30 to 4 p.m. at the University of Texas in the Student Activity Center (SAC 2.120). I’ll be reading a selection from Blueberry, a fictional prose story. If you really, really love it, you can purchase a copy of the journal (Analecta) for twelve dollars.

So that’s a thing.

Hothouse is also having a reading, hosted at the Austin Farmer’s Market on May 12th. I’m hoping to give more details closer to the event date, but I’d be thrilled to see any Austin readers come to hear!

So what does it mean to find your identity as a writer? Maybe it’s just about finding the quill in your middle: yourself, with a pen.

Enter the dragon: my first time at BlogathonATX.

Sat, 28 Apr 2012 12:07:23 -0500

Perhaps I should preface this post by saying this week has been nothing short of a whirlwind. Final assignments, the last strings with Italy, and friends all prepping for graduation - it’s definitely a headache and a half.

So the blog’s been on the back burner, no surprise there. Ordinarily I’d be frustrated with myself (not to say that I’m not, necessarily) but I’m going to have to chalk the whole thing up to Good Things experience: See the grey.

Remember when I decided to relaunch, back in February? The target was fatiguing, even in my mind’s eye, especially with a student’s schedule and all the elements I wanted to take on. And where am I today? Hanging out with professional bloggers, y’all.

Enter BlogathonATX.

It’s still very early in the day, but so far I’ve met Austin mini-celebrity Hipstercrite, Slave to Fashion (who wants to take my picture, no less!) and spied several other bloggers from around town. Who knew! There’s a fantastic spread of food from around town, as well as a giant room full of really, really geeky folk.

Needless to say, I think I’ve found my people.

Where else can you complain about Google Analytics and post times and - this kills me - boners and still be working?

If you’d like to know more about this event (and what I’m learning; Hermione, engage!), I’ll be posting throughout the day. This crowd is super-social media savvy, so you can also follow @BlogathonATX or #BlogathonATX on Twitter.

Wish me happy blogging, everyone!

It’s Mixtape Monday, and this week I’ve prepared...

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 00:22:00 -0500

It’s Mixtape Monday, and this week I’ve prepared something a little different. Recently I’ve had the chance to listen to four fantastic alt-indie bands - behold, the Indie Round-Up! As I attend more shows, I’m going to try to make this a regular occurrence. For now, here are four fantastic finds:

Every now and then I get the chance to listen to fantastic new music - music that’s even better when it’s native to Austin. Here I’ve included a selection of songs from four bands that I’ve seen live in the past three or so months. And - seriously - everyone on this list is different and equally fabulous. Check them out!

From the serendipity of having awesome friends, these guys played a bit of a house show for my fraternity’s formal earlier this weekend. In all honesty I’d never even heard of Speak before Friday. But the rest of Austin has - they’ve won the Austin Music Award for Best New Band and Best Indie Group. And they played at Austin City Limits Festival. I’m only now really realizing how completely surreal it is that they played for our formal dinner… in a downtown basement. Their most recent album I Believe in Everything (2011) is a synthy-pop jaunt right back into the eighties in an absolutely perfect way. You can purchase their album, check them out on Twitter, add them on Facebook and see them perform via the web.

This bawdy crowd opened for Spoon a few weeks back, and I’ve since been absolutely charmed by their nuttiness. They’re almost an adult version of a teenage garage band - all the noise and rowdiness I’d expect in teenagers, these guys have an edgy humor to their music. Think The Ramones or Joan Jett, but Austin-style.

This band first came on my radar last year when I heard they were playing a show at my favorite art museum, Laguna Gloria. I mean, a museum? That says something about a band. And, in this case, my predictions were accurate: Mother Falcon is an intellectual indulgence. Last night was my first chance to see them live. I was amazed by their mass - some twenty-odd musicians, all classically trained, all swaying and singing and passionate. Their songs are meticulous and feel organic in a universal sense - somewhere in the moment of watching all the brass and wood flash under low lights, I believed the band was somehow an animal. They all breathed together, moved, all played together: saxophones, a mandolin, cellos, guitars, trumpets, flutes, violins. Mother Falcon has a heart. They play shows all over Austin, many of them reasonably priced or free. Come see these guys and lose your senses. They’re online, too: see Twitter and Facebook for an updated show list. A glimpse into their glory:

I first saw these guys during Free Week (January 1st - 8th) at Red7. They’re self-described as “no bull-shit” Texas rock, which is a perfect way to say they kick mammoth ass. It’s only two guys - Jonathan Terrell (guitar and vocals) and Wes Cargal (drums) - and they capture the music scene in a veneer of grainy film. Attending their show felt like a sweet, sweet marriage between punk, country and grimy, beer-drinking rock n’ roll. Their debut album Bikini (2011) is available for streaming on Spotify (and their website), and you can also follow the guys through their Texas/Arkansas tour via Twitter and Facebook.

By the way, two of these bands will be playing together in early May (the 12th) at ND Austin, a venue out in East Austin. The show will feature both Speak and Mother Falcon for the ridiculously charitable price of only ten dollars. I mean, honestly. I didn’t even think about the possibility of not buying tickets. Come and say hello if you see me there!

Pulp cowboy image courtesy of artist George Rozen.