Mark and I at our friends' wedding

http://andismotivation.blogspot.com

no, I'm not getting rid of my LJ (not yet, anyway). I'm just trying a different means of communication for a while.

I'm still reading (and commenting ... when I remember).


xox,
Andrea

so I want to send out Christmas cards again this year. : ) I still have some addresses from last year, but I've also made new LJ friends this past year. so if you'd like a card from me, please comment here with your address. all comments will be screened, of course.

thanks! : )

Andrea

FG = one of the greatest shows ever. and this song is hands down the greatest song. a combination of the two is pretty much AMAZING. haha, enjoy. : )

because I'm a royal dumb ass and my phone hasn't been working properly, I turned it off and back on trying to fix it. wellllll ... that didn't work out so well. I managed (somehow) to lose ALL of my phone numbers. a girlfriend asked me last night how many numbers were in my phone, and I checked - 273. obviously some cleaning would be good, but there were numbers in there that I need. a lot of numbers.

so, dear friends, please (please) call my voice mail and leave me your number, or reply to this post (all comments screened), or get a hold of me somehow. my phone STILL is not working but I do have access to voice mail.

man, today sucks!


xo,
andi

I'm the kind of person that holds many opinions, but none are really strong enough to warrant speaking. I see a lot and speak very little. but my God ... today deserves mention from the rooftops.

Officer Kozminski laid to rest

GRAND RAPIDS -- Thousands of mourners filed into St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church Friday morning for Officer Bob Kozminski's funeral.

Officer Kozminski was shot to death July 8 while responding to a domestic distrubance call.

More than 100 police departments from the United States and one from Glasgow, Scotland were among the people who came to pay their respects to the slain GRPD officer.

On Thursday Gov. Jennifer Granholm personally paid her respects to the family.

Bishop Walter Hurley and Fr. Mark Przybysz officiated at the Mass, which began after police officers filed past the casket inside the packed church for more than 90 minutes.

"We'll never see him again," said Chief Harry Dolan of the Grand Rapids Police Department. "He died doing what we love doing everyday."

Hundreds lined the streets, some standing for hours, but when the motorcade finally passed by, there was no wavering of devotion. For one hour, while the cars, buses and motorcycles went by, neighbors stood, waved their flags and shed tears.

Along the motorcade, the crowd was quiet, mostly holding their hands over their hearts or snapping a solemn salute.

A solemn ceremony at the graveside at Holy Cross Cemetery included bagpipes, a color guard, and the presentation of the American flag from Chief Harry Dolan to the Kozminski family. His brothers and sisters in blue carefully blanketed his coffin with their white gloves.

=================

The Grand Rapids Police Department cleared to mourn their fallen brother thanks to the support of other agencies.

"It's an honor. It's also very difficult for us to perform well without emotion. We're trying to keep it together in a very difficult time," said Grand Rapids Sergeant Larry Poleski.

Kozminski grew up on the west side of Grand Rapids, and you don't have to look far to find someone whose life has been touched by him.

"On the west side of town we try to help each other with support and encouragement," said Fr. John Vallier from Holy Spirit, "and any simple things we can do that goes around comes back to you if you're charitable."
- - - - - - - - - -


I wish I could better express the emotions running through my city today. for me, this IS my life. I was raised on the west side of town that Fr. John referenced, I worked with Officer Kozminski's Mom for almost 2 years, he and I grew up in the same church. the funeral was broadcast live today; it was amazing. he was the first GRPD officer killed in the line of duty in 21 years, and he leaves behind his parents, his six siblings, and a three year old daughter. never have I had so much pride in humanity as I have today.

RIP Officer Kozminski, and thank you to all in the field of public service, those who put their lives on the line every day.

Summer time and the wind is blowing outside in lower Chelsea.
And I don't know what I'm doing in this city,
The sun is always in my eyes,
It crashes through the windows, And I'm sleeping on the couch,
When I came to visit you,
That's when I knew, That I could never have you,
I knew that before you did,
Still I'm the one who's stupid,
And there's this burning, Like there's always been,
I've never been so alone, And I've never been so alive.
Visions of you on a motorcycle drive by,
The cigarette ash flies in your eyes, And you don't mind, you smile,
And say the world doesn't fit with you.
I don't believe you, You're so serene.
Careening through the universe, Your axis on a tilt, You're guiltless and free, I hope you take a piece of me with you,
And there's things I would like to do that you don't believe in,
I would like to build something, But you'll never see it happen,

And there's this burning, Like there's always been,
I've never been so alone, And I've,
I've never been so alive,

And there's this burning, There is this burning ay ay ay.
Where's the soul. I want to know, New York City is evil.
The surface is everything, but I could never do that,
Someone would see through that.
And this is the last time, We'll be friends again.
I'll get over you, you'll wonder, who I am.
And there's this burning, Just like there's always been,
I've never been so alone, alone, alive, alive, I've never been so alive, so alive

I go home to the coast. It starts to rain, I paddle out on the water alone,
Taste the salt and taste the pain. I'm not thinking of you again,
Summer dies and swells rise,
The sun goes down in my eyes,
See this rolling wave,
Darkly coming to take me home,

And I never been so alone, And I've never been so alive

( a letter to everyone and nobody in particular, thoughts inspired by Juliet's honesty )

stole from cloudillusion and andydarko ~

Put your playlist on shuffle. Post the first line of the first 25 songs that come up and have your friends list guess the lyric. If the first line says the name of the song, skip to another song. No Googling the lyrics, 'cause that's cheating.

1. it's everything that I can do right now to not think about you moving further off with every passing second. [ribbit615] Alkaline Trio - Blue Carolina
2. now maybe I didn't mean to treat you bad, but I did it anyway. [nerofotia] Candlebox - Far Behind
3. he can't remember the times that he thought, 'does my Daddy love me? probably not.'
4. it's not that bad, we could have died.
5. I once had a girl, or should I say, she once had me. [cloudillusion] The Beatles - Norwegian Wood
6. I'll leave the lights down low so she knows I mean business. [ribbit615] Taking Back Sunday - Bike Scene
7. we come from the land of the ice and snow, from the midnight sun where the hot springs blow. [nerofotia] Led Zeppelin - The Immigrant Song
8. all around the world, everywhere I go, no one understands me.
9. when I was a young boy, my father took me into the city to see a marching band. [cloudillusion] My Chemical Romance - Welcome to the Black Parade
10. to the left, to the left, everything you own in a box to the left. [colerinja and cloudillusion Beyonce - Irreplaceable
11. I am an arms dealer, fitting you with weapons in the form of words. [ribbit615] Fall Out Boy - This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race
12. right now, he's probably slow dancing with a bleach blonde tramp and she's probably getting frisky. [colerinja and nerofotia] Carrie Underwood - Before He Cheats
13. meet me in outer space, we could spend the night. [colerinja and ribbit615] Incubus - Stellar
14. it ain't often I take time to answer calls on the request line.
15. discarded, left behind, paper cups and sour wine. [colerinja and cloudillusion Better Than Ezra - Wintercoats
16. try and tell us our future's at stake we're gonna slam dance on your grave.
17. loving you isn't the right thing to do. [zuzus_petals] Fleetwood Mac - Go Your Own Way
18. we spoke our minds too clearly, we assumed fundamental rights were inherent.
19. I won't stay here no more, gone where you cannot follow.
20. we knew it all from a little thing, it was everything in our first minute.
21. I never loved nobody fully, always one foot on the ground.
22. don't you remember, the fizz in a Pepper? [ribbit615] Tim McGraw - Back When
23. cheap shot hocked straight to the eardrum, is it some sick sign of affection? [nerofotia] Eve 6 - Showerhead
24. every single day, I walk down the street, I hear people say 'baby' so sweet. [cloudillusion] RENT - Take Me or Leave ME
25. I am the only one to blame for this, somehow it all ends up the same. [colerinja and nerofotia] Jars of Clay - Worlds Apart

( Vegas pictures, round one )

( it's all about goodnight )

to all of my LJ friends:

did any of you post a link to a news site about two teenage sisters who are pretty hardcore white supremacists, and are also a singing group? I want to refer back to that for my history class, and I don't remember who posted it (or when).

or, if any of you know what I'm talking about and can give me some links, that would be GREAT!

Reply to this entry by posting a picture of yourself in the comments.
Post this sentence in your own journal.

[stolen from wynoah and gillianvaughn]