My Cardboard Balcony

On Friday, November 13th, my father lost his cousin to pneumonia. It was the anniversary of my grandmother's death. There was an earthquake in Japan. And over one hundred fifty people lost their lives in a string of terrorist attacks in the city of Paris, France. When things like this happen, that remind us that evil exists and death is inevitable, I become speechless both verbally and linguistically. I talked with my mom, dad, and fiancée on the phone tonight (my fiancée is out of town, looking at wedding dresses), and I just couldn't convey the feelings and emotions I was going through in a proper way, whatever that means. So instead, I'm going to let someone else do it. I'm going to quote some of my idols - whether in entertainment or politics or my day-to-day life - to remind everyone of who we are as humans and what we need to do in order to be such. From George Takei: "I'm writing this backstage at Allegiance, my heart heavy with the news from Paris

Real Fame by Belinda Roddie The rock star was found dead, but nobody mourned her.

We are told to wear the red, white, and blue, even if it has to be spray painted onto our skin. They demand that we tattoo our arms and legs with the stars and stripes, even though no comets will pass along our assaulted epidermis, no spinning planets or glowing outside universe. And when we remove our hats to honor the latest pop star mutilating whatever anthem it is we're meant to respect, we tilt our heads toward the sky, where the fireworks blot out the moonlight, and we are left in a cold, ashen darkness.