Rva - Blog Posts

Bathroom in Richmond Remodeling ideas for a medium-sized 1950s master bathroom with raised-panel cabinets, medium-tone wood cabinets, and a floating vanity.

The Lab by Alchemy Coffee appreciation post

With this being my favorite coffee shop, I figured I would show all of you the pictures I’ve taken over the years of me coming here – and my friends enjoying it as well. Next time you find yourself in Richmond, take a visit here. You won’t regret it.

Daily Routine (9/27/17) - Night Ride

Another short one tonight. Nothing too significant happened today, but I’m pretty happy at the place I am in my life right now. I’ve finally got a good routine going for me and it’s becoming part of my life style. It’s nice having structure in your life, but I understand it isn’t for everyone. For me though, it works and I’m happy for it. 

This picture may be a bit grainy, but I biked to an overlook of the river today. I finally got my bike tires pumped and was able to use it again. It’s been way too long. I missed riding my bike. My freshman year, it was my life essentially. I never used it much last year though and I’m not so sure why. But I’m happy I have it up and running again. It allowed me to see views like this right before the sun set for the night. 

Honestly, I’m just happy. I hope this mental state continues. 

Daily Routine (9/24/17) - Welcome Back

To my those who have been following, I’m sorry I have not updated in over a week. It has been a whirlwind of events in my life and I simply haven’t had time to update. Regular updates will probably resume again. I’ll keep this a bit short though, as the details are tad too personal to share here. However, I would like to discuss the main theme of my past week in a broader sense.

Relationships. 

Your mind probably immediately went to something romantic. Something regarding a boyfriend/girlfriend. Something along the lines of “woe is me” and “why don’t they love me?” when you read that word following the paragraph explaining my absence. 

I’ll be honest, this is partly true. But again, I’m thinking of relationships in a broader sense. I’ve had an odd start to this semester. Friends seem to come and go. People who I thought I could be in a relationship with (yes, I’m talking about a girlfriend now) seem to come and go as well. To me, it seems that people in my life come for the pleasure of the interaction and then leave me in the dust. They want the instant gratification of seeing me, not the long term comfort of what I have to offer. 

This is melodramatic. I’m fully aware of this. People have busy schedules -- work, classes, and other ventures. They hardly have time for themselves, let alone time for to see other people. It seems to me though that I have nothing but time, even though I have essentially the same responsibilities. I want to see people and hang out with them on a regular basis, but it seems that no one else wants to make the effort. I feel at times I’m the only one doing anything when it comes to making plans with people and then they cancel at the last minute, leaving me with a feeling of self-doubt and hatred. 

It's an awful feeling, feeling alone. You feel as if no one wants you at all. You feel like you did something wrong for them to stop talking to you. Like you messed up forever and there’s no going back. What’s funny about all of this though, is that this feeling is blown completely out of proportion. It is overplayed, overdramatic, and can even be absurd. Life has a funny way of tricking you into thinking this way, even though it isn’t true. They’ll text you back. They want to see you too. They want be the world to you too.

But they just don't know how. 

Daily Routine (9/16/17) - A collision with fate

It is odd the way life works out. I didn’t forget about DR yesterday, the post I had got deleted. Well actually, I was in a rush and didn’t have a chance to be at my computer so I had to type it out on my phone. Right when I was about to post it, the app crashed on me, deleting the entire post. I was so irritated by it that I just decided I wasn’t going to post it. I now see that this was a good thing though. 

The subject matter of the post was very ranty as I was annoyed at a lot of people and I just wanted to vent. Looking back, I now know that that is definitely something I don’t want on my blog and it was very in the moment, as the problems I was complaining about were solved about an later after it was deleted. But I find it funny how fate works out like that. How you think a problem will be solved by something only to have it set you back further. Patience is key in situations like this, as simply just waiting can make things make a lot more sense than they would if you try to attack them head on. I’m glad I was reminded of this lesson yesterday. 

Yesterday was also full of other surprises. I went to a house show for a few local bands - some from Richmond and others from Williamsburg. House shows are my favorite concerts to go to. You’re within spitting distance of the band playing and you can see each and every detail of their set; Their reactions, their stage presence, and not to mention, the full brunt of their sound (it’s loud as hell). It’s an experience you don’t get by seeing a band at a stadium or even a club. It’s personal and real - especially if you’re friends with the people playing. 

The reason I found this show to be a surprise though, is because I was able to have a great time without worrying about any of my past relationships. I was able to meet many new people and just be myself without any worry. It’s taken me awhile to get to this point and I’m proud of myself for being who I am now. Aside from personal surprises, I also saw a lot of people that I met at a music festival I went to this summer. They’re the kind of interactions where you don’t think you’ll ever see them again, but then they show up again in a place where you least expect it. So that was a pleasant surprise. 

The only thing that did suck about the show was that the cops shut it down, so the last band didn’t get to play their set. They had to wait through over 2 hours of live music only to not get to play. A pity that our society values being able to sleep at night without any loud noises over the creative arts. That is a rant for another day though. 

I have now decided that this was my favorite local show I’ve ever been to. Not only because of what I talked about above, but the actual musical content. The first band (who I didn’t know beforehand) had an irresistible groove to it that was still able to bring the punchiness of indie rock. They had great stage presence and people were able to dance to it quickly - which is always a good sign considering how hit or miss local bands can be. The next band, Talk to Plants, were the band I went to the show for. This was my third and favorite time seeing them, as they played a good mix of their old cuts and new ones from their upcoming LP. Their unique psychedelic-folk-rock sound translates well in an intimate setting, especially when you’re able to see that they’re having just as good of a time as you are. This is evident in the photo I chose for this post. 

Kind of a long post today I know, but I felt it was necessary since I didn’t have one yesterday. Send me your local music. Any genre or style - just as long as it’s local to where you live. I would love to hear all of it. 

Daily Routine (9/14/17) - Coffee Break

I went to a local coffee shop called The Lab at Alchemy (Alchemy Coffee for short). You will probably see me post about this place often, as it is one of my favorite coffee shops in Richmond. Today’s experience at The Lab wasn’t really any different from any other day (except for the barista thinking I ordered a mocha instead of a normal coffee - only mildly infuriating). I ordered my coffee and muffin and sat down to be productive. 

Productive in a sense at least. 

I usually go to coffee shops to do homework, usually reading from my various textbooks or writing a paper on my laptop. Alchemy is different though. For some reason I can’t do anything academic while sitting in this quaint college student hangout spot. I’m not sure if it’s the people coming in and out, the buzz of drinks being made, or just being so close in proximity to people (if it’s crowded, space to breath can be pretty tight). It may be that I always have associated the place with de-stressing, but I add in stressors that prevent me from working. So now Alchemy is no longer a place where I can do “work” in an academic manner. I now see at as a place to unwind, and let my creativity sprawl in a different way

Creative writing.

I have determined that Alchemy is now my go to place when I want to write. Poetry, short stories, journal entries, and other forms of short prose - I feel safe and comfortable writing it there. Which leads me to this picture I’ve included. It’s an off kilter shot of my coffee mug and personal journal where I write all of my ideas for everything. I try and write in it at least once a day, whether it be a journal entry or something creative. Shown above is a series of short poems I came up with while listening to the song “Visiting Friends” by Animal Collective. In short, it’s a hypnotic, ambient, and drawn out acoustic guitar track with odd voices and sounds sampled into the background. While repetitive and long, the song is able to put me into an odd feeling where I make can write these unique dialogue poems that I’ve never been able to do unless I’m listening to this song. I now have 4 full pages of content while listening to this song. I’ll post them separately someday, probably with edits and rewrites in order for them to flow better. I also transcribed a short story that I wrote in my journal into a word document. It’s currently a mess, but I’m happy that I did it. I’ll post that story someday too when it’s ready.

It was quite a time at The Lab today filled with lots of creative energy and much needed de-stressing. I hope to be able to find a lot of other places in Richmond that have the same effect, hopefully free, as money can be tight for a college student. Honestly, any place that can get the creative juices flowing is fine by me. If you’re an RVA native and you write, please comment/PM with your go to places (oddly specific and far reaching I know, but one can hope). 

Lamplighter Coffee Roasters | RVA

Some of the coolest bathroom art I’ve seen for a local coffee shop

Post STRFKR Coffee I look like shit

STRFKR 

Live from The National in Richmond, VA, 5/14/16

Whatever life throws at you, just be happy you're alive on this beautiful planet. When life gives you challenge, come at it with a smile. You might just realize how beautiful life is. Belle Isle, Richmond