Happily Ever After

So, there really isn't any excuse for not posting for six months. Goodness. What kind of writer am I?

WELL, here I am. Back in time for summer. Aren't you thrilled? Don't lie, I know you are. ;)

So wow! How much has been going on! This blog began last summer with post about my obsession with Pier 1. Happily, I've managed to avoid going and buying useless adorable things, although I did splurge and buy myself some flowers for out front. I really love buying pretty things, things that make feel feel happy or flirty or sexy. That's when I really feel the sting of not having money, or rather, having to pick between new contact lenses and a new swimsuit. (My poor eyes). I've been thinking about people who have a lot of money, and the things they spend it on, like yachts. I feel that I would get accomplished first all the things that I sat and wished I could buy as a broke college student working part-time at a pizza restaurant.

My top items:

1.) A gorgeous garden, with little lights and a fountain and a place to sit and have a glass of wine.

2.) Really nice clothes. I'm not talking about $1,000 flip-flops. I mean LABELS, like Ralph Lauren and Tommy and Marc Jacobs. Clothes that last and look great.

3.) A library, a gorgeous library, and the ability to buy any book I think looks worthy. Can you imagine! Now that is luxury.

Speaking of books, I'm both thrilled and horribly disappointed with my most recent literary purchase. I went with Lo to get a summer read, you know, the sort that's in your bag to provide you with AT LEAST a month's worth of entertaining pool/ beach reading. (The BEST is, of course, Gone With The Wind, which, even reading at lightening speed for hours will last you most of the summer, and is about a million times more interesting than anything Nicky Sparks cranks out *gag*). So we were browsing, breathing in the delicious booky air, and I spotted the cover of a book that I had heard mentioned before and remember writing down on a "things I want to read" list once upon a time. It was called Water for Elephants, had no description of the plot, and only vague positive critical responses like "a tantalizing and thrilling book". Which is sort of annoying and super intriguing. Plus, I thought, I like elephants.

Now, over my years of reading, I've developed this strange sort of 6th sense. Sometimes, when I am in a book store or library, I will be inexplicably drawn to a book. I'll pick it up, read the opening paragraph, and know that I will absolutely adore it. This doesn't happen very often, but when it does, it's magical. Sort of like Medium, but without the gross blood and death. The last time it happened was when I picked up Kathryn Stockett's amazing novel The Help, easily one of the best books I've ever read.

And, of course, it happened with Sara Gruen's Water for Elephants. I was in love. I couldn't put it down. I passed out from exhaustion after reading in bed, and then characters were in my mind the next day until I got the chance to read it again.

How long did this "summer read" last me? three days. 3. and part of the afternoon. I didn't even ever get to read it at the pool. I'm delighted that I found it and bitterly disappointed that it's over. Now I have to sift my way through the MILLIONS of crappy books (read: Lauren Conrad's L.A.Candy series) and wait to have that magic moment with a book again. Some girls wait and long for Prince Charming; I long for the perfect book.

Wish me luck. And go buy Water for Elephants. But try to pace yourself: a book like that is hard to find. ; )

MWAH,

moi

Oh, happiness

taking a break and doing a lot of this.

Seriously, I slept until one this afternoon. About to go stretch myself on the beautiful white shores of my hometown. Engross myself in an unread Phillippa Gregory, and look for dolphins. Life is good.
I'll be back soon with insight and witty commentary on life. But for now, I'm gonna soak up the sun.





MWAH,

Moi

Fabulosity

MWAH,

Moi

On the Popcorn Front...

Okay so for me, summertime means beaches and sunscreen and floaties and pools ETC, but it also means MOVIES. During the year, I'm so busy that I never get to the movie theatre, and by the time the weekend comes up it's like, 20 bucks to go see Star Trek and I'm just really not on that kind of a budget. SO since I'm assuming that everyone enjoys a good movie now and then, and I was just thinking about it the other day, I wanted to give you four AMAZING movies you should go watch RIGHT NOW.

Don Juan Demarco: Even if you don't care about Johnny Depp playing the world's

greatest lover (which personally I don't understand at all but to each their own), male or female this movie will make you believe in love. Every time I watch it it reconfirms all those notions we smother with the real world: like the concept of true, lasting love, or whimsy and happiness, or being able

to feel and care so deeply about another person. I know it sounds corny, but some day when you're feeling a little blue or just need a lift, pop it in. It has a beautiful score (ever heard the song "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman"? ) and wonderful scenery. I promise you'll walk away with a warm glowy feeling. One of my favorites, I have it, if you want to borrow it. :)

Practical Magic: I watched this again the other night with my girls, and remembered how awesome it was. Not only does it have Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock playing

 sisters, but they live in a gorgeous white Cap Cod house with their aunts, who happen to be really cool witches. As Nicole gets herself in a bit of trouble with an ex-boyfriend and Sandra struggles with an ancient curse on their family, they both find the need to use a little bit of their ancestry to help them along. Wonderfully acted and written, its a movie that for sure will bring out the feminine mystique in all of us. A girl movie for sure, put this at the top of your Netflix queue. It's a lot of fun.

Taken: Okay, so Liam Neeson is one of my FAVORITE actors (I even adored him in that AWFUL star wars movie),and he is incredible in this. I'm not going to say anything about the plot, just to tell you to watch it the next time you are craving a satisfying thriller/ action flick a la Bourne. Just writing about it makes me want to go watch it again. 

Gone With the Wind: AH the best movie ever made!! Vivian Leigh IS Scarlett O' Hara, Clark Cable is heartbreaking, and between the score and the imagery and the tangled love affa

ir they have you seriously cannot stop watching it. The book is one of my all time favorites ( if you haven't read it, go read it please! You won't be disappointed), and the movie captures its essence perfectly. The costumes are amazing, the acting is flawless, and the combined result is a delicious movie experience that you will ALWAYS remember. You'll be talking with a southern drawl and saying fiddle dee dee before you even know what's happening. 

Just a few, I'm sure I'll think of more. :)

MWAH,

Moi

Staying Cool

 Don't drink from the hose. But we always did. :)

there's been a serious shortage of these in my life .

Hello, summer. 

mwah,

moi

Five Fabulous Things

(Strawberry Rhubarb pie omgosh yum)

thank you God for creating dolphins. and their fetching smiles.

mwah,

moi

Summer Time Blues?

My father has a fabulous phrase that he used to say when my brother and I would follow him around the house, claiming that there was nothing to do. He would stop what he was doing, look us in the eye, and inform us that " you are bored because you are BORING." Which meant no trip to Blockbuster, no ice cream, and, ultimately, the development of a proverb that is still with me today. Particularly in this third week of summer. The trip home has been taken care of, the first thrill of sleeping in has worn off, and, suddenly, the day  stretched in front of you looks less like freedom and more like a chore. ANOTHER twelve hours in which you must amuse yourself. So what's the deal? The friends I talk to are bored, I'm bored, everyone on Facebook is bored: are we all really just that boring? I remember running around outside for hours every summer, finding inspiration in  a stream  or an open field or an unclimbed tree. I mean, obviously we can't play tag at the playground anymore ( or maybe we can ), but does that mean that summer is now only a time of work and the doldrums? Seriously, I begged my boss for more hours. My seven year old self would be SO ashamed.

Maybe we're just sapped of our energy. Spring semester is over,  Lord know THAT was an ordeal, and there are still  jobs and boyfriends and girlfriends and friends and drama and parents and money money money problems and cars ( always a problem) and roommates and your future career and becoming the person you want to be and dishes and and and....It can get overwhelming. Maybe we're bored because we are boring--we've turned into old people with too much responsibility. 

So my goal this summer is to find my child again. Pay the bills, of course, but then remember that fresh feeling of liberation, the exhilaration that came when you woke up and you knew there was nothing but the hot day and a popsicle. Do things because they are fun, not because they serve a purpose. If you're in the same boat, I'm going to be putting up something every day to make you feel fun again. So let's embrace the humidity ( well, rain as it's been all week), throw on a pair of cutoffs and find a swing set and a good friend. I'm not going to be caught being boring. ; ) 

mwah,

moi