monday quote

“Don’t ask for guarantees. And don’t look to be saved in any one thing, person, machine, or library. Do your own bit of saving, and if you drown, at least die knowing you were heading for shore.”

—	Ray Bradbury

things i need to do more

• write letters
• read the news (not be so ignorant)
• cook
• read books
• sleep
• make flashcards
• wear sweats less

thursday quote

“I try to maintain a healthy dose of daydreaming, to remain sane.”

—	Florence Welch

no-bake energy balls

ingredients:
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup almond butter
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup flaxseed
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla

mix everything together in a medium size bowl until evenly clumped (if that makes any sense).  chill in the refrigerator for half an hour.  once the mix is thoroughly chilled, remove from the fridge and roll into ball shaped morsels.  ENJOY!  store your oatmeal ball goodness in an air tight container in the fridge for up to a week.  i'm sure they will be all gone before then.

monday quote

“Time was passing like a hand waving from a train I wanted to be on. I hope you never have to think about anything as much as I think about you.”

—	Jonathan Safran Foer

currently

reading this.  my dad bought this for me for christmas...a very easy and enjoyable read.  mindy is incredibly clever and funny and i love her anecdotes about her awkward and sometimes humiliating childhood and stories about guys and the flaws in what we call the media and society or the flaws in general about the human mind and daily interaction.  i particularly loved her chapter titled "guys need to do almost nothing to be great" which has inspired me to compile a list of things a guy could do to make me swoon instantaneously.

 listening to this.  went to a small, local music/record store this week with a friend that told me i HAD to experience.  clearly he knows i'm easy to please (add record-store-finding-guy to the swoon list?  in this case probably not, but generally speaking...)  i could have spent hours (hundreds of dollars) there just browsing.  physical cds (and now vinyl since i have a lovely record player) have a soft spot in my heart.  i like having a tangible music collection on a shelf rather than the list of songs i can scroll through on my ipod.  don't get me wrong, the ipod is heavenly, but my future apartment decor could be determined by what musical greatness is displayed in a color wheel manner in my living room.  i've heard so many good reviews about this new black keys album...i still have to listen to the album in its entirety, but knowing these guys, it's bound to be an instant classic.

wearing these a lot.  an impulse after-christmas purchase from the sale section of urban outfitters, and by sale section i mean the glaring red tab at the top on the urbanoutfitters.com homepage.  the one that screams "come check me out...you know you want to.  there is probably something you will buy cause it's $9.99 now instead of $30...what a steal.)  half off, red, high-top vans.  usually i'm not a big online shopper, but these beauts were not only my school color, but when i checked the sizes my size was the only available one left...so there it was, fate had found me through my computer screen as i was still curled up under the covers and the perfect match was made.  now many people would think they would have a hard time pulling off these loud and obnoxious flashy shoes, but i say JUST DO IT.  feign the confidence and people will envy you for your seemingly effortless coolness.  (really, i'm not a conceited person.)  my mom bought me a pair of sperry high-top boots last year and i almost returned them based on the "i can't pull these off" factor, but today they are my go to shoe.  wow, so shoes don't make me who i am, but yeah....don't know where i'm going with this.  i guess punch line: buy cool funky shoes...it's exhilarating, trust me.

thursday quote

“I think there is something beautiful in reveling in sadness. The proof is how beautiful sad songs can be. So I don’t think being sad is to be avoided. It’s apathy and boredom you want to avoid. But feeling anything is good, I think. Maybe that’s sadistic of me.”

—	Joseph Gordon-Levitt

tunesday: jonsi

jonsi is the leader of sigur ros and composed the soundtrack for the movie we bought a zoo.  it is lovely to the point of tears and sends chills down my spine as i fall asleep at night.  the song intros are idyllic and flowing...hopeful, peaceful and soothing.  i love the song "brambles" because it sounds as if the track is vinyl spinning on a record player.  other favorites: sun, sinking friendships, we bought a zoo...pretty much all of them.  i fell in love with this soundtrack a little bit more than the where the wild things are soundtrack.  it's a close second.

perfect soundtrack to this rainy and dark morning.  happy tuesday!

(insert title here)

so maybe this is turning into a monday and thursday quote blog and the occasional tunesdays, but it's fine...life happens.  classes have started and tennis season is in full swing.  i find myself awake at 6am tossing and turning with the names of all the bone structures in the skull running through my mind with no prevail.  flash cards and coffee have become a perfect pair as well as tennis sweats and class.  i'm really working hard to stay organized and keep up with my school work.  also trying this new thing where i don't listen to music while i study...amazing fact: i actually study better.  wowee.  ground breaking news.

time for coffee and studying and laundry.

on a side note:  i'm pretty sure only 10 people read this blog regularly...on a good day.  if you're out there, i'd love to know.

monday quote

“Things are sweeter when they’re lost. I know—because once I wanted something and got it. It was the only thing I ever wanted badly…And when I got it it turned to dust in my hands.”

—	F. Scott Fitzgerald, “The Beautiful and Damned”

thursday quote

“The good times and the bad times both will pass. It will pass. It will get easier. But the fact that it will get easier does not mean that it doesn’t hurt now. And when people try to minimize your pain they are doing you a disservice. And when you try to minimize your own pain you’re doing yourself a disservice. Don’t do that. The truth is that it hurts because it’s real. It hurts because it mattered. And that’s an important thing to acknowledge to yourself. But that doesn’t mean that it won’t end, that it won’t get better. Because it will.”

—	John Green

confession no. 2

i have this movie-like scenario in my mind that if i spend enough hours in a coffee shop, one day someone will walk through the doors, see me, sit down, we would talk for hours and it would be nothing but fascinating.

monday quote

“In time, the hurt began to fade and it was easier to just let it go. At least I thought it was. But in every boy I met in the next few years, I found myself looking for you, and when the feelings got too strong, I’d write you another letter. But I never sent them for fear of what I might find. By then, you’d gone on with your life and I didn’t want to think about you loving someone else. I wanted to remember us like we were that summer. I didn’t ever want to lose that.”

—	Nicholas Sparks

finally!!!

new shop listings at the parcel posts and other notes shop!!!
mousey cards and valentines to be added very soon!

thursday quote

“Night is purer than day; it is better for thinking and loving and dreaming. At night everything is more intense, more true. The echo of words that have been spoken during the day takes on a new and deeper meaning.”

—	Elie Wiesel

the dream house

A sprawling yard of lush, green grass, flowerbeds overflowing with blossoms and a slow trickle from a stone fountain appear before me.  Large ancient trees shade the side of the house and I walk up the brick pathway welcomed by a white wood wrap around porch with natural colored wicker furniture…big comfy fabric cushions and a screened off section.

The main floor has a modest foyer, a beautiful woven rug and huge mirror with a vaulted ceiling directing the eye to follow the linearity of the staircase.  The upstairs landing is open looking out over the family room on the back side of the house.  Large windows let light stream in, natural colored furniture with pops of bright colored accents.

The kitchen is modern, clean lines, open space, natural wood, stainless steel appliances.

The hallways have shelves full of trinkets, photographs and travel souvenirs.   There is a study with a winding staircase to a cupola with a library and a sliding ladder along tall bookcases full of novels and books of all kinds.

{was just thinking about this the other night with a friend…I feel like I could go on and on in every detail possible…these just come to mind}

tunesday: ellie goulding

her first album "lights" is beautiful, poppy, soulful goodness.  this lovely british girl gets double props for also being a nike girl and spokesperson.  i could see myself working out to this album too actually.

noteworthy tracks: lights, guns and horses, salt skin

monday quote

“A few times in my life I’ve had moments of absolute clarity. When for a few brief seconds the silence drowns out the noise and I can feel rather than think, and things seem so sharp and the world seems so fresh. It’s as though it had all just come into existence. I can never make these moments last. I cling to them, but like everything, they fade. I have lived my life on these moments. They pull me back to the present, and I realize that everything is exactly the way it was meant to be.”

—	Christopher Isherwood

nothing to worry about

2012...happy new year

after seeing the movie we bought a zoo, i hope to instill in my life that it only takes 20 seconds of courage to do incredibly extraordinary things in life.

"You know, sometimes all you need is twenty seconds of insane courage. Just literally twenty seconds of just embarrassing bravery. And I promise you, something great will come of it."

2012 is for:

• having faith
• being healthy mind, body and soul
• discipline
• believing in myself
• being open and honest
• paving my own path...staying out of the stream
• more good music
• growing up even more
• courage to try new things
• burning candles and meditation
• supporting those around me
• motivation and best effort
• breakthroughs
• love...always love

2011 (in no particular order)

• i played my first season of college tennis and received the sportsmanship award for my school and in the big ten
• i went to las vegas with my team for spring break
• i traveled to bolivia for two weeks this summer
• i moved into my own place with the best room mates a girl could ask for
• i cut ties with people that brought me down and filled the gaps with new faces that make me incredibly happy
• i grew my wardrobe with more hipster attire and my itunes library expanded with an explosion of indie rock goodness
• it was a year that i went to more local concerts and truly appreciated live music
• i attempted water skiing and wake boarding with little (absolutely zero) success
• i pushed my body super hard
• i started to believe in myself and my potential
• i became more confident and outgoing and realized life was too short to live it for anyone else
• i got caught up in drama but found a way out
• i started blogging again...this time without any agenda or obligation
• i am so thankful for those i have spent quality time with this year...the people i could sit down and talk to for hours about anything