MIRKO

Day 279:

Mirko, a pasta place, opened up not far from my house recently so Alycia, Catie, Sara, and I decided to eat there today and it was so good! There's such a wide variety of dishes to choose from because you first choose the pasta you want and then you can pair it with any sauce. Today, I had some kind of spinach pasta with sausage, mushroom, and cream sauce and everyone kept eating from my plate, so you know it was delicious :) All of our plates were so different, we ate of each others...I'm glad I have friends that don't mind that (image that comes to mind: Joey in Friends, haha). For dessert, Alycia and Sara split tiramisu while Catie and I both got our own crepes with Nutella and banana. I think I would have preferred just Nutella, but it was still so good that i finished it all even though I was stuffed.

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In other news, we finally booked the tickets and hotel for New York! The prices went back down so we jumped at the deal and got everything settled. Nothing is set in stone for the attractions we're going to, but at least we know when we're leaving and where we're staying! It's weird that it's so close! I cannot wait!

CHRISTMAS...STILL?!

First off, I am planning some big changes for my little blog :) Hopefully, I'll follow through with everything, but soon there might be a new name, new banner, and new layout. I still haven't picked everything out yet, but look for some changes soon!

Now, I hope everyone had a happy new year! I'm still riding the high of Christmas so this post will be filled with presents and of course more shopping!

my present to my grandma! the lyrics are from the song that my aunt sang at my grandpa's funeral :)

all of my awesome Mary Poppins present from my dad and step-mom. the snow globe plays "Chim Chim Cheree," the cup says "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious," and the umbrella is just like the one she has in the movie! i felt like a little kid opening those presents :)

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Now, on to today's shopping trip!

I used up the rest of my Barnes & Noble giftcard, used some of the Forever 21 giftcards, and I could NOT pass up the Vera Bradley bag! I love it!

My favorite purchase of the day though was the earrings from Forever 21. I've been looking for some this color and for only $1.50, I had to get them!

I'm going to cheat again and say that this post is for days 273 - 278. I PROMISE there will be actual picture for each day next time!

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By the way, I suggest you all listen to this song on repeat. It is amazing!

PLAYING CATCH UP :)

I can't believe I haven't posted anything in over a month! Since I haven't really been keeping up with my 365 days of pictures thing, I'm just going to say that this post constitutes Days 237 - 272 :)

*This past semester finally ended earlier on in the month, so since then, I've been home! It's pretty easy just to drive back and forth to work and I've been able to hang out with some friends that live at home so it's been a great situation :)

*Work has been crazy (part of the reason I haven't really updated)! The holidays bring out the worst in some people and I've dealt with really rude customers and with some crazy clothing situations. I think since I haven't ever worked retail during the holidays, I didn't know what to expect, so it has been a shock! Now, I know how to handle next Christmas if I'm still at Macy's!

*I found something out about my major that is very exciting! If I take a certain set of classes, I can go through with a Family Life Education certificate. After graduating, I will spend 2 years in a certain setting (a hospital preferably) and then I will have my official certificate. I think that's how it works! All I know is that it sounds perfect.

*SHOPPING...SHOPPING...SHOPPING...SHOPPING. Holy moly! I have done so much shopping in the past month it isn't even funny. It wasn't even all for Christmas! I really hope I can cut back soon or I won't have any money left! :)

*I haven't been reading that much so I'm still in the middle of the last book I posted about, Lost. It's the one that puts a twist A Christmas Carol and so far, it's okay. I can't really get into it, but I'll give it another 50 pages before I decide if I'm going to keep reading it. (P.S. I got the rest of the Harry Potter series for Christmas so I'll probably be reading those soon!)

*Bravo has become officially my favorite television station! Of course, I love all of the Real Housewives and Millionaire Matchmaker and now I have added Top Chef to the list. When I was sick the other day, I just stayed in bed and watched a marathon. It was so awesome! It was so cool to watch people create meals from things I would never think go together. I really don't think my TV has been on another channel.

*WE HAD A WHITE CHRISTMAS! For the first time since 1882 :) It started snowing about half way through the day and didn't stop until the middle of the night. FINALLY! It really completed Christmas :)

*Mom and I still haven't made final decisions for New York in March (hurry up already!!) but hopefully that will happen soon! When we finally make the decisions, I'll start booking all of the Broadway shows and the tours that we are going to be participating in...ahhhhhhh I can't wait!

*For Christmas and just for the heck of it, I have expanded my movie and TV collection so much! I have a lot of TV watching to do...I now have the entire Will & Grace series, the first season of Glee, the second season of True Blood, and the sixth season of Grey's Anatomy. I've also been watching 30 Rock and Dexter so I'll probably be picking those up soon :)

*By the way, I have had Mumford and Sons, Jason Aldean, and Adele playing on repeat. Their CD's are all amazing!

Ok, so that's enough of what's been happening with me for the past month! I'll try and catch up on everyone's blogs soon so expect some comments :) I hope everyone had a great Christmas and everyone has a safe and happy New Year!

UO

I did something that I'm pretty sure I shouldn't have done. I spent too much money at UrbanOutfitters.com. I couldn't help it! Some of the things I bought have been sitting in my check out cart for a very long time so I decided to bite the bullet and go ahead and get them. At least I know that if something doesn't work out, I can just return them!

Ecote Traveler Knapsack

$49.99

I know that's qutie a bit to spend on a bag, but I've been wanting one for a really long time! And I got 10% plus free shipping so it was only $45 :)

Accordian Kisslock Wallet

$9.99

Apparently, I got one of the last one of these! They aren't showing up anymore, so it was a good choice :) I've been needing a new wallet that I have better access to my cards and money so I'm hoping this one does the trick!

Ecote Twist Sandal

$14.99

My sandals broke right at the end of summer, so I decided to stock up on more sandals for next year while they're on sale.

 

Ecote Macrame Slingback Sandal

$6.99

These are also practical for work!

Overdyed Skippy Slip-On

$12.99

I honestly think I'll get the most use out of these.

So all in all, I think I did pretty good with the sales! I'm excited to get all of this in the mail and even though I had a hard time pressing the check-out button, everything will be put to good use!

**Urban Outfitters has a deal going on for the next week where you can get free shipping if you spend over $75, which trust me, is a very easy thing to do (normally to get free shipping you have to spend $150). Just enter GETSTUFFED at checkout!

DAYS 222 - 236

Day 222:

I started a new painting. I haven't really done that much to it, so when I'm done I'll be sure to post the stages and what it was supposed to be!

Day 223:

For some reason, while I was folding clothes at work on Tuesday, this song randomly popped into my head. I couldn't really remember the words, but I kept singing it the rest of the night.

Day 224:

On the way to work, the sky was so pretty! Yes, I know, it's not safe to take pictures when you're driving, but I have talent, so I succeeded :)

Day 225:

I had a lot of time between classes, so I took some pictures of the fall-like trees on campus. I wish I would have brought my actual camera, but I had to settle for my phone. You can still see how pretty the colors are though!

Day 226:

GREATEST MOVIE OF THE YEAR! This movie was so awesome. Everyone in it have now become my heroes. There was so much going on that it was kind of hard to follow, but when it all came together in the end, oh man! By the way, I totally called the ending, but we won't brag about that right now. I am definitely going to buy this when it comes out and make everyone around me watch it!

Day 227:

Sara made some DELICIOUS cookies. They were some double chocolate with pomegranate seed cookies...I don't remember what kind exactly, but I'm sure she could tell you. The pomegranate part was crunch and kind of tart which was paired well with the chocolate. I think I ate about 40 of them.

Day 228:

This day started out unsuccessful, but it turned out to be a good one! We set out in the morning to go to the flea market about 15 minutes out of Athens, but when we got there, hardly anyone had set up and we didn't see anything remotely interesting. So, we decided to head out to the outlet mall and do some shopping, but we didn't really know how to get there. We ended up driving through downtown Commerce and then finally making it to the outlet mall where we stayed for a good 5 hours. It was a pretty productive day in my book!

Day 229:

 So I technically didn't see this movie on Monday, but I did see it Sunday night when we got back from the outlet mall. It was an ok movie. I expected it to be much funnier than it was, so that was disappointing, but other than that it was pretty good. I thought the story line was really good, and the acting was good, but I gess I just expected more from it.

Day 230:

I started a new book: Lost. I read Wicked a while back and really liked it so I decided to try another Gregory Maguire book. This one includes some things from Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol, so I hoping it will be pretty interesting!

Day 231:

One Day Sale on a WEDNESDAY?! Crazy, I know.

Day 232:

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 at midnight? Yes, please! It was so good! The only other midnight showing I've been to are the first two Twilight movies (go ahead and laugh) so I kind of expected this one to be about the same, everyone squealing when someone came on the screen and laughing at inappropriate parts...blah blah. But this one was so much better! I guess from the anticipation, everyone was deathly silent except at funny or scary parts. I swear, I was scared to drink anything because I didn't want to make too much noise, it was that quiet! It was a great movie though. The only part that I wasn't a big fan of was the entwined nakedness between Harry and Hermoine. That was NOT in the book and I didn't understand why the felt the need to include it. Other than that, I'm so ready for the second part!!

Day 233:

 PACKING TIME! I hate packing, I always try to fit too much in my bag. I just don't want to leave anything!

Day 234:

After a long day at work, I made it home finally. Before I got home though, I stopped by Barnes and Noble to pick up some books for Christmas. I bought two present and one for myself: Under the Dome. I've heard this one was pretty good, and it was cheap so I went ahead and got it!

Day 235:

We watched the last part of the AMA's and I LOVED the Backstreet Boys performance. It was a great ending to the show! I was a much bigger BSB fan than N*Sync back in the day, so I was so happy that they were on there. I wish they would make a comeback!

Day 236:

So I'm a little obsessed with making study schedule every week. This time, I had to make it for finals. I only have 2 this semester (WHAAT?!) so it was pretty easy. I doubt I'll actually stick to the schedule, but it's nice to have one.

**Sorry this was so long! I promise to try and keep better track of this and not put it off, I just got too busy last week! Next Sunday, you can expect a shorter one :)

*all movie posters from Google Images and weheartit.com

ON MY LIST...

for movies to see, are these that are coming out soon!

Love and Other Drugs

Never Let Me Go

The Next Three Days

How Do You Know

HOLIDAY MOVIES

Oh man, I can't tell you how excited I am to watch some of these movies. There are just some movies that you HAVE to watch around Christmas time, and these are the ones that top my list:

While You Were Sleeping

Thanks to Mom, I always associate this movie with Christmas. Why? you ask. Because she used to make us watch it every year! It's a good thing I like it, otherwise I might have some ill feelings toward it :)

How the Grinch Stole Christmas

This is, hands down, the best holiday movie in my opinion. Of course, I love the original also, but this one is my favorite.

Elf

This is one of the funniest movies. Almost every scene has a part that will make you laugh. Two of my favorite quotes: "Bye Buddy, I hope you find your dad" and "Did you hear that?" The second one comes after at least a minute long burp and the first one is said by one of the animals in the North Pole. His voice is hilarious!

Happy Feet

I actually just watched this movie last weekend while I was cleaning my room. I bought it last year the day after Thanksgiving for probably $3 and that was money well spent!

It's A Wonderful Life

Classic.

Meet Me In St. Louis

This isn't really a Christmas movie, but I guess I associate it with the holiday because Judy Garland sings "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas."

The Family Stone

Yes, this is a slightly depressing movie, but it's an awesome one. I think the part that I like most about this movie is the cast. It's full of well-known people!

I can't believe we only have a little over a month before Christmas! It's so exciting!!

OH CONAN

This had to be one of the funniest interviews I have ever seen! I didn't know what to expect from Michael Cera, but he was pleasantly surprising.

The second quest, Julie Bowen, was pretty good too.

Conan O'Brien is hilarious! His promos for the show which moved to TBS were so funny and so far, his interviews have been too. I didn't really watch him when he was on NBC, but I've been watching him now and it keeps me laughing for a solid hour!

CHANGE OF HEART

Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult

"One moment June Nealon was happily looking forward to years full of laughter and adventure with her family, and the net, she was staring into a future that was as empty as her heart. Not her life is a waiting game. Waiting for time to heal her wounds, waiting for justice, waiting for a miracle.

For Shay Bourne, life holds no more surprises. The world has given him nothing, and he has nothing to off the world. In a heartbeat, though, he gets one last chance for salvation, and it lies with June's eleven-year-old daughter, Claire. But between Shay and Claire stretches an ocean of bitter regrets, past crime, and the rage of a mother who has lost a child. 

Father Michael is a man whose past decisions led him to devote the rest of his life to God. But when he comes face-to-face with Shay, he must question everything he's been taught to believe about religion, about good and evil, about forgiveness. About himself."

from back cover

The back doesn't really give that much detail about what is actually happening in the book, so I wasn't too excited to read it. After reading a few chapters though, I was ready to rush through to the end. This book is about a family that experiences a double murder: June's daughter and her husband. The murderer? Shay Bourne. After he is sentenced to the death penalty (one of the jurors was Father Michael) he is sent to prison and the book jumps forward 11 years. Now, Claire (who wasn't even born when the murders occurred) is having trouble with her heart and is in desperate need for a heart transplant. Shay hears about what's happening through the news and decides that he wants to donate his heart to Claire so he can "experience salvation" before he dies. When a ACLU lawyer, Maggie, hears about this, she is drawn to the case and takes it on immediately. They have to overcome many obstacles including the method of death because Shay can't donate his organs if he is killed by lethal injection, and the entire idea of giving his heart to the sister of the one he killed.

After starting to write this review, I'm kind of rethinking how I feel about it because it seems like most of the details she put in were all over the place. At first, I thought that it was going to be like The Green Mile; miracles were occurring in the prison around Shay. He "cures" and inmate with AIDS, he brings a bird back to life, and he "feeds" the inmates with a single piece of gum. Those were all mentioned, but nothing was really tied up in the end, you never really figure out what was happening. It was a pretty good read though. Like her other books, each chapter was told by a different character, which was a really good method for this one. Religion was a HUGE topic in this book and every character practiced different ones so it was interesting to see everything about the death penalty through a variety of point of views. I did however, predict the ending of this book a few chapters in. Although it was predictable, it was still full of twists and turns that kept it interesting. I don't think I'll ever read a Jodi Picoult book that I don't like!

DAYS 207-221

So, in staying with the same theme from two weeks ago, I'm just going to post music videos for 365 day thing. I know, I know, the whole point it to post pictures, but when you don't take pictures religiously, how are you supposed to keep up?? Anyways, I'll try to do pictures for the next week!

Day 207:

Stars - "Changes"

Day 208:

Rascal Flatts - "Unstoppable"

Day 209:

John Mayer - "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room"

Day 210:

Hall & Oats - "You Make My Dreams Come True"

Day 211:

Muse - "Resistance"

Day 212:

The Beatles - "Oh! Darling"

Day 213:

Gomez - "How We Operate"

Day 214:

Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova - "Falling Slowly"

Day 215:

Jason Aldean - "This I Gotta See"

Day 216:

Casting Crowns - "East to West"

Day 217:

Lady Antebellum - "Home Is Where the Heart Is"

Day 218:

Patty Griffin - "Up To the Mountain"

Day 219:

Garth Brooks - "Beaches of Cheyenne"

Day 220:

Carrie Underwood - "Starts with Goodbye"

Day 221:

And in honor of Macy's starting to play Christmas music...

Mariah Carey - "All I Want For Christmas Is You"

WATER FOR ELEPHANTS

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

"I don’t talk much about those days. Never did. I don’t know why – I worked on circuses for nearly seven years, and if that isn’t fodder for conversation, I don’t know what it.

Actually, I do know why: I never trusted myself. I was afraid I’d let it slip. I know how important it was to keep her secret, and keep it I did – for the rest of her life, and then beyond.

In seventy years, I’ve never told a blessed soul.

Though he may not speak of them, the memories still dwell inside Jacob Jankowski’s ninety-something-year-old mind. Memories of himself as a young man, tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. Memories of a world filled with freaks and clowns, with wonder and pain and anger and passion; a world with its own narrow, irrational rules, its own way of life, and its own way of death. The world of the circus: to Jacob it was both salvation and a living hell.

Jacob was there because his luck had run out – orphaned and penniless, he had no direction until he landed on this locomotive “ship of fools.” It was the early part of the Great Depression, and everyone in this third-rate circus was lucky to have any job at all. Marlena, the star of the equestrian act, was there because she fell in love with the wrong man, a handsome circus boss with a wide mean streak. And Rosie the elephant was there because she was the great gray hope, the new act that was going to be the salvation of the circus; the only problem was, Rosie didn’t have an act – in fact, she couldn’t even follow instructions. The bond that grew among this unlikely trio was one of love and trust, and ultimately, it was their only hope for survival."

from front flap

Over 2,000 ratings on Amazon and it has a 4.4?! That shows you how awesome this book is. You might read the synopsis and think that it sounds boring because of the time period and the fact that it's based in a circus, but this was one of the best books that I have read. Since it is such a rare setting, you don't expect half of the things that happen and it's such a new territory, you really can't form that many predictions. Of course, you can predict what happens with the characters' feelings and relationships, but the aspects that surround them and what happens in between is all open. Two of my roommates have also read this book and really liked it and considering the fact that we all have very different tastes when it comes to books, this shows that it's a book for everyone. You'll find yourself loving some of the characters and hating others, hoping that only good things will happen with the animals, and secretly wishing that what you read in the prologue will happen soon. I cannot tell you how much I loved this book. Everything about it was so new and fresh and it was a pretty quick read. I would definitely recommend this to everyone!

By the way, I cannot wait for this movie to come out! The casting sounds awesome: Robert Pattinson as Jacob, Reese Witherspoon as Marlena, and Christoph Waltz as August (by far the best decision). Here are some pictures of the cast on set:

I CAN'T WAIT!

P.S. I'm about half way through with Change of Heart, and it's yet another great read. It's about a man who murdered a child and her stepfather and received the death penalty. Now, 11 years later, he's still in prison waiting to die and he decides he wants to donate his heart to a little girl. The only thing is, she is the sister and daughter of the two he killed. Just writing about it makes me want to stop doing this and get back to the book! I'll do a review when I finish it which will hopefully be soon :)

WONDERFUL

As you may or may not recall, I am a HUGE fan of musicals, Mary Poppins in particular. The book, the movie, and the play all top my lists. Well, last night, Mom called me and asked me if I was near a TV because the Broadway cast was on Dancing With the Stars. Sadly, I was at Trader Joe's so I didn't have a chance to catch it last night, but I just saw this video. They are awesome! It really makes me want to see the musical when we go to NYC, but Mom's already vetoed that idea. Anyways, if you haven't see this, you should watch it! I had a smile on my face the whole time...it's just one of those things that will make you happy :)