My Tried and True Products: Makeup

Welcome to 2014, my friends! After taking a rather long hiatus from blogging due to finals and school/work stress, I'm back for the new year and working on getting into a blog schedule that'll work for me so that I can actually get into the habit of writing on here more often.

We're in the home stretch of my college experience here folks. I'm literally less than 5 months away from commencement and I think that regularly taking down what happens in my life, internet or otherwise, during this time will be awesome since I will be able to look back in years to come and possibly (but not likely) lament the loss of my college years.

I thought I would start off by sharing my tried and true products that I use. I think that being in my 20's and college has given me enough experiment time and experience to be able to have those products, and also to be able to share them with other people.

Now, in case I haven't explained before, I'm a pretty lazy girl when it comes to beauty. Yes, I watch YouTube videos from "Beauty Gurus" all the time and I'm actually pretty knowledgeable when it comes to makeup products and making recommendations to friends and also complete strangers sometimes, BUT when it comes to my own face, if it takes more than 10 minutes to do makeup wise, I'm just not into it. I just want to get my face on and get out the door...or not put any makeup on at all...which happens...all the time actually.

Because of this, I have spent a lot of years streamlining my makeup routine and finding go to products that I can apply in the time it takes a friend to drive to my house from across town (aka 10 minutes or less).

1. Bare Minerals ORIGINAL Foundation in Fairly Light: I've been using this since my sophomore or junior year in high school when Bare Minerals was first starting to become a big deal. At the time $25 was a little steep for me, but I happily paid it because quite frankly, it is still the best color match I've ever found, and it covers everything for me in one fell swoop.

However, there are days when I want to be a little more natural, a little less done looking, and that's when I reach for:

2. Skin 79 Super Plus BB Cream, the gold one: This stuff is a real, honest to goodness Asian BB Cream. I originally bought it on the recommendation of Amarixe on YouTube because apparently that is what she uses in the winter time when she's less tanned. Anywho, do not be alarmed by the initial color that comes out of the pump. If you have a similar complexion to me, then it should warm up quite nicely and match you just fine. I've never had anyone tell me I looked weird or grey when I've worn it. Unfortunately, I ran out of this the other day so I have nothing to show you.

3. TheBalm Bahama Mama Bronzer: OK, confession time, I've had this stuff FOREVER (as in original packaging, not the restyle, bought it a month after it originally came out FOREVER) and I've still not managed to make a dent in it. But it's great stuff. It gives me the right amount of glow without ever coming off orange and it's pretty easy to apply. I think I've actually put it on without looking and left the house. It's super no brainer as far as bronzer is concerned, which paler girls like myself could really use.

4. MAC Mineralize Blush in Warm Soul: I am in LOVE with this stuff. I am not a big fan of MAC foundation or really anything else of theirs (except Omega Eyeshadow, which you will see later) but I do love their blush, and this one is my absolute favorite. It's a gorgeous, slightly shimmery rose gold color that does wonders on my face without making me look like I just put blush on. Considering I never used to wear blush at all (which drove my mother absolutely nuts throughout junior high and high school), the fact that this is one of the only colors I own that I would repurchase says something.

5. MAC Eyeshadow in Omega: This stuff  is a godsend for brows, it will literally match any hair color from light, warm, golden blonde to a dark, dark, almost black brown. I should know, I've rocked all these colors in the last 3 years and used Omega for all of them.

6. ELF Eye Shadow Primer: Now, as a long time Urban Decay user, I have never gotten onto the bandwagon where their primer potions are concerned. I never found them to be any better than any other eye shadow base, and they're stinkin' expensive, too.  However, this primer is something I'm totally fine with using. It's formulation looks almost identical to me, in fact I've noticed no difference in staying power or shadow payoff, and it's only a buck.

7. Revlon 24 Hour Eye Shadow Quad in Addictive: This is my replacement for the Naked Palette. To be 100% honest with you, as much as I covet those gorgeous shadow collections that Urban Decay has released, no way would I ever find a use for 12 shadows. I just wouldn't So a nifty little quad like this in lovely nude/neutral shades is absolutely perfect for me. My mom bought it for me last Christmas and I've only just started making a dent in the shadows. I've found that with this quad, give or take a few single shadows, depending on the look I'm going for, will get me to just about any look I'd like.

8. L'Oreal Telescopic Shocking Extensions Mascara (not pictured): I only discovered this last month, and when I went to repurchase it, Target was out of Black Brown, but this is literally the best mascara I've ever used in my life. Now, I have pretty solid eyelashes. They're long, thick, and due to my wild woman hair, they're curly as well. Because of this, I really am not super picky about mascara formulations. As long as it makes my eyelashes darker and sufficiently separates them, I'm not too worried about it. This mascara makes me look like my eyelashes are twice as long and that's only using two coats. It's so low maintenance and the results are just fantastic.

9. SoftLips Chapstick: Just about any flavor will do. It's just the only chapstick I've found that works for me and my perpetually chapped lips. I don't typically wear lipstick as I'm too lazy to reapply it throughout the day. But I always have on SoftLips of some kind. I stash them in my backpack, my purse, my car. They're pretty much everywhere around me.

You'll notice a distinct lack of eyeliner, and other extraneous beauty products on this list. That is because, as you already know, I prefer to get ready as quickly as possible. And because I've found that the more makeup I've put on, the weirder I think that I look. I may pop on a bit of concealer now and again, or highlighter under my eyes to look a bit more awake, but that's about as expansive as my routine gets, really.

The Best Part of 2013

You know, I was just thinking, despite spending a great deal of this year miserable and generally hating life, I am however, very grateful for one thing: quitting my job. Mostly because that job was what was making me so miserable and life hateful. Granted, every job is going to have its annoyances. That's a given. But I have never hated a job as much as I hated working in the hotel. It was one of the most miserable experiences of my entire life and I wake up every day so happy that it is over. Since October when I quit, I feel like the year started all over again and I'm so much happier and easier going than I was all year. If nothing else in 2013, I am so glad that I quit my job.

For anyone who actually reads this blog...

...I've been a pretty crap blogger in 2013. HOWEVER, you may (or may not, as the case may be) be pleased to know that I have no less than 5 new posts prepped and ready to be launched come 2014. All of them have been started, I just need to get some photos taken and finish up some descriptions of products I'll be talking about. Thus, I'll have plenty of content for you to read next year. Cheers!

Insert lame quote about true friends [HERE]

Ladies and gentlemen, it's official. I have hit the point in college where I'm about to graduate and I'm seriously assessing my life and the people I have in it and I gotta be honest, I'm not impressed. I can count...at least on both hands, my real friends. And shockingly enough, these are not people I expected to realize were in my corner, but I'm pretty happy that they are there.

I realized about a month ago that I had it right my freshman year of college. I made my real friends then and a good deal of the people who followed didn't actually deserve the time I spent on them. I've had a good time returning to those friends and finding that they're still the people who I thought they were all along. No one is faking it, no one needs me all the time to make themselves feel validated, and each and every single one of them has my back, whether I'm dead wrong, drunk off my ass or attempting something I have no business to be attempting. It feels damn good to know that.

Now, a year ago, I would have told you I knew exactly who my real friends were. Funny thing is, a lot of them aren't around anymore and two of the ones I thought were the most real walked out on me for men. And the funniest part was, not even men that they were dating. Men I was dating.

One is sleeping with the guy I was seeing this time last year. If she isn't, it sure as hell looks like it and that's enough for me. Wearing his clothes on Instagram and writing about how you're going to miss him when he goes home is a little obvious, don't you think? I think. Especially when we've been friends for five years and you've been friends for...two...is it even two? Go fuck yourself.

The other one spent all of her time defending the guy I was dating who dumped me in a text message saying he was her friend too. Bitch, he does not like you. He talked shit about you...to me. If he's your friend, clearly I don't understand the definition of friends. You spend so much time trying to be friends with everyone that you end up really friends with no one.

Regardless, I think that 2014 is going to be a banner year for me. I mean, 2013 was ok and I'm grateful for every day I'm above ground. But I think that self awareness and the realization that I'm about to be a real life adult soon has kicked into me the conviction that I don't have to put up with anything I don't want to. Life is way too short for shitty friends. It just is. Why am I going to keep people around who neither value nor respect me? I'm not. Bye Felicia. Have fun.

You should probably know...

...that I am obsessed with Eloise. And no, not the name, although my daughter, should she ever exist will be named Eloise. It's a name that definitely needs to make a comeback in the 21st century. I'm just saying. It's an adorable name with a whole lot of history behind it. And I ♥ it. 

For those of you who are not familiar, Eloise is a character in a series of children's books written by Kay Thompson and illustrated by Hilary Knight, who is a boy, by the way. Eloise is a six year old girl who lives at the Plaza Hotel in New York City with her nanny, a pug named Weenie and her turtle named Skipperdy, generally running around and doing whatever she wants.

She is adorable, energetic and totally charming in a misbehaving, wild child of a six year old sort of way. I fell in love with her about 10 years ago when Disney released Eloise at the Plaza one Sunday night for Wonderful World of Disney in 2003. Side note: does anyone remember the redo of Wonderful World of Disney that they did in the early 2000's? They never should have stopped that. Hello, Disney, get Wonderful World of Disney back up, STAT!

Anywho, back on topic here, Sophia Vasilieva, most recently of My Sister's Keeper fame, played Eloise and Julie Andrews, who needs no introduction, played Nanny in both Eloise at the Plaza and the sequel, Christmas version, Eloise at Christmastime. Which, by the way, is my absolute favorite Christmas movie of all time besides Year without a Santa Clause. I bought it for myself on Amazon because well, I just really needed to own it for myself. In my ever growing collection of movies, it certainly deserved a spot. If only I'd ordered Eloise at the Plaza. 

Eloise in her fancy six year old glory. I wish I could get a cartoon of myself like this :/

Eloise and Weenie in some fabulous sunglasses

For whatever reason, I've always sort of related to Eloise. Not that I'm six years old or anything, nor was I when the movies first came out and I became aware of her. It's her spirit and her silliness that has always drawn me in. Being six years old, she always does as she pleases and typically makes a mess of things completely. But she always means well and tries to fix it all in the end. 

In more recent news than 2003, Betsey Johnson did a line inspired by Eloise a few years ago and also designed the real life Eloise Suite at the real life Plaza in New York City in 2010. The hotel also has an Eloise store full of gifts inspired by our favorite, infamous Plaza resident. Needless to say, once I graduate and hit up New York, I will most certainly be going to the Plaza to check it out. 

Betsey Johnson with one of the Eloise dolls designed for the hotel

She has her own FLAG! How stinkin' cute!

Just thought I'd share this little tidbit with you since it's been a hot minute since I posted anything. But I'm watching Eloise at the Plaza right now and will be following up with Eloise at Christmastime when I finish that. 

Yes, she sleeps with a Do Not Disturb sign around her neck. Again, stinkin' cute.

Gotta skitter!

♥Chelsea

A Few of My Favorite Things, Part One: Lounging Around the House

In the interest of keeping things interesting on my blog, and also in keeping with the gypsytude theme, I decided I wanted to try something new and talk about my favorite things as the holidays approach. Yes, I do the whole fess up thing, but that's become a bit boring to me. 

And I'm still not entirely sure if anyone actually reads this blog at all. If no one reads it, who will I be hurting to switch it up and if someone does, then hopefully you like the new set up. 

This first post is going to be about my favorite things for lounging around the house. 

 First off, we're gonna start with sweatpants. These happen to be my absolute favorite pair from Gilly Hicks. They're super soft and the fit is really comfortable while still being flattering. I spend a lot of time in them wandering around the house or watching movies in bed. Which I do a lot. Don't mind my little pink tree in the background there. I decided that if I can't beat them, I need to joint them on the precelebration of Christmas bandwagon. 

Next up are mugs of tea. Duh. Anyone who is anyone on the Internet is obsessed with tea. I however have been drinking tea since before it was cool, thankyouverymuch. My mug collection is rather impressive if I do say so myself. However, at present a great deal of it is packed away since my move back home. This ginormous and oddly on point number was a TJ Maxx find with my mom on Friday night whilst we were out shopping and I just had to have it. As this has been a lazy weekend, it's been next to me the whole time full of some steaming goodness or other. 

Chuck the Dog, my 11 year old Bichon Frisé is another member of the family quite familiar with spending the whole day in bed. If you follow me on Instagram, you saw this a few weeks ago when I posted it. If not, here's my adorable dog demonstrating his cuddle ability even though he's not huge on actually cuddling. He likes to be close but not touching. If you're really lucky he'll back his butt up into you. But that's about as snuggly as he gets. 

Last but certainly not least because I'm obsessed with them are the best slippers in the whole entire world. I think they're about 3 years old now but these babies are my favorite things in the world. They don't go outside at all. And despite a childhood refusal to wear slippers at all, I've never once been reminded that I need these guys on my feet. 

Well, that's post one done. The rest will be a bit more interesting than this but I wanted to start it off tonight.

Cheers, friends! I'm snuggling up in bed with The Hobbit playing on my laptop. 

I'm in love with this song.

Much like the Hunter Hayes song I had stuck in my head for weeks back in September, I just wanted to share this Pandora discovery with you. I'm sorry the audio quality is so bad. YouTube has like NOTHING of him on there. I'm a little upset about it actually. But we'll make due. 

It's called "Spoon" by John Neilson. Look him up :)

♥ Chelsea 

Goodness me.

It has been quite a while since I last posted, and for that I apologize. It has been quite the last month with school projects and work has been crazy as well so I just haven't been able to spare a minute to sit down and write out a solid post for y'all. My next big post will be about Thanksgiving dinner. I'm cooking this year and I'll be posting all about that experience for you and letting you know how it turned out.

I honestly don't have a ton to fess up this week, guys.

This last week has just been one where nothing interesting happened to me whatsoever. I went to school, I went to work, and that was about it. In lieu of the traditional fess up, I'll just share some high points of my week with you. I really don't have anything I'm super obsessed with right now, anyway. 

 I was made more aware that I love my job this week, though. San Juan Unified did their annual Principal for a Day event and I had a great time! I got to go to two different elementary schools and take pictures of their guest principals interacting with the kids. I'll post a few of them here:

These are the ones that made it onto San Juan Unified's Facebook page. I'm pretty proud of them, and I had a fantastic time going to the different schools and checking out what they're doing there. I really do enjoy my job immensely and I'm glad that I found it when I did. It's proven to be an unexpected surprise. 

This week was also another good one in the world of online shopping. I am obsessed with big, long sleeved shirts. I got one like 4 years ago at the Walt Disney Family Museum that I wear all the time. It's big and comfy and super warm and I find myself wishing I had more shirts like it all the time. Thusly, I set out to order myself some. The first of which I got from InkOnAShirt as a custom order. They're the home of the adorable "Southern Made" shirts that I've been seeing everywhere on Pinterest lately and unfortunately, despite my fondest wishes, I am about as unsouthern as possible. So I emailed the shop owners and they obliged me with an adorable custom ordered shirt in my Alabama Football colors :)

How stinkin' cute is that bow?! I'm in love. I have another Alabama Crimson Tide Elephant shirt coming from another Etsy shop later on and I can't wait to lounge in my big ass shirts for the rest of the Fall and Winter months. They're so easy to wear with all sorts of outfits. I can go casual with yoga pants and leggings or I can throw on some skinny jeans and boots and look a little more put together than my typical choice of  lounge wear for days when I have to go to school.

Last but not least was getting to spend all day today with my friend Tamiko and her niece and goddaughter. I love kids and I love being able to have a grownup day with my friend where we go shopping for running shoes and have girly chit chat while playing with the kids. 

I mean look at that face, guys! How can you not love her?! I've nicknamed her Princess Thundercloud after several pretend stormy bits of the day. My dad used to call me that when I was little, although I was decidedly more set in my crankiness than this little one is. She'll start tearing up for a second and let out a scream but if you look at her and say, "Hey, no." or "None of that.", she's done. Tantrum averted. When I was the reigning princess of stormy moods, it could go on for days. But I mean, who else am I gonna pass the legacy on to? I don't have any nieces or nephews of my own yet and I don't know that I'll be having kids of my own at all, so she gets the honor of taking over my throne for the time being. 

But, admittedly, after carrying her around all day, I am exhausted. I'm going to turn in now and get some sleep. I have a long day tomorrow anyway involving an oil change and battery cleaning for Ariel (who is my car) and I'm gonna have to be up early to get all of that tackled. 

Nighty night, guys.

 ♥ Chelsea

Falling Back on a Lazy Sunday

I really wish that I was a more productive human sometimes. I'm one of those people who always feels the need to do something with my time to make it count, and if I don't, I spend all of the time that I do spend doing nothing worrying about what I should be doing right then.

Today was not one of those days though. I spent it at home in varying locations, from my bed to downstairs, and all over my room while kind of sort of straightening up and putting things away. Mostly I watched a whole lot of Parenthood and Cooking Channel. I have papers to grade and some homework to pretend to be doing but in the mean time, I'm going to continue being a lazy human and watch Once Upon a Time when it comes on in a few hours with no plans in between. Enjoy your Sunday night, guys!

A Week in the Life

Well guys, not shockingly at all, another week has passed and I decided that instead of a fess up, I'd just give you a few photos from the week and take a second to chit chat about what all I've had going on. It wasn't nearly as long of a week as some of the past few have been, though. 

Monday was a work day, as usual, but it was not a 12 hour day, thank goodness. I got to do some cool things with an awards program that my school district internship is putting together and I got to finish up a great story about one of our high schools that I had a great time covering last Friday. 

And then I came home and I just vegged out and watched all my favorite TV shows. For some reason, Sleepy Hollow and Bones are on some nonsense hiatus and have been for the last few weeks. BUT Hart of Dixie this week was great. I actually was really happy for Lemon and Castle was ok. I still don't understand Alexis' boyfriend or where the heck he came from at all. I know they met while she was on some trip but when did Alexis become a dumbass? That kid is so obnoxious. Mr. C this, Mr. C that. Shut it, man, shut it.

 I also got to make myself a mug of pumpkin pie spice hot chocolate. My obsession with this comes in waves. Sometimes I make it all the time, and some years, I don't have a single cup whatsoever. I have a kickass hot chocolate maker that my mom gave me from Williams-Sonoma 2 years ago, and I'm obsessed with that thing. You legitimately take ground chocolate and steam milk in the microwave and the lid is a built in mixer/frother. It's just magical. And a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice makes it all the better. I LOVE it. 

Tuesday was a school day. Boring. Nothing to report. Except that I got a little baker bug and decided to make some pumpkin bread that we got at Trader Joe's. I'm sure that this stuff was supposed to be healthier than Krusteaz or some other brand of boxed mix, but I was not a fan. It was literally crummy. It was not cakey and delicious like the other brands, and despite cooking it for beyond the maximum amount of time, it liked to fall apart way too much for my taste to be honest. 

Wednesday I stayed home from work because I had 3 different projects for school to work on and I was feeling a little bit of pressure for time. I'm just gonna go out on a limb here and assume that there are very few people who hate group work quite as much as I do. I don't know when other people got so oblivious, or mediocre, but I find the whole thing frustrating. Especially because professors assume that you have nothing better to do than work for their class and because your schedule is soooooo open, you need to try and coordinate it with the other people in your class who also have nothing better to do. I'm in two groups and both of them are full of some people who really shouldn't force other people to risk their grades on them. 

Thursday was one of the best school days ever. I not only got up on time, but I had time to style my hair, do my homework and get to school on time. Then I got to my math class and for what I predict will be the only time this year, I received a perfect score on a test. Not that I won't try for a repeat. But I'm pretty not good at math. So I can honestly say I'm not going to be doing that again. 

I also did not fail my RPTA test like I thought I did. I got a C. Which I can certainly recover from. C is doable. F's not so much. So all in all, it was a pretty solid day, schoolwise. And because my mother refused to buy any candy this year, I was forced to celebrate my super duper day with a margarita. Happy Halloween to me! Best kind of treat I know ;)

Slapped some makeup on for dinner too. Do I see dark lips and curled hair?!

Today was pretty meh. I'm exhausted. I'm watching Parenthood on Amazon Prime (my new obsession) and hanging out trying to muster up the energy to make a little bit of progress in my room because I'd like to make some progress in here this weekend, cleanliness wise. I need to go through my closet and whatnot. I wanna put on The Blind Side and some sweats and chillout. That'll probably happen here in a few minutes. 

I hope you guys are having a great Friday night and that you enjoy your weekends as much as I will as well!

Nighty night ♥

Finally...a Fess Up!

I know, I know, I'm a horrible blogger and it's been over a week since I actually posted anything of use. But today I'm back with a fess up and some other news!

It's been a heck of a week. I was busier than a bee during honey season...is there a honey season? Anyway, Monday was my last day at the hotel...cue hallelujah chorus here...Wednesday almost killed me. I had to be at work at 6:30 to work on a story and last weekend was intense between UoP's homecoming and the funeral I had to go to. I got off work at 4 today and I've been home for about an hour so I decided to sit down and get this blog post written and posted while I watch Casey Holmes and MeghanRosette on YouTube.

To be honest, quite a few of my fess up things are going to be TV related...I've been loving this Fall's lineup. Thus, my appreciation of the new shows on TV has to be noted. Just a warning. 

Number One: Reign. I'm not going to lie, I wasn't excited about this show at all. While I like period pieces and all that, The CW's tv shows don't usually tickle my fancy. My love/hate relationship with Gossip Girl pretty much started when Jenny took over as queen of the Upper East Side and continued from there. The exception to this is of course, Hart of Dixie because well, I love Rachel Bilson. But back to Reign. Aside from the horrendous accents (no one on the show has an accent appropriate to their supposed country of origin. It upsets me. I guess America just assumes that everyone from Europe sounds British. That seems to be what's going on here), I love the show. I'm a huge fan and I'm not sure why. It isn't like it is mind blowing or anything. I'm fully aware of Mary Queen of Scots and her history, but the show is just great. Only two episodes in but thus far, I'm diggin it for sure. All of the behind the scenes pictures from the show are hilarious, too. It seems like everyone on the show seems to like each other and get along really well which is always nice to see, I feel. Plus, how gorgeous is the chick who plays Mary?! 

Hair jealousy for sure. BUT I'm this color now so I suppose I can try and achieve this. 

Number Two: The Originals. I suppose since the CW is currently rockin' it with their new shows, I suppose I'll keep on in the vein of television shows that I like right now. The Originals kind of trips me out, only because it is currently taking place during the set of episodes in which Klaus and Elijah are in New Orleans and The Vampire Diaries has moved on from that particular place in time...so the Originals are like in a time loop while Mystic Falls moved on in time...like I said...trippy. Don't get it. BUT I am totally enjoying the series. I'm slightly obsessed with New Orleans so the show taking place there is definitely helping my love affair develop. I don't know. Overall, I can't get enough of the show even though the way the guy who plays Klaus talks drives me NUTS because speech impediments inherently bother me. I don't know what it is. People who move their mouths oddly when they talk just trip me out. And I love Phoebe Tonkin's style on the show...and in real life. But whatever, we'll keep it to the show. 

Plus Marcell isn't too hard on the eyes, either.

Number Three: The skull leggings I bought on StyleLately. I got them mostly to wear for Halloween but it isn't like skulls stop being cool on November 1st. I just won't wear them to any Christmas parties, yeah? I linked them but you can't buy them anymore. StyleLately, for those who don't know is a website that features trendy clothing for a limited time at discounted prices. I got the leggings for $11.99 and I guess I got the last pair because they were sold out when I looked at their listing not even 2 minutes later. I'll post a picture of my Halloween outfit for you so you can see how awesome they are. 

Number Four: Dark hair. So despite my plans not even two fess ups ago to go a caramel, bronzey blonde, I ended up going to a level four (hella dark) brown this week on Wednesday. Why, you ask? Well, I felt like it. I spent a few days looking on Pinterest for "Rich Brown Hair" and eventually gave up and let my stylist do what she wanted anyway. I'm waiting for her to post the pictures on Instagram though because the color we went is super trippy. It's a dark dark brown, almost black but in the sun, it reflects blood red. It's so weird. There isn't a drop of red in the actual dye because my hair has a tendency to pull really warm anyway and go red no matter what color we apply but this time, it's here even though it wasn't invited to the party. 

Number Five: Allegiant. If you are a fan of novels about dystopian societies, a la The Hunger Games and have no read the Divergent series by Veronica Roth, you are clearly living under a rock. I think the last fess up I posted I was reading House of Hades. I finished that book just in time for my pre-ordered copy of Allegiant, the third installment of the Divergent series, to load itself onto my Kindle. I'm only about five chapters in, and I don't remember the other books actually switching perspectives between characters, but for now, I'm allowing it. It's super good so far, I just keep having to remember what happened in the first two books because its been a while since I last read them. 

Number Six: Artwork. Now that I've moved back home, I've been slowly, very slowly, been getting my room together, hanging up my pictures, arranging things on my bookshelf, getting it all just so now that I'm back for a bit, and I've been getting into shopping for artwork for my walls. I don't have a ton of wall space or anything, but I do have enough to be able to hang up a few pieces and I think that I finally found the final two pieces to fill the holes I have left. Once everything looks like an explosion didn't occur an hour before I walked into my room, I will absolutely be posting pictures of it and talking about things. I'm really excited, actually. I like having a room that I'm proud of and want to be in now. 

Clearly I needed this the second I saw it!

Number Seven: Monroe and Harlow. I already talked about them last time, yest. But since then, I received my order and they've been releasing more things and I couldn't be more pleased with both my order and how the miniature snafu that occurred was handled by the shop owner. Monroe and Harlow is affiliated with another website called StoreEnvy which is how their orders are processed, I guess. Anyway, when I submitted my order, I got the standard "Thanks for Your Order" email with my receipt and telling me that I would receive a ship confirmation once I they went out. Aaaaaaand like 2 or 3 days later I still hadn't gotten one. So I emailed the shop just to check and see whether or not they'd gone out. The lovely shop owner emailed me back right away and let me know that they had gone out the day before and that they should arrive to me from Florida in about 2-3 days. Which was fine with me. I asked her for the tracking number just to be able to check their progress and she let me know that for some reason, my items were "stuck" in Miami and hadn't moved in two days. I told her it wasn't a big deal and I could hang in until they came in. She told me that if they hadn't moved by 3 that day, she'd be calling USPS to see what the heck was up. Well, that was Friday and the Monroe and Harlow package arrived at my house on Saturday. Apparently they weren't stuck at all and USPS was up to its usual fuckery but I really appreciated her effort to work with me and her concern for the fact that my items were not shipping to me properly and on time. I will definitely be ordering more from them after I get paid next time. 

I hope you guys have been having a good week and now that I'm back on track with posting, I will be sure to post more. I still need to do an outfit styling post with my knit jeggings and also with my skull leggings on Halloween so keep your eyes peeled for those. And I'll probably be getting something up in the next few days here about my room as it progresses into a more permanent state of doneness. 

Not all who wander are lost...

...sometimes they're just at their little sister's first college Homecoming. Apparently, when you actually go away to school, things like homecoming are actually super exciting and not a big joke like they are at my stupid commuter campus.

With any luck, I'll get a good blog post out of it. If not, I hear there's a beer garden of some sort there. If it gets super boring, I'll just get a really big beer and cruise around doing that instead of listening to a spirit band.

I decided not to do a fess up again so soon since it literally took me until yesterday to get last week's up. If I was though, Reign would for sure be a part of my fess up for this week.

The premiere was fantastic. I finally watched it today while I was attempting to work on my room and get some pictures and things hung up. Which I did, quite successfully. Now I just need to get the rest of my crap put away or given away so my room is livable for real and not just livable if you're used to living in mess from 16 or so years of practice doing it.

I've made a resolution for myself to complete things more often. Like my room, this blog (how are we feeling about the new title, by the way? It's a little plain but I made it myself and therefore, I feel like I should be proud of it.), and my Tumblr which I frequently change the theme and music of but always consistently post pictures that I like.

Anyway, just a quick little ramble for this Friday night when I have nothing better to do than sit around in my room and wait for the sun to come up tomorrow. Cheers.

It's the end of the week...let's fess up some things.

I started this blog last Saturday. It is now Wednesday. Epic fail on my part. But at least I got it up, right??

Guys, where is the year going?! I feel like it was just New Year's like yesterday and here we are, midway through October, watching Halloween movies and starting our Christmas shopping. Say whaaaaaaa?! So much has happened this year, too but I feel like it was all a blur. But as good as 2013 has been, I'm sure 2014 will be even better.

This past week has been an interesting one. I'm loving my internship. I have had quite a few stories published thus far and I'm pretty proud of myself. I need to buy a portfolio for them, though. I really should get better at being on top of promoting myself. But I'm just enjoying the experience right now. I really like my boss and the other intern and the people in the office are all super friendly. 

Best of all, I am definitely excited to be cutting down my hours at the hotel. Tomorrow and Wednesday mark my last full week here and after that, I'll only be trapped twice a week. Woohoo! You have no idea how much I need to be outta here. *Most* of the people are horrendous pieces of work. Ok, not most, but a significant enough number that I want to yank my hair out and scream life is too short repeatedly when they talk. 

But enough of my complaining, let's get into what I'm loving this week...and one undecided deal. 

Number One: Alright, let's start with a pumpkin spice tea that I've now added time into my schedule each morning to go downstairs and make for myself to start my day. I got it at Target because it was on price cut for $2.27 and it's the Sweet Harvest Pumpkin tea from Celestial Seasonings. I can't even describe how good it is. It's like a hug in a cup or something. I don't know that I will repurchase when I blow through this box but I'm enjoying every cup I make :)

Number Two: American Eagle's Knit Jeggings. I may have talked about them before, I may not have. I can't remember but these have rapidly become a wardrobe staple for me. So much so that I had to go into American Eagle on Thursday and buy another pair for myself (while wearing the first ones, I might add) because wearing the one I had four times a week wasn't conducive to looking like I actually have a cute butt. They are the most comfortable pants that I have ever owned in my entire life and they're super flattering. Considering I live in yoga and sweatpants when I'm not at work, to say these are as comfortable if not more so than my yoga pants is serious business guys, and they are. I'm thinking I'll be putting up a styling post for them soon considering how often I wear them in my week so at some point, you'll see them in action. 

Number Three: House of Hades. So you may or may not know that I'm a borderline buff when it comes to Greek, Roman, and Egyptian Mythology. Full blown nerd status, to be honest. And I got into the Percy Jackson series of books in 2010 when I was on a family trip to Disneyworld. I bought the first three books in a box set and proceeded to devour them in the seven days that we were in Florida, only to come home and finish the series of 5 books. Wellp, Rick Riordan did it again and came out with a Greco-Roman fusion series in which the kids from the Percy Jackson series team up with their Roman counterparts and thus far, I have read every single book that has come out. I'm currently reading the newest release, House of Hades (or at least trying to every spare second that I have) and I'm not disappointed. Unlike other book series that I have read, all of the pieces in the Heroes of Olympus collection are perfect stand alone books, as well as cohesive stepping stones to build the sum of the series, from The Lightning Thief to now. 

I will not, however be going to see the movie that is coming out. The first one ruined it for me.

Number Four: TrendyTulip Designs on Etsy. I already own one of their quarter zip, monogrammed pullovers but I've got my eyes on another one because, well, when your initials are CEO, why wouldn't you slap your monogram all over everything? I'd initially asked my little sister to get it for me for Christmas but I want it now, so I will pretty much be ordering a carbon copy of the example on the shop site for myself to wear now that it's getting colder. Words cannot express how excited I am. 

Did I mention that it's Lily Pulitzer print?! I may not be in a sorority anymore, but I can get down like a sorority girl for SURE. 

Number Five: Pushing Daisies. Ok, so to be honest, this show came out when I was still in high school. I think I was a freshman when it premiered. But I loved it then and somehow lost track of it in the course of the second season. I won't lie to you and tell you that I frequently put it on to watch when I have nothing else going on television wise. I do have to wait some time between viewings though. When you've seen the episodes as many times as I have, you tend to get bored really quickly. 

Number Six: MonroeandHarlow. I have never been a fan of hippie headbands or wearing a headwrap or anything of that nature. However, in a recent attempt to be more girly, I decided to purchase some from their website last week and I can't wait to get them. Now when my hair is being annoying and misbehaving, I can pull one of these cute little turban-y headbands on and look like I tried for the day. 

Number Seven: Plum Nail Polish. Orly's Plum Noir to be exact. Now that it is supposedly fall, I have gotten more into the darker nail polish thing but on my albino skin, black is a little much. So I've been rocking Plum Noir as a nice alternative. It's dark but it isn't black and plum is a little bit girlier anyway. 

The Eh Experience: Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. I wasn't sure how I would feel about this new series from the creators of Once Upon a Time when I first saw the commercials. I mean, I love Alice in Wonderland, but I wasn't sure how I'd feel now that Once Upon a Time, the original has gone a bit downhill in plotline and execution. Frankly, if it makes it past season 4, I would be shocked. Anyway, I watched the first episode of Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, and to be frank, its an even bigger mess than its predecessor. I may give the second episode a shot...but the pilot wasn't very good at all. 

Taco Tuesdays and Hocus Pocus: This Week So Far

Happy Hump Day, friends! It's Wednesday and I figured that I already have enough to talk about this week that I don't have to wait for the Fess Up to talk about my life. I'm not sure how often I'll actually feel compelled to do this, but I'm still in my good mood from last week so let's roll with it, shall we?

Monday was an interesting day for me. Apart from it being one of my 12 hour days, I actually decided that after a year, I am leaving the hotel. I'm not a super impulsive person, especially when it comes to money and jobs, but after spending a year feeling unappreciated, taken advantage of and disrespected in my position, I'm ready to go. I didn't officially put in my 2 weeks notice. I just reduced my availability to 2 days a week. I've decided that I'll be putting in my 2 weeks officially when they have new people hired and in training so I don't get guilt tripped too bad for leaving them short staffed. 

Since making the decision though, I feel about 100 lbs lighter. I don't feel like I hate my life, I don't want to yell at everyone for just being in my presence, and I suspect that the further I get from the front desk, the better I will feel. 

I also got Hocus Pocus on DVD for a pre-Halloween movie date with my friend Sara who has NEVER SEEN HOCUS POCUS(!). Yup. that's right guys, she's never seen the best Halloween movie to ever come out...ever. Clearly she had a terrible childhood ;) That movie always brings back fond memories for me though. To be honest, one of my first memories is of watching Hocus Pocus in my grandma's den in Santa Rosa when I was 4 or 5 years old. As you can imagine, despite my avid movie watching at that age, I wasn't quite a pro at sitting still the whole time and I remember getting up and wandering out to see what everyone else was doing at the commercials only to toddle my way off back to watching the movie when I thought the commercials must be over. I would assume that it carries the same fond memories for other people too because when I posted a picture of the freshly-opened DVD on Instagram, I got 17 likes within...probably 30 minutes of posting it. And that's the most likes I've ever gotten on an image. 

This was basically the best cap off to a Monday in a long time, especially because I have to work on Monday nights. I can't wait to watch it tomorrow night. Whether Sara comes over or not, I am definitely gettin down on some vintage Disney Halloween Classic movie time. I may have sushi. I may go visit my friends over at Macaroni Grill considering the fact that I haven't seen any of them since I quit Mac Grill almost a year ago when I got hired on at the hotel. Biiiiiiig mistake. Either way, childhood memories will be relived, regardless of food choice. 

Yesterday, in case you live under a rock, was Taco Tuesday. And now when I say Taco Tuesday, I do so with the implication that like the Plastics or the guys on Big Bang, I differentiate certain days by the activities that I do on those days. It's just Taco Tuesdays, mostly because there is no day of the week that starts with B to make it Beer ______day. 

Two weeks ago, my friend Tamiko and I went to Rubio's for Taco Tuesday after I talked her into ditching her 3:00 class like the horrible influence that I am. Now normally, I love me some Rubio's, but since going dairy free about six months ago, their tacos sans white sauce are not as good as they are with and I can't eat them. 

We missed last week between class schedules and laziness so this week, after she got out of her 3:00 class, we hit our local Chando's tacos to try out their offerings for Taco Tuesday. 

Holy Crap! I'm in love. They were seriously delicious and authentically awesome. 

They don't run a special like Rubio's does, but for a 3 taco "plate" plus a pretty large drink, it is only $6. That's a friggin steal. These tacos may be small, but they are mighty and I can almost guarantee that unless you are a very large dude who eats  a couple thousand calories a day, you'll be pretty satisfied with 3 tacos. 

I chose the carnitas, pork and chorizo tacos...I can't lie, the carnitas tasted like a barnyard smells. It was terrible. BUT the pork might be the best thing I've ever eaten...at least from a pig and that means that bacon is being beat out by these tacos. That's saying something. 

We've decided that Chando's is our new Taco Tuesday spot, for sure.

Behold the wreckage that was my plate after I got done eating....10 minutes later. Needless to say, I hated my food. Couldn't possibly eat a bite. 

That's my week thus far. Hope yours is going equally as well. 

It's time to fess up...

...I swear, Friday is actually one of my shortest days but I always seem to be more tired on Fridays than I am every other day and fall asleep at oddly early times. Overall, it was pretty much a good week. I managed to maintain the good mood I had all week even though a couple of times there I was stressed beyond belief. I am however absolutely exhausted. This 12 hour day stuff is going to have to be done, real quick. I can't keep doing it every since week on top of school and trying to have a life. The struggle is real, friends.

On a funny note, I did get stopped at a high school yesterday because they thought I was a student trying to ditch. Yes, I look that young. Basically, I was onsite for work yesterday and as we were leaving, I hear a lady's voice behind me talking to someone but I clearly didn't listen because I've been a high school graduate for almost 5 years and I don't go to that school. I'm almost to the gate behind which my car is parked and I hear, "Helloooooo!" so I turn around and look behind me and the lady goes, "Uh, HI!" and I say back (in my least friendly voice), "hi." She saw my id badge, was very embarrassed and says, "Oh sorry." I just turned around and walked away. I don't go here, you've clearly never seen me before and if I was a student trying to ditch, I woulda been off campus and gone before you stopped me lady, go away. My boss found this story hilarious when I told him. I didn't.

Anyway, on to what you all came here for....my weekly fess up of things I'm loving or hating.

Number One: Hot Chocolate. It's been about 2 or 3 weeks since I've actually had any almond milk in my house which in and of itself is a crisis situation as far as I'm concerned. But now that I do, I can totally use my hot chocolate maker and my delicious semi-sweet hot chocolate from Willams-Sonoma. In my Disneyland Halloween mug, of course. My mom bought my the hot chocolate maker for Christmas...three years ago, maybe two, and every Christmas since, I've asked for a new version of their hot chocolate to go with it. The tin usually lasts about a year so it's pretty cost-effective but it is also so much better than the disgusting Swiss Miss powder junk. I haven't actually made any yet, but I'll be busting it out tomorrow morning before I have to go to work at the hotel at 3. 

Number Two: Reconnecting with old friends. In the last 4 years at college, I've made a lot of friends. Some I've kept, some I've lost but this week, I've managed to see and reconnect with several friends I hadn't seen in a while. Which is nice. Sometimes it is good to dive back into your past by meeting up and spending time with people who knew you way back when. It's also a good benchmark to see how much you've changed. I had dinner with one of my best girlfriends from my Freshman and Sophomore years whom I hadn't seen in almost a year and a half and it was so nice to see her and catch up and just chat about life. We met up at another friend's downtown boutique and were talking about "back in the day" and one of us made the point that, "you know you're old when you look back and say, 'we've all calmed down so much'." Which is true, we have. We're all working steady jobs, finishing up school and moving on with our lives. And if you can do it over ceviche and sangria, why the heck not?!

Zocalo Happy Hour >>>>>>

Number Three: Bronde hair. As a devout ombre lover over the last year or two and finally having achieved the perfect level of ombre perfection in August, no one is more shocked than I that my friend Maggie was able to talk me into biting the bullet and going the enlightened road again. For those of you who don't know me, I was blonde for a solid two years during my teens. I'm a natural redhead (well more auburn than red really but same color family) and for the longest time, I would only go dark. Some time during my Freshman year I thought, why the heck not and started the blonde process. And I liked it. I look pretty good as a blonde. BUT it was a pain in the butt because as anyone who knows me can attest, I'm friggin lazy. And while I have neutral enough roots that I can go a bit without getting them touched up, the touch-ups themselves were driving me nuts. So about a year ago I went dark again and I went ombre in February of this year. Wellp, Maggie talked me into going blonde again and I made my appointment for the end of November. I'm currently praying for my hair. All that bleach is bound to freak it out. But I'm doing it. 

Plus I'm in love with Nina Agdal and her hair color. This is where I wanna end up. 

Number Four: Potentially getting a new job. I had an interview this week at a restaurant that one of my friends works at as a bartender. We've been bugging her manager for like 6 months about me coming to work there and I finally had my interview on Thursday. It went well and with any luck I'll be able to quit the hotel after this current schedule is through. All my fingers and toes are crossed. It's about time for me to make a change. I've been miserable at this job for the last....7 months. I'm ready to move on and try something I'll actually enjoy. Life is too short to hate what you're doing. Plus, who doesn't love beer, wings and sports?! The answer is weird people. That's who doesn't love the holy trinity. 

Number Five: Sweaters!!! I bought myself 2 new sweaters from Target online a couple of weeks ago and they finally arrived yesterday. I'm in love, guys. With sweaters. They're so soft and they're the perfect amount of chunky knit and slouchiness without being totally frumpy and bag lady lookin'. They made friends with all my other sweaters this morning. I have a lot more sweaters than I thought I did but that's good. It means I need to buy less now that it's fall and sweaters are where it's at for dressing yourself when you're a girl. 

Number Six: Knit Jeggings! Ok, so this is one of my more ridiculous purchases. I did not need them when they ended up in my cart on American Eagle's Website but I figured, I can wear them to work, they're professionally appropriate, being black and all, plus I can wear them casually too..but mostly for work at the internship.  That was the conversation that I had with myself while trying to decide whether or not I just had to have them. Basically, I'm full of it. I totally could have survived without them. But now that I have one pair, I want all of them! They have them in olive, khaki, and burgundy or something and let me tell you, considering how comfortable they are, it is taking all of my will power not to buy every single pair in every single color because they totally are work wear appropriate and it's kind of like wearing yoga pants to work...but actually having pockets to put your phone in. 

Number Seven: Hunter Hayes. I've already featured him on a fess up before, but considering I spend between 4 to 7 hours a day listening to his Pandora station when I'm at my internship, I feel like I should really feature him on here as an artist and not just the song that has managed to get me through the current awkwardness that was the end of my last relationship in which I have no idea what actually happened and am not sure exactly how to proceed with the guy because of the lack of closure. Anyway every morning when I get to work, I put on my Hunter Hayes Pandora station and listen to him for the entirety of my work day as I'm at my desk. And when he comes on the radio, I get like ten times more excited. And he's made it on my Tumblr music player 3 times over of late. So I'd say we're still musically in love :)

It's just been one of those weeks...

Where all of a sudden, I feel like a weight has been lifted off me and I'm profoundly content with my life and everything in it. Ok, not everything. I still hate my job. But I have plans to fix that as well. 

I'm not sure if it's because I decided that the current status of my life is fine and that the waiting game that I am playing with myself will actually work out in my favor or if it is simply the gorgeous fall weather we've had here. But every time I think about it, I feel an immediate rush of happiness and I smile to myself because deep in my heart, soul, self, I know that it is all going to be ok and work out just fine. 

It's a nice feeling, this utter contentedness. I don't feel like there's anything I absolutely have to do right this second. I'm just seeing where things take me and it is making me happier than I've been in a while. 

Ever have one of those mornings?

Where despite the fact that you worked till 11 the night before at a job you can't stand, you stayed up late to watch one of your favorite shows, you have to get up at 6:40 to start your 12 hour day but it's a great freakin' day?

That's where I am today. I got up, got ready in what seemed like record time...perhaps considering my hair is FILTHY (darn you no free time from Saturday till Tuesday night) and I just put it into a bun so no one could tell...and then had time to make myself a mug of tea and dress myself relatively well for work and head off in a cloud of Sublime's self-titled album. The clouds in the sky only served to help my chipper little mood. I'm a fall girl. Always have been.

Just thought I'd share with you. Not all Mondays are bad. I'm sure I'll be grumpy catting it up in a week, but for now, I'm pretty content with life.

Cheers, friends. 

What's on my Christmas List?

About a week ago, I'm in the kitchen trying to find something to munch, as I so often do at all times of the day, and my mother comes downstairs and emphatically announces that she would like a Ped Egg for Christmas. That's it. She wants a Ped Egg. So I think to myself...if I get everyone's requests in now...I could be done shopping by mid October and spend the rest of the time in stress-free bliss, not having to worry about shopping or beating other people to the mall. So I'm goin' for it. That in turn though, means that I should have my own Christmas list ready to go so that I can provide other shoppers in my life that same, stress-free experience, right?

Now, to be fair, I expected to graduate around Christmas time, so my grad present/Christmas list has been standing for a minute. It's pretty short, though the items I chose are quality. So I figured I would share it with you folks as well, maybe you'll get into the Christmas spirit in September too.

Clark's Desert Boots in Beeswax Leather

This seems like a pretty random thing to ask for for Christmas but, to be clear, I've had my eyes on these babies since Christmas 2011. I am in LOVE. Considering how much of a plain Jane I am in the style department, burnished leather grandpa boots are right up my alley. Apparently, these were cool back in the day when my mom was my age....wellp Moms, they're still cool for this girl now. I have legitimately been coveting these for years and I'm finally going to ask for them for Christmas because well, two years is too long to wait. I could always have bought them myself, but it is so much more satisfying to not spend $110 on a pair of boots that I don't really need in real life. 

Marc Jacobs Honey Perfume

Sooooo this guy is currently hanging on by a thread on the list. Considering how obsessed I've become with Victoria's Secret's Coconut Passion perfume in recent weeks, that has definitely surpassed Honey for now. But I already own Coconut Passion so I'm going to go for something new for the early part of 2014 and switch it up maybe. We'll see if it actually stays though. 

This fragrance came out in the Spring and while I do like Marc Jacobs fragrances, I tend to lean more toward richer, more vanilla-y fragrances than he typically releases. In the case of Honey, I found that I really do like how light it is because there is a rounded out sweetness to it that I feel like tends to be missing for me when I've smelled the other fragrances from the brand. There's always a little something missing that I can't put my finger on and they fall just a little....flat. Perhaps its the honey element in the perfume that I'm responding to. Either way, I love it and if it makes it on the final Christmas list, I'm getting it. 

That's about it for now. My only FOR SURE is the boots. I want a gift certificate to get my hair done but I'm not super concerned about that right now. I still have to decide what I'd like to do with my hair by then. 

Ok...who the heck hit fast forward?!

Guys, I swear I say this every week, and I know it. But where do these days keep going? Despite the last 7 days feeling like some of the longest in my life, this week ended rather quickly and pretty quick here it'll be Christmas. Sure, I'm getting a little carried away, but forreal guys, this is just getting ridiculous. I feel like I'm waking up on Monday and then by noon, it's Friday already.

Speaking of, I've decided I'm just going to start calling it the Fess Up. No Friday. Sometimes I'm busy, and I can't get it up on Friday but I definitely do as soon as I can. So taking the deadline out cuts a bit of the pressure for me. To quote the YouTube community, with that being said, let's jump right in. I swear, they ALL say that in their videos. Guys, get a new catch phrase! I'm begging you!

Number One: Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride Tea from Celestial Seasonings. Like I said, soon it will be Christmas, right guys? Might as well start with the seasonal beverages now. Anyway, I'm notorious for using tea as a hand warmer. I might not even want to drink the tea, but I make some so I can hold the warm mug and warm up my notoriously freezing little hands. In the case of Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride however, I'm all about drinking it. Yes, it warms my hands just famously, but it is also freaking DELICIOUS. I've gone through most of the remainder of the box I got around Christmastime last year in a matter of the last few days. I can't even tell you how nice it is to be sitting here writing this with the wafting scent of sugar cookie tea coming from my Disneyland Halloween mug right next to me.

MMMMMM Delicious! Plus, look how cute the box is!

Number Two: My new workstation. Over the last few weeks, I've managed to get really behind in life. Or at least feel like I am. Postmove, my room is still a bit of a disaster area. And while we're going to be working on it today, I needed to get a set workspace for myself because if I don't have somewhere to grade my papers and store my laptop, I'll be doing it in my bed and beds are not for working. They're for napping, cuddling, and watching Sons of Anarchy or Once Upon a Time in. Once everything is put together, I'll post pictures and do a description of what all we did, I'm just waiting to get my electrical situation figured out and my calendar and bulletin board hung up.

Number Three: Once Upon a Time. So other than the fact that I'm more than a little annoyed that Joanna Garcia is apparently going to be playing Ariel on the show, (I mean seriously, my favorite character is going to be played by Cheyenne from Reba?! Seriously?! There had to have been much better options to play a mermaid out there) I am so excited that Once Upon a Time is back on starting tomorrow. Over its runtime, it has managed to become one of my favorite shows and I can't wait to see how the new season progresses. Plus I am always super into Emma's style...or I was in the first season, subsequent seasons and their costuming has only managed to disappoint...and Mary Margaret's makeup choices. Bring on the magic!

Anyone else think that looks vaguely like the Flying Dutchman from the Pirates movies??

Number Four: My current hair care routine. Ok, ok, I'm not a beauty guru or anything. Nor do I claim to be. Trust me, I'm way too lazy for that. BUT after double processing my hair to achieve the ombre look I've been rocking for almost a year now, not to mention a pretty dramatic frying after letting a friend's mom color my hair with a box dye last November, my hair was a little bit on the freaking out side. However, I am happy to report that it is not nearly as strawlike and dry, nor do I have little broken pieces everywhere like I did. Thank you Macadamia Natural Oil! Woot!

Number Five: Sweatpants, leggings, and yoga pants being practically a seasonal requirement. I've noticed this week that because I'm not taking Communication classes, no one in my classes wears real pants. Everyone is constantly in workout gear. As a result I've decided that I clearly chose the wrong major coming into college. If I'd just chosen Kinesiology, I could have work sweats for the last four years, cuteness be damned! Too late now though, so I'll just hop on the bandwagon and give my jeans a rest unless I'm going out for a beer ;) I ordered myself two pairs of cuter, more girly sweatpants than the type I'm usually spotted in from Gilly Hicks this week because theirs were marked down to $25 and there was free shipping over $50. Done deal right there. 

Gilly Hicks Vintage Skinny Sweatpants. Hopefully they're as comf as they look.

Number Six: Getting published for the second time at work. After possibly the most boring 2 weeks ever at my internship, I'm getting another story published, plus some photos I took yesterday. All of which I did the photo editing on and I wrote the story and the Facebook blurb. No links yet but when I have them, so will you :)

Number Seven: Coconut Passion Perfume from Victoria's Secret. I'm in love with this scent. I got the body spray version in August with a coupon for a full-size free at Victoria's Secret. I become so obsessed with it that I had to buy the actual perfume as well. Now I've asked my little sister for the body wash and body cream for Christmas so I can smell like delicious dessert all the time.

Doesn't look like much but it smells SOOOOO good! 

Even my hair dresser asked me what I was wearing. 

Tattoos. Yes, I have them. Just some long, quick musings about body art.

What's Up with Tattoos?

I've been thinking about this a lot lately, not sure why. Perhaps because the itch to ink again has struck me, or perhaps because its been a while since I've had to explain them to anyone. There are a few things I've learned about people with tattoos as I've accumulated my own over the last 3 years. I have 5 myself. Each of them was somewhat carefully thought out. To be honest, I saw, heard, read whatever I got tattooed, it ended up on there because when I saw, heard or read them, I had an overwhelming connection to whatever it is and HAD to get it. Nothing more, nothing less.

Why They're Here

My tattoo philosophy is this: If you want it, get it. If you regret it, at least there's a story. Each of the 5 have been something that has struck me profoundly when I read, see or hear it, and thus, they ended up permanently inked on the surface of my skin.

I would like to say they serve as a road map to where I've been in my life, emotionally, geographically, whatever. But I'll be totally honest here, they absolutely do not. My tattoos are just something I wanted when I had the money and they happened. They're no more an indication of my journey through life than they are the coolest things on the planet. They meant something to me, I wanted them, I could pay, so I got them. I got my tattoos, not to join the club and be one of the "cool kids". I wanted them for myself and that was it.

Don't get me wrong, I'm damn proud of my tattoos. I didn't earn them or anything like that. I'm not in a gang, motorcycle club or prison where your tattoos are a visual cue to who you are and each and every one is an earned experience. I am however proud of my ink. It is a part of me, like my eyes, hair or teeth. My tattoos are a part of my appearance. In fact, I forget that they're there most of the time, they've become so ingrained into my person that I forget that there was a time when I didn't have them.

Speaking of gangs, though, tattoos are kind of like a club, if you think about it. The more you have, the more you belong, and while the membership is relatively diverse, it is also an exclusive, relatively judgmental sort of club. The people who don't have tattoos want to know all about them, the people who do have them see your tattoos, recognize you as another one, and then move on. No questions asked.

Why having Ink is Equivalent to Being with Child

To be honest, I have found that the most annoying part of having tattoos is the fact that while a lot of people will judge you for having them, your ink also seems to be an engraved invitation for people to invade your space, both  your physical and emotional . I have never had so many unwarranted experiences with people touching me (and I am NOT a toucher by nature. I don't even hug my parents unless I'm forced) as I have since I got my tattoos. The tattoo on my back is the worst. It goes across my left shoulder and I have had at least 10 different people grab the shirt I'm wearing and pull it out of the way to read it. It's kind of like being pregnant, but instead of people crowding your tummy and asking when you're due, they crowd your whole body, put their face real close and breathe all over you.

People want to "read" tattoos (I say "read" because I don't have any tattoos in English, on purpose) and ask all about them; they want to know what they mean and why I got them. Then they want to validate my choice with a hearty, "Oh, that's a good one!" or "I like that!" My internal response to this, every time that I hear it is, "I know it's a good one. I paid to have it put on my body for the rest of my life." and "Good for you, I don't remember asking how you felt about my personal choices, but I appreciate your validation of them." I don't think it gets more awkward than having your waxer ask you, mid appointment what your tattoo says. If you can think of a better one, be my guest. Can't say I've ever been more uncomfortable than in that moment though.

I don't ask people about their tattoos. I ask to see them. I don't ask what they mean, where they come from, why they chose it. I don't ask about religious significance or why they got a weed tattoo. It isn't that I don't care (ok, maybe a little...or depending on the person, a lot), but I honestly feel that my validation of your tattoo choice should not affect how you feel about what you chose.

I say all this about how tattoos are personal and that I hate the invasion of space, and then I'm going to turn around and tell you that I judge people's tattoos as well. Despite how personal they are, I look at so many people's tattoos and think, "You picked that out of a book, didn't you?" It isn't that the tattoo itself doesn't exhibit skill (although considering how many "bad tattoo" websites there are out there, you can see my assumption), but that a Bambi on your ankle or a dolphin on your ass is more likely to be a drunken Spring Break choice than it is an honest reflection of you.

Why "Thinking Out" Tattoos Isn't Always the Best Idea

My first tattoo came when I was ALMOST 19. I waited almost a year because I wanted to be sure that I did, in fact, want what I wanted. I'm now almost 22. Having thought out my first tattoo thoroughly, I can honestly say, it is the only one I would love to get rid of. It's small, on my left foot and says, "Joie de Vivre" in my ex's handwriting. We have long since stopped seeing each other, and despite still being friends, I hate the tattoo. Not passionately. I forget its there most of the time, but when I do see it, the small, awkward placement and small, awkward handwriting irk me.

I really wish that I'd started with my second tattoo or my fourth. The first one is just, meh. Unimpressive and the one I have to explain the most frequently because, despite "joie de vivre" being a pretty common expression, apparently, most Americans are much more ignorant of other cultures than I had supposed. The Hawaiian phrase on my back, yes, the Roman numerals on my forearm, understandable, the Spanish on my hip, if you're lucky enough to see, sure. But I don't even speak French, and I knew what Joie de Vivre was...as early as my late childhood. Sad day, America, sad day.

I also think that thinking about it to the point of exhaustion takes all the fun, impulsiveness, and excitement out of the tattoo. If you've thought it to death, you could also think yourself out of wanting them. Sometimes, the
go go go" thing really helps.

Just Because I have Them, doesn't mean I Love Guys with Tattoos

My tattoos don't mean that I expect the men that I'm with to also be tattooed. Mine are a part of me, they don't need to be a part of the men that I date at all for me to be interested. 

As with all things, my theory on men with tattoos is that it depends on the man. There are some guys that look really good with them, there are some guys that look ridiculous with them, some who got them just to be cool, and some who have waaaaaayyyyy too much ink. Yes, that is possible...paging Joel Madden, leg tattoos are NOT cute. 

I can honestly say, the guys that I've been the most into didn't have any tattoos at all. The tattooed ones are good for a crush, or infatuation rather, but the ones that I legitimately am interested in, want to date are the ones who haven't made the leap into tattoos yet. Not that I would dump a guy because he got a tattoo while I was with him, but I don't go out of my way to find a man with tattoos to pair myself up with. Nor do I look for men without. I just look for men that I like. Tattoos or not don't have any weight in my decision; I've just noticed a trend within my dating life that the guys I've actually been into into, they haven't had tattoos at all.