Things Worth Loving

This weekend is bound to be an epic adventure, which means very little time for blogging. Here are some things to adore!

Jack Kerouac is probably my favorite writer of all time. I have a quote of his tattooed on my wrist, own most of his books, and keep a variation on the above picture (Kerouac is on the right, Neal Cassady is on the left) on my bookshelf. This week, I started rereading Maggie Cassady, about his high school sweetheart.

This dress is just wonderful! I'm totally in love with it. Same goes for this one, although it's a much different feel.

One thing I love about Paris is that, no matter what the weather holds, it's always beautiful. Take these two photos, for example: one is dark, and one is light!

With Ben being so far away, I've been getting in very sentimental moods lately. This is one of my favorite scenes from one of my favorite movies, 2 Days In Paris.

While it didn't get a lot of hype, The Brothers Bloom was one of the best movies I saw this summer. And I love this movie poster! Nothing like a good heist movie!

Halloween

Halloween is only days away! This year, I'm going as Sookie Stackhouse, from the show True Blood. I'm heading to Rockford for the weekend, and I can't wait! Definitely in need of some fun with this quarter being so stressful!

After Shock

Wow! My mind is still reeling after last night's amazing Mad Men. And it wasn't even the finale yet! Betty confronting Don about his actual identity was probably the most tense few moments on TV, and Don finally breaking down and telling Betty everything was equal parts heartbreaking and a total relief. And seeing Joan clock Greg over the head with a vase was the best! I wonder what will happen to him in the Army, and what will happen in the finale!

In the meantime, here's a more lighthearted clip to make ya smile!

Language Lesson

Everyone has heard the phrase "When pigs fly," right? Well, in France, they say "When chickens have teeth!" "Quand les poules auront des dents." What a terrifying image!

Sunday TV

Sunday nights are probably my favorite for the whole week! Throughout the year, there is always something great on TV on Sunday nights, and currently, two totally opposite shows that I refuse to miss are airing.

Bored to Death is HBO's new comedy-noir starring Jason Schwartzman and Ted Danson. Schwartzman stars as Jonathan Ames, a writer who moonlights as a private detective. The way they go back and forth between Jonathan's hum-drum day to day life and his act as a detective is so perfect, and the show is hilarious! Ted Danson, as Jonathan's boss, is perfect!

Then, there's Mad Men, which is a show I have plugged on here shamelessly numerous times. With only 3 episodes left in the third season, it's not to be missed! For all the other crap on TV, Mad Men, a show about an ad agency in Manhattan, manages to be simultaneously the most sad, often times funny, and occasionally disturbing thing on TV. They say so much by saying so little! And the fact that the characters can cheat, drink, lie, and do various other bad things, and still make you love them is a testiment to the quality of this show.

Lazy Saturday

And so ends another Saturday! I'm feeling bombed out, have a pizza made, and am gonna watch a movie before hitting the hay. I can't decide between 2 Days In Paris (starring Adam Goldberg, who I happen to think is a total cutie) and Wristcutters: A Love Story. Hmmmmm.

Modcloth Wishlist

How cute is this dress? It just got posted on Modcloth and I'm mildly obsessed with it! If I could overhaul my entire wardrobe, I would do the whole thing in '60's style dresses, like this one. You can see more if this dress here.

PS: Here are a few more cute Modcloth dresses! This one is so cute, and this one looks unbelievably comfy!

Devendra Banhart

Yesterday, I took some time to listen to a few tracks off Devendra Banhart's new album "What We Will Be." I've loved him since I was in high school, when I stumbled upon him on the internet somehow. His music is folky, but bizarre -- very earthy in a way. His albums sometimes sound like clashes of various cultures, with tracks that sound like they were influenced by different parts of the world. But sometimes, well, it gets too weird, even for me. It's like Animal Collective -- unless you are in the right mood, it just hurts your ears. But from what I've heard of the new album, this is not the case for "What We Will Be." Here's a video of him performing "Baby", a song I'm totally in love with right now! His voice is so distinct, and the song itself is so sweet!

For Apartment Living

Not only is Feist beautiful, but this song pretty much sums up all my daydreams on this dreary, cleaning day!

New York Love

Last night I went to see "New York, I Love You." It was totally amazing! Similar to "Paris, I Love You" but still unique. And the stories were really great. It gave a wide spectrum of love related experiences, and is totally easy to relate to throughout the whole thing! This is one of my favorite clips -- short, sweet, and totally romantic, but not cheesy!

Things Worth Loving

Well, the weekend is finally here! To start if off, here are some random things worth falling in love with!

Last night, I saw the trailer for Gentlemen Broncos starring Jemaine from Flight of the Conchords and directed by Jared Hess, who did Napoleon Dynamite! It looks so bizarre, and totally hilarious.

Since it's fall again, I've been wearing my pashmina scarves like crazy! And this dark green one on etsy is too cute. I love the Eastern feel!

With the weather dreary again, I've been in the mood for warm, sweet things, like Pain au Chocolat. The recipe is so easy, and the result is super delicious.

Modcloth never fails when it comes to cute clothes, and this dress is no exception! It would be a great New Years Eve dress.

One of my dreams is to buy an old farmhouse and fix it up, so I sometimes look up old farmhouses on Google. This one really caught my eye -- it's so sad to see such a pretty house run down!

Rainy Day Remedy

Today, the weather is disgusting! Back to the cold, rainy kind of October that I hate. This is my favorite month, too, so it's an extra big drag. Anyway, my plan for tonight is to go see New York, I Love You. I decided to cave and see it tonight because nothing will put you in a good mood like a sweet movie. And plus, the film An Education comes out tomorrow, and I want to see that on Sunday. Going wild and crazy this weekend!

On the way home, I might stop and get some cookie mix. I'm craving them like crazy! Also, I'm fascinated by the idea of Cyd's, who will deliver fresh cookies in Peoria! Being from near Peoria, and having spent a lot of time there over the past few years, I can't believe I didn't know about this awesome service!

Movie Crush

So, I have a habit of getting really obsessed with movie trailers. Sometimes it's months before the movie actually comes out, but I watch the trailer a million times. One such movie is New York, I Love You. It's by the same people who did Paris, Je T'aime, and I hear Hong Kong is next on the list. But New York, I Love You came out this past week, and I'm planning on seeing it this weekend. Can't wait!

Adorable Prints

So, I've been pretty lame about updating this thing, which is too bad because I've found some pretty neat things in the past few weeks. One of them are these prints, which I found on Modcloth today while killing some time.

Another discovery: I adore smoothies. Yup, it seems so simple and yet I'm totally floored by how delicious they are! I suddenly became old at some point and became a fan of Martha Stewarts "Real Simple" magazine (what?!) But she had a few smoothie recipes on her website, so I've been experimenting with the various fruit I froze over the summer. I'm not a big breakfast fan usually, but the blackberry and nectarine smoothie I made today (using what I had left over from my nectarine smoothie yesterday) was so good I devoured it.

Today Should Be A Good Day

It looks gloomy outside, but I've decided that is not going to stop me from leaving the apartment today. As long as it doesn't rain, this is my favorite kind of weather. So, as soon as I finish this, eat something, and get ready, I'm heading out for (at least) a few hours.

Today I'm using my first Groupon. I have to head to campus to print it up really quick, then hop on the EL. There's a coffeeshop in this random neighborhood I've never really been to called @Spot Cafe, where I currently hold a Groupon for two pounds of organic fair trade coffee and a free cup of coffee everyday for the whole month. Yeah, pretty awesome. I'm thrilled! I mean, it looks like it's pretty far away, so I might not be able to get my free coffee that often, but the two pounds of coffee make it so worth the trek out there. And not to mention this particular Groupon only cost $10. Very, very worth it.

Seeing how I feel after that, I might head downtown and go to the Art Institute for a while. It's a nice thing to do on gloomy days, and I love hanging out there. Haven't been for months, though, and I'm kinda in the mood. But, we'll see how I feel after I find this cafe.