(I almost started singing "One Week" by Barenaked Ladies, then I realized that it was titled "One Week" not "One Month")
Almost exactly one month ago I finished my NaNoWriMo titled "Out of Tune".
It's been one month since closed it.
One month since I even looked at it.
With January 2012 quickly approaching, I'm realizing that it might be time for me to read my NaNo. Knowing full well that it will probably (read: most likely) be the worst piece of fiction that I've ever read. Mostly because, I ended it terribly. I knew that when I wrote it.
I'm sure every writer goes through this. Every writer has the moment when they've finished their first draft and think "Crap... now I have to read this." It's a bit like that moment in Tangled where Rapunzel finally escapes then has a major mood swing about leaving.
You know, this scene:
You go from that amazing feeling of finishing your book to that terrible nervous feeling of figuring out that you're kind of a terrible writer. While I realize that most writer's first drafts are crap (as most writers say, "A novel isn't a novel until the revision process."), this being my first novel I've ever finished (hell, this is my first novel I've ever spent this much time on), it's an incredibly scary task to take on.
It's also a task that can only be put off for so long before I need to bite the bullet and just go for it. After all, Walt Disney once said:
"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing."
Curse you Walt Disney for having good advice that I can't deny! *shakes fist*
Time for me to quit talking about revising, and just start.
After finishing NaNo, the only thing on my mind was laying bed and watching copious amounts of television (as if this was different from every other day). For the first few days of December that's exactly what I did.
Then, a few days ago, Helen sent me her manuscript to critique. Last time she did this, I failed epically. I think mostly because I was so nervous that I wasn't going to be a good crit partner.
Since Helen is one of my best friends, I was determined to put her book at a higher priority than I had last time (sorry, Helen). This is definitely an interesting experience for me. Mostly because, as of right now (this being the first time I've read through it), with every chapter my only thoughts are:
OMG! This is amazing.
I can't believe Helen wrote a book... and it makes sense!
Can I just steal this main boy away from from her MC and keep him forever?
I can't be friends with Helen anymore. It's just not fair.
While those are not particularly critical (at all), they are a nessecary step for me in this critique partner process. Chances are, I'll finish it tonight, then take a few days to process, then re-read for a better and slightly more critical look.
I'll also probably still be watching copious amounts of television (I mean, did you SEE that Psych finale? I'm still freaking out about it, I think a Psych rewatch is in order), but mostly, I'm going to attempting to be a better crit partner. After all, what are best friends for if not to be brutally honest with each other.
Recently I've decided to try and cut back on my caffiene intake. This has resulted in me craving Dr. Pepper as if it would grant me immortality. My friend Helen bought this a little while ago, and when she said that it actually tasted like Dr. Pepper, I thought she was messing with me.
She wasn't. This lip balm is probably one of the greatest things ever invented. I couldn't actually remember the last time I bought lipsmackers for myself. Now, it's a staple in my purse.
Little Big Planet
I hadn't actually played this game until a few days ago. I wasn't sure if I would like it. It's definitely an Anna game. When it comes to games, I am pretty picky. I generally love RPGs, but Little Big Planet... You get to collect stickers (not actual stickers, but still), and try and jump from place to place. It's kind of awesome. I'm loving this game.
Etsy.com
This is a site that I should not be allowed on right after I get paid. I just look at all the pretties and think "BUY ALL THE THINGS!!!!!!" All handmade, this site is full of amazing jewelry, posters, t-shirts, if you think of it, someone on Etsy probably makes it.
Now with my new blogger position, I have to at least glance at Etsy for article ideas. I'm DOOMED!
Wizard Love
This song has been in my head almost non-stop since I first heard it in July, before Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows final movie came out. Just listen, it's addicting. Plus it makes me think of my epic Harry Potter weekend with Helen and Whitney.
Weeping Boos
Curse you TeeFury.com for having awesome-I-need-to-buy-this-now t-shirts! This shirt is the perfect blend of both fandoms. You can tell that Super Mario inspired it, but by looking at the "Boos" you can tell that they are a cartoonified version of the Weeping Angels from Doctor Who (my personal favorite baddie.. they're completely terrifying!) It just came in the mail a few days ago, I can't wait to show it off!
Once Upon a Time
I'm probably going to be murdered by a few of my friends for saying this, but I was very very skeptical about this show. I really, didn't want to like it. But, because of my nature and the fact that it was a tv show based on fairy tales, I decided I needed to give it a chance.
Plus, it wasn't like I had anything to watch on Sunday nights anyway.
I quickly became addicted. The main draw for me was Robert Carlyle (Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Gold), but the thing that keeps me interested the most is the fact that they tweaked the Snow White story so that she's not just a helpless damsel who is waiting for a big strong prince to save her. She actually has some stones.
Wednesday, at approximately 1:00 pm Mountain Standard Time, I wrote my 50,000th word in my NaNo.
Sure, it's a massive crap pile that will probably not do anything but sit on my computer lonely singing "All By Myself", but it's written.
This is especially awesome for me, because this is the first novel I have ever finished. Does it have plot holes? Absolutely. Are my main characters Mary-Sues and Gary-Stus? You betcha. Am I still incredibly proud of myself? No doubt about it.
November was a hard month to do this in. It was painful and tedious and most of the time I just threw in kissing because I couldn't think of what else to write about at that moment. The fact that I finished it and didn't give up after 11,000 words (like I have the past few years) proves to myself that I can do this if I put my mind to it.
Though putting my mind to another novel is going to wait for at least a month.
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I'm not sure what made me send in an application for it, but I'm glad I did.
A little while ago, I discovered a website called GeekCrafts.com. This is one of those websites that I could easily surf for hours and hours and not get bored.
A few days ago, the main mod posted a calling for new bloggers. Figuring that I probably didn't stand a chance, but that I wanted to try anyway, I sent in an enthusiastic e-mail with a sample post (where I searched the internet for Stargate crafts and found a couple). This afternoon (again, while at work) I received an e-mail back telling me that I was now going to be one of their weekly bloggers.
That's right.
(this is an accurate representation of how I felt when the e-mail came)
In the past few months, I've created a couple of highly nerdy crafts. Though I haven't talked about it recently, my love for the TV series Doctor Who has reached an all time high. One day while browsing the internet for cute Doctor Who things that people have made, I came across this magnificent purse.
(I am far too lazy to edit this and make sure it makes sense. Forgive me.)
In this first week of NaNoWriMo, I've actually discovered a lot of things about my book, and about how I write.
One: I can't write at home.
Don't get me wrong, I love my house. But when I'm home, I just want to watch tv, or play a video game, or something. I don't want to write. I can, I just don't like to. Lately, I've take to walking over to the library after work, and writing for a few hours before heading home. This seems to be helping a lot. As do the write-ins that my region has scheduled fairly frequently. Which brings me to the next thing I've learned.
Two: Write-ins + Anna = SUCCESS!!!
I had decided to try and get more involved with the NaNoWriMo community this year, in hopes that it'd help me stay on track a bit more. We have some pretty amazing Municipal Liaisons, who have scheduled a lot of Write-Ins. I had never been to one, so I was a little weary, thinking that they might not be the best for my word count. After going to one, I'm hooked. The first one I went too was pretty relaxed. Even the ML's said that it was one of the most productive and low key Write-Ins they had ever been too. Though part of the reason for that might have been because we were not only at library, but a church library. *shrug*
Three: Traditions
There are a few things that I have to do or have when I write.
I. I have to listen to the NaNoWriMo song before I write. It reminds me of what I'm doing.
II. I have to wear my clover bracelet that my best friend gave me for two reasons, one because my best friend gave it to me and it reminds me that I have support in doing my NaNo. Two, because as of a few weeks ago, I added a new charm to the bracelet that is a snowflake. This snowflake is on this bracelet because of all the things that Helen and I bonded over, Meg Cabot was the first thing that brought us together. In one of the Princess Diaries books, Michael gives Mia a snowflake necklace. This snowflake also reminds me of an author that I aspire to be. III. I have to document my progress on as many social networking sites as possible. Mostly it's Facebook and Twitter.
Four: When in doubt, use Write Or Die Write or Die is a web application where you can set a goal of how many words you want to get written in a time limit. My standard is 500 words in 10-15 minutes. The thing with Write or Die is that I set it to Consequences: Kamikaze Grace Period: Strict
What this does is when I stop writing it sets a time. If I stop writing for more than a few seconds, it starts killing off my word count and then I have to make it up with less time. It sounds a little evil, and it sort of is, but when you're down by 2,000 and can't think of what else to write, you'd be amazed at how the words flow when you know they're going to commit suicide if you stop.
Now that I've found things that I know help me. I'm feeling pretty good about this year's NaNo...even if as of this moment, I'm like 3200 words behind.
Q. How do you deal with writers’ block?
A. I just give myself permission to suck. I delete about 90% of my first drafts (the only exception to this rule so far has been Will Grayson, Will Grayson) so it doesn’t really matter much if on a particular day I write beautiful and brilliant prose that will stick in the minds of my readers forever, because there’s a 90% chance I’m just gonna delete whatever I write anyway. I find this hugely liberating.
I also like to remind myself of something my dad said to me once in re. writers’ block: “Coal miners don’t get coal miners’ block.”
-John Green
Oh John Green, Thank you for giving me a motto to live by through all of November and the craziness that is NaNoWriMo. This piece of advice struck me, since I firmly believe that my writing is the suckiest of all suck. It's the Suck Queen of the Suck Empire. But I've never thought about giving myself permission to be a sucky writer.
In the months since discovering the Vlogbrothers, John Green has intrigued me particularly. I've never found an author that communicates with their readers so much. While communicating with his brother through YouTube videos, he also lets his fans know him as a person. I know a lot more about him than I do about some of my all time favorite authors, and it's because of this relationship that he creates with his readers that these books are so amazing. Well that, and John Green is clearly a genius. Or insane.
John Green. Author. Nerdfighter. Youtuber. Person insane enough to sign all first edition copies of his new book The Fault in Our Stars (that you can buy here). Thank you for reminding me that it's okay to allow myself to suck.
(Another thing that is going to get me through NaNoWriMo? This song.)
That all being said, with NaNoWriMo just around the corner, I'm using this piece of advice as my personal motto for the month of November. I may not finish NaNoWriMo, but I'm definitely going to try, and going to give myself permission to suck at it. Which won't be too difficult.
If you want follow my progress, feel free to add me as a writing buddy here.
(Clearly the whole 10 day meme thing didn't work... oh well)
Do you ever have those moments when you're reading/listening to a book, and your suddenly reminded why you love that book?
I had that last week, while listening to my audio copy of the book Stardust. If you've never read Stardust, you need to. Neil Gaiman describes the book perfectly. It's a fairy tale, for adults. Don't worry, its not a 'dirty' fairy tale, just one that hosts a main male and female character over the age of 18.
At the end of the audio book, is an interview with the writer (and narrator in this case) of Stardust, Neil Gaiman.
"For me the big magic of audio books, is the relationship that the listener ends up having with everything. You can't that thing you do in a book, where you read a sentence, realize the entire passage is description and go 'Okay, yeah we get it. The castle was big.' And your eye slides down to the next line of dialogue. You sort of glide over it I think. You don't, you're going to get every word of it. And its a wonderfully different reading experience."
I admit, I'm a person who does this. I tend to skip over paragraphs if I can tell that it's all description (it's especially bad in the Lord of the Rings books). Which is why when it comes to fantasy books, I think I may like them more if I hear them in audio format, before trying pick them up and read them straight.
What I don't like, is people telling me that because I'm listening to them, that I'm not "reading" them. I completely disagree. I'm not saying that you should listen to books rather than reading them. I do, however, think that Neil Gaiman has a point. Because I wasn't able to skip over the highly descriptive paragraphs of Stardust, I was able to absorb more and could probably tell you more about the book.
For me audio books aren't just about having something on as background noise, its about a different way to experience the books. Especially in the case of Stardust. Having this book be read by the author himself, makes it so that when you imagine everything happening in your head, you're doing it with emphasis on the parts that he meant for you to in the book. You're hearing exactly as he has written it.
What it comes down to, is that as far as I'm concerned, it doesn't matter how you're reading, or what you're reading. Just that you're reading.
Ireland
There isn't a place on earth I would rather go than to the Emerald Isles. I could try and blame my mother, grandmother, and aunts for this want, but it's more like it's written in my DNA (really, it sort of is, we Abrams are VERY Irish). Ireland has always been on the top of my list of places to go. Probably why I chose my twitter screen name: luckiestxclover
Greece
I'm not sure what is really drawing me to this place, but it is among the places that I would love to go.
New York
I went to New York almost two years ago, and now all I want to do is go back and really experience it. I would love to spend a solid week there. Preferably with tickets to see a Broadway show every night.
London
Do I really need to justify myself with this one. It's London. I just... I want to go. Maybe I'll be kidnapped by the Doctor... (a girl can dream)
Wizarding World of Harry Potter
AKA Orlando! *must resist the urge to start singing Book of Mormon: The Musical* Sure I'd like to go to Universal Stuidos and Disney World, but the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, it's just screaming my name.
Chicago
I went there once when I was 14, and from what I can remember it was fantastic. I would love to go back and sight see preferably when there's a new Starkid show. The best memory I have of this place, was the Navy Pier. I would just love to go back.
I'm aware, this is kind of cheating, but whatever. The thing I love most about this series is the way that they're written. It's not a standard format. Most of the entire book is through e-mail or chat log format. MEG CABOT IS A GENIUS! The best part is, IT ALL MAKES SENSE. Even in the unusual format.
Paper Towns | by John Green
Addicted to his video blogs with his brother, I knew that I had to pick this book up. This book is phenomenal. A story of coming of age, of love, breaking laws, and adventure. It's fantastic.
Anna and the French Kiss | by Stephanie Perkins
I might be a little bias. Since it has my name in it. Stephanie Perkins' debut novel is nothing to scoff at. This book is funny with out being cheesy (though a small amount of cheese is okay), heartwarming, sweet and definitely sexy. Though, rumor has it that her companion novel to Anna, Lola and the Boy Next Door, is even better.
The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May, and June | by Robin Benway
I'm a sucker for superhero stories. Stories where a unsuspecting citizen gets magic powers. Or in this case, when a trio of sisters get magic powers. ♥
Synopsis: Carolina Mirabeau was raised 'free-spirited' with two sisters by eccentric, domineering grandma Millicent in the country. Carolina's city neighbor, talented and witty Jewish author Albert Morris, is her best friend, confident and the wacky family's favorite guest. Yet she gets engaged with Heath Pierson, an 'all too perfect' upper class brilliant Britton, whom she met in the TV studio where she's fired as dating show candidates-screener. But the past and some truths catch up with all of them
This is one of those movies that my mom and I found at a Hollywood Video in their bargain bin. We loved Julia Stiles, so since this movie was on a couple dollars, we figured, What the heck! Next thing we knew, we were watching this movie over and over again. This is one of my most watched movies of all time.
Penelope
Synopsis: In this modern day romantic tale, Penelope is about a young girl's inspiring journey, a mysterious family secret and the power of love. With all odds against her, in order for Penelope to break the family curse, she must find true love with "one of her own kind" and realize the most important life lesson, "I like myself the way I am." Penelope Wilhern, born to wealthy socialites, is afflicted by the Wilhern spell that can only be broken when she finds love. Hidden away in her family's estate, the lonely girl meets a string of suitors in her parent's futile attempt to break the curse. Each eligible bachelor is enamored with Penelope and her sizable dowry; until her curse is revealed. Lemon, a mischievous and eager tabloid reporter wants a photograph of the mysterious Penelope and hires Max to pose as a prospective suitor to get the shot. The handsome down-on-his luck gambler finds himself falling for Penelope...
Again, one of my most watched movies. I wrote an entire post on my tv blog about why I love this movie so much. Though it really comes down to the message of the movie. Teaching you how to love yourself.
Crazy Stupid Love
Synopsis: Cal and Emily have the perfect life together living the American dream... until Emily asks for a divorce. Now Cal, Mr Husband, has to navigate the single scene with a little help from his professional bachelor friend Jacob Palmer. Make that a lot of help...
A recent love. The cast in this movie is phenomenal. It kind of has a Love Actually feel to it, which I adore. Definitely a movie I'd go see over and over again.
I've never been one of those people who has superb taste in music. I like the music I listen to, but a lot of people I know don't particularly care for it. Nonetheless, here we go. Two songs that I'm addicted to.
Terrified | by Katharine McPhee feat. Zachary Levi
This was the first time that I had ever heard Zachary Levi (of Chuck fame) sing. I was blown away. I normally really like Katharine McPhee's music, but with the addition of Zachary Levi, I was swooning for days. This song has continued to be one of those songs that I will listen to on repeat for WEEKS on end.
Superboy and the Invisible Girl | Jennifer Damiano, Alice Ripley, and Aaron Tveit from the Original Next to Normal Cast
This is my go to diva song. I love belting this song out while driving in my car. The cast recording itself is amazing, but this song is always my go to song when I listen to the recording. This song is nearly impossible for me not to start dancing to. Which is why I try not to listen to it while I'm on the train or walking down the street.
I've seen this on a couple blogs around, so I figured, why not? I'm normally pretty bad at memes like these when they're like 30 days. But 10 days I can handle.
DAY ONE: ONE PICTURE OF YOURSELF
This is a one hand self portrait of me as my friends and I were getting ready to go see Little Mermaid on Broadway down in St. George UT. (Excellent show!)
I'm super stoked guys! Finally, after months and months of a dry spell, I finally have a new idea for a story. Not only that, but when the characters came to me, the female main character came to me first. Which normally means that she's going to be the main voice. HECK YES!
I'm keeping the main idea to myself for now. If only so I have time to work out what I'm doing with it. Plus, normally when I tell people what I'm writing about, then the idea and characters decide to boycott. I can't have that right now.
Anyway, I'm super excited to get started. But before I do, there are a few things I have to get done.
1: Create Biographies for at least the MAIN character.
I'm one of those people who have to write down a whole bunch of biographical facts about my main characters before I get started. Blame it on the Role Playing. It's nice to have a little reference sheet to refer back to when my character does something and I wonder why, I can look back at that sheet and be like "Oh! THAT'S why." Of course the more I get to know my characters, the longer those biographies get.
2: Make a playlist
A lot of writers I know can write with almost any kind of music. I'm very specific. It has to be scores to movies or tv shows. Not only that, but they have to be scores to movies that I don't know by heart. I can't listen the the scores from Star Wars, Stargate, Harry Potter, or Lord of the Rings, mostly because when I hear they, I start watching the movie in my head, which distracts me from writing. So, the scores I've been normally sticking with are ones from Stardust, and P.S. I Love You. Though I'm going to be adding some John Schmidt, and video game music to this next playlist.
3: Set aside time to write
I really wish I didn't have to schedule the time, but really, I think everyone does. Now that I don't have Fridays off, it's a little bit harder for me to schedule specific time to write. Not impossible by any means, but just takes a little juggling.
4: Clean my house
This may seem like something that doesn't need to be done to write, but if my house needs major cleaning (kind of like it does right now) I get too annoyed because I should be cleaning, that writing takes a back seat.
5: Create a Reward System
Yes, similar to how you reward a dog for good behavior. I'm setting up a reward system for milestones. 6,250 words: lunch at my favorite restaurant, Zupas! 12,500 words: movie in Full price theater. 18,750 words: buy X-Men: First Class on Blu-Ray. 25,000 words: Nerdy photo-shoot with my husband.
Okay, so my rewards are a little silly. I'm just easily pleased. (:
Really, Step 4 is what is going to take the longest. It is also, the one that may hinder my writing more than I would like. It has to be done. So feel free to bug me this weekend either by posting comments here or tweeting me (@luckiestclover) and asking me if I've started writing yet. Trust me, sometimes I need a kick in the pants. (this gif is pretty much pointless, I just love it a lot)
For the past few years, I've continued to try and participate in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). Though I have yet to actually reach the goal of 50,000 words, last year I reached 20,000 and I'm still pretty proud of it.
But every year, that I don't finish I get a little discouraged. Deep down I know that, writing a book in 30 days, is a very impressive feat. And not being able to do it, doesn't mean I'm any less of a writer, it just means that I can't write that fast and make it at least a little bit quality.
Recently Trevor (an aspiring novelist that you should go follow) wrote about how writers depression is worse than writers block. I couldn't agree more. All writers experience writers block, it may not be a one that last for months or even weeks, it may only last a few hours, but every writer has had some form of writers block at some point. Writer's Depression, however, is worse, its when you're stuck in a rut, that seems like there will never be a way out.
I've been stuck at that point for about a year. I've been pretty good at keeping up with my TV blog, posting at least weekly, but when it comes to actually writing the stuff that I like to read, my ideas seem to have jumped on board the Destiny and are now traveling the universe with Eli Wallace. And unfortunately, I don't have any communication stones to talk to it and convince them to come back to me. (Sorry if this reference goes over your heads, I've been in a Stargate mood lately...)
All that being said, I'm going to challenge myself, but tweak the rules a little bit.
This year, my goal is half the amount of NaNo. My goal is going to be to write 25,000 word story in 30 days. It's about 850 words a day. Which seems a bit more achievable than the 1,700 words a day required for a 50,000 word story in 30 days. Especially since I'm bound to miss at least one day.
The one part that I'm really going to challenge myself with, is that I'm determined to write from a girls perspective. I know what you're thinking, "Anna, you ARE a girl, that should be easy!". WRONG! Writing from a female perspective is very difficult for me. In one of my first blog posts I kind of go into the reasons why, but what it comes down to, writing from the male perspective, just comes more naturally.
Another thing I need to do, is read more. Working 10 hours a day and then coming home only to eat then go to bed was exhausting. Now that I work 8 hours a day, things will (hopefully) be a bit more manageable. Add all that to the fact that I now have a half hour commute via train that I can read on, this will mean great books for me to be inspired by. First up: The rest of John Green's books followed by a marathon read of Meg Cabot books. w00tw00t!
Another thing that I think would help tremendously, is watching the Vlogbrothers videos where John talks about his writing and how he accomplished what he has.
Like this one:
I realize that NaNoWriMo is a little ways away, but, I'm preparing myself now in hopes that I won't be stunted in the ideas department.
(Small note: I seem a little crazy in this post. Please take that into account when you read it.)
My Pottermore letter finally arrived yesterday. After having a truly craptastic morning, this completely turned my day around.
It was like getting my Hogwarts letter at 11. I was so excited to get home, go buy my books, cauldron, and pet. It was like nothing crappy had happened to me earlier in the morning. It was fantastic.
*the Read More is here for spoilers. If you want to remain spoiler free about what happens in Pottermore, turn away NOW!
In October of 2004, my mom and I were deeply concerned for the well being of all the characters on the show One Tree Hill. We were rooting Lucas and Peyton (or Brooke, I can't remember), we wanted to punch the daylights out of Dan, and just loved Keith.
But something I hadn't expected, was to find an artist that I fell in love with so fast. Chris Keller was definitely a character you loved to hate. He was kind of a jerk and really, REALLY cocky, but there was something about his music, that made me fall head over heels.
After I heard him sing (seriously, after I heard him sing his FIRST SONG on the show) I knew I had to have his CD. I begged and begged my mom for his CD, but it was still kind of non-existent at the time, so I took what I could get. Seeing this amazing musician on my TV screen every week (almost).
That Christmas, after scouring the internet, my mom finally found his CD. "Tracks Of:" quickly became one of my most listened to CDs of all times. I'd dare to say, even more than Britney Spears. I truly think Tyler's music is where my love of acoustic songs comes from. I had discovered Jason Mraz around the same time, so it was like the universe punched me in the face and said "Hey, Anna. You should like acoustic music." Who was I to argue with the universe?
Since then, Tyler Hilton's music has been one of the staples in my music collection. He's one of the musicians that when someone says they haven't heard of him I immediately pull out my Zune and make them listen to my favorite songs (which varies from "Pink and Black" to "The Letter Song" to "Sunset Blvd"). His songs remain a constant inspiration when it comes to my writing.
It wasn't until last year that I finally got to see a concert of his. Coming to Salt Lake has always proved to be a little bit of a challenge when it comes to Tyler Hilton. Not that he doesn't want to, I'm sure he does (I mean, who WOULDN'T want to come to Utah, right?). Things just kept preventing him from coming. From freak snowstorms at the end of April (though in Utah's defense, the snowstorm wasn't here), to postponed shows that never got rescheduled. Finally, in October of last year, Tyler Hilton, Josiah Lemming, and Dion Roy all came and performed at Mo's Grill. This will probably remain one of the best concert experiences I've ever had.
The show was amazing, sitting in the front table (my friend Helen and I were seriously only 10 feet away from him) made the show that much more exciting. At one point he even stood in front of us and 'serenaded' us. Yeah, I may have did a fangirl flail at that time in my head.
This past weekend, Helen and I were able to see Tyler again when he played for the Davis County Fair. This time it was a slightly different experience. Not only were we not SUPER close, but he made a point to sing a lot of songs from his new album. I can't even explain how much I want this CD. Like NOW. His new song "Prince of Nothing Charming" may end up being my new favorite song of his.
1: Braided Bangs
It's been far too long since I've had a hair cut (and by friday this'll change). For those who also share my love of having bangs, you all know that when you go get a hair cut you have about 3 weeks of "Eh, they're okay" bangs, then about two weeks of "OMG! PERFECT LENGTH!" bangs, From there until you get your hair cut again and repeat the process, its "Ugh! My Bangs are so long!" bangs. Braiding them is something I had tried to do a couple of times and failed. My fingers just didn't want to work that way. I finally think I've mastered it. It's cute, and keeps my bangs out of my face. Though I do feel a bit like I'm channeling Quinn Fabray (from Glee) when I braid them.
2: Water Bobble
I first heard about this thing when Kristen Bell tweeted about it. Immediately I knew I wanted one. A Water Bobble is a water bottle that has a filter built into the top. So you can fill it with tap water, and still have it filtered. It super convenient and sleek. I've had at least one person a day for the past few weeks ask me about it. Waterbobble.com
3: Chameleon Circuit: Still Got Legs
Do you like Doctor Who? You should listen to these guys. Chameleon Circuit is, what is now being called, a Trock band. Time-Lord Rock (though personally, I prefer TARDIS rock). A band that writes and sings songs about Doctor Who. This is their second album and I can not stop listening to it. I'm addicted to the songs "Teenage Rebel" and "Big Bang Two". Also, "Still Not Ginger" is a good one.
4: Suits
You didn't think I'd go through this whole post without mentioning a tv show I'm watching did you? I literally just discovered this show on Monday. I had heard a little bit about it here and there, but I watched it for the first time on Monday. This show is full of wonderful eye candy, and really snarky characters. Its really nice to see Zoë Washburne Gina Torres on my TV again. The show it's self is about a brilliant college-dropout, Mike, who teams up with one of the best attorneys that New York has, as a rather unorthodox duo. Suits is on USA Network.
5: Michael Stars Glasses
A little over a month ago, I ordered a new pair of glasses from Coastal Contacts.Com. When they finally arrived, I was in love with them. I had never had a pair of plastic framed glasses before, so getting used to them has been a challenge, but I really love the shape and color, so that's all that matters.
