Fantasy Friday

I'm in love. For today, my fantasy kitchen is stocked to the rafters (yes my fantasy kitchen has an enormous peaked ceiling with rafters) with this new line at Terrain. A girl can dream.....

Holiday Happenings

I am a simple girl. The little things and moments in life make me smile and giggle more often than anything else. The small things fill my heart completely. Like a simple card with a beautiful, loving message.

I hope this Valentine's Day brings you and your loved ones nothing but joy! That's the simple message for this holiday.

My Opinion Monday-Grammy Awards Edition

MY OPINION MONDAY: Grammy Awards 2012
First, let me just say that one of my favorite indulgences this winter is Hot Cocoa w/Peppermint Schnapps. As I sit here on a crazy windy and chilly Monday evening, I find it the perfect complement to cozying up for a night of talking to my blogger buddies. Anywhoo, on to the point of tonight's ramblings!

If you know me then you know how much I live, breathe and adore music. That's why this is the only awards show I watch. And I really loved it this year to the point that I actually watched the entire thing from start to finish, no fast forwarding. It felt like the Grammy Awards were more focused on the history of the music industry and the legacy of the past rather than the typical pop-centric fluff that is all over the place and a little hard to watch sometimes. Now, please understand. I am not a person and do not appreciate people that over analyze music and belittle everyone in the industry who doesn't meet their holier-than-though standards. I enjoy Katy Perry, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, etc. and believe with all of my hear that music is meant to be felt to the tips of our toes and no one has a right to judge what artist does that for each of us. But last night just felt special in the shadow of the passing of Ms. Whitney Houston.

My Faves:

• LL Cool J's beginning prayer and remark that "This night is about something truly universal and healing. Music."
• Bruno Mars' performance
• Cosmopolitan commercial w/Bohemian Rhapsody
• Foo Fighters rocked so hard. I swear that is my theme song this year.
• Maroon 5/Foster the People/Beach Boys Reunion. Pretty much had me grinning the entire time.
• Taylor Swift. I know a lot of people don't agree but I find her refreshing and love watching her perform.
• Duh, the tribute to Glenn Campbell
• And I swear I almost fainted when Sir Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Dave Grohl and Jeff Beck brought the house down with a guitar battle.
• Don't think I forgot, the queen of the evening ADELE. She is going to continue to take over the world!

My Yucks:

• Jason Aldean and Kelly Clarkson duet. I don't know Jason Aldean's music all that well but he seemed to have a great voice and Kelly Clarkson is my girl. But it just didn't work and the mic issues only made it worse.
• Nikki Minaj. I am all for a crazy show and pushing boundaries. I wasn't offended as a lapsed Catholic but I was offended as a music lover. It felt like a blatant and poorly executed ripoff of several women who have come before her.
• Almost fell asleep listening to Fergie and Mark Anthony present their award. Yawn!

Can you believe I only really had two yucks?! Overall the evening was a nice way to end the weekend.

Hope your week rocks!

Miss Me?

I'm Back! Those first few posts (from long, long ago) were a little all over the place. And what feels like years later, I am still working on organizing my thoughts, if that's even possible. I played with the thought of deleting all posts before this one and maybe even this new one. But at the end of the day, these are all of my thoughts and all of my moments and I'd rather keep them where they lay.

So, here we go. New Post.

34 LIST FOR 34 (And a few more..It Was A Good Idea Though)

I've noticed (and truthfully lived a bit through) a lot of lists lately, especially this one.."Things to do Before Your __ Birthday" and I'm jumping on the bandwagon. Hello run-on sentence! Anyways...this is one of the many many things I hope to do with this blog is follow my progress with this list; the things I do, the things I don't, the things I decide not to do and the new things I add. We shall see.

1.      First and foremost:  Continue to get better at enjoying and embracing the small stuff.

2.      Finally start a food diary. For at least one month. Just so I can finally know what has been and is still causing my digestive issues.

3.      Visit museums in Los Angeles. At least LACMA and MOCA. I have seen the Getty though, promise.

4.      Regularly volunteer: Suicide Prevention, LGBT Rights, Abortion, Drinking/Driving Prevention. I'm sure I'll think of more.

5.      Do something crazy scary. Something I never thought I would do.

6.      Take classes, any classes.

7.      One quick road trip...preferably Santa Barbara or San Diego. How is it I've never visited either one after 8 years in Los Angeles?! Pathetic really.

8.      Begin, somehow, my collage business. Research at least.

9.      Start running again and enter at least one 5k marathon.

10.  Quite smoking.

11.  Talk to my doctor about planning for children. And I would love to figure out why I am more comfortable alone with kids than I am with having a partner. That sounds weird.

12.  Write. Blog, Journal, Novel, Letters, whatever it may be.

13.  Backup everything on both of my computers. It would be devastating to lose my pictures, music, ideas, etc.

14.  Refinish one piece of furniture. At the very least, J's two-drawer thingie (white and then got ruined by the Christmas tree).

15.  Really build a savings account.

16.  Take one Angel's Flight and visit Amoeba Records (Both Los Angeles things so I figure I can put them together).

17.  Take a cheesy L.A. tour...Hollywood, Homes of the Stars, etc.

18.  Get my freakin' passport!!! I want to get out of this country at least once. Hopefully I can get back in.

19.  Plan this year's visit(s) to Missouri and Kansas. I miss home quite a bit lately.

20.  Debt Consolidation, is that what it's called? I just need to figure out a plan to dig myself out of the hole that ironically...I dug in the first place. Nothing major, just want a plan. Budget.

21.  Buy a car! Whether new or used, just a car that works. And therefore mourn the car that took me to Colorado and then one year later, to my dream...California. RIP Red Rocket.

22.  Get a massage and a bikini wax. Painful firsts, but necessary.

23.  Develop a schedule.

24.  Build my Avon business. Like how I stuck the selfish promotion right in the middle of things?

25.  Finally get my second tattoo...and maybe a third...and fourth. We shall see.

26.  Sing one song somewhere. Other than a karaoke bar.

27.  Go to a rave/DJ show.

28.  Ride my bike down to the beach, spread a blanket, eat really good snacks, read and spend all day there.

29.  At least one more volleyball game played against Jason. He’s too good at it now!

30.  Board Game night or Girls night. Or both.

31.  Learn how to clean/organize your house. So you don't keep having freak outs.

32.  Go to concerts. Little ones, Big ones, Medium ones. Just see music shows!

33.  Give up gossip sites.

34.  Learn to stand up straight.

35.  Really research bipolar and bring it to the world.

36.  Go snowboarding. Hell go skiing. Even thought you sucked at it. Just get back on the mountain and take a snowboarding lesson.

37.  I'm going to Disneyland!

38.  Watch the sunrise and the sunset. Maybe in the same day!

39.  Just finish one project (maybe this one?)!

40.  Buy a real frog! I collect fake frogs and that’s just sad really.

And just so you know? I’ve read over this list a million times and changed it too many times to count. And I know for a fact it will change again. One of the many things I love about myself, always mixing up the plan. Now only have to stick to the plan and follow it through. Bless you, your loved ones and embracing the giggles at the little things in life!