My friend Ginny: 

{isn't this an awesome picture? it's from Holi.}

{oh! and remind me to tell you sometime about how truly incredible and amazing Ginny is. she's one of my heroes.}

challenged me to do a 10 Quirks post {like her} -- and we all know I'm real quirky, so I'll gladly oblige. 

1. I have a routine to follow before I sleep. And not like a night time face cream regimen -- like a number of flips and tosses I have to do in my bed before I can fall asleep. I start out on my back, then turn to my stomach facing right, then turn to my left, (and sometimes i do another sequence of this) and then I can slumber.

{my actual feet}

2. I have 9084560984058 pairs of shoes (okay, that's an exaggeration) but pretty much I'd rather be barefoot than wearing shoes at any point.

3. I don't set my alarms for normal times, but they're always set in 5 minute increments. 8:08, 8:13; 4:54, 4:59; 10:03, 10:08; etc.

4. I'm one of the most accident prone/clumsy people I know. Literally I can hurt myself in ways no one else would (like when I cutting stuff last night for dinner). I even broke my foot in high school by tripping over the other one. No joke.

5. I'm not a cat OR a dog person ... I'm both. I tend to think I'm slightly more suited for a cat because they're more autonomous and I work all the time -- but I love both.

6. No matter what is going on in my life, good, bad, happy, sad, ugly, pathetic, hopeful -- set me at the ocean and I'm immediately at peace.

7. I always pick the most annoying ringtone on my phone for my alarm setting. That way I'm so annoyed that I have to pay attention to it.

8. I usually cut my own bangs because I think other people mess them up. I'm RIDICULOUSLY O.C.D. about them. And I cut them (to some degree) at least once a week.

9. When I'm concentrating really hard or I'm really bored I tend to tap my front teeth with my pointer finger fingernail. I'll just sit there and tap as I think.

10. My favorite writing medium is not regular paper, or anything like that. It's napkins. I LOVE writing on napkins. They're so cushy and great and my handwriting looks awesome on them.

What about you? Let me know YOUR quirks!

nothing tastes as good as john mayer feels ...

I suck at Twitter.

I mostly use it for minor celeb stalking following (when I actually remember I even have a Twitter).

Anyway ... one of my favorite celebs to read updates from is none other than

John Mayer. (@johncmayer)

I really enjoy John's music ... but beyond his incredible musical and lyrical (seriously, GO GET BATTLE STUDIES. NOW.) talents the man is FREAKING HILARIOUS.

Seriously.

Here are a few of my recent favorites -- you'll see, he's a funny guy.

@SkyMall I gave my lawyer the painting of the wolves with inspiring mantra on Leadership. Framed. Cause I'm fancy.

Nobody seems to think a gift certificate for catalogs.com is strange? You might as well say "I"m sure that I know nothing about you."

@taylorswift13 let's bedazzle something!

If you're shocked that Britney was lip-syncing at her concert and want your money back, life may continue to be hard for you.

This is the part in a line of interviews where I want to start making answers up. So if you read that I breed alpacas, go with it.

I'm in Australia on Halloween. It's like turning out your porch light times a billion.

If you want to go out and buy an entire case of AA batteries, I say more power to you.

This unfortunate media display involving balloon boy undermines the hundreds of boys and girls actually lost to balloon flight every year.

All cookies are sugar cookies.

Dove bar soap is 1/4 moisturizer. That's why Dove bar soap is allowed to make moisturizer jokes and you're not.

See?! And seriously. Get Battle Studies. It's GORGEOUS. This song makes my heart smile.

Now I'm going to leave you with one of my favorite Mayer moments.

Mmmmmmmmmm. I think I like it better than the original.

xoxoxo.

show a little love...

I have some beef with Sonic.
I LOVE the Sonic. I want to crawl in their tator tot fryer and live there.
But I have gone twice in the past two days -- and they were closed!
I went at 1 in the afternoon, and 9 at night!
They're supposed to be open. Ugh. I'm craving a strawberry limeade like none other. 

Anyway. Let's look over some things I'm currently totally swooning over.

The 160 GB iPod. It's like a dream.

40,000 songs?! YES. PLEASE.

I mostly started looking at these because my iPod is starting to die...and I only have half a gig free space on it.

And my alma mater's bookstore has the 120 GB ones for just a little less.

And you have to have an iTrip to go with it -- I'm sobbing without mine.

EVERY.DAY. 

I love this necklace. It's hand stamped...with a phrase from my favorite poem.

I think it's adorable. And sweet.

I like this Etsy seller. She has a sand dollar necklace (I LOVE sand dollars) and tons of other cool jewelry.

 This CTR ring. (CTR stands for Choose the Right.) My current one is getting a little small on my hand. And this one is pretty.

 I FREAKING LOVE PLAID. 

And this matches my pink comforter...and the color scheme of my room.

{I LOVE bright happy colors for bedrooms. They're happy places!}

I also love this bedspread, this duvet and sheet set, this bedroom set, and this bed in a bag set.

This is why I have to stay out of the home goods sections of stores.

I LOVE these things. They're old WWII propaganda posters from England to let everyone know that all would be well. Definitely like the British--keep a stiff upper lip. And I love it in the honey color. I think it's gorgeous. It's the color my room was as a teenager.

{They have it in more colors.}

My Life Is Average.

It's pretty much one of my favorite things that got my through my sick days ... and my normal days, lately.

It's HYSTERICAL. They're all stories people send in from their every day lives.

Like one of my favorites from Halloween: 

Today, I was handing out candy for Halloween and someone rang the doorbell. I opened the door, but no one was there so I was about to close the door when I saw two people dressed as hands running toward each other down the sidewalk. They proceeded to collide midair: they were a high five. I gave them extra candy for their awesomeness. MLIA

I want to be friends with a LOT of these people. If you want a good chuckle, or even a smile, check it out.

And speaking of MLIA, I recommended it to one of my very favorite bloggers, Gabby @ Gabby She Wrote, and she mentioned me in her blog! It was a HUGE moment for me. I basically idolize this girl. 

Mental-Floss is definitely, 100%, certifiably for nerds like me. I love this stuff!

And I'm Etsying my life away trying to find a super cute, reasonably priced beanie, or two, for winter. It's getting chilly here.

What are you guys loving? I'd love to know!

Well, off to write more sweeps stuff. Yay for ratings periods! (Someone shoot me.)

Catcha on the flip side.
xoxo.

circle of salt to protect from zombies, witches, and old boyfriends...

Okay, I'm a bad blogger friend.
Seriously, life has been so crazy go nuts that by the time I get home the last thing I want to do is look at a computer.

Work is work.
That's all I can safely say here for now.


As far as that whole tutu thing -- I had a bunch of questions asking how/why/what I'm gonna be for Halloween.
Well, friends, Halloween is, like, my favorite (non-traditional) holiday.
You get to dress up as whatever you'd like and people give you FREE candy!! Where's the bad in this whole situation?
Anyway, in the past I've always been something cutesy or just fun for Halloween. I've never been anything even a touch morbid. I've been a princess (a thousand times), a cheerleader, a construction worker, a witch, a pirate, etc...but never anything ... weird.
So this year ... I'm going as ...
(drumroll, please)
a dead ballerina.

I know, I know.
But dude, my tutu is BAD A.
(I PROMISE I'll take a picture when my camera battery isn't dead).
As far as how to make one -- I did mine similarly to this:

I figured a video was better than trying to describe it.
AND sewing tulle is a BEAST so the non-sew option is AWESOME.
Anyone can do this. Seriously. ANYONE.
I did mine with 4 colors: black, turquoise, hot pink, and black with purple metallic spiderwebs.
And then I have spiderweb tights, some gorgeous heels, I made a headband for the occasion, and even "invested" in a leotard.

As far as makeup, MAC has been doing this awesome series of Halloween themed makeovers.
I think my zombie makeup will become something like this -- what do we think?

I'm SOOOO excited.


In other news, last week seems like it was craptastic for just about everyone. And in one day I managed to cry, break my purse AND my dvd player, and get sick in a giant fell swoop (and that wasn't even all of it). now that I've repaired/replaced at least some of that ... I feel like it can only go up from here. BUT. We all need a little humor. So I leave you with something that keeps making me laugh, no matter how many times I watch it.

Hope you all have a great Monday.
xoxo.

oprah has them...so why not me?

I just had an A-Ha! moment!!

All day long I type in ALL CAPS.
Scripts in TV are written like this:

GREEN HOUSE GASES ARE ON THEIR WAY OUT ... AND NEW TECHNOLOGY'S ON ITS WAY *IN* HERE IN OREGON.
THIS MORNING GOVERNOR KULONGOSKI ... JOINED BY SEVERAL STATE REPRESENTATIVES ... SIGNED SEVEN CLIMATE CHANGE BILLS INTO LAW.
THE GOVERNOR SAYS HE HOPES THESE NEW LAWS WILL SECURE OREGON'S POSITION AS A NATIONAL LEADER IN CLIMATE CHANGE POLICY.
HE SAYS HE HOPES THESE WILL BOTH PROTECT OREGON'S ENVIRONMENT AND HELP EXPAND OREGON'S ECONOMY.

so, subconsciously, i believe i make up for that in typing in all lower case when i'm at home/not working.

{that and it's so much cuter!}

legit, i have to go back and make my entries "sentence case" after i write the whole thing because it's all lowercase. and if we're facebook friends, you know unless the message contains the words "happy birthday" it's pretty much never in anything but all small letters.
awe-to the freakin-some.

ive met some young hearts with something to prove...

in yesterdays post i said these words: "remember, in this case, it's all about the music--not the words."

"You know I've got this theory; there are two kinds of people in the world. There are lyric people and music people.
You know, the lyrics people tend to be analytical. You know, all about the meaning of the song. They're the ones you see with the CD insert out five minutes after buying it, p o u r i n g over the lyrics, interpreting the [heck] out of everything.
Then there's the music people...who could care less for the lyrics as long as its just got, like, a good beat and you could dance to it. I don't know, sometimes it might be easier to be a music girl and not a lyric girl.
But since I'm not, let me just say this: sometimes things find you when you need them to find you. I believe that. And for me it's usually song lyrics."
--Peyton, One Tree Hill (don't judge)--

i LOVE music.
[in the interest of full honesty a combination of a great melody and great words can make me giddy like a schoolgirl...]
a rockin beat can compel me out of a chair and into frantic dancing on the dance floor, a good song causes a montage of moments inside my head, i sing incessantly in the shower, hum/sing alllllllll day long at work, and play several instruments.
but still. my friends, i am a lyrics girl.

i am passionately in love with words.
the written word. the spoken word.
{and, sometimes, even the unspoken ones.}

as a child i was the nerdy girl with her nose always in a book. in fourth grade my teacher began bringing books from home for me to read because i'd read our class reading assignments too quickly. my sixth grade english teacher began a book club with me so i could read more books and read ones not assigned to the class in general. in high school i took seven english classes (thanks block scheduling!). i majored in journalism and minored in english in college. mmmm. the smell of new books is more comforting than apple pie.

has a song ever sent your heart into a frenzy?
there are so many songs whose words alone conjure up feelings and memories so strong, they almost knock me off my feet.

"Hello you long-shots, you dark horse runners/ Hair brush singers, dash-board drummers/ Hello you wild magnolias, just waiting to bloom./ There's a little bit of all that inside of me and you,/ Thank God even crazy dreams come true."

mmmmmmmm....

bahhhhh. salute to tools of the same color.

i have this thing about guys with trucks.
now don't get me wrong. i appreciate a good piece of auto craftsmanship.
i'd even venture as far as to say i could be a truck girl.
i just have a problem with truck guys.
unless you are a legit cowboy ... usually you're all the same.
overly ridiculous, over compensating and half the time couldn't form a sentence beyond a catcall.
i have often said i will never date one of these kinds of truck guys.

saturday, in my escapades to the mall ...i encountered several examples to support my theory --if not further validate my feelings.

truck guy numero uno. please notice he's in more than one parking spot.
in fact, he's kinda in three. which is MORE than unnecessary...and ridiculous. granted he has a large truck, but seriously? three spaces?

same truck. close up of the winner parking job.

and one space down... ANOTHER ONE. this time with flames, and only in 2 spots. ONLY. cool detailing job, thor.

and i venture to the other side of the mall to pick sarah up so we can leave--and yep. truck tool numero tres. yay, eugene. home of hippies, granola girls and apparently truck egotists.
yep, that's a hemi.

Ducktales ... WooOoo.

Today as I roamed the DVD section looking for a white elephant gift....
I inadvertently stumbled across something wonderful:
WooOoo!!!
Seriously, though.
This was a childhood favorite.

quirky turkey

As part of Get to Know You Week, (which, I guess, is technically over, but still...) Andy over at Wild ARS Chase challenged his readers (and loyal followers) to do a Get to Know You post of their own. I was going to do a post of 100 things about me...but I was lazy and I'm still thinkin about stuff.

But here, instead, are some
Quirks About Me

1. If I'm eating a handful of something little (i.e. Cheerios, chocolate chips, candy, etc.) I have to chew it evenly on each side of my mouth. If I chew two on the left I have to chew two on the right. And if I start on the left side...then for the next grouping (left: 1, right; 1) i have to start on the right.

2. I don't just order my closet by color...but then by sleeve length as well. And my jeans are organized by which ones I like best to least.

3. We all know I have a Diet Coke problem...but I like it when I open a can...take a sip and then leave it for a few minutes so that it defizzes some. I don't like majorly fizzy soda (that's why I like it best from the fountain).

4. My friends all tease me because I can recall quotes from pretty much any movie I've seen...and I quote them even when no one knows.

5. I have music-a.d.d. I change the song on my iPod, the radio station, the pandora station ALL THE TIME because I get bored too easily.

6. I can twist, fold and make a clover with my tongue. Now just to find a tongue origami club. (haha.)

7. I HATE it when people spell simple things wrong in their facebook statuses (stati?) thereby making them not make sense or just plain retarded. (Example from today: "Kellie Marie is with my favorite lady. World makes since again." hahahahahahaha.)

8. I'm 22 years old and I watch almost as much Disney Channel as any 11 year old I know. (I'm watching Corey in the House as you....read.)

....I'm sure there are more...but I'm tired. Happy napping!

Seventeen Weird Things About Me.

Tag dos.
The Rules: Post a list of 17 little known, random, obscure, or unique qualities or stories, etc. about yourself. Tag 17 friends.

1. I have never made the two full years for a phone upgrade. My phones experience too much wear and tear or general freak-out-age for that. I've had multiple simply cease working for me.

2. I lived in the home of the Best Snow on Earth and I still can't ski or snowboard. I vow to learn every year, though. But I am going to do it this year, even if it's alone. I want to learn to snowboard more than ski because secretly I think it's more hardcore. (don't tell bryce.)

3. I hate when people use the word disillusion when they actually mean delusion. They're antonyms and it drives me nuts.

4. I organize my closet by color, then each color from light to dark and by sleeve length. I'm mildly OCD, I think.

5. I have this comic posted in my car because I feel like that almost every day.
6. I'm terribly proud of my heritage...and am a little bit of an Anglofile as a result. I love all things England.

7. I think about my Disneyland trip EVERY.SINGLE.DAY. It might be my happiest day of the past 5 years.

8. I am the prototypical definition of a night owl. I can function much better at 3 am than I can at 9 am.

9. I graduated from College. I have a Bachelor of the ARTS degree. And yet, I think LOLCats is one of the funniest and best things ever. Everyone needs a little LOLcats.

10. Ironically, I HATE the expression LOL with a passion. I'd rather type haha, or bahaha. And I typically judge people who use LOL. Megan and I called them lolliacs for a while.

11. I promised myself I would never date a guy with a truck because I've met too many guys who love their trucks more than their girlfriends.

12. I secretly love to dress up sometimes just for the shock factor. I'm usually pretty minor maintenance ... but I clean up good.

13. I was a cuddle hussy all during college. I cuddled with EVERYONE. Andrea called it lovable. Megan chuckled and asked me to teach her the ways. But I cuddled with ALL my guy friends. The only rules were I didn't cuddle with friends boyfriends (with the exception of Joey who was likewise just a cuddle hussy).

14. Growing up The Little Mermaid was my favorite movie. But as I've gotten older the "princess" I've identified most with is Mulan. She's kinda awkward and clumsy and a late bloomer. Me, too.

15. I don't set my alarm for 7:00, or 7:05 or increments of :05 like most people. Mine are always like 10:48, 9:18, 11:03. No rhyme or reason to it. My snooze is also 7 minutes.

16. The people I text the most are my siblings. And that's saying something. I text a lot.

17. I use a quote from either Mean Girls, 10 Things I Hate About You, She's The Man, or SNL in almost every conversation I have. I don't care if you get it or not. But if you do, you bond yourself to me instantly.