Weekly Round-Up.

- This is the best website I've ever found.

- I'm joining in on the Buy Nothing Challenge. Aside from my mom's Christmas/late birthday present. That's my one big exception - along with all my necessities.

- This is great - 40 Things to Say Before You Die.

- I want a Celestial Soul Portrait. Really, really bad.

- I want this poster. They have other cities available too.

And, I leave you with me being bored during commercials while I was watching the greatest show ever - South Beach Tow.

 

For the Home Wishlist...

These are all things that I don't need to buy, but I can't help but look at. Don't judge me.


IKEA Kitchen cart - $49.99. For either a bedside table or a bar cart.


Cuisinart Coffeemaker - $94.95. I will never spend this much on a coffeemaker, but it's nice to dream that I don't have to have a separate grinder/brewer.


16 piece Dinnerware - $29.99. I really like non-circular shaped dishes.


Canisters - $19.79. I really like these and especially because there are 7 of them.


Praying Hand Salt & Pepper Shakers - $8. I really like fun salt and pepper shakers.


Anthropologie quilt - $328. A girl can dream, right?


Penguin corkscrew - $10. So adorable.


8 piece Whiskey set - $68.38. I definitely don't need this, but wouldn't that look classy on a bar cart?


16 bottle Wine Cellar - $129. I can definitely dream on this one. I don't need it, but I think it's great.

I don't need any of that, but I like to pretend I'm an adult every once in a while and that I need this kind of stuff.

Traveling Tip: Charging Your iPhone and other electronics

Most hotels have an abundance of plugs, but if you're missing one, most newer televisions have a USB port. You can charge your iPhone that way.

And my Kindle Fire has been having a hard time charging through the traditional plug, so that's how I charged it.

Have any tips and tricks for me? Let me know in the comments. 

Book #6: Loose Girl

Loose Girl: A Memoir of Promiscuity by Kerry Cohen

I don't think anyone recommended this book to me and I'm quite sure why I downloaded it in the first place, but there it was on my Kindle and I figured it looked like a quick and easy read, which it was.

The beginning bummed me out. She was so down on herself for her actions - she was slut shaming herself.

I read it because I wanted to see what was going to happen -  I assumed that something would change, hence her writing this novel. But, there was little character development. And the writing wasn't that great either.

I don't suggest anyone read this book.

6/50 - 23 for 23 Goal #3.

In West Philadelphia, Born and Raised or In Other Words: My Trip to Philly

I took the Megabus into Philly on Monday from DC. It's a 3 hour ride- so not terrible. And for $4 - it was great. 

My first obstacle was the subway station. I had to find it. I had to figure out how to pay (And tokens? Really?) and then I had to figure out how to get to where i'm going. I won't lie - I am directionally impaired. 

I got to my hotel, checked in, and showered and I asked a few people where I should eat. Most people recommended National Mechanics, but it was packed for a Monday night and I ended up at Mac's Tavern, which is owned by the cast of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. And the food was phenomenal. I had the Sweet Dee turkey BLT and I never wanted to stop eating.

This was the view from my hotel room - I could see the cemetery where Ben Franklin is buried. My hotel was awesome - right next to everything I wanted to see.

The next morning was all about tourist attractions. And I was so lucky to have my hotel right next to everything. My room actually faced the cemetery where Ben Franklin is buried. So, I did the Independence Hall tour, saw congress Hall, and the Liberty Bell.

The room where the Constitutional Convention was held. That is George Washington's original Rising Sun chair.

Independence Hall.

The Liberty Bell.

I went to this place for lunch and had another amazing sandwich. It was called Khyber Pass Pub and my sandwich was amazing. And the Mac and cheese. I was in a food coma. 

I really wanted to see the second national bank, but it was closed on Tuesdays, so I went to the National Constitution Center. It was pretty cheesy and I wasn't super impressed. But, I paid the extra to see the Prohibition exhibit and that was well worth it.

The Second National Bank.

My boy - Alexander Hamilton.

The American Spirits exhibit. 

For dinner. I went to Continental, another place that was suggested to me. I had the Sourpuss martini - way too sweet for me. And then I had the cheesesteak eggroll and it was perfect. 

I walked to Paddy's - the one that It's Always Sunny is based on and had a few beers. And I was highly impressed you could smoke in there. 

My biggest complaint about Philly, aside from the subway, is that the street names are never visible. My biggest problem getting around was that I'd get to an intersection and there were no street names. 

Otherwise, it's a food heaven and a history nerd's dream. I can't wait to go back to see all the things I missed and eat more food. 

Weekly Round-Up.

- I think this explains all my feelings on my massive crush on Nate Silver. And, even Doonesbury mentioned him!

- I need these kitten tights.

- I cannot wait to read this book.

- Lessons learned from the best 90's movie - Clueless.

- If I was ever allowed to decorate a nursery...

- Why do I feel like none of these would work for me?

Anything else cool from this week on the internet that I missed? Let me know in the comments!
Have a great weekend everyone!

Happy Thanksgiving Y'all!

In typical Thanksgiving fashion, I opened at work and left the cooking to more capable hands. I'm home now with a big glass of wine. 

As cheesy as I think this is, I'm thankful for my family. I've had a rough year and my family has been there for me and bent over backwards to make sure I was okay. My mom let me move back home and let me use her car for 3 months this year. I wouldn't have made it through this year without them. 

I'm thankful for my amazing nephew. I've never realized how much I could love someone that barely knows me. Whenever I get to hold him, all my problems melt away. He is such a good baby. 

I'm thankful for my friends. A lot of them have really been there for me this year and I appreciate it more than they know. 

I'm thankful to have the ability to travel. 

I'm thankful that I've made it over the past year. I've graduated, moved back home, bought my new car and dealt with that whole "growing up" thing. I feel like I can't stress enough how difficult this year has been and sometimes, it's hard to focus on all the positives I have in my life. But I am truly grateful for everything good in my life and it's good to reflect on that.

Alright, now it's time to eat and drink. I hope everyone else has a great Thanksgiving! 

Vacation Recap - Washington D.C.

View of the National Mall from the Lincoln Memorial. The trees were gorgeous.

I got in on Friday night and somehow ended up on the wrong train, but I still got into DC. Only me. I met up with my friend that I was staying with and we got dinner. Then, we walked past the White House, to say good night to Barry.

White House at night.

The next day, I walked around the National Mall, seeing all the monuments. Except for Thomas Jefferson's, but does anyone need to see that? I had Mexican food, which I was super apprehensive about because Arizona has legitimate Mexican food. But, it wasn't terrible. And the sangria was delicious.

Lincoln.

The Capitol. It's HUGE.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.

The Supreme Court building, which is currently undergoing renovation. 

The FDR memorial - which was probably my favorite.

Then we went to the National Portrait Gallery. My favorite part was all the Presidents. And Hamilton's portrait. 

I met up with another friend and we grabbed some drinks before walking to see the monuments at night. I'm so disappointed that my phone died because it was beautiful. The World War II memorial was so gorgeous at night.

Lincoln at night was my favorite. And the view of the Washington Monument from the steps was gorgeous. 

That night, I also met the love of my life. He was drunk, wearing an American flag outfit and cowboy boots, and he had a huge hickey on his neck. Classy. He asked if I wanted to go to Maryland with him and I regret it. 

The next day, I went to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History - which was awesome. They had an exhibit of the inaugural gowns and I saw Kermit. 

Then I walked next door to the Smithsonian Natural History Museum to see dinosaurs - my favorite thing about museums. 

I had some drinks next to the IRS building and then met back up with my friend. I really wanted to see the Air and Space museum, but I was exhausted by that point. 

DC is beautiful. I lucked out with the weather. It was perfect walking around weather all weekend - not too cold, not too hot. 

And, I didn't get lost on their metro. 

All in all, I loved DC and I'm a little bummed I haven't ever been before. I can't wait to go back and see everything I missed.

Book #5: Here's The Story

Here's The Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice- Maureen McCormick

After my kick of awesome books by women (Tina Fey and Mindy Kaling), I asked my mom what I should read next and she asked, "What about that Marcia Brady book?" I had some interest when it originally came out and it seemed like an easy read, so I went for it.

First, I got confused. The writing is rushed and small anecdotes are rapidly fired. Time doesn't really make sense either.

Maybe I'm frustrated that I don't know who she's talking about even though names are clearly changed and people haphazardly explained. I wanted to read about the perfect Brady child's drug addiction and crazy sex life and while I got that, I just hated having to suffer from her terrible writing to enjoy it.

If you are not particularly religious, like me, stay away from this book. After all the drugs, the book takes a turn towards religion and feels ... not preachy, but contrived.

A lot of the book felt braggy. "I was so pretty," "I had so many boyfriends," "If everyone loved me, why couldn't I find work?" I'm not underscoring her struggle with drugs and her family problems, but I felt like she was trying to make the readers like her and admire her for her looks.

Towards the end, I was struggling to finish, but the last bit became incredibly interesting when she wrote about the struggles within her family - the family dynamics between herself, her mom, her father, and her older brothers. I kind of wish she had just written about that and kept everything else to herself.

Do I recommend it? Eh. I told my mom she might like it because she knows what Maureen was talking about (the movies, the culture, etc.).

5/50 - 23 for 23 Goal #3. 

Weekend Recap: Zoo Lights!

One of my favorite things about "winter" here in Arizona is Zoo Lights. I've been going since I was really little and I still love it.
You get to bundle-up in a jacket and drink hot chocolate and the dancing trees!

Unfortunately, when I was there on Saturday, the weather was a nice 70, so there was no bundling up. And, they changed the dancing trees.

This is Jenga -- the talking giraffe. We got there a little too early and he wasn't talking yet though.

I had a great time.
Zoo Lights opens for the public on November 22nd and runs until January 6th.

Weekly Round-Up.

- So, this is a thing. And I don't know how I feel about it.

- I need this print.

 

- An interesting article about Presidents and their drinking habits.

- Louis CK is taping another HBO special and you'll be able to buy it here when it's released sometime next year.

- Well, this is a depressing look on happiness.

- This is what 20,000 pages of emails look like. Jeeze, Gen. Allen.

Uh Oh: A Packing Nightmare

I have a serious procrastination problem. And packing for my most recent trip was no different. I made a list of things I needed to take, but I waited to start packing and doing laundry until the night before. 

I have a history of forgetting things when I go on vacation, so this procrastination is not beneficial. 

There was that time I forgot pants. In my defense, I wore pants on our way to Vegas, but once we got to our hotel, I realized that was the only pair. And since we had 9 more days and two more destinations, my mom had to run me to the mall to get some pants. 

There was that time I forgot my glasses. And I have contacts, but I always take them out at night and wear my glasses. It wasn't terrible, but it sucked. 

The time I forgot underwear and had to wear my swimsuit bottoms until I made it to the mall. There was no excuse for this one.

So, I was feeling positive about my list. Until I realized I forgot my headphones. 

And a purse. 

Now, when I told someone I forgot my purse, he assumed I meant all the things in it. But no. Just a purse. 

I had my carry-on, but that's too big to carry around while walking. 

I made do by stuffing cash and my ID in my pocket or stuffing my wallet in my friend's bag, and even carrying my wallet around in my hoodie pocket. 

I think I've come to terms that I will never leave for a vacation without leaving something important at home. 

No matter how many lists I make or how many times I double check. 

Or maybe I should finish packing before my ride to the airport shows up. 

That Time I Went to Harry Potter Land...

I'm currently out of town. But, here's a recount of one of my favorite vacations I've been on. 

In October 2011, I flew out to meet up with my family on their Florida vacation and I tried to pack as much as I humanly could into my two days out there.

Except, I took my sweet time at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

I was pleased as punch.

I made sure we tried Butterbeer and I had to have a Hermione mustache. And, the Pumpkin Juice was delicious too.

There are three rides there and I surprisingly went on all of them.

First, we did the Dragon Challenge. It had rained all morning and we were some of the first people that actually got to go on the ride that day. I'm not at all a fan of roller coasters and I closed my eyes the entire way. And when I opened them, I had cried. My brother was unfazed and actually wanted to go back on it.

Then, my brother and I went on the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride. It starts as a walk-through of Hogwarts - and you can just do the walk-through and skip the ride (which I suggest if you're not feeling up to the ride).

The Sorting Hat.

The ride itself sat you on a front facing bench and I couldn't even grab onto my brother's hand. It was half CGI and half real props. There were dementors and dragons popping out. I wish I would have kept my eyes open, but I hate when smoke blows in my eyes on rides - totally messes with my contacts.

And finally, we went on the Flight of the Hippogriff. It's a MUCH smaller roller coaster than the Dragon Challenge and my mom even joined us.

We skipped out on Ollivander's Experience because the line was just too long and this was early in the day at the park and it had been raining, which had definitely thinned out the crowds.

Even though I managed to knock out Universal Studios in a day, I'm really bummed that I only had one day to do all four parks over at Disney World for that trip.

Book #4: Gone Girl

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn.

A lot of people have recommended this book to me. And, I was really apprehensive because I'm not the biggest fan of fiction. Surprisingly, despite the other books I've reviewed, I really love historical non-fiction and I love reading about the revolutionary war.

But, once I started Gone Girl, I could not put it down. I was enthralled. And angry. My mom kept checking on me because I was yelling at the book. And, if a book is making you yell at it, it's doing something right.

It's the story of this couple, Nick and Amy. Amy goes missing on their 5th wedding anniversary. The story is told from her perspective in the form of a diary and his perspective. And unlike a lot of books I've read that have perspectives from different characters, the voices are distinct.

And unlike other fictional books I've read, it was incredibly easy to get into it. A couple of pages in and I was hooked and couldn't put it down.

4/50 - 23 for 23 Goal #3.

Even More Netflix Recommendations.

Truth be told, I watch a lot of TV. And I have even more television recommendations. This is the "Time Wasters" edition.

1.
Law & Order: SVU

If you haven't watched this already, what are you waiting for? There are 12 seasons available on Netflix. I don't even want to calculate how much time a person could sit and watch this show. Between B.D. Wong and the hilarity that ensues from the guest stars, this show is worth your time. And Dennis from 30 Rock is on the first season, dummy.

If you're apprehensive at all, watch Season 12, episode 5 "Wet" first. You will not be disappointed.

2.
Mythbusters

As if we haven't already watched enough of those two, but there are like 8 seasons on Netflix and it's a good time waster. To be honest, it helps me fall asleep.

I can only watch a few episodes at a time because Grant is the worst, but it's something to go to in between watching other series.

3.
That Mitchell and Webb Look

THAT'S NUMBERWANG. I've had a hard time converting people to this show. And for the most part, I've given up. I try to get more people to watch Peep Show than this sketch comedy show. Yes, it has a laugh track, but it's funny enough that you can get over it. It's really goofy and as an American, I don't really understand all of the jokes. But I really can't recommend this show enough.

There are 4 seasons, but they're easily rewatchable - since it is a sketch comedy show.

4.
How It's Made

There's either 8 or 12 seasons of this show on Netflix. You can probably learn how to make anything at this point. Want to see how feminine hygiene napkins are made? This is your show. What about hockey sticks? They do that too! This is my favorite show to watch when I come home at the end of the night. It's mind-numbingly easy to watch and there are so many episodes that if you ever did finish, you'd probably forget how the first things were made and you can start over.

5.
The League

They just put up the 3rd season of this and the seasons are really short, so if you don't want to give a lot of time to a television series (like all the ones I posted above), this is the show for you. The fact that it's about fantasy football is really off-putting to people, but you don't have to understand football to like this show. The characters are mostly unlikable and it reminds me of a more put together cast of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Basically, it's funny, short, and you don't even have to know anything about football to enjoy it (But it helps).