Sunday, October 31, 2010

Sunday quotes: The Romantics edition

I read The Romantics recently and fell a bit in love with it. I can only hope that the movie lives up to this wonderful book.

'You wanted evidence of change'
'No,' he said. 'I wanted evidence of distance.'



'How can you feel sorry for a poet,' said Tom. 'Is there anything more useless and indulgent?'
'Oh no,' Laura said. She turned to face Tom, insistent on eye contact. 'They were radicals, revolutionaries. More influential than Newton and Darwin. Without them, there would be no point-of-view, no ecstasy, no heartbreak, no novels.'
'The Romantics cannot be credited with the birth of emotion,' Tom said.
'No, but maybe, without their work, we wouldn't know how to express it.'
'That doesn't mean we wouldn't feel it,' Tom said.


That spectrum has no measure for the greatest of all carnal sins, the kind that occurs before skin touches skin, before wondering turns to yearning, yearning to having, having to holding for dear life, when two people cling to each other so desperately that even when they lie, inches apart, neither is fully satisfied until the light between them turns to darkness.

Friday, October 29, 2010

Fill in the Blank Friday


1. My Halloween plans this year will include maybe helping my parents pass out candy to the little ones in the neighborhood. I don't have big plans for Halloween, so probably just sleeping in, working out and cleaning my apartment.

2. My most memorable Halloween costume was either the year I was a gypsy or when I was an elephant. I made a pretty cute bumblebee when I was little, too, but the gypsy costume was my favorite!

3. For Halloween this year I'm going to be nothing. I don't really enjoy dressing up in costume.

4. I've always wanted to dress up as a Venetian carnival attendee. I love the elaborate masks!!

5. Halloween free association! Costumes, little kids, candy, pumpkins, snow (it almost always snows on Halloween where I live), corn mazes and haunted houses.

6. The worst thing about Halloween is people always looking at me like there's something wrong with me when I tell them that I don't like dressing in costume...who knows, maybe I'll get into the costume spirit one of these years.

7. The best thing about Halloween is seeing all of the adorable little trick or treaters! I love how excited little kids get to dress up and show off their costumes.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Red Hair

(via The Sartorialist)

I would kill for this girl's hair.
End of story.

For Summer...


My heart goes out to Summer and her family as they cope with the loss of Daddy Butch.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Happy 101 Award

One of my favorite bloggers and real life friend, Jess at LittleMrsSunshine gifted me with the Happy 101 Award last week. Now, I love this award because it's all about the little things in life that make you happy; and we all know that the little things are often the best things!


Rules for the Happy 101 Award:
√ post who gave you this award.
√ state ten things you like.
√ give this award to 10 other bloggers
and notify them with a comment.

10 things I'm really lovin':
1. Pumpkin Spice tea...it's like Autumn in a mug!
2. The love triangle between Katniss, Gale and Peeta in the Hunger Games trilogy
3. My newly discovered love for Glee
4. Girl's Nights full of wine and laughter
5. Evening walks around my neighborhood
6. Tart apples dipped in caramel
7. Vegetable quinoa soup
8. Pretend shopping sprees at Anthropologie
9. My new running shoes...they're like walking on air
10. Starting up book club again with my amazing co-worker friends


And now I award this to ALL OF YOU! I simply cannot choose just 10 of you lovely readers, so if you feel like playing along with the Happy 101 Award, please do (and make sure to let me know so I can read your happy lists)!

Monday, October 25, 2010

Commencement: Part 1

Remember way back when I told you all about joining a bloggy book club? Yea, I'd nearly forgotten myself, but don't you fret! I read Commencement while I was back in Michigan at the end of September, but just haven't sat down to blog about my thoughts on the book.


I really enjoyed Commencement and found it insanely easy to relate to. Being a (fairly) recent college graduate myself, I understand the different emotions involved with going from spending 24/7 with your girlfriends to navigating your own life while maintaing those friendships. Girlfriends are one of the greatest things in the world, and I know that I made my best friends while in college. They will be my best friends for the rest of my life, but there was still an adjustment period after gradaution. We each went our separate ways with the knowledge that our friendships would last through it all, but we have had to learn to put forth new and different efforts.

Technically, I missed the cut off for linking up with my responses to Book Beginnings and Bookends' Part 1 questions, but that's ok, I can answer them anyway:

1. Which girl do you identify with most?

I'd have to say that I identify most with Celia. I'm not a hardcore feminist like April; or a Southern Belle learning to live with the loss of her mother like Sally; and I'm certainly not a naive, closet lesbian like Bree. That leaves Celia. She's kind of an "every girl", I guess. She was excited to embark on her college adventure, but nervous to leave her family, and once she found her group of friends she was set. After graduation she found a real job that she's not sure is her forever job and she's, sometimes frustratingly, playing the single field. That's pretty much me! Celia relies heavily on her best friends, but isn't entirely dependent; she just knows the true power of girlfriends.

2. If you're a college student or graduate, what similarites or differences do you see between this story to your own college experience?

Similarities: The instant friendships. Mine worked a little differently because I actually met my best friend the summer before classes started, rather than in the dorms, but it was through her and our time spent together in the dorms that I met many of my other friends. The dorms become this kind of little world unto itself with just you and your friends. It's a safe haven, and I think the closeness nurtures a lot of relationships. The culture of college for those 4 years is also something I can relate to: time spent gossiping on the way to class, grabbing countless cups of coffee, studying, fitting in jobs and taking friends home for the holidays is still so very real in my mind.

Differences: Mostly just the big ones: I didn't go to an all-girls school; it wasn't on the East Coast and it certainly wasn't small. Also, ultra-feminism wasn't an every day part of my co-ed college experience, nor was Smith College's stereotypical lesbianism.


3.Which girl do you think has changed the most since her time in college? In what ways has she changed?

I think all of the girls changed after college, but my first instinct is to cite Bree as the most changed since she came to college engaged to her highschool sweetheart and left in a lesbian relationship. Granted that change occured while she was still at Smith, but it greatly affected her behavior and choices after college. It was after college that she faced this decision head-on, battled her family over it and fought for social and personal acceptance.

Look for my responses to Part 2 later this week!
Oh, and if you haven't yet, check this book out; I truly loved it.

Friday, October 22, 2010


Romeo: If I profane with my unworthiest hand
This holy shrine, the gentle fine is this:
My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand
To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.


Juliet: Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much,
Which mannerly devotion shows in this;
For saints have hands that pilgrims' hands do touch,
And palm to plam is holy palmers' kiss.

Fill in the blank Friday


1. I am a strong-willed, emotional, tea-loving, book-reading, opinionated, long walk-taking, greatest friends and family-having gal. I'm just me, and I wouldn't have it any other way!

2. I wish all of the political ads would stop. I'm a huge proponent for voting and getting your voice heard, but political ads that rip each other a part are depressing and, in my opinion, unnecessary. And the sad part is that people vote according to these ads, rather than educating themselves on the issues.

3. I like quiet, productive Friday afternoons, complete with a food-filled pot-luck lunch and rain bouncing off of my window.

4. I cannot thank the ladies enough for the most amazing, and much-needed, Girl's Night last night. It's been quite the week and I needed some laughter (and wine) to bring myself back into the realm of sanity.

5. I hope I didn't stuff up my ankle last night even more than it already is. I was sitting on it funny and it's been sore every since. uh-oh...

6. I think my student hourly finds my current obsession with Bath and Body Works' Midnight Pomegranate anti-bacterial hand gel to be completely crazy. I just can't help it; this stuff smells so good!

7. I was not planning on eating as much at lunch today as I did...now I feel over-stuffed and really wish I had sweat pants on.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Fall soup kick

Good morning, lovelies! It is a gorgeous Fall day here in Northern Colorado...the sun is shining, the temps are cool and the sky is a bright blue. It could quite possibly be classified as one of our perfect Fall mornings! Anyway, there is something about the cooling temps and darker evenings that puts me into a cooking mood. Fall is all about hot and hearty comfort foods, don't you think? Warm apple crisps, giant pots of bubbling soup, and baked pasta dishes call my name once those leaves start to change. It always seems like there's something better to do in the Summer than cook, but Fall evenings practically volunteer themselves for time spent in the kitchen.

My latest food kick has been soup. I want to eat it for practically every meal; I feel the urge to pull out my dutch oven each weekend; and I love being able to share some homecooking with my friends. My current recipe obsession? Italian Sausage Soup with Tortellini...give it a try:

Italian Sausage Soup with Torellini

Ingredients

1 pound sweet or hot Italian sausage, casings removed
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
5-6 cups beef broth
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup red wine
4 large tomatoes - peeled, seeded and chopped OR 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 cup thinly sliced carrots
1/2 tablespoon packed fresh basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups sliced zucchini
8 ounces fresh tortellini pasta
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley


Directions

1.In a 5 quart Dutch oven, brown sausage. Remove sausage and drain, reserving 1 tablespoon of the drippings.
2.Saute onions and garlic in drippings. Stir in beef broth, water, wine, tomatoes, carrots, basil, oregano, tomato sauce, and sausage. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 30 minutes.
3.Skim fat from the soup. Stir in zucchini and parsley. Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Add tortellini during the last 10 minutes. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese on top of each serving.


Really, you could throw in any veggies that you have on hand. I'm not a huge zucchini fan, so I increased the amount of carrots and added mushrooms and celery instead, which was wonderful! I also used canned diced tomatoes rather than peeling and seeding my own because I'm lazy like that; and I opted for hot italian sausage to give the soup some zing. This was amazing! I'm seriously considering making another batch this weekend.

Tell me, what are your favorite Fall foods? Care to share any recipes?

Friday, October 15, 2010

Fill in the blank Friday


1. Blogging is one of the best things I ever decided to do. It's a great outlet and has allowed me to meet some wonderful friends that I probably never would've met otherwise.

2. A current fashion trend I wish I was brave enough to wear is skinny jeans. I really hate my thighs in them.

3. My greatest accomplishment in life thus far is graduating from college and finding a job that I love.

4. If I had to choose between a mountain or a beach vacation I'd choose a mountain vacation in the Fall. I'm a mountain girl through and through, and there are very few things that I find more refreshing than golden Aspens, fresh mountain air, wildflowers and wandering through quaint mountain towns with coffee in hand.

5. A talent I wish I had is craftiness. I'm really not a crafty person, but I always wish I was...

6. A talent I do have is editing papers. Sounds nerdy, but I'm a fabulous editor and quite happy when I have a red pen and a fresh paper.

7. This week was busy and stressful, but went well in the end. I had a paper due, lots of invoices to get paid, my performance evaluation and a Microeconomics final to study for. Everything got done in the end, my evaluation went well and the final has been passed! Whew!

Monday, October 11, 2010

(Mostly) disorganized thoughts on my weekend...

I had such great intentions to be productive this past weekend, but in the end, I accomplished next to nothing. Surprisingly, that was/is just fine with me. We all need lazy weekends, right?

Friday

Work sped by, which is unusual for a Friday.
We have a new student hourly, whom I adore, and chatting with her while I worked made the afternoon fly by. I love when that happens!
After work I ran some errands, took an Economics quiz and made pizza for dinner.
Then I went out on a date (not my first with him).
I've become oddly (for me) wiggy about labeling things lately.
I know I haven't really mentioned much about my forays into the dating world here, but, yes, I went on a date.
We played trivia and drank beer.
I apparently do not store very many random bits of knowledge in my brain, at least not sports related ones.
But, I still had a great time.
There was cuddle action.

Saturday

Morning came entirely too quickly.
I spent the majority of the day drinking coffee in an attempt to trick myself into thinking I was well-rested.
I nearly hit a buck that decided to run into the road on the way to my parents' house.
I kid you not, it practically plotted leaping towards my car.
I went for a long walk in the Colorado Fall sunshine, and sweet-talked my friend Chelsae into wandering around downtown for a bit.
I'm pretty sure I spent more time in my sweats than I did in real clothes, which is always one of my favorite things.

Sunday

I woke up to the sound of rain, and immediately opened all of my windows to let the fresh air in.
The weather was perfect for indulging in too much coffee (notice a pattern?) and watching trashy BBC drama.
Has anyone ever seen BBC's Footballers' Wives? I love it!
I have this thing for British television, and have always loved this show.
I finally added the seasons to my Netflix so I could start from the beginning.
I worked out and attempted to start on some homework, but failed miserably.
Mom and I had a coffee date and then wandered around Target.
She talked me into spending entirely too much money, but I love my purchases...there just might be a new polka dot cardi in my closet.
The day concluded with Skyping Jamie and cooking a giant pot of soup.

I'm paying the price now for not getting my homework done, but hey, c'est la vie! I had a lovely, lazy weekend and am willing to kick myself a bit for my lack of productivity. Some weekends just aren't meant for checking items off of my to-do list.

Friday, October 8, 2010

Fill in the Blank Friday

Happy Friday, everyone!! I am in an annoyingly chipper mood, which probably has something to do with the excessive amount of coffee in my system, the possibility of some cuddle action tonight and the general fact that it's FRIDAY! My poor coworkers don't quite know what to do with all of my energy this morning. I think I'll channel some of it into Lauren's blanks this week!

1. The first thing I do in the morning to start my day is make my bed (Courtney, I know you're on the same page as me with this one), brush my teeth and take off my makeup, grab a cup of coffee and check the weather so I can ponder my outfit while I shower.

2. Today I wish I was curled up on the couch at my favorite coffee shop, sipping on an americano, munching on a pastry and reading...in yoga pants, of course. Who, honestly, wears real clothes on cozy days?

3. If I had an extra $100 in my bank account today I'd splurge on a couple of nice bottles of wine for the weekend and let the leftover money hang out in my bank account.

4. Tomorrow needs to involve homework (writing a paper...ugh) and cleaning, and possibly catching up on DVR'd Fringe episodes.

5. Two things that don't go together are naturally flat hair and humidity...because I love when my hair is plastered to my head; it's oh-so-attractive.

6. Something I can never pass up at the grocery store is a new tea that catches my eye. I have so many boxes of tea in my house it's ridiculous! But, in my defense, I do take it to work with me and I usually have a cup or two of tea at night.

7. The last time I tried something new was when I did yoga a few weeks ago. I'm dying to go back, but between dog-sitting, being in Michigan and my currently injured ankle I haven't made it back yet...next week!

Monday, October 4, 2010

Fill in the blank...Monday


1. True happiness is knowing and loving yourself, imperfections and all; and surrounding yourself with others who know and love the true you.

2. The most surreal moment of my life was my college graduation. 4 years of hard work summarized in just a couple of hours. It seemed almost anti-climatic, but it was a wonderful day spent with friends and family and I'm still proud of myself.

3. My favorite texture is dependent upon the season: soft and cozy when the weather gets cold, like ultra soft fleece and cozy cordurouy; and light and airy when the weather gets hot, like a breezy jersey sundress.

4. My signature color is green. It's my favorite color and turns my eyes super green; I love it!

5. My signature style is jeans, tank, cardigan, flip-flops and bright, fun earrings.

6. If I could choose one store to spend my life savings at, it would be, without a doubt, Anthropologie. I want all of the furniture, dishes, textiles, clothes and accessories in that store. My love for that store is bordering on obsession...thankfully I can't afford more than a few well chosen pieces or I would be in serious trouble.

7. My best thing about autumn is the crisp, cool air and how it smells faintly of cinnamon, even when the leaves start to rot. I love that the Rocky Mountains seem to be covered in gold when the aspens turn, but the sky always remains a true blue. And, I love that it's the perfect excuse for cardigans, candles, hot tea and lovely books.

Sunday, October 3, 2010

Hi lovelies!!

I'm home, all in one piece. This past week was good, but exhausting and I'm happily settling back in at home. I missed my apartment and I missed Colorado. I'll tell all of you all about my trip (note: I learned I'm not patient enough to be a nurse) tomorrow or Tuesday, depending on how scary the stacks of invoices are on my desk in the morning. For now, I'm cozying in on the couch with a little TV and a glass of red wine.

I missed you all!