My Girl Friday

A while ago I heard the demo of Marina and the Diamonds Obsessions and was instantly in love. Now she's released a video for I am Not a Robot and I am ecstatic! Enjoy and Happy Friday!

.... The eff?

The sky is falling ... the world must be approaching doomsday: both Farrah Fawcett AND MJ passed away today - sad times =( - I think I'm going to go to bed before any more craziness happens.

Goodbye to


Charlie's Favourite Angel

... God bless that hair

Bahaha!

I hope !THIS! is real (and not some staged nonsense) because it just made my night.
Also the word Pork Chop makes me giggle. All in all a wonderful night.

New Dream Bedroom

Dream rooms, like dreams themselves, change daily, or nightly I guess. Today, this room is my ideal bedroom ... who knows if it wil last 'till tomorrow, furthermore, who cares?

Betsey, I Do Adore

Gorgeous weather for the first day of summer and FATHER'S DAY! It was so gross yesterday and I think I should know. I spent about 2 hours on out in the rain watching my dad play rugby yesterday afternoon. Sue and I started with a "Keep Dry at all Costs" policy by which we brilliantly huddled under impromptu umbrella tents on camping chairs. This policy was soon abandoned by me for the more practical, if a little more wet "Avoid Rugby Ball at All Costs" policy. I can't help it. As soon as the action gets close I get antsy and want to be able to sashay(read: book it) out of the way should a ball come hurdling towards me - which it did - multiple times. The game was enjoyable enough to watch, given that I don't know the rules (I've figured out some...) mostly I made wise cracks about tha various happenings on the field - that guy you looked like he was doing the doggie paddle on his back, the oppositions names for their plays: i.e. igloo 19 (wtf?!), and the one guy who sounded like he was hacking on a bone for a good 5 minutes before the ref asked if he was alright. Good Times.

Today though, was lazy in everyway. Breakfast, Reading on the back deck in the sun, realizing I was turning into a lobster and ducking for cover, back outside with freshly applied SPF60 sunscreen, etc. This afternoon is where it got exciting. With a big steak dinner overwith I decided to busy myself at the mall (never a good solution) so after dropping my brother off at hockey Laura and I headed that direction. After Meandering around and finding nothing I stumbled into the goldmine that is StyleSense. I love the thinking behind StyleSense. It is run by Winners but is purely accessories! Of course I looked at shoes then bags but ultimately ended up in the sunglass section where I discovered the best thing ever. BETSEY JOHNSON sunglasses! I La-La-La Betsey Johnson. No, I could probably never pull off any of her clothes but they are so much fun and her sunglasses are no different. I obviously could not control myself and bought 2 pairs - but I am NOT ashamed. They are the raddest sunglass, excepting my Ray Bans, EVER! And becuase Style Sense is so wonderful - They were more than 1/2 of their original retail value- WHAT UP! I remember first seeing Betsey on Fashion Television years ago and thinking - she shall be my favourite designer that I will never get to wear, oh how funny it is now she's been made available to me! Hope everyone else is having just as enjoyable a weekend! ta.

Britain's Got Hilarious Talent

My Dad sent this to me via email a couple days ago and it's still making me giggle. I was definitely enthralled with Riverdance and Lord of the Dance when it was popular (when was that? mid 90s?). I thought it was the coolest thing ... still do a little. Anyway, this is a brilliant comedic act, if anything, from this season's BGT (Um why was there not as big hoopla worldwide for these guys as there was for Ms. Susan Boyle?!) This Father-son duo clearly had the most fun of all constestants. Now that the show is over and SuBo hysteria has calmed down I think I can safely say ... I didn't really like her much - I didn't hate her, she just didn't charm me like she did the rest of the civilized world I suppose.

Dream Home # Infinity

Okay, so it is Friday and it is exactly a week since I last posted - criminal. Anyway, the fact is that I've nothing original to post about so I'm just going to steal from other blogs for the time being. Steal really is it stealing? Share is perhaps a better word to describe what I do. Today, for example I will share with you these pictures of a home in Vancouver from Fresh Home. I love this site it always has random new furniture designs some of which are gorgeous, others are questionable. I love this home in particular not for the furniture, which to be honest does nothing for me, but for the architecture and layout. very open concept, huge windows - fabulous.

Also finding fabulous today and for the past 2 weeks (ahah pardon the pun - but it's true!) is Two Weeks by Grizzly Bear. Happy, happy song! Enjoy:

Top 3 ... Children's Shows I Wish Were Still on the Air

Remember your childhood - that foggy jumble of events all lumped together under the categories: Goodtimes, Badtimes, Embarrassing Times, and Times we won't ever bring up again (aka me getting hit in the back of the head with the ball during a soccer baseball tournament, and falling facedown in the baseball diamond sand - yeah)

Well Childhood Memories have one more thing up their sleeves - TV shows. I have watched a heck of a lot of TV shows, I believe this will be one of the few constants in my life. Some shows remain on the air while other perish and remain only in the memories of the children that loved them. This fact gave me the inspiration for today's Top 3 List: Children's Show I Wish Were Still on the Air


1) Under the Umbrella Tree
Why?
Izzy, Jacob, and Gloria - who would not want to be their friends. I remember wishing and praying that one day I could be as cool as Holly. And I had no idea that the house in the intro was not real. ..


2) The Smoggies:
Why?
This show is why i've always been so gung-ho about saving the environment one recyclable bottle at a time!


3) Today's Special
Why?
A Mannequin that comes to life at night and learns about the world through the teachings of deparment store associate ... um genius! I also longed to live in a doll house like Muffy ... maybe that dream will someday come true.

Because I watched so much TV it was very difficult to choose only three shows I wish were still on - here are the inevitable honourable mentions:

- Polka Dot Door - they split Humpty Dumpty into two separate enteties! This show could be the cause of my obsession with have a specific spot for things - at the end of each show they placed the stuffed animals in their proper position inside the house chest...

- The Elephant Show - I am convinced that this is the reason I love elephants so much - I actually jsut came to that realization now ... wow

- GhostWriter - I never really understood what Ghost Writer was but I knew that I loved it. Inner city kids solving mysteries with the help of poor animated graphics spelling out words in the air - LOVE IT.

Most Loved Headline of the Day

CRIMINAL LAWYER JAILED FOR GANGSTERISM

see accompanying article here.

Until this moment I did not know the word Gangsterism exsisted. I didn't know you could charge someone under it either. My day is a little brighter now.
I cannot believe I've never employed this word what with all my interest in Gang Land and Locked up Raw.

definition of gangsterism: the habit of using organized violence to achieve one’s ends.

A Public Service Announcement: Beware of SUSPICINOUNS

Sometime in the past two weeks and during one of my epic gchat conversations, I stumbled across a grouping of nouns that I am none too pleased with - SUSPICINOUNS. Suspicinouns are the shady nouns that like to think they are better than the rest because they confuse you and are often found within sentences with incorrect grammar. Don't be surprised if you stumble across a suspicinoun chilling in a dangling participle or spurring on a run on sentence. Suspicinouns I've seen so far today:

Swain (from iGoogle's word of the day)
iGoogle (google masquerading as a product of Mac)
Doodad (from my brain, wandering around trying to find a verb to pair up with - it settled on nestled ... could this be a suspiciverb!?!)

I just want everyone to be careful out there and keep your eyes peeled for any noun that may look a little out of place or odd. These are dangerous times we are living in. Words are morphing at frightening rates, need I remind you how short forms and acronyms such as lol, brb, rofl, and plpyt (okay I made up the last one) are taking over the English language!? And I am sure we are all aware of the alarming spike in personal word creation: Bootylicious, Ridonkulous, Refrickendiculous to name but a few. I really think they should air School House Rock again. My generation and those that follow have completely missed out on this wonderful teaching tool which is almost good as Telefrancais! This kind of proactive education could prevent children and adults alike from falling prey to the devious suspicinouns lurking on every page of every book ....

Top 3 ... Crayola Crayon Colours

note:I love how the title of this post contains an unintentional alliteration!



Today's Top 3: Favourite Crayola Crayon Colour Names!
Sigh and recall the blessed few years of your childhood via crayons ...

1)Peach
Why?
Because it is one of the most politically correct crayon colours (replaced: Flesh), along with Chestnut (formerly Indian Red).

2) Canary
Why?
Canary is one of those words that automatically brightens my day just by its association with yellow.

3) Banana Mania
Why?
Is it just me or does Crayola seem to have an uncanny ability to make your tummy go, "I'm HUNGARY - yes like the country" <-- my tummy gets confused easily ...

honourable mention: Electric Lime this colour inevitably makes me think of the song Electric Avenue by Eddy Grant. Yeah don't bother giving me the side-eye, you Love it.

True Blood

Confession. I LOVE True Blood. I la-la-la Love it. It is sooooo good. I don't even recall how I first got turned onto it but I know that it must have been one of the first two episodes that caught my attention because I remember last fall anxiously awaiting every Monday night for the moment when Dorcas had had enough time to download a good version of it for me to watch on my computer. The season was criminally short and ended with the biggest WTF!?! I have experienced from a tv show in recent memory ... although LOST was pretty decent in the what-the-hell-is-going-on-here-i-don't-believe-in-anything-anymore-please-stop-messing-with-my-brain-box department. Thankfully, I guess to keep the good ratings rolling with all the vampire hype, True Blood's second season begins this Sunday! Waiting for months after the super short season (omg I swear I'm not even trying for the alliterations anymore - ah - it's just happening!) is the second biggest trial of will right after composing myself and not cringing everytime Anna Paquin speaks with her ill conceived Louisiana accent. Maybe that IS how she would sound if she were a native Louisianian, but I don't like it, I don't like it one bit. What I do like is the faux poster, courtesy of Barney Stinson (best character EVER) that reads: CONFORMITY. It's the one who is different that gets left out in the cold". This was an obvious choice for the subject matter of this post: if you're one of the few who has yet to succumb to some form of vampiric entertainment ... well let's just say you are starting to stick out - and not in a good way. I know I know - I hate Twilight too but calm down, pull out an old Anne Rice novel or pop in your VHS of Interview with Vampire and get cozy because I'm pretty sure the frenzy won't die down at least until all the twilight ridiculousness is o-vah.
Clickity Click Here to see a promo for season 2 of True Blood!

Afternoon Alliteration Anyone?

Please see HERE before reading this post...

Apparently I am not the only person who adores alliteration in the most unhealthiest of ways. Star's cover editor has a bad case of alliteration obsession and I love it. I don't read these weekly rags but Star has now firmly cemented its place as my most favouritest of them all! In related news ... wtf is Star magazine ...

Pristine Clean White

ooh la la! very chic, very white, very ... princessy. These snapshots are dreamy and that bed is to die for! That crystal clear desk cannot be that comfy or practical though, at least not for me. I would peg this room as more suited to a swanky hotel than a liveable home, but I'm not complaining either way.

It's Sunday which means the weekend is drawing to the inevitable close I have feared since Friday at 4. Boo hoo, where does the time go? Well, This weekend it ended up being spent on various things: a visit with a friend, a backyard barbeque with neighbours, UP in 3D with sister and a little bit of work. That's a nice even balance I suppose.

Good afternoon children,

and what a beautiful afternoon it is! The sun is shining, the birds are singing, the lawn mowers are ... well yeah.

As of Thursday I am now a part of the Flickr community. You can view my photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/charries/.

Warning: It's a bit like amateur hour for me over at Flickr so don't expect to see the next greatest thing in photography.

On this sunny summer afternoon I'm listening to what else but Huey Lewis and the News's Power of Love. This song is so peppy and fun and I love it for summer. Have a wonderful rest of the day!

Top 3 ... Weather Conditions

Today's Top 3 List: Favourite Weather Conditions!

Today's Top 3 is brought to you by Cumulonimbus Clouds - The Biggest and Baddest of the Cloud Kingdom ...

1) Thunderstorm
Why?
Thunderstorms are exciting, especially when the power goes out. I used to hate thunder and lightning, now I love it - oh the times they are a changing

2) Blue Skies with White clouds, hold the grey
Why?
Well who doesn't like a lovely spring day with the sun shining all about the place?

3) Snow Storm, from indoors
Why?
a. usually beautiful b. you can play in the snow afterward!

Thoughts on a Windy Thursday

Sometimes when I'm riding my bike fast on a particularly windy day I feel like Macaulay Culkin in The Pagemaster.

I like the neckrest pillows in this photo. This bed is short on style but high on function - really the most practical I've come across on any design blog.

1 more sleep till the weekend ....

________________________________________________

(I so apologize for the hasty changes being made to my blog's formatting. I'm getting restless and when I get restless I like to tamper and fiddle with the few things I truly control in life.)

Kids

Not sure how I feel about this ...

I do love the Nietzsche quote at the beginning, It also begins one of my favourite movies The Abyss. (although they've mixed up the source ... ironically?)
I don't like that poor baby being terrorized for the majority of the video.
I do love the MGMT sweatband
I don't like that this song is over played and outdated - why would they release a video now?
I do love the animation which at one point reminds me of Sailor Moon's transformation.

It's thursday, I'm meh about life: decide for yourself

My favourite comments under this video on Stereogum were:

Just in time for last summer!
Doing stuff like this to children is what makes the olsen twins do so much cocaine
Joanna Newsom's parenting skills kinda suck

Goalatude Progress Update: G.2

I've finished yet another book. I thought I'd take a break from novels and rest my brain box with the memoir of Mr. Russell Brand's My Booky Wook. I'd like to say the book was delightful, but that would be a lie. For the most part I read the book while cringing at his antics and the series of unfortunate events that comprise his youth. Fortunately, so far there is a happy ending to this tale, as Brand is clearly beginning to make his mark in the U.S. and has firmly secured a place in the national psyche of Great Britain - Bravo! I highly recommend this book if sex, drugs, profanity and cheeky humour all in copious amounts does not offend you too much. 7.5/10

I'm already entrenched in my new book, the novel The Almost Moon by Alice Sebold. It's dark .... very dark - I hope the main character shows me some redeeming qualities - soon.

Respect Wordsworth.

What a wonderful way to begin a new month! This morning, while eating breakfast, my sister handed me an envelope from the Queen's English Department, the contents of which was an acceptance into the 4th year honours program of both Classics and English! Let me explain. For some time now I have been toying with the idea of changing majors. This is not always the easiest or wisest decision when you are going into your last year of school. When I spoke to the Classics Department head she gave me the old raised eyebrow in response. But as Queen's Classics majors know, the Classics Department LIES all the time. Example: this year I attended a Classics info session for first years by accident (mislead by my latin prof - lie #1). During the course of the presentation one of my favourite Classics profs laid out available courses - LIES, only half of these courses are available in a given year. Then she insisted one would not have to take up a classical language in order to satisfy their degree requirments unless they want to go to Grad school - LIES! There aren't enough courses offered NOT to take either Latin or Greek, and most often both are needed. Here is where I find joy in my English department acceptance. Because I've been accepted into the honours English program now, I WILL NEVER TAKE ANOTHER LATIN CLASS - THANK YOU SWEET JESUS! Latin as I have mentioned on this blog before is the bane of my exsistence. Although it gives me a certain pleasure in knowing that I can read a dead language that was used for 1000s of years by some of the most historically important people on earth, Subjunctives, Deponent Verbs and 2nd Declension Nouns populate my nightmares. OH HAPPY DAY!
In honour of this momentous occasion I give you MC Nuts for Cumbria Tourism rapping William Wordsworth's poem Daffodils. I myself am partial to Blake, but Respect Wordsworth.

Goaltude Update: G.7

Goalatude No.7 on my ultimate Summer Goalatudes List was to find a craft and do it awesomely. Well, I'm not sure about the awesomely part but I did find a craft and do it. I had spent a couple weeks gathering materials and such in preparation for this craft and yesterday I finally worked on it. I chose to make a magazine holder out of an old cereal box. I saw this idea at least 10 years ago well watching one of my favourite afterschool shows (there are many) Art Attack. It is extremely simple which means that even I couldn't mess it up too badly. This craft also has the potential to be environmentally friendly (YAY!) because you can recycle your old cereal boxes within your home in the process. Unfortunately I bought more paper to decorate my box so I don't think mine met the criteria for being completely EF (Boo!). Craft Stats:

• Cost: approx. $30.00 (not including cereal, I had to buy everything else: paper, Mod podge, acrylic paint, patterned tape - bought enough for 3 boxes)
• Time spent: approx. 31/2 - 4hrs (waiting for the paint and mod podge to dry)Frustration: 6.5/10 (wrinkled paper and mod podge everywhere)Fun: 7.5/10 (crafts are ALWAYS FUN! isn't that why people do them?!?)

All in all I think my box looks faboosh (where have I seen this word?) and was actually pretty idiot proof.

Steps:

• cut the box (you can figure it out)
• paint it: let paint dry then repeat 'till box design is completely covered.
• Once paint is dry paint a layer of mod podge over to seal it up.
• measure and cut paper: glue it side at a time using mod podge. (cover the paper in mod podge so it seals onto the box)
• take tape and stick around box in a continual line.
• place magazines in box...

et Voila! Craft done! When I work up enough energy I'll make some more but until then Goalatude No.7 has been completed!

June 1st

Maybe this month I will break my own most posts in a month record. Okay self, I accept that challenge. I should be careful that I don't binge blog too much though, I need to pace myself.

Some things to share with you today in celebration of the beginning of the 6th month of the year:

• Gingerbread Ka Mate Haka (check out the real one >here< I watched quite a few of these and by far the best part is the facial expressions from the other teams. Also, the New Zealand All Blacks are now my favourite team of any sport, anywhere.
• Total Eclipse of the Heart (Literal Version) ..... from Dlisted (click!click!)
• My Dream Apartment ....from Apartment Therapy New York (click me beyotch)
• Cool Guys Don't Look at Explosions (specifically the JJ Abrams Keyboard Solo) .... from MTV (click me)