Milo 2007-2012

About 11 days ago, my precious baby passed away. She was only 5 and it happened very suddenly. I found her in a pretty traumatic state when I got home from work and my heart has been broken for days. I've managed to begin the healing process, but I still get a few tears in every few days. 

It feels weird that she isn't here anymore. It just doesn't make sense or feel like something that would happen. 

This is the first time I've had to grieve someone or something. I've had the good luck of not having to deal with much death in my life. It's a lesson that I guess I need to begin to learn. I just wish that it hadn't had to be with my little kitty who was like a child to me.

She will always be in my heart for all time.

5 things I keep spending my money on that I don't need more of

We all have a weakness for something whether it's shoes, handbags, expensive recording equipment, the list goes on...I have quite a couple myself and each time I exchange my hard earned money for them I get a little happier inside, and then quickly brought back to the cold hard reality that I maybe don't need a 30+ eyewear collection.

Here are the things I can't help but keep spending my money on:

1. Eyewear

But look how pretty and vintage they are! But they make me so good inside!

2. Fashion magazines

I read them once, and then keep in a pretty pile. You never know what I'll need to know what Katy Perry wore on the FABULOUS cover of the September 2012 Elle.

3. Thrift store knick knacks

(photo from J_Jacks1985)

I want them. I want them all.

4. Black eyeliner

I've got every type, all types!

5. $2 DVDs on half.com

Eventually this will be my used DVD collection. Clearly, there's enough time in the world to ever watch all of these more than once in my life to justify spending the $2 + $4 shipping on them.

I know I have a problem, but I don't have to admit it, right?

5 Things That I Like About Las Vegas

Ah! The next entry in my "series" in which I list things I like about the cities I visit. I guess at this point, I'm getting to be well traveled, if by well-traveled you mean remaining only on your own continent.

This time I've been to Las Vegas, Sin City, etc. I was expecting it to be gross, dirty, full of people I wouldn't want to shake hands with, etc. You know what I found? All you need is a little hand sanitizer and Vegas isn't so bad.

 1. How close it is to awesome nature stuff
The first thing that pops in your head when you think of Vegas is all of the gaudy lights and signs and the endless annoying sound of slot machines, but did you know how close by some of the most breathtaking nature views are to the Strip? Red Rock Canyon is only $7 for a beautiful 13 mile scenic drive of some awesome desert views and if you've got a little more cash to burn, for about $250 a person you can take a 45 minute flight to Arizona to see the Grand Canyon and be back before dinner(and they'll pick you up for free at your hotel in Vegas, too! That's some door to door service for you). Don't just take my word for it:

Red Rock Canyon

The Grand Canyon (those little tiny dots on the ledge to the left are people, just for some perspective)

2. All of the ridiculous replicas of famous things throughout the world.

It is so fun to be able to see the "Sphinx," the "Eiffel Tower," AND the "Statue of Liberty" all in one place. I can give props to a place that doesn't try to be real. This place is all about the gimmicky oversize replicas, and I love every bit of it.

It's just like shopping in Venice in the 1500s, except with fake "sun" and an Ann Taylor LOFT.

It's almost as if it's laughing at me, delighting in the fact that I'm not actually in Paris.

3. Palm Trees

They make everything so chic. Just throw a couple of palm trees up around me and it makes me feel like my status has somehow become elevated.

Palm trees give you the unspoken permission to drink unlimited frozen alcoholic drinks, right?

4. The ability to make you feel rich
No one has to know how much you whimper once you check your bank account, but for that delicious hour at brunch, you're suddenly a king, and yes...you would like another mimosa.

Brunch at Terrace Pointe Cafe at the Wynn. Worth every. single. penny.

5. OMG THE SHOPPING

Guys. Did you know that they have the largest amount of shopping in one area in the whole world (I just made that up and have no facts to put behind it. If I'm right, let me know)?! My boyfriend must have been especially excited when he was able to follow me around from Forever 21 to The Gap to H&M to Topshop to Kate Spade.

Just LOOK at this thing. It's HUGE.

SPECIAL BONUS:

What I don't like about Las Vegas (for which I have no pictures of because they were too sad to photograph).

1. Bums dressed up like Elmo with signs asking for beer.

2. Elderly women handing out cards for "live babes."

Vegas is pretty cool with all of that aside. And seriously...take advantage of any free pool your hotel has. Don't ever take pool access for granted.

5 things that I keep meaning to learn

And by learn, I mean teach myself.


1. How to knit
Knitting's popularity ship may have sailed a while ago, but I'm still determined to learn this skill (especially as someone obsessed with scarves and could save a buck or two by making my own). I got "The Joy of Socks" for less than $4 at Barnes & Noble the other day. Once I struggle through it, I'll make a more informed decision if I'm willing to shell out the bucks to take a legit class at once of the many places offering such a course such as Philadelphia's Loop or Rosie's Yarn Cellar.

See, it's a real thing.

2. How to play harmonica
Don't judge me. Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Stevie Wonder, the operator at Community College of Philadelphia...they all played harmonica. I bought one for Halloween many moons ago, so I'm thinking of making some use of it. Basically, I just want to play this and impress everyone:

If John Lennon can teach himself, so can I.

3. How to code
I've been following along with the Learn Ruby the Hard Way series. I think they meant it to be a tongue in cheek title, because I'm under the impression that their way is the "easy way". It's not. Code is hard. All of you computer people must be geniuses. I can't remember all of this stuff to save my life, but I'll keep trying.

The universal symbol for frustration.

4. How to drive
One day.


And when I do, I'll try to incorporate as many green screen backgrounds as possible, like the Hoff.

I'm concerned with how much he pressures the poor girl to get in his car, though.

5. Hot to correctly prepare salmon
I once had to call three people to try to figure out how to cut the skin off. I have no idea how to prepare fish correctly.

It does NOT come off that easy.

So, there you have it. 

Let's play a game...

...called "Guess how old I am based on what I eat for lunch."

Did you guess 24? Yeah...me neither.

5 things that I like about Montreal

I have just returned from a trip up north in the beautiful land of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. While I did manage to feel like an idiot American most of the time while I was up there, I had a fantastic time while desperately wishing I had remembered more from high school French class. Here are five things that I really like about Montreal:

1. Their food says "NBD, we don't need to impress anyone. We speak French." 

Their national cuisine is poutine. Poutine is basically a plate of french fries, gravy, and cheese [curds]. Doesn't sound like they're trying too hard to me (inevitably I'll stand corrected once I read into the deep, complicated history of how poutine came to be). You know what, though? They don't have to cause they speak French and are already awesome by default. Doesn't the word poutine sound cool enough to negate how simple the food actually is? Leave it to Francophones to find a way to make the easiest things totally amazing.

Check it out. That's poutine. Pretty basic, right? And totally delicious.

2. Their Star Wars exhibit was a LOT cooler than Philadelphia's.

As I recall, Philadelphia had lots of info on how Star Wars technology could be implemented in real life. Yawn...if I cared about that I would have gone to medical school and not be watching the amazing science fiction trilogy STAR WARS. This is where Montreal swoops in.

Their exhibit basically had every costume from every character you could possibly care about, a huge life-sized pod racer, and I got to create my own Ewok named Derp Derp who looks up to Liam Neeson. 

Meet "Derp Derp," the equivalent of my Star Wars power animal.

3. They fresh squeeze their juice.

Even their grapefruit juice. It's unreal, man. Why don't we do this more in America?

The most delicious glass of grapefruit juice I ever had in my life. EVER.

4. They don't take themselves too seriously.

Big chairs. Stores called "O Rly." What's not to love about how fun these people are?

 

5. THEY SPEAK FRENCH.

Duh.

There you have it. 

In all seriousness, Montreal is a beautiful, vibrant city full of beautiful French-speaking people. Their cabs are clean and they help you load your luggage. They keep their doors unlocked because people don't rob each other (that much). They sell beer in the grocery store. It's a wonderful place.

Check out my list of things I like about Seattle and stay tuned for future lists from places that I travel to.

Look, ma! I wrote a real professional blog.

While I'm busy not updating this blog, I've been busy writing my first post for Neiman, the super cool ad agency I've been interning at. 

My first post went up today, and I'm super proud of it. Check it out and let me know what you think. It's about how to blog and use SEO in your favor to build your brand.

Honestly, I know I'm not the best blogger in the world (sorry sad, neglected blog), but I chose this topic as a way to improve my blogging skills. When you're writing something that a lot of people are going to read, you gotta make sure it's good and I definitely learned a lot while writing it. Now, I just need to get better at executing it.

Summer

I'm not a very big fan of summer. Sure, I like swimming, and all of the great festivals that are happening, and the sunshine. But I hate the heat, sweating, the fact that if I so much as move I feel miserable. I always wish I could have gone back in time and made the wise old men (probably old men, right?) who created the calendar (maybe it was Mayans?) change the amazing vacation season of summer to be more like September - November. Now THAT would be my kind of summer. Especially now that I'm done college, summer is meaningless to me. I still work and try to have some fun during the in between parts.


I know it's not summer yet, but I'm trying to make the best of the days leading up to the time where I will lack all pleasantries due to heat induced rage.

What's your favorite season? If it's summer - what about it makes it worth braving the heat (and if you're one of those people who just LOVE heat - I will never understand you)?

College

Let me make this clear - having to go through college working and supporting myself made me appreciate my education, and I took it very seriously. Practically hallucinating due to lack of sleep because I had to stay up all night writing a paper on the history of the radio made me the person I am today (one that doesn't remember a much about the history of radio, but now values good old fashioned time management skills and all of those other important real life professional things that are good to know).


Seeing as I'm finally graduating college at the ripe old age of 23 next week, though, it's only right that I look back and minimize my journey as a series of hilarious and (so completely right-on) internet memes. Right?


Sorry if you hate memes.

And my personal favorite...

In which someone manages to find yet another way to make money off of The Beatles

Apparently there has been this lost footage of The Beatles first ever concert in America at the Washington Coliseum in 1964 floating around. Someone's found it (how convenient), so they're playing it for two days only at cities across America.

Clearly, as a rabid Beatles fan, I immediately bought a ticket. 


I am very skeptical of this documentary being any good at all, though. Some of the celebrity interviews seem to be weird choices (Steven Tyler? The Stokes? Really?), but I'm holding out hope due to the inclusion of Chuck Berry. The trailer seems a little low budget and cheesy. I suppose I'll get every bit of unofficial Beatles goodness that they can muster for my $10, though. Which is ok by me (note earlier case of Beatles rabies).


It's only playing two nights, so if you miss out, you're SOL.


Watch the trailer below, and find where it's playing near you to buy tickets here.

What I'm listening to in the middle of the night

Photo from www.brooklynvegan.com

Just an hour and we'll be homeWith my family that i choseYou're my familyAnd on the pavement still gripping the phoneYou came and wrapped your arms around my soulAnd we were shaking and you're so much a part of meAnd so this is why i'm hereWhen we called youYou came so fastAnd sat beside me while hours and days pastI'll always thank you for thatAnd there you wereWith your heart made of goldSo strong, the only thing holding us upAnd we knew you would always be so closeAnd so this is why i'm hereAnd then there was youYou always made us laughAnd you would help us to find the right pathAnd there is no one as full of lifeAnd so this is why i'm here
- Azure Ray "Home"


 


A first in a series of songs that I like to listen to in the middle of the night.

Help out a Philadelphia non-profit this weekend AND have fun

Tomorrow afternoon, a wonderful local music organization that I work with, Rock to the Future, will be hosting a fun scavenger hunt to help benefit the program! The teams with the most points will win some cool prizes like concert tickets, bike gear...maybe a gift card to the Memphis Taproom (who have their truffle asparagus mac & cheese on the menu right now).

Not only that, but by participating, you get a free t-shirt and free entry into the all ages after party/show at Kung Fu Necktie featuring Cheers Elephant. Why don't you take a minute to check out their new video CAUSE IT'S REALLY RAD AND THEY ARE COOL BROS:

P.S. Some of the performance shots at the end were actually filmed right at the Rock to the Future space (after hours, of course)!

Register here for the event. Don't regret not going.

Free Stuff in Philadelphia

I know how it is to feel broke (I've been in college for six years). I also know how it feels to think you're missing out on all of the most fun things that the city of brotherly love has to offer. Fear not! I have rounded up some fun, and FREE, things to do coming up in the near future in our fair city of Philadelphia.


1. CITY HALL JAZZ WEDNESDAYS


Every Wednesday in April, City Hall is throwing down some fresh jazz in the Mayor's Reception Room. This Wednesday, the Marina Vishnyakova Ensemble will be performing at 5:30pm. It's free to RSVP. Only catch is this: just because you RSVP doesn't mean you're gonna get in. Show up on time (as in early) to get a spot. RSVP here:

2. Justin Duerr: Stranger Things Have Never Happened

At Gallery 309, go check out some art by Justin Duerr, running through April 30th. The opening is April 6th during Philadelphia's famous First Fridays. If you can't make the opening, go check out one of the two FREE showings of "Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles." This movie documents the bizarre tiles sighted all over Philadelphia and attempts to decipher the meaning behind them. 


You must reserve tickets online and you can find more information here. 


3. A Love Letter For You


This is a fun thing you can do all year 'round, but it's probably even nicer to do in the Spring.

Ok, so this isn't free (unless you're interested in walking all over deep West Philly), but it only costs you $2 (or less if you have a token). Take the Market Frankford El to and from 69th Street Terminal to get a peek at the Steve Powers mural series all along rooftops in West Philadelphia. They're mostly adorable and heartwarming. You can pay for a tour where they'll give you some information about the murals, but for those on a budget, just take the train and go without the added features of the tour.

If you check out any of these wallet friendly events, let me know what you thought! If you have any cool suggestions of your own, don't hesitate to leave me a comment.

MR MOJO RISIN

Just when you forget how amazing Jim Morrison was, in all of his insanity, a documentary like this comes around and hits you on the head and reminds you.


Narrated by the cool, calm, and collected Johnny Depp (swoon), this documentary delves not so much into the past of any members of the band on their own, but addresses events from the group's formations to their ending after the unfortunate death of Morrison. The documentary is very Morrison-centric, though. How could it not be? 


Their story is told through colorful footage of their (mostly) failed concerts and seemingly endless recording sessions. I never claimed to be a Doors scholar, but I thought I knew a thing or two. This documentary did a good job of challenging what I thought I knew and reinforcing me just enough to feel good about my rock 'n roll knowledge.


Also, I never knew that MR MOJO RISIN are all of the letters in the name JIM MORRISON. Am I just totally late on that one?