open

i just finished reading Open, Andre Agassi's autobiography and I loved it! it was recommended by a good friend who thought it might inspire me, which it totally did. at a point in my life when i have no less than a million thoughts swimming through my head at every moment, none of which make sense or seem connected - the book provides some relief in knowing everybody has similar struggles, the hardest one always seeming to be with oneself. i hope this helps me sort out some of the mumbo jumbo crowding my thoughts.

i especially enjoyed the opening quote:

One cannot always tell what it is that keeps us shut in, confines us, seems to bury us, but still one feels certain barriers, certain gates, certain walls. Is all this imagination, fantasy? I do not think so. And then one asks: My God! Is it for long, is it for ever, is it for eternity? Do you know what frees one from this captivity? It is very deep serious affection. Being friends, being brothers, love, that is what opens the prison by supreme power, by some magic force.

 - Vincent van Gogh, letter to his brother, July 1880

the times

some pics from my latest trip to vegas for amy's bach <3  i had much more fun than anticipated, which i think is always the best - pleasant surprises =)

truckin

currently jamming out to: passion pit - album: chunk of change

the past couple of weeks have been a whirlwind ride for me. to keep it short and sweet, and as TheDailyLove put it - the universe has shaken you to awaken you. i've always been a strong believer in living and learning and always growing, but sometimes i get complacent and forget. and so, from an undesirable and difficult situation emerges a better ME. and fully knowing that you are always your harshest critic, i continue to remind myself to not take myself so seriously. and to take each day for what it's worth - a true blessing <3

on a much lighter note, i picked up some little things a few weeks ago at bcbgeneration that bring a smile to my face. and at 50% off with an additional 30% off, the price was right!

fun nailpolish and cute creative keychain monsters =)

my preciousssss

i started a painting project six months ago with the largest canvas i could find at michaels. the idea came from domino magazine - which featured a stenciled painting hanging above a banquet table. i feel in love instantly with the pattern and looked into obtaining the stencil to recreate the look. unfortunately, i found the stencil but it came at a hefty price - nearly $150 for each panel of the stencil (there were 3 panels used!). so i decided to do the next best thing - i printed the super-low resolution images of the stencils (i could only enlarge it enough to barely fit on a single sheet of paper). and i hand-painted the pattern myself! its been a long time in the making, but i finally finished and am so glad i kept with it! its going up in my formal dining room which we've converted into a seating area for more functionality.

have a lovely weekend all! <3

color in the lines

was surfing the web for new desktop wallpapers the other day and came upon this site. jon burgerman colour in wallpapers and cards - so coool! actual wallpaper that you can color in yourself with markers or paint. im considering it for my study which im trying to redesign into a funky creative cave =)

http://www.jonburgerman.com/Work/comments/colour_in_wallpaper/

XXXO!

oh WHALE!!

just finished reading kelly cutrone's 'if you have to cry go outside' - and i must say, there is much more to her than meets the eye.  which is not surprising, being that her character was built around appearances on 'the hills' and 'the city'.  some of my fav quotes from the book:


'after all, you cant truly be happy if you've never known pain. you cant truly feel joy if you've never felt heartbreak. you cant really know what it's like to be filled unless you've been empty. and here's the other thing: sometimes in life seasons dont come in order; instead of fall, winter, spring, summer, we get three winters in a row. (by my second winter i tend to feel like a cave-woman frozen in a glacier.) but that doesnt mean spring wont come eventually.'


'if you dont let what you dont know stop you from doing your best in every situation, you will surprise yourself over and over in life, as I have.'


'there was so much i'd missed by indulging the lower energies of my mind: greed, ambition, insecurity, self-doubt, guilt. as i became conscious of something greater at my core - i couldnt prove it, and still cant, but i know it - a huge weight lifted off me; i experienced the wonders of the world with something akin to childlike awe.'


'but as you move through your career and life, you will have to learn that if youre not what you do, then what you do has no business keeping you entertained at night.'


'there is also a garden metaphor: your negative thoughts are weeds strangling the progress of your soul; you must find a way to kill them. killing the weeds wont keep them from growing back, but it's like waxing: eventually, if you keep waxing, your hair growth just becomes less and less.'


'if you allow fear to live inside of you after you've already put it to any possible good use - if you allow your mind, instead of your soul, to drive your car - you risk more than finding yourself on a hamster wheel. you also increase the possibility that youll manifest that fear and negative thinking outwardly.'

there are about a half dozen more i have earmarked, but i'll save those for another time =)

big mac

my new beauty from the hubbs!!! So excited - it's one of those things i've always eyed but could never justify buying for myself. my bro also installed the newest version of photoshop (CS5!!!) and got me a magic mouse - cant wait to play around with editing some photos on it.

happy humpers! =)