i’ve been super busy as usual. busy is good. hell, it’s all i know! my last day at txlc came and went uneventfully. i love all of the people i worked with and for, i was just having to work waaaaaaaaaaay too much to make ends meet. this means that now i get to be busy doing the things i love, instead of working double shifts each day and having nothing to show for it. friday was my first day back with the old company and i’m already feeling much more like my old self. everyone at the new location is really nice and fun so far. i’ve been busting my ass and the managers are all telling me that i’m doing a great job and that they’re glad to have me, so that definitely doesn’t suck! hopefully it won’t take me long to work my way up to my old position
one of my best friends is getting married in may and we went this weekend to place our orders for our bridesmaid dresses. they are absolutely gorgeous! i know i can wear it again and again…hell, the bride joked that she almost wanted to order one, too! here’s the dress…
you can’t see the back from the picture but it’s basically backless and it ties behind our neck…perfect for an outdoor wedding in may! the brooch in the picture is a gold color, but we ordered silver like this…
(pay no attention to the orange color…that was just the color of the sample dress they had at the bridal boutique). i already have plans to put the brooch on my pale pink pea coat next winter. it seems like just yesterday that she got engaged and now the wedding is right around the corner! I can’t wait! now i just need to get started on my maid of honor speech…
school is going great and so far i haven’t woken up yet with that “uuuugh i don’t want to go to class” feeling that i usually get (everyday of school). my design class is my favorite so far. when my professor explained her grading system she made it sound nearly impossible to get an A. she said that she gives out B’s for a job well done. A’s are reserved for work that goes above and beyond, is extremely creative, original, and exhibits great craftsmanship. well, we have daily design assignments so i just got online to check my grades and she’s given me an A on every single assignment we’ve done so far! perhaps i’ve finally found my niche? when she starts handing back our work i’ll try and scan some of my designs and post them here.
i found an mp3 of a song that will be on the new ghostland observatory album and it’s been on repeat all. day. long. i simply cannot get enough of it! hopefully having it on repeat on my ipod will provide some inspiration for the design project i have to do tomorrow in class. i also hope that the fact that i can’t sit still while listening to it won’t distract others too badly. oh well.
i’ve been STUPID busy the past few days. in exactly one week things in my life that have absolutely sucked for the past 4 months will, hopefully, be returned to the way they once were. i’ve been hired back on with the company that i absolutely LOVED working for. this means that the days of working 40-50+ hours a week just to barely scrape by are OVER! i’ll go back to making real money in much less time, have decent health insurance, and maybe, just maybe, i’ll get my social life back! without insurance my asthma meds cost me about $200 a month. no bueno! i do find it funny that after giving my notice at my current job, they pretty much scheduled me my dream schedule. well, as close as i can get to a dream schedule at my current place of employment. just to give you an idea of why i can’t wait to return to the old jobby…my so called dream schedule consists of 10 shifts over 6 days. i know you’re jealous.
in other news, i started back to school on monday as a graphic design major. as of last semester i’ve completed all of my classes in order to earn a big fat associates degree in liberal arts. now i’m taking design I and intro to graphic design. if i like these classes, i’ll most likely transfer to a larger school to complete my bachelors degree. i’ve only had one day of class so far and i absolutely love it! today my mommy dearest and i went shopping for the supplies i’ll need for the semester. it was my lucky day at hobby lobby! sketch pads, art markers, paints, and artist brushes were all half off! i’m a huge geek and love shopping for school supplies, but this semester was even better…i got to buy art supplies for school! i just know i’m going to love my design class. i’m basically going to be forced to sit with my headphones on, rocking out to ghostland observatory, drawing, coloring, and painting for two hours each monday and wednesday. it’s a rough life i lead. i know this.
i seriously have THE noisiest neighbors a girl could ask for. i’ve lived in apartments for about 8 years now and i have NEVER had neighbors this noisy. to begin with, they’re some of the tallest, heaviest, and well…just plain biggest people in the world. no, seriously…like, the island where they come from, people are just bigger. we share a stairwell that leads up to our front doors. they are incapable of walking up the stairs. they stomp. louder and louder and LOUDER with each step as if their legs are getting heavier and heavier with each ascending stair. while i realize their legs may, in fact, feel heavier with each stair, i’d like to point out that there’s only like ten stairs to begin with. once they reach the top of the stairs, they noisily fumble with their keys in the lock until it opens, then they proceed to slam their door with such strength that it knocks pictures down on a bookcase in my living room.
as annoying and irritating as all of that is, i can live with those things. i made the choice to live in an apartment. i realize that living in an apartment means that you’re going to have someone on the other side of your living room wall and (gasp!) that means you might hear them occasionally.
the thing that makes me want to pull every hair out of my head is their bass. 24/7 i can hear bump bump bump bump bump. the only wall i share with them is in my living room, yet i can hear and feel the bump from every room in my apartment. just the other day i was in the shower and could hear it. yes. IN THE SHOWER. with WATER RUNNING. that’s absolutely absurd! i finally called my apartment office yesterday morning to put in a formal complaint. the office put a letter on their door asking them to be considerate of their neighbors. you’d think that might deter them from turning their bass up so loud? no. right now i’m being serenaded by some asshat playing guitar hero in surround sound with the bass all the way up. joy. i’d hate to become that neighbor that bitches about everything, but the office is definitely gonna hear about this tomorrow.
i thought i’d snap a few pics. the boy surprised me with a pink sony cyber-shot camera on christmas. i usually shoot with a nikon d50 dslr but, i gotta
say, i’m definitely enjoying my new little toy! i shot these today playing around with the macro mode…
my pink sparkly stocking
and another view of my lovely pink sparkly stocking
those that know me know that i live for music. hell, i have a tattoo on at least a third of the right side of my torso devoted to my love of music that moves me. if i were to wake up deaf tomorrow, i would surely die of a broken heart. that being said, here are my top picks for 2007 :
BEST ALBUMS
dear and the headlights : small steps, heavy hooves
i was in love with this album and this band at first listen. their catchy, sing-a-long lyrics will get caught in your head for days at a time. plus, they’re so easy to relate to that it makes you think “yes! that’s what i was trying to say!”. throw in vocals from ian metzger that are so raw and full of emotion and i just don’t see how anyone couldn’t love them! this was also the band that i saw live the most this year. each time i made an effort to bring new friends along and each time they were hooked, too hear it
ghostland observatory : paparazzi lighting
ghostland observatory : delete. delete. i. eat. meat. this duo from austin, tx seemed to come out of nowhere this year! they released two full-length albums in less than a year and played at all of the top festivals this year, converting new fans across the country. although their albums weren’t officially released in 2007, i’m including them on my list because they were such a huge part of my life this year. their myspace page says it best : “ghostland observatory is not a band, but an agreement between two friends to create something that not only heals their beat-driven hearts, but pleases their rock ‘n roll souls.” they combine electronic beats, guitar, drums, and singer aaron behren’s freddie mercury-esque vocals to make music that you just can’t help but shake your ass and sing at the top of your lungs to. however, to get the ultimate ghostland experience you can’t just listen to their music…you MUST catch them live! i was lucky enough to dance my ass off to three live ghostland shows this year. not a dancer? take a look at these videos and tell me how you could possibly sit still through a performance like this :
tegan & sara : the con
i’m a total sucker for good chic rock so naturally, i love this album more and more with each listen. hell, i’ve even caught the boy singing it around my apartment hear it
feist : the reminder
this album played a starring role in the soundtrack of my life this past year. this album, like her last album, is packed with everything from soft, soulful ballads to songs that make you want to break into song and dance while performing everyday tasks. her videos are always fun and her live performances are never dull. it seemed she was everywhere this past year, from cell phone commercials, to ipod commercials, to late night television. for some reason this was always the album i would choose to blast while cleaning house. oddly enough, there was much more dancing than cleaning accomplished hear it
band of horses : cease to begin
i got hooked on this album late in 2007, but i’m so glad that i did! with lyrics that punch you right in the gut and absolutely haunting vocals, it quickly earned a place in my top picks of the year.
hear it
rilo kiley : under the blacklight
this was one of my most anticipated albums of 2007. jenny lewis is HIGH on my girl crush list, and with good reason. “breakin’ up” and “silver lining” are , true to rilo kiley style, perfect tongue in cheek pop songs that make light of a (sometimes) serious situation. “money maker” can only be described with one word, and that word is hot.
hear it
brandi carlile : the story
you might recognize the title track, “the story”, from the season finale of grey’s anatomy back in may. however, my favorite track is “wasted”. ” if you had eyes like golden crowns and diamonds in your fingertips you’d waste it. if shining wisdom passed your lips and traveled to the ears of god you’d waste it.
and so i hate that your overrated, most revered, and celebrated cause you’re wasted. “
now tell me ladies, who doesn’t know someone they can relate that to?
hear it
lovedrug : everything starts where it ends
this album is full of tales of love, deception, life, and some of the most unique vocals in the bizz right now. each song is filled with emotion whether it be from words, music, or the sound of breaking glass. hear it
stars : in our bedroom, after the war
where do i even start with this band, much less this album? one of the things i love the most about this band is the imagery their song titles create. i mean, just look at the album title (also a song title) : in our bedroom, after the war. can’t you just see a couple in their bedroom after a knock down drag out fight, emotionally, mentally, and physically exhausted, sitting on their bed, backs to each other, unable to even look at each other, but knowing that, somehow, they’ll move past it in the morning? hear it
strata : strata presents the end of the world remember strata? well forget everything you remembered about them because they’re back and SO much better than ever before! “stay young” is one of my top songs of 2007, whereas “coma therapy” is one of my most favorite songs that i absolutely hate to be able to relate to. make any sense? hell, i don’t care if it makes sense. this is my blog and i don’t have to make sense if i don’t want to. seriously though, just take a listen. it’s amazing. hear it
BEST LIVE SHOWS
ghostland observatory
tapes n tapes
billy joel
ben kweller
mutemath
clap your hands say yeah
dear and the headlights
as tall as lions
tokyo police club
the old 97’s
margot & the nuclear so and so’s
muse
lovedrug
