Thursday Three: 10.18.12

1. The latest outfit from Carrie of WishWishWish

As I may or may not have mentioned before, I sometimes feel like a bit of an anomaly in the blogosphere because I'm not a cat person. Cats are okay, and I'll grant you that they can be downright adorable, but I'd prefer a dog any day of the week. But this? Is a perfect outfit. I'm pretty sure I gasped a little bit when I saw it. I'm now trying to imagine how I could replicate this look...I know the dress isn't DIY, but it sure does inspire me to try DIYing a printed dress of my own. A fox print, perhaps?

2. Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall

When I was five years old, my mom took me to see The Phantom of the Opera at the Pantages Theatre in Toronto. It's safe to say that my life was never the same - and neither were my parents' eardrums. I played that soundtrack to death, and used to stand on top of our kitchen chairs and try to sing like Christine Daae. To date, I've now seen this show live six times (yes, six; I figure I might as well come clean about my nerdiness). I credit Phantom for my undying love of all things musical theatre.

All of that is to say - you can imagine my sheer excitement when I saw that the 25th anniversary performance is now on Netflix! I watched it in its entirety on Friday night and it is absolutely stunning. If your only exposure to the show was the 2004 movie and you can't make it to Broadway, I urge you to please check out this 25th anniversary video. (A little bird told me that if you don't have Netflix, you might just be able to find the performance in its entirety on YouTube...) Nothing can ever quite capture what it's like to see a Broadway show, but this comes darn close.

I could ramble on about Phantom for hours...now you know my nerdy little secret! I'll make up for my long-windedness by keeping this last item brief:

3. Calvin and Hobbes

Last but far from least, some wisdom and perspective from the greatest comic in history.

Well, that wraps up this week's Thursday Three. I hope you all have a beautiful weekend!

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Out of the darkness

coat: Forever 21 | dress: ModCloth | belt, bag, gloves: thrifted | cardigan: Target | boots: gift from my sister

Last Saturday, in the freezing rain, Chris and I went to the Out of the Darkness walk in a gorgeous park outside Grand Rapids. The park was one of the most beautiful I've seen in this area, but that wasn't the point.  I left my camera in my car on purpose. Out of the Darkness walks are 3-5 mile walks taking place in over 250 locations around the country to benefit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Chris and I were walking in memory of his friend Erika, who, sadly, passed away last November from suicide. It's been almost a year and it still doesn't feel real.

Depression is one of those topics that our society would like to sweep under the rug. The goal of Out of the Darkness is to counteract that, by bringing the topic - well, out of the darkness. It's a wonderful event, and I encourage you to get involved if you can! There are still plenty of walks going on yet this year. It sounds so cliche, but I honestly mean this: you never know the difference you might make in someone's life.

Chris and I have been cooking up a storm lately. Well, to be more accurate, Chris has been cooking up a storm while I help him in the small ways I can. I got into kind of a cooking rut during the summer...I mean, who wants to slave over a hot stove when it's 90+ degrees outside? But it's finally soup weather now and I'm happy to assist him. I'm telling you, Chris makes the best soup on the planet. So far he's made black bean, which was out of this world, and butternut squash, which he spoiled me with tonight.  Yes, I'm well aware that I am one lucky lady!

What are your favorite fall recipes? I'm eager to try new things! Also, I think it may be time for a dressipe soon...

I feel like this post wouldn't be complete without a shout-out to my dear friend Alec, who is the one who convinced me to buy this dress. I mean, it's yellow, so she didn't exactly have to twist my arm...but nevertheless, I'm glad she talked me into it. Yes, it's the same color as half my wardrobe, but the details - the gold buttons, the cut-out back - really make it something special. So thanks, Alec!

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Thursday Three: 10.11.12

1. Mia dress by Dear Creatures

I've been wanting for a long time to have some sort of feature on this blog where I can share random things I'm loving around the interwebs - but keep it brief and to the point. So, welcome to the Thursday Three! Let's get started:

Someone really needs to do me a favor and buy this dress from Ruche before I can, because I am irresistibly tempted to buy it myself, and I shouldn't! But can you blame me? It's the perfect rust color, with just enough detail to keep it interesting  and it's classic and easy to remix...okay, I'm tempting myself again. As of last time I checked, there are only three left, so if you want it, you better hurry!

2. Emergency Cute Stuff

Today has been a really hard day for me, mentally and emotionally, but looking at this ridiculously adorable corgi puppy from Emergency Cute Stuff, I can feel my spirits lift a little. I don't use Twitter, but you better believe I'll be following their tweets! The noise I made when I saw this picture...well, let's just say it wasn't very attractive. Someday I'll get a corgi of my own...mark my words!

3. Sufjan Stevens - "Christmas Unicorn"

I love Sufjan Stevens, but I have to admit, I was prepared to be totally weirded out by his latest offering - the track "Christmas Unicorn" from his massive upcoming 58-track Christmas box set, Silver and Gold. I mean, it's called "Christmas Unicorn," for goodness sake. But you know what? It's really catchy, and I actually...kind of love it. It starts out a slowly, but it grows to a Sufjan-esque explosion of sound by the end. There's a big part of me that thinks we're watching his slow descent into utter insanity, but I'm sure enjoying the ride. For those who absolutely refuse to listen to Christmas music until after Thanksgiving, have no fear - this song sounds nothing like your average Christmas song. Listen to the track (be warned: it's 12 minutes long) and let me know what you think! 

That's what I'm loving this week! What about you?

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Memory hoarders

dress & shoes: Francesca's | belt: estate sale

Last weekend, Chris and I went to an estate sale - my first one in a long time, since they always seem to be scheduled during working hours. This sale was a little bit unusual. It was not an estate sale for someone who has passed away, but rather someone who was still alive...in this case, a hoarder. A literal hoarder, as in Hoarders, like you would see on TV. Her children had finally convinced her to get rid of her stuff, on the one condition (her condition) that she wouldn't have to be there while it was taken away. 

I've never seen so much stuff jammed into a small space in all my life: rooms of clothing, more dishes than you can imagine, random trinkets and eyeglasses...a one-person antique shop, really. It was spread throughout all the rooms, the garage, the basement, and even an extra tent to make room for it all. I walked away with this belt (25 cents), three vintage wool skirts ($1.50 each), and a wooden box with a Gibson-girl-esque design (a splurge at $10). As we walked away, I couldn't help imagining what it must be like to live that way. How do you let it get that far?

And yet, in a way, I understand. I've only started to break out of my packrat tendencies in the last year or so. I've gotten rid of enormous bags of junk, and it feels wonderful. But there are still things I can't part with: books, shoes, and the huge wooden box under my desk table - the one that holds all of my scrapbooks and photographs. And you know what? If it turns out that I can never part with that box full of mementos, then so be it. I don't mind being a hoarder of memories. 

These are the memories I'd like to hoard right here. Autumn, this year. (It's honestly the most colorful one I can remember.) Going to see the outdoor ArtPrize entries with Chris, in the rain, on a cool October night when hardly anybody else was out and about. Learning to make black bean soup and then eating it for just about every meal except breakfast. Taking walks in Grand River Park and having my breath taken away by the stillness and beauty.

I wish autumn lasted longer, but I'm grateful for the wonderful memories I am blessed enough to have time to create.

You know, I'm glad I have this blog. It makes it easier to hoard memories without them taking up physical space! I'm planning to get an iPod touch (I'm still too cheap for an iPhone) so I can take photographs more easily. More hoarding. Is that a bad thing? I tend to think not, in this case.

What about you? Have you been known to hoard anything?

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Unabashed

dress/belt: vintage | cardigan: H&M | boots: ModCloth

This is perhaps the most unabashedly autumn-themed outfit in existence. All I'm missing are some colorful leaves in my hair. But you know what? I couldn't care less. This is pretty typical of how I've been dressing since the beginning of last week: all warm colors, all the time, to celebrate the change of the seasons. Before I left the house last Tuesday, my dad actually asked "So...are you supposed to look like Halloween?" I'm not sure how he meant it, but I'll take it as a compliment...thanks, Dad!

I'm going to keep this post brief, because apparently I'm now an old lady who has a hard time staying up past 11! I never, ever imagined that working a 9-to-5 job would wreak such havoc with my natural sleep schedule...though perhaps it's for the best, since I've actually started to develop a bit of an appreciation for mornings. I may not have the choice to sleep in (I doubt my boss would be happy if I strolled in at 10 or 11 am...) but I do have the choice to enjoy it. If you're not a morning person, I encourage you to give it a try, at least once - at the very least, you'll have a beautiful sunrise to remember.

My morning drive is mostly highway, but there is still so much beauty nearly everywhere I look. The trees burst into radiant hues seemingly overnight, and just about every morning I see patches of fog scattered throughout the forests and open fields - like something from a dream, or the end of Pride and Prejudice. It has taken my breath away on more than one occasion. Every morning, I wish that I could somehow do a photo shoot in one of those fields. Maybe someday...

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