My Dad's Christmas Present

I found this for a Christmas present for my dad. It is a squirrel feeder. This squirrel, who lives in my parents' backyard, had pretty much made the bird feeder his home, so I thought getting him his own feeder might help. I saw this one and thought it was hilarious.

It took a week for the squirrel to finally become interested in the feeder. By then, I thought the feeder had been a failure and I was disappointed. But, now he eats from it everyday and it is just as funny as I had hoped it would be, evidenced by the photo below.

Christmas Gifts 2013

Here are some possible gift ideas:

1. Warwick Rowing calendar

Warning: NSFW.

Go take a look. You'll immediately know who this is a good gift for.

2. Sephora gift set

Sephora has great gift sets for the beauty guru in your life. These are also helpful if you do not know enough about a person, but know that they like beauty products. There is a variety of brands and products, so you can usually find something useful and affordable.

3. iTunes or Amazon gift cards

I know some people hate giving a gift card as a present, but I always greatly appreciate getting these. I always use them and since books and music are two of my favorite things, I am going to end up getting something I love.

4. Fancy.com

This is a great site to stumble across gifts you would never have thought of on your own. If you're like me, you like to try to give the best gift that no one else would think of. This site has such a great variety of products from all areas, that you could probably do all of your Christmas shopping on their site!

5. Adopt an Olive tree

Unique gift for the foodie in your life. They will get olive oil sent to them from the olive tree that they own in Italy. This is also a good gift for the person who has everything.

6. Home brewing products

Home brewing has increased in recent years so there is a good chance that someone in your life would appreciate this type of gift. It may feel like an impersonal gift, but helpful gifts are often the greatest to receive, because they end up being used all the time. My suggestion for a more personalized gift is to get something like beer glasses etched with the name of the beers they brew or what they call their at-home brewery.

Current Beauty Obsessions: Fall 2013 Edition

Bronze Eyeliner- Urban Decay 24/7 or Tarte Waterproof Clay

I usually wear basic brown or black eyeliner, but I am really liking bronze eyeliner currently and it coordinates well with Fall colors. It adds a bit of shimmer, but is not full-on middle school sparkle. It's nice for nights out or special occasions.

Purple "smokey eye"- Josie Maran Beautiful Eyes

I love a good smokey eye and I like trying it out with different color palettes, instead of just the usual black/gray colors. This purple quad was a nice addition. It is a bit shimmery, but since the color is not too pigmented, I think it works well. It isn't too dramatic, but adds a little pop to your face.

Super Red Nail Polish- Zoya "Pepper"

I like a good fierce red nail polish color during the Fall and Winter and this color from Zoya is really nice. I am a fan of this brand of nail polish, because they have a great range of colors and the nail polish is chemical-free and not tested on animals.

images: sephora.com and zoya.com

TBT Film Edition: The Sweetest Thing

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This is one of those films I can always throw on if I want to be in a better mood or that I always stop and start watching when I come across it on TV.

The film is about three women in their late 20's and how they love to party and don't commit to relationships. The main plot point is about going to a wedding to try and find a missed connection. The film stars Cameron Diaz, Christina Applegate, and Selma Blair. Also, you get some Jason Bateman in there too.

I love this film because it kind of sums up your late-20's relationships with your girlfriends.

Other favorites: 

-The glorious Pretty Woman montage.

-Learning that you should sing a song if you ever find yourself in a certain unfortunate situation.

-You're never too old to play the toothpaste/feather game on your friend.

-The sometimes penis song that occurs. It is in a version of the film, but not the one that is usually seen. This could be because it is so bizarre, but that's what makes it wonderful.

Notable quotes:

"No, but what is this? WHAT IS THIS?" - Tell me you don't start to jiggle your arm flab after seeing this part. Or that you didn't lift and lower your arms after the "22...28...22...28" part.

"Come to think of it, I did leave some ass in the back... It must be the ASS."

"I have never had any complaints in the punani odor department."

I mean, the car scene may just be the best part of the film...

Ok...I'm off to go watch this.

Favorite Musician Discoveries: 2013

I love discovering new artists. These are some of the ones I came across this year that have made it on to my playlist. 

Nina Nesbitt

I've written a post about her before. She is a Scottish, guitar-playing musician who writes her own songs and they are all clever and relatable. I love all her EP's and am impatiently waiting for her album. I recommend downloading all her songs.







Jake Bugg

Another Brit. His album is great. Aside from the obvious Lightning Bolt, I also like Two Fingers, Seen It All, Broken, and Someplace.









The 1975

If you don't love their song Chocolate, then I don't know what's wrong with you. They have a great EP out and a just-released album. I recommend checking them both out.







Ginny Blackmore

I am digging this New Zealand musician and hope to hear more from her in the future. Right now, I recommend Bones and Sfm to download. Her lyrics are very clever and her voice is very captivating and strong. I hope we get to hear more from her soon.








Kacey Musgraves

Loving this girl's debut album. I recommend the whole album. Personal faves include Merry Go 'Round, Follow Your Arrow, Dandelion, Keep It To Yourself, and It Is What It Is.







Jillette Johnson

I'm happy I was turned on to this artist. I love her voice and the lyrics are great. Some of the highlight songs from her album for me include Cameron, Last Bus Out, and Peter Pan.








MS MR

I discovered this duo when one of their songs was played during the Game of Thrones trailer. I went and listened to their album and discovered some great songs. These include Bones, Dark Doo Wop, and Fantasy.








Tom Odell

He has a very haunting voice. If you haven't heard Another Love, go listen now. His album and EP's are great.








Passenger

Go download Let Her Go. And then listen to the rest of the album. End of Story.









Icona Pop

We all got I Love It stuck in our heads this year. Fortunately, the rest of their album is just as great. I downloaded it the day it was released and constantly rock out to it.

Product Review: 100% Pure

I tend to gravitate towards using natural cosmetics and skincare products. One of the brands that I prefer to use is 100% Pure. I've been using some of their products for awhile now and thought I would share my experience with them.

The Products: Primer, Eye Cream, Foundation, Eyeshadow

Luminous Primer

What I like about this product is that it has resveratrol in it. I always feel like I'm just clogging up my pores with other primer brands. It feels like I'm putting something that is helping to improve my skin when I use this. I use it in combination with the foundation.

Coffee Bean Eye Cream

I have been using this for a couple of years. The caffeine makes it feel like my eyes wake-up (!) and it does a nice job at moisturizing. The skin is always really soft under my eyes. I would say that it doesn't really combat dark circles, but I do think it helps with puffiness and lessens fine lines a bit.

Healthy Skin Foundation

This has really light coverage on me. I recommend using the primer beforehand so that you have a smoother surface to put it on. If you don't need heavier coverage then I would recommend this. Also, make sure you exfoliate your skin regularly and moisturize before you put it on, because this will cling to any dry skin on your face.

Dual-Ended Creamstick

This is great for highlighting your brow bone and inner corner of your eyes! I recommend it for that. It stays on for a long time too. Having the two colors allows you to shade and highlight as well.


I continually try out different products from their brand and will write a future post about other products I incorporate into my routine. But if you are looking for some non-chemical cosmetics and skincare, I recommend checking out 100% Pure. They have a variety of products to use and you can probably find something to love.

A Book Review from My Point of View: Anna and the French Kiss- By Stephanie Perkins

For the first couple of chapters, I wasn't sure how I felt about the book and if I was going to stick with it. But after chapter four, when the story started to progress and reveal the romance and its complications, it ended up sucking me in and I could have finished reading it in one sitting (damn you sleep!).

I liked:

-The Paris setting. For some reason, books set there always win me over...Damn City of Light!

-The character St. Clair. But I felt he was a bit too dense sometimes (refer below to pushed plot points). I didn't care for the switch Anna made between his names either (maybe too sappy for me), but I get the point behind it.

-A lot of the details related to the cultures represented- specifically vocabulary and different slang words and phrases. Those helped it feel more accurate.

-Some of the specific characteristics about Anna, such as her being a film buff and having her own website where she writes reviews. It felt accurate for a millennial teenager and a bit original. I feel like you don't get to see accurate-for their-time specific details like this about characters too often and it made me appreciate the story being in present day rather than a dystopian future, etc (I need a break from those).

-The point near the end of the book where things go horribly wrong for Anna and then how the whole school responds. This showed a good example of how all it takes in high school is one person to start a rumor that will spread like wildfire and allow teenagers to act abhorrently (side note: I absolutely would have told the headmaster what Amanda said).

Other thoughts: 

I found some of the plot points pushed for the sake of making the story happen. The multiple misunderstandings went a bit far. Also, some plot points were a bit cliché and obvious, but often it can be hard to tell a story without them. I found myself accurately predicting what characters were going to say and what their actions were going to be a little too much.

Overall I enjoyed the book. I liked the protagonist and the story moved quickly and kept me engrossed. I am looking forward to reading her other two books set in this world.

P.S. WOTD: