Wednesday, June 29, 2011

JewelMint:

A few weeks ago, I bought the Tulum Bracelets from JewelMint (my absolute favorite place to buy jewelry, I cannot get enough, I am completely addicted):

They are really beautiful but Monday I was at work when I noticed that the larger blue and white one was starting to come apart. I knew this wasn't a common occurrence; most of their pieces are really well made. But I emailed them to see if I could exchange them for a new set and send mine back. Today I got an email back from them saying they would just issue me a credit and I could keep the bracelets. So rather than buy the same piece again (I wasn't really all that crazy about that larger bracelet because it was so big on my wrist and slid around all the time anyway), I decided to get something different -- the Sea Breeze Earrings:

Check out the video about them:



If you haven't check out JewelMint yet, you really need to. Their stuff is really great. And really reasonably priced (every piece is $29.99 but they have sales and promotions all the time so I've rarely paid full price for any of my pieces). And if/when you join and buy your first piece, I get a credit for free jewelry. And then you can do the same. Tell all your friends. Click here to get started.

Monday, June 27, 2011

Biking and Swimming:



It's been too hot to ride bikes lately (100 degrees!) so we've been housebound and are not happy about it. Good news though, I'm getting some new swim earplugs in the mail on Wednesday! I have problems with my right ear when I swim so I'm excited to try these highly rated plugs out and get back in the water!

P.S. Just thought you should know the granola I made yesterday was amazing! We had it as cereal in the morning and again on some plain greek yogurt as a snack in the evening. You should definitely make some. Add whatever you like. You can't mess it up. Find the recipe here (an amazing blog that I am a huge fan of).

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Love Letter:

via www.cajisaz.bloog.se


Dear Weekend,

Thanks for such an amazing two days. I really enjoy spending time with you. I am especially grateful for allowing us the time to make our own homemade strawberry jam (from here) and homemade granola (from here). Also, thanks for letting us squeeze in an oil change for the car, it really needed it. As our time together draws to a close, I just want to take the time to say what a wonderful friend you've been to us. We really enjoyed all the Popsicles and sleeping in late. You're welcome anytime. Even on a Tuesday. Especially on a Tuesday.

Come again soon!

Love,

M&A

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Happy Anniversary:

Today, we celebrate 4 years of marriage! What a blast we've had:

6.23.07

6.23.08

6.23.09

6.23.10

6.23.11

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

More bike riding:

Remember those summer goals I mentioned yesterday? Well it's only the second official day of summer and we're off to a pretty good start, I'd say. We went on a longer bike ride today, all the way to one of the Lakewood lakes and back. Then came home and ate popsicles on the porch:




Tuesday, June 21, 2011

A Summer Bike Ride:

The weather was cooler today, so we went for a long bike ride:






On the way home, I smashed the pedal into the back of my leg and spent the rest of the evening R.I.C.E.(ing): rest, ice, compression, elevation (thank you, college education!)

P.S. Happy First Official Day of Summer, though it has felt like summer here since April. I have big plans for this summer, plans that include:

  • long bike rides
  • popsicles
  • picnics
  • floppy hats and sunglasses
  • eating outside
  • napping in hammocks
  • swimming
  • doing absolutely nothing
  • documenting this, the best summer ever, on video

Saturday, June 18, 2011

New Reads:

I just finished the book Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life by Amy Krouse Rosenthal:

From the inside cover:

"How do you conjure a life? Give the truest account of what you saw, learned, loved, strived for?
For Amy Krouse Rosenthal, the surprising answer came in the form of an encyclopedia. In Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life she has ingeniously adapted this centuries-old format for conveying knowledge into a poignant, wise, often funny, fully realized memoir. Using mostly short entries organized from A to Z, many of which are cross-referenced, Rosenthal captures in wonderful and episodic detail the moments, observations, and emotions that comprise a contemporary life. Start anywhere -- preferably at the beginning -- and see how one young woman's alphabetized existence can open up and define the world in new and unexpected ways.
An ordinary life, perhaps, but an extraordinary book."

I almost always find biographical stories more interesting. And I love random things. So this book is right up my alley. Hilarious, random thoughts (sometimes very random) alphabetized just like an encyclopedia. It speaks to both my love of the written word and my need for obsessive order. And I think it takes courage to let others in on your private thoughts, those thoughts that usually only you ever hear. I feel like I know the author almost like I know myself. And we are best friends. 

It's funny. You should definitely read it. Also, the website is pretty entertaining. Check that out here.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Bracelets:



The bracelets on my arm seem to keep piling up these days. And the best part is that they are all from some great trip or have special meaning:

  1. Italy 2011 – my friend Kat went to Florence this past spring and brought back bracelets for the Order (sort of a tradition with us – more on that later).
  2. From Lauren’s (also part of the Order) shoelace project – a project designed to bring awareness to the plight of the North Korean people. Needless to say I’m very proud of her and supportive of her passion for others.
  3. Ireland 2009 – the bracelet I brought home from our adventures in Ireland for the Order.
  4. A piece of our tent. While camping last summer, our tent broke. Andrew fixed it and with the remaining bungee cord from one of the poles, fashioned this bracelet for me. It reminds me of the camping trips we took while we were dating and makes me happy whenever I look at it.

Summer bike rides:

Tonight, Andrew and I rode our bikes down to the grocery store to pick up a few things and then over to get some watermelon sorbet on the way home. The weather was nice. Or bearable at least.







Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Why I hate most modern movies:

I just read this hilarious article called “Help! My Favorite Book is Becoming a Movie!” by Frank Paiva. Written in response to the upcoming film adaptation of the beloved children’s novel, “Mr. Popper’s Penguins”, this article is all about Hollywood’s desecration of classic literature. It’s hilarious, very nicely written. And entirely true. Exactly how I feel about so many movies these days, which is probably why we never go to the movie theater. I will not spend $20 to watch some director trash a treasured story. It’s complete garbage.

Here are a few excerpts with which I identify:

“My stomach is queasy. I'm sweating profusely for no reason. My hands are slowly balling into angry fists. I want to unleash my rage but have nowhere to turn.
Hollywood is making a movie out of my favorite book.”

“Remember that overwhelming mix of boredom and dread you felt when you realized "The Da Vinci Code" movie wasn't going to get any better?”

“What's that high-pitched crying sound? Oh. It's my childhood dying.”

“There's something uniquely jarring about a bad book-to-movie adaptation. It's only natural that Hollywood makes films from things that were successful in other forms of media. But I don't recall "Dukes of Hazzard" fans taking to the streets when Jessica Simpson became the new Daisy Duke. Gamers didn't take their hands off the controller when The Rock inexplicably became the lead in a movie version of "Doom." And did anyone throw a rock through Julie Taymor's window for "Across the Universe"? No, they did not.

That's because reading a book is an entirely different experience from watching a TV show or playing a video game or listening to a band. A book requires every reader to form his or her own vision of its characters and world as he or she goes along. Every person's visual conception of the novel will be different. Reading requires you to create your own reality through silence and thought. In that sense, it's the most anti-social of media forms.

Movies are the exact opposite. Unless you're at the art house, they require little thinking. They are meant to be an escape. There is no room for personal visual interpretation. Visual interpretation is the job of the filmmaker.

When people say the common trope that "the movie wasn't as good as the book" what they're really saying is "the movie wasn't as good as my perception of the book." Your perception is always going to be more pleasing because you created it.”

“Movies of novels should not be facsimiles of the original, but they should at least resemble the original. That's where my problem with "Mr. Popper's Penguins" lies. It's banking on affection for a great book to which it bears little likeness. In the past year I already had to sit through a desecration called "Yogi Bear" that had nothing to do with Yogi Bear. My inner child can take only so much abuse.”

It’s a great article and hits the point right on the head. As much as I enjoy a good movie, I love books more. It’s a depressing realization that this is actually becoming a thing. And it makes me sad for all those great stories out there that have yet to meet this fate. Their time is coming.

Read the entire article here.

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Sunday morning:

We tried to ride our bikes last night but it rained so instead, we stayed in, ate Ben & Jerry's, and played board games. And this trailer came on the TV while we were playing:



It's hard to believe it's almost over. I remember going to see the first movie in theaters. I was 16 and with a high school boyfriend. And now here we are, 10 years later, about to finish the story. So much has happened in between. So many milestones, so much history. I feel, in a way, that I have grown up with Harry Potter. I can measure my life by the release of each movie. It is a huge part of my friendship with the Order. We bonded over reading those books as nerdy teenagers. We looked forward to each movie so much that there are entire pages in my scrapbook dedicated to them. I'm a more than a little bit sad to see them finished. They are the only movies that A and I pay to see anymore. After July, we will never go to the theater ever again. And even if we do, it won't be the same. I feel like something big is ending. And I hate change.

I've also been looking at baskets for the front of my bike. I'm thinking this Nantucket/Tom Nevers one might fit the bill nicely:


Friday, June 10, 2011

They're here:

I've been in Hot Springs the last few days for work but I got home this afternoon and we went to pick up our bikes! Finally! Aren't they beautiful?




We rode them around the neighborhood with my nephew and then rode over the visit Kat and Gary. They have front and back lights, so riding in the dark is no problem. It was amazing. I plan on adding a wicker basket to the front of mine and going for picnics on the River Trail.

I'm wearing my newest JewelMint piece, the Encore Necklaces:


So cute -- I'm only allowing myself one piece a month but there are so many great ones available right now, I'm not sure I'll be able to resist. Check them out here.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Hello again:


Please excuse our absence, our internet has been acting completely ridiculous over the past few days.

Have you listened to the new Deathcab album? It is amazing. Go buy it now. I am digging "You are a Tourist" and "Stay Young, Go Dancing".

Also, have a listen to the new Coldplay single. Pretty exciting:



Also, check out these two blogs that I can't seem to stop reading lately:

  1. The Burning House -- different people's collections of items of value -- things they'd rescue from their house if it were on fire. It's interesting to see what people find valuable and why.
  2. I Love Charts -- have you seen this? It's just really hilarious charts. Really hilarious.

Thursday, June 2, 2011

A Happy Birthday:

Today is Andrew's birthday! We celebrated by eating: (veggie) burgers, fries, shakes, and the homemade (from scratch) cheesecake that Andrew requested as his cake this year. And I must say, my handiwork was pretty tasty. Here are just a few photos:




Andrew also got some pretty cool science books, a boxed set of the Lord of the Rings books, and the Neverending Story novel. Then we played video games and chilled out. Nice birthday.

And for those of you that missed it (and that's everyone else), we've got a nice little video of Andrew blowing out his candles coming your way. Hopefully tomorrow. For now, we're just going to hang out and enjoy the last two hours of A's birthday. If you haven't called and wished him a happy birthday, you've still got some time.