Hey, It's Okay...

Well, it has been quite quiet around these parts, mainly because I've been dealing with a shit ton of crap lately. Which I'll share at some later date. But for right now, I'm reminding myself that certain things are okay.

Hey It's Okay...

to have disappeared from bloglandia for a bit (and probably not return again until Friday...maybe).

to be so behind on responding to the comments on my last post- I read each one, but the post was scheduled, and as earlier stated, I've been a little preoccupied- but I will get back to you!

to post this late in the day even though I know practically no one will read it. I miss this space.

to make some big changes.

to ask for help when I need it.

to require, and request, space when I need it.

to not be able to focus today. Tomorrow I will try to be better.

to scream, and shout, and let it all out (anyone? Bueller?)

to cry.

to not be okay at all.

October Goals

September Goal Recap: 

Continue working on the Summer Bucket List: Check!

read two books: Check!

start meal planning: Fail

cut cable: Fail

blog (at least) twice a week: Check!

purge my closets: Fail

purge/organize my kitchen (thanks for this idea Kathy!): Fail

pay off one student loan: Fail

*private goal-may be more on this later*: CHECK!

plan and have an awesome time in Cali: Check!

Ok, 50% successful, I can live with that. Let's just move on to October shall we? 

Rock the Fall Bucket List

catch up on ALL of my reading for class

purge/change over clothes in closet

start meal planning

read two books

cut the dang cable

weather strip all the windows

get a haircut

blog (at least) twice a week

Rock the Wallet Watch

My Parameters:

- create new budget

- stick to budget / no unnecessary purchases

- track actual spending

- share the results on Wednesday, November 5

Fall Bucket List

With September almost over, I guess I'll go ahead and admit that it really is fall. Even though I really love summer, here are a few things I'm looking forward to doing in Autumn:

drink allthepumpkinales

bake pumpkin pie~ an annual tradition!

craft something 

put up fall decor

attend another concert

dress up for Halloween

go to a haunted house or forest
attend an Oktoberfest event

watch a "new to me" horror movie

attend a football game//tailgate

bake banana nut bread

revamp my wardrobe

Find a new pair of super cute(but not super expensive) BOOTS

attend a fall festival

enjoy a PSL or 5

find time to have fun during a work conference in Denver!

What are you looking forward to this season? 

Friday Favorites- Global Citizen Festival Edition

Tomorrow I am headed to the Global Citizen Festival. I won tickets in August and I am BEYOND excited! So this week's Friday Favorites are some of my fave songs from the artists performing. Have a great weekend!

The original line-up... 

and then yesterday...

Settle Down - No Doubt

Desert Rose - Sting

We Are Young - Fun. ft Janelle Monae

Izzo (HOVA) - Jay-Z

New York (Empire State of Mind) - Jay-Z ft. Alicia Keys

Sacrifice - The Roots ft. Nelly Furtado

Blown Away - Carrie Underwood

Let's Go - Tiesto ft. Icona Pop

Summer Bucket List Recap

Back in July, I made a Summer Bucket List. Let see how I did: 

+ see an outdoor movie. Fail :-( Tried several times but it never worked out.

+attend an outdoor concert/music festival. Check!

+see fireworks (especially since this didn't happen last year!). Check!

+drinks on the deck. ALL SUMMER- CHECK!

+start (and finish) a gallery wall. Fail.

+attend a street fair/ yard sale(s). Check!

+beach day(s). Check!

+get my hair did. Fail.

+binge watch a new show (rainy day activity). Check. OITNB- good stuff!

+go on vacation. Double check! Here and here

+attend a baseball game. Check!

+go to Meadowlands State Fair and Hester St. Fair. Fail on both counts. 

+get a tan! Check!

+go on a picnic. Fail.

+attend a BBQ/food festival. Check!

+ go to the NY Renaissance Faire (late summer). Check!

Other things that happened:

My godson and his momma came to visit

I saw the Cirque du Soleil show Varekai

I celebrated two birthdays, a luau, a BBQ and a pool party

I threw my first surprise party successfully

I went to 2 viewing parties for the World Cup

I participated in Paint Nite (pic below). I went solo, but it was a lot of fun, and I really like my painting.

Attended opening night of the U.S. Open, with a performance by Fitz and the Tantrums. Saw Maria Sharapova and Novak Djokovic play. Also saw Alec Baldwin and ran into an ex in the stands.  (pics below)

Fitz and the Tantrums- Fool's Gold

Also, I found these pics in a draft from earlier this summer that I forgot to post; it's from like late May/June when RJ and I went to NYC for sushi and a visit to the South Street Seaport.

Arthur Ashe Stadium, banner, and Djokovic

Site of 1964/1965 World's Fair

fireworks for opening night

paint nite

my masterpiece

Random Confessions

I had a post lined up for today, but it was a bit heavy and I don't feel like posting it yet, so here are some random thoughts/confessions:

I do not like the term "dollhairs." First of all, it took me entirely too long to figure out what it meant the first time I encountered it, and secondly, what's so hard about just saying dollars? This is also how I feel about Bae. Where the eff did bae start? It sounds like a goat calling for attention. Baaaeeeee. No? Maybe I'm just old.

It takes me longer to find GIFS for these posts than to actually write the posts.

Yesterday I got stopped on the street on my way to work and was interviewed by 1010 WINS News. Apparently Friday is National Smile Day, so they asked me a bunch of questions about smiling and examples of some different kinds of smiles (fake, haven't-seen- your-friend-in-forever, normal, etc). I didn't know how to fake a fake smile, since I was already giving him one. Though I would consider myself a smiley person in general, I'm not at all in the morning. It was early. When he asked "What are some things that make you smile" my first response was coffee. 

I get really annoyed when people remind me that most "reality" shows are staged. I already know this, but I pretend I don't. I like a little fantasy ok??! So let me enjoy it! 

I got called out on my falling apart boots at work. By a guy. Who dresses better than me. 

Why are Denver Broncos tickets so damn expensive? It's actually cheaper to see them play here, but I wanted to see their stadium!

I don't understand why so many Oktoberfests are in September. 

I don't think 'Let It Go' is that good of a song. There, I said it.

I am really unhappy that we (the U.S.) is in Syria. I know it's complicated, but I don't like it. 

I am beyond thrilled that Gilmore Girls will be on Netflix October 1st. 

What are you confessing to today? Share it with Kathy!

Friday Favorites/Book Club Friday

• I'm not sure how, but I just started reading Elite Daily and now I'm obsessed. Sorry for filling up your Twitter feed with retweets on Wednesday. Kind of. 

• I know pumpkin spice isn't for everyone, but it's for me and I need to find this:

• I also need to find these and bring them with me to a football game:

you can purchase them here

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Onto the Literary Junkie!

Here are this month’s questions…
1. What are you reading right now? Tell us about it.

From GoodReads: 

WICKED above her hipbone, GIRL across her heart 

Words are like a road map to reporter Camille Preaker’s troubled past. Fresh from a brief stay at a psych hospital, Camille’s first assignment from the second-rate daily paper where she works brings her reluctantly back to her hometown to cover the murders of two preteen girls.

NASTY on her kneecap, BABYDOLL on her leg 
Since she left town eight years ago, Camille has hardly spoken to her neurotic, hypochondriac mother or to the half-sister she barely knows: a beautiful thirteen-year-old with an eerie grip on the town. Now, installed again in her family’s Victorian mansion, Camille is haunted by the childhood tragedy she has spent her whole life trying to cut from her memory.

HARMFUL on her wrist, WHORE on her ankle 
As Camille works to uncover the truth about these violent crimes, she finds herself identifying with the young victims—a bit too strongly. Clues keep leading to dead ends, forcing Camille to unravel the psychological puzzle of her own past to get at the story. Dogged by her own demons, Camille will have to confront what happened to her years before if she wants to survive this homecoming.

My Thoughts:
I don't have the words to describe just how much I loved this book. It started out a little slow for me, and I thought it would be about a cutter who cuts more because of her dayjob. This was SO MUCH MORE. Like seriously, the storyline is so messed up.

Camille goes back home for the first time in 8 years to uncover the mysterious murder of two girls. Her mother is not excited to have her back and drinks away her pain or hides out in her bedroom, and the half-sister she barely knows seems bipolar; one minute she's playing doting daughter and playing with dolls, the next she's drinking and stripping down to a bikini and toying with full grown men. The victims seem to be the tomboy type, but nice girls, with no known enemies. The eerie part is that when they are found, they have not been sexually assaulted in any way, but are missing all of their teeth.

I thought I knew whodunit halfway through, but boy, was I wrong. This is one twisted story! If you're looking for a great psychological thriller, I would definitely recommend it!

2. There are a ton of movies coming out soon that were based off of books. Are there any you’re particularly excited to see?

I accidentally saw The Giver before reading the book, but I really enjoyed it, and now want to read the book even more. I just rented Divergent, so I'm SUPER excited to watch that one. Also very excited to see Gone Girl (duh) and Mockingjay: Part 1. And of course the next Hobbit movie!

3. With fall finally here for some of us, are there any books that you’re particularly looking forward to reading in the season of big sweaters, blankets and hot chocolate?
Not particularly. Though Big Little Lies is at the top of my list, but only because I've heard rave reviews about it. 

4. We only have 3.5 months left of 2014. Did you participate in any reading challenges? How are you doing?
I'm participating in the Goodreads challenge. I aimed for 20 books, but I've only read 6 so far... eek!

5. What has been the best book you’ve read so far this year?

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn, though Attachments by Rainbow Rowell and Slammed by Colleen Hoover come in tie for second!