1.04

today's christmas song comes from sufjan stevens. i personally adore him, but his experimental folk makes some people kinda crazy. enjoy!

OBSESSION ALERT!

i think i'm obsessed with TOAST. Seriously. i love them. you should watch this short film that they made. i'm trying to figure out how to get it on my iPod.

also, i read their "ethical policies," and they are angels. read these:

"We are committed to increasing the use of organic cotton in our ranges.

"We will only use animal products which are a by-product of the meat industry.

"Our toiletries are not tested on animals.

"We recycle everything we can and we package everything so that you can do the same.We are working towards being truly carbon neutral.We do not make throw-away fashion.International trade can be a force for good but our suppliers must adhere to our policy on safe and fair employment practices.

"We seek out products which are made by co-operatives and small independent producers."

want more info on their ethical policies, check out this link.

please toast, take my first child. i BEG you!

1.03

the muppets christmas carol: it feels like christmas

If

if you are a fan of BBC adaptations of Jane Austen books, you MUST see this version of Emma. It is the closest to the book I've seen. It has an amazing soundtrack (my personal favorite is the song that emma and knightely dance to.)

it's available on youtube or through the british iTunes.

1.02

here's today's song:


keep a carol in your heart!

I don't know why...

but I am in LOVE with toast. not the food, the british clothing store. (but i do love toast) browse though their catalogues to see what i mean. i would be totally fine if they designed my entire life, including my love life...

.

Week #1

To kick off the Christmas Countdown, I'm going to get us in the mood. I would like to start with making it feel like winter! It's 50 degrees in paris today, and mostly sunny, so I need to visualize winter.

The first song is "Baby, It's Cold Outside" but my favorite version:


and just because i couldn't help myself:


enjoy! (i know i posted these last year, but i still think they're genius)

also, check the sidebar because i'll put the christmas countdown there for quick and easy access!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I am thankful for so much, especially for the opportunity that i have to be here in Paris. How many 19 year olds can say that they have been lucky enough to study in PARIS!? Not many. I'm so lucky.

I hope you've had a wonderful day full of family and good food!

(check back tomorrow for my christmas song count-down!)

#3

I'm thankful for this girl, who kept me thinking somewhat positively today.

Fine. I'm thankful for all of my friends.

Boo.

I don't like Wednesdays. It's the longest day of the week. I woke up in a slightly irritated mood, and then when I was going through my Google reader, I saw this wedding shoot. It made my day worse.

Normally I like Simply Bloom Photography, but this shoot was stiff. There was nothing natural about it. They posed WAY too much. My favorite picture (in a neg. way) is the one where the two are holding lemons to their ears. What? I don't know. If you're doing the ultra trendy shoot, make it look natural, like you do it for fun, EVERYDAY. Make lemon listening look like it's your lifelong habit.

Yuck.

I'll have to come back tonight to say DAY #3... not a good start for today.

big, but adorable mistake

i'm watching lady and the tramp right now. big mistake. i miss my lady and tramp, and their furry little bodies that used to cuddle with me on cold nights like these.



Bo. he acts like lady



kess. she looks like lady, but acts like tramp.

don't worry puppies. i come home in less than two weeks.

Kaput

sorry the previous links didn't work. try this and this.

sorry about that.

Day #2

I am thankful for videos like this and this.

TREND ALERT: Domestic Violence

I just read this article, mocking Twilight. (If you are going to read it, i caution you: there are a couple of f-bombs. beware.) If you don't want to read it, I'll just summarize it for you. Basically, Twilight promotes domestic violence. You may think it's crazy, but it isn't. The love interests in Bella's life are violent. Edward throws her across a room. Jacob has no control over his temper. He even talks about it. If you want more details, read the article. It, despite being funny, also brings up some really good points. There is a weird trend of domestic violence... thank you Chris Brown.

(I got this article at the same place where I got the previous Twilight article.)

Thanksgiving Week

This commences the first of my THANKSGIVING WEEK posts.

I am thankful for my family, especially my parents. Thank you guys for everything! I am who I am today because of you, and yes, that is a good thing.

Passing Time.

I only have two more weeks in Paris. It is crazy! I really have enjoyed it, but I am so excited to go home! I miss my family. I miss speaking English and understanding people on the street.

Well, let's not get all weepy.

I just did a photo assignment for my class. I was inspired by the work of Michael Kenna, found here. Look through his work. It's time well spent. What I love about Kenna's work is the sadness and the feeling of passing time. So, how perfect would it be that I was inspired by his work with this idea already in my head. What helped the inspiration of this was Iron and Wine's "Passing Afternoon."

Please. Listen to the music while you look at my pictures. I think it gives them greater depth.

CAUTION: this post may cause serious jealousy

i just was there and saw a group of ballets. three to be exact. it was amazing. all three were really modern. but in a good way. the last one was my personal favorite. you can watch a clip here.

Dear Future Husband:

please dress this well.

also, i wouldn't mind if you looked like that.

x leslie

ps: thank you mango.

New Movies

here are a couple of movies that i want to see:
nobody: i'm jumping on the "sam rosen is attractive" wagon.
paris: who doesn't love a foreign film about paris?
humble pie: looks amusing enough
la danse: ballet and french. perfect.
bright star: doomed love.
the imaginarium of dr. parnassus: health's last film. should be interesting, even if the trailer makes NO sense.
princess and the frog: a really fun idea.

Mmm

While Paris bids autumn goodbye, i sip hazelnut flavored milk. yum.

New Moon

Just saw New Moon yesterday. Here's what i thought:

- acting: better, but i still don't like stewart's voice.
- special effects: sweet. much better.
- music: good.
- story: much clearer and easier to follow
- characters: i don't like being manipulated into being attracted to someone younger than my brother. i'm no cougar. so, i thought jake was a little disgusting. ed needs to tone up, and pull his pants up. bella needs to suck it up, be a man, and not just stand there and take it. fight girl. you have no issue slapping a half-naked indian with biceps the size of your torso, but when a guy tells you he all the sudden doesn't love you anymore, what? you freeze up? please.
- humor: i actually laughed when i was supposed to, for the most part. i couldn't hold it in during alice's vision though. anyone else have flashbacks to sound of music?

i saw this for free, and i only went because i wanted to spend some time with my friends. although, i thought it was good, i don't really have any interest in seeing it again. i just can't STAND bella!

anyways. well done summit movies.

ps i decided chris pine is who i envisioned as edward while reading the books. anyone else? he's super fine. ahh... don't get me started on Star Trek! AHHH!

CAUTION: Long Post

so, i decided that in order to mock Twilight without being hypocritical, i would first have to see it. so i gave in and watched it.

here's what i thought:
- acting= terrible. i can't STAND stewart's voice. anyone else want to duct tape her mouth shut? she sounds like a bad lindsay lohan.
- music= pretty good. except i thought "flightless bird, american mouth" was a poor choice for the end. yes, it's a pretty song, but it's also about political disillusionment in america... not quite a love song...
- story= weak. (someone would've had to have to book for it to make sense.)
- dialog= sometimes i laughed aloud, when i wasn't supposed to.
- cinematography= indifferent. wasn't bothered either way.
- special effects= ...special.
OVERALL: hmmm... not the best use of my time.

i read this on in an article, found here. i thought it was pretty funny.

"I have provided a little cheat sheet for adults who might want to see Twilight New Moon this weekend for some reason, but who don't want to actually sit through the unbearable two hours that is Twilight Old Moon.

• Teenage vampires travel from high school to high school pretending to be incestuous siblings, because that is just a smart cover story.
• Teenage vampires always sit in a semi-circle around their cafeteria lunch table facing away from each other, it just makes it easier to give everyone "[screw] me" eyes.
• Vampires know just where to find rays of sunlight in an otherwise gray forest, FACT.
• When you transfer to a new school, it will somehow be prom right away.
• Vampires of all ages love to play Vampire Lightning Baseball.
• Although vampires can hit baseballs very, very far, the outfielders must remain at a regulation distance from home plate during every at-bat, and then run fast into the woods to find the ball.
• If you're a bad vampire, wearing shirts is optional.
• It only takes two hours to drive from coastal Washington to Phoenix, Arizona.
• Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) can read everyone's mind except Bella Swan's (Kristen Stewart)--perhaps a "she is clinically brain dead" twist in future episodes?
• Werewolves used to be really awkward and goofy looking when we didn't know they were werewolves, but then werewolves put on 30 pounds of muscle and somehow that also fixed the werewolves' face?
• Vampires cannot go out in the sun because their skin sparkles and everyone will know they are vampires (or extras in a Lady Gaga video), but vampires CAN live in giant glass houses that let in as much sunlight as possible, no problem.
• Vampires never go surfing because surfing belongs to the werewolves.
• In a town of 3,000, you know that at least eight of them are going to be rapists, and they are all going to try and rape you together.
  
• Vampires drive their hybrid cars like Vin Diesel drives his dinner trays.
• You can throw off a Tracker Vampire by rubbing a hoodie on a tree.
• There are Tracker Vampires.
• Some vampires have psychic visions that can only be transcribed in charcoal drawings, you just never know, different vampires have different powers, sometimes, apparently.
• If you are a bad vampire who hangs out in a crew of bad vampires, and one of those bad vampires is black and has dreadlocks, watch out for him, because he will betray you for no reason, right away.
• Although in times of distress it would probably be faster for vampires to use their superspeed to get away, sometimes they just like to drive!
• Sometimes vampires have venom and sometimes they don't?
• If you are a good vampire and you are about to kill a bad vampire, you should try and restrain yourself and remember that you are a good vampire. The easiest way to do this is by letting other good vampires kill the bad vampire.
• Going back to Vampire Lightning Baseball for a second: it is important to wear a non-denominational "baseball" hat in a way that makes you look like a special needs child.
• Werewolf dads are very concerned with whether or not their human friends' daughters are dating teenage vampires, and will pay their teenage werewolves human money to try and break up these relationships that have nothing to do with them."

if you like mocking Twilight (or at least the first movie), read the article. it's pretty funny.

letters

dear consumerism:
i hate the hold you have over me.
x leslie

dear velvet:
i want to start a love affair with you. alright?
x leslie

dear youtube:
i love you.
x leslie

dear self:
i like you.
x leslie

dear santa:
you should eat more fruits and veggies. i want you to live forever.
x leslie

A Little Early

for a Christmas wish list, but if there are Christmas lights out in Paris, it's good enough for me.


- an oversized, big, comfy, man sweater to sleep in during the winter (example)
- anything in blue, but i prefer deep navy or royal blues (example, example, example, example)
- black or grey with detail (example, example, example, example)
- black purse (example)
- boots (example, example)
- books (example, example, example, example, example, example)
- chocolate

My Playlist

My current playlist is basically my wedding playlist. So what if i'm compiling it without a fiance!? I 'm just reducing future stress.

Here are a couple of songs that i forgot about, but absolutely ADORE:
- Herman Dune: i wish that i could see you soon
- David Grey: this year's love
- John Martyn: may you never
- Bob Dylan: if not for you (slow version)
- Billy Bragg and Wilco: hesitating beauty
- Willie Nelson: all of me
- Katy Wolf: give yourself to love

Bone Deep

Have you guys watched Bones? Are you currently watching it? I am, and I LOVE it. They finally have a show out with a strong, smart, and independent female who isn't over-the-top and, well, witchy- Dr. Temperance Brennen. The way she gets away with it, is she's a science nerd, and well, endearing. She really grows on you. FBI Agent Booth, her partner in solving crime, is a great "all american" boy who is just great.

When I watched this past weeks episode, "The Dwarf in the Dirt," and it made me very happy. I smiled the rest of the day.

(I'm trying to upload my photos from Remembrance day, but my iPhoto is being STUPID. Sorry. If you want to see photos from my Chartres trip, look on my flickr page.)

Would've, Should've, Could've

So, we did this photo essay for photography class... and I wish i chose a different photo. What do you think?

the one i chose:


why i don't like this picture: too symmetrical and too busy. maybe if it were just the three people in the foreground, i would've liked it a whole lot more.... just too many people for me.

here are a few that i wish i chose:










what do you guys think? did i make the right choice? i guess we'll see when i get my grade... dang it.

Ooh.

July 24 Hedgehog - 1
Originally uploaded by Scott's View of the World

This pic makes me want a hedgehog. anyone else?

Chocolate and Canals

Just returned from an amazing two day holiday in Brussels and Amsterdam.

In Brussels, I ate a bunch of frites (Belgium Fries), waffles and chocolate. I feel so sick, but a good type of sick where I know I'm sick because I love what I'm eating. Fritz was in heaven. Everything was so photogenic!













Amsterdam was my favorite. I was surpirsed that we weren't being harassed or leered at by stoned perverts. That was a great surprise. It felt cozy. Calm. Autumnal. Comfortable. Plus, EVERYTHING in Amsterdam was beautiful, including the men.








Two drawbacks: we weren't in Amsterdam long enough and it was rainy.

Note to future husband: one day, we will go to Amsterdam, stay there for a few days before renting a car and touring Holland.

Oh, yes please!

i'll take any of these great looks from Noa Noa

Dear Future Home:

i hope you look like this:


you'd be the perfect combination of rustic and eclectic.

x leslie

ps: images found via here and here

Replacements

Alright, if you've talked with me, you know i'm a little disappointed with how the Office is development. So, i've been looking for a show that can make me just as happy as the Office.

I've come up with a few options:

A: Better Off Ted
B: How I Met Your Mother

But the one that I love more than even those two is COMMUNITY! It has the Russo brothers as its directors; if you like Arrested Development you will recognize them as directors from that great show, as well. Oh, did I mention it has Chevy Chase? Or Joel McHale (the host from the soup)? Oh, well, it does.

Here's the preview by NBC:


Here's a fanmade video to wet your appetite:


And here's a clip that always makes me laugh:


And honestly, WATCH THE SHOW! You won't regret it.