Mmm, Coffee

Today the girl at Starbucks asked me if I ever drink coffee. Yeah, I couldn't believe it either.

The last few times I went in there, I bought apple cider or a chai, but that doesn't mean anything. So I set her straight: I had three cups of coffee already today. She laughed at me. But at least she knows me a little more now.

Snuggle Up With a Book

I finally got some reading done over the weekend. If you know me at all, then you know that it was a wonderful day. And it got me thinking of books that I want to read soon and books that I think everyone should read at sometime in their lives. (So I made a couple lists off the top of my head.)

Books on my 'To Read' list:
Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts
The Shia Revival: How Conflicts within Islam Will Shape the Future by Vasir Nasr
The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad
Working by Studs Terkel
On the Road by Jack Kerouac
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoulett
We Wish to Inform You that Tomorrow We Will Be Killed by Philip Gourevitch

Books everyone should read:
The Portable Dorothy Parker
Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
The People Are the News by Grant Pick
Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi
Band of Brothers by Stephen Ambrose
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story by Diane Ackerman

Cute, Creative Proposal

Jill's (My Spinning Wheels) brother proposed to his girlfriend on the Brooklyn Bridge. It was such a unique, creative way of proposing. Check it out.

Lights, Year Round

My best friend made a deal with her parents a couple months ago. They would help put up Christmas decorations if she took them down. Two months later, her house is still covered with twinkle lights and Merry Christmas signs.

She thinks it's a little late. I think Christmas lights should stay up year round. You would only need to change the colors to green and red to signify Christmas time. Perfect.


Seriously, everyone gets a little happier when they see Christmas lights. I vote for Christmas lights everywhere, everyday.

Psst.. Pssst

I was cleaning out my closet earlier and I found a shoe box on the back shelf. It was full of little origami notes from friends in high school. It was so trippy to read them all, especially those from ex-boyfriends. You would not even believe what some of them said. How weird it was to remember the little moments in high school; they seemed big and important at the time. I think I may spend a couple hours reading through them and reliving my teenage years.

Did you pass notes in school? Do you remember what they said?

Snow and Hot Chocolate

Do you remember when you were a kid and got really excited whenever it snowed? I still do.

I haven't quite grown into the adult mindset yet. The last thing I think of is that I'll have to shovel later or what driving conditions will be like. I just love snow, especially when it swirls around and hangs in the air, it makes me feel like I'm in a snow globe.

I think I'm going to make some hot chocolate, curl up on my couch, read and watch it snow.

New Camera

I just bought the Canon XSi. I am so excited to get out and take some pictures with it! I might have to take a day off and wander around Chicago. It's been a while since I looked like a tourist, this could be fun. I'll post some pictures later.

Disney Movies Make Me Cry

I grew up on Disney movies, but because I grew up on Disney movies, I will probably never actually grow up. I love watching cartoons.

Even though Saturday morning cartoons don't come close to what they were when I was a kid, Disney has continued to make great movies. I really like the Pixar ones too.

I just watched Wall-E the other day and it is absolutely adorable. I'm always impressed by how animators are able to convey emotion. While deer do not actually talk or fairy godmothers exist, I still get worked up over the emotion that is very real.

If you could be any Disney character, who would you be? Cinderella, for sure.

Black & White

I think I’m going to set my camera to black and white and leave it there for a week.

I love how pictures turn into photographs when you remove the colors. They seem so much more dramatic and emotional in black and white. I also like that you almost have to interpret the picture too. You can decide the color of the sky, what kind of day it was- the mood and tone in the photograph. I like that.

The Coffee Pot

I went to brunch with my family today at The Coffee Pot, a small diner in my hometown's downtown area. We stood at the door and waited for a table at the thirty-something-seat diner; walked to the counter for coffee refills rather than making the waitress come to us; chit chatted with neighbors; had a great time all around.

I love the rush of big cities but nothing makes me happier than going to a small coffee shop or diner for brunch. I know I've said this a million times, but it's the best way to start the day. I absolutely adore the warm, friendly feeling of an intimate diner.

If I life in a big city, I would need that small place to feel at home. I want a place where I can walk in and someone asks, "the usual?"

A Very Manly Day

My friends and I are oddly drawn to depressing movies. A movie night with two of my good friends from college usually involved Rwanda, Middle East conflict or, the most frequent of all, World War II. We used to have to force ourselves to watch ‘happily ever after’ movies.

So last year when we all were without boys for Valentine’s Day, we (subconsciously) decided to have a very manly night. We ordered pizza, had a beer and watched six hours of Band of Brothers. We were rebels to the Valentine’s Day stereotype, I suppose.

This year my Valentine’s was far less manly, not sure if that’s better or not. I’m still not sold on the holiday, even when I have a boy to spend it with. (Personally, I would rather have a guy surprise me with flowers on a rainy Tuesday than buy me roses on Valentine’s Day, but that’s just me.)

Valentine's Day

"What is this thing called love?
This funny thing called love?
Just who can solve its mystery?
Why should it make a fool of me?"
-Frank Sinatra

Happy Valentine's Day!

Gardenia

I really like Mandy Moore. I've been a fan of hers since her bubble gum pop days but I really like the person she's become. She's made some fantastic movies, my favorite is Because I Said So. (I also am a huge Diane Keaton fan.) Lately, I've been addicted to her song Gardenia from her Wild Hope album. I'm not really sure why I listen to it so much, maybe because I swear you can feel the emotion in the song. Listen to it.

Things I Love

Today was a beautiful warm, sunny day in Chicago. I LOVE days like these.

Other really random things I love: Sunny days, Raspberry Sherbert, Going out to breakfast, Baseball games, Burned marshmallows, Talking with accents, Chai Tea, Painting Faces, Strawberry Creps, Reading in my backyard, Watching old movies, Getting dressed up, Golfing, Cooking, Sleeping in late, Coffee with friends, Long walks, Photography, Witty writers, Microbrew beer, Wearing baseball caps, Grocery shopping, Playing board games, Washington Island, Tulips, Naming things....

Boston Photograph

Ever hear of the Schmap Boston Guide? Yeah, me neither. I got a message a couple weeks ago saying that they want to use one of my photos in their 2009 publication. Unfortunately, I did not see this message until tonight, so it will probably not be included. I'm still not really sure what it would be for, but it would have been nice to get my photograph out in the public. So, here it is:

Always Carry a Book

I always carry a book. I always read two at a time, which is probably why I own a collection of large bags in addition to a large collection of books. My taste in literature largely mirrors my taste in music: it extends across so many genres it almost confuses artistic diversity with indecisiveness. I generally read two books at a time so different in style and composition they could not be confused but for their wrinkled covers shaped by excessive traveling: mystery and satire; history and romance; biography and poetry.

Reading two books simultaneously helps keep my interest but also my sanity. I become too engrossed in the books I read to not need or deserve a break.

But my favorite author, by far, is Dorothy Parker. She defined an era, a movement with her satirical, socially conscious style. Her writing is witty, it's the devil on your shoulder you fight to ignore: it is blatant, bold and in-your-face. It’s the kind of writing I’d like to do.

Just Thinking....

When I was eight and my sister ten, we decided we were going to start a business together, “Dosey Doodles.” I would design and build the houses and she would decorate them, every house being an artistic expression of the Dosey sisters. When I decided writing was in my future and not architecture, we had to change our plans.

Though I changed my career goals at an early age, I never lost my love for architecture. I once had a great photographer look at some of my photographs. He said there was an terrible amount of boring building pictures with no people. There was. I think that I'm still in awe of great architecture. Ever feel that you made a decision too quickly and maybe if you thought more about it your life would be different?

Oh, well. My sister and I changed our plans; she would decorate the kitchens and I would write the paper that covered the breakfast table.

Old At Heart

One of my most favorite things to do is curl up on my bed, turn on Frank Sinatra and read. I can remember being really young and following my grandpa around his house as he sang Sinatra. I thought my grandpa had the best voice in the world and I think that's probably why I'm such a big Sinatra fan. He reminds me of my grandpa.



I try to weave his music into everyday relaxing things, my favorites are reading and cooking. I don't think I cook as well without "Come Fly with Me" playing.