Awesome Afternoons in Austin.

"It's not just a state, it's a whole lotta country." Second biggest state next to Alaska, Texas was our destination for this holiday season. With my dad out hunting the wild game of Alaska and fighting off some gnarly grizzly bears, we joined family down in this southern state for a holiday weekend.

I have never been to Texas myself and I'm always game for traveling to a new place and was met with kind and gracious southern hospitality, familiar family fun, and a new Thanksgiving experience. 

We had like four different types of meat all freshly smoked, LOTS of sides, and multiple pies to last a lifetime. All of this frenzied eating was next to equally exciting time with my family. 

Now while I am all for shopping, I just find something utterly ridiculous about the whole "Black Friday" shopping madness. Did you know that the term of "black Friday" comes from the first time of the year that businesses actually start making pure positive profit? Crazy. I personally do not see the appeal of lining up at crazy early hours for a sale and fighting for merchandise. It scares me and honestly, I think it takes away from the fun of browsing and shopping calmly. 

So instead of braving the crazy hoards of people at Walmart and Target, my mom, sister, and I decided to check out the whole consignment and vintage scene of Austin. 

MY. GOSH. I cannot believe how amazing the shopping is down here. We were in such an eclectic, funky, unique part of town with this lovely little cafes and antique stores. We could've spent days there! 

Back to the spirit of Thanksgiving, I just want to say that I am grateful for the life I have been given. My family's love and generosity, the blessed lifestyle in which I live, my truly honest to goodness best friends, and God. Happy Thanksgiving, ya'll! 

Our Thanksgiving activities...

Coffee at this lovely organic coffee house, Pachas. 

THIS. STORE. ROCKS. 

 

Coffee to start the day, and coffee to end it!

Cheers, Mate.

There is quite some excitement happening in my life as of now. I cannot wait to share some news with you!

First of all, in my fabulous creative writing and performance class today, we had to present our memorized monologues. I chose to do something a little more serious from my previous monologue and that choice was a scene in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. I'm talking Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman here. Fantastic film, really lovely and emotional. So I put on my siren black dress and pulled out my Baileys glass and away I went. 

The reason for this whole "cheers" theme, besides the usage of my actual prop in my scene, would be my acceptance to FIDM.  

Yep! It happened. I am completely.. Without words. I am seriously so incredibly excited for this new step in my life and the possibilities are endless. I was just in this joyful stupor all afternoon yesterday and my mom made me this extra thoughtful dinner and everything felt so right. I am incredibly blessed to have such supporting family and friends and cannot wait for the next step! 

"Oh Brick, I get so lonely sometimes.."

What I wore: vintage black beaded shoulder dress (used), red skinny belt (used), and red vintage SALVATORE FERRAGAMO shoes (used). 

Aw.. My mom is so incredibly kind to me.  Chicken piccata, my absolute favorite!

A Song for Sunday- Royals.

Well I would say that it's about time that I shared this song!

Ok, if one can guess, it was my friend who I'm always talking about that introduced me to this song way back in... I want to say.. May. Oh yeah, she is so ahead of her game. Anyhow, just one time through and it was added to my favorites.

"Royals", by Lorde,  unbeknownst to me, is sung by this young sixteen year old girl from New Zealand, much to my surprise. I would never have guessed because the voice of this song is mature and very arty. It's unique. I love the music behind it (mostly because I can beat box along to all of the genius instrumentals) and her voice fits perfectly to the vibe of the song. The lyrics also are so poppy and crisp. It's quite detailed and richly adult. LOVE IT.

I know it's now like the top song in the UK and the USA and probably in a lot of other countires, so I agree that it deserves recognition. It truly is an awesome song. I love to play it when I'm driving around in my Caddy (my parents, not mine, actually) because it fuels me and I feel so.. like.. a pimp. I know. But hey, I have a playlist of Cadillac songs and whenever I even think of a Cadillac, I automatically think of a pimp. Call it the media's influence, that's just what I think about.

Anyhow, it's a great song to dance and sing along to it and I highly suggest her entire album "Pure Heroine" as well. I like "400 Lux" and "Tennis Court" too. Plus, it has a great message to it which is always a bonus for me! Take a look..

"And we'll never be royals (royals)

It don't run in our blood,

That kind of luxe just ain't for us.

We crave a different kind of buzz.

Let me be your ruler (ruler),

You can call me Queen Bee

And baby I'll rule, I'll rule, I'll rule, I'll rule.

Let me live that fantasy."

Ok, the message I get out of it is like a daydream sort of thing. Imagine being a royal sort of deal. I like it!

Wiggle Room.

That is honestly the only thing I could thing of today when I put this dress on.

Well part of it is due to the fact that it is a wiggle dress, named from the 1950's Brigitte Bardot style slinger. 

I got quite a bit of compliments on it today and thank goodness I had boots on because the weather was all over the place today. 

Yesterday the power went out all over the Peninsula, there were bursts of snowfall and then whipping wind, freezing rain, and all these random Alaskan elements clashing together. 

That's Alaska for you! 

Anyhow, I say that although these dressed are curve-hugging, they allow plenty of room for activities.. Like tromping in the snow. ;)

What I wore: mustard ribbon headband (made by moi), brown hounds-tooth BANANA REPUBLIC wiggle dress (used), leather DOONEY&BOURKE purse (used), mustard socks, and brown MIA combat boots (used).

And then my mom, sister, and I had a girls night out at one of the only fancy restaurants in our tiny town- Michaels. I enjoyed a rosemary crusted pork tenderloin with maple bourbon sauce. So. Good. 

Blimey, It's a Blizzard.

Anticipation has been present all week for this day to arrive. 

The weather forecast had predicted snow at last and Mother Nature sure didn't disappoint. 

Instead of snow, we were given a full force blizzard. I'm talking high intensity winds and then powder just falling from the skies. 

It was strangely beautiful. A little scary to drive in but altogether a wonderful sight. I quite enjoy it when it snows here! 

What I wore: camel vintage LORD&TAYLOR coat (found at the lovely Goodwill), sparkly dobble earrings (Nordstrom), light latte sheer silk peasant tunic (used), black leggings, brown argyle  socks, and BCBG brown booties (used). 

Being a Bookworm.

I simply adore reading.

It's one of my favorite things to do, actually.

 I look forward to those trips to the library and then coming out with a stack of new books.

I also love bookstores and shelves full of these written works of art full of words just waiting to be read.

I believe that reading strengthens the mind, builds intelligence, makes me an overall smarter person. Plus, I enjoy a good book as it calms my eyes instead of an animated screen. It's that old-fashioned stuff that I still appreciate.

Anyhow, my friend introduced me to a lovely new series called "Divergent" and I hear that they're actually making a movie. We'll see how that one goes! But I'm excited, nonetheless.

So today was all about the celebration and creation of books. Love them. Read them. Enjoy them. Learn from them.

Oh, and I love to read out loud. Ask anyone from my childhood. And it still continues to be an enjoyment of mine to this day!

What I wore: black bowtie (Value Village), VERSACE glasses (my mom's and used), striped grey and white J CREW top (used), gray ICEBERG made in Italy wool skirt (used), and orange MARCO SANTI pumps (sale at Nordstrom Rack)