life

the upcoming week

Next week is going to be glorious! Mostly because of the whole no school thing, but also bc i have big plans. I'm staying in Utah for thanksgiving and going to my uncles for thanksgiving and so i will have tons of free time. here are some of my big plans:

• clean and organize my apartment (i am weirdly excited about this)
• paint-- a project i wanted to start a few months ago, but haven't had time
• read, read, read (i went to DI today and got about 6 books)
• catch up on school work (not really fun, but whatever)
• watch lots of movies and tv

those are the plans so far. not much, but it will keep me busy. hooray for holidays!!

i like to read

currently reading:

recently read:

The Hunger Games was great. I highly recommend it. Quick, good read. Just started c&p, but so far, so good!

And in other matters, life is really good right now.

pumpkin

what a wonderful squash. the best thing about autumn is probably how pumpkin food and drinks are offered everywhere. i LOVEEE pumpkin. I would just like to shout out to all my favorite pumpkin foods in no specific order:

pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

pumpkin pancakes

pumpkin pie

pumpkin bread

Einstein's pumpkin bagels & pumpkin cream cheese (SO good)

pumpkin seeds

brain dump

-currently reading "the 7 habits of highly effective people"..how come no one ever told me to read this before???

-i fixed our tv and now have cable again. yay

-i love water (just thought i'd throw that in)

- i love where i'm living right now

-i have a test that starts tomorrow and have a lot of catch up to do in like 2 days. eeek

-i need a job like nobody's business (or free money, either way)

-i love crafts lately

-i'm thinking about donating plasma

-i'm wayyyyy excited to have my fav hair stylist do my hair again for the first time since february (she got married, i was gone all summer etc)

-i'm very content w/my life right now.

-i've got to wake up in a few hours, so goodnight.

autumn's sweet we call it fall

you guys, today is the first day of fall!! Those of you who are regulars to my blog probably know i have a really big thing for summer; but you may not know that i love fall. It's such a pretty season and the weather is nice--i'm a big fan.

Yesterday I went to my gmas and I picked apples from her apple tree and pears from her pear tree and tomatoes and roses and it was just a great time. She even gave me the last corn cob that could possibly be pulled from the stalks. it was about 3 inches long and had about 3 kernels on it. Oh, grandma. Here's a pic:

(ps. how autumny is this picture?? credit to bb taking it)

a few of my favorite things about autumn:

-boots! i love them

-cardigans

-pumpkin..in everything. YUM

-carmel apples (i eat these year round, but they are more fall appropriate)

-crunchy leaves

-colored leaves

-tights (i'm gonna do it this year)

anywho, happy first day of autumn!! woot woot!

mad men ♥

Seriously, a great show. It's set in the 1960's (possibly my fav thing about it) and revolves around the lives of the people who work in an advertising agency on Madison Avenue in NYC, hence Mad Men.

The beautiful people in the pictures are Don and Betty Draper. And in case you doubt my judgement, it's won 3 Golden Globes and 6 Emmys, so bam. it's awesome and i love it. (and how great are these pics?)

awesome

go watch this, bc it's the coolest thing i've ever seen.

thanks britt for the link.

http://www.andric.biz/News/news.htm

these boots

i'm kinda in love with over-the-knee boots right now. i want some. oh and my birthday is oct 14 for anyone wondering.

so cute.

kanye...why??

i didn't watch the vma's, but natalie showed me this clip. Taylor Swift won best female video award, so she comes up, humbly begins her acceptance speech, and then is interrupted by kanye. just watch, it's short (ps-i don't know what the little speech bubbles are about?).

kanye has gone down another 8768r674 points in my book. Just bc you're a black rapper who's won some awards, has lots of money and wears sunglasses at night while indoors, it doesn't give you the right to publicly humilate someone. Especially taylor swift!! she's the most precious thing ever!! boooo on kanye!!! learn some respect.

ohh, fox news

i laughed out loud watching this.

about time

ok i finallllllly saw (500) days of summer and well, i loved every single thing about it. One of my favs if not my favorite film of the year. I've loved zooey deschanel for a long time. One of my favorite people. She put out an album last year under the name She & Him, (w/m.ward) and i highly recommend it.

I'm excited for school to start (weird, right?). I've decided this semester/year is my time to focus on myself. Not in a selfish way, but in "i need to make some changes and it's about time" sort of way. So i've got all kinds of goals and plans this year, and well, i'm excited.

Also, i'm uncovering my crafty side that has been underground for a few years now. Since being at school its hard to justify the time and money to do fun, crafty things, but you know what? it makes me happy and so it's justified.

k.fed

has anyone seen k.fed recently??? wow/ew. (not that he wasn't ew before)

music

I have been lovin Kate Earl the last couple days. Like I have been listening to her all day today. I just bought her album on itunes for $5.99. PLUS her song Melody is the FREE single of the week on itunes. you can listen for free here too. yay

please please please let me get what i want

dear summer,

please don't leave. i love you too much.

your biggest fan,

mickelle

sooo, I leave for utah this wednesday and it is very bittersweet. Maybe even more bitter. Call me crazy, but i really loved being home this summer. It was def the right decision for me. I am excited about this school year since i'm finally in my program and stuff. but now i gotta find a job out there. ughhhh. i'm thinking about just hittin up costa vida again... i mean, why not??!

here's a very abbreviated recap of my summer in pictures:

love of my life

I love Jenny Lewis. Alot. So much, that I went to her concert last night in Fayetteville all by myself. yes, alone. solo. me, myself and i. I actually copied brittany's i.d. and tried to have erica pass for her (it was 18+) but, it didn't fly (that is a whole other story).

awkward moment: in between the opening act and jenny, i'm just kinda standing there, amongst the mass, in the front, doing my own thing, and these 2 girls come up to me and the following convo takes place while about 20 people stare:

girl: "hey, we're taking pictures for a local website, can we get your guys' picture?"(referring to myself and some guy i'm next to)

me: "oh, we're not together"

girl: "oh, well just whoever you're here with"

me: "oh, i'm actually here by myself." (thank you for making me point that out to all bystanders)

girl: "ohh, ok, well can we just take your picture then"

me: "ok"

and then i awkwardly pose for a picture alone while everyone else just watches.

did i love it? YES. was it worth it? YES. will i attend more concerts solo? if need be, YES. am i more in love with jenny? YES! do i wish i could see her again tomorrow night in slc? YES!!

and i will leave you with this, a short clip from last night:

boy don't try to front..

as promised, here it is. womanizer. pahaha

"kanye-isms"

i read this article, and then kinda felt bad for kanye. really kanye? really???

http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSTRE54P5L820090526

love in the time of cholera

an excerpt that struck me:

"...the heart's memory eliminates the bad and magnifies the good, and thanks to this artifice we manage to endure the burden of the past."

good book. i love the way he writes. 

life is good

update: came home for a couple weeks, decided i should stay for the summer, flew back to utah for a week, laid out by the pool every day, then drove to california for loral's wedding, hung out there for the weekend and then drove from san diego to arkansas. longest drive of my life. 

i'm feeling good about being home. i'm really enjoying how laid back everything seems, which is in part due to summer and the lack of school...and i love it. My family is out of town again this weekend except erica and I. So we hung out... read outside in my backyard for a while, then we went to a nearby park and enjoyed the swings before the sunset, then came home made yummy pazookies. i like being able to enjoy the ltitle things in life. 

i'm too lazy right now to post pictures, but i will next time. 

did you know

britt sent me this video; apparently the asians are taking over the world, but thats old news. nevertheless, i thought it was interesting.

city of beautiful

i'm in nauvoo!! 

and then back to utah tomorrow!

stuff

so my parents are finally home from their 2 week european escapade and i am very happy. happy to see them for one and happy to not be the babysitter anymore. Not that babysitting an 11 & 17 yr old is that hard (but then again, i think you'd be surprised). But it did include waking up at 7 every morning to wake them up (not a morning person) and send them off to school, making dinners, doing dishes and laundry, taking out the trash, making them go to bed etc etc etc. and after 2 weeks of that, i am very grateful that i only take care of myself in my little apartment everyday. But now i can sleep IN!! and have my meals made for me!! and its going to be marvelous. 

on a totally unrelated note, in all my wonderful spare time (which i have too much of these days) I learned this dance from this video below. and one day, i will post it and embarass myself completely.

indians, tennis & lady gaga

So i'm in arkansas, "babysitting" my 17 yr old sister and 11 yr old brother while my parents are out of town for a couple weeks. It is hot and humid and green here and i couldn't be any happier.

Here are some classic qutoes from monday:

(this is for you britt)

While the song "just dance" was playing in the background--

jonathan: "i LOVVVVVVE lady gaga!" and then he melted to the floor. 

if i didn't know we were related before, now i do.

Then we went to memorial park to play tennis.

There were a bunch of people there playing tennis who happened to be indian, and about 20 mins after we gotten there, erica comes over to me and whispers, 

"mickelle, why are there so many indian people here?" 

her question was so sincere.  haha

and then when we got in the car to leave, she asked: 

"so are indians like really good tennis players or something??"

and i just laughed again, to which said said, 

"no seriously!!! in mexico everyone is really good at soccer!!"

hahaha. oh man. i love it.

monday night extravaganza

please click this for a great story. highlight of my week. 

ps. I LOVE THIS WEATHER!!!! i will never take a sunny warm day for granted as long as i live. i love the sun.

spring

it's just a beautiful spring afternoon here in provo, utah!!! i know you're jealous. 

Rilo Kiley ♥ ♥ ♥

happy april 14!

Today is a historical day. Most importantly it's my little sister Erica's 17th bday!!! Happy birthday enrique! 

Today is also the last day of classes for winter semester, woohoo!!!

Today is also the britney spears concert in SLC...which i wish i was going, but alas i am not.

AND today is also my half-birthday. haha

i also think today is the day the titanic sunk...1912??

To sum up, today is a day to celebrate! (minus the titanic thing)

there's no place like home

*disclaimer: this may get sappy and depressing. you've been warned.

I'm homesick.

I am tired and i am worn out. 

I miss my friends. I miss my family. 

I want to be taken care of (at least i'm honest).

Provo, Utah... i'm about to hit my 4 year mark. It has proved to be, by far, the hardest and most trying 4 years of my life. (and yes, i know, its only going to get harder) I think i've shed more tears in the past 4 years than the previous 18 years of my life combined. 

Home is so good to me. I have a great family. I definintely took my parents for granted back in the day. Now that I am in the "real world" I realize how truly honorable and admirable of people my parents are...i mean, sometimes i think about it, and i'm just amazed. i'm a pathetic weakling comparatively.

Also, I have amazing friends i grew up with, aka- the skanks. and lucky to still be close with them. Sometimes I underestimate how important it is to have good friends, but its made all the difference!! (is it awkward that i'm starting to tear up???) I love them more than life itself. One time, I read all my facebook wall posts from the skanks--it took like 2 hours-yep, i was that bored--but it was probably like the best two hours of my life. i couldn't love them more.

I've had a good time here in provo, I really have--and I've met some amazing people. but still, it wears me out sometimes. No place had I experienced, that bombards you friendly reminders about how lonely you are. 

There is a tangible anxiety in provo. Fortunately, either due to lack of caring or just growing up, i've come to terms that it is ok to sit at home on a friday night and do nothing...and its ok if people know that. haha, it sounds silly, but reality for some.

I found this quote:

"Homesickness is absolutely nothing...You don't really long for another county. You long for something in yourself that you don't have, or haven't been able to find."

i'm not gonna lie...it resonates.

Sometimes I just wish home wasn't a 20 hour drive away. Or that a plane ticket home wasn't $500. 

*disclaimer 2: i think i'm gonna regret this post in the morning. i should start going to sleep before midnight

a day in the life

Remember Darrin's Dance Grooves?? Of course you do. Well the other night natalie and I decided to do a little dancin with darrin and it was pretty much amazing. We did the britney spears- "crazy" dance, of course, which is ridiculous and hilarious but nonetheless, a classic. Anyways in the same night I also watched Aladdin (it was on TV, ok), colored in a giant coloring book and made cookies...which I realized a five year could have had the same night as i did. Sad? perhaps, but i'm not gonna lie...i thoroughly enjoyed it. Here's a clip from our night with Darrin:

 

to whom it may concern

to sum up my past month...

• brittany had a birthday

• saw andrew bird in concert (amazing)

• the weekly coldstone "girls night"--always a highlight

• jackie had a birthday

• amanda got married

• eating girl scout cookies and mint musketeers

• trying out sketchy run-down mexican restaurants

• LOOOVING the warmer weather

• helping natalie (as I type) overanalyze/write texts to a certain someone...ah the single life 

• currently reading Love in the Time of Cholera, to keep up with my new years resolution to read a book/month.

• occasional appearances at school

• annnd loving life!!!! 
  

i have a good feeling about '09

if you be my star, i'll be your sky

Birds and Boats by Gregory and the Hawk. do yourself a favor and check it out. It's one of the most beautiful songs I've heard in a while and I can't stop listening to it. Happy Monday!

for what it's worth...

"it's never too late to be whoever you want to be. There's no time limit, stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. Live a life you're proud of. If you find that you're not, have the strength to start all over again."

-Benjamin Button

HAPPPYYY BIRTHDAYYYY

to my favorite older sister!! the big 2-4. watch out.

the bird and the bee

yes, this band is my current obsession. They just came out with a new cd the end of january. I liked them before...but now i am officially obsessed. you should check it out.

oh happy day

I have some news: I have officially been accepted into the advertising program!! YAYYYY!!!! After 4 glorious years of trying to decide what to major in, I can finally move forward in life. It feels good. 

a tribute...if you will

This might seem kind of cheesy to some of you, but i don't really care! My younger bro Tyler left on a mission the end of august to the wonderful city of Ogden, Utah. I miss him a lot, but i'm also just so proud of him. So I went through some of his emails and cut & paste some lines that i thought were funny or just precious. My family might the only one who really appreciates this, but thats ok. Its just funny to hear what he has to say, if you know Tyler, that is. ok well here are some snippets if you would like to read on:

Yep, i taught the restoration to a gay guy last night, AWKWARD.

EWW that reminds me yesterday i saw for the first time a bearded lady!!! she was like hi and i was like hey. 

We met a lady named georgette a couple weeks ago she has like 15 peircings in her face and a spongebob tattoo, it's pretty sweet. 

Yesterday we saw a cat suck on a roof meowing its head off.  I reached out my arms to catch it but it wouldn't jump because it was weak sauce.

He loves us all with His big daddy heart and He wants us to love Him back. 

But we live in the hood and we get drive "byes" such as. "WE LOVE OUR GAY BROTHERS!!" that was just the other day as he drove by in a van.

just remember when you see crazy people that that's who i'm teaching!

Going on a mission sounds like a really big thing. But really, there is no better work, and no greater blessings that come from it.

25th October= baptizzled

I've decided that dogs are posessed.  I have enough evidence now.

I just love seeing people change their lives for the better and reconsile themselves with God. 

We had a great New Years!  We went to bed at about 11 oclock (we're really busy ok) and set the alarm for 11:55pm. We woke up and heard fireworks (or gunshots) all down the streets and everyone shouting and celebrating.  We got up and had some apple sparkling cider with summer sausage and cheese and crackers MMM, then went back to bed.

Funny thing a mission is. That's all I have to say about that.

Dear Summer,

I miss you. Please come back. 

girl scouts get stingy!!

So today, i'm sitting there on my computer, scanning the cnn latest news updates, living my happy little life, without a care in the world. I first see that the U.S. Postal service might have to elminate a day of mail service due to the economic downturn and think, hmm, well that sucks. Then i start scanning the other headlines, when all of a sudden I see the headline "Cutbacks hit boxes of girl scout cookies". So naturally, i'm like "WHHHAAAAAT?!" (in that one voice...i think you know what i'm talking about) Click on it, and then let cnn.com burn my dreams to ashes. hahah, ok, not my dreams. but this is an outrage. I mean girl scout cookies?? REALLY?? i love my girl scout cookies. i'll eat a box in a day. but now it looks like i'll have to eat TWO boxes in a day. Let me give you the highlights from the article and then you try and tell me that you're not just a little upset. just try. 

• Girl Scouts reducing the number of cookies per box to save money (PUH-LEEESE, do you know how many boxes they sell?!)
• 2 to 4 fewer cookies in boxes of Thin Mints (my fav), Shortbread (ew) and other cookies.
• "Our bakers cannot continue to absorb these rising costs" organization says. (oh yes they can)

Ok, ok, i know i'm being ENTIRELY overdramatic about this, but i do feel passionately about girl scout cookies. Don't even get me started on my most recent McDonald's ice cream experience (you can ask whitney or natalie...it was a sad moment). But seriously, there are like 16 carmel delights in a box. its already a rip off. but i will continue to get ripped off, bc they are so delicious.