Weekending - My Legs Hurt

I've come to the conclusion that if I could just pretend the weekdays don't happen, that I would be a much happier person.  Since that's not really an option, and I'm forced into adult responsibility and mandatory socialization, I'll just relive this past weekend to make myself feel better over my severe case of the Mondays.

Hashtag Beach Trip

I named this post for the sole purpose of using this gif:

#dontjudgeme

This isn't a stereotypical "Friday Favorite" but I'm linking up with Amanda anyway.

Does checking the time every 5 seconds deplete iPhone battery ? Because mine will die in about an hour if that's the case.  I need it to be 3PM ! Yay for my office having summer hours (If I show up/stay late Mon-Thurs, I can leave at 3PM on Fridays !!) and my family being at Hilton Head Island this weekend.  Which means mini-vacation ! 

Yes, another Matt Smith gif - because Doctor Who gives me life

And even though it's only for a weekend I'm all like "AH I HAVE TO PACK ALL THE THINGS" and I'm running around like a mad woman and my dogs are giving me serious side eye because I think they know they're not allowed to come with me. Or I'm interrupting their relax time.  Or both. Whatever dudes.  They get to stay in the apartment and be comfy and have people show up and take care of them. They'll deal.

I made sure I synced my Doors playlist to my phone.  It takes 5 hours from Raleigh to get to HHI and my playlist is 5 hours and 12 minutes long. Fate. Ever since I borrowed "The Soft Parade" from the library when I was 13, The Doors are my go-to "heading to the beach" music. Always.  There's something about the opening riff of "Roadhouse Blues" that just puts you in a road trip kinda mood. This time it will be even more awesome because the whole time I can be thinking "I touched the drummer." Did I ever tell you guys about that ? Yeah, I met John Densmore of the The Doors and fangirled all over the place it was awesome.

From September '14 when I met John Densmore - Doors drummer.  He told me I had cool hair.  I died.

I'm so excited for a break from the boring and mundane-ness that is an office.  Now I just have to try and wait until I can get out of here and get on the road for a day and a half of some much needed beach time.  Can. Not. Sit. Still. 

What are you excited for this weekend ?!

Harry Potter Hilarity

I'm not sure if I've ever mentioned, but I'm a HUGE Harry Potter fan.  My mom used to wait in riddikulusly* long lines to get the books for me when they came out, only to hide it for about 2 weeks until we went on our family vacation.  Basically for about 5 years (I got the first 3 as a set about a year after they came out but about a year before they got popular) I was physically present for our family outing, but my nose was stuck in those books.  (I really don't want to talk about the vacation the year Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince came out. Page 596 ? Devastated. Ruined the whole trip !)  If you haven't read the books, or seen the movies you could bookmark this and come back after you've realized the error of your ways.  Or you could just stop reading now.

(*No, that's not a spelling error)

Homesick

Last night they lit the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center.  I was way more sad than I should have been.  After a lot of thought, I decided that I would not be traveling to Jersey for Christmas.  There are too many factors to get into, but ultimately, I decided that staying in North Carolina was what was best for me & the monsters and my sanity. And also my wallet. I'm looking forward to seeing how I celebrate in my own way.  But I still feel like I'm missing a little piece of myself this year. 

Dead And Worth It.

I'm running on 4 hours of sleep (maybe ?).  My legs are KILLING me.  The last thing I wanted to do was get in my car this morning. I'm pretty sure the only reason I'm functioning currently has something to do with the unknown number of espresso shots in my coffee. Why ? Because I got home from Charlotte at 4AM last night from one of the most epic live shows I've seen in a while.

Confession: I'm getting too old for this shit.

Confession: I would do it all again in a heartbeat.

I want to tell you all about it.  However, 1. My brain can't function above keeping my eyes open and B. Words cannot do justice to seeing AFI, 30 Seconds to Mars, and Linkin Park all in one night.

Confession: That was my 7th time seeing 30 Seconds to Mars live.

Confession: I was never a huge Linkin Park "fan" until last night.

I had listened to their music and hell yeah did I know (and rock out to) some of the more popular songs.  But last night blew my fucking mind.  That is a band that KNOWS how to put on a show.  I have no shame in telling all of you in blog-land that I am revisiting everything they've recorded and giving it a fresh listen because DAMN IT WAS THAT GOOD !

So I leave with you with a bunch of pictures and some video clips from last night. Enjoy !

Because I'm a moron and can't read the tickets right, we missed alot of AFI and I was sad.

30 Seconds to Mars !  As always, I loved their set, but was slightly disappointed they didn't play anything (besides part of "The Kill") from albums before than This is War. 

The weather was supposed to be horrible and possibly monsoon on us.  The weather was PERFECT !

I didn't take many pictures of Linkin Park because I was too busy having my mind blown. Sorry, not sorry.

Also:

(The "after the epic night" mocha "merkshake")

Linking up for Humpday Confessions ! 

Hello Sir Walter

Happy Friday Friends !  I know that usually on Friday we list a whole bunch of things that are favorites but work is KILLING ME and I have way too much to do BUT !!! I would be super sad if I missed a linkup AND I hope you don't mind if I use this to gush/brag for a minute about one of my favorite people ever in the history of everything.

Sir Walter Miler:  Tonight is this pretty awesome event known as the Sir Walter Miler.  Basically there's going to be a huge race tonight to see people run the mile as fast as they can.  The goal is to see if this guy, Sandy, can run a sub 4:00 mile.  

I know...crazy right ?! There's going to be over 200+ people hanging out at this track at a college to cheer on a bunch of people making 16 (is my math right on this ?) left turns.

Why is this included in a Friday Favorite you might ask ? Because in addition to 3 awesome people that I will be going to cheer for, the boy will be running as one of the competitors.  He will be reppin his Fleet Feet Store in the Raleigh's Finest Mile. 

To say that I'm excited for him is an understatement. I've made a shirt and currently have some fun things in the works for tonight (I would tell you what they are but I'm not sure if he reads this or not and don't want to spoil the surprise - I'll tell you all about it on Monday, I promise !).  

So people out there in blogland, cross your fingers and cheer your loudest tonight (the race starts at 9PM) and send good vibes that my guy has an epic race tonight.  He's been training and working hard, has his s and I can't wait to see him kick some serious ass on the track tonight :)  I swear I'm only a little excited...

Hope everyone has a great weekend !  If anyone in Raleigh is looking for something fun to do tonight, come hang out with me and well, everyone else I know, at Meredith College tonight - you can come scream and cheer with us.

(But in a good way !)

Merry Christmas !

It's Christmas in July !  I love celebrating Christmas in July because 1. It's an excuse to yell "Happy Birthday !" at people (I direct you here if you have no idea what I'm talking about).

 and 2. Giving presents !  I decided that next year I'm totally putting together a secret santa.  Who doesn't love that ?!  Also, I was so excited that I bugged Brian probably about 15 times to open his presents last night.  But he made me wait until this morning. Yes, HE made ME wait to open HIS presents.  I have zero patience.

And yes, I do enjoy getting presents myself (who doesn't) and I was (still am) super pumped.  He never ceases to amaze me.  I'm pretty freaking excited to say the least.

Plus it's Fusion Friday at my coffee shop so there's just a whole lot of winning happening today !  How about some more favorites ?

Favorite Song:

"Take it Off" by The Donnas.  It's about 5 years old but I don't care. I still dig it.  

Favorite "Aww" Picture:

(via Paislie Hadley @ bats.org.ua)

This is the face of happiness my friends. Just a bat and her nanner.  The story behind this picture: "This is my Pandora. She had a sore belly from barbed wire and she was being lazy and not using her feet so i challenged her with a massive chunk of banana. She thwarted my efforts by managing to eat a good chunk of it by smearing it all over her chest."

Flying foxes are pretty adorable.  Watch some YouTube videos and try not to fall in love. I dare you.

Favorite Random Funny Sh*t:

A friend of mine put this up in regards to what his son will be like at his birthday party on Saturday.  Dead.

I need the beach so badly right now that I would put up with this.

I made myself this shirt (original found here) to wear to the 5K tomorrow.  I'm pretty excited about it.

And speaking of my 5K...

Rusty just sent me my race bib ! Now I know everyone wants to run in Raleigh's Finest 5K tomorrow but don't steal my bib number.  Unless you can finish under 29 minutes.  Then steal away.  

If anyone needs me, I'll be hiding and anxiously awaiting the workday to be over.

It's (Almost) The Weekend !

To say that this has been a long week would be an understatement. As I try to maintain what little positivity I have left, and instead of being a Debbie Downer, I'd rather focus on fun stuff ! Here are some favorites from this week along with a linkup:

Favorite song:

"I'm No Good" by New Year's Day.  This song has been stuck in my head all week. Enjoy !

Favorite Internet Meme:

Bad Pun Dog is my go to for smiles this week.

Favorite Pet Moment:

I don't think I've introduced you to Loki yet ! My little sir !  Before anyone freaks out, yes, he's a rat and yes, I loves his little ratty face and his whisker kisses.  (If you want me to, I can give you the spiel about how rats are better pets than hamsters, but email me for that and I'll be happy to convert you !)  In his 3 story house, he has a water bottle AND a water bowl.  He uses the bottle to get drinks and the bowl to give himself baths (usually at weird hours of the night).  When he gets a drink, he does what I call "drinking fancy" or "fancy hands".  I usually try and catch him doing this but he always stops when I go and try to take a picture of it and I FINALLY was able to get it.

(Look at his little paws !)

Favorite Gifs or An accurate portrayal of my week (in no particular order):

Stress eating.

When someone tries to talk to me at work.

Self explanatory.

And finally, how I feel about the office since it's Friday:

Favorite "dawn of realization" moment:

Favorite Movie Scene I will watch over and over and can't stop laughing at:

If you haven't seen 22 Jump Street, you need to.  I did not stop laughing the ENTIRE movie. When I found that someone put this on YouTube, I almost screamed out loud.

I take my leave now, to anxiously watch the clock until I can escape and enjoy my weekend of no work !

Hope everyone has a great Friday and an even better weekend !

I Like Big Books and I Cannot Lie

I dedicate today's post to my fellow bookworms.  The question of "What book are you reading !?" came up so often after yesterday's post, that I wanted to give you all a bunch of book recommendations ! I'm not going to go into insane amounts of detail about why I'm recommending them because I can rant and rave about it all day, but you might hate it...I'm just putting these out there and letting you decide.  *All covers and descriptions are pulled from Goodreads*

What I'm currently reading: Something From The Nightside by Simon R. Green

"John Taylor is not a private detective per se, but he has a knack for finding lost things. That's why he's been hired to descend into the Nightside, an otherworldly realm in the center of London where fantasy and reality share renting space and the sun never shines."

-This is like Dick Tracy meets Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman.  I have less than 100 pages left and this will probably be finished during lunch today. I Cannot. Put. It. Down !  If you've read Neverwhere (and liked it) read this one.

My Go-To books for recommendations:

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

"The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. 

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway: a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them both, this is a game in which only one can be left standing. Despite the high stakes, Celia and Marco soon tumble headfirst into love, setting off a domino effect of dangerous consequences, and leaving the lives of everyone, from the performers to the patrons, hanging in the balance."

-I can't put into words my love for this book.  My only suggestion is to pay attention to the chapter titles and more importantly, the dates, so you don't get confused. Amazing.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

"Ray Bradbury’s internationally acclaimed novel Fahrenheit 451 is a masterwork of twentieth-century literature set in a bleak, dystopian future.

Guy Montag is a fireman. In his world, where television rules and literature is on the brink of extinction, firemen start fires rather than put them out. His job is to destroy the most illegal of commodities, the printed book, along with the houses in which they are hidden.

Montag never questions the destruction and ruin his actions produce, returning each day to his bland life and wife, Mildred, who spends all day with her television "family." But then he meets an eccentric young neighbor, Clarisse, who introduces him to a past where people didn’t live in fear, and to a present where one sees the world through the ideas in books instead of the mindless chatter of television.

When Mildred attempts suicide, and Clarisse suddenly disappears, Montag begins to question everything he has ever known. He starts hiding books in his home, and when his pilfering is discovered, the fireman has to run for his life.

First published in 1953, Fahrenheit 451 is a classic novel set in the future when books forbidden by a totalitarian regime are burned. The hero, a book burner, suddenly discovers that books are flesh and blood ideas that cry out silently when put to the torch"

-I'm sure many of you had to read this in high school but I actually reread this once a year. I love it. It makes you think and question things and by the end you look at the world in a whole new light.

Looking for Alaska by John Green

"Before. Miles "Pudge" Halter's whole existence has been one big nonevent, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave the "Great Perhaps" (François Rabelais, poet) even more. He heads off to the sometimes crazy, possibly unstable, and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed-up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young, who is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart.

After. Nothing is ever the same"

-I know that right now TFiOS is the big John Green book of the moment.  But if you only ever read one John Green book...let it be this one.

Room by Emma Donoghue

"To five-year-old Jack, Room is the entire world. It is where he was born and grew up; it's where he lives with his Ma as they learn and read and eat and sleep and play. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits.

Room is home to Jack, but to Ma, it is the prison where Old Nick has held her captive for seven years. Through determination, ingenuity, and fierce motherly love, Ma has created a life for Jack. But she knows it's not enough...not for her or for him. She devises a bold escape plan, one that relies on her young son's bravery and a lot of luck. What she does not realize is just how unprepared she is for the plan to actually work.

Told entirely in the language of the energetic, pragmatic five-year-old Jack, ROOM is a celebration of resilience and the limitless bond between parent and child, a brilliantly executed novel about what it means to journey from one world to another."

-This book is mildly slow starting but once you get used to the way it's written you won't want to put it down. It's very Plato's Allegory of the Cave if you're into that sort of thing. 

Anything by Neil Gaiman

Seriously.  Anything.  I'm still working my way through his books, but I've yet to read one I didn't fall in love with.  

More Recommendations:

• The Mortal Engine Series by Phillip Reeve
• If I Stay by Gayle Forman
• Where She Went by Gayle Forman
• Divergent Series by Veronica Roth
• The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• The Thief of Always by Clive Barker
• The Memory Keepers Daughter by Kim Edwards
• Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
• The Fuck Up by Arthur Nersesian 
• This is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper
• Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

There are so many more ! I'm sure I'll keep adding to the list.  If you have recommendations, let me know ! I'd love to add them.