Life is full of surprises?

Clearly I'm trying to win the award for most cliche title, but it is what it is. Cliches are cliches for a reason.

My days have certainly hit an unexpected curve as of late. 2013 is sort of a monumental year for me now and I think I'm going to have to thank my friend for making me wear red underwear on chinese new year to counteract the bad luck of it being my year (year of the Snake).

In no particular order, this year I have gained an unexpected and truly marvelous friend, I got a wonderfully adorable kitten/horrible beast of an attack cat that I love to pieces. My roommate/best friend got officially accepted into the peace corps for her first-pick work option. (So I'm really excited about that for her, but I don't know what I'm going to do with her out of the country for over two years.) I have dealt with the weirdest/most irritating boy situation I've ever dealt with, developed a deep hatred for my job but got a light at the end of the tunnel with a new job starting in January. I also started learning how to sew completely on my own without just modding thrift store finds for things.

Last but certainly not least, I'm pretty sure I've met "The man of my dreams" (To carry on the cliche train.) I'm not going to get totally ridiculous and say how he is "the perfect man" or whatever, because he's not perfect, but neither am I. But I can say I've never felt this way about a man in my life before and there is zero way for me to describe it, aside from saying I just have this ridiculous gut feeling about him. I'm not sure its always "the best" for me, but I'm also not really sure what that's supposed to mean in general,because we have our problems, and we each have individual problems, but we're real people. And when it counts he's there for me, and despite what his history and other people (which its none of those bitches business) have told me, I know that he feels as strongly about me, if not more so. Its very interesting to be in a real relationship again after almost three years. Especially because where I am in my life is vastly different from where I was in my last relationship.  It seems significantly more adult now that, on top of a fairly serious relationship, I have a real job, and a house, and things like that. And I'm in a place in my life where I could technically be settling down if I so chose to do so. Quite weird, but really exciting!

We'll see how the rest of '13 goes, but I have high hopes for this year, and even higher hopes for '14.

Home Life.

I won't lie, I've always been a huge fan of architecture. I just love houses. They make an incredible canvas for telling the world what kind of person you are at a glance, if you care enough or have the ability to make it so. Back in the day (Aka: Middle School) I dreamed of being an architect/interior designer. I still plan on having a prominent hand in my interior decorating and hopefully, if my means allow, in my future permanent residence.

And, since I'm fairly certain I was born in the wrong century, (Or possibly the exactly correct century because I can have all of this stuff without needing to be of the incredibly small upper class of the time.) and I'm a rather dramatic person, I just LOVE Victorian era homes. Preferably just prior to the Edwardian period, where houses became slightly less extravagant, and typically lost my favorite feature, the turret.

Asymmetrical floor plans and varying roof lines are more features of Victorian architecture I love. These two features combine to form exciting and unique exteriors that, in my opinion, stately exclaim "Curb Appeal."

This home features some of the ornate "Gingerbread" trim of the time, that also works to add that certain amount of Victorian charm to a home. The ornate turret balcony of this home particularly draws my eye with its elaborate arches. This home also demonstrates the contrasting and detailed color schemes of the time. Which can be very attractive if done well, even though I personally like the simplicity and freshness of a nice sage green with off-white or white trim.

This home features many of the aforementioned details of Victorian architecture, and simply serves as another example of the complexity that can be achieved by playing with the different core elements. This turret strikes my fancy because it is fairly dramatic and nicely balanced with the left half of the house's ornate dormer window and rounded porch section. This house also exhibits a lighter color scheme that I like better than, perhaps more traditional, darker and busier schemes. 

Moral of the story, houses are beautiful and so unique. It isn't easy to find the right house, and it is a frustrating process at the best of times, but if you're in the market to buy a house I think it is important to find something you really enjoy. They are huge investments and deserve to be treated as such, from the smallest starter home, to the 4800 sq foot 1886 Queen Anne mansions.  (I may or may not be in love with that house.)

Summer Time.

Hello! I decided since I'm not doing anything else this summer, I could try to update my blog every so often....Right...

This summer has been for crafts, books, and television, basically. I'm okay with this, but its time for a job. I may or may not be starting to go just a little bit crazy. (Read as: Watches Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers and is re-reading Wheel of Time, which I think is proof enough.) This summer has also been for trying to be fashion forward. I attempt to look like a semi-put together person every time I go out these days. (Sometimes it doesn't happen, but trips to Wal-Mart or what-have-you, simply don't motivate one to their best attire.) So, I think I'm going to collect some of the better outfits as well as other things I find interesting to blog about, you know, because I can. So without further ado, today's look!

Fairly comprehensive, sort of difficult to get these full bodied shots now that my gorgeous mirrored closet doors are no longer with us. T-T 

I believe this is the lowest cut shirt I own.

Breakdown: (Because all of the cool fashion blogs I watch do this. I'm just trying to be trendy)
Shirt: Crystal Candy (Purchased at my favorite boutique store ever in Chicago: Bazaar) Shorts: Candies brand from Khols. Shoes: Target. Jewelry: Absolutely no idea where the beaded stuff came from. The thin bracelets are from Icing, the aviator necklace is from Forever 21 and the ankle bracelet was made by a friend. Make-up: A touch of Neutrogena Clean liquid foundation. Urban Decay Primer potion on eyes followed by the Strawberry Fudge eye shadow duo by Clinique and a hint of Mineral Gold from M.A.C. A bit of Sephora Eye Liner, and some Buxom Mascara finis that off. Extreme Pink lipstick by Clinque on the lips.

Fireworks one of the nights I went out this weekend:

Postly (Because I know it won't be daily) Art Work:

Hopefully I can be a little more regular for awhile!

Obsessions. Guilty Pleasures.

I'll admit it. I am absolutely in love with this girl. Judge if you must, but she is actually a trained musician....who kind of turned into a stripper and drug addict. But that's alright, I don't judge. (read as: I judge everyone, all the time.) But really. She's crazy, not afraid to be ridiculous, and her songs are catchy as hell. Pretty much, my perfect match.


My favorite. (Not that I listen to it all the time or anything.)

I had not intended to turn this post into anything related to Lady Gaga, but I recently acquired (acquired is such a weird word. Why is that c in there? Someone, please tell me.) her album and it seems to be the only music that can find its way on my playlist...(Interesting....) Now that I have, though, it is sort of an interesting topic. Not just Lady Gaga, but the whole concept of Obsessions and Guilty Pleasures.

I have a very addictive personality, one reason why I don't delve into the world of drugs and all that nonsense. I wouldn't last long. At all. Case in point, I just finished watching all 17 episodes of Castle in two days. Not healthy. And I do that with a lot of shows. In fact, I have seen far too many T.V (and anime) shows from beginning to end for it to be reasonable. I'm also rather obsessive about reading when I get around to it. Its a pity my compulsive behavior can never manifest itself in my schoolwork. 

Guilty pleasures are my favorite. Whether it be a food, a book, a band, a song, an activity, a place, whatever. I just love the little things that make people different from their immediate peers by liking something they "shouldn't." Most of my guilty pleasures involve music. Like Lady Gaga. There is no reason I should love this woman so much, but I do. I also love the song Fire Burnin' by Sean Kingston. Once again, no reason. But that is just fine with me. Another guilty pleasure I have is text-based mmorpgs. No one should like those, but once again, here I am, Obsessed and okay with it.

So, once again. This is completely different from what I initially set out to post about. But there are other days for those things. I feel better putting my love for Lady Gaga and fire burnin' in text.

~First-Fantasy~

Narcissism

Except for a select few people I've run across, blogs always tend to run on the narcissistic side. I'm not including those with a purpose, like recipes, humor, and things like that, but I find it really entertaining when people turn it into the new live journal.

This is where I enter.

I'm not planning on making this a new LiveJournal super outlet store or anything, but I also don't have a real clear idea as to what I'm going to turn this into. I felt that it was time I jump on the bandwagon, however. Besides, I need a place to put all the great stuff I stumble too!

Ideas, pictures, writing, art, ranting, inspiration, and pretty much anything else I can think of will probably end up here at one point or another.

For now, I'll leave you with two things that always make my day.
inudge
The Frisky