Wow, my life has been a rollercoaster lately– a very fun & exciting one that I want to keep riding over & over again! I am feeling guilty for the lack of updates, but I suppose worse things could happen than me being too busy enjoying my life to remember to blog about it. Anyways, I am going to give you a crash course on what’s been going on lately. Allow me to indulge myself.

• I graduated from college! I am a college graduation. Huh, what!? How weird is that? Seriously! I now have permission to impart my infinite knowledge & wisdom on the young impressionable minds of teenagers. In other words, I got my English teaching degree! Huzzah! I still have to do an Internship in order to receive my teaching license this coming fall, but I will be in my own classroom & be responsible for teaching a room full of unruly high schoolers. It totally freaks me out– in a really, really good way! Oh yeah, check me out in the sea of graduation gowns below. Can you find me? I’m the one in the middle waving & smiling like crazy. I love this picture because I’m all like “Oh hey, what’s up?”

• I’ve been learning how to cook. I made the most delicious chicken & brown rice casserole the other night. All. By. Myself. You guys, this is a big deal. I don’t cook. Ever. So, for me to make something that was not only edible– but good– is a huge step in the right direction.
• I’m enjoying summertime with my friends. Every Tuesday, a group of friends & I take off work & go to my friend’s aunt’s pool. It’s like a mini vacation. I adore it.
• Reading, reading, reading. I am taking this time to read as much as possible. Currently, I am reading the memoir Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi. I’m trying to read more non-fiction books. I often get so caught up in fiction novels that I forget that there are so many other wonderful genres out there to explore. Any recommendations?



• Planning, planning, planning. I am spending every speck of time that I’m not hanging out with friends or working (I work in an office four days a week doing clerical work) planning for my class this coming Fall. I am going to be teaching them Beowulf. I have been running my Google search ragged looking for resources and so forth.

I felt like there was more to tell, but I guess not? All I know is that I am in a very exciting/scary time in my life. I am definitely going to keep up with this blog, but I just wanted to let you know what I’ve been up to so you might have an idea as to why I haven’t been posting more! I hope you are all having a great summer thus far & are keeping yourselves inspired in some small way every day!

Music is something that I don’t write about often (or really at all) on this blog which is odd considering how endlessly inspiring I find it. So, I’ve decided to write ten thumbnail reviews (consisting of 50 words or less) of albums that I love for one reason or another. These aren’t new albums or artists. In fact, most of these albums have been out for several years. They are just albums that I seem to always turn to when I need something familiar– something that I know I can listen to all the way through and know all the words.

I must admit, having only a 50 word limit was more difficult than I thought it would be. It really made me have to think about what was most important about the album that I wanted to convey to you. Feel free to leave me a comment with your favorite “comfort albums”. I’m always up for discovering new music!

Sufjan Stevens
Illinoise (Asthmatic Kitty)
A truly magnificent album: inspiring, intense, and stirring. Stevens has created a propulsion of songs that seamlessly flow into one another. His instrumental compositions are breathtaking in their breadth and delicacy. Stevens’ artistic vision is so complete. This is music in its purest and most beautiful form.

mewithoutYou
A to B: Life (Tooth & Nail)
One word: relentless. mewithoutYou bury listeners with weighty guitars and pounding drums as vocalist Aaron Weiss screams out his hauntingly poetic lyrics. The fervor in his voice makes it effortless to connect with him and his words. Not many albums can make you sit up and take notice like this one.

Mates of State
Team Boo (Polyvinyl)
This husband and wife duo relies on an organ, drum kit, and back-and-forth conversational vocals to create a buoyant flood of sound. Their voices are filled to the brim with emotion and heart-squishing goodness. The harmony created is unique in its ability to be both severe and alluring simultaneously.

Cursive
The Ugly Organ (Saddle Creek)
An enthralling, emotional powerhouse that rips your head off and then gently sews it back in place. This album’s sum is much greater than its parts. The music reminds me of walking through some dense forest in the middle of the night: dark and impenetrable.

Death Cab for Cutie
The Photo Album (Barsuk)
This album makes me homesick; for what, I’m not entirely sure. Gibbard’s voice has just the right amount of sweetness to it as he croons about different vivid memories he has encountered over his life. The entire album is like looking at a stranger’s photo album: intimate yet ambiguous.

Regina Spektor
Soviet Kitsch (Sire)
Biting, ironic lyrics are driven by forceful piano melodies. Spektor skillfully sings about divorce, death, and suicide making the topics somehow seem beautiful and charming.  Her voice resembles a young girl’s: giddy and raspy in all its messy, fluctuating loveliness and using cute little vocal noises to convey her feelings.

Minus the Bear
Highly Refined Pirates (Suicide Squeeze)
This is the soundtrack to late-night summer parties. Swelling rhythms of dizzying time signatures are driven by mathy guitars and tenacious percussion, and topped off with a pinch of electronic beats. Witty and sharp lyrics round out this flourishing revelry that is anything but refined.

Rilo Kiley
The Execution of All Things (Saddle Creek)
A quintessential indie-rock album framed by Jenny Lewis’ deliciously sexy vocals. The lyrics beg to be sung along to at the top of your lungs. The music seems a bit too measured at times, but over all this is an album you will want to listen to again and again.

Copeland
Beneath the Medicine Tree (Militia Group)
Unbridled emotions are strewn together by sweeping guitars and surgical drumming. Punctuated by engaging piano solos, Beneath The Medicine Tree drips with sincerity. Aaron Marsh methodically crafts rich melodies with his soothing voice that will keep you captivated from start to finish.

Pretty Girls Make Graves
The New Romance (Matador)
Both daring and neurotic, this album uses colorful vocals ranging from whispers to screams in the span of a few seconds. The music is wonderfully complicated; with layers of sound effortlessly building atop one another. If nothing else, it’s worth keeping around for those impromptu dance parties in your bedroom.

Who knew that upside-down houses and dilapidated buildings could be combined to create something so beautiful? Amy Casey’s work certainly proves that it can absolutely be done– and done well! Casey brings together all sorts of visually-interesting elements to create pieces that are captivating in their complexity and composition. Casey’s paintings have an obviously noticeable theme: crumbling structures and  chaos. What initially drew me to Casey’s paintings was her ability to create something beautiful within the chaos of her paintings. I was curious to find out whether there was anything more to these paintings than what initially meets to eye. I was pleased, therefore, to find a sort of artist statement on her website. Here is a quote from Casey about her work that I found especially interesting:

For about the last eight years, I have been experiencing a sporadically recurring dream about the end of the world. Animals stampeding and buildings falling into dust around me. I wake up in a panic and with a heavy sense of inevitability. Although I’m not trying to recreate this dream in my work, I think that like my dream, my paintings reflect my view of the nervous state of affairs the world seems to be in. Inspired by natural and unnatural disasters, personal fiascoes, and the never-ending stream of bad news coming from the media, the world inside my paintings has been turned (sometimes literally) upside down.

Casey goes on to discuss what it is that truly inspires her and her work; these things include: anxiety, vulnerability, community, the illusions of safety, and the resilience of life. After reading about what it is Casey was attempting to convey in her artwork, I find the pieces all the more intriguing. I am glad there are artists out there like Amy Casey that are willing to explore these issues. If you would like to see a few more of Casey’s paintings, click on any of the thumbnail images in the gallery below. An extensive body of work may be found here. Casey also has a blog that allows you to see the process she goes through when creating her paintings. I highly recommend you checking out

Amy Casey Gallery:
[Click on the thumbnails below to view larger image:]

Teacher Outfits by Chriztine featuring J Crew

There were so many amazing contributions to my Teacher Outfit contest! It was extremely difficult for me to choose just one winner. But, since I don’t have enough Polaroid film to go around, it had to be done. SO, I chose Christine’s set ( shown above) because I thought they were absolutely teacher-appropriate and showed a wide range of options. Also, I think that they all are just my style & I could easily see myself wearing each one of them in the classroom. Plus, I absolutely need that navy blue blazer on the right. So, congratulations Christine! And, thank you all for participating. I am including some of my favorites in this post because they were just too good not to share.

Teacher by kate rose featuring Paul Smith shoes

emily abigail by alyson210 featuring Marni accessories

Emily Abigail Teacher Outfit by janiep featuring CHANEL earrings

For Emily Abigail by queenmelike featuring Dorothy Perkins