Musica Monday

You know one unfortunate thing about being a blogger is that when your internet sucks, it becomes very hard to do what you want.  Unfortunately, it is not an uncommon occurrence for me, right around the same time many nights my internet gets a bit sketchy, then comes back without a problem.  This gets very old very fast.  I don't usually loose the connection completely, but the speed starts reminding me of dial up...remember that stuff?  Geeze...look how far we have come! I mean seriously! It's a bit crazy if you think about it.  When I look at how much we rely on the internet, it's kind of shocking don't you think? I'm not sure what you think, but we really use the internet for just about everything in the modern days, everything from talking to one another to reading to doing homework or giving homework, I even sign in online for work.  It's almost like we would rather interact with computers rather than actual people, sure we interact with other people through the internet, but it's not the same is it?  Now I sound like my grandmother, talk to people rather than text...I won't deny that I am a victim of this technology, and I will admit to sometimes preferring interaction with other humans via interwebs rather than face-to-face.  What does this say about how we feel about each other? Do we dislike each other or do we simply not want to have to get dressed in order to appear decent around others (since we realize many of us are not in college, therefore can no longer pull this look off)?  I think it might be something worth thinking about.

Listen to this song and let me know what you think!  I wanted to share with you a song today by a band that I've enjoyed for years. I first heard them on Pandora probably six years ago or so. I hope you enjoy "Magnetic North" by Jess Than Jake.

Love,
Sara :)

Musica Monday

I had a really shitty day. I mean I just feel like a boatload of crap and don't even want to go to bed because it means I will have to get up and try to do things right in the morning. But this is the adult life, so it's about time to get used to it and instead of complaining, try and do something to change it.
One of my favorite things to do when I feel this way is to read or watch a movie and there is one movie right now that I would really like to watch but don't have :( That movie is Treasure Planet. If any of you have not seen it then you need to go watch it....now. Seriously....go...it's awesome! It's one of my favorite movies and just to add to it, has a magnificent soundtrack, composed by the amazing James Newton Howard.
For those of you who haven't heard of James Newton Howard, you actually probably have. He is the composer for the soundtracks for other movies such as I Am Legend, The Hunger Games, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, King Kong, and, most recently, Maleficent. I have to say that Treasure Planet is still probably one of my favorite soundtracks of all time and can always put me in a better mood when I listen to it. So, today I will be featuring this wonderful soundtrack and I hope that you enjoy it!

The following is my favorite instrumental and my favorite lyric pieces from the soundtrack, enjoy!

Love,
Sara :)

Weekend Links

Now, I don't exactly have a lot of links for you this weekend because it's been one hell of a week and I've come home exhausted everyday wanting to do nothing but sleep, eat, and read. Seriously, I've gotten like 3 books read just this week and I have 5 more sitting on my desk taking up room because I don't have room anywhere else in my bedroom...whoops! I've been doing a bunch of reading this week (if you can't tell) and due to that I apologize for not posting....like at all....I didn't even make dinner once this week...it was sad! But, there is a silver lining, and that silver lining is that I have been reading articles and have been spending time online as well as in the real world :P which is always something good to do!

• I stumbled across this article on daydreaming and I think it bears a good thing to read!
• Going along with that, an article about things my generation does that are worth thinking about and I happen to agree with 100% of them!
• There's the saying that a picture can take a place of 1000 words, and for this millennium, these pictures do it all justice, the good and the bad.
• I believe that this dumpster house is a unique idea and the start of something but would get tough when you wanted to cook...unless you're going all raw, which another thing all in itself!
• I suppose these shipping container houses are more my style?
• These posters are also really quite awesome and I'm thinking of getting one or two for my bedroom which is looking very blank on the wall decoration aspect....

What types of things did you guys discover this week??

Love,

Sara :)

Musica Monday

Hello there fellow readers~

Today I am going to bring up a music video that I feel is very interesting.  It is rather unusual when I take hours looking into a music video, but this special gem has captured my attention.  It is called La La La by Naughty Boy.  Before discussing this song/video, I urge you to watch it if you haven't already - as first impressions will carve out your initial thoughts.  If you are ahead of the gang and have seen this already, skip down after the video :P

So I am going to break this down into what I feel are the 3 easiest ways to do so.

Number 1:

This seems the be the straightforward approach to interpret this song, and that is by the lyrics themselves.  I can see applying this to perhaps a relationship, a rocky one at best.  A relationship that is very damaged and resulting in one of the members not being able to stand the other at all.  But even if you change the lyrics or see them a bit differently, it only seems to tell part of the story.

Number 2:

The wizard of Oz.  Yup - you probably guessed it by the heart.  But starting from the beginning, the kid leaves his home as Dorthy did, heading into the unknown with his dog.  He meets the tin man, who seems to have false happiness in the gym.  So the child buys him a heart and shows true love, adventuring forward.  Next the scarecrow joins the team to find oz.  They travel long and far and eventually find the spot with oz - the tin man leaving knowing love and the scarecrow leaving with calmness in his mind.   This leads to the boy talking with oz and going home.  Alright - It is a stretch.   But it has some resemblance, but still is rather shaky in the comparison at best.  Leaving us with option 3.

Number 3:

This is the actual basis for the song, and lines up easily the best with both the lyrics and the video.  A Bolivian legend from the from the 19th century.   It is about a deaf boy who fled from his abusive household (as seen in the beginning of the video) and finds a stray dog.  He lives on the streets and discovers he has a special talent of perceiving people's troubles.  These troubles can be healed by screaming.(la la la in the song) His screaming is said to be as loud as an earthquake and a tornado.

Eventually the boy finds a man who is being stoned by villagers while being taunted and ridiculed.(the radio man) By screaming, the boy resolves the situation and revives the old man's heart (the boy buys a new heart for him).

Together, they meet a disfigured man who was abused, and is considered a leper by society. The disfigured man reveals that he is a prophet who was cursed by the demon El Tio - because he didn't worship him. So he left like any sane person would :P

 El Tio is considered as the lord of the underworld, to whom mortal people offer gifts to him in order to be protected by him or to ease his anger. The prophet says anybody who could hear the demon will fall under his control. The disfigured man explained that the demon could be found in desert remains.

This place was once a town in which people worshiped the El Tio - he cursed them to kill themselves. So they trudge through the desert to find a mine where the demon is located. The trick is anybody who enters and could be cursed after hearing the demon speak. So the boy alone goes into the mine to meet the demon and over voice him with his scream to stop him from cursing others.  WHEW!  

Interesting Right??? So in all, I don't think there is a right or wrong way to interpret this song or music in general.  The legend certainly made the most sense to me, but that may not be the same for you.  But I do find it fun trying to figure out the meaning behind some of these interesting artistic pieces and if you stuck through all the way til here - I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments!!

As always, thanks for reading!
Have a wonderful day!!!

Yummy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Aka: basic things to know how to cook when you move out of your parents' house. I had this urge this past weekend to make cookies, so we did! Just like I used to with my mom and sister :)

Ingredients:

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla

1 large egg

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp warm water

1 bag (12-oz) semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

2. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugars.

3. Add vanilla and eggs and mix until combined.

4. Stir in flour, a little bit at a time, then baking soda, and salt. If you need some extra liquid, add no more than a Tbsp of warm water.

5. Using a wooden spoon, slowly add in the chocolate chips to your batter.

6. Using a table spoon, scoop dough onto a non-stick or sprayed cookie sheet and pop into the oven. Cook for 8-10 minutes, until the edges are browned and the center remains slightly soft.

7. Enjoy!

What have you been cooking lately??

Love,

Sara :)

Musica Monday

Summer is always a hectic time, and no matter what it is you do during these few months, there always seems to be a million and one things that need to get done. My summer has been no different, filled with adventures, cooking, eating, good music, and wonderful memories. This past weekend, I attended the wedding of one of my cousins. It was a short but beautiful service followed by a fun and upbeat reception hosted by a BBQ grill (translation: delicious food that even a mostly-vegetarian like me can enjoy!)! The place settings were beautiful and I attempted to take pictures with my phone but was eventually unhappy with nearly all except the following.

There was great food, music, and lots of dancing as is expected at any wedding reception. The couple was quite a fan of country music and it made me laugh at how many country songs I now know. Before moving in with my current apartment mate, I was not a big country fan. Sure I knew Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, and such artists, however, at this wedding several other songs were played and Matt was shocked at how many I knew the lyrics too. Honestly, this shocked me as well, so I thank my apartment mate for expanding my experience and knowledge of music in a completely different direction.
If any of you have any interest in country music or listen to country music, this song was one that I remember being a big hit at the wedding.  This is 'American Kids' by Kenny Chesney.

Enjoy!
Love,
Sara :)

Books Books Books: The Opposite of Maybe

I warn that there are spoilers in my review today!!!! You have been warned!

I hesitated to choose this book when I first saw it on the website, and only picked it after consulting with my roommate that if I didn't like it, she would want to read it as well. However, throughout my experience reading this enthralling novel, I was struck with two competing thoughts: this really isn't my taste, I'm not sure I want to finish and I can't stop reading this deatiled novel. It became harder and harder to put this book down as time continued and ended up completing my reading journey in two days.

Rosie is a unique middle aged woman who is still trying to find her place in this world, finding out she is pregnant is just the cherry on top of the sundae of her complicated life of deciding between tea cup-obsessed Jonathan and separated father Tony, alongside taking care of her stubborn grandmother. While at points I had the desire to reach into the story and smack her or cover her mouth from saying something stupid, I came to realize that this was what made the story seem so real. Each scene was detailed to the extent that I could easily picture what the author was getting at and where her characters were.

Maddie Dawson did an amazing job bringing her characters to life and sucking me into her world. While it did take me a while to get into this book, this book is full of quirky moments as well as scenes that bring you close to tears. Well-written and descriptive, it is a perfect cloudy day read.

What have you all been reading lately? I would love to hear!

Love,

Sara :)

I received this book for free from Blogging for Books for this review.

Weekend Links

I enjoyed this last time, so I may try and make this a weekly thing with the weekend links! I know it's a popular thing to do around blogs, but honestly it makes sense. I don't mean to copy other people but I like the idea :)

• I might just have to splurge on this shirt because it describes my coffee and book addiction so well.
• Every woman who lives or has been to a big city should go to this website and watch a video or two!
• This one of my new favorite blogs! Go check out her amazing trips!!
• I think this has a very powerful message on street harassment and is an interesting and awesome way to try and get it across!
• There is a post that was published this week that really pin-points exactly how I feel, and I'm sure there are many others who feel this way too.
• I saw this book on the bookshelves the other day and was reminded of a good friend from college and how long it has been since I've had a good Cubano...
• Lastly, I want this print in my apartment! Pronto!

Enjoy and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!

Love,

Sara :)

Musica Monday

Ok, things have been a little crazy lately, and not so much in the real world sense, but more in my head. I've been doing a lot of thinking lately about what I want from this world and what I should do with my life. My boss has actually asked me several times where my head is at during work, and she's right, because my head is somewhere else. But thing is that I spend quite a bit of time with my thoughts in my head, and it's really one of my ways of coping with what I'm feeling and what is going on around me. So, maybe that's what is actually up. I think I'm getting tired of people asking what's wrong with me because this is who I am and frankly I like it, if you don't, that's your problem not mine. I want to share this song with you today because it is really a great way of getting across how I have been feeling, I'm sure I'm not the only one feeling this same way! This is "Fade Away" by Matthias (check out his YouTube channel too!), enjoy!!

Love,
Sara :)

Mini Half-Price Haul

Alright, it has been a while since my apartment mate and I went to Half-Price and we were feeling a bit deprived. Not to mention, we saw a trailer for the movie if i stay, which looks amazing, and we felt the need to find the book and read it before the movie comes out (as all good readers know to do). Anyways, my apartment mate ended up purchasing it, so we have a copy, and I think that she has nearly finished it already.
I wanted to share with you my mini-haul of the week, totaling for $17!

1. A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin. In case you don't know, I'm a mere 105 pages away from finishing the first book in this brilliant series by George R.R. Martin, so I decided to not wait and purchase the second book in the series. Even though I have not seen the TV series and have barely finished the first book, it is already very clear to me that this series is going to be one of those that will make my head spin and I will love every moment of it. Ok, minus when I started to randomly (in the view of others) scold the author for breaking my heart and killing another one of my favorite characters or the characters for being stupid, but still, the book would not be the same without that! My most expensive book of the haul, but I think $8 was worth it!

2. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. Who would not love a book written from the point of man's best friend? Yes, my friends, another book written from the POV of a dog! Rejoice and enjoy!

3. Shakespearean Detectives: Murders and Mysteries Based on Shakespeare's Life and Plays edited by Mike Ashley. This book was more purchased out of curiosity....I love Shakespeare and I really have a hard time passing up anything that has to do with him and/or murder mysteries. Seems like a perfect marriage right?

4. The Templar Legacy by Steven Berry. I had tried to check this book out of the library only to learn that my library card was not accepted in that county :( It made me very sad and when I saw this in the clearance section I couldn't say no. I do love my medieval literature, fiction and not!

What books have you been reading lately?

Love,
Sara :)

Musica Monday

In honor of the beloved Robin Williams who has left this earth today, I just wanted to share my favorite song of his from one of my favorite childhood movies, Aladdin. I hope you all enjoy the music and remember this amazing man and what he has done for us.

Love,
Sara :)

Books Books Books: Simple Thai Food by Leela Punyaratabandhu

I'm finally getting back into the book reviewing! I'm excited and hopefully you are too! Here goes my first book review back from my time off. :P

When I was in high school, we had a foreign exchange student come and visit from Thailand. Until then, I had never really been exposed to the Thai culture, all I knew was they had elephants and spicy food. My foreign exchange brother, as my sister and I called him, had a dream of someday opening his own restaurant, which of course led to him cooking for us once or twice. He also found a delicious restaurant in Milwaukee where we ended up going several times throughout his stay that served authentic Thai food. I think it was at that point that I fell in love with Thai cuisine. Nearly eight years later, this cookbook has fully renewed that love for Thai food.

Leela Punyaratabandhu has done an amazing job with bringing out the beauty and subtle complexity that Thai food offers. As soon as I opened the book, I was struck by the colorful pictures and ended up paging through the book first just to see the bright colors of the food that I could not wait to cook in my own kitchen. Her descriptions of each dish at the start were funny and felt homey at the same time, with a friendly voice to the narrations and optional American alternatives that make each dish more available to those of us unable to order completely authentic ingredients.

As with many different authentic cuisine books, some of the ingredients were a bit more on the pricy side, so for people on a limited budget it is a bit more difficult. It also is not a cookbook that is friendly towards certain dietary restrictions, just as a forewarning. Another thought to be noted is that this cookbook is not for those looking for a quick meal; the recipes are complicated and require several ingredients that most households would not normally have in order to attain the unique Thai flavors. However, the aroma that filled my apartment as I tried my hand at Leela's recipes is one that will bring your friends and neighbors knocking to try a taste.

I hope that you get the opportunity to try out some of these recipes, which I will be posting a few of my own vegetarian alterations as well as possibly some chicken recipes as soon as I get my act together.

Love,
Sara :)

I received this book for free from Blogging for Books for this review.

Muisca Monday

It is officially musical h-e-double-hockey-sticks week for many people, myself included. Why? It's dress rehearsal for the musical!! Opening night is Thursday and we have yet to get through the entire musical without stopping or getting confused! Yay!! 0.0 Why do I put myself through this year after year? Honestly, it's goofy. But musical people live for it, we are just crazy like that. So, yea, that's what's going on for me this week...
In other news, I signed up for a half marathon (yes, 13.1 miles) in September and I am super excited to run it, plus kinda scared too. I'm still trying to run more than 6 or 7 miles without my body being done, so we shall see how this goes! :P
Today's music is brought to you by the lovely YouTube (as usual) and by my roomie. She was the one who showed this to me and now I am sharing with you! I hope you enjoy "I'm Ready" by AJR, who are a YouTube sensation who have captured the interest of so many people worldwide!

 

 

Love,

Sara :)

Weekend Links

Since I'm not posting on weekends (and struggling with the posting otherwise) I've decided to give you guys a post of what I've found looking around the internet during my 'free time', meaning while I'm sitting at work between clients, don't tell my boss. I hope you guys enjoy!

• Found this blog while looking through Bloglovin, and these look delicious!
• Also this bread sounds like a much better breakfast than my current cereal.
• Officially adding these countries to my travel list, several were already there, but now the rest are too!
• As some of you way know, I'm now registered on this site and just got my cookbook in the mail! I can't wait to start!
• Just because I'm mostly vegetarian doesn't mean I can't appreciate delicious looking chicken like this.
• If you're looking to travel to the Galapagos, Ecuador, or Peru this could be a great place to look.
• And you have to admit that a chair like this would be awesome!
• I have to end on this though, I think we all sometimes need the reminder...

It's amazing how much is really out there if you just take the time to look. What have you guys found recently?

Love,
Sara :)

Blogging for Books

Due to my recent desire to read, but the lack of actually following through with it, I have joined a website called Blogging for Books. I still plan to finish the books I had listed in my Summer Reading List, but now will be receiving books in the mail to read and review online here. I am excited to get back into the swing of writing reviews for the books I read and really thinking about them instead of just jumping into the next one like I have been doing recently.

The premise of this website seems to be to allow book lovers to read and rate books for free. Which in my opinion, is awesome! I can order one book at a time and need to post a review within 90 days of receiving the book. This review should be posted both on the Blogging for Books blog and on my blog as well, meaning it will show up here! After posting a review I can request a new book.

I am super excited to get started with this and look forward to my first book, Simple Thai Food by Leela Punyaratabandhu, which is coming in the mail! I can't wait to share these reviews. I know this blog isn't very widely read but these reviews are for those who do get the chance to get on and read. You are awesome!

Love,
Sara :)

Muisca Monday

Changes are good...right? I mean there's a lot to be said for changing little things in our lives like exercising and eating well, and I do not mean to belittle these things at all, but what about changes so big that they require a complete lifestyle change? The problem with being in my head is that I keep thinking about how much things can change and what would happen if things were to change, I'm that annoying student who asks 'what if' in the middle of a class discussion where there should not be a 'what if' asked. Yea, especially in college, I was not much of a talker in high school.
But as I think about it, it's kinda silly to keep asking what if when it is what it is and it's the changes that really make us who we are and make us think. I guess what I'm saying is that I'm doing quite a bit of changing lately and they will only continue to happen as long as I stay on the path I'm going. I hope that you all are willing to take some risks and try something new! This song has been in my head all day, it's called "Change Your Life" by Little Mix. Btw I love her purple hair! Enjoy!

Love,
Sara :)

Books Books Books: Summer Reading Update

Hey all! So, last month I made a list of the books that I was going to read this summer. I apologize but I haven't been putting up any sore of reviews here, mostly because I've been kinda lazy. Anyways, I wanted to take this time to summarize what I've ready as of now since it's near the end of the first month of summer!

As of now I've read only two books on my list, Divergent and The Lightening Thief. However, to be honest, I got distracted by The Lightening Thief and ended up reading the entire Percy Jackson and the Olympians series in a few sittings. This series was awesome and really held my interest throughout the books. Now, yes I do have the mind of a teenager at times when it comes to books, but I think these are all definitely worth a read. As for the Divergent series, my apartment mate has just finished the second book in the series, Insurgent, and has started the third, Allegiant, I think I may hold off on these two though until she finishes the last one so I can read them all the way through without having to wait. The first one was brilliant and I can't wait to read the rest of the series! I've heard good things!

Instead, next on my list is going to be Game of Thrones. Now, a disclaimer, I realized that the picture I put up on my previous post about this book was a picture of the cover of the graphic novel. I will not be reading the graphic novel, but the actual thick, paperback version of the story. I'm hoping to have this one done before Matt and I head to a friend's for the 4th of July.

For any of you who did look at my Goodreads account, you know that I am also reading a few other books at the same time. I hardly ever only read one book at a time, that's just not my style. I am also currently reading My So-Called Freelance Life: How to Survive and Thrive as a Creative Professional for Hire by Michelle Goodman, mostly because I've got this dream of being able to write my own stories someday and I'm a personal trainer (not usually classified as creative, but still a professional for hire!) and knowing how to run my own 'company' or at least hire myself out is something that I think would be good to know! The other book on my reading list is Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People, according to my boss, it's a book that every professional should read (even though it was published originally in 1936) and so I am reading it. Lastly, Eating Animals is still not done...it's hard for me to get through.

I put this last picture in here because that is how I'm feeling a bit about my summer reading list, since nearly all the books have been made into movies (nothing to say the movies were bad....but Percy Jackson?), be sure to ready the books if you want to learn the true meaning behind over half the movie and what really happened to the characters! Just because the movie isn't the best means nothing for the worth of the book itself! Remember :)

Love,
Sara :)

Musica Monday

I had a rough day. Well, more accurately a rough hour and a half at work. It shook me up pretty bad and I'm all ready to hand in the towel and quit. No looking back or anything. I've only been in this situation once before and luckily that was solved and everyone moved on. I'm not sure what it is about this, but I was legitimately terrified for a while and ended up calling my supervisor, who talked to me for a good 5-10 minutes in order to calm me down enough to talk explain what happened. There are certain things I will share here, and there are certain things I will not. All I can really say is that I am super glad that tomorrow is not an early day. I've been considering leaving this job for a while anyways, I'm feeling like now might be a good time.

Have you ever had one of those days? Or one of those times where you just get so scared that you wish you could pause your life and just leave it? It's probably one of the most terrifying things I've ever felt. You can think I'm over reacting and maybe I am, but right now it's feeling pretty real. They say that having no reason to stay is a good reason to go, maybe it's getting close to that time... I'm not sure but I've been thinking that a lot more lately...

The song for today, I'm not exactly sure where it came from, it's just what has been playing in my head the entire time I've been writing this post. It's actually written by one of the bands that got me into alternative music, The Killers, but I feel like this is one of their lesser known, called 'Dustland Fairytale'. Enjoy, dear readers. I hope that your days are much better than mine was :)

Love,
Sara :)

Summer Plans

It's official! Matt and I have planned our very first camping trip together! There are a bunch of things to get ready for, but the hardest part is to stay focused on the real world until then. We are going to be camping in August for the weekend north of here on the other side of Wisconsin. I'm so excited and can't wait to share what we are planning with you all!!

As part of this trip, I have decided that I am way over due for getting that new camera. So, I'm taking suggestions and am planning on getting a camera (probskies a video?) for our trip because, let's face it, my iPhone just isn't going to do the trick here.

Musica Monday

Ever had one of those days/nights where no matter what you know nothing is going to get done? Well, I've been having a few of those lately, and it has lead me to watching a bunch of cheezy romantic movies and finding music and shows and books that appeal to me at such a late hour. I should preface this by stating that this usually happens around 9pm, and the not being able to get anything done encompasses going to sleep. Lately, I've been writing while watching these cheezy romantic movies, and one of my favorites has become 'Slightly Single in L.A.' which is definitely a movie that I would recommend for anyone looking for a romantic comedy to watch. This movie follows a young woman who moves to L.A. after her past three relationships ended in cheating (sad sounding I know, but it's quite amusing none the less), anyways she heads out to L.A., lives with her best friend (who is awesome) and hangs out with her crazy friends. There is a new love interest again (well a few...) and while this movie portrays personal trainers as self-centered and pompous, the musician she knows is quite sweet. This is where my music for today's Musica Monday comes from. This song is by the 'Aaron Hendra Project' called 'Walk With Angels'. Listen and enjoy, my friends.

The CD that includes this song, Octobersong, was just released a month ago on iTunes and includes other songs such as 'Alive', 'U', and 'One Man's War (feat. Children of Shekinah Children's Village, Nimule, South Sedan', which is an amazing song with the voices of actual children from South Sedan who have been rescued that gives me chills, but is such an inspiring and brilliant song! I don't think I can give a good enough summary of this song without having you watch this video and listen to the words he sings.

Enjoy and peace, friends!
Love,
Sara :)