29 Things About Me: Celebrity Crushes

1. Shia LaBeouf
2. Gerard Butler
3. Ryan Gosling
4. Sidney Crosby
5. Mark-Paul Gosselaar
6. Bill Maher
7. Ben Affleck
8. John Slattery
9. Jimmy Fallon
10. Jonathan Rhys Meyers
11. John Krasinski
12. Bradley Cooper
13. Ashton Kutcher
14. Liam Neeson
15. Ryan Phillippe
15. Jim Sturgess
16. Dylan McDermott
17. Henrik Lundqvist
18. Luke Pritchard
19. Jared Leto
20. Jack White
21. David Gandy
22. Paolo Nutini
23. Alexander Skarsgard
24. JFK Jr.
25. John Cusack
26. Zak Bagans
27. Tom Hardy
28. Jason Segel
29. Leonardo DiCaprio







Now Playing: "Stars" by The xx

29 Things About Me: Turn-Offs from the Opposite Sex

1. Arrogance
2. Unintelligence
3. Bad hair/Inability to grow facial hair
4. Poor sense of humor
5. Smoking
6. Drugs
7. Disrespect to women, animals, people in general
8. Immaturity
9. Dislike for Pittsburgh
10. No sports knowledge
11. Extreme foul language
12. Conservatives
13. Close-minded
14. Boring
15. No sense of style
16. Shorter than me in heels
17. Dependent/Clingy
18. Hunting/Guns
19. Unattractive voice
20. Doesn't drink- especially beer
21. Bad taste in music
22. The male basic bitch
23. Inability to do things for themselves around the house
24. Spoiled, preppy, rich boys
25. Southern frat boy types
26. No ambition
27. Atheists
28. Poor grammar/Command of the English language
29. Non-worldly/Lack of travel






Now Playing: "Shadow" by Wild Nothing

29 Things About Me: Turn-Ons From the Opposite Sex

1. A sexy voice
2. Nice hands
3. Intelligence
4. Charisma
5. Full head of dark hair
6. Blue eyes
7. Facial hair
8. Good taste in music
9. Successful
10. Ambitious
11. Weirdness
12. Creativity/Talent
13. Sense of humor
14. 6'2"
15. Owns a Pittsburgh Steeler Jersey
16. Liberal
17. Well-traveled
18. Open-minded
19. Strong calves
21. Defined arms
22. The lower v
23. Handy- DIY types
24. Well-read
25. Kindness to animals
26. Irishmen
27. A backwards hat
28. Well-placed & chosen tattoos
29. Nice smile


Now, where is he? ;)








Now Playing: "Midnight" by Coldplay (Giorgio Moroder Remix)
*Fits my mood perfectly

Quoteworthy: Oscar de la Renta 1932-2014

"I always say this: live, love, and laugh. A huge mistake we make is forgetting that one day we will die. We think that we are going to live forever. I always say life is like a little garden. There is a time to plant, then a time you have to weed. Just think about people you've deeply cared for. And then think of the people you wish you'd spent more time with. Or about the things you had loved and whether you'd given enough time to them."
-Oscar de la Renta




And here are just a few of my favorite creations in recent years from the legendary designer himself.

Amy Adams at The Oscars.

Jessica Alba at The Golden Globes.

Allison Williams at The Emmys.

Now Playing: "Southern Sun" by Boy and Bear

Quoteworthy

Now Playing: "Sweet Thing" by Van Morrison

*One of my all-time favorites!

National Poetry Day

"We are like roses that have never bothered to bloom when we should have bloomed and it is as if the Sun has become disgusted with waiting."
-Charles Bukowski

"Iron Sky" by Paolo Nutini (Live)

"Iron Sky"

We are proud individuals living on the city,
But the flames couldn’t go much higher.
We find God and religions too,
To paint us with salvation.
But no one,
No nobody,
Can give you the power,

To rise over love,
And over hate,
Through this iron sky,
That’s fast becoming our minds.
Over fear and into freedom.

Oh, that’s life
That’s dripping down the walls
Of a dream that cannot breathe
In this harsh reality
Mass confusion spoon fed to the blind
Serves now to define our cold society

From which we’ll rise over love,
Over hate,
From this iron sky,
That’s fast becoming our minds.
Over fear and into freedom.

You just got to hold on!
You just got to hold on!

Ohhh ohhhh oh oh

(To those who can hear me, I say, do not despair.
The misery that is now upon us is but the passing of greed,
the bitterness of men who fear the way of human progress.
The hate of men will pass, and dictators die,
and the power they took from the people will return to the people.
And so long as men die, liberty will never perish.
Don't give yourselves to these unnatural men –
machine men with machine minds and machine hearts!
You are not machines, you are not cattle, you are men!
You, the people, have the power to make this life free and beautiful,
to make this life a wonderful adventure
Let us use that power!
Let us all unite!)

And we’ll rise over love,
And over hate,
Through this iron sky,
That’s fast becoming our minds
Over fear,
Into freedom.
Into freedom!

From which we’ll rise over love,
And over hate,
Through this iron sky,
That’s fast becoming our minds.
Over fear and into freedom.
Freedom!

Oh!
Rain on me!
Rain on me!
Rain on me!

Quoteworthy

"Some things are destined to be- it just takes a couple of tries to get there."
-J.R. Ward












Now Playing: "Disappear" by Mikky Ekko
*Atmospheric.
**Photo: Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland.

Quoteworthy

Now Playing: "No Diggity" by Chet Faker (Blackstreet Cover)

Missed Connections: Orange Is The New Aphrodisiac Edition

Because really, who doesn't like a little handcuff action?















Now Playing: "Distant Light" by Dr. Dog

Quoteworthy

“It was love at first sight, at last sight, at ever and ever sight.” 
-Vladimir Nabokov 1899-1977















Now Playing: "Video Games" by Lana Del Rey
*I admit that this is one of my favorite songs of the past few years.

Go Deep: Shia LaBeouf, the Nymphomaniac Interview

Perhaps it's because he shares the same exact birthday with one of my best friends so I know our Gemini-Aquarius compatibility is on point, or maybe it's because I grew up watching him on Even Stevens, but Shia LaBeouf just does it for me. 

“The first info we got — and I’ll never forget this because my entire team reacted with such fear — the first request from the production end, not Lars, was for pictures of my penis. Lars goes, ‘Send him the letter. The letter was, ‘Are you game?’ I guess the first test was, ‘Let’s time how long it takes this motherfucker to send his dick over the Internet.’ It was like 20 minutes; they were like, ‘All right, kid’s ready.’”

Now Playing: "Heartbreaker" by Led Zeppelin

Missed Connections: Adult Entertainment Edition

Because flip flops are always the wisest footwear selection when it's 11 degrees out. And that's about all that stood out to me as suspect.

Now Playing: "Neptune Estate" by King Krule

Wonderwall

Now Playing: "Harvest Moon" by Neil Young
*One of my favorite songs to play during the Fall :)

Flick Pick: Safety Not Guaranteed

Apparently Safety Not Guaranteed came out last year but I don't remember ever seeing any trailers or hearing a thing about it. I'm really glad that I stumbled upon it on Netflix. Simply put, this was one of the most outstanding films I've seen in quite some time. It was completely original and the type of screenplay that I'd want to write. In fact, the movie itself reminded me of a Missed Connections ad that I posted here on my blog a couple years back (check it out here).

Charming, funny and surprisingly profound, I would definitely recommend seeing Safety Not Guaranteed. The cast was superb. This is a movie for people with an open mind and a longing for the past. If you've ever had your heart broken or known pain of any kind- the type of wound that time didn't seem to heal, this movie will capture that feeling. You'll finish with a sense that you're not in this thing alone.










Now Playing: "Shake" by The Head and the Heart
*This song fits the film perfectly!

Missed Connections: Colors and Effects Edition

Sometimes you stumble upon the most poetic bits of lit on Missed Connections. No snark this time. Only love.









Now Playing: "Alaskans" by Volcano Choir
*I miss you.

ever thine ever mine ever ours

Good morning, on July 7 

Though still in bed, my thoughts go out to you, my Immortal Beloved, now and then joyfully, then sadly, waiting to learn whether or not fate will hear us - I can live only wholly with you or not at all - Yes, I am resolved to wander so long away from you until I can fly to your arms and say that I am really at home with you, and can send my soul enwrapped in you into the land of spirits - Yes, unhappily it must be so - You will be the more contained since you know my fidelity to you. No one else can ever possess my heart - never - never - Oh God, why must one be parted from one whom one so loves. And yet my life in V is now a wretched life - Your love makes me at once the happiest and the unhappiest of men - At my age I need a steady, quiet life - can that be so in our connection? My angel, I have just been told that the mailcoach goes every day - therefore I must close at once so that you may receive the letter at once - Be calm, only by a calm consideration of our existence can we achieve our purpose to live together - Be calm - love me - today - yesterday - what tearful longings for you - you - you - my life - my all - farewell. Oh continue to love me - never misjudge the most faithful heart of your beloved. 

ever thine 

ever mine 

ever ours

-Ludwig van Beethoven, Third Letter, Immortal Beloved










Now Playing: "Moonlight Sonata" by Beethoven

Quoteworthy

“It's no good pretending that any relationship has a future if your record collections disagree violently or if your favorite films wouldn't even speak to each other if they met at a party.” 
-Nick Hornby









Now Playing: "My Sweet Lord" by George Harrison
*I like to sing "Krista, Krista" because I'm a lyrical purist and all.

Free People, Summer Love Mixtape Contest

If you haven't already noticed from reading my blog, I have a thing for creating a playlist. When I saw on Free People's blog that they were sponsoring a musical contest, I was geeked out and ready to shuffle. 

We were asked to select 5-10 songs for a collaborative mixtape. The theme was "Summer Love." Here are the songs that quickly came to mind:



1. "Hey Lover" by LL Cool J
2. "Share with Me the Sun" by Portugal. The Man
3.  "Night Moves" by Bob Seger
4. "Summertime Sadness" by Lana Del Rey
5. "Having a Party" by Sam Cooke
6. "Beauty" by The Shivers
7. "Balance" by Future Islands
8. "Fader" by The Temper Trap
9. "Magic" by Leagues
10. "Come Home" by Chappo

To check out all the submissions, click here.

Something Completely Random

Quoteworthy

via The Boston Globe:
A photo of Martin Richard, the 8-year-old boy killed in the Marathon bombing, holding this sign has come to symbolize the tragedy worldwide.