I'm Really Into Topknots.

How cute are these girls in their cute, girly outfits and messy topknots?

{photos from of manrepeller.com}

Okay, this one's a little over-the-top, I'll give you that.

Evidently, they were all the rage in the spring fashion shows.

Even celebrities are rocking them...

Keri Russell

And yet, after a pre-Christmas Christmas dinner, as we were headed to the movies, I threw my hair in to a top knot and was mocked relentlessly for being serious about wearing my hair like that in public.

We're talking out loud laughter, side-mouth mutterings and even a "well, at least she's not embarrassed" comment in line at the movies. It was so much mocking that my mom even mentioned it again the next day, "They sure were concerned about your hair-do!"

I showed them...

I wore that silly gold ribbon that they had tied around my topknot all night.

Just look at how cool I look here:

topknot, 3D glasses, and a Chipmunk display.

Here's a little topknot tutorial for you, in case you're feeling gutsy.

I'm pretty sure I'm going to try this look for work tomorrow.

Can't wait to hear McGill's response.

Moving Right Along...

I spent the week between Christmas and New Year's packing up an apartment.

And then spent the day before New Year's Eve moving in to a new condo.

That evening, I set up my entire bedroom and the majority of our living room.

Not too shabby for 13 hours.

But, I'm pretty sure that after that...time froze.

That must be the reason so few other changes have been made to this place, right?

I can attest to the fact that we have been working--pretty consistently, in fact--to unpack boxes and put things in their places, but there is so much more to be done. It's almost as if we're moving things around instead of putting them away. (If you had watched me try to hang pictures tonight, you would know that this is precisely what is happening sometimes.)

We got our refrigerator on Monday (a baby fridge from when I lived on the Flower streets.) Today the grocery shopping was 35% about what I want to eat this week and 65% about what will fit it the shelves and door of the refrigerator. (I'll take a few photos tomorrow so you can see what we're working with!)

Tonight, I came home from work and felt a little overwhelmed: how can I lay around when there is work to be done?

However, two hours ago, as I sat on my couch with my roommate, friend, and two of the three dudes from upstairs (I live next door to some of my very favorite friends--more on that later), none of the clutter mattered. This already felt like home.

A Photographic Recap of 2011

Golfing with my Papa and Cousin on Valentine's Day {Feb}

Luke "artsy-ed up" some of my great-grandparents' slides {March}

Spent an afternoon with my grandpa and cousin, Elijah {April}

Played some Settlers of Catan

The game was not shirts vs skins, though it appears that way {May}

Our 2011 Kenya Team {June/July}

Brian

Grace (Left) rapped for Boaz

Met Alice in Bosnia Refugee Camp

Carried a ship on a plane

Korode and Peter

P.I.G. and Etao

Our photos hanging in the boys' room

Steve and the Matryoshka Doll

Hiking near Cambria with my dad and Reese {August}

Drove through Santa Barbara on my way home

Our five new HSM staff members {September}

Built a giant Settlers of Catan board

Turned 29 and visited Harry Potter World {October}

Renewed my driver's license

Darth, Dorothy and a Zombie Soldier {October}

Our team threw a costume party

Spoiler Alert: Snape Kills Dumbledore

I found a treasure of a vest for Ryanne

And she gave me the treasure of this photo

Celebrated Thanksgiving with my family {November}

Handmade each of my Christmas gifts {December}

Spent almost three hours opening gifts on Christmas Eve

Moved in to a new condo...with a new roommate

Rang in the New Year with 150 of my closest High School friends!

Excited to see all that 2012 will hold.

And, if the Mayans are wrong, you'll see another post just like this in January 2013.

2011 Questions

The end-of-the-year survey tradition continues for a fifth year.

2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010

1) What did you do in 2011 that you'd never done before?
Worked for Matt McGill. Worked alongside Ryanne, Bre, Luke, Jon and Torie. Went to the Grand Canyon. Visited Harry Potter Land in Florida. Played Settlers of Catan (subsequently won Catan and built a giant Catan board.) Made every Christmas gift I gave. Gave announcements in Mariners main service. Bowled over 120. Golfed with my Papa. Learned to live on a budget (which includes paying for two different car repair trips without making a parent phone call.) And (how could I forget?!) I smashed out a car window with a giant metal pole. (Dig. It.)

2) Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I've made the same resolution for the last six years: be smarter. I'm fairly certain that I have finished each year a little wiser...and a little smarter.

I've made some plans for 2012 resolutions, but I'm not so sure about posting them just yet...I need a few weeks of success under my belt before I go public with them.

3) Did anyone close to you give birth?
Katie Hunt had a pretty sweet new kid. So did Wendy. Katie and Ron adopted a pretty sweet kid, too!

4) Did anyone close to you die?
Not technically in 2011, but I did lose a friend on January 1, 2012.

5) What countries did you visit?
Kenya. (Gosh, wouldn't it be great if this were the answer every year?!)

6) What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?
A more gentle spirit. And a more tender heart.

7) What date(s) from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
February 14th: I went golfing with my Grandpa and cousin Logan. September 11th: Played giant Catan. October 25th: HP Land.

8) What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Crossing several items off my 30 Things list

9) Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nope. Neither of those.

10) What was the best thing you bought?
I bought a star gazer...that gave us a few evenings of loud laughter.

11) Whose behavior merited celebration?
Our HSM Kenya Team was incredible this summer.

12) Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
I'm still not crazy about sex traffickers.

13) Where did most of your money go?
Rent. Food. Gas. You know, awesome grown-up things.

14) What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Taking a second vacation with Katie. Working with some really good friends.

15) What song/album will always remind you of 2011?
Brooke Fraser's "Flags". Bon Iver, John Mark McMillan, Gungor

16) Compared to this time last year, are you:
Wiser? Yes. Healthier? Yes. Richer? I'd prefer to say I'm a better saver this year.

17) What do you wish you'd done more of?
Piano lessons. Exercise. Host dinner parties.

18) What do you wish you'd done less of?
Worry about meeting the expectations of others.

19) How did you spend Christmas?
Christmas service. Christmas gifts. Chili bar. LOTS of desserts. Four parties in three days.

20) Did you fall in love in 2011?
Maybe a little bit.

21) What was your favorite TV program?
Breaking Bad. Friday Night Lights. The Walking Dead.

22) What was the best book you read?
The Book Thief. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. The Imperfectionists.

23) What was your greatest musical discovery?
Jascha Heifetz.

24) What did you want and get?
To work with Bre. An apartment next to Dom and Luke.

25) What did you want and not get?
A sparkly gold skirt.

26) What was your favorite film of this year?
Harry Potter. Inglorious Basterds (new to me in 2011.) Super 8.

27) What did you do on your birthday, and how old did you turn?
I turned 29. Katie and I went to Harry Potter World. (I feel like I've mentioned this before.)

28) Which celebrity/public figure did you like the most?
I'm pretty in to Ryan Gosling, but who isn't these days?

29) How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?
Lots of dresses...and tights...and flats.
I think the jean count for this year was less than 7.

30) What kept you sane?
Jesus.

31) Who did you miss?
My Kenyan friends. My London friends.

32) Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.
Sometimes I can be wanted even if I'm not needed.

33) What did you gain this year?
Some wisdom. Some peace. Some weight.

34) What did you lose this year?
Some fear. Lots of hoarder-esque stuff.

35) Who was the best new person you met?
I feel like I've met a lot of people this year...so many that I really like. But if I had to choose one, I would choose my new friend Sara, who--after knowing me only 10 days--spent an entire day helping me move in to my new house...if that doesn't constitute "best", I don't know what does.

36) Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
"Cheers to the friendships well worn in, that time nor distance alter. Cheers to the lessons not yet learned and to the trials that will teach them."

True Rules

True Rules are "an idiosyncratic collection of principles for making decisions and setting priorities." (According to Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project)

In other words: rules that you've picked up, somewhere along the way, that you turn to (consciously or unconsciously) when making decisions. They are not necessarily widely recognized, and are--more often than not--learned from your parents.

After reading the book, I began to pay more attention to some of the True Rules that I have come to live by:

• Write thank you notes within 1 week of receiving a gift
• Respond to a dinner invitation with "What can I bring?"
• Never show up empty-handed
• There's no such thing as a budget when you're on vacation
• Two is always the right portion-size when it comes to cookies
• When forced to choose between two things, ask yourself: "Which is a once-in-a-lifetime event?" and choose that one
• If you're bored, read a book
• The best way to cure a headache is to eat some protein
• Don't sit down until your house is clean
• Clean your toilet before people come over
• Soda is not a breakfast beverage, unless you're eating French Toast
• Sponges are filled with bacteria and should never be used to wipe a counter

What are some True Rules that you adhere to?

In My Mind's Eye

As I was reading my new book this morning, (The Visible Man by Chuck Klosterman) I realized that I was picturing this woman writing her letter from an office building that overlooked the McDonald's on Rockfield (by the 5 freeway in Lake Forest).

I drove past the McDonald's today, after having lunch with my mom. I thought, "I was here this morning..." and then realized: nope, only in my imagination.

I began to think through the other books that are set in Lake Forest (in my head) and through the magic of Google, I can show you precisely where they take place.

The McDonald's from The Visible Man. (Rockfield and Lake Forest Drive)

This is the neighborhood in which young Gatsby says goodbye to Daisy before he goes off to war. (Muirlands and El Toro Road)

About ten people were murdered at this gas station in Intensity by Dean Koontz. (Easily, the scariest book I've ever read--also the book that made me love reading.) I would rather run out of gas--alone. at night. than stop at this gas station after what I picture happening here. (El Toro Road and Moulton)

The Cullens live back here. In the homes across from El Toro High School and behind La Madera Elementary. (Toledo and Ridge Route)

Oh, and the moors--where Catherine and Heathcliff find love and wage war--are in between the 200 and 300 building at El Toro High School. Every. Time.

My childhood city is so often the backdrop for novels, though I'm not entirely sure why...maybe I should investigate the psychology behind it.

What about you?
Any strange locations in your nightly reading?

Another Online Round-Up

Here are some recent pages I have bookmarked...

Thought you might like to have a look.

Rad wedding invitations. (You know how I flip for good typography.)

On the subject of lettering, check out these cool little cups.

I'm not one for houseplants, but would consider owning one simply for this display.

This year, my Christmas gifts will be packaged with love.

My heart is rooting for rain next week...if only for one more reason to make mac and cheese.

Having witnessed the excitement of Kenyans receiving a photo of themselves, I'm pretty in to Help-Portrait's project. Especially after reading the stories on this blog post.

I giggled through this entire video.

Your turn: have you seen anything on the world.wide.web that I might have missed?

My Floridian Va-kate-tion

In January of 2008, my friend Katie and I took a vacation to New York City. You can read about our adventures here.

A few months later, I moved to Kenya, turned 26 and made a list of 30 Things which included #4 Go on another vacation with Katie.

As my 29th birthday approached, we crossed that item off the list with a trip to Orlando, Florida.

We left really, really early on the morning of my birthday (Monday, the 24th).
When we landed in Florida and checked in to our hotel, we headed out to dinner at Macaroni Grill. (We hadn't eaten in about twelve hours...a chain restaurant would have to do.)

As we were waiting for our check, the lights went out. Not just flickered-on-and-off and then came back on...actually shut off. And not just that one restaurant...the entire block...and both sides of the street.

Katie said it created a little birthday ambiance.The next morning we were at Universal Studios when they opened.
Oh, have I mentioned that we went to Florida to see the Harry Potter Land at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure? Well, that's what drew us to Florida.

I knew that there were very few people in my life that would allow me to walk through this park at my desired pace...and Katie is, most definitely, one of them.

As we walked under the Welcome to Hogsmeade sign,
we saw it: The Hogwarts Express.


We wandered from shop to shop...




As soon as we saw The Three Broomsticks, we knew that's where we'd have lunch.
Kicked off the morning with a little Butterbeer.


And stood in line (in the queue) to be fit for a wand at Ollivander's Wand Shop.

The window displays were so detailed:

Quidditch supplies and World Cup paraphernalia.

Gilderoy Lockhart books and (moving) photographs.

And then we entered Ollivander's...

So many wands to choose from!

Including those of each main character.

We had to test them out, of course.

I chose Sirius' wand, since he's my favorite.

Katie fell in love with the Gryffindor robes

The Monster Book of Monsters
Stopped for photos with the school choir

Finally, we made it to Hogwarts.
Before taking the tour (and riding the ride), we decided to grab some lunch back in The Three Broomsticks.

The Hog's Head (next door)

After lunch (fish and chips and roasted chicken), we made our way back to Hogwarts.

Hall of (talking) portraits

Dumbledore's office

DumbledoreDragon skeleton

Harry, Ron and Hermione greeting the guests

The Fat Lady

Notice Board & Daily Prophet

Marauder's Map

We walked back from the castle, decided to take a break from the park to see the 7th movie (again)...

A few hours later, we did one more park walk-through.

Sirius' wanted poster

We spent the following day at Epcot enjoying the Food and Wine Festival: taster-sized servings of food from around the world--Ireland's Fisherman's Pie was the best! And finished the evening with a FREE BoyzIIMen concert. (Such a delight!)

Our trip was short, but really fun.
I love traveling with Katie.
We've already begun conversations about our 20-year Friendiversary Trip (which is only about three years away!)