Truth be told, I'm lying.

Long time no blog!

I've been quite busy this week.

NOT.

I did, however, go to the midnight showing of the Jonas Brothers 3D movie Thursday night. Long story short, I've never screamed, laughed, cried, danced, or clapped so much all in one movie<3

It was a generally good week, despite a certain letter never being delivered.

Hm.

This was a lame blog.

Perhaps I'll be more interesting tomorrow :]

xoxo

Song of the day: About a Girl - The Academy Is
[yes. I'm repeating it. It's too perfect for my life right now]

'Cause now I only see my dreams

in everything I touch,
Feel the cold hands on everything that I love -
Cold like some magnificent skyline
out of my reach, but always in my eyeline.

Keane lyrics make my life.

xoxo

Song of the day: Spiralling - Keane

Did you want to be an icon!?

I'm SO incredibly excited for May 9! Why?

I'm seeing my favorite band live. Not the Jonas Brothers. Not My Chemical Romance. Unfortunately, not the Beatles.

Keane.

These guys have been my favorite band since high school and I've been a fan for 5 solid years. I absolutely adore their music and love seeing them live. I honestly never miss them in LA. Ever.

They're British, so I try to take advantage of every North American tour they do.

For those of you who haven't seen them live, you probably imagine some kind of boring, calm, quiet concert. You're so wrong.

I remember my first Keane concert back in '05 (I think it was 05...). It was at the Greek Theater and I had what I thought were front row seats. However, we were in the pit. Thus, my addiction to seeing Keane began. They totally rock out. Yes, I said rock out. It's always an intense performance that leaves me jumping around and wanting more Keane.

I'm very excited to be bringing Caitlin with me (if everything works out), since she's never seen them live.

So long story short, I'm so excited that I don't even really know what to say.

Though I'm a little worried about the new stuff, I can't wait for another fantastic concert that I'm sure will bring me to tears (as usual).

If you've never listened to Keane, I suggest you watch this video, which is also the song of the day :]




xoxo

This is not my heart.

I hate to admit this, but "About a Girl" is REALLY growing on me. It's probably because the lyrics are so applicable to my situation now. Yes, I've loved The Academy Is since high school, but their latest album sounded a bit... generic to me, so I've refused to buy it/listen to the whole thing.

I am, however, still in love with Mr. Beckett. Watch the video below, if only for the glorious moment that is between 1:57 & 1:58<3333

Anyway, I have my Coachella hotel reservations! This makes the whole trip that much closer :D On another note, I have written my "note." Some of you know the one I'm talking about... but yeah. I'm not going to explain it. I just have to write the final copy & then hand it over. Wish me luck!

xoxo

Song of the day: About a Girl - The Academy Is

List

Lists make me feel more organized.

1. I just found out Keane is going to be in LA on May 9. I'm buying presale tickets on Monday no matter what. They're my favorite band, contrary to what everyone thinks, and I've never missed them in LA. Plus it's been over a year since I've seen them! Can't wait to hear their new stuff live :D

2. I'm hoping to write some letters soon, probably during finals week if/when I have time.

3. Speaking of letters, I have a special one to write.

4. Remember how I said I should send things to Post Secret? Well my third project has now evolved into a Post Secret of my own. Pictures to come later.

5. I absolutely can't wait to see if Alex Trugman gets into the top 12. LOVE HIM<3

6. I'm super excited about Worlds & Coachella :D

7. I entered over 1000 times for those JB movie premiere passes.

8. I watched "He's Just Not That Into You" for the second time yesterday. I loved one of the songs in the movie & was wondering what it was... I'm watching VH1 Jumpstart & the song comes on. I realized I already have it - it was an iTunes free download last week :]

9. Finals week is going to be hell at work. I have one final, but we're all expected to work at least one overnight shift since Starbucks is open 24/7. I'm hoping it's not a repeat of last quarter's finals week... I was completely nocturnal.

10. I'm going to Disneyland with Caitlin today! I'm really looking forward to it<3

So that's pretty much what's going on. However, #3 has been occupying about 2/3 of my brain. It's imperative that this particular letter gets to the person, though that may be a bad idea. Yeah ok I'm going to stop vaguely ranting :]

xoxo

Song of the day: Love Save the Empty - Erin McCarley

Alright.

I love you Caitlin. You give fantastic advice and are one of my dearest friends.

However, I just can't take your advice this time.

I can't sit this one out :]

xoxo

Song of the day: Strange and Beautiful - Aqualung

A Sappy Rant.

Firstly, I'd like to apologize for the following blog. Prepare yourselves.

I really think I should just spill my guts to Post Secret.

There's so much I want/need to say to someone, but in reality I'm way too embarassed to share those things with people I know... even my closest friends.

Sure, I tell my close friends a lot, but there are things I just can't say because they make me feel incredibly stupid.

Like about the boy that prompted my emo post a little while ago. I don't even know him, but he's occupying my thoughts and making me feel like an idiot without having to say or do anything. Someone please explain to me why this person I don't even know is driving me up the wall :[

Maybe I should just come clean about the whole thing on the last day of class or something. "Hey, I seem to have some kind of interest in you, even though I don't know you. You fascinate me. When you smile, my heart beats a little bit faster. You have great style. I love every project you've done in class because I know I could never come up with anything like that. I love your hair. You hardly ever talk, but when you do,..."

& this is where I stop.

Someone give me advice... and don't tell me to talk to him. It's impossible for me to do.

Anyway, I look forward to Idol tonight and not having to work tomorrow!

xoxo

Song of the day: Gold Lion - The Yeah Yeah Yeahs

I have a cold!

It's a good thing Starbucks was closed today... I'm really sniffly & sneezy.

Pray for me, kids.

Anyway, I have also decided I am going to wear my new zebra pants on Tuesday :]

Me: Hey mom, I got these really crazy pants.
Mom: Crazy like... pink?
Me: No. Crazy like, patterned.
Mom: WELL THEN. Anyway, so blah blah blah...
Me: *5 minutes later* Aren't you going to ask me what pattern they are?
Mom: No. I don't want to know.

xoxo

Song of the day: Poker Face - Lady Gaga

I make plans to break plans

Not really.

This time I have big plans, but I'm going through with them. Prepare yourselves for a wonderful project I'm starting within the coming months - if you've ever wanted a piece of artwork from me, you'll love it.

Anyway, I feel like I'm obligated to blog about Valentine's Day.

Why?

I have no idea.

Single people make such a big deal about this "holiday." It's pretty pathetic and ridiculous. Why does it matter? If you haven't found someone, you haven't found someone. Be your own person. Don't rely on someone else to erase your insecurities. Be strong and independent.

As much as I'd like to have that special guy, I'm completely fine without him. Life's too short to worry about dating all the time. Yes, I got all emo on my last post about this guy that barely knows I exist, but in all seriousness I'm not DYING. I hope you didn't get the wrong impression.

Sooooooo

That's all I have to say.

Sorry it wasn't particularly interesting lol :]

xoxo

Song of the day: Unwritten - Natasha Bedingfield

Silly girl...

... he barely even knows you exist.

Blah.

Song of the day: Crush - David Archuleta

Can we trade?

I experienced the most pleasant moment today in my 9B class, but let's start with the beginning.

I had just gotten out of my digital imaging class and proceeded to wait outside of my 2 o'clock class, studio art 9B, also known as "Visiting Artists." Honestly, I don't like this class. I don't think our professor is passionate about teaching and frankly, his methods bore me to death. The artists that come in are interesting most of the time, but otherwise I don't like going to class.

As I was debating whether or not to torture myself, my friend Andrew sat down at my table outside. We talked about senior exhibitions, work, Mollly Corey's class. Anyway, he talked me into going to class. I sat with him and his friend Michelle, then we were joined by someone I knew.

Her name is Grace. She was in my 1A class last quarter so I'm familiar with her. Her work is very interesting and she is quite talented. However, I've always found her to be quite strange... perhaps because I didn't know her outside of class, or because her comments are usually coming from left left left left field. Anyway, we all moved over one seat to the left so Grace could join us and sit next to Michelle. The seating arrangement, from left to right, was me - Andrew - Michelle - Grace.

Miles Coolidge, an awesome photographer, came into class to talk about his work. I was interested... for about half of it. I had been doodling on my notebook, but still paying attention... until like I said, half way.

Miraculously, Grace must have sensed my extreme boredom. She then wrote "CAN WE TRADE?" on her notebook, passing it over Michelle and Andrew to me. I looked on the page and saw a large doodle. It was a doodle trade!

"Sure!" I mouthed, totally excited. I handed her my Coraline-inspired doodle and accepted hers. Andrew was like, WHAT ARE YOU DOING? so I continued to explain a doodle trade.

Doodle trade (n) - the act in which two people, bored in class, swap notebooks to work on each others' doodles

I used to do that all the time in high school and looked forward to reviving an old practice.

Anyway, that was my pleasant experience. It's amazing how art can bring two people together who normally wouldn't even talk. We both created something beautiful out of our boredom :]

So here, for your viewing pleasure, is the doodle that ended up in my notebook. My doodle is on the left (with some additions from Grace), then hers is on the right<3

xoxo

Song of the day: Angels on the Moon - Thriving Ivory

I don't care what you think, as long as it's about me

... the best of us can find happiness in misery.

Well said, Fall Out Boy, well said.

That pretty much sums up how I feel right now.

There have been WAY too many irritations to count, lately.

I'm tired of hearing these dumb Republicans on TV. I feel like they're just too bitter that Democratic candidate won, so they're automatically opposed to any ideas he might have. I'm not an Obama enthusiast, but I applaud his effort.

Actually, I'm just tired of politics. Why have political parties? Shouldn't we all just try to better America? I realize that the different parties are formed based on differences in fundamental opinions, but we're all people, aren't we? Why can't we look past our differences to try to find a solution that will suit everyone? Easier said than done, I know, but still. You know what I mean.

I'm tired of wasting time in my classes! I make this effort to go to class, but I feel like I'm not learning anything. I feel like half of my classes are stupid, while the others are informative. Conflict, much?

I'm tired of certain people. Seriously, stop latching onto my style and get your own.

On a happier note, work is going well. It's still a lot of work, but I'm feeling a lot more comfortable with everything and I've gotten to know my co-workers better :]

I also saw Coraline today... it wasn't bad, but it was no Tim Burton. The animation was phenomenal, so I'd recommend it if you're into stop-motion stuff. Besides that, I was unimpressed with the way the story panned out.

That's all until tomorrow

xoxo

Song of the day: I Don't Care - Fall Out Boy

Although the 51st Grammy Awards have yet to finish, I decided to blog now (I have to get to bed soon due to a morning midterm tomorrow!).

Anyway, I believe this year's Grammy's have had their ups and downs. Taylor Swift and Miley Cyrus? Definitely a down. Jonas Brothers and Stevie Wonder? Up. Jay-Z and Coldplay? Decent. Adele and Sugarland? Up. Paul McCartney? UP.

I enjoyed watching the awards show regardless - it was entertaining. I'm happy for Coldplay because I think Viva la Vida was a great album (ironically enough, I haven't heard the whole thing). Chris Martin was totally adorable when he accepted their last Grammy too :]

I am very sad to hear about Chris Brown and Rihanna as well. I know it's not confirmed that Rihanna was the victim, but I believe she was. Don't know what I'm talking about? Read about it. I had a lot of respect for Chris as an artist, but that respect has diminished just a bit.

Well, I'm off.

Just wanted to blog briefly<3

xoxo

Song of the day: Live to Party - Jonas Brothers

[edit] I TOTALLY forgot to mention Jennifer Hudson's performance! Definitely the highest up there was! She reduced me to tears, it was that beautiful!

Tarina Tarantino: A Vision in Black

As I sit comfortably on the futon mattress on the floor of my room (it was used when someone slept over a while back - we were just too lazy to move it back to the other room), I am going to sit here and further indulge myself. When I say further, I mean in addition to already sitting here with a double tall espresso truffle in my hand, a couple chocolate covered strawberries, and a legit reason to not study right at this moment. Yum.

I met Tarino Tarantino today. It was fantastic.

Though I mentioned her in an earlier post, I'm sure most of you have no idea who she is. Let me inform you.

Tarina Tarantino is a jewelry designer and, in my eyes, a style icon. She is known for her bright pink hair and equally bright and quirky jewelry collections. Though she caters to more "scene" taste, I think she's just beginning to break through to the mainstream. Examples of her customers are Jeffree Star, Miley Cyrus, and Audrey Kitching.

I learned about her back in 2006 through Jeffree Star, and I've been quite a fan ever since.

Anyway, Tarina had her signing today and it was just lovely. Even though it was almost pouring rain, I had a great time and don't think it could have gone much better.

12:00 PM - we arrived at Downtown Disney. I had a friend of my mom's come with me just so I wouldn't be by myself. We headed over to Vault 28 so I could buy something in order to get into the signing. I also had many questions about how it was going to happen. I then spoke with a castmember, who said that when one purchased any Tarina Tarantino item in the store, one would receive a voucher for the signing with a number. I was immediately relieved - I wouldn't have to worry about trying to stake out a spot!

I proceeded to purchase the necklace that I saw at the Melrose boutique - it's long, silver chained, has a large rhinestoned key at the end that says "TARINA TARANTINO", plus a couple little pleasant surprises on the chain. I love it!

12:30 PM - lunch at the Rainforest Cafe

2:30 PM - We began to line up in front of Vault 28. The signing wasn't supposed to start until 3, but of course everyone wanted to make sure there were no complications. I was very excited to see so many people sporting their Tarina Tarantino bling. By this point, I was wearing 3 of her pieces.

Unfortunately, the sunshine had vanished and it started to get cloudy.

3:00 PM - The excitement began! They started letting people into the signing! To our dismay, however, it began to rain. At first it was just drizzling... but then it really started to rain. I had come prepared, thankfully, equipped with my umbrella, leather high-heeled boots, and a trendy raincoat.

We finally made it inside probably about 30 minutes later. I could see her pink hair! The excitement was coursing through my body. I knew what I was going to say and I was terribly excited about it :]

I got up to where she was and put my bags down on the floor. This is pretty much how it all went:

Jolene: Hi!

Tarina: Hi! It's great to meet you!

Jolene: *takes out canvas bag and postcard* Would you please sign these for me?

Tarina: Absolutely!

Jolene: I just wanted to tell you how much you inspire me. You're aesthetic is incredibly unique and amazing, and as an aspiring artist, I am completely amazed.

Tarina: Thank you so much. That's the best compliment I could have received! What's your name? Would you like these personalized?

Jolene: Sure! It's Jolene. J-O-L-E-N-E

Tarina: You know.... Jolene... There IS a song...

Jolene: I know! People always say that!

Tarina: Well it's a great song, darling. Dolly is just amazing. I mean, anyone who has their own theme park must be special.

Jolene: Yeah, it's a great song... but I think I like the cover by the White Stripes better.

Tarina: That's great too!

Jolene: Could I get a picture with you please?

Tarina: Sure! *poses*

Jolene: Thank you so much! Can I have a hug?

Tarina: Absolutely! You're so cute! Good luck with everything!


And that was it.

I was SO happy that it went so well - she was a total sweetheart and so beautiful in person. Not to mention she has great taste in clothes... we were practically wearing the same thing lol! She will continue to inspire me and hopefully next time I'll bring the drawing that I did of her :]

And the song of the day is Impossible by the Shout Out Louds

xoxo

What I go to school for

So I decided to take a short break to eat lunch before I hit the books, so to speak. I have an art history midterm on Monday, a digital imaging project due Monday, and my self portrait due Tuesday. AKA I have a LOT to do this weekend!

I'm really grateful it's Friday, but bummed I had to change my plans and am NOT seeing Coraline today! I'm just way too busy to go out tonight.

On a lighter note, I'm going to that Tarina Tarantino signing tomorrow! I hope it's not too crowded and that I'm getting there early enough. She's such a style icon and inspiration... I'd love to meet her<3 Anyway, I think that's all.

Song for the day: What I Go To School For - Jonas Brothers

xoxo

Brighter than sunshine

I feel so much better right now.

With everything going on with my dad, my relationship with his side of the family has become strained. I just got off the phone with my cousin Sam. As most of you may know, she has been my best friend since we were babies. We grew up together.

Anyway, long story short, there has been a lot of drama within our family and it was a relief to finally talk it out with her. We've resolved our problems (that weren't really problems) and now we can get back to our normal conversations... boys, school, boys :]

Anyway, I must go back to Grey's, then onto finishing my art history paper.

I guess the moral of the story is: talk things out<3

xoxo

Do you feel?

I am completely head over heels for this song. I know it's old & I've had it on my iPod for the longest time, but it's meant a lot to me lately. I'm not really one to post lyrics, so I'll post the music video. Give it a listen! The Rocket Summer is FANTASTIC & I hope you like it :]

Watch it here:]

Do you feel
The weight of the world singing sorrow?
Or to you is it just not real?
Cause you got your things
Yeah we all have our things I guess

Gnocchi & paninis

So instead of going to bed right now, my cousin Erica and I are watching Towelhead, after a great evening of dinner and showing Erica Bubbleboy for the first time.

I'm a little bummed right now about tomorrow. Team Jonas sent out an email a few days ago about a private LA screening of the Burnin' Up movie. All you had to do was send in an email with your information and winners were chosen at random. Unfortunately, I wasn't chosen.

Normally I wouldn't be upset because frankly, it's random and I'm sure loads of people sent emails. However, I had to go through the trouble of switching my shifts and now I'm working at 6AM tomorrow morning. Hooray.

But anyway, I'm totally looking forward to Coraline coming out on Friday! For those of you who may not know, Coraline is a new animated movie coming out "by the director of the Nightmare Before Christmas." Unlike many may assume, this film is NOT by Tim Burton. He wrote and produced Nightmare, he didn't direct it. I know, misleading, right? Anyway, here's the trailer if you haven't seen it already!

Great minds think alike.

Today was definitely a long one.

I had art history from 10-10:50, digital imaging from 12-1:20, studio art from 2-3:20, then I had work from 4-7. I just finished a couple of reading responses, so I'm BEAT.

I don't think I have anything particularly profound to say today... other than a bit of ranting about originality.

A couple weeks ago in my studio art 1B class, we had a discussion about originality. What defines originality? Who's to say what's original? I thought it was interesting at the time, but sort of dismissed it. As of last Friday, I feel like I'm in a sort of originality-situtuation. ha.

Last quarter in my 1A journal, I turned Barack Obama into Andy Warhol's Marilyn Monroe silkscreened painting. It was before the election and I was just expressing my feeling of Obama becoming more of a celebrity than anything else. It wasn't meant as an insult - I just found it very similar to the way Marilyn Monroe was considered more of an icon than even an actress.

Well, when Maymay and I went to Melrose last Friday, I walked past a beautifully collaged wall (the picture is on my last post). Someone had the same idea and did the same thing!

So this lead me to think... was my idea REALLY original? I came up with it all on my own, but it seems I am not the only one to have thought this way. I feel like my idea is original because I didn't "steal" it from anyone else, but at the same time I feel like it's not original because someone else came up with it too!

Do great minds really think alike?

Reinvent Love

So I decided to resurrect my blog.

Hello blogging world :]

There are a lot of new things that have been going on with me. I feel like a completely different person from when I last blogged... there have been so many things in the past months that have shaped me as an individual and made me realize things had to change.

Over winter break, on December 22 to be exact, my dad had a heart attack. Many of you may already know, but there are many that still don't. After watching my dad collapse, thinking he was dead, and watching the paramedics carry him off, the doctors put 2 stents in. Unfortunately, when they tried to re-start his heart, he stayed in cardiac arrest. They had to shock him 16 times to bring him back.

Normally, doctors only shock patients 5 times max, so this was a miracle in itself. During this time, his brian was without oxygen and it suffered severe damage. We're still waiting for him to wake up.

Anyway, this has become a big part of my life. It's really made me realize what's important in life and how grateful I am for the people that have been supportive.

I don't want to dwell on this topic. Onto lighter things :]

I got my Coachella tickets last Friday! I'll be going all 3 days and I'm BEYOND excited about it! If you don't know what Coachella is, it's a 3-day art and music festival in India, CA. Basiclly, it's 3 days of art out in the middle of the desert. You can check out the website here.

I'm also planning to meet Tarina Tarantino at a signing she's doing on Saturday, February 7th... she's unbelievably inspiring to me. I love her aesthetic and find it completely fascinating. Not familiar with her work? Check out her site here.

I've been trying to cram some fun stuff into my life, since I've been super busy with school and work. Last Friday, my roommate and I took a trip to shop on Melrose and grab some Pinkberry. It was loads of fun and I LOVED all of the street artwork that people had done on the walls and streets! And of course I had to buy something from Tarina's boutique :]

And on top of all of that, I'm working at the Starbucks on my university campus. It's pretty hectic most of the time, but I still like it :]

I guess that's all... so on that note, be nice to your Starbucks baristas!

I shall update tomorrow :]