AMERICAN IDOL, Season 9 Finale

Season finale's on tonight and I'm pulling for Lee Dwyze! What a cutie he is. I like Crystal Bowersox too, she's funky and eclectic but I just can't get over Lee. I haven't kept up with it as much as I have other seasons but I have seen enough to know who my favs are. We'll see who wins at our neighborhood "American Idol Party." We have a neighborhood to the maximum cheese factor but I love them cause they feel like family to me and I don't have a lot of family that lives close or that I am close to so I gotta love the 'hood!

& PS

I'm so sad to see Simon go...

the show's not gonna be the same next year,

I don't know if I will be able to watch it without him...

Rain on my parade anyday...

"I get my best ideas in a thunderstorm.

I have the power and majesty of nature on my side."
-Ralph Steadman

"He was the sort of person who stood on mountaintops

during thunderstorms in wet copper armour

shouting 'All the Gods are bastards.' "
-Terry Pratchett

What I Love About Thunderstorms:
-the smell and taste of the air
-snuggling up in bed, drinking tea, reading a good book
-the sound
-being with the people I love
-sleeping
-variety of umbrellas
-dancing
-getting completely soaked (when the ocassion permits itself)
-EVERYTHING

All my senses seem to be tingling with excitement. It's a different kinda of excitement, it's a more relaxed, engaging excitement. I can hear the thunder, the rain hitting the roof. I can see more life, people react to thunderstorms in all different ways...sometimes people help each other out, some hate the rain, some love it. You can feel the thunder in your chest. The taste and smell of the air is invigorating.

Thunderstorms could be my favorite thing ever.

"Maybe raindrops are the bravest things because they are never afraid of falling..."

Feeling Sad? Click Here...

HAHAHA LOVE THIS SO MUCH:

http://tumblrisforlulz.tumblr.com/post/594472386

California Girls

I can sense that this will be the anthem of the summer...

DAISY DUKES, BIKINIS ON TOP

The Two Best Movies of All Time

Adventures in Babysitting

Gang Leader: Don't fuck with the Lords of Hell.
Chris: Don't fuck with the babysitter.

FUNNIEST MOVIE EVER. I watched it for the first time in 6th grade with my cousin and her then-boyfriend who we called "Sunshine" behind his back because he looked like sunshine from "Remember the Titans." Haha, I don't think any movie has ever made me so happy like this one does. If only I could find it at my house...

What a Girl Wants

This movie made me want to be Amanda Bynes, date a British boy, dance on my bed, and wear turquoise nail polish. How can she be so young yet so independent? Love it.

The Bachelorette

"The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in.”
-Fenderx Morrie Schwartz

Just finished watching the season premiere of The Bachelorette. Although it has a little over the top "cheese" factor, I think the message that it sends is important: Life seems to be a waste if you don't leave room for some type of love in your life whether it be friends, family, or relationships. Last season Ali, the new bachelorette, left The Bachelor because she was going to lose her job. Now, she quit her job and is jumping in with two feet without regrets. No job or money is more important than relationships. Love fills the soul, while money fills the pocket. I want to remember to keep love in front of my job, work, money, blah blah blah...

“Find a guy who calls you beautiful instead of hot, who calls you back when you hang up on him, who will lie under the stars and listen to your heartbeat, or will stay awake just to watch you sleep... wait for the boy who kisses your forehead, who wants to show you off to the world when you are in sweats, who holds your hand in front of his friends, who thinks you're just as pretty without makeup on. One who is constantly reminding you of how much he cares and how lucky his is to have you.... The one who turns to his friends and says, 'that's her.'”

BACK me up

"One ought never to turn one's BACK on a threatened danger and try to run away from it. If you do that, you will double the danger. But if you meet it promptly and without flinching, you will reduce the danger by half. Never run away from anything. Never!"
-Winston Churchill

"If you have zest and enthusiasm you attract zest and enthusiasm. Life does give BACK in kind."
-Norman Vincent Peale

"When you realize how perfect everything is you will tilt your head BACK and laugh at the sky.”
-Buddha quotes

"You never lose by loving. You always lose by holding BACK.”
-Barbara De Angelis
"Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look BACK and realize they were the big things.”
-Robert Brault
“One day at a time--this is enough. Do not look BACK and grieve over the past for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful it will be worth remembering.”

“A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and can sing it BACK to you when you have forgotten the words.”

I'm OBSESSED with backs. It is the body feature that I admire most in others. Something about the idea that you can look at someone's back, having never seen their face, and dream up what they look like on the other side.

3 More Weeks...

UNTIL SUMMER!

"A life without love is like a year without summer."
-Swedish Proverb

Happy Birthday Alana!

It is one of my best friend's 18th Birthday today and I just want her to know how much she means to me! She is there for me through everything and listens to all my crazy thoughts without judging me. Honestly, I don't know how I would've survived high school without her. She is one of the most loving, care free, funny people out there. I can only hope that everyone out there has at least one person they can count on like I can count on my best friend, Alana.

Love you Lans! Happy 18th Birthday!

"What is a friend? A single soul dwelling in two bodies."
- Aristotle

& I also want to thank my other best friends. We have grown up together and been there for each other through everything. Can't wait for you to be my bridesmaids!

home is where the heart is...

"A house is made of walls and beams; a home is built with love and dreams.”

"When you're safe at home you wish you were having an adventure; when you're having an adventure you wish you were safe at home.”
-Thorton Wilder

"Home is not where you live, but where they understand you.”

-Christian Morganstern

Zach Hyman

I was watching an episode of "The City" on MTV (yes, I'm a reality show junkie) and this photographer named Zach intrigued me in the People's Revolution studio. The way that he questions the common idea of the human body and nudity in our society is groundbreaking. It takes courage to do things that will create controversy. He even got a model arrested when he had her pose naked at the Met for 15 seconds. We all share the same parts, and that unifying thing is truly art.

"Have you ever had the desire, in an organized moment of silence, to yell as loudly as possible? Was there ever an urge to break something valuable just for the mere satisfaction and intrigue of the reaction that might occur? Or, maybe, you've just wanted to run nude through the streets only see if you could feel the feeling of freedom without getting caught. We all have an inherent desire to oppose and comment on societal norms and trends, to break barriers, to seek excitement and joy, to create something new and original. All of these feelings have been the catalysts for my photography and art. "Decent Exposures" is my latest collection of images celebrating nudity in all of it's modalities; from the sexual to the comical, Traveling from the isolation of the country straight into the public eye of New York City.

I'd like to ask the reader a question: do you have a penis or a vagina? If you've answered yes then, congratulations, you're a human being! We all, for the most part, whether you were born with one or the other, had both, or wanted the opposite, have genitals. As simple as it may sound, our body parts have the potential to be a huge unifying force. Big or little, skinny or thick, perky or saggy; the fact is that our bodies all function in the same way and for the same purpose. So why is it that there is such censorship on nudity or such strict laws against indecent exposure? Of course we can't deny the fact that there are some inappropriate things that one could perform in a public setting; but your birthday suit, a crime?

In America Especially, we have access, through the internet, television, periodicals, subscribtion serverices etc. to some of the most perverse and grotesque subject matter one might ever witness. We can view suicide tapes on youtube, girls sharing a cup full of feces, and a neverending stream of sexual acts that should be considered assault and battery, not to mention degrading to both genders, especially women. We're all totally aware of these things and a majority of us whether or not we think it's inappropriate, violent, or just plain disgusting, are STILL intrigued because we like to see things we think we shouldn't be watching, and acts that are considered "private." "Decent Exposures" does not pertain to any of the previously mentioned material. It does, however, provide the same amount of excitement simply because we've been wearing clothing our whole lives.

The models are all different shapes, sizes, backgrounds, and persuasions, yet all had similar experiences of focus and freedom being nude in these environments. The public reacted to the models like one might imagine; with shock, excitement, humor, disgust, but never violence or cruelty. I received my excitement in seeing both at the same time and feeling that there was nothing wrong with what we were doing but knowing that it was wholly illegal. So if a majority of people experienced joy and excitement out of this; what's the BFD? Nudity does not have to represent perversion, it's just plain natural. Fortunately it's still exciting. The "Decent Exposures" collection is going against one social norm and rule that should be reconsidered.

BUT, please consider these photos however you would like. My ultimate purpose is to provoke thought rather than tell you what to think. Please visit the "decent Exposures" link under the portfolio tab."
-Zach Hyman

Life is Art

Let yourself loose and express your true self through the art in your life.

Lincoln Center Institute's Junior Spring Benefit

Whitney Port and Samantha Swetra

Irina Shayk

(style.com)

An Education

Today, I stayed home sick from school and watched "Valentine's Day" and "An Education." Valentine's Day brought light-hearted joy (and ps, I think every celebrity ever is in that...) but Carey Mulligan's performance in "An Education" really made me think...

"A suburban London teen finds her traditional education replaced by something slightly more sinister when an older, more worldly suitor sweeps her off of her feet while placing her future in jeopardy. London, 1961: 16-year-old Jenny (Carey Mulligan) is smart, attractive, and eager to start her adult life. She's grown tired of the familiar adolescent routine, so when urbane newcomer David (Peter Sarsgaard) appears in town, Jenny senses a rare opportunity to shake things up a bit. Quickly falling under David's spell, the impressionable Jenny begins accompanying her newfound beau to classical concerts, art auctions, crowded pubs, and dinners that stretch into the small hours of the night. But Jenny is brighter than most kids her age, and her parents always dreamt of getting their exceptional daughter into Oxford. These days it seems like she's headed in a different direction -- will David ultimately be her undoing, or the person who helps her finally realize her true potential?"
-Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

It made me realize how so many women throw away their dreams and individuality in hopes that someone else will take care of them. Jenny started out with her own ideas but then gave all her hard-work up to be engaged to a man much older than her...only to findout he was married. She was left feeling empty and useless. She then worked hard to continue to pursue her dream of studying English at Oxford University.

This story just makes me realize how I hope to puruse my dreams and use my talents and become the independent individual that I know I can become. That being said, I hope to find someone to spend my life with that will support me in my dreams and encourage what I want. Love is a scary thing and can often alter people but the message of this movie was to stick to your core and follow what will make you happy.

"If I get to University I'm going to read what I want and listen to what I want and I'm going to look at painting and watch French films and I'm going to talk to people who know lots about lots."
-Carey Mulligan as Jenny

"Well, after I've been to University, I'm going to be French and I'm going to Paris and I'm going to smoke and wear black."
-Carey Mulligan as Jenny
"If we never did anything, we wouldn't be anybody."
-Carey Mulligan as Jenny

FREE

adjective, fre·e

1. enjoying personal rights or liberty
5. exempt from external authority, interference, restriction, etc., as a person or one's will, thought, choice, action, etc.; independent; unrestricted.
6. able to do something at will; at liberty
16. acting without self-restraint or reserve

i Sight

THE EYES ARE THE WINDOWS TO THE SOUL

Karlie Kloss