Hello?

I mean seriously, are we really surprised to hear about this? Who in their right mind thought China wasn't committing human rights violations?

See Jane Work

For all of my working, studying, and non-working, non-studying friends, if you haven't checked out See Jane Work, you should definitely give it a try.

Couch Dress

Could this be the most amazing thing ever? Who doesn't need a dress custom made to fit over you and your couch? Wow. Now if I only had a reason to give this as a gift to someone...hmm... Haha.

{via Daisy Chain}

What I've Been Up To

This is my niece, Avery, on the trampoline in Mesa, AZ (she was totally oblivious and just playing with her new dolls).

Watched this.


Interested by this (and remembering a funny situation with bodyguards when I was in London).


Doing a lot of this.


Interviewing here (we'll see how it goes).


Fascinated by this.


No longer surprised by this (don't we all have well-founded doubts of "memoirs"?).





Just wanted to give you an update since I've been so silent this week.

Tribute

So...as you know, we had to say goodbye to Emma last Thursday evening. It was pretty rough. I don't think it will really set in until tomorrow when everyone has gone back to their normal routine. I think that's when it will really hit MacGregor. Anyway, here are a few pictures of Emma from Wednesday and Thursday. The first one is her laying on the kitchen floor falling asleep. The second one is her laying on the ottoman in my parents' room with MacGregor on the bed behind her. She is definitely missed!

Magical Places 3

Cintsa (or Chintsa), South Africa

After our stay in Mozambique, 6 of us went on a week-and-a-half road trip through South Africa (which is a little sketchy safety-wise but turned out to be pretty amazing). We stopped at Cintsa on the southeast coast of South Africa for a night. We arrived at about 2am (which is NOT a safe thing to be doing in South Africa). Anyway, we couldn't find anybody to help us, so we just grabbed a room at the Buccaneers Backpackers Hostel and crashed. We awoke early in the morning and walked out to the balcony and were stunned by the view above. These pictures are altered in no way - it was amazingly breathtaking. The hostel itself was also amazing. Although there are camping sites, the actual hostel is like an eco-friendly hippie treehouse - so great! The next two pictures are of the hostel - if you are ever in the area you should not miss this piece of paradise (although you should be warned that the bathroom facilities are definitely coed).

The picture below is of Autumn and Jeff on the bridge on the way down to the beach. We also walked to the neighboring town to grab lunch. It really is a beautiful area. Not only that, but the monkeys in the nearby trees were pretty entertaining to watch.
Oh, and did I mention the quote on the hostel's website? "If buccaneers doesn't get to your soul, there is something wrong with your karma." Does it get any better than that?

DwellStudio

Here are just a few of the new items from DwellStudio for Target that I really like. You should definitely check it out as they are also very affordable.

Hanging Wonder

So, I like to hang things. I mean, hanging as in putting them on a wall so that they are accessible and visible. Usually I have some tote bags, jackets, and purses hanging on a rack on the wall. The thing is, hooks and racks tend to be really ugly, particularly when you take the hanging item off and the hook is exposed to general view. Well, I think that I have found my ideal solution. Ceramic bird hooks from JBA Design. Aren't they great? I think I would leave things off them just so you could see the hooks themselves.

They are available here from Launch Design.

{Via Bloesem}

DIY - Wax Wrapping Paper

So, along with various people, my Blueprint subscription (tragically) was changed over to Martha Stewart Living. Due to the confusion, I received the March issue last week on Tuesday and then the February issue on Thursday (I know....what?). Anyway, I was glancing through the February issue even though V-day was way more than over...and I came across this little DIY for heart wax/wrapping paper. It just seemed like a really fun and easy idea that could be totally versatile. You could really use any shape and use it to wrap up anything that you are trying to make more personal. I've been running so many ideas through my mind - you could do tissue paper stripes or, well, really, anything. Maybe I'll give it a try sometime...

This Little Piggy...

I am totally in love with this leather piggy bank designed by Looksur.

Apparently, it's made from scraps of waste leather. It's available for purchase at the MoMA store. Did I say that I really, really want one?

{Via Design Mom}

Addiction

So, as Jen can attest, I am totally addicted to American Idol. I hate to admit it, but I find it to be an incredibly fascinating show. Although watching the beginning audtions is okay, I am fascinated by the later shows and watching the development of the singers as performers and vocalists as the numbers are whittled down week by week. So far, although there are several contestants that I like, I have two main favorites:

Carly Smithson, 21

David Archuleta, 17


You should definitely watch to the end of this clip because he is totally great and his comments make me crack up.

Sadness...

So, we found out on Saturday that our 13-year-old golden retriever, Emma, has pretty advanced cancer and probably has about 2 weeks to live. Although we knew she was getting older and not in good health, it still is a shock that we have so little time with her. These kinds of situations are always hard to explain to people who grew up in different pet situations. I grew up in a family with parents who both had indoor dogs growing up, and my Mom always said that if we got a dog, it would be part of the family because she can't stand seeing them outside dying for attention and love. Anyway, so Emma (and 7-year-old MacGregor) are definitely a part of the family. They both live inside and have totally distinct personalities. MacGregor sleeps in Chelsea's room and Emma sleeps on an ottoman at the foot of my parents' bed. Needless to say, it is a really sad situation and it's also really weird to figure out how to deal with it.

Along with our own worries, we really worry about MacGregor. When we got him as a puppy, Emma pretty much became his surrogate mother. Although she is pretty independent, he is totally attached to her. If he sees her leave the house without him he pretty much whines and cries until she comes back. In fact, Chelsea took Emma to her work (at an animal hospital) for some tests today. I didn't know she was taking her until MacGregor came sprinting into my room at 6:20am totally crying. He was up on my bed crying for about an hour while I was petting him and trying to get back to sleep. If I would stop petting him, he would throw his head back on me and start whining really loudly. He also gets all worked up and wears himself out, and then he's exhausted and depressed until she gets back. We're not really sure what is going to happen that time that she doesn't come back.

Anyway, the picture above is an older one of the two dogs at the top of the stairs looking down (a favorite spot). Emma is on the left while MacGregor is on the right trying to lean on her. She tolerates it for a few minutes until she gets annoyed and moves farther away from him.

I know most of you probably think that I'm totally overreacting to this situation, but I have to say that after 13 years together, it is going to be pretty difficult letting her go!

Clothes Mania

I got a chuckle out of Erin's post today. Especially since I know all about her clothes and am, even now, trying to figure out which skirt she chose to wear with the Lynyrd Skynyrd t-shirt (one that I know well).

Magical Places 2

Loch Lomond

After our Study Abroad Program finished in London, I rented a car with two other girls and we went on a whirlwind drive to Wales and then on up to Scotland before returning to Gatwick for our flight home. One of our stops was here at Loch Lomond. We stayed in one of the most amazing hostels I have seen. It looks great in daytime, but imagine arriving here after 10pm (it's up a deserted country road) and there being NO other cars in the parking area out front. There were a few lights on inside, just enough to lend it a distinctly eerie glow. We were the only ones staying for the night. After reading about the ghost on the hostel website, I have no doubt that if there is a hostel with a ghost, this is definitely it. Needless to say, we LOVED this place! It was most definitely amazing. I think we ended up staying there 2 nights. Here's a picture of the hostel:
While Jan got an exclusive tour at a local castle from her ancestral clan (Calhoun) that is now part of an extremely exclusive golf club and course, Katie and I decided to go on a hike. We took a little trail through these amazing Lord of the Rings-type forests and winding through beautiful Scottish hills and mountains. We ran across a couple of older men (late 60s or early 70s) on the trail who said that though they live on opposite sides of the country, they get together every year and walk around Britain. At the end of the trail, across the road was an amazing mountain that was shrouded in mist. We decided to climb up the mountain to get to the mist and eat lunch up at the top. Needless to say, we didn't make it to the top. All of those rumors about Scotland being wet were verified as our legs started sinking up to their knees in a bog-like mud. After a near-miss with a mountain goat (beautiful) and resignation at the ever-higher mist, we gave up and ate lunch about half-way up with an amazing view of the lake. We named it Mount Neverest of the Slip and Drip Mountains. We thought we were clever, anyway!

Where You Lead, I Will...Die?

I agree with Anna that I normally skip the whole "quiz" thing, but this one appealed to me as it did her. Apparently, that's because we both would die under a rug. I mean, I knew that we were similar in some ways, but I now feel some comfort that, apparently, we both like to look under rugs.

What horrible Edward Gorey Death will you die?

You will be smothered under a rug. You're a little anti-social, and may want to start gaining new social skills by making prank phone calls.
Take this quiz!








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{via Zillah's Gin}