friday favorites.

Yesterday I took my dog and Mr. Stubborn Bassett Hound for a walk down to the river.  I was perched on a rock attempting to take some photos of the two of them in the water, when Mr. Stubborn himself decided to maneuver himself up on my perch.  I shifted and slipped a bit to get out of the way, when clunk - splash.

It couldn't be.  Well yes, I think it might.

My smartphone, to the bottom of the river, playing so happily in the current. 

Goodbye smartphone, hello Zack Morris throwback.

Despite this, I'm as happy as a kid with pop-rocks that today is Friday. 

And as for my favorites, well here you go:

Ryan Gosling, I'm quite sure if we EVER encountered, we could fall madly in love.  For a number of reasons, but the top one: you love your dog lots and lots.

I'm often referred to as a hippie, or hippie-esque (considering I have yet to truly fully immerse myself in the culture).  But I really dig this blog on Why the Hippies Were Right.  It really breaks down how I see things for the most part.  For instance this ending:

Why were the Hippies Right? Simple….because they cared for the people. Because they didn’t hesitate to stand up and fight for their brothers and sisters. Because they knew it was up to them to make a difference and they met that challenge head on. You have to be the change you want to see in the world! 

I really like Emma Watson's style, even though I'm generally more of a Nicole Richie combined with an Olsen twin type of fashion embracer, and this photo gallery really shows the fashion changes she's undergone since she hit the scene.

Must create epic dive to submit to Leisure Dive.  If you haven't heard of it, check it out, so fun.  This one titled the Teton Shadow Dive, is way cool.

Being the grown-up the kid in you always wanted, enough said.  I read this a while back, but it was a necessary re-visit.

To wrap it up, not one, but two Bing choices.

First, I have to do it because I was there in 2007, and that to me screams amazing-ness.  Machu Picchu, fuck yes.

And this second one because well who doesn't love donkeys and Ireland.  AKA must plan trip as soon as financially possible.

While it's cloudy and overcast here, I'm hoping it drifts off for this evening in time to catch the double meteor shower.  If you can, catch it.

Otherwise, enjoy your weekend.  Me and my Zack Morris special are taking off elsewhere

fall classy.

I've been dog sitting, my friend's OOC and super young mix cry baby of a dog and my landpeople's old, stubborn, and hilarious Bassett who shouts at me constantly.

If dog sitting doesn't make someone further appreciate their own dog even more than they already do, I'm not sure what does.  I'm so flipping grateful that my dog is a rockstar.

Anyways, I had dog party raging at my apartment last weekend when I was invited to the city.

I was too tempted to pass up the opportunity so I recruited dog sitters, my bro's girlfriend and my sister.  I offered them a bottle of vodka and vegetables from my landpeople's garden (who wouldn't be convinced with those offerings, honestly).

So I headed to Boston for a night out.  I dressed in shorts and a tank, but had back-up attire in my backpack, as I wasn't sure of the actual plan and corresponding dress code.

I arrived and hung out with your typical city-ites.  There was a chunk of discussion on how different I was from them.  I mean I guess it's weird I go haying for fun and don't know what on-demand is.  The discussion more or less resulting in them dubbing me Pocahontas (which I found to be epic).

After chilling for a bit, the decision of where to go out to was made.  And the dress code was going to be uber classy.  Sweet, take a hippie chick who rolls in moccasins, cut-offs, and baggy tees, and expect her to have appropriate attire for uber classy.

I wore jeans, and not like slim fitting, dark denim jeans but rather a worn in, faded out pair of Joe's Jeans.  I'm 100% positive that a vast amount of girls at the bar eyed me with disdain (I'm fairly certain I was a topic of conversation for a number of the groups as well). 

Whatevs.

So drank some drinks and had a mellow, uproarious time.

Then we opted to head downstairs in the bar, because there was country music downstairs, and well I am a lover of country.

I wasn't even drunk.  Tipsy yes, drunk no.  But I was wearing flimsy flats and not my typical moccasins or crocs.

I should have known that I would only make it a few steps down the stairs until there was a major slipparoo.

Down I went, beer in hand.

Honestly, I must say it was the most mother fucking classy fall I've ever had.

Seriously, it was a minor slide down several stairs, after which I righted myself and took a sip from my still full beer.

It must have looked horrendous though, because those people going up the stairs all gasped, pointed, and shouted.

The guys I was with, all laughed, as did I.

When mildly embarassed, laugh.  It's your best bet, always.

For real though, if I fall in a bar again in the future, I really hope it's that mother fucking classy.

bring the barefoot.

So, I apologize for being neglectful and more or less MIA.

One of my best friends got married last weekend, you may have read a few previous posts about me ranting embracing all the extras an MOH gets to do, and it ate a whole lot of time up. 

Work also made me want to throw around a few judo chops because it was insanely busy with last minute crap my boss dropped on me.

Anyways.

The wedding was beautiful, my friend looked amazing, and everything went smoothly.

Thank goodness I felt inclined to fulfill my MOH duty and make sure some delish wine (Barefoot Moscato, YUM) was available for the night before the wedding (where we boozed like whoa and crashed in my bed with the a/c on arctic air). 

Thank goodness I also packed an extra bottle for pre-wedding jitters.  It also helped me to look like an alcoholic in all the pre-wedding photos. 

I mean what wedding would be complete without an MOH trucking into the venue in sweats and a bottle of wine under her arm.  Photos from our getting ready room also featuring me filling cups repeatedly, aka wine bottle ALWAYS in hand.

Suprisingly I didn't cry during the ceremony.  The only tear I shed was when my friend's Dad walked in the room immediately before and welled up.

I promised my friend I was her rock, and with a few "Word to your Mom, we came to drop bombs" thrown in to get a grin, we got through the ceremony, which was beautiful.

Then it was on to photos - where I swear I was such a by the book MOH it wasn't even funny.  Legit, I had 3 gin & tonics for the bride at one point, triple fisting, say whaat. 

I also fluffed the shit out of her train for every photo.

Then we had a pre-toast before heading into the reception.  Where seriously, no one knew what to say and no one jumped in - so I dropped a little Biggie Smalls into the mix.  Big hit, that one.  It also loosened the others up to encourage a few shout out toasts.

Then it was onto being introduced - where me and the best man threw a few punches, Rocky style, obv.

First dance, kisses, and all the jazz.

DREADED toast time.  I nearly peed my dress it came up so shockingly quick.

Somehow, I actually got through it, without passing out.

It was weird.

Without further adieu, here is the toast I gave (note 1: this wasn't given word for word I just needed some bones to work with, note 2: I also memorized the bones so that I didn't need to read from a paper):

First of all, thank you all for coming.

For those of you I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting yet, my name is Twiggy, and J and I have been a part of one another’s lives since we were 4.  So, you know we’ve been through thick and thin.  From elementary school gym shows, embarrassing concert attire, and going for scary walks down the road in the dark, to varsity soccer play-offs and writing graduation speeches, to wearing matching sweat bands to our first soccer preseason away from one another, endless phone calls, and absurdly hilarious visits to one another’s schools.  Although a lot of things have changed for the better, like doing away with poorly chosen hairstyles and oversized attire, lots of things have stayed the same too.  She’s still a total crack up, the most loyal friend anyone could ask for, and an incredibly loving, capable, and fun person to have around.

So, of course I was beyond honored and happy when she asked me to be a part of this wedding, that’s the very first thing I felt.  The very second thing I felt was probably what a lot of Maid of Honor’s feel, fear.  Uh oh, I have to give a toast.  For those of you who know me, you know I do NOT speak in front of large groups of people.  So, J I must seriously love you a lot.  And you owe me, big time.

The funny part is, I knew both J and M before they knew one another.  I worked with M several times before summer fast approached and I was switching roles.  J informed she was to be taking my spot. 

The first thing I told her was wait until you meet this guy Mark, you are going to LOVE him.  I just know it!

After her first evening of work, I received a phone call at about 11:15PM. 

I know exactly who you are talking about.  I was running a bit late, which if you know J is an everyday thing, I walked into a meeting and there was one seat left next to this guy.  He looked up at me and OH MY GOD, are you kidding me!?  Sigh, I’m in love.

From the get go I was getting phone calls on the update of their romance or it was frequently discussed on our morning runs.  It’s now progressed to me having dinner, wine, and watching a movie during the pauses of our dog's playing sessions, once a week. 

I have loved watching this romance bloom.  M is a fantastic guy!  He’s funny, friendly, super easy to get along with, and can be pretty talkative once you get him going, just don't bother trying to get him going when something important is on the tv.

J has just blossomed since M came into her life.  When J met M, it was obvious from the very beginning that he was the one.  There was something different about him and she seemed to light up more than ever before. 

I so look forward to the watching of the future of these two.  I know that J and M will last a lifetime with each other.  They just seem to have that certain something about them.

So please raise your glasses while I propose a toast: 

As you sit side by side through this roller coaster of life, remember to scream from the peaks, hold hands through the dips, laugh through the loop-de-loops and enjoy every twist and turn, for the ride is better because you guys share it together.

Separately you both are very special, remarkable people, but together you are complete.

So, to love, laughter, and happily ever after!

I love you both!  Congratulations!

Once that was over, I started guzzling some drinks.

friday favorites.

So I apologize for the complete lack of posts this week.  I ultimately decided if I wasn't going to write my MOH toast, then I wasn't allowed to blog.

I haven't written the toast.  Yet here I am blogging about my favorite finds this week.

It's going to have to be short so I don't have an epic guilt trip considering her wedding is a week away.

Peacock feathers rock and I need this hair excitement, asap:

Realistically, I have zero desire to actually ever own a home.  I want to live the gypsy life and have the freedom to make a move whereever, whenever.  But if I was to ever decide to settle in one place and want to have a home base, I would absolutely live in a pocket-sized home.  Me and my dog, we don't need a lot of space, especially if we have the outdoors.  And I just love the idea of having something small, easy to clean & decorate, and to have a minimal carbon footprint.

Music find!  Love when I strike it up with some superb new artist.  Check out Gardens & Villa.  Really cool, really digging it.  The first song I heard from them was Orange Blossom but then after streaming their disc at work, I fell in love with this song Black Hills.  Give 'em a listen.

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.  Enough said.  LOVE THEM.

Emma Watson, again for a major fashion win!  Loving that Oscar De La Renta dress.

Finally, a National Geographic Photo of the Day homerun.  The photo was taken by Mrs. Wai Chun Turnbull while at Nakuru National Park in Kenya.  I want to go there, immediately.

On a completely separate note, the fox needed to be euthanized.  It had two really bad breaks in it's hind leg and all the other wounds were severely infected.  The doctor said it had gotten into a fight with something, and it wasn't hit by a car.  I was seriously disappointed, I was hoping for a huge rehabilitation success.