Dear Diary, let's party like it's 2007

In the spirit of Hanukah and this Thanksgiving-holiday-induced house arrest time, my brother and I decided to use time wisely by making a middle school throwback playlist. What’s that got to do with Hanukah you say? Well everyone in my neighborhood knows that middle school is the time for bar, bat and b’nai mitzvahs. We know this because for some reason we have a wonderfully large Jewish population living in this area of our school district. So far me and my brother have attended over thirty-two mitzvah celebrations, with seventeen dollar checks always in hand. If you showed up without your ballet sweater wrap covering your shoulders and matching eyeshadow you were clearly a novice clueless (sorry, middle school was harsh). But I digress- Some songs were left off because I hated them then and still hate them now, but every song can be found on Spotify. 

1. 50 Cent – Candy Shop
2. Akon – Smack That - Dirty
3. Akon – I Wanna Love You
4. Baby Bash – Suga Suga
5. Beyoncé – Crazy In Love
6. Beyoncé – Naughty Girl
7. The Black Eyed Peas – Pump It
8. The Black Eyed Peas – My Humps
9. Britney Spears – Toxic
10. Britney Spears – I'm A Slave 4 U
11. Cascada – Everytime We Touch - Radio Edit
12. The Cast Of 'High School Musical' – Breaking Free
13. Chamillionaire – Ridin' Dirty (feat. Chamillionaire)
14. Chingy – Right Thurr
15. Chingy – Holidae In
16. Chris Brown feat. Juelz Santana – Run It! - Featuring Juelz Santana
17. Ciara – One, Two Step
18. Coolio – Gangsta's Paradise - feat. L.V.
19. D-12 – My Band
20. David Banner – Get Like Me
21. Destiny's Child – Soldier
22. Destiny's Child – Say My Name
23. Destiny's Child – Jumpin', Jumpin'
24. DMX – Party Up
25. Eminem – Lose Yourself - Soundtrack Version (Explicit)
26. Eminem – The Real Slim Shady
27. Eve – Let Me Blow Ya Mind
28. Fall Out Boy – Dance, Dance
29. Fall Out Boy – Sugar, We're Goin Down
30. The Fray – How To Save A Life
31. The Fray – Over My Head (Cable Car)
32. Fugees – Killing Me Softly With His Song
33. The Game – How We Do
34. Gwen Stefani – Rich Girl
35. JoJo – Too Little Too Late
36. Justin Timberlake – SexyBack - Main Version - Explicit
37. Justin Timberlake – Cry Me A River
38. Justin Timberlake – Rock Your Body
39. Kelis – Milkshake
40. Lil Jon – Get Low
41. Lil Jon – Snap Yo Fingers
42. Nelly Furtado – Promiscuous
43. Nelly Furtado – Maneater
44. The Pussycat Dolls – Beep
45. Rihanna – SOS
46. Rihanna – Unfaithful
47. Shakira – Hips Don't Lie
48. Snow Patrol – Chasing Cars

If you didn’t realize how horribly inappropriate the rap songs were then… you sure will now. 

Today I am thankful for modern technology, the Internet, and my family. I am thankful that the three year peak of my decade of awkwardness is over. I am thankful that the boys grew, and some of them are now (omg) even taller than me. Lastly, I am thankful for the old friends that made these songs bring back such good memories, and the new friends who will hijack fraternity sound systems so we can jam out to this playlist when we get back to school. 

XOXO

Dear Diary, Catching Fire well, caught me

On Thursday ChiO sprung for Catching Fire tickets for us at the prescreening at 8 o’clock so naturally half our chapter was there, including me, and all I can say is wow. All I want to do is live it over and over until I can recite it in my sleep or become Effie, whichever comes first. Am I disappointed at missed details and glossed over issues? Of course. Is it also better than I imagined from the book? Surprisingly yes. 

The visuals were more than better, they were incredible. The costumes, the hair, the make up, the scenery were all dazzling. I already read the books so the story was not what captured my attention, it was the costumes which were all done by Trish Summerville. In the opening scene Katniss has this absolutely fabulous grey, cowl neck, chunky knit, diagonal sweater thing that was the perfect blend of her roots in District 12 and her new world in the Capitol spotlight. I don’t even know what to call it but I want it.

I was underwhelmed by both Katniss and Peeta’s tour outfits. They were in no way memorable, which I guess was fine because the tour was more about the rebellion, but still, a little glitter and jewel tones go a long way.

It was all made up by Katniss’s wedding dress. I was disappointed by her flame dress in the first film, but this was a masterpiece designed by Tex Saverio. The gown was glittery, fluffy, dramatic, cloud-like and just stunning. I was disappointed by the mockingjay dress that it turned onto though because the graphics on the front and back reminded vaguely of an Affliction shirt, but the wings were sick. The people of the Capitol died for that special effect, and so did I.

Everyone was dressed to intimidate here, Effie just had a different audience than the tributes.

Speaking of Capitol couture, we must discuss my new style inspiration- Effie Trinket. She is always positive, polished, peppy and dresses like I would in my wildest dreams. This article talks more about the detail that went into synchronizing each Effie costume with where the characters and the people of Panem are in the story line.

This was my favorite ensemble- those are feather butterflies on her dress and headpiece.

Not a huge fan of this look, but cheers to the sleeves.

Used in ads and in the beginning scenes, I want to scream "IT'S SO FLUFFY!"

Every outfit came with new, matching nails- that's an insane amount of detail.

And finally, the game gear and the boys...

Not squealing when this happened was the hardest thing I'd ever done.

The wet suits the competitors wore in the games were really cool and made me want one, you know, for all the times I swim in the ocean or have to fight for my life in a jungle. In this New York Times article on the costumes of this second movie installment, Ms. Summerville said they decided to dress Peeta's character in a much more masculine way to accentuate the growing up Peeta did from being selected as a tribute to after the games as a victor. How convenient then that Josh Hutcherson, who plays Peeta, has quite the athletic build. In this movie he was much more convincing as a strong, steady man who could help save Katniss's life. 

Their nightmare-inspired sleeping situation is so precious I can't find words.

Also, at this point in the story Peeta is essentially competing with Gale for Katniss. What really got me was when I read that Ms. Summerville used a lot of subdued greens in Peeta's wardrobe "because Katniss's favorite color is green, "she said, "so subliminally, he's always trying to woo her." I know it's the costume designer saying that not the character himself, but it still brought a metaphorical tear to my eye. Peeta's undying love for Katniss is the steadfast core of the series. It's heartbreaking, tear-jerking and keeps you craving more. I've always been Team Peeta for Katniss, but maybe that's cause I want Gale/Liam for myself?

I'd accept his rose any day.

XOXO

Dear Diary, a Wednesday pick-me-up

A few weeks ago I obsessed over sweaters with animals on them, so it's only fair to feature animals with sweaters on them. It's a rough world out there for animals. When the weather gets cold, they can't throw on their quilted driving coat or chic down ski jacket. They can grow thicker fur, but sometimes that's not enough. So, we buy them sweaters. We love our animals, and here is the proof:

Happy Wednesday y'all.

XOXO

Dear Diary, here’s to the Fifty Nifty United States

A little wreath I made for our door

Our last date party of the season was this past weekend and we paired with the ladies of Pi Beta Phi to put on this state-themed event. After months of back and fourth on the theme, we finally settled on ‘Fifty Nifty United States’ from the song many of us were taught in elementary school as a way to remember all the US state names.

Everyone picked a state and dressed as something famous from that state. Some of the costumes we saw were so creative! I loved that everyone really got into the theme and came up with such cute things. A few of my favorites include: the Kentucky Derby, grapes from Napa, old people from Florida, a lone star from Texas, Harley Davidson from Michigan, the Gossip Girl cast from New York, a deer and a hunter from Oklahoma, and the devil from Georgia.

I did not take a date because as social chair, I am responsible for everything running smoothly which sometimes running all over the place, therefore leaving my date all by his lonesome. I took a date to our first date party of my term and saw him for maybe fifteen minuets all night and I just felt terrible about it. So from then on my mom was my date (no, I’m not kidding) and I loved it! Then all I had to worry about was my mother being scarred from experiencing date parties from the inside, but she was social chair when she was here so she never is too shocked.

Are we in NYC?

Because I was flying solo and sober that meant the sky was the limit for my costume. So I decided to represent my favorite city, NYC, with a taxi and the iconic I heart NY logo. I did this by cutting out the letters on felt and pinning them to my black leotard. For the taxi I bought a box from the local Norman box store, cut it up, painted it yellow then decorated it. The stripes on the side are made from white duct tape with black card stock squares glued to them. The wheels are silver glitter scrapbook paper over black glitter paper. It was weird wearing a box all night, but it was nice to have a very distinct personal space bubble though.

All in all it was a great date party and everyone told me that they so much fun. I mean what more can you ask for? The new officers will be selected this Sunday so I’m passing off the reins to the next lucky gal to take my seat… it sure has been a fun ride!

Missed the 'Fifty Nifty' reference? This video should explain it all.

XOXO

Dear Diary, I want to go Glamping

Just when you think they've thought of everything, you hear that people have discovered a way to make camping bearable. More than bearable in fact, they've made it glamorous and even given the experience its own name- glamping. That’s the words glamorous plus camping and it equals the chicest experience you could ever imagine. As defined by Urban Dictionary “Going camping, but with glamour. A combination of the two words. It’s like regular camping, but with nicer things than usual, being warmer, and more comfortable. Glamping isn’t done by usual outdoor types who climb mountains.”  So accurate, so perfect.

Glamping allows you to escape the bustling city life while you relax and recharge. Fresh air and absolute leisure… does it get any better? But don’t worry- you can still do normal camping things! Every glamping location has endless adventure options like hiking, mountain biking, white water rafting, canoeing, kayaking, animal watching, and wine tasting (ok although that’s not a normal camping activity it should be… which is why the glamping geniuses include it).

The best part about it is you get the adventure, but at the end of the day instead of having to find fire wood, build a fire and warm a can of beans over said fire then crawling into your musty sleeping bag thrown down on the rocky floor of your tiny tent.  You feel outdoorsy, without smelling, or feeling like the outdoors. It’s the most perfect kind of limbo.

Here are two links if you want to learn more about this fabulous trend; glamping.com and glampinghub.com. The Gorah Elephant Camp in South Africa is my number one pick for now… who wants to join?

If you say no to this you're dead to me. 

XOXO