tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46471855383286234302024-03-13T14:36:40.486-07:00my beautiful disaster..and the blog that covers it.Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.comBlogger101125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-22097023973718236542013-01-18T00:26:00.000-08:002013-01-21T21:58:06.399-08:00Week 2: NBC TV + Video<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_-_quGJlhjo/UPuqgsOQp9I/AAAAAAAAAnE/NEYvGkfPS3g/s1600/The-Office-Season-9-Episode-11-Suit-Warehouse-5-550x366.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_-_quGJlhjo/UPuqgsOQp9I/AAAAAAAAAnE/NEYvGkfPS3g/s400/The-Office-Season-9-Episode-11-Suit-Warehouse-5-550x366.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo courtesy of tvequals.com</td></tr>
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<i><b>The Office, Season 9, Episode 11 "Suit Warehouse"</b></i><br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>The storylines:</b></span><br />
This episode chose to focus on Dwight and his attempt to lock in a sale with (dude) by posing as father and son. Pam and Daryl also traveled to Philadelphia to see Jim (Daryl was there for an interview and Pam was just surprising him). However, she was the one who ended up being surprised since the "little" start-up looks pretty legitimate when she arrives. Daryl is also intimidated, especially since he usually does really bad in interviews. Also, in the sub-plot I mentioned last time, Erin tries to avoid Pete by distracting herself with a delivery of pens.<br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Thoughts?</b></span><br />
I think that the whole Dwight storyline was a nice try at picking up on the whole Dwight Jr. scenario but it felt pretty forced on Rainn Wilson's part. He's really good normally, but the first scenes in the business were so rehearsed to me. Granted, that was probably the point but I just miss the chemistry with old characters I guess. Pam starts to look really unsure about the move to Philly as Daryl lands the job. I really liked the way they set up the whole Athlead studio for Jim. It felt good to see him in a more professional setting and the fact that the staff was so welcoming to Daryl was pretty cool too. Erin also seems to feel guilty now that it's pretty obvious she has feelings for Pete. She stays away from him the whole episode and uses the pens as a metaphor for her refusal to cheat on Andy. As for the rest of the staff, they distract themselves at work by trying out all the flavors of the new espresso machines. When I first heard Steve Carell was leaving, I thought this would be a good opportunity for the rest of the characters to get some face time, but now I feel that they were in the background for a reason. It doesn't really seem they can carry on a large chunk of an episode by themselves. The highlight of the episode for me was Daryl killing some fish during his interview. It was pretty hilarious. This is definitely one of the better episodes of the season.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H6XuRZ7oStA/UP2mkdJnhtI/AAAAAAAAAr0/50mxNO27TR4/s1600/resizedimage600337-The-best-bachelor-party.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="222" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H6XuRZ7oStA/UP2mkdJnhtI/AAAAAAAAAr0/50mxNO27TR4/s400/resizedimage600337-The-best-bachelor-party.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Courtesy: thetvcritic.org</td></tr>
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<b><i>Parks and Recreation, Season 5, Episode 10 "Two Parties"</i></b><br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Storyline:</b></span></div>
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Ben and Leslie are each having their respective bachelor/bachelorette parties. While Ann is trying to make the best of the night, Leslie is distracted because she realizes the plot of land she wanted to use is now being turned into a Ponch Burger. So, she throws Indian artifacts in the site's land to halt construction. Upon realizing how illegal and wrong that is, the girls try to clean house and get Leslie to confess. Meanwhile, the guys are playing board games and drinking beer for Ben's night, when Tom tries to livened up the night by taking them to a trendy new club. What starts out as an attempt to make Ben's day special turns into a bachelor party for all the guys, since none of them had a party of their own. Jerry had his turn at the ice cream shop where he met his wife, Tom's was at the club, Ron's was at St. Elmo's Steakhouse (where guest star Roy Gibbert gets the tab), and Andy's was at Lucas Oil Stadium, where the gang meets the Colts owner, Reggie Wayne and Andrew Luck. After a night of fun, the guys realize Chris (who instigated the whole idea) didn't get his turn so they team up to give him a treat of their own.<br />
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<b><span style="color: blue;">Thoughts:</span></b><br />
This is possibly the best episode of the whole show. The guy's night out was so endearing, Chris is finally appreciated for his optimism and consideration, and Leslie has her ass saved by an awesome Indian. Everyone wins in this episode and it's so fun to watch. As always, for me, Andy takes the cake with his ridiculous lines. When Ben asks the gang if eveeryone's thinking what he's thinking, Andy says," Buy Chris a pet snake and then I keep it." <i style="font-weight: bold;">lmao. </i>The rant Andy goes on as they give Chris his gift is also hilarious. Great, amazing episode.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cCYvPUr76XU/UP4oc3fNdgI/AAAAAAAAAss/SH0SG_mHsoM/s1600/30-rock-florida_article_story_main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cCYvPUr76XU/UP4oc3fNdgI/AAAAAAAAAss/SH0SG_mHsoM/s400/30-rock-florida_article_story_main.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Courtesy: hitfix.com</td></tr>
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<b><i>30 Rock, Season 7, Episode 10 "Florida"</i></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: blue;">Storylines:</span></b><br />
Jack is still feeling the bliss from his victory over Kaylie by being on the brink of being named Kabletown's CEO. Before this happens, he's off to Florida and takes Liz along with him. What started out as a visit to fix his mother's estate after her passing ends up being a revelation for both Liz and Jack. Jack finds out his mother has been a lesbian for the later part of her life, and Liz realizes that what Tracy had told her was true...she wasn't spontaneous. That lands her in Harry Potter jail and Jack pondering his happiness. Back at the studio, Tracy and Jenna were in charge and had to get signature to prevent a sexual harassment lawsuit from Paige. Everyone but Kenneth signs because he doesn't want to lose his integrity. After some easy convincing, he signs but doesn't act the same after. When Liz comes back, she impulsively takes two adopted children under her care and Hooper comes into her office to inform her that now TGS is being shut down (due to the lawsuit). Next Friday is her last day....<br />
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<b><span style="color: blue;">Thoughts?</span></b><br />
They are really prepping for the finale with this episode. There wasn't so many laughs and a lot of story development. I think the finale is going to be a lot more emotional than the usual episodes. I feel kind of annoyed that Jenna and Tracy actually cause the demise of the studio; I wish it would've been something else. I'm anxious to see what's going on with Liz.<br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>The night's winner? Parks and Recreation! (Hands down, in my opinion)</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><b>(Here's a video to end off the week the recaps the Golden Globes.)</b></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: magenta;">Have a great weekend!</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #a64d79;">'til next time, stay classy! ♥</span></b></div>
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-M</div>
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Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-39385564444601288582013-01-16T16:31:00.000-08:002013-01-21T14:22:00.565-08:00Week 2: Fox TV + Hope for Hump Day<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bSLkk5YQhI8/UPyMgok4aTI/AAAAAAAAAn4/V9h3iGL-I9c/s1600/The-Mindy-Project-Episode-11-Bunk-Bed-3-550x436.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="316" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bSLkk5YQhI8/UPyMgok4aTI/AAAAAAAAAn4/V9h3iGL-I9c/s400/The-Mindy-Project-Episode-11-Bunk-Bed-3-550x436.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Photo courtesy: sidereel.com</span></td></tr>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Mindy Project, Season 1, Episode 11 "Bunk Bed"</span></i></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Storylines:</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Mindy is trying to bond with her best friend, Gwen, again while her husband is away. The only trouble is that Gwen has to bring her daughter along, who is demanding a bunk bed. That and the fact that Mindy doesn't even know how to build a bunk bed. Meanwhile, Danny brings in the staff on a Saturday to be a more competitive practice so they try to do everything possible to mess with him enough to cancel Saturdays. This started off with the basics: wasting time on Facebook, looking at pictures on People BUT they find a letter that he wrote to her ex-wife.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Thoughts?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The first thing I must say is that the opening almost made me close Hulu. Mindy is on a great date with this guy on a horse carriage. Just as things seem like they could lead somewhere, the horse has a heart attack. Then they shoot it...three times. I think that if you want to ruin a date, you could've picked a more awkward moment. I get that a horse dying is out there but it's also insensitive to actually consider that a real option on a national TV sitcom. Once I got over that initial offense, I was surprised. Another really good episode. I like how when a character receives texts on the show, they show it on the screen instead of cutting to the phone. I think this is the second time they do that on this show and it's a refreshing way to show texts. The first half of the episode, I thought they were going to push the Mindy/ Danny thing that they're done on and off but Danny ends up meeting a girl in the hospital. They also gave a lot of face time to Morgan this episode, which made it funnier. This is probably bias because I love Morgan's dialogue and his delivery. The highlight for me was when Mindy called him. He ends up sending the letter the staff found and the way the show ends, it seems like they're going to run with that storyline. We'll see what next week holds.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OsFKi0PSE2k/UPycou39e9I/AAAAAAAAAow/ehjciW4fgAI/s1600/new-girl-fathers-love_510x317.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="297" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OsFKi0PSE2k/UPycou39e9I/AAAAAAAAAow/ehjciW4fgAI/s400/new-girl-fathers-love_510x317.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Photo courtesy: pastemagazine.com</span></td></tr>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">New Girl, Season 2, Episode 13 "A Father's Love"</span></i></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Storylines:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Earlier in the season, Jess's parents came to the loft after Jess tries to "Parent Trap" them. Now, Nick's dad stops by. At first, it seems innocent, until you learn the back story of him being a conman. He invites Jess to watch the horse races and convinces her to pitch in to buy a horse, named "A Father's Love", to make amends with Nick. However, after hearing Winston tell Nick his dad took $1100 dollars from him, both the audience and Nick can put two and two together as he tries to get his dad to pay her back. Back at home, Schmidt is teaming up with Cece's ex, Robbie, to try to get her back. Weird, huh? She's getting set up with a successful Indian man and they both spy on her. Then they head back to the bar to discuss their plan to get her back. </span></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Thoughts?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">My favorite line was," There's more to A Father's Love than semen *pause* didn't mean for it to be sexual....poetic but gross."<i style="font-weight: bold;"> Hilarious. </i>After last week's episode, I wanted to see more of Winston but he's pretty much gone in this episode. I can still appreciate the chemistry between Schmidt and Robbie though. There was also a cute moment between Jess and Nick at the end. You see why he's had trust issues growing up but Jess sees how much he's had to go through and how well he's come out of it despite all the junk.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-H0y5sR06t44/UP2Pj8mYsBI/AAAAAAAAAqE/wQXFDMIPVTE/s1600/312_hope_recap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="223" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-H0y5sR06t44/UP2Pj8mYsBI/AAAAAAAAAqE/wQXFDMIPVTE/s400/312_hope_recap.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Photo Courtesy: fox.com</span></td></tr>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Raising Hope, Season 3, Episode 12 "Lord of the Ring"</span></i></b><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Storyline:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Sabrina is watching an infomercial with the Chance family and says how bad it is that women base their worth on an engagement ring. However, when she leaves, Bert says she's lying and that Jimmy has to do whatever it takes to get her an engagement ring (like he did for Virginia). Little does he know that Virginia has been pawning/rebuying it for 20 years when the family is broke. So while Bert is going crazy looking for it, Jimmy is going mental doing a bunch of medical tests for money. During all the chaos, Sabrina realizes she actually does want a ring because it'll represent her marriage to Jimmy. </span><br />
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Thoughts?</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm pretty sure they were spoofing The 40 Year-Old Virgin with Sabrina getting waxed and yelling "Clay Aiken" but don't quote me. Of course, they were also doing a take on "Lord of the Rings" and it was all hilarious to watch. Big Judy was actually my favorite of the night; she kept telling everyone about hints the whole time but the Chance family were a little slow to catch it. Ross makes an appearance again and is trying to hit on Virginia the whole time while everyone's looking for the ring. It's a really cute ending!</span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><b>The night's winner? Raising Hope!</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>(Below is the hope to get you through hump day and beyond.)</b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sisv_PbjL2Q/UP2Rxuu7B1I/AAAAAAAAAqg/Hkdu5Do7k18/s1600/hffhd2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="291" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sisv_PbjL2Q/UP2Rxuu7B1I/AAAAAAAAAqg/Hkdu5Do7k18/s320/hffhd2.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">You're not alone when you're thinking "where did all this time go?"</span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: #a64d79; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">'til next time, stay classy! ♥</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
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Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-58638183550347435542013-01-14T11:41:00.000-08:002013-01-21T11:48:04.999-08:00Torn: Jud Wilhite<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0wC73G_C5yw/UP2avllznCI/AAAAAAAAArY/JqzivAMNDSs/s1600/Torn2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0wC73G_C5yw/UP2avllznCI/AAAAAAAAArY/JqzivAMNDSs/s320/Torn2.jpg" width="207" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><u>Author</u></b>: Jud Wilhite</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><u>Pages</u></b>: 224 pages</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b>: </span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Multnomah Books</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><u>Summary (from publisher)</u></b>:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">When our world comes crashing down, it does more than steal our peace. Something inside us tears. We feel broken, stranded—torn.</span><br style="background-color: white;" /><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span style="background-color: white;">We naturally ask the question “Why?” when we’re hurting. But as pastor Jud Wilhite turned to the Bible in his own pain, he was surprised to discover that another question matters more: “Who?” Who is worthy of our trust when our trust when our lives are in pieces?</span><br style="background-color: white;" /><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span style="background-color: white;">You may be experiencing a time of such darkness that you wonder if you will ever find “normal” again or look toward the future with hope. In </span><i style="background-color: white;">Torn, </i><span style="background-color: white;">Jud explores your questions as well as God’s answers—and God’s mysteries. With a pastor’s heart, he looks with you at practical ways to fight for joy, deal with anger and depression, and make the million tiny decisions that add up to a life committed to God, even when your heart is broken. </span><br style="background-color: white;" /><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span style="background-color: white;">It’s not about having better arguments for the purpose behind our suffering. It’s about our relationship with God—a relationship that can flourish even when our </span><i style="background-color: white;">whys </i><span style="background-color: white;">go unanswered.</span></span><br />
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Thoughs:</span></u></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Everyone who has ever questioned God about the purpose of pain and suffering should read this book. Pastor Jud Wilhite writes from a refreshingly different perspective. Chances are if you choose to read this book, you have a "Why God?" moment in your life. I know for me, at the time, I was definitely feeling condemned. However, Jud's purpose of this book isn't to answer that "why". Instead, he's trying to get you to see the "how" to push through your circumstance and the "who" it is you're living for. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">If you are a pastor and wish for an emotional, loving testimonial then this is the book for you. If you are a Christian and are going through pain and suffering and want to make sense of it all, this book is for you. However, if you're looking for an intellectual debate of the troubles and purposes behind evil, you're not going to find it here. </span><br />
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-47814407254831032492013-01-11T00:25:00.000-08:002013-01-21T14:22:14.724-08:00Week 1: NBC TV + Video<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4-ZpVp_LPxs/UPunhz1hSlI/AAAAAAAAAms/jbtVmfpUN7k/s1600/office_meredithbald.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="221" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4-ZpVp_LPxs/UPunhz1hSlI/AAAAAAAAAms/jbtVmfpUN7k/s400/office_meredithbald.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Meredith going bald: Highlight of the episode ^ courtesy of tv.com</span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">
<i>The Office, Season 9, Episode 10 "Lice"</i></span></b><br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>The storyline:</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In this episode, they are two stories going on. One is with Jim and the other with Pam at the office. Pam is experiencing being left alone with the kids for the first time. As if that wasn't overwhelming enough, Cece (her daughter) ends up getting lice. Pam brings lice to work by accident. That's all I'll say about that because I don't want to spoil it. She checks up on Jim throughout the week but little does she know, he's meeting his basketball idols and riding limos. </span><br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Thoughts?</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I read the comments on Hulu sometimes before I watch the episodes so this probably sends me in with a bit of a bias. I try to read after but this time, I couldn't help myself since there was a break mid-season. However, all the comments were right about the opening being horrible. I can't understand why the writers are running out of ideas. I will say that I think that this episode is definitely the beginning of an attempt to focus on Pam's insecurities. It seems that Pam and Jim are beginning to have different opinions for once instead of always being so in sync so it'll be interesting. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I feel like Jenna Fischer is really trying to make up for the lack of momentum this season has had but maybe that's just me. A funny thing that was also happening was Daryl trying to get dumped. Although he does make it happen, the other sales staff ends up butting in and ruining his plans. Also, there seems to be a sub-plot going on with Pete and Erin. I don't know if it's being done on purpose but Pete reminds me of a young Jim (even with the tone of his voice). He's been eyeing Erin the whole season and so far, this episode shows that their chemistry is pretty undeniable. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It's not the best episode, but a decent try.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Slq5e-moKRg/UP2ptaT3bWI/AAAAAAAAAsQ/ajzcJErD-2s/s1600/30-Rock-Season-7-Episode-9-Game-Over-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Slq5e-moKRg/UP2ptaT3bWI/AAAAAAAAAsQ/ajzcJErD-2s/s400/30-Rock-Season-7-Episode-9-Game-Over-3.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Photo Courtesy: northbynorthwestern.com</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><b>30 Rock, Season 7, Episode 9 "Game Over"</b></i></span><br />
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Storyline:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Jack has to come up with a way to convince Hank Hooper to give the CEO position to him instead of his granddaughter. In doing so, he teams up with Devon (Will Arnett) to try to take her down. It's the ultimate cat and mouse game as Jack tries to get DNA to prove Kaylie is not Hank's real granddaughter. There's a couple of twists here that I won't give away but just expect the unexpected. Tracy is off trying to make a Harriet Tubman movie but meets a star (Octavia Spencer) that's even more unpredictable than he is; he tries being Liz in order to control her but she goes off the rails and shuts down production. All this is happening while Liz is trying to weigh her options about pregnancy. She had never considered adopting an older child until this episode. You'll have to watch to see what happens.</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Thoughts?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">My favorite lines: </span><br />
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<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: blue;"><b>"</b></span>Fertility shots? Is that a euphemism?" - Leo Spaceman</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">When Jack says what a pleasure it is to see Kaylie, she replies, "Pleasure is the name of a horse I hate. This is business."</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This is a smart, surprising episode. Everything is well-developed and the way Tracy and Liz's story influence each other is really well-written. The Jack/Kaylie duel was very satisfying and paced evenly. Everyone seems to be trying to move forward but still remaining true to their characters. The only annoying part was Jenna's juvenile need to be cool. It's been kind of bringing down the episodes in some cases, but not in this one. I'm going to be sad to see this show go.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>NO PARKS & REC TONIGHT! :(</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><b>The winner? 30 Rock!</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>(Also, a video below to make up for lack of P&R)</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: magenta; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Have a great weekend!</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><span style="color: red;">'</span><span style="color: #a64d79;">til next time, stay classy! ♥</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
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Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-53169492997921703982013-01-09T15:44:00.000-08:002013-01-21T14:22:27.717-08:00Week 1: Fox TV + Hope For Hump Day<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ucRWRBd3EjU/UPyBw3ui6lI/AAAAAAAAAnc/RId23_S05Io/s1600/the-mindy-project-episode-10-mindy_s-brother-6-550x366.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ucRWRBd3EjU/UPyBw3ui6lI/AAAAAAAAAnc/RId23_S05Io/s400/the-mindy-project-episode-10-mindy_s-brother-6-550x366.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Photo courtesy: themothchase.com</span></td></tr>
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<i><b><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Mindy Project, Season 1, Episode 10 "Mindy's Brother"</span></b></i><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Storylines:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It's a new year and Mindy is trying to follow through with her resolutions, partly because she wants to forget about Josh. She thinks that robber hit up her apartment but it's really her younger brother, who she's happy to have around...until she finds out his "big announcement". Mindy freaks when she finds out that he's decided to drop out of Stanford to pursue rapping while Danny and Jeremy visit an old folks' home to talk to their landlord about their office rent (which has doubled).<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: none; color: #1a1a1a; line-height: 14px;"> The boys are trying to help the landlord in his love life in exchange for some help; Mindy tries to talk her brother out of making a bad decision.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: none; line-height: 14px;"><b>Thoughts?</b></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: none; color: #1a1a1a; line-height: 14px;">Utkarsh Ambudka</span> (from Pitch Perfect) guest stars and his raps are really funny. I think he was definitely the highlight of the show. This episode in general was very well written (although I felt the stress barfing was not needed). Of course, each episode also ends with a small lesson, but I can appreciate Mindy's commitment to creating meaning to her show. I am really pulling for her because I've loved her work on The Office and her book, but this season has had something missing in most episodes. I didn't get that feeling with this episode so congrats to Mindy on a great first episode after the holidays! </span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3wOjYkWqrk8/UPyV7yJHcqI/AAAAAAAAAoU/KZmVjAm8Ggk/s1600/New-Girl-Season-2-Episode-12-Cabin-3-550x366.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3wOjYkWqrk8/UPyV7yJHcqI/AAAAAAAAAoU/KZmVjAm8Ggk/s400/New-Girl-Season-2-Episode-12-Cabin-3-550x366.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Photo courtesy: sidereel.com</span></td></tr>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">New Girl, Season 2, Episode 12 "Cabin"</span></i></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Storylines:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The show opens up with Schmidt catching Winston chatting up with some black strangers. This sparks a revelation in Schmidt's head about letting Winston be "supported in being as black as he can be". Winston, who quickly takes advantage of Schmidt's naive and gullible thought, pushes to see just how far Schmidt will go. Jess, Nick, Angie, and Sam all go to a cabin for the weekend. Angie is a firecracker the whole time, instigating the gang to drink absinthe. Truths come out and things get a little messy, which prompts Angie to leave.</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Thoughts?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This was Winston's best episode. He was soooo funny and Schmidt's ranting about race are hilarious. It was definitely the more entertaining half of the show, while Jess and Nick's journey was more about exposing their insecurities. Jess is scared to be vulnerable and alone with Sam, which is why she invites Nick along in the first place. Nick's struggle seemed to be that he was acting like he was okay with the relationship he has with Angie, when in reality, it was a lot more out there than he would admit. I hate to compare but this is a wayyyy more entertaining watch than Mindy's show. Mindy is an acquired taste and her fanbase is mostly fans that have followed her from The Office. New Girl always has really great writing that can appeal to everyone. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7a7hHkY2WtU/UP2D1PrtDFI/AAAAAAAAApM/StFyHJX5NiI/s1600/RH_3x11_01_FULL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7a7hHkY2WtU/UP2D1PrtDFI/AAAAAAAAApM/StFyHJX5NiI/s400/RH_3x11_01_FULL.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Photo courtesy: screencrush.com</span></td></tr>
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<i><b><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Raising Hope, Season 3, Episode 11 "Credit Where Credit Is Due"</span></b></i></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Storylines:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Jimmy is trying to buy a new car. Partly because of Sabrina's nagging and also for Hope's safety. He goes and asks his parents about what he should do and they warn him about the dangers of buying new. That is where they say my favorite line of the episode..."If Sabrina tells you anything about getting a used car, tell her that when you met her, she had a boyfriend. You got her used." <i style="font-weight: bold;">LMAO. </i>After looking a lot of "diamonds in the rough" that fit in their $800 budget, Sabrina finally drags Jimmy to a car lot. As they finally make their choice about getting a new car, Jimmy is told he has a credit score of 91 (thanks to his parents stealing his identity when he was 5 years old to buy a hot tub). </span></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Thoughts?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Apparently, there's a lot of Back to the Future references but I don't get them because I've never seen the movie (don't judge me). Even as someone who doesn't know those references, there's plenty of stuff to laugh at. Raising Hope is an extremely underrated show. The writing is always on point, and there's usually a lesson too. I mentioned my favorite line in the storyline but there was also this part where Jimmy's parents say they are going to the bank to fix his credit and that's it..no more bad choices. Then, they suggest going through a cracked bridge to go to a Mexican/Indian restaurant that the city finally allowed to be re-opened to buy chicken that's really cheap because the lights were out for 18 hours...lol. I won't give the ending away but it all works out for everyone, including the special cameo. </span></div>
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<b style="color: red; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The winner? New Girl!</span></b></div>
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<b style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">(Below is your inspiration to get you through the rest of the week.)</span></b></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vt1IydGPFss/UP2IaR39QFI/AAAAAAAAApo/pJ3sSi7t8yE/s1600/hfhd1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vt1IydGPFss/UP2IaR39QFI/AAAAAAAAApo/pJ3sSi7t8yE/s320/hfhd1.jpg" width="313" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #a64d79; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>'til next time, stay classy! ♥</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
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Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-27091230271454083692013-01-07T11:26:00.000-08:002013-01-21T11:48:18.408-08:00A change of pace: Healing is a Choice<br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Change to this blog:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">To spice things up this year, I'm going to try and dedicate Fridays to NBC TV. I already catch up on Hulu every Friday and go on and on to my boyfriend about all the episodes I watch. I figure it would be cool to broadcast it, since I think my blog needs to get a little more entertaining. I'll also space the posts out by network (Wednesdays will be Fox shows, Thursdays for ABC). So from now on, look forward to recaps of the latest episodes of the shows I watch:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The Office</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Parks and Recreation</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">30 Rock</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The Mindy Project</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Modern Family</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Raising Hope</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">New Girl</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">(MAYBE) The Walking Dead</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><b>Now, onto an old book review I should've done a long time ago for booksneeze.com. </b></i></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XGxBKgHC7wk/UP2T4-R-YbI/AAAAAAAAAq8/ByzyAKe8BSo/s1600/_200_360_Book.480.cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XGxBKgHC7wk/UP2T4-R-YbI/AAAAAAAAAq8/ByzyAKe8BSo/s1600/_200_360_Book.480.cover.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><u>Author:</u></b> Stephen Arterburn</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><u>Pages:</u></b> 480</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><u>Publisher: </u></b><span style="background-color: white;">Thomas Nelson</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><u>Summary (from publisher):</u></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The power to heal—physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually—is in God’s hands. But the choice to be healed is yours. Everyone, at some level, needs healing. You may have prayed for healing many times, for many years. Perhaps you have lived with your brokenness so long that you have become accustomed to it. Maybe you wonder just when God is going to take all the hurt away.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">He can. But you also must choose to let the hurt go and let the healing begin.</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In this special edition of <i>Healing Is a Choice</i>, author Stephen Arterburn offers a unique combination of book and workbook, outlining ten choices crucial to receiving healing. Embracing these choices means rejecting the lies we often tell ourselves. These are not hoops God requires you to jump through to earn your miracle; they form, instead, the journey He desires for you. He can—and will—walk with you. But you must put one foot in front of the other and choose to let the hurt go and let the healing begin.</span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><u>Thoughts:</u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This is targeted towards Christians. I had just signed up for BookSneeze at the time and going through a broken engagement, so seeing this book seemed like a sign at the time (especially since it was for free). When I got this book, I was shocked by its size. It's a thhiiiccckk book. Upon inspection, I realized that it's because after every decision, there's a workbook you can complete, so that takes up about half of the book. They are 10 decisions, a workbook section for each one, and a final commentary on the entire process and God. On page 186, Afterburn says," This book is about healing <i><b>choices</b></i>." He's not promising your problems to be gone. Rather, he's suggesting to explore inwards and see why exactly you've been holding onto baggage and why it's time to let go. It's a guide to how to get closer to getting the closure or healing you desire. I like that he made it more personal by talking about his own struggles in divorce. It's a great tool to those who need it. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #a64d79; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>'til next time, stay classy! ♥</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-62586333226486893742013-01-04T22:52:00.000-08:002013-01-04T23:30:41.918-08:00McRib Review by DayMDrops!<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Today I was catching up on the Jimmy Fallon episodes I've missed. I was watching the one with Backstreet Boys as the musical guest (of course), and they showed this hilarious video about this Youtube food critic. His name is DayMDrops and he does food reviews with some<b><i> serious</i></b> personality. Don't believe me? Watch, please:</span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/ocuL96syBJ8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">He kind of reminds me of Fatman Scoop a little, lol. I don't know if I'm just in love with it because I looovvee when people can make small things sound so epic but I couldn't stop smiling. This guy's funny. Anyways, have a great first weekend of 2013, everybody! :)</span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">'til next time, stay classy! ♥</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-73654430282492422862013-01-02T22:58:00.000-08:002013-01-04T23:21:10.649-08:00Just a reminder for the new year..<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<i><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Hello to all and welcome to 2013! </b></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This is my first post of the year and I wanted to start on a happy note.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Everyone on my feed and Twitter is complaining about how lame it is to try to keep resolutions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Where's the spirit this year?</i> There's nothing wrong with having some optimism and having goals. Those are two ingredients for success, if you ask me. All you need with that is consistency and v<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">oilà</span>, you have results!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">A lot are about weight (as usual) and it's true: statistics do say that by February, most have abandoned their goals. However, I think that one day of working out, no matter how low-intensity it is, will be a lot more productive than one day on the couch complaining. There was a saying I read that really stuck with me. It was something along the lines of," Why don't you just exercise for one hour a day instead of complaining that you're fat 24 hours a day?" It blew my mind, lol. Then there was also this picture I thought was awesome on Instagram. I even took a screenshot of it:</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9a5VeZUEnXg/UOfQl99VRyI/AAAAAAAAAmU/fuQ_X2xc-lQ/s1600/2012-12-06+08.38.03.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9a5VeZUEnXg/UOfQl99VRyI/AAAAAAAAAmU/fuQ_X2xc-lQ/s640/2012-12-06+08.38.03.png" width="384" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">If<b><i> that </i></b>doesn't motivate you, I don't know what does. I also posted a video way back (in case you'd like to see it, it's <a href="http://michellesshell.blogspot.com/2012/11/inspirational.html" target="_blank">this one</a>) and the guy said," Just because I can't do it to-day doesn't mean I won't do it some-day." That's the spirit people should have this year! I know I feel it. Even if I don't do well some days, I can't wallow in self-pity for too long anymore. Gotta get back on the horse, ya dig? Even if it's something you're petrified of doing this year, go for it. You're gonna look back and regret that you didn't do things more than you'll regret the things you did. So you won't think I'm spinning a bunch of crap for you, here are some of mine:</span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">start giving 10% of my checks to church again (I did in 2011 and some of 2012 but stopped! :( )</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">become a member of either the Humane Society or ASPCA (I want to help animals)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">put aside money for a pet fund and a savings account</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">get fit (it's<b><i> looonngg </i></b>overdue)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">all A's til I graduate</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The financial goals will be hard for me because I got used to working full-time and now I'm going part-time so it's a big crunch for me but I want to get disciplined so this won't be a big deal to do while I'm married. I did a pretty good job in 2012 with my goals so I'm hoping history will repeat itself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Everyone's troubles will be different but we can all do it! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This picture below is a great life motto!</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lqrSW9BM7Oo/UOfPFqsaygI/AAAAAAAAAl8/9XR2CYDVKwA/s1600/541784_341334695973970_2018618549_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lqrSW9BM7Oo/UOfPFqsaygI/AAAAAAAAAl8/9XR2CYDVKwA/s400/541784_341334695973970_2018618549_n.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Well, that's enough motivation for today! Good luck to everyone!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>'til next time, stay classy!♥</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-28446617908674591532012-12-31T15:05:00.003-08:002012-12-31T15:06:21.530-08:00Gossip Girl: Would I Lie To You?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q_SJ3PwJqXk/UOIXPpzPiEI/AAAAAAAAAlk/EikemsCHze4/s1600/GossipGirlBook10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q_SJ3PwJqXk/UOIXPpzPiEI/AAAAAAAAAlk/EikemsCHze4/s320/GossipGirlBook10.jpg" width="206" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><span style="color: #e06666;"><b>Happy New Year to everyone! </b></span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Wishing you all the luck in the world with all the resolutions and reminding you to party safe!</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><b><u>Author: </u></b>Cecily Von Ziegesar</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><b style="text-decoration: underline;">Pages:</b> 192</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Publisher:</u> Little Brown and Company</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><b><u>Summary (from the publisher):</u></b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Welcome to New York City's Upper East Side where my friends and I live, and go to school, and play, and sleep - sometimes with each other.We all live in huge apartments with our own bedrooms and bathrooms and phone lines.We're smart, we've inherited classic good looks, we have fantastic clothes, and we know how to party... Continuing the #1 New York Times bestselling series about the provocative lives of New York City's most prestigious private school young adults. Sharp wit, intriguing characters, and high stakes melodrama drive the action of this addictive series that have made Gossip Girl the lit world's coveted "it" girl.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><b><u>Thoughts:</u></b></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Everyone has graduated (except for Nate who is working at his Coach's Hampton house). Blair and Serena have these weird European twins flown in by Bailey Winter who end up trying to take over their spotlight from the fashion campaign B & S were muses for. Vanessa had started babysitting in the last book, but in this book she leaves after coming to the Hamptons. She comes back to the city to find Dan exploring his sexuality with a guy named Greg (coworker at The Strand). This happens in a drunken same-sex orgy that was originally supposed to be a literary salon. The story and even some of the editing seemed very lazy. On page 126, they misspelled the word "brother" and put "bother". The one thing I will say was that this was the first time I've seen the series use a Craigslist ad and letters. I also liked some of the quotes being quoted during the literary stuff that was going on (ex. "Weren't ideas, when all is said and done, so superior to reality?" page 64). That was a pleasant surprise, but it wasn't something I could enjoy for long. I was more annoyed than shocked when Serena had her "realization" that she loves Nate this whole time. Not only was it in the tenth book, it was also in the last third half of the book. I'll read the other books after this only because I bought them (so I don't want to waste money). However, I don't know if wasting my time reading them will make up for the money. Since the TV show is over, I don't feel as obligated anymore to finish the series if it's not that well-written. We'll see. My next review will show my decision. </span><br />
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<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" />Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-49464981245055952092012-12-28T07:02:00.001-08:002012-12-28T07:02:42.947-08:00Ain't No Body Got Time for That<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm up early (9:00 am to be exact) and while I wake up and get my busy day going, I thought I'd post early for once.</span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This Christmas, I had the pleasure of sharing it with Eric. Last night was our one year anniversary. All these things are all great, but one thing was grinding my gears. To be specific, it was<i> this</i> video: </span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Now, this video isn't so bad when it's standing alone. However, whenever there's a news report on Youtube, there's always a spoof. THAT is what I don't really like. This is it:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">For some reason, Eric's siblings could not get enough of this video. I liked it at first because I thought the editing was well done. Hearing it once might make you laugh, but hearing it on repeat for half an hour will really test your patience. Maybe I was just being cranky, but maybe all the repitition butchered it for me as well. Who knows. Anyways, just thought I'd share it with you for this Friday's installment. You be the judge.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #a64d79; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>'til next time, keep it classy! ♥</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
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Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-29303268678662837932012-12-26T12:06:00.000-08:002012-12-27T12:08:46.933-08:00Sexist humor on a Wednesday?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GlUFzPdh_64/UNyqhkLqjAI/AAAAAAAAAlM/zTDZnpDRH38/s1600/ha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="315" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GlUFzPdh_64/UNyqhkLqjAI/AAAAAAAAAlM/zTDZnpDRH38/s400/ha.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm very pro-equality among men and women and this can make me laugh.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">'til next time, stay classy!♥</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-32581551985265249092012-12-25T20:14:00.000-08:002012-12-25T20:14:07.031-08:00Gossip Girl: Only In Your Dreams<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Merry Christmas to all! :)</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>I was going to try to fill in the blanks and rush in reading all the books I've missed. However, it's not fun if it's a job so I'm just picking up where I left off today.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Author: </b>Cecily Von Ziegesar </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Pages: </b>231</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Publisher:</b> Little Brown and Company</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Summary (from publisher):</span></b><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Welcome to New York City's Upper East Side, where the girls are dazzling, the guys are gorgeous, and the summer heat is the perfect excuse to throw a fabulous roof-deck pool party. As if we need a reason!It's our last summer together before heading off to college, and things are sizzling -- no, it's not just the weather. Despite that steamy kiss on graduation night, Blair, Serena, and Nate have gone their separate ways...though not for long. Blair is off to London with her English Lord boyfriend, Serena's about to become a movie star -- as if she wasn't a star already! -- and Nate's rolling up his well-worn khakis and heading to the Hamptons. Back in New York, Dan and Vanessa are rekindling their love. Fiery! Watch out, this summer is going to be hotter than ever</span></span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Thoughts (relevant material bolded, opinion is normal font):</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">As I've said before, the other books have things going on that don't really add to the story (like Blair and Serena kissing) but this one seems to progress the story more than recent books. This is the first one I finish in a two-three day span since the first three books so I don't know if that says something. Also, I read in several outlets that this far along in the series, it isn't even Cecily Von Ziegesar writing anymore (more of a ghostwriter). I don't know how true that is but if it is true, I picked up on it like two books ago. <i style="font-weight: bold;">ANYWAYS</i><b>, out of the main characters, Jenny seems to be the only one absent. I think she got her own spin off series but her absence was noticed since I wasn't reading about her rebellious adventures that I subconsciously got accustomed to. Serena gets a lead in a movie that Blair ends up getting a job as a costume designer. Blair seemed in denial that Lord Marcus was more into his "cousin" (who is made to feel like his arranged fiance) and comes back to New York from England. Blair is excelling and Serena is having trouble for the first time in her life. Serena thinks that she's going to end up with Thaddeus, the Hollywood hotshot, but he ends up being gay. That part of the story was being foreshadowed since the last book and I thought it was well done although I could predict it. Dan cheats on Vanessa with this yoga-obsessed, Zen girl named Bree. Vanessa is heartbroken since she actually moved in with Dan after her sister kicked her out and expected things to go "back to normal". However, Rufus lets her stay and offers her the chance to pay cheap rent in exchange for some company once Dan and Jenny are off in their respective schools. Awkward?! Nate is working in the Hamptons for his lacrosse coach to get his high school diploma (after stealing his stash of Viagra) and meets this local "slut" type named Tawny. Nate hears Blair is back early and thinks she's either pregnant or married and he starts to ditch Tawny as a result, who later hooks up with Chuck. Tawny and Bree were a little lame but I wasn't so annoyed by everything..only one thing. The whole Nate and Blair things needs to finally end or they need to get together. It's starting to feel more juvenile for high school graduates. </b>So, as I've said, this was one of the better books lately and I'm about halfway into the next book because I'm curious to see how everything plays out and where the series will end. Will the story touch on their freshmen year of college? We'll see. </span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #a64d79; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">'til next time, stay classy! ♥</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></b><br />
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-23941085343589324572012-12-19T01:04:00.000-08:002012-12-20T01:17:09.162-08:00Grades are in! :) <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Thi<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">s is already on my Facebook but just showing it to show hard work pays off! Also, not working 50 hours a week makes school a lot easier. Now that I'm employed again, I'm planning on keeping these grades as the standard. Hopefully A's across the board next semester! :)</span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Book Review Update:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I didn't read the past two weeks because I was cramming for school but I should catch up this winter break. Gossip Girl on the CW officially ended this Monday. :( It was predictable and a litte rushed, but I think the fans got what they wanted. Here's one review you can read <a href="http://www.vulture.com/2012/12/gossip-girl-recap-series-finale-gossip-girl-revealed-dan.html" target="_blank">that's favorable</a> and <a href="http://www.avclub.com/articles/new-york-i-love-you-xoxo,90012/" target="_blank">here's another</a> that's a little more critical. I'm genuinely <i>very</i> sad to see it go, even if it was kind of lackluster towards the end.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>'til next time, stay classy! ♥</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-53301919883636753352012-12-14T01:03:00.000-08:002012-12-20T01:03:53.978-08:0012 Days of Christmas (Movies)<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Thought this was more creative than funny.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Finally done with school! Now for grades to come in! :/ Wish me luck!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>'til next time, stay classy! ♥</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-89441994083256415762012-12-12T00:53:00.000-08:002012-12-20T01:07:26.318-08:00Quote of the Week Wednesday! <div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Here is something that I found to be very true.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Yz4EM8GEgzU/UNLSnZAHZZI/AAAAAAAAAjU/jvl3ZzUbhJ4/s1600/687991.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="197" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Yz4EM8GEgzU/UNLSnZAHZZI/AAAAAAAAAjU/jvl3ZzUbhJ4/s320/687991.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I struggle a lot with worrying but it's getting better. Also, I thought this picture was very artistic. It's sad to look at because of the child's face but I can appreciate the message and creativity.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jEmG4J6gRT0/UNLSxzsdFtI/AAAAAAAAAjc/wPrr82kV_Oc/s1600/577988_530360870321235_663120970_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="232" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jEmG4J6gRT0/UNLSxzsdFtI/AAAAAAAAAjc/wPrr82kV_Oc/s320/577988_530360870321235_663120970_n.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Side Note:</b></span> I'm thinking about changing up my format. Again. Instead of videos and pictures on Wednesdays and Fridays, I was thinking TV and movie reviews. It's something I already do out loud, so why not make it public? We'll see. Starting January, I do want to kick off blogging more often so I might keep the format now and just plug in my new ideas.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Sorry for the short entries lately! Still finals time. I'll post the results later.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>'til next time, stay classy! ♥</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-3406442907800256202012-12-07T00:23:00.000-08:002012-12-20T00:34:25.527-08:00Announcement! #employed<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I try not to make this blog about my life but I'm just so excited. I'm going to be a dog trainer at Petco! :) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I got an interview on Tuesday and called the green light two hours later. It sounds like an awesome gig and I can't wait to meet new dogs! Maybe this will also make me closer to my dogs. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It came at a perfect time, too. It's like God just put it on my lap right as I was getting too bored and about to start my job search. It literally came out of the blue; I applied back in September and hadn't looked for a job since that weekend that I did applications. Awesome! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In honor of my recent employment, here's a video about the company, the upcoming holidays and also touching on the "dog shaming" trend I mentioned in the past. It's cute. :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Also, now that I'm here. I will say I'm also happy about the fact that my boyfriend's birthday was yesterday. I got him a Spurs-themed cake with his favorite player, Tim Duncan, whose number just happens to be the age he celebrated. We're heading to see the Spurs/Rockets game as well. It's my version of a two-part birthday treat! Great week!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Happy Friday everyone! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/v9SzzCu9uY8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div>
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<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>'til next time, stay classy! ♥</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>UPDATE: </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Here I am with my cutie at the AT&T Center:</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-h0DAKGMF0cs/UNLM0ftIEgI/AAAAAAAAAis/cEqNfSvkl50/s1600/2012-12-07+18.56.08-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-h0DAKGMF0cs/UNLM0ftIEgI/AAAAAAAAAis/cEqNfSvkl50/s400/2012-12-07+18.56.08-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">and here is the cake I had made for him:</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kOcDCpghV6s/UNLNYlmtAGI/AAAAAAAAAi0/MAeDl9MOwZE/s1600/2012-12-06+12.14.41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kOcDCpghV6s/UNLNYlmtAGI/AAAAAAAAAi0/MAeDl9MOwZE/s320/2012-12-06+12.14.41.jpg" width="191" /></a></div>
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<br />Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-91528444228861431622012-12-05T00:39:00.000-08:002012-12-20T00:40:04.679-08:00A piece of humble pie.<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I found this picture on my Facebook feed and saved it to put things into prospective when the green-eyed monster of envy starts to mess with my head.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I thought I'd share it with my 1.5 faithful readers, haha.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ofJZalDIoNM/UNLOAelISqI/AAAAAAAAAi8/V8rTw_TfoEQ/s1600/401579_471520956228192_707538489_n+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ofJZalDIoNM/UNLOAelISqI/AAAAAAAAAi8/V8rTw_TfoEQ/s400/401579_471520956228192_707538489_n+(1).jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">As Kevin Hart says in his stand-up: Stay in your financial lane, People! In fact, here is the video: it's hilarious. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/YwwGMELRgnU?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Happy Hump Day, guys!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>'til next time, stay classy! ♥</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-54068252359773462792012-12-03T00:06:00.000-08:002012-12-20T00:15:22.948-08:00Gossip Girl: Nothing Can Keep Us Together<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n7BaScIoQ_E/UNLHMcRZ7bI/AAAAAAAAAiU/vwCdcpdNxwg/s1600/GossipGirlBook8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n7BaScIoQ_E/UNLHMcRZ7bI/AAAAAAAAAiU/vwCdcpdNxwg/s1600/GossipGirlBook8.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Author: </b>Cecily Von Ziegesar</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Pages: </b>221</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Publisher: </b>Little Brown and Company</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Summary (from publisher):</b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Welcome to New York City's Upper East Side, where my friends and I get everything -- and everyone -- we want. Snagging the latest Marc Jacobs bag or your best friend's boyfriend isn't pretty, but it's always hot...It's almost graduation and our lives are really heating up. Everybody's into college and it's obviously time to party -- as if we hadn't been doing that already! Will Blair and Nate's love affair continue? More importantly, will Blair finally get into Yale? Or will Nate and Serena hook up in New Haven and leave Blair alone in the city?And as for the juiciest scoop of all, what's this we hear about Jenny leaving Constance Billard to go to boarding school? Only time will tell how everyone will end up, but one thing's for sure: love is in the air, and it smells a lot like Gucci Envy.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Thoughts:</b></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">For a series that I would praise so much, as I read further into the series, I get more and more frustrated and less and less excited to read. None of the stuff going on in Serena's life really have any significant meaning, and Blair is just starting to get annoying with her need for attention. Jenny is "coming of age" and trying to be a rebel, Dan is painted like some sort of love-sick puppy, Vanessa is breaking her "goth" mode, Nate is just a wreck and graduation just gives everyone one more excuse to get together and gossip. The gossip itself is even getting a little old. I started this series as a farewell to the television series and always used to say the books were better but at this point, I'm kind of more entertained by what the writers did on the television show. The only thing that made me feel a little better was that at least I know that the TV show got their "prince" idea from this book (although in the book, it's the English Lord Marcus who supposedly has an arranged marriage back home anyways). Hopefully, I'll finish at around the same time as the show wraps up. </span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px;"><span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>'til next time, stay classy! ♥</b></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-M</span></span>Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-42003668377409266642012-11-30T00:42:00.000-08:002012-12-20T00:44:25.943-08:00Finals time= Mini-break! Sorry guys, but I'm trying to do well my first semester at the University level.<br />
I've been at community colleges for 3 years and even if it is in my hometown, I want to pick up my GPA.<br />
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I'll write next week at the specified times.<br />
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Thank you for your understanding and wish me luck!</div>
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<span style="color: #c27ba0;"><b>'til next time, stay classy! ♥</b></span></div>
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-M</div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-26896868915487045972012-11-28T04:18:00.002-08:002012-11-28T04:18:52.756-08:00Inspirational! <span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I keep trying to stick to memes and stuff on Wednesdays but there's so much more I could do with my internet space than just spin mindless jokes around, ya know?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This video has been floating around in my news feed on Facebook and it's made a lot of people cry (including myself).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It's about this veteran who couldn't walk unassisted and through yoga, lost over 100 pounds and can now run on his own again. I did read someone talking about how he lost weight too fast; while that might be true, don't kill the spirit! lol</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The main point was to show how he was able to walk again and how the human spirit can push through unlikely circumstance. It's not a scientific evaluation of weight loss, lol. Anyways, here you go:</span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/qX9FSZJu448?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="color: #d5a6bd;"><b>'til next time, stay classy!♥</b></span></div>
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-M</div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-41405336824332186262012-11-26T04:10:00.000-08:002012-11-28T04:13:16.607-08:00Gossip Girl: Nobody Does It Better<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bPasylDYjbA/ULX9uEQTXpI/AAAAAAAAAhU/WjRGy4r4bFw/s1600/GossipGirlBook7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bPasylDYjbA/ULX9uEQTXpI/AAAAAAAAAhU/WjRGy4r4bFw/s320/GossipGirlBook7.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Author:</b> Cecily Von Ziegesar</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Pages: </b>231</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Summary (from publisher):</span></b><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">The uptown girls are headed downtown as Serena and Jenny take on their new fabulous roles as rock-star model girlfriends of New York's hottest band, The Raves. Meanwhile, Dan is to busy drowning his sorrows in empty bottles to notice a mysterious French beauty who has a penchant for dirty, Jim Morrison-wannabe lead singers. Blair takes residence at the Plaza to think about her future. Will she become a gun-toting international spy or Manhattan's snobbiest society hostess? Decisions are so difficult! Sounds like everyone needs a day off at the spa. And Senior Spa Day promises to serve up further doses of scandal for New York's busiest private-school vixens.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><b>Thoughts:</b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="line-height: 19px;">It's getting harder and harder to get excited to breeze through the series. The books start off well and then are stagnant for a majority of the time then have one buzz-worthy event that keeps you there. If anything, I'm still around this far because 1) I said I would in honor of GG's last TV season and 2) I compare TV and print. I think the comparing is the only fun I have right now. I'm not saying they aren't well written because in this book, Von Ziegesar was writing descriptions as well as the first book; it's just getting a little too predictable for my taste. This one wasn't as cheesy as the sixth because it didn't have any of that annoying try-hard singing but it did have some unexpected things going on. I didn't ever imagine that Vanessa and Blair would end up being roommates. Jenny is getting a little too adventurous for my taste because it reminds me of try-hard girls when I was growing up but it was entertaining, I suppose. I guess what's really gnawing at me is the whole unrealistic band thing with the Raves. Quick read only if you're bored I guess. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="line-height: 19px;"><b>'til next time, stay classy!♥</b></span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="line-height: 19px;">-M</span></span></span>Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-83331961843019477092012-11-26T03:55:00.000-08:002012-11-28T04:12:27.120-08:00Gossip Girl: You're the One That I Want<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LNRs6WWzGk0/ULX7vrxVF_I/AAAAAAAAAhM/O5OL1AGxfyo/s1600/GossipGirlBook56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LNRs6WWzGk0/ULX7vrxVF_I/AAAAAAAAAhM/O5OL1AGxfyo/s320/GossipGirlBook56.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Finally a topher(two-for-one) this week! Thanksgiving break felt extra long, lol.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Here we go:</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Author: </b>Cecily Von Ziegesar</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Pages: </b>224</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Publisher</b>: Little Brown and Company</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Summary (from publisher):</b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Welcome to New York City's Upper East Side, where my friends and I live in gorgeous apartments, go to exclusive private schools, and make Manhattan our own personal playground. It might look hard to be this fabulous, but for us it's as easy as sleeping with your best friend's boyfriend. (A little generic, right? Even the publisher's are getting lazy)</span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Thoughts:</span></b><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">It was a quick read and did have some good stuff happening. I was dying to see who got into what college already! The way Von Ziegesar chose to reveal it was also pretty well executed. Some of the Gossip Girl narration is starting to get really cheesy but this point in the series. I understand she's supposed to be sassy or whatever but I think there's a line between being topically witty and try-hard cheesy. Just my opinion, by the way. I also wish there was more cohesion between the story lines of each characters. I'm surprised at how fast Georgina was in and out of the series; it's really hard to not compare it with the tightly knit cast on the show. They might hate each other in the show but they're always together or calling each other or running into each other every where. In the book, it happens a lot less often. It feels like a compilation of several stories in one book than a group of teenagers growing up together.</span>Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-62178811035541171622012-11-24T07:17:00.003-08:002012-11-24T07:17:30.354-08:00Good news for the animals!I'm up early this Saturday morning and I know I was a little negligent about Friday's post. So here I am at 8:54am posting about animals. Don't judge me. I posted about this on my Facebook page yesterday so I figured it should be talked about in detail here, since I can go on forever about my love for animals.<br />
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If you click <a href="http://www.pro8news.com/news/City-Opens-Animal-Care-Facility-180440241.html" target="_blank">here</a> you can see that Laredo has finally done something legitimate about the horrific conditions that strays have to face. They opened up a new facility with a little over 80 kennels. It's a two-phase project that costs the city 1.5 million dollars. The first phase is now open and the second one is underway. In this video, it says 1.5, but in the Thanksgiving front page of the Laredo Morning Times (LMT) print edition I'm pretty sure it said 2.4 million but don't quote me. Supposedly they're also going to require pre-adoption classes on owner responsibility. This really made me very happy to see. The animals are even getting normal things like fans and proper care now.<br />
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Laredo Animal Protective Society (LAPS) has also significantly increased their efforts. There was a petition online (which I signed) to either destroy it and build a new shelter or to completely restructure the place. The city of Laredo used to use LAPS as a pound basically and would euthanize about 80% of the animals admitted. Since then, the city and LAPS have parted ways, taking LAPS back to their role of humane society. They also don't euthanize anymore and have a new executive director If their Facebook page is an accurate description of their efforts, they are also doing a great job. I used to frequent the shelter and every time I'd leave sad. All the dogs looked famished and frustrated and the ones that didn't were bound to get all the illnesses spreading. I always wanted to leave with one every visit and couldn't believe the place didn't aggressively try to adopt them out. Now, they have a <a href="http://www.petadoptlaredo.org/adopt.html" target="_blank">website</a> and a Facebook page that is constantly advertising adoption events around the city. It doesn't seem like much, but just last year LAPS wasn't doing any of these typically normal functions.<br />
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I'm glad to see that local advocates could bring change. They went to countless city council meetings and pushed for change. I'm including a video that shows them trying to show the conditions through a slideshow and then being asked to stop because it was "defamatory". This kind of action shows me that people here still care. It gives me hope that not all people in Laredo are stupid.<br />
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Have a great weekend!</div>
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<span style="color: #c27ba0;"><b>'til next time, stay classy!♥</b></span></div>
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-M</div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-63455233497588796152012-11-21T09:30:00.003-08:002012-11-21T09:30:59.330-08:00Thanksgiving tomorrow! <div style="text-align: center;">
Hope everyone eats a lot and laughs just as much tomorrow. </div>
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To get in the spirit, I've included some funny topical photos:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-usxvdLtyfEs/UK0PEb6cSiI/AAAAAAAAAf8/Osqy48eQkvY/s1600/MjAxMi1iN2NlYWU4NDI1ZWY3NjIw.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="224" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-usxvdLtyfEs/UK0PEb6cSiI/AAAAAAAAAf8/Osqy48eQkvY/s320/MjAxMi1iN2NlYWU4NDI1ZWY3NjIw.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How I feel about anyone who constantly checks in on Facebook.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AhW4-vEsdiY/UK0PGUhq3pI/AAAAAAAAAgE/uN3E3rLlZew/s1600/native-americans-white-people-eat-thanksgiving-ecards-someecards.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="178" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AhW4-vEsdiY/UK0PGUhq3pI/AAAAAAAAAgE/uN3E3rLlZew/s320/native-americans-white-people-eat-thanksgiving-ecards-someecards.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I understand this can be highly offensive depending on who reads it, but I burst out laughing when I read it.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mbehgB8-qN8/UK0PJNIDRGI/AAAAAAAAAgM/obygB_-j80A/s1600/thanksgiving-reminder-dogs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="252" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mbehgB8-qN8/UK0PJNIDRGI/AAAAAAAAAgM/obygB_-j80A/s320/thanksgiving-reminder-dogs.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I want to do this with one of my dogs but I need to come up with someone witty enough.<br />
Apparently it's a "thing" right now. This is one of the cuter ones I've seen.</td></tr>
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Happy Thanksgiving to all! Don't be hateful; gotta be grateful (at least for one day)</div>
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<span style="color: #c27ba0;"><b>'til next time, stay classy! ♥</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
-M</div>
Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4647185538328623430.post-58466771051368092842012-11-19T09:09:00.000-08:002012-11-21T09:31:26.564-08:00Gossip Girl: I Like It Like That<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hPU8ol92IEc/UK0Kv7ciWLI/AAAAAAAAAfk/2vQaaLsRwqs/s1600/GossipGirlBook5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hPU8ol92IEc/UK0Kv7ciWLI/AAAAAAAAAfk/2vQaaLsRwqs/s320/GossipGirlBook5.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
<b><span style="color: blue;">Sorry I didn't post last Friday; I had a lot of homework (to be frank).</span></b><br />
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<b>Author:</b> Cecily Von Ziegesar<br />
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<b>Pages: </b>224<br />
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<b>Publisher</b>: Little Brown and Company<br />
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<b>Summary (from publisher):</b><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It's spring break and love is in the air. Or is that a blend of Chanel no. 9 and Gucci Rush? Is there a difference?Blair moves in with Serena and they're back to being best friends. But will the love-fest last or will they end up tearing out one anothers newly highlighted hair? And speaking of new, Nate is on the straight and narrow, playing Nate-in-shining-armor to his crazy new girlfriend, Georgie. But he will definitely get more than he bargained for when he, Georgie, Blair, and Serena end up hanging out together in Sun Valley, Idaho. Back in Manhattan, Jenny is spending time with a mysteriously nice new boyfriend and Dan is spending time crying in the office of the Red Letter literary journal. And Vanessa, wait, is that Vanessa shopping at Barneys with a guy in a Lacoste shirt?The long cold winter is over and the sun is finally shining along Fifth Avenue. The trees are in bloom and NYC's most fabulous are ready for a truly outrageous vacation</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Thoughts:</b></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">There's a scene that involves the police that was really surprising to me. Jenny's little boyfriend was penned out to be gay in the last books, and he just ends up being a normal working-class kid with older parents. I don't know if that was a let down or a surprise, lol. Maybe I'm just used to the big plot twists already. I didn't think that Dan would take his new job so lightly; maybe I would've preferred to see the progression in that way and see if it would've helped him get further as a writer. In the TV show, they keep trying to push the Blair and Chuck coupling and in these books, there seems to be that same push for Nate and Blair. The other books months at a time and this one just covered Spring Break. I'm just eager to see what happens with the college admissions. I think this book was good but more a filler for the big stuff that's coming up (hopefully).</span></span>Perfectly.Imperfecthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053052197360138002noreply@blogger.com0