You already know I love etsy.com. It's such a fun site. There are so many amazingly creative people out there. I loved these pop culture-themed greeting cards one girl was making . They are classic. Go here for Betty Turbo's store. Her inventory is a little sparse right now but it sounds like she's got some things in the works.
I always try to catch up on my British TV during the summer. I should really be more like my friend, The Divine Miss M, and pony up for BBC America. I really like con-artist, thief-ish, Ocean's Eleven-y type shows so I fell in love with the BBC series Hu$tle. You can get it from Netflix, I think there are four or five seasons available. It's pretty crazy the cons they pull. Just if your looking for a little light summer entertainment...
One summer when I was nine or ten, my dad decided I should learn how to type. He bought the Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing CD-ROM and I had to spend 1/2 hour each day practicing my typing. I hated it at time, but now I'm glad he did it. Not that I'm the greatest typist in the world, but I can hold my own. This brings me to the real reason for this post. I found a new ridiculous way to waste time at work. There is a site called Typeracer where you race against other strangers/friends to type lines from movies, song lyrics, etc., the fastest. It's so nerdy and lame but I can't stop myself. Thanks Dad for making me learn how to type, it's paying off big time!
R.I.P. Golden Girls alum, Estelle Getty aka Sophia. She was 84. I enjoyed her on Golden Girls as well as in the classic films Mannequin and Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot. It's weird, I thought she was so old back in the 80's, seems like she should be at least 110 by now. Hmm, I'm not sure Sophia was my favorite Girl (B. has been trying to convince me Blanche is the best), but she sure was funny.
If I EVER go to a baby shower and they have this cake, I will die. This creepy baby cake seriously freaks me out. It reminds me of those "lifelike" dolls. *shudder* If you're throwing a party of any kind please, please don't have a cake this like.
Greg Kinnear and Lauren Graham. That can't be bad.
Ricky Gervais and Greg Kinnear? I'm there.
Lindsay Lohan is the latest celebrity to attempt her own fashion line. Her love of leggings inspired her to start her own line called 6126 (Marilyn Monroe's b-day, I guess she's a fan). I strongly feel that leggings should have never made a comeback. They were a bad idea in 1983, still a bad idea 15 years later. Really though, what are these? She calls them, "Leopard Ankle Gloves", and they can by yours for $42. Not quite socks, not quite leg warmers, not quite leggings = completely uneccessary. Remember how good you were in Mean Girls? Time to get back to your day job, kiddo.
I'm a Broadway musical nerd. I just am. Case in point: I'd rather see Mamma Mia! on opening night than The Dark Knight. So when I heard about an internet musical I was intrigued. It's called Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along-Blog and you can find it here. It is being released in 15 minute "acts" on Thursdays throughout July. It's the story of a "low-rent super villain, the hero who keeps beating him up and the cute girl from the laundromat he's too shy to talk to". Dr. Horrible is played by Neil Patrick Harris (that's Doogie Howser, M.D. to all you 80's babies). I don't have a review yet, I haven't watched the whole thing, but it's getting rave reviews. It was so popular on "opening night" that the website crashed. That has to mean something.
I love 80's music. It's one of those guilty pleasures--things you're not supposed to like but you just can't help yourself. *sigh* Music site BuffetLibre.net is showcasing "Rewind: The 80's Cover Project". Bands from all over the world have covered classic 80's tunes and you can download the mp3s for free. Some of them are awful, but many are quite good. Several of them are covered by Swedish bands so they have electro-pop background and breathy vocals. I happen to like Europop and 80's music so this was just up my alley, if it's not your bag at least it's just something interesting to check out. It has to be better than Celine's cover of AC/DC's "You Shook Me All Night Long" (recently voted worst cover song EVER), right?
Another new find (for me) is the website Cassette from my Ex . This is a website where people can share the stories behind mixtapes from past loves. Posts include thoughts and stories, cover art and playlists. Some have even uploaded the audio files from the tape so that you can enjoy them while you read the stories 'behind the music'. They run the gamut from romantic to awkward to sad to funny. V. v. entertaining to say the least and a lot of the music is really pretty great.
I am the owner of 1/10 of a Chewbacca Limited Edition Star Wars backpack. Back in 2000 I purchased this backpack with nine other friends from a bookstore in, hmm, some British city. This particular backpack has been MIA for several years and I'm just trying to locate it...anyone, anyone? If you have any information on the whereabouts of this bag, please contact me.
I've been feeling nostalgic this summer. I saw Big League Chew at 7-11 the other day. I haven't seen it in years. It reminded me of taking my weekly allowance (all $1 of it) over to Emo buying candy. I would buy small boxes of Lemonheads, Cherry Clan, Jawbreakers, Mr. Melons, Boston Baked Beans, etc. for 11 cents each. I would buy those and Big League Chew and Topps Baseball Cards (I have a Roger Clemens rookie card--boo!) and Garbage Pail Kids. If I had any left over I'd try and buy a sticky hand (you know the ones that came in the little plastic bubble) from the machine. I'm still buying junk today but now it's slightly more sophisticated: lipgloss, magazines and Slurpees.
It's time for another addition of my favorite online stores. I try to keep up with fashion trends but to me it's not worth spending a lot of money on things that will be out of style in a matter of months, weeks or even days. Stores like H&M are great because you can buy things that are current, but next week when they're out of style you don't feel so bad because it only cost you $19.90. You already know about my fav bag sites, so here are my favorites for cheap, but cool, shoes and jewelry:
I miss being a kid and having three blissful months of summer vacation. The thing I probably miss most is the pool at my Grandma and Grandpa T's house. We had so many good times in that pool. Probably many of the cousins learned to swim there. The things I miss most:
One of my favorite places to buy gifts in Salt Lake is at Art Market. It is a collection of local artists and vendors displaying their wares. It happens a few times a year, usually before major holidays -- Christmas, Easter, Valentine's, Mother's Day, etc. There are always such cute pieces of jewelry, note cards, wall art, baby clothes, holiday decorations and tasty treats. It is always at the Sugarhouse Garden Center (that little building in the rose garden at the east end of Sugarhouse Park) 1602 East 2100 South, SLC, UT. On July 9, 2008, they are hosting their first Jewelry Show and Afternoon Tea. Check out their site.
I found a new website to get cute backgrounds for blogs. It's so easy to change your background with this site, it's ridiculous. They have a huge variety of cute, free backgrounds. Plus, their backgrounds don't mess up any of your widgets or anything. Go to www.thecutestblogontheblock.com . It is a great site.
