June 26, 2011

Santa Clause is coming to town.

The other day, I decided to do indulge in some retail therapy and ended up at my new love fave store, Hobby Lobby.

I had never been to Hobby Lobby until I moved into the place I'm living now, which is close to a town that has one, and I have fallen in love! They always have so much great crafting stuff, cute home decor and good sales.

But I found this when I went there last week. Mind you, it was June 23rd.

Oh, what's up, Santa?

Are you kidding me right now!?!?!

I'll never complain about Christmas decorations being out before Thanksgiving again. Promise. Just put these away for a few months, I'm not ready.

June 24, 2011

She never comprimises, loves babies and surprises, wears high heels when she exercises. Ain't it beautuiful?

It's Show us Your Singles over at Kelly's Korner so here it goes....

I feel like writing about myself should be a lot easier ha! Hopefully this doesn't come off sounding like a cheap personal ad haha

To start, I'm Amanda, 23 and live in southeast Michigan. I'm the oldest of two, and my mom, dad and little brother are probably three of my closest friends (sounds corny but it's true!). I'm really blessed to have a job that I love at a bakery and am still in school, working towards a degree in public relations.

Just being silly, as per usual

Even though school and work take up a lot of my time, when I'm not doing one of those two you can probably find me with my friends. I can have fun doing anything from laying around watching movies to trying out new restaurants, or from sitting around a bonfire to bar hopping for a night. My friends often tell me I'm laid back and drama free, both of which I consider compliments :-)

I'm a pretty passionate person about a lot of things, including my Detroit Tigers (or all Detroit sports to be honest!), my friends and family, being happy and having a good time, no matter what!

Supporting my Lions!

Things I like:
Going to the gym
Spending summer at the ball park
Cooking and baking
Talking to people
Smiling
Dancing to music
Making people laugh (whether with me or at me, I'm cool with both haha)
Trying new things
Meeting new people

I know since most of you a down south, it's probably a long shot, but I figured I'd give it a chance anyway! If anyone has any questions or anything let me know-thanks for stopping by!

If anyone is interested, this is my FB:

I was always a cutie, huh? haha

June 20, 2011

Let's go out to the moviiiiiieeeees, and have ourselves a snack!

Because of the alternately crazy humidity/cold/rain, my family has been to a few movies in the past two weeks to escape into the air conditioning/heat/dryness of the theater.

Let me start off by saying that neither of these films were my ideas, but I ended up really liking both of them!

First, we saw X-Men: First Class.


I saw the first X-Men movie but not the last two, although my brother informed me I wasn't missing much, so I was a little worried I wouldn't be able to follow along. But luckily, this movie has basically nothing to do with those so I was good to go haha I ended up really liking it-it was decently funny, the story line was interesting (umm...Cuban Missile Crisis? World War II? Sure!) and most of all, the action looked pretty sweet. The stunts and the special effects looked great and definitely held my attention. There's obviously going to be some sequels, so *dare I say?* I'm actually looking forward to seeing the rest of the series!

The second movie was Super 8. Not only did I not have any interest in seeing it, but before my brother mentioned it, I had never even heard of it. But since I can't resist an outing especially when my parents are paying, I went to see it with them. And I'm pretty glad I did.


Apparently, they were trying to keep this movie pretty secretive (which is why my family wanted to go this weekend so they wouldn't hear any spoilers. Nerds.), so I had virtually no idea what it was about. Basically, it's got some aliens in it but it's not a typical story. It was really cute and had some funny parts as well. My dad said it was like a mix of ET and The Goonies, neither of which I've ever seen so I'll just take his word for it. Again, the special effects were really good and there was definitely some parts that made me jump.

I should probably branch out more often-apparently, I usually end up liking it haha

What you call the disease, I call the remedy. What you're callin' the cause, I call the cure.

It may not seem like seven years is a lot of time, but going from you to me has taken a life time. We're the same person, sure-same long curly hair, same 5 foot frame, even the same gap toothed smile. But so much has happened since 16 it's hard to even believe that they happened to you, happened to me.

The change is good though-it doesn't have to be a bad thing. There have been lots of friends moving in and out of your life, while you moved from one apartment, school, relationship to the next. And that's ok! It's taken a lot to get to where you are, and even more to get to where I am.

You are just beginning what will be the longest three years you can possibly conceive. It's going to start off fun, no doubt you'll enjoy the parties and the people and the excitement of it all, but it doesn't stay that way long. I wish I could tell you to avoid it, but you won't listen, just as I certainly never did. You'll pull out of the tailspin eventually, with only minor cosmetic casualties-you'll be sick-skinny and pale, both of which are temporary, luckily with all your teeth in tact and no visible scars. And not to sound corny, but it's the inside that will take a beating. Luckily for you, with a lot of work, you'll come out on the other side.

No longer the rambunctious party girl, you'll settle into a nice, quiet life. No closing down bars, no blackouts, no random guys and girls crowding your life. At the ripe old age of 23, it'll be holding a full time job, going to school and being up at 5:30 every morning to make it to the gym on time. It may sound monotonous, or even boring, but trust me, after what you put your body through, you'll be happy, grateful in fact, to be in safe in bed, at 10pm. I promise.

Just be careful. It's in the chemical make-up of teenagers to be naive, what with missing your frontal lobe and all, but try and listen. It could have been so much worse. I shouldn't be here right now, there should be no 23 year old me talking to 16 year old you. We lucked out on more occasions than I like to admit and those are the reasons I'm me, so vastly different from you.

Quiet and calm with barely any hint of the dramatics that characterized your life and seem to be the only reaction you have. Enjoy it while you can, but remember that everything changes. Going through those changes will be hell on earth, but coming out the other side will make it more worth it than you could possibly know.

Written in response to Flicker of Inspiration #5 Write a Letter to 16 year old you on the Lightening and the Lightening Bug.

June 19, 2011

As we take our stand, down in Jungleland

Most of my earliest memories involve music. I was raised on everything from The Sex Pistols to Marvin Gaye, Wynton Marsalis to Steve Earle. My musical taste has changed over the years, first veering as far off course from the music of my parents as humanly possible and then coming back to to my musical roots. But there has been one constant throughout the life.

The Boss.

From the time I was young, I can remember listening to "Born to Run" and "The Darkness on The Edge of Town" as my peers listened to Backstreet boys and N*Sync. I saw my first Springsteen concert in middle school and my second a few years later. I was in awe watching Bruce, belt the lyrics till the veins popped out of his neck, while his band surrounded him, producing some of the most powerful music I had encountered up to the that point. Max on drums, Lil' Steven and Patti on guitar, and The Big Man, Clarence Clemons on sax. Sitting in the audience, I would get chills as he played the solo to "Jungleland", the notes careening out of this saxophone. At times, he was the perfect accompaniment to everyone else on the stage, and during those powerful solos, he was dangerously close to stealing the show. If I closed my eyes, I could block out everything except what was going on in that moment.

When they performed live, Bruce would introduce his band and when he got to Clarence, he would inevitably ask "Do I even have to say his name!?!?!" and the crowd would scream "No!", because everyone knew exactly who he was, but Bruce did it anyway.

The love between them radiated into the crowd-their passion both for the music they were creating and for each other was palpable.

A few weeks ago, I told my father that if Bruce toured again, I was going to go, no matter the cost. He laughed and said he doubted it would happen, but "more power to ya."

With the death of Clarence, I am sad to say that I may never get a chance to see Bruce live again. But I am eternally grateful that I was able to experience two of the most moving concerts I've ever been to and have been able to enjoy the music that shaped me as a child and will continue to hold a special place in my heart for the rest of my life.




R.I.P. Big Man.



In response to The Lightening and The Bightening Bug: Flicker of Inspiration #4-
Song Worth a Thousand Words

Lo kala hi, lo kala darkeinu V'einayich lifamim ko nugot

It's not easy, our path is not easy, and your eyes sometimes are so sad.

The first time my soon-to-be camp director came and gave a presentation at my religious school early one Saturday morning, he talked a little and then showed a video highlighting the amazing religious studies programs and Hebrew we would be able to learn if we attended camp.

And while that was well and good, all I saw was the beach and the horses and those looked sweet enough for me to start begging asking my parents to spend the summer in what would be my home away from home for five summers, Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.

Olin Sang Ruby Union Institute is Jewish Summer camp and when I would tell my friend back home what we did there, they often stared back with blank expressions. I think they were a little confused as to why I wanted to spend my summers studying Torah, praying and speaking Hebrew. And looking back on it, it does sound a little crazy, but I enjoyed doing these things, more than anything to be honest. OSRUI sparked my faith and helped me to realize I could enjoy my Judaism and I could make it my own.

Because it was a Jewish camp, we celebrated Shabbat (the sabbath) every Friday night. Everyone would get dressed up and we would begin the night with a special service. We prayed as a group twice a day, in the morning and before bed, but the Shabbat service was different-different prayers, different songs, different meaning. We began Shabbat with prayers of thankfulness that set the tone for the rest of the evening.

After the service, the whole camp would come together for dinner. During the week, our meals were pretty standard fare-even though we kept kosher, we had hamburgers, salads, sandwiches, etc. But since everyone, including the kitchen staff took Shabbat off, our meals were catered, lavish affairs. Roasted chicken, stuffed peppers, roasted vegetables, cakes and cookies for desert. It was all absolutely delicious.

After dinner, while fighting the food coma that was sure to come, the entire camp would migrate for shira, which means song in Hebrew. We would all cram into a room that was ample size any other day of the week but when the entire camp was in it, it was much more cozy. Everyone sat on the floor in a circle, the girls trying their hardest to be modest while sitting cross legged. The song leaders would start softly but the energy would rise quickly as the song leaders played the guitars and danced and jumped around the room, filling the room and woods surrounding with song. The kids would clap and dance from their seats, singing as loud as possible- in fact, most people woke up missing their voices the next day. It doesn't sound like it would be the most beautiful sound, but it was glorious-a few hundred people all singing in praise. Beautiful.

The director would get up half way through and tell a story of the Baal Shem Tov, an ancient Jewish rabbi known for his stories and anecdotes, while the song leaders softly plucked the strings on their guitars, untill after he finished when they all jumped in unison to lead us in more songs, eventually, slowly, winding down to a soft hum of guitar chords and many, many voices.

After shira, the little kids would shuffle off to their tents and cabins while the older kids would head to the sports center for everyones favorite part of the evening, Israeli dancing. During the week we could practice the dances every chance we would get-you would often pass a group of girls holding hands in a circle, spinning around the basketball court or a group in meticulous lines perfecting the "step-ball-change". Friday nights was the culmination of the hard work. Even though we spent a lot of time dressing up for Shabbat and began the evening looking decidedly more like adults that children, by the time Israeli dancing came, there was no mistaking who we were. Our once perfect hair and make-up was streaked with sweat and our fancy dresses were often stained with dirt and grass. But we laughed and giggled and danced the night away, following our Israeli counselors lead. Far too soon, we would wind back to our cabins, enjoying the cool summer air hitting our sweat stained faces and would stare mesmerized at the vast expanse of stars spread out above us.

What began as a yearning to swim and ride horses, left me with a life long connection and appreciation for my Judaism and years later, I still say the same prayers of thankfulness.

Lo telchi l'vadeich Ani eh'yeh sham itach You won't walk alone, I'll be there with you

Linking up with Mams Kat's Writer's Workshop for the Prompt:
Share a Summer Camp Memory.




June 17, 2011

Now I work down at the car wash, where all it ever does is rain.

Even though it's been much nicer here lately, I feel like for the entire past month, all it has done is rain. Literally. We had I think about 3 weeks where it rained every.single.day.

It was the wettest month for out county on record and many of the rivers overflowed. The one by my house was level with the park that it butts up against, but never actually flowed over (thank god!) A few of the parks that are below the water line got flooded and people were actually fishing in them! haha

I tried to go tanning one afternoon and the parking lot of the strip mall was completely flooded, as was the intersection the strip mall is at (which is of two decently large roads). I ended up going back the next morning because the grocery store is right across the street and snapped these pictures on my phone:

Swimming, anyone?


Like my Canadian flag, eh?


The best part of having torrential rain, is that when it finally stopped raining it was at least 95* for a week straight, meaning crazy humid. So basically we went from having tornado and flood warnings one week, to having a heat advisory the next.

Oh, Michigan, how I love thee.

June 15, 2011

Oh love, such a silly game we play.

It's Wednesday again, so let's see what I'm loving today with this kind of love!


I'm loving my nails-which I painted with the help of an amazing tutorial from rebecca likes nails! I was amazed at how simple it was to do and my nails looked sooooo good!



I'm loving having today off! Unfortunately, it means I have to work tomorrow, but having a Wednesday off is a nice change of pace :-)

I'm loving this guy being back on tv.
Ami James from NY Ink

I won't be watching NY Ink all the time, but I'm definitely not complaining about seeing him in all the ads lately. Bald, tattooed and Israeli? Um, yes please.

I'm loving the fresh pita bread I had from a restaurant in Ann Arbor this week with my dinner. It was fresh out of the oven and omg delicious!

I'm loving Pinterest! I just joined last week and I'm slightly addicted!

Do you pin?

Follow me!


Hope everyone is having a lovely Wednesday!

June 14, 2011

When Ichiro goes, when Ichiro goes to the moon.

Last Wednesday, my dad and I travelled to Fabulous Ferndale to see The Baseball Project.


They are a "super group" comprised of Peter Buck of R.E.M. on bass, Steve McCaughy of the Minus 5 on guitar, Linda Pittmon on drums and Steve Wynn of the Dream Syndicate on guitar. Peter Buck didn't play when we saw them, but Mike Mills, who is also in R.E.M subbed in for him.

There was about 50 people there tops so the show was super small and intimate. We got there early and ended up being in the front row, which is always nice. They played all my favorite songs, including "Harvey Haddix" which is about a pitcher who almost threw a perfect game. They even gave a shoutout to Armando Gallaraga haha It was also Linda Pitmon's birthday so she requested they play "Twinkies", which is about her hometown team. They played about 2 hours (with no opening acts) and for their encore they played "Aw, shit man" by the Minus 5 and "Rockville" by R.E.M. It was definitely a lot of fun and even though the crowd was small, there was really good energy.

After the show, I went to buy a tee shirt and Steve McCaughy and Linda Pitmon were standing by the merch table signing autographs and talking to everyone so my dad and I talked with them and they each signed my shirt, meaning I won't be able to wear it now, but I'll save it and come up with something to do with it lol

My dad took the day off on Thursday, so that night my dad, my brother and I went to the CoPa and watched the Tigers beat the Mariners. My dad loves seeing Ichiro play so we always try and go when the Mariners are in town.


Unfortunately, Ichiro went 1-4 and only ended up catching one pop up, so it was a decidely un-Ichiro-like performance. The upside of that was Justin Verlander pitched through 8 innings, gave up one run and threw 10 k's. Not bad, not bad at all.


It had been threatening to rain all day, but luckily, it didn't. The temperature did, however, drop about 30* from the time the game started to the time it ended. Thank god I brought a hoodie! I was freezing! Just another June in Michigan haha

June 12, 2011

Stilettos, pumps, in da club. Get crunk.

I've been trying really hard not to spend money. I have money to spend, I'm just trying to make a more conscious effort to save it.

But sometimes, it's really hard. Like when you walk into TJMaxx looking for a purse, but they don't have one you like (that isn't a million dollars) so to console yourself, you look at shoes, but keep repeating to yourself that "you're not going to buy anything, because you don't need new shoes."

And somehow, in between repeating that mantra many times over, you walk out of the store with these:

Oops.

(Now I just need to find somewhere to wear them haha)

June 3, 2011

He stole plenty bases before his legs quit.

I saw this on Top Plays the other morning while I was watching SportsCenter at the gym, and I loved it, so much I had to post it :-)


Amazing!

June 1, 2011

Ooh yes, you will always be my endless love.

It's a beautiful Wednesday here, so let's see what I'm loving today! Check out this kind of love to link up!


I'm loving my Tigers! I got to go to a game on Memorial Day and always have a blast at the ball park, and it's even better when they win :-)



I'm loving getting in touch with old friends. My best friend from elementary school got in touch with me this weekend and we figured out he's only living about an hour away! I can't wait to get together with him and catch up!

I'm loving that my work was featured on The Food Network! Unfortnately, it won't let me embed the video but go check out Kid in a Candy Store on Youtube!

(Link- http://youtu.be/1m0zL_inKg8)

I'm loving that I picked up Essie Sand Tropez for 50% off at CVS this week! Woo hoo!
I'm loving the weather today-finally not scorching hot and not torrential rain. Still too warm to be considered spring but since it's June, I should probably get used to summer now haha

What are ya'll loving today?
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