Thursday, December 31, 2009

We're ROYALTY !!!

Except actually we're not. But give me a night out on the town - seeing Jersey Boys with my mom, eating dinner at a fancy Italian restaurant, & having dessert at The Palmer House Hotel - and I basically feel like Prince Harry's fiancee.
I don't know that he has one. But if he did.
And hey, anyone else think Prince Harry is way hotter than William?
Them redheads. Wowza!

{The Palmer House Hotel}
{Seeing Jersey Boys with my mom the day after Christmas}
{Glittery State Street}
{Bank of America Theater}
{Dad checkin out the dessert menu while wearing his sharp lookin sweater}
{We ordered 3 of these guys, 1 creme brulee, and 1 apple crisp. We did major damage}
{And we saw this lovely couple doing some last minute practicing for their first dance before entering the reception party. It was darling}
{And I snuck into their reception room before it started to snap a photo. I mean, come on, it was in the freaking Empire Room. Frankie Sinatra sang there back in the day. I had to trespass}

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Eyes and Ears part 2

Ok so this song has been stuck in my head allll week. And if you give it a little listen you may see why. Word on the street says it's about bad things. Which isn't all that surprising because it's from The Libertines, ya know the English band that Kate Moss's boyfriend Pete Doherty was in. Well re guard less of all that business, I really like the song. Shoop shoop!


"You've Got Mail" was on TV today and I decided it was necessary to sit myself right down on the sofa and watch it. That movie definitely puts me in a better mood. Period. I get so excited when that scene comes on where Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks are walking to their respective bookstores, and the Cranberries song "Dreams" starts playing, and the two characters keep just missing each other. When I saw the movie on New Years Eve with my fam back when it first came out, I decided it was cinema at it's best. I feel slightly different now, but the movie still holds a special place in my heart. Plus, Meg Ryan's character's name is Kathleen; and there are like no movies that have my name in it. So that made me happy too. Did this movie make anyone else want to live on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, particularly in Meg Ryan's brownstone? Anyone? Well I wanted to. And I still kinda want to.

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Finals VS Holiday... I'll take the latter

One day you're waking up at 3 am to finish studying for a final you're soooo not prepared for, and the next thing you know you're at home on the couch stuffing your face with chocolate chip cookies and listening to the freaking Black Eyed Peas on repeat (I don't know why). Life works in mysterious ways.

Madison finals week
Madison. 4:45 am. Final in 3 hours.
I'm surprised I'm still alive.
Singing Happy Birthday to Annie on her actual 21st.
A much needed break from studying.
One of the two towers of books I had to read this semester.
Yo English major, tone it down.

Home for zi Holiday
Mother dearest opening a present.
Later in the day at my aunt and uncle's.
Family gathered in the living room.
Poor Kelly was sick :(
More family gathered in the family room.
I spy CC's cute striped outfit.
I spy Benny sleeping on Mark.
I spy dad's bald head.
Finnigan is a troublemaker.
And he decided it would be a good idea to run away on Christmas.
Not once. But 5 times.
It was quite comical.
The 5th time he ran away, my brothers Matt and Kevin, my cousins Sean and Brendan, and my Uncle Skip ALL had to chase him.



Yes, I definitely take being home with the fam over studying for stupid finals. Even if it does mean putting up with my mom asking me to do a bajillion chores. I know she was tired and stressed after a long day of work, but seriously within 2 minutes she said, "Kathleen, load the dishwasher.... Kathleen, sweep the bathroom... Kathleen, set the table for dinner... Kathleen, go get paper towels from the basement... Kathleen, feed Lenny... Kathleen, fold the dish towels and put em away..."

O meee god.

I love you momma.

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Sweet Home Chicago

{waiting to be picked up at O'Hare}
{reminds me of the airport scenes from Home Alone}

Coming home for Christmas is one of the best feelings ever. Memories from childhood flood my brain as I take in all the pretty houses decorated with lights and wreaths and lit trees in the front window. Such a good feeling to know that I get one month to just REST. I wish it was Christmastime more often!

I finished my last final on Saturday at 4:45, and in less than an hour later I was on the bus headed back home. When I finally walked into my house, my mom had homemade chocolate chip cookies waiting. Then she and I went to Midway Airport to pick up my brother Kevin who flew in from Boston. So much catching up; so much that we kinda kept talking over each other. We have to work on that...

Waking up on Sunday morning in my own bed was heaven. Not having to worry about taking another final was heaven. Looking out my window and seeing Lenny (my dog) playing in the snow was heaven. Walking with Kevin and my mom two blocks to church, surrounded by tall trees whose branches were covered with crisp, white snow was heaven. Going grocery shopping with Kev was heaven. Being home after a very stressful two weeks of tests and papers was HEAVEN.

{usually when Lenny looks at me like this I give him a treat. even if he doesn't deserve one}
{pulling up to my house. snow overload on top of our lights}
{the living room. in case you are wondering why those boxes are on the chair, it is to keep Lenny from lounging on the sofa when we aren't home. he tends to sneak up on the nice furniture if no one is looking}
{da family room. when Lenny was a puppy, that stuffed Santa was his nemesis. now they're friends}
{ballerina night light outside my room}
{close up of tree christmas lights}
{it's always comforting to look across the hall and see my parent's light on. when i was in 3rd grade i saw the movie Scream and was scarred. so i made my parent's keep that light on until i fell asleep. i'm such a baby}
{and Lenny is so handsome and so old looking in this picture. is that the start of a gray beard i see??? OMG what is happening to my 8 year old puppy?}

Monday, December 14, 2009

My Light Journal

{I did most of my filming at the Wisconsin State Capitol building}

For my film production class, using a Bolex camera, I had to make a 1 minute film that showcased different images of light. Editing took soooooo freaking long. It's a tedious process, cutting and taping different tiny pieces of film together, but also an enjoyable one. So, without further ado, here she is !!!
(digitalizing the film sorta lessened the quality. oh well.)

The Wee One Turns 21 !!!

Lauren, me, and Mal as Alvin and the Chipmunks !

So Annie, the tiniest (but feistiest) of the roommates turns 21 on Thursday! Butttt since her b-day falls smack-dab in the middle of finals, we celebrated this weekend. We threw her a dynamic duos themed party (but there were some trios too) on Friday at our apartment; Saturday we went out to eat at the Great Dane, and Sunday was a lazy day of studying and watching Christmas movies. A fun last hoorah before we head home for the holidays!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANNIE!!!!!!!!!!

Brandon and Brendan hands down had the best costumes. Brendan even used white out to make a milk mustache... i hope that comes off.
dinner at The Great Dane. nam nam
i like pretty bars with twinkle lights
kitty cocktails for days.
and annie chowing on her complimentary apple crisp. oh my god it was heaven.

Panoramifica

study session last year in the apt
another study session at the union. though it may look like i am staring at the camera, i'm actually not. had i known, i probably woulda flashed my million dolla smile. but no, i decided to daydream and look like a chump.
sunrise
oh be nice

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

SNOW DAY !!!

They canceled classes today. And every UW student's mood was lifted a teeny bit. And by "a teeny bit" I mean "a lot a bit". Last night we celebrated this historical event by trudging merrily in the snow to our friend's house to play flip cup outside. And today we slept in and Mallory made blueberry muffins. We studied cozily together in our family room, Lauren's candle adding extra warmth. I LOVE WISCONSIN !!!

Reminds me of Love Actually when Colin goes to Milwaukee.
Colin: I've bought a ticket to the States. I'm off in three weeks.
Tony: No!
Colin: Yes! To a fantastic place called Wisconsin.
Tony: No!
Colin: Yes! Wisconsin babes, here comes Sir Colin! Whoo hoo!
Walkin in a Winter Wonderland.
Oh what the hell!
Finals in less than a week? whatever.
Flip cup outside = beer slushie
View from the balcony. Snow, you can stay as long as you promise to stay this pretty.
Thanks Lauren for making our home even homier.

Monday, December 7, 2009

With a Face Like That

"Moses supposes his toeses are Roses,
But Moses supposes Erroneously"
{ I could watch the scene from "Singing in the Rain" over and over }
"Something in the way she moves,
Attracts me like no other lover"
{ I would probably die and go to heaven if George ever sang "Something" to me }
Blanche: "Please don't get up."
Stanley: "Nobody's going to get up so don't get worried."
{ Marlon Brando? yes please! }
Ferdinand: "I'm glad I don't like spinach, because if I did then I would eat it, and I can't stand the stuff."
{ Possibly my favorite movie poster of all time }
Patricia: "Are you afraid of getting old? I am." - Breathless aka A Bout de Souffle
{ I think this is Jean Seberg. Not one hundo percent sure. Either way. Classic beauty }
Marianne: "Don't ever promise to adore me all your life. Let's not make promises like that knowing me knowing you. Let's keep the feeling that this love of ours, this love of ours, will be short and sweet."
{ Even closed, her eyes are beautiful }
"Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see.
It's getting hard to be someone but it all works out.
It doesn't matter much to me."
{ On repeat in my head today. John, gimme those glasses }
Ferdinand: "I wonder what's keeping the cops. We should be in jail by now."
{ Oh hey. It's you two again. Jean-Paul Belmondo, Stop being so dreamy! }