Music & JAMN

Anyone else just having a bleh day today? I think mine stems from the fact that the Fourth is coming up, and that's usually such a fun holiday in Utah. I miss living so close to the Stadium of Fire (although with Tim McGraw headlining this year, I'm not as sad. Haha. My hatred for country music is still strong as ever!)

Oh, you want to know what I'm jamming to now, you ask? Well, it has been awhile since a music post...

What K is Listening To Now

First off, these all come straight off my Spotify "You Can Do It!!!" playlist. I play it whenever I'm driving to work, because I need a ton of motivation to walk into work sometimes.

1. Left Hand Free, alt+J

Well, my left hand's free...

I just want to say, first off, that I totally knew this song/loved this song/listened to this song WAY before Civil War came out. #hipster First it hit my Pandora, then it hit a Suits episode. Ah. Suits. Coming back soon!

2. Lean On, Major Lazer 

Blow a kiss, fire a gun

We need someone to lean on...

I love this song. I also like guns, and shooting them. (unrelated side note: Illinois doesn't have rodeos. What? Add that to the "This is why you suck, Illinois" list, right under "no Wingers".)

3. Cheap Thrills, Sia

No, I ain't got cash, no, I ain't got cash,

But I've got you baby...

Haha! I don't have cash either! Yay.

4. Then She Appeared, XTC

Know it sounds weird,

Then she appeared...

Five thousand points if you can name the episode of Gilmore Girls this comes from...

5. You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You, Nor'Easters

Don't you stop me, I will get what's coming to me

I am ready, baby, I will be somebody...

What, you thought I'd make a playlist without Sing it On on here? (We have a release date, people: July 27th!!!) 

What K is Doing with her Time Now

Well, obviously not blogging, as you've noticed over the past month. I'm kind of sick of reading other people's blogs, to be honest. I feel like blogging can be really fake sometimes, only showing the good things you're doing and never showing that you have any problems, whatsoever, and that you never run out of money. I'm particularly done with a few bloggers that I swear are always taking trips, or talking about the latest outfit they got, or spending their money in other inane ways and then in the next post talking about how hard it is to save money. It's not that hard. One less trip to Target a month, sweetheart. *eyeroll* but hey. Nobody's perfect. Especially not me/this blog. But I'd to think this blog is at least somewhat real, as opposed to only showing the things me and C are paid to do and blog about (newsflash, we're not paid to do anything/say anything/promote anything on this blog, yet. And I don't know if I could stand myself if we were.) So anyways, yes. Less blog-reading, more book-reading. 

Speaking of more book-reading, I got invited to a Jane Austen movie night with some girls from my ward. It was actually really fun, and I can probably say it's the first time I've felt like I've really been invited to something cool and been part of a social activity since I've been here. (Baby showers are not cool, although they are cute!) So that was fun, and even though I haven't seen any other Austen movies besides P&P and Emma, I was still able to keep up with their discussion (strategically changing the subject to Austenland whenever possible. Kidding...) So now I can say I've seen Northanger Abbey, and I actually really enjoyed it. See the Masterpiece Theatre edition (It has Nobley from Austenland in it, except younger!) It's adorable. If you're the "squee!"-ing type, you'll definitely squee hard. Aaaaand now I'm on Thriftbooks deciding if I want to buy it or not. Praise be to Thriftbooks. I definitely prefer a brand-new book (you just can't recreate the smell of a brand-new book!) but books for cheap are the way we go these days.

Me and C have discovered that the rich city next to us does free concerts in the park on Friday nights, so that's usually where you'll find us. Unfortunately, JAMN (Jane Austen Movie Night) was last Friday, so we didn't go, but the time before we did it was excellent. I can honestly say it's one of the better orchestras I've heard (and believe me, I've heard my share of instrumental music.) And it's just a community orchestra! Granted, it's a very wealthy suburb (Hilary Clinton grew up there), but it's still cool. You just come early, bring your camp chair, and hang out. Lots of people bring picnics, with their fancy wine and cheese platters. I think I want popcorn next time. The park is set up cute too. It reminds me a little of Stars Hollow, and it seems like a very Stars Hollow-y event, with all the little shops closing and everyone coming out to watch. It's adorable. 

Concert on the steps of City Hall. One almost expects Taylor Doose to emerge.

I find it hard to describe how *green* Illinois is, so I took a few pictures. I don't know how to describe it. There's just a ton of trees and bushes everywhere. Coming from subdivisions that don't have a lot of trees in yet, all the trees are overwhelming (I swear, 10 to 20 to even 30 trees in a big yard. It's crazy.) This is the road to get to the concerts in the park, so this is a really nice area. You get the idea. It's like this all over Illinois, though. Not in the city of course, but in the more rural suburbs. Must be all the humidity or something. The green isn't worth the trapped-inside-a-gummy-bear feeling I've been dealing with since May, but it is nice to look at (from my nicely air-conditioned work office...)

Not the best picture, but kind of helpful?

I have finally finished the bootie-making frenzy that has been June around here. Three pregnant friends, six booties to make. These are the last pair I did, and I'm pleased that they look so good. The first pair didn't look this nice, ha... I love the cherry red. I've done them in a navy blue as well but the red is my favorite. 

Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee,

K