29 December 2012

today we mourn the loss of my favorite boots

Top: Target / Jeans: Delias / Shoes: Shoedazzle / Hat: Nordstrom / Glasses: Walmart

I have, or rather, had this pair of brown boots {which you can see in the previous post} that I loved.  I'm more picky about the perfect tall brown leather boot than any other shoe, and these were perfect.  I'd been looking and looking, and last November I found these and fell in love with them.  What happened, you ask?  Well, I'd had them less than a year, and this summer I already had to get the soles repaired because there were cracks in both of them.  And then, this fall, I discovered that the leather on the heel area inside the boot was torn and shredded, exposing the structural elements of the shoe, and overall falling apart.  I'd like to point out that at this point, I'd had them for just under one year, not worn them anymore than one would normally wear boots, and when I bought them, I paid about $150 (they were on sale, normally at about $250) for a good brand and quality leather.

So I took them to Nordstrom today, where I had originally bought them, explained my case, and was told that I could either pay to have them sent to a third party repair place to try and fix them {no guarantees} or exchange them for a new pair of the same boot, but in a different color because they don't make the dark brown anymore.

It was such a hard decision, because these were the perfect boots in the perfect color!  Was I really willing to let them go and replace them with new ones that I was only just content with?  Well, since there was no guarantee that they could be fixed, and it would cost me money just to try, I sadly handed my beautiful boots over to the sales lady and wound up getting new ones in a dark greyish color.  Tears were very nearly shed right in the middle of the Nordstrom shoe department - as it was, I was definitely choked up about it.

A moment of silence for the loss of my perfect boots.

27 December 2012

this is what I wore on christmas

Sweater: H&M / Jeans: Delias / Boots: Enzo Angiolini / Scarf: Camden Market, London / Bag: AE / Lipstick: Revlon Colorstay in "Stay Currant"

So, yeah... though you should know that I got this lipstick in my stocking and now I'm obsessed with it.  Partially for the color, and partially because it does not come off.  Seriously, it will only come off with makeup remover.  I kid you not.

In other news, I saw the Les Mis movie last night.  As you may very well know by now, I'm Les Mis obsessed, and a bit of a snob about it.  So, to give a brief recap of my thoughts on the movie....

Anne Hathaway was the best part and stole the show.

Russell Crowe sounded like he was singing with a mouthful of Wonderbread (read: awful).

Hugh Jackman has a nice voice, but I think that a better Valjean could have been found.

It was a stroke of brilliance to have Colm Wilkinson as the Bishop of Digne and join in at the end for his famed final note.

The cinematography was stunning - Tom Hooper is a cinematic genius.

Aaron Tveit as Enjolras was a great choice.

I was skeptical at first of Eddie Redmayne as Marius, but he grew on me.

Amanda Seyfried, though breathy at times, made a bearable Cosette.

The child actors were brilliant.

Hadley Fraser should have had more material.

I still believe that the movie doesn't hold a candle to the musical, though the music is essentially the same, and just the voices are the biggest difference.  Has anyone else seen the Les Mis movie yet?  What are your thoughts?

good ol' american breakfast

So, this is one of those posts that actually happened, like, a week ago, but that I didn't really get around to posting until now...  FYI, y'all should be prepared for the next couple of posts to be kinda like that.  The holidays have been busy, yo!

But basically this is from when my cousins and sister and grandma and I went to breakfast at an old diner-type place in West Seattle called The Luna Park Cafe.  I'm sure I've mentioned it before somewhere, but all you really need to know is that they make amazingly delicious all-American breakfasts for a low price in a little diner cafe that is just filled with fun stuff to look at.  So if you're in town, I highly recommend it.

26 December 2012

merry christmas to all, and to all, a good night


A few photos from Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at home and at my grandparents' houses.

Two days filled with family, food, and all the lovely Christmas traditions.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you all!

22 December 2012

nutcracker

Last night, I went with my sister, all my cousins, my cousin's girlfriend, and the exchange student they're hosting to the Nutcracker put on by the Pacific Northwest Ballet.  The Nutcracker has always been a family tradition of ours each holiday season, though less so lately since we've been away and bus with school.  So this year, because everyone was in town together (a rarity, that), we made a night of it and went to the Nutcracker.

It was such a fun night spent dressing up, catching up, laughing, and watching a truly great ballet.

20 December 2012

jet lag means never having a social life past 8pm

Jacket: New Look / Shirt: AE / Sweater: AE / Scarf: Nordstrom BP / Jeans: Delias / Boots: Hunter

The past three days, I've been in bed and asleep by 9 at latest, and wide awake by 5:30 in the morning.  On Monday, when I got into Seattle at 4:30 in the afternoon, I was passed out on our living room sofa at 7:30, and went to bed at 8, only to wake up at 2 in the morning, wide awake, and had to force myself to go back to sleep for another couple hours.  Ah, the joys of jet lag.

Jet Lag - 3, Melanie - 0.

Fortunately for me, I have this lil' furry yeti dog to snuggle with.

19 December 2012

all I want for christmas is stuff you

{one / two / three }
{ four / five / six }
{ seven / eight / nine }

Et voila!
 My Christmas wishlist of 2012.

In case certain parents, grandparents, or sisters see this, it might interest them to know that numbers 1, 2, 6, and 9 are highest on the list.  And nail polishes are always great stocking stuffers...

17 December 2012

lucky

This semester has been incredible - a huge chunk of and contributor to what has been the best year of my life.  I'm so incredibly blessed to have lived on this gorgeous campus in the middle of this incredible city.  I love everything about it here.  I'm leaving for the airport in just under two hours, and I can't even express the heartache that accompanies the concept of leaving London.

I've been able to experience such wonderful things here, both inside the city and out.  I've had the immense fortune to travel to Norway, Scotland, Paris, and Wales.  I've seen such incredible things, from the Eiffel Tower sparkling in lights to the huge expanse of the Welsh moorlands from horseback to the vibrant colors of autumn in Norway to the sun setting spectacularly behind Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament.

I've been blessed to have met and gotten to know some truly wonderful people, each of whom have affected my life to some degree or another, and who I can't fathom not being able to see again for whatever length of time.  The people here, both the people I've met and the general population of London, have made my time here something I will never forget and absolutely never take for granted.  The experiences will stay with me, as I hope the people will, too.

 You best believe I'll be back.
 Goodbye, London.
For now.

16 December 2012

packing, party of one

It's currently almost 1:30 in the morning and this is what my room looks like.  I started "packing" at around 5:30 or so, and by "packing" I mean I took a few things off my shelves and piled them on the floor.  I really didn't start actual packing like a normal person until a couple hours ago.  I had some things get in the way of that - their names are Procrastination, Denial, Sobbing, Paralyzation, and Pain.

Wow, that got depressing real fast.

I really don't think I've ever cried so intensely for so long before.  When you combine the amount of sobbing from goodbyes and all-consuming hurt that has happened over the past day and a half, I'm surprised I'm not shriveled up from dehydration.  Seriously.  I can't think of a time where I have cried this much, except for when we put my dog to sleep two years ago.  Every time I think of this situation and the ramifications of it, I break into a sloppy semblance of a human being.  I literally had to collapse myself onto the floor and curl up in a ball while I sobbed uncontrollably earlier, it was so bad.

Goodbye really is one of the hardest things.  It sucks.  Like, it really really sucks.  I knew it was coming, and I knew I'd have to deal with the effects of it, but I honestly had no idea it would hurt this badly, that it would be this painful.  I've had to say goodbye to this wonderful city, this beautiful school, and some truly amazing people.  And what hurts the most is knowing I won't see any of these again, at least not for a little while.  Life gets in the way, and by the time I come back here, which I will do, things will be different.  Things change, and it causes pain in my chest to know things won't be like this again.  Some things will be different.
I'm going home tomorrow,
and I just don't feel ready.

14 December 2012

there's something about libraries

This morning I woke to the sound of pouring rain outside my window.  A born and raised Seattlite through and through, I love the rain, and I truly believe the steady drumming of pouring rain is the most beautiful sound.  So I was very happy to wake up feeling like I was home in Seattle, but knowing I was actually in London - best of both worlds!  Until now, when the rain is still going strong even though it was supposed to stop nearly two hours ago, and I have things I need to go out and get done.

Being one of my last whole days in London (sob), I wanted to spend today out and about, taking photos as I walked all over the city to Harrods, Fortnum & Mason, and some other places, trying to get a little last minute Christmas shopping done.  Unfortunately, this rain foiled that plan.  So I'm sitting here in our beautiful school library, waiting it out.  I needed a change of scenery from my bedroom, and something about libraries makes me perfectly content to just sit.

Now if only the rain would let up so I can go out.

13 December 2012

night bus

So I did this silly thing where I put £20 on my Oyster Card for the tube because I thought I'd need it to cover the costs of travel to/from Hever Castle last weekend. Well, turns out the silly train didn't take Oyster cards, so then I had about £26 on there and just over a week left in London to use it.

So the other night, a friend and I rode the bus for no reason other than I had the money to spend, I'm leaving on Monday {sob}, and we wanted to sit on the top level in the very front because we're actually only about 12 years old.
Pin It button on image hover