Six Things: Enjoy Mother Nature's Icy Treatment

Hello, fellow wanderlusters!

Winter is one of my favorite seasons. Okay, you are right, I love all seasons. However, there is something so magical about winter. Imagine walking in the snow with a hot chocolate in hand...it is just so warm and inviting! 

As you may remember, back in August I wrote a post that was quite simple. In actuality, I simply listed 6 pictures of things you may want to consider. So, shall we get started with the winter version of 6 things? 

1.) Winter Fashion

Sporto Delinda Bootie: $69.95

**Yes, cozy snow-proof booties! I plan to pick up a pair to take with me to Germany.

2.) Check Out A New Blog

Classy Girls Wear Pearls

3.) A Treat For Your Taste Buds

Starbucks Gingerbread Trio: $13.96

4.) A Gift For The Special Man In Your Life

Rugby Toggle Shawl Cardigan: $99.99 

5.) A Little Arm Candy

Lauren Ralph Lauren: Signature Holiday Shopper: $168.00

***I received this Christmas present in red and absolutely adore it! 

6.) A Touching/Beautiful Documentary

First Position: $19.99

What are a few things that are on your list?

Happy Holidays!

XXOO

Pumpkin Seeds

Hello, fellow monsters!

All Hallow's Eve is now 8 days away! Of course, like many monsters I am antsy to roam the Earth once more. Okay, I'm just kidding...or am I?

A spooky cemetery near my house!

One of my favorite things to do as Halloween inches closer is to carve pumpkins. Furthermore, I really enjoy what is inside the pumpkin. Yes, the seeds are quite delicious if made correctly! So, lets take a look at my family recipe to making delicious pumpkin seeds!

Preparation:

• Carve your pumpkin :)

• Scrape out the pumpkin.
• Save the seeds
• Rinse the seeds and separate them from the pumpkin-goo

Baking:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit
• After seeds are rinsed and dried:
• Toss seeds in olive oil
• Throw on a dash of Tony Chachere's seasoning (Found at any grocery store: green bottle)
• Throw on a nonstick pan

• Place in oven for about 20-25 minutes (or until golden)
• Flip 10 minutes into baking to ensure that they are evenly browned
• Take out of oven and let them cool

Now What?

• Invite your friends over for a movie night!

• Place your baked seeds in a dish
• Oh, and maybe grab some candy, popcorn, and other ghoulish treats

• Throw in a horror/Halloween flick:
• Martyrs (2008)
• Trick 'r Treat (2009)
• 13 Ghosts (2001)
• Corpse Bride (2005)
• Twilight Marathon (to prepare for November's release)
• Black Sheep (2006)
• Dawn of the Dead or Night of the Living Dead
• Halloween Marathon
• Beetle Juice (1988)
• Hocus Pocus (1993) : my all time favorite Halloween movie!
• Edward Scissorhands (1990): or any Tim Burton movie!
• Young Frankenstein (1974)

• Grab a blanket or light a fire!
• Prepare to be scared!

• Enjoy the last few days of Halloween!

Need more help:

• Pumpkin Recipes
• Toasted Pumpkin Seeds
• Email me: KOswald26@gmail.com

Enjoy Halloween, fellow monsters!

Oh, and check back to see my carved pumpkins!

"Good love letters ask for nothing."

One of my SSB (secret single behaviors) is to watch romance movies. These movies tend to be old black and white films, but tonight was different. It all started while I was browsing the movie section at Target, I found a movie for $10 called Waiting For Forever. Purchased it and watched.


Review: 
The movie is a bit of a tear jerker, but such a cute love story. I would recommend watching it...maybe for Valentine's Day. Oh, and maybe you should have a box of tissues and some chocolates next to you :)


Question:
This movie made me think about love letters. Why do people not write them anymore? Is our society so cynical that we don't really believe in spending time to write our thoughts? 


So, what are some of the best love letters in history?


1) John Keats to Fanny Brawne:


"My Dearest Girl,

I have been a walk this morning with a book in my hand, but as usual, I have been occupied with nothing but you: I wish I could say in an agreeable manner. I am tormented day and night. They talk of my going to Italy. ‘Tis certain I shall never recover if I am to be so long separate from you: yet with all this devotion to you I cannot persuade myself into any confidence of you….

You are to me an object intensely desirable — the air I breathe in a room empty of you in unhealthy. I am not the same to you — no — you can wait — you have a thousand activities — you can be happy without me. Any party, anything to fill up the day has been enough.

How have you pass’d this month? Who have you smil’d with? All this may seem savage in me. You do not feel as I do — you do not know what it is to love — one day you may — your time is not come….

I cannot live without you, and not only you but chaste you; virtuous you. The Sun rises and sets, the day passes, and you follow the bent of your inclination to a certain extent — you have no conception of the quantity of miserable feeling that passes through me in a day — Be serious! Love is not a plaything — and again do not write unless you can do it with a crystal conscience. I would sooner die for want of you than —

Yours for ever

J. Keats”


2) Lewis Carroll to May Mileham


"Dearest May,

Thank you very much indeed for the peaches. They were delicious. Eating one was almost as nice as kissing you; Of course not quite; I think, if I had to give the exact measurement, I should say three – quarters as nice; We are having such a lovely time here; and the sands are beautiful. I only wish I could some day come across you, washing your pocket -handkerchief in a pool among the rocks? But I wander on the beach, and look for you, in vain; and then I say, Where is May? And the stupid boatmen reply, It isn’t May, sir? It’s September?’ But it doesn’t comfort me.

Always your Loving C.L.D.” 


3) Why not one from the movie? Will to Emma

"Dear Emma,

Those two words “Dear Emma” take me away to another time when we used to write to each other after Mom and Dad died. I used to tell you about my new friends and my new life. And you used to tell me about the grand time my mom and dad were having in heaven.

Truth is nothing. What you believe to be true is everything. And the main thing that I used to believe was that I would be with you forever. Forever. The reason it has taken me so long to write to you is that I see that I have been a fool. I’ve spent my life fooling myself.

Every letter I’ve ever written to you has been a love letter. How could they have been anything else? I can see now that all of them except this one were bad love letters. Bad love letters beg for love back. Good love letters ask for nothing. This, I’m pleased to announce is my first good love letter to you because there is nothing more for you to do. You’ve already done everything. I have enough of you in my head to last forever. So please don’t ever worry about me. I’m peachy. I really am. I have everything.

If I had one wish it would be that your life brings you a taste of the happiness you have brought to me. That you can feel what it’s like to love.

Your friend forever,

Will"

How do you write a love letter?

-Grab a pen and paper...

1) Say how much you miss them

2) Mention what you love about them

3) Share your fondest memory

4) Express your deepest feelings

5) Look forward to the future

When was the last time you received a love letter? 

"So this is love. So this is what makes life divine. I'm all aglow..."

During a woman's life, she is often found questioning the aspect of relationships, love, and even what Walt Disney gave us as children...fairytales. Here is to all the women searching for their prince charming...

What type of love are women looking for?

Carrie and Big

Well, in my opinion, Carrie, from the hit series Sex and the City, said it the best...

"I'm looking for love. Real love. Ridiculous, inconvenient, consuming, can't-live-without-each-other love."

Girls grow up with fairytales. Can you blame us for wanting a man to rescue us when we are a "damsel in distress?" Disney provided us with the silly, yet beautiful stories of finding love. Unlike Romeo & Juliet, women want a happy ending not a tragic ending. Women want to ride off into the sunset with prince charming. 

Sleeping Beauty

Still not getting it? Well, simply put, women want to be rescued. I'm sure many girls will scorn me for saying that, but think about it. Whether you want to be rescued by a man, a dog, or your best friend, you still want to have that fantasy fulfilled. And there is nothing wrong with that.

How do women find their prince?

• Dating sites
• Happy hour
• School
• My Mom always says, "you will find your true love in college or graduate school."
• Random places: 
• Dog parks
• Home Depot
• Starbucks
• Hey, maybe even riding the airplane if you are an avid traveler!

Sometimes, women look for their prince and sometimes, he finds them.

My opinion?

B and I

Well, I believe relationships and love are complicated. Also, I believe that there is a prince charming for every little princess born into this world. Yet, I believe that women have to kiss a lot of frogs before they find him. And when you do find him, it will be a rough ride on the carriage through life. Love is not easy, but it is the fairytale you are looking for. Keep an open mind and stay strong, love will find you. 

What happens when love is found and becomes complicated?

Well, you definitely found it if it is complicated. Work at it everyday and remember the wise words of CoCo Chanel, "As long as you know most men are like children, you know everything."

Perhaps, you don't like what CoCo said. What about what Audrey Hepburn said?

Breakfast at Tiffany's

"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles."

Have you lost faith and need some reminding?

Watch:

• The Notebook
• The Last Song
• The Little Mermaid (my favorite!)
• Hercules
• Well, any Disney movie
• The Ugly Truth
• Sex and The City 1&2
• Breakfast at Tiffany's (another favorite!)
• Gone With The Wind (my grandparents saw this on their first date!)

Read: 

• The Wedding: Nicholas Sparks
• Twilight Series: Stephenie Meyer
• Pride & Prejudice: Jane Austen
• Gone With the Wind: Margaret Mitchell

Have you found your prince and are ready for marriage? Check out this fun blog that is filled with clever ideas for save-the-date invitations!

Have you found your prince? Share your story with us!

Scare Your Pants Off

Due to the Halloween spirit I decided to travel into the world of horror movies. Have you ever found yourself questioning almost every scenario in horror movies?

Even Scream likes to carve pumpkins!

Lets start by breaking down the appeal of the genre. I watch the genre a lot during Halloween because I feel it has enough of a scary vibe to keep the spirit of Halloween going. On the other hand, scientists’ say that psychologically it releases built up or repressed emotions. In my opinion, I think we just love to have the pants scared off of us.

What are key elements in horror flicks?

• There has to be some sort of hero or main victim. Due to this main victim’s decisions many people close to him/her will be killed.
• The main victim must be isolated. The isolation is done mentally and physically (i.e. separate him/her in the woods).
• The main victim will become panic-stricken and will end up in deeper sh*t.
• The main victim ends up backed up against a wall and does not sacrifice him/herself. This leads to the secondary victims to start dying off.
• Usually, the end is when the main victim fights back. Some horror flicks allow the main victim to win while others have no hero and everyone ends up dead.

So what else do I have to question?

Well, recently I watched Scream IV. The movie was cool, but it made me realize in almost all horror flicks:

• There are never any parents at home with their kids.
• Nobody owns dogs.
• People rarely fight back when attacked.
• My favorite is the fact that someone always gets out of the car, which makes the killer’s life easier.

What are some suggestions for films to analyze?

Human Centipede, Scream IV, Black Sheep (weird & funny horror), An American Werewolf in London, Dawn of the Dead, Halloween, and Creature From the Black Lagoon

Why do you watch horror flicks?

A Journey Through Time

Time Travel: traveling through time to the past or future

When I was about 10 years old, I remember sitting on the floor watching a black and white film at my Grandpa’s house. I can easily say that this may have been the beginning of my dreams to time travel. The crazy thing is that I can actually travel through time and so can you! Let me guess, you think time travel is a crazy science fiction thing, right? Well, I am here to tell you that you may not be able to travel into the future, but you can travel into the past.

4 Ways to Time Travel:

1.  Movies: Old films provide a window into the past. A few of my favorite films to watch are: The Seven Year Itch, My Fair Lady, and Breakfast at Tiffany’s. However, if you are not into old films, then you can try watching Paris at Midnight or The Notebook.
2. Music: I achieve time travel quite often by listening to old music and occasionally having a glass of wine by the fireplace. A few of my favorites that you can check out are Bing Crosby or Cab Calloway.
3. Books: I absolutely love to read during my free time or while waiting for a class to start. A few great authors to check out are Fitzgerald and Hemingway.
4. Art: You can surf the web or go to a gallery and check out art by Picasso, Warhol, Monet, and Dali. If you are interested in time traveling through art, then D.C. has an art exhibit in honor of  Andy Warhol (Click the link for details!).

What is your favorite way to time travel?