Hollywood by Michael Buble!

On one of my favorite blogs, Monograms and Manicures, I discovered an absolutely lovely song, Hollywood by Michael Buble! It is the perfect song for a Saturday night drive around town :)

Love it!
Kisses Erica

Yumiko Leotards

During Nutcracker rehearsals, we are allowed to wear any colored leotard -- I have always wanted a Yumiko Leotard, the colors are so cute, and the styles are so unique. I really want to buy myself one for Christmas -- tell me what you guys think about this one?

Don't Want No Paper Gangsta!

My new favorite song!

Morning Star! YUMMY~!!!

My new obsession: Morning Star Vegetarian Meats. Now for all of you meat-lovers out there, you may be slightly dubious whether something made of veggies and tofu could ever taste like your favorite juicy burger -- but if it doesn't match that, it sure comes pretty darn close! Plus there are WAYYYY less calories in the Morning Star meats than regular meat. I just picked up some of their sausage patties for breakfast and I am planning to grill some garden burgers for dinner tonight! YUM!

Embarrassing Moments with Marie!

Hey guys! So we all have our embarrassing moments right? Just the other day, I was taking a CVS run before my nutcracker rehearsals and realized that I was running extremely late. So my friend H and I decided to grab our snacks and charge across the street with only 3 seconds to go. Now I ran like the wind, and I made it alive to the other side --- but then my boot got stuck on the sidewalk and I literally DIVED face first into the pavement! OUCH! Thank goodness I only have a nasty little scab on my hand~!  The embarrassing part wasn't the fall though, just as I hit the pavement, a group of tourists came rushing over and formed a little huddle around me -- I tried to convince them that I was fine, but they wouldn't believe me -- heck, they must have thought I died or something! They ended up walking me up the street just to make sure I was okay. Anyways, even though this was a super embarrassing moment, it's good to know that there are such nice people out there that would help me if I actually did fall and kill myself crossing the street. :)
So tell me, what was YOUR most embarrassing moment?

Harry Potter

Ron...Hermione...♥ by Annamaria1693 featuring a button down blouse

Hoss Intropia Mole Blouse
78 GBP - mysugarland.co.uk
Silk tops »

VIVIENNE WESTWOOD RED LABEL 3692 WHITE COTTON GNTRY BLOUSE
152 GBP - farfetch.com
Button down blouse »

Juicy Couture Studded Ballerina Flat
$225 - neimanmarcus.com
Stiletto heel shoes »

Fashion Trends - Browse Gossamer 2009 Fashion on ELLE.com
elle.com
Skirts »

Stuffed Rabbits6 : All Plush : Stuffed Plush Animals and Toys
allplush.com

flower/swirl/psd
gxzone.com

Romantique letters
nikkograff.centerblog.net

Deathly Hallows Showcase _DinousaurRawr_ Ask before use
tumblr.com

Hermione Granger icon, Deathly Hallows made by -. jiemin credit would...
fanpop.com

The next morning Harry woke up in a sleeping bag on
living room floor. A strip of sky was visible
between the heavy curtains, the color blue was cool
Clear Ink watered down, was between the night and
the dawn and all was silent, except for deep breaths and
Ron and Hermione quietly. Harry looked at the shapes
dark stood out on the floor beside him.
Ron, in a fit of gallantry, had insisted that
Hermione sleep on the couch cushions removed, then
she was higher. The arm fell back on the
floor, her fingers inches from Ron's.
Perhaps they had fallen asleep holding hands. (Ch. 10,
p. 167)

Sick Sick Sick!

Hi guys,

Last Sunday after Nutcracker rehearsals I could barely stand up. I got in the car and just fell asleep. I had to miss ballet for the last 3 days and I am getting restless. I have just been at home for the last two days and I am INSANELY board, so I decided to make a list of the things that I have accomplished while i was at home sick this week. 

1. Slept

2. Watched TV

3. Slept some more

4. Checked Facebook compulsively to see if anyone was available to chat at 10 AM

5. Checked Polyvore

6. Made quesadillas -- yum!

7. Slept even more

8. Cleaned my room

9. Went to the doctors

10. Took some asprin

So there you have it! That is pretty much all I have accomplished in the last 72 hours!

Living with Synesthesia

Synesthesia
def.  A condition in which normally separate senses are not separate. Sight may mingle with sound, taste with touch, etc. The senses are cross-wired. For example, when a digit-color synesthete sees or just thinks of a number, the number appears with a color film over it.


Honestly, I used to think I was nuts. I would see things that were not really there, I would hear strange bells and music when looking at pictures, whenever I saw the number 5, it was a bright lime green color and when anyone said the word "citrus" I felt as though someone just stabbed me in the stomach. I really just have a sensory condition called synesthesia.


It is actually really weird, because this is how I have seen things all of my life, and it is impossible for me to imagine what things look like from other people's eyes.


Although synesthesia used to scare me, now I actually really treasure it. I feel like I have a greater  appreciation for the world, being able to experience things through more than one sense. Although synesthesia is a rare condition, there have been many people in history with synesthesia such as Stevie Wonder, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Patrick Stump, just to name a few. 

Awkward Laughers Anonymous

I am an awkward laugher. Let's face it. I laugh uncontrollably whenever someone starts crying, choking on their food, hurts themselves, or any other awkward situation for that matter. Honestly, I don't really think it is that funny when someone hurts themselves  -- there is just this little part of me that says "the awkwarder this situation gets, the harder you should laugh."I just can't help it. This is a huge problem; people will look at me and think I am the meanest person in the world when I laugh at the lady at the next table choking on her food. But I mean no harm.

One day in the 4th grade, I came home from school dumbfounded after a teacher had sent me out of the room for laughing uncontrollably at a girl who had just thrown up. (I honestly don't think there is anything funny about people throwing up, its just that the room got so unbearably awkward). Anyways, I got home from school, and I told my mom about what had happened. She gave me this long explanation about how Japanese people always laugh in awkward situations -- and how there was nothing wrong with having a "light-hearted outlook" on life. 

Honestly, I have no clue why I laugh when I do, but I do have one trick on how to sneakily cover up an awkward laugh: you turn in into a "sneeze". Believe it or not, I have used this countless times. If you hold your nose, you cant really breathe as well, so when you feel the laugh coming on, give you best fake sneeze, hold your nose, and turn your face away from other people. You will not believe how real this looks, I have been offered a tissue many times. If you are really lucky, you may even get the chance to leave the room to sneeze in privacy or wash your hands. 

I hope this article helps some of the other awkward laughers out there!

First Days of Fall

"I saw old Autumn in the misty morn
Stand, shadowless like Silence, listening
To Silence."-   Thomas Hood

Okay, so it wasn't morning and it wasn't that silent, but today, I had my first encounter with fall. I had just finished my Nutcracker auditions, and I was sitting at a cold metal table at Starbucks, sipping a warm Chai Tea Latte. It was late in the afternoon. The sky was a pale grey color, and it was about to rain. There was the normal traffic sounds, cars honking, skidding and revving down the large avenue. The smell of freshly ground coffee was all around. There is a small tree just outside of the Starbucks -- as a small gust of wind blew, a couple of dry leaves floated down to the ground and rustled around a bit on the sidewalk. Oh shit, it must be fall.