My bedroom is currently black, white and silver, but sometimes, I find myself wishing I could fall asleep in a beautiful golden boudoir...

I love the mix of soft lilac with gold...

Gold is warm and glamourous...

Even when used sparingly, gold instantly warms up a room...

Mix gold with mirrored furnishings and crystal accents for an ultra-glam effect...

I think I'd even prefer my cutlery to be gold!

It's all in the details...

So, what do you think of gold? :)

This drives me absolutely crazy. The self-proclaimed "best rapper alive" (Jay-Z) along with a rapper who compares himself to "Mike at his baddest" (Kanye West) have reached new heights of unwarranted egotism by completely butchering the legendary Otis Redding song, "Try A Little Tenderness."

Have they seriously no shame? I mean, I knew Kanye was a delusional narcissist, especially after seeing him dressed up as Jesus Christ with a crown of thorns on the cover of Rolling Stone (and, apparently, on the cover of his mix tape Alter Ego (see below)), but this latest stunt still manages to surprise me. If you listen to their new "song" and are at all familiar with the original, you can hear that Jay-Z and Kanye really add nothing of their own to the sound of the song. They simply take a short excerpt from the chorus, play it over and over again and then rap with it. That's it. (I take that back - there's some irritating screaming at the end of the song now. How nice.)

How that qualifies this as a new song worthy of frequent radio play completely eludes me.

Speaking of which, I have so much hate for this "stealing a chorus from a classic song and then adding some rap to it" trend on the radio these days, especially when the overall sound isn't one iota different from the original. To me, this is even worse than putting a crappy Miley Cyrus song on the radio. At least her crappy song was new.

In short, Jay-Z and Kanye, you are not Otis Redding or Michael Jackson (and you're definitely not Jesus), and you never will be. Kindly sit the eff down.

*shakes head* This is just...sad... Dude clearly has issues.

And on that note, I think it's best to end this post with a few wise words from the true Jesus Christ:

"Forgive them, for they know not what they do."

Because that's really the only way to handle this level of idiocy.

/rant

I've been feeling really down lately about my health (or should I say, lack thereof). I guess the junk food and Starbucks Venti Iced Caramel Macchiatos I've been consuming every day are finally starting to get to me. It's reached the point where I finally have to say, Enough is enough!

So, in an effort to hold myself more accountable, I thought it might be a good idea to post my new health resolutions here. Without further ado, they are:

1. No more Venti Iced Caramel Macchiatos. Um, duh. As I said before, I've been drinking one of these every single day for the past several months. That's a whopping 360 calories I've been ingesting every morning before I've even had anything to eat!

This morning, I opted instead for a tall black coffee with no cream or sugar, and guess what? It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it'd be. I even liked it better than the Starbucks Skinny Vanilla Lattes that so many people seem to swear by. (For some reason, those taste like plastic to me.)

2. Drink a large glass of H2O first thing every morning.

3. Follow a vitamin regimen. Right now, I'm taking an Omega-3 and a Women's One-A-Day multivitamin with food in the mornings and another Omega-3 at night. I take the Omega-3, by the way, because I don't eat fish. Both of my vitamin bottles are now out in the open on my bookshelf where I can see them (so I hopefully won't forget to take them!).

My multivitamin of choice :)

4. Drink one 11.5 fluid oz. can of Low Sodium V8 every day.

5. Less white bread and more whole grains! This one might just be the most difficult resolution to follow... I LUV MAH BREAD.

6. Go to bed by 11:00 PM every night. Because right now, I'm more vampire than human.

I think those are good for now. I don't want to overwhelm myself with too many resolutions... It's hard going from one of the spectrum to the other, y'know. ;) Eventually I'd like to also plan out and cook healthier meals and exercise consistently, but I'm afraid if I start trying to do all that right now, I won't make any healthy changes. Honestly, if I just cut out the Venti Caramel Macchiatos every morning, I'll probably drop a few pounds... Fingers crossed!

I decided to stop by one of my favorite stores for interior decorating today, Hobby Lobby. I went in only intending to purchase a black crown wall art piece I'd had my eye on for a while, but somehow ended up with a few more items in my shopping basket. It's funny how that happens. ;)

Here is a photo of the piece that drew me into the store:

I plan on hanging it above my damask memo board when I move to my new apartment.

And my other purchases:

I must be on a crown kick, huh? ;) This was just too cute to pass up though. The black strip of fabric behind the frames is made out of crushed velvet. :) I plan on inserting black-and-white photos of my animals (i.e., of Edmund, Julian and Hamlet) into the frames.

Not crown-related, but I ran across this crystal lotus flower candleholder and thought it was so, so lovely:

*sigh* It looks even better on my black bookshelf. :)

On the way home, I stopped by Walgreen's for a new mascara:

Has anyone tried this one? I think the silver wings on the tube are adorable. :)

Also, here are a few fairly recent purchases I've made for my bedroom if any of you are interested:

I used to have a black chandelier wall decal above my bed, but I liked this ornate black mirror better for the space. (The mirror, in case you are wondering, is from Home Goods.) I do plan on purchasing another chandelier wall decal, however, and putting it on a different wall in my new apartment. It was super cute, just too small for the area above my bed. :)

I found this at Bed, Bath & Beyond for a really good price. Sure, the whole "Keep calm and carry on" message may be a tad overdone, but I, personally, still love it and think it looks really good in my room. :)

I moved this frame to another wall (above my bookshelf) and added the letters from Hobby Lobby. (I'm still not sure if I'm going to keep those silver pieces of paper in there or replace them with more black-and-white photos...)

These pieces are also from Hobby Lobby. They're on the wall the picture frame with the letters was initially on.

So, what do you think of the newest additions to my room? ;)

It just occurred to me that I'll be leaving for medical school in exactly one week from now.

I can't believe it...

My life is going to change so drastically. I'll be living in a new city with a new roommate, studying like I've never had to study before, and also (hopefully) be making lots of new friends along the way.

I will be leaving my family behind, which I am certain is for the best (as bad as that sounds), but I will also be moving away from the man I've grown to have feelings for these past several months. If I hadn't met him, the prospect of leaving my hometown to attend medical school would seem more positive and less bittersweet, as it does now. I just hope I can be completely present in my new environment and not allow my feelings for him to bring me down.

I have no choice but to adopt the mindset that if it's meant to be with him, everything will eventually work itself out...

My Two Cents (Before I Spend It):

A super gorgeous blogger with a wonderful sense of style. I especially love reading her fitness and nutrition posts. :)

Confessions of a Twenty-Something:

She's hilarious! I especially love her hair how-to posts, though I have yet to try any out on myself...

HRH Collection:

This incredibly stylish blogger also happens to be a very talented jewelry designer. I absolutely love her interior design and bunny posts! (Yes, she has a bunny! :))

Running On Happiness:

Possibly my favorite fashion blogger. Why? Simply put, because she wears items that are affordable and just happens to have a similar body type to mine (though only in my wildest dreams have I ever been as toned as she is ;)).

Hope you enjoy! Also, if there's a blog you're a huge fan of, please share it with me by leaving a comment!

By Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (2009)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Paperback: 563 pages
Source: Borders (R.I.P.)
Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she’s struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps, and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town’s oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

Book Trailer:


My Review:

Finally, a YA novel worth reading. The last time I read a good novel from the YA department, I felt as though I had uncovered a rare and precious gem. (That book, by the way, was City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare. Needless to say, I've been addicted to Jace Wayland the series ever since.) Call me demanding, but the vast majority of books in the YA section these days are just... well, not so great. I can't help but feel as though I've already read them all before. Angsty teenage protagonist that "just doesn't belong"? Check. New student that is oh-so-perfect in every single way that just happens to be said angsty protagonist's soulmate? Check. Supernatural element that threatens to destroy their perfect love? Check.

Um, whatever happened to a little thing called originality?

Imagine my surprise when I began reading Beautiful Creatures, yet another YA novel about forbidden, supernatural love, but actually found myself thoroughly enjoying it. The difference, in the case of Beautiful Creatures, is that these stereotypical YA ingredients are done in such a way that you don't feel as though you're reading yet another Twilight spinoff. For one thing, the angsty protagonist in the novel is male, while the dreamy supernatural character is female. I'll admit that at first, my mind, honed by years of reading YA novels from a female's point-of-view, was totally against it. "No!" it cried, "I just can't relate without knowing what the girl is thinking!" Eventually though, my mind relented and I found myself enthused by the sheer uniqueness this change in point-of-view afforded the story. Yes, friends, the unbelievable happened. I felt like I was reading something I had never read before. Shock!

The supernatural element was also introduced in such a way that prevented me from thinking, "Oh of course she's a ___." I was eager to learn, along with Ethan, more and more about Lena and her bizarre and socially ostracized family.

Another refreshing aspect of this story is the progression of Ethan and Lena's relationship. It's natural and believable, unlike Edward and Bella's relationship, for example. (I can't read your thoughts. I want to suck your blood. Oh wait, I love you.)

In short, if you still can't get enough of that forbidden teenage supernatural love thing but would like it to be done just a little differently than Twilight, I suggest you give Beautiful Creatures a try. It may not be Hunger Games, Vampire Academy, A Great and Terrible Beauty or The Mortal Instruments-level status, but I'd put it above the Fallen series and pretty much every other YA series/book I've read.