together we'll bring in the new year

I'm very grateful that 2010 is over, because frankly, it was quite lame. it wasn't horrible - I didn't endure any intense hardships, but it wasn't fantastic either. in fact, I felt quite distant during 2010. I'm not even sure what all happened in 2010. I just feel like I was constantly hit by wave after wave and I spent most of the year struggling to keep afloat. 2010 definitely was a year of being smacked in the face by reality and nostalgic memories and yearnings for of my simple childhood.

even though 2010 wasn't the best year for me, the last week has been amazing. and it only brings me hope that it is an early start to a wonderful new year.

my family has finally gotten my tata's ashes back - after 2 years of him collecting dust at the evil step-nana. that lady has brought our family so much drama it's good to have him back and to be able to move on - even though we won't have all his artwork and possessions we were promised.

my dad got a job!!! it's been a long almost decade of him being unemployed and my mom trying to make ends meet, but he's finally done it! and not just any job, and amazing job at intel! I'm so excited for all the things my parents can do now with the extra (more than I make) income! I'm so proud of him and I know they will both have the best new year ever!

I've never been good at making resolutions. not only because I never follow through with them, but mainly because I forget what they are. but here's a list of my main goals for the year

1. get some results on my iron-transfer project at work - I put it off for quite some time and then when I felt confident enough to get started I got slammed with spreadsheets and data analysis. so I'm hoping I can get something accomplished this new year.
2. cook more. and not just the usuals (tuna casserole and edamame lo mien, although they are both delicious). I want to get so used to cooking that I can experiment with recipes and ingredients. I want to make scrumptious meals for guests and be able to make something new and exciting for chris & I.
3. donate more to organizations and charities that do good, like the arizona humane society and such. and not just money, but also my time. I used to volunteer all the time in high school, so I would like to start that again.
4. get healthy. I don't really need to lose weight, in fact, I should probably gain some weight - get some muscles at least. and then I just want to be healthy and active like I used to be. go hiking more. take the dogs for more walks. dance more often. eat more fruits and veggies.
5. no more french fries. this goes along with #4 of course. I'm a HUGE french fry fanatic. I almost eat some every day - or at least 3-4 times a week. they're not healthy for me (but they're soooo goooood). but I won't be able to cut back on them (because I'll have the power to decide how much is cutting back) so I need to cut them out of my diet completely. I'm pretty sure this is impossible for me to do, but if I do happen to achieve it, I'll feel pretty awesome. 
6. get back on track when it comes to my relationship with chris. whether it be stay together and be happy, or move on, I need to make a decision and stop putting myself through so much pain and heartache. 
7. take more time for myself. I spend a lot of time trying to please everyone around me that I get overwhelmed with responsibilities and fall apart. I need to take more time to relax, do things I enjoy, and breathe.
8. be more welcoming/friendly to strangers. I'm not a mean person, but I think if I do something simple like smile or say "hello" to a stranger, it would really make their day. and I would feel awesome for making someone's day.
9. be more adventurous. I want to do some traveling and random road trips. I want to do things I normally wouldn't do, like go dancing or driving to the mountains. life is short and I spend waaay too much time of it being bored and sad.
10. stop being so sad/depressed. it's seriously not fun.

hopefully by this time next year I'll have accomplished most of these. I'm gonna make 2011 my year.

Day 24: A letter to your parents

dear mom and dad,

I'm sure you already know how much you both mean to me, but in case you don't, it's more than the world. you make me laugh when all I wanna do is cry. you make me think and remember what's truly important in life. you've taught me how to love,how to enjoy the simple things in life, how to never stop learning - everything I know that makes me the person I am today. you are amazing people and the best parents any one could ask for. you raised intelligent, hard working, ambitious children. you would do anything for the ones you love. you are my inspiration in life. my idols. I love you.

love, alicia






go here for the rest of the challenge.

Day 23: Something you crave for a lot

love & attention. :)

and taco bell.

Day 22: What makes you different from everyone else

I believe I'm pretty standard to every one else my age. except I'm not pregnant with 2-3 kids and married. and I'd rather spend time playing board games and watching sports/movies with my family rather than go to a bar. and I guess I'm one of the few in my graduating class that was able to land a great job right out of college. personality-wise, I'm probably more simple than most people in that I find simple things entertaining and amusing.

fact is, I guess I'm still figuring out what makes me me. I could sit here and list random facts about me to show my originality, but there'll be people who would read it & be like "hey, me too" which would defeat the purpose of me trying to be original and different. but I'm young and still have plenty of time to "discover" my identity or whatever they say.

go here for the full list of 30 day questions.

Day 21: A picture of something that makes you happy

I couldn't just pick one thing that made me happy today so I decided to put up a few.

my puppies.

the beach.

family.

when the suns win.

christmastime.

<3 go here for the full list.

Day 20: Someone you see yourself marrying/being with in the future

there's only a couple of things that need to happen in order for this to become reality. (1) he's gotta ditch boring whats-her-name that he's currently with. (2) we gotta meet. after that, I'm sure we'd fall in love & make beautiful babies. :)

Day 19: Nicknames you have; why do you have them

probably the number one name I get called the most is Leesh, or Leesha, just because it's a shorten form of Alicia (I guess). I've been called that by everyone for as long as I can remember.

number 2 on the list is Sparky, simply because my last name is sparks. this all started in 7th grade when my science teacher called me that & it just kinda stuck with everyone else from then on. it's starting to catch on at work too, but they're doing it more to mess with me. they just don't know that I'm pretty used to it & it doesn't really bother me. :)

see the full list here.

yesterday I spent 8 hours making tamales with the fam. we ended up making 70 dozen. I wish I had a picture to show you, but I had to leave half an hour early to go to the suns game.

tamale making is a tradition in our family. every year in decemeber, my aunt, my cousins, my mom, & my aunts 2 friends & their daughters get together and spend the day making tamales, listening to christmas music, bickering, laughing, and loving. it's a wonderful day. my tata was the "tamale man" and was always in charge when he was still alive. this is the second year we've made them without him and it's definitely bittersweet. I'm just glad we're continuing the tradition rather than letting it die with him.

unfortunately I haven't been able to shower yet (tmi?) and my hands still smell like masa. which in a way is good, because they smell delicious, but it also makes me want tamales. (fyi: woke up at 6:30, met at the house at 7, made tamales from 8-5:30, suns game from 6-9:00, got home around 10, went to bed around 10:30 (was exhausted & could barely make it up the stairs) & woke up at 4. hence the lack of shower.)

Day 18: Plans/dreams/goals you have

I swear I will get through this dang thing. I SWEAR!!

my plans/dreams/goals right now is to find my soulmate. I'm not completely convinced it's chris at the moment. (is that bad?) I want it to be, but I feel like there's more. I feel like I'm missing something. that connection. that emotional intimacy. And if it's Chris, awesome. I just want him to become soulmate material by being my partner in life.

other goals/dreams/plans I have:

• have a great christmas holiday and show those I love that I care about them deeply
• start my Fe transfer project at work (it'd probably help if I wasn't blogging instead)
• prove to my boss and other coworkers that I'm not an idiot
• go to San Diego again next year with more of my lovely girls
• go on an awesome vacation and spend some quality time with chris
• wash my car
• be happy

I had dinner with my bestest friend in the world last night and it was so nice to have someone to talk to again. I've been bottling a lot of emotions inside lately, it's just not like me. and because of that, I haven't been my usual bubbly & fun self. I've just been so depressed & in a funk that it seems like nothing helps get me out of it. she suggested I take this supplement that is supposed to increase my mood so I'm gonna start on that tonight and see if my mood and attitude towards life improves.

dreaming in copper. set 1.

I explained a few reasons why I love copper so I thought I'd start a series called "dreaming in copper" where I post some of the awesome copper pieces I want and find here. 

gorgeous earrings from ThePurpleLilyDesigns

these would look great on our counters. from DaveysVintage

adorable. from LittleGreenRoom

we could definitely use this as a fruit "basket." from oldschoolfarm

after showing chris a few of these things, he gave me permission and I ended up buying the canisters and the coliander. :) we're nuts.

Day 17: Someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why...and stuff

I've really been slacking in the whole 30-day challenge. I imagine it's only supposed to take 30 days, but I think I'm creeping around day 41 and am only a little over halfway done. Whoops. I've been lazy in life, or what most people would call overwhelmed & stressed to the max. it seems I have this never-ending to-do list in my head, not to mention the bazillion hand-written versions scattered everywhere, and rather than trying to cross them off, I panic and avoided them all together. but I'm determined to finish. my sister megan was able to finish in a timely manner (you go girl) so I can get it done eventually too, right?

it seems odd that less than a year ago, I was studying my butt off (or as much as I would allow myself - I was never the big studier) hoping to pass finals, hoping to find a job, hoping to find somewhere to live, and hoping to get a good review at work all in the same week. and in one day everything fell together into place and life was great. until reality hit.

and maybe my downfall is that I found a job and bought a house right after college. I didn't get a transition period to rent an apartment and start paying bills. instead, I get washed over by a tidal wave of responsibilities and duties as an adult. and it's definitely getting to me lately.
that in combination with ongoing issues with chris and I, I've been pretty down in the dumps and not wanting to do much of anything. I just can't wait for it all to get better.

anyways, back to today's task: who do I want to switch lives with for a day...hmmm...I wouldn't really want anyone to have to suffer through my life right now, but I could switch lives with pepper. yes, my puppy. she's got the life. getting affection and love and attention almost all day long. being able to sleep on the couch or snuggle up under the covers next to the people you love the most. getting to entertain myself with a squeaky ball for hours then entertain myself with a bone for more hours. being so stinkin adorable. and not have to worry about the bills. that's the life. my puppy's got it made. she's pretty spoiled. so switching lives with her would be relaxing. & maybe she can understand why I don't want her chewing on everything.

but if I could, I would want to live in the shoes of a young mother for a day. because I've got that baby itch and maybe that will help me make a decision of whether or not I want kids someday. and maybe I would have a loving & supportive husband/father to help me take care of this child. and maybe we could take him/her to the park & play on the swings or maybe we could take him/her to the zoo to see the animals. maybe we can drive this baby around neighborhoods to look at christmas lights. and maybe this baby & I could sit around and play and listen to michael buble and michael jackson and 'n sync together. maybe our doggies will adore our baby and let him or her crawl all over and snuggle with them. maybe.

 because it's been so long, check out the full list here.

Day 16: Another picture of yourself

me on the beach of san diego (september 2010)

go here for the full list of the 30 day challenge.

Day 15: Put your iPod on shuffle: First 10 songs that play

I've seem to fallen quite behind on my 30 day challenge deal-io. So I'll just pick up where I left off.

my main problem with having all my music on my iPod (3825 songs and counting) is that I have to be in the right "mood" for a lot of the stuff. this results in me constantly skipping songs and making chris want to smack me in the face & take away my toy. nevertheless, here's my shuffle:

1. "in the air tonight" by phil collins
2. "blah blah blah" by ke$ha featuring 3oh!3
3. "st. jimmy" by green day
4. "gone to california" by p!nk
5. "that green gentlemen (things have changed)" by panic! at the disco - I don't know if I even know this song
6. "I want it that way" by backstreet boys - hahahahaha forgot I had this one (n sync is waay better)
7. "unexpected places" by the academy is...
8. "prince ali" by robin williams - from the aladdin soundtrack :)
9. "until it kills" by midtown
10. "before he cheats" by carrie underwood

there you go. just a snippet of my music. I'm pretty impressed - all 10 were songs I probably wouldn't have skipped (even the backstreet boys one, because I haven't heard it in forever and it's nice to have a little reminder of my childhood days).

go here to be reminded of the full list.

annoyance of the day: student loans

I've been outstanding at paying off my student loans. I received notices a couple of months before I had to start making payments and I was prepared. and I've always paid way before the due date and always paid extra to get it paid off sooner - the responsible thing to do. and not only have I paid off my student loans on time and more than the minimum payment, but I've paid all of my bills the same way. I had all my credit cards paid off and was getting a good chunk of our furniture and car payments taken care of. my credit score was looking good.

so eff you sallie mae for fucking that all up. big congrats on your part for not validating my contact information before my payments started coming in. the last actual letter I received from you was years ago, and I received many since saying that my loans were sold to the department of education. how was I to know that I still had one loan through you? you never confirmed that I received any information I supposedly received from you. you never sent me any payment booklets or bills to let me know. I got nothing.

and now you're hitting me with huge late fee charges. and when I talk to your idiot customer service lady, she seems to be having trouble finding my scenario in her pre-fabbed script book. she stumbles out that I should have known since it is stated in the terms & conditions when I registered online that all correspondance would be through email. but I never registered online. "you changed your password in june of 2008." how did I first register for an online account last night when one already existed for the loan? most legitimate sites for loans and shit won't let you register multiple times for the same account. and I haven't used my old email address that was on file for years. I can't even get in it anymore! you couldn't have sent me an actual letter making sure I still use my email account since 07/08 when I first got the loan? how many people keep track of their multiple loans when they're shuffled from one bank to another throughout 4 years? you expect me to automatically remember and know everything?

you suck. and so does your $700 past due payment. thanks for helping to make my student loan and repayment process easy. bastards.

Fall Fashion Week: day seis

I don't have much to say today since my suns fell apart in the 4th quarter...again. so I'm pretty bummed about it. I scratched up my leg with the stupid fan things they gave us, I barely have any voice, and I have a headache that feels like a hangover although I didn't drink anything. so on top of being pissed off at my suns, I'm feeling pretty crummy.

anyways, I'm cheating. today I'm helping my aunt and cousin move so I'll be wearing a tee and shorts all day but that's no fun. so here's an outfit that I could wear whenever fall comes back. our fall seemed to have periodically left since it's in the 80's again and I'm wearing shorts. whatev.

top, jacket, & boots: kohl's
jeans: charlotte russe

hope everyone else is having a great weekend & don't forget to give love to the lovely ladies.

Day 14: A picture of you and your family

me, my mom & my dad

me & my cousin

my oldest brother & I

my cousin & I

me, my dad, my sis (in law), & my bro

my mom, baby lorelai, & my aunts

go here for the full list of challenge questions.

Fall Fashion Week: day cinco

I have two looks again for today. the first look is what I wore yesterday and was completely inspired by rachel's monday look where she wore an adorable lace-sleeve top. when I first think lace sleeves I think...grade schoolish? but rachel made them look so adorable and fun I told her I wanted one! well while shopping I found these lacey (& semi-poofy) sleeve tops. I was a little hesitant but it was like they were calling out to me to try something different and buy them. so in my attempt to look as beautiful and awesome as rachel I decided to give it a shot. I'm trying not to think of it as copy-ing her, just more of being inspired by her fashion. so here's my spin on it:

the whole outfit is from kohl's except the shoes. the shoes are probably the most expensive flats I've ever bought. they're from aldo. here's a close up of some of the details.

the next look is what I'm actually wearing today. today is an important day for a nerd/sports freak like me. today is the day we (and by we, I mean the suns) take our revenge on the stupid lakers. they (in combination with amar'e stoudemire's lack of playing his best) are the reason we didn't make it to the finals. we were this close! those bastards. anyways, chris & I have half season tickets and we definitely lucked out with our package because not only do we get the first home game, but we get the first home game against the lakers. so it's going to be a crazy/stressful night for me. hopefully we'll win.

suns 2010 playoff "beat la" shirt: suns team shop
jeans: wet seal
booties: kohl's

I'm also including this picture because chris says it's my natural smile which he loves. :) for some reason when I take pictures I do this overly smile deal which I don't know how NOT to do. my parents were making fun of me at this moment which made me laugh and he happened to catch it. he then told me to practice it.

can't wait to see your looks whenever I get around to them! go check out how beautiful these ladies are!

Fall Fashion Week: day cuatro

wow there's so many awesome looks! I wish I had more hours in the day to be able to go through all of them (I'm still on Tuesday looks). I'll catch up eventually so don't be surprised if you get a comment from me that's days late.

I'm glad the belt was a success - I've never done a belt around a top before so I was a little hesitant. I figure now's the time to be bold though.

no date night tonight - it's been pushed back to next week. too bad - my date look was hot. ;)

I had some errands to finish since I didn't have enough time yesterday. the arizona weather is creeping back as it was a little warm today - warm enough for me to wear shorts - and I get cold easily. so here's my look, simple & comfy:

sweater top: mudd - kohl's
shorts: wet seal
head band: kohl's
boots: candies - kohl's
necklace: charming charlie

the second photo is my ho-down dance pose. I don't country dance (let alone listen to much country - although I can't get taylor swift's new cd out of my head - seriously I have a weird mashup of half the songs playing over and over in my head & I don't know why...I'm kinda scared) so I guess it's my interpretation of the ho-down. I was hoping my hair was long enough to braid into pigtails but I'm not even close. trying to grow my hair out is like jumping off a plane. it's sooo hard.....ok that was a bad analogy - it's nothing like jumping off a plane. but you get the point. maybe? it's hard. I haven't had long hair since I was in 5th grade. short hair is so wonderful and amazingly easy to handle. with longer hair I always feel obligated to do something with it as soon as I get out of the shower, otherwise it gets this funky outward curl thing on the bottom.

anyways, onto the deets:

the first pic is to show the little details of the top. it's not much, but I think it gives a little edgy feel. you can see my piles of cd's in the second pic. and I didn't realize my hair looked that red in the light.

thanks again for your sweet comments. they're definitely a picker-upper during the rough and downer week I've been having so far.

please share the love with the other fabulous ladies!

Day 13: A letter to someone who has hurt you recently

the only person who has really hurt me recently is well aware of my pain so I don't find much of a need to write it out for the world to see.....so I'll do this instead.

dear my dearest pepper,

I know you're just a pup, but seriously, you need to chill out. the constant running up and down the stairs, in and out the doggie door, and on and off the bed are driving me crazy. I can't keep track of you. I turn my back and you're on the counter! how are you getting up on the counter!! you're tiny!

speaking of how tiny you are, you aren't really that tiny. the vet said you'd be lucky to get to 30 lbs and you're well over 40 (I wouldn't be surprised if you are over 50!). you were supposed to stay tiny. you were my little puppy. you fit so well into my arms and curled up so perfectly next to my chest. what happened? your disease was supposed to stunt your growth, not work like miracle growth.

speaking of you almost dying, what the hell?! we saved you're life and you repay us by chewing every possible thing in sight and waking us me up at 2 am? you obliterated our bouganvilla plant that didn't even get the chance to bloom. you get our spatula off the counter & gnaw on it. you tear apart my underwear (although I know this is a joint effort with ginger).

and speaking of ginger, I know you idolize her, but please, PLEASE, don't follow her bad habits. don't become her. be your own dog. you already jump on people when they come to the door and now you're starting to learn to bark at every moving thing outside. don't succumb to peer pressure. don't be a follower. ginger doesn't even like you that much anyways.

but I love you. more than chris. so stop cuddling up with him and cuddle up with me again. it hurts you choose him over me. I miss you. you're so far away yet you're at my feet. come back, my little one.

love,

mom

Fall Fashion Week: day tres

I had a pretty rushed day yesterday so my look is kind of thrown together. I was able to go to kohl's and shop the hell outta that place. it's nice to make good money at work and be able to have shopping sprees. buuut it also took me like 2 and a half hours to get out which got me home (or to my parents' house) just in time for the suns game. so I have 2 looks for today (again) and no flannel! (even though I love flannel, I didn't realize that I wore it in both of my looks yesterday, whoops.) thank you all for your sweet comments. I haven't had time to check out everyone's tuesdays looks yet, but I will when I get home from work today.

so look 1 is what I actually wore for the evening (minus my shopping spree). megan, my sister (in-law), was my stand-in photographer since chris chose to spend the night at work....again. (no, I am not happy with him at the moment.)

as you can see, we're rooting for the suns. that's my mamma cheering with me. & the last picture was my way of showing that I was wearing two jerseys. I'm pretty superstitious when it comes to suns games...but that's a different story.

my second look is some of the buys I got from my kohl's shopping trip. just so I felt like I dressed up a little.

tunic: say what? - kohl's
brown leggins: candies - kohl's
bow belt: kohl's

sadly, I don't think I'll be getting my date night tomorrow since I don't know when chris will come back home. so I'll just have to dress up for home again. can't wait to see what you all are wearing!

bounce over to emery's blog to check out the other beautiful ladies!

ps: I usually don't look that put together at 5am, but I've been getting used to having to wake up at 4am to look semi-decent for work.

pss: & rachel - my hair is super major fine too and I didn't do anything to it soooooo it's totally possible you could rock longer hair. <3

Day 11 & 12 (whoops!)

Day 11- Another picture of you and your friends

me, tea, & allison on a ferry in san diego

Day 12- How you found out about Tumblr blogger and why you made one

I had to look up what tumblr was and realized I'm not using one. I found blogger by googling blogs and started one to vent about my frustrations with living with roommates. that's the story. I know. fascinating.

see the whole list here.

Fall Fashion Week: day dos

so I'm a little disappointed in my arizona weather. after going through everyone's fashion posts yesterday I've come to the conclusion that either every blogger who participated live really close to each other or my home town is just unlucky. everyone seemed to be having a rainy monday - not here in apache junction/miami, az. nope. clouds, sure, but no rain.

for those of you who are curious: here's my "out the door" look at 5 o'clock in the morning.

flannel: target
jeans: vf factory
holes in jeans: copper sulfate solution
belts: target
purple cons: kohl's

that's my: I'm-totally-awake-now-and-motivated-to-work look. I work at a copper mine. I don't have to wear a uniform persay, but we do have strict dress code policies (well not too strict, but again, the risk of getting acid on your clothes kind of prevents you from wearing anything too nice - see exhibit a: torn up jeans - totally did not buy them like this). this is what I wear to work usually (fall edition) and when I get to the mine I change into my steel toed boots, add a few more layers (it's usually around 10 degrees cooler at work - ew) put on my red hard hat, my scratch up safety glasses, and my over-sized reflective safety vest. not too cute.

I had such good intent to come home from work yesterday and take a trip to kohls to take advantage of their sale and my 30% off coupon (seriously - how does that store make any profit??) since I realized that I don't have much of a fall wardrobe. well it didn't happen because my monday sucked and I didn't feel like doing anything when I got home. I barely found the energy to get dressed up. buuuut I did.

top: charlotte russe
jeans: kohl's
black & white puppy = pepper
brown puppy = ginger

we recently got some trees for our bare backyard. I'm posing next to our new eucalyptus. I started a tradition in my family that whenever anyone in the family buys their first house, you have to plant a eucalyptus. my parents planted one when they moved into their first house, so I thought it would be neat to make it a tradition. if you've never seen a full grown eucalyptus before they get huge. monsterous. the trunk is probably as thick as I am tall minus a foot or two. (at least the one we had growing up was.) I'm not sure why ours is so funny looking though. I thought it'd be funny to pretend to pose next to a huge tree. and of course my pups couldn't resist getting in my pictures.

the accessories:

kick-ass blue cons: kohl's
peacock necklace: forever 21
key earrings: target
teal blue nail polish (if you can see it): walgreens

my "photographer" wanted to join in the fun too.

unfortunately, I don't think my outfits will get much more exciting this week as fashion week came at a bad time for me. this week is a super busy week. I've got to finish putting together my office furniture, today marks the opening of the suns season, date night wednesday (hopefully), dinner for the parents thursday, and sun home opener vs. the lakers on friday which we'll be attending. so I'll try to make time for fashion.

check out the other awesome fashionistas here!

Fall Fashion Week: day uno

the most wonderful time of the year has come once again - and no, I'm not talking about basketball season (although first suns game is TO-MOR-ROW!!!) and no, I'm not talking about christmas (although that is coming up pretty quick, isn't it?), but FALL FASHION WEEK BABY!! you must go see how stylish these lovely ladies can be, fo' sho', yo.

since I spend 10 hours of my day wearing lame work clothes where I can't express my fashionality too much due to the risks of getting cute stuff caught in moving parts and having things ruined by acid (gotta love my job), my outfits are going to be my "after-work specials." but because I get home from work soo late and I'm usually uber tired, I had to keep one step ahead this time.

with that being said, here's my saturday night look for dinner at buffalo wild wings with friends.

top: express
jeans: charlotte russe
boots: wet seal
awesome-ness: parents

don't mind the puppies roaming around and my hair's kinda dull since I just got out of the shower - I've decided I'm going to attempt to grow it out (which I haven't been able to successfully do since I was in elementary school when I wasn't aware of the amazing-ness that is short hair). it's been quite chilly the past week but I think it's going to be warm again this week, so I might not get to show off too many pairs of jeans, but we'll see. (plus I think my favorite jeans are still at my parents' - eek.)

enjoy the other looks of fashion week 2010 here.

Day 10: Songs you listen to when you are Happy, Sad, Bored, Hyped, Mad

• "your love" by midtown (it's off the punk goes 80s cd).
• "cute without the e (cut from the team)" by taking back sunday.
• "crack the shutters" by snow patrol.
• "closer" and/or "I want you" by kings of leon.
• "I want you back" by 'n sync. (don't judge me).
• "dog days are over" by florence and the machine.
• "too much time on my hands" by styx.
• "the next room" by neon trees.

those are some of my faves.

see the whole list here.

fall fashion week starts tomorrow. can't wait to see everyone's outfits.

Day 09: Something you’re proud of in the past few days

I haven't really done anything to be proud of in the past few days...I guess I haven't had any fights with chris within the past week which is good and something to be proud of. although, I'm afraid we didn't have any fights because I'm just so exhausted of fighting and don't feel like talking to him much. but hey, no fighting is a good thing right?

yesterday after work and today I've started putting together our office furniture. (chris semi-helped me yesterday.) we've got the filing cabinet and bookcase done and I just have the desk and hutch to do and it's still pretty early, so I'm proud that I'm getting it done rather than putting it off. I can't wait until our office is done & functional. :)


go here if you want to see the full challenge.

why I love copper: a prelude to a new "dreaming in copper" series

I think it's safe to say that I love copper. you might even say that I'm borderline obsessed with it. I try to hide it, but it's hard when chris is also a copper nut. I guess that's what happens when you both work at a copper mine.

I love the metallic, antique look of copper. I love how malleable it is and how you can shape it into virtually anything. I love how it changes different colors when different chemicals are applied. I love how it oxidizes to a green color. I love how it is a deep blue when concentrated in acidic solution. I love how light it typically is. I love how you can practically use it for anything - from electrical to fashion. I love the way it sounds for a dog's name (like in the fox and the hound!). I love the process in which it is extracted and made. It is truly an amazing metal.

the final product of a copper mine
(aka a bundle of copper cathodes)

native copper

native copper

where I work, I see the final product of the copper mine every day. I see it go from being a mineral in a rock, to a solution, to a big slab of copper (which is what we make in my department). (in technical terms, that's from the leaching, to solvent extraction, or SX, to electrowinning, or EW - I specifically work in the EW.) for chris and I, 2 of our 3 summer internships in college were at copper mines so we have a personal attachment to the metal. our first internship was one that we got lucky in getting (well, chris got lucky & used his charming talking skills to get me in). we spent most of the summer going around the mine collecting native copper in the berms (berms are what they call big piles of dirt that line the road to stop/slow you from going off the side of a bench/cliff). we definitely took that internship for granted because (1) we soon realized that interns are not normally allowed to drive around a mine without supervision or proper training and (2) native copper is not normally found anywhere. now we have so much native copper lying around our house and our parents' houses (because we had so much we started giving them away, which now we don't since it's so rare). 

every time we see something made of copper or copper plated or made to look copperish at the store, chris and I get waaaay overly excited. we have to fight the urge to buy anything and everything copper. it's something we both can connect on, as sad as that sounds, because we both love copper so much. our family and friends are aware of our copper obsession admiration and point out copper stuff they find. I've always wanted a beagle that I can name copper. for a while I wanted my wedding color to be copper (until I found how difficult it is to find copper colored bridesmaid dresses). chris named our internet server CopperHouse. even the downstairs of our house has a copper theme.

this lady that lives in colorado does these amazing art pieces for the corporate offices of company we work for and we just had to get one. she applies different chemicals to a sheet of copper and swirls it around to make different designs. depending on the temperature also depends on what color some of the chemicals make the copper. we have this hanging in our dining area and it looks so amazing.

chris's mom got this for us. it's some old copper tub of some sorts that we have in our living room next to our tv. we use it to store the dogs' toys.

chris mom also got us these and we placed them on our tv table on either sides of the tv.










other copper or copper looking things I/we own:

they give these copper coffee mugs to new employees in my department so I was pretty stoked when I became a new employee. I use it for hot tea though.

I got the key chain from a career fair the year after we interned at asarco. it's the shape of a copper anode which are made at the smelter. (we make copper cathodes where I work.) for the longest time it was the only key chain I had with my keys (I don't like a lot of crap on my keys) - that is until I got my suns sixth man key chain. :)

we saw this wall hanging thing at a little store in a little town in pennsylvania when we were visiting chris's grandma in new york over the summer. the lid flips open to revel little hooks. we didn't know what it was used for but chris thought it would be a good idea to store our keys in it because no one would be able to know what it is. we later found a tag on it that called it a "key holder" - he was pretty heartbroken he didn't come up with the brilliant idea.