It's funny because it's true

Only God can judge this picture

Leslie: Kevin and I want a tat that symbolizes our relationship. Something along the lines of "Skrepmelv 4 lyfe" with a pic of Tupac. Could you sketch that for us?
Leanna: OMG yes, I'll whip something up when I get home tonight.
Leslie: Hollerrrrrr I love you mama!!

If you're a fly gal, getcher nails done

Two recent manicures:


OPI in OPI on Collins Ave., Nicole by OPI in Positive Energy, Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Black Out


Unknown brand in blue, LA Colors Art Deco in White

What I've learned this summer

1. If I don't have any schoolwork to procrastinate over, I forget to blog.
2. Don't waste time waiting for summer weather, because by the time it finally arrives there will only be a month left until school.
3. Trying to remember a summer's worth of events is hard, even for one as relatively uneventful as mine. Here goes!

Yelle - Commodore - May 13

Incredibly high-energy! I remember sweating a lot. Unfortunately I don't remember much else.

Neon Indian & Sleigh Bells - Vogue - May 25

Neon Indian


Sleigh Bells
Easily one of the top 10 concerts I've ever been to. To me, there's not much better than two bands I love playing a show together. I don't think I stopped dancing aside from the two trips to the bar for extremely overpriced PBR ($6/can!!! And it was the cheapest beer they had! Madness!!). The Vogue was a pretty nice venue, and although there wasn't much of a dance floor I was glad to have the spot on it that I did. The highlight of the night was I spotted Danny, Neon Indian's guitarist, after the show and dragged Robyn along as I waltzed over to introduce myself. We chilled backstage a bit (my first backstage experience) before wandering the streets. Finally, my friendly inebriated nature pays off!


Me and Danny. One of the great mysteries of life: Who took this picture?

Stanley Cup Finals - June

What an exciting few weeks! Too bad it ended in a disappointment that swept the entire city. I watched the final game with Heidi and Saschie from the comfort of The Keg Yaletown. Totally not my scene, and they only had one TV on the patio, but it was better than sitting on the ground watching it outdoors like I'd done for previous games. I'd write more, but...the loss still stings.


We got the hell out of the downtown core shortly after.


Happier times...the game on June 8. (Except we lost this one, too.)

My 24th Birthday - June 12

I managed to forget to take any pictures of this...apart from a shot of the delicious cheesecake that Robyn made! Which was really one of the most important components of the theme--Golden Girls. I got the perfect dress from True Value Vintage's bag sale the month prior: black and sparkly gold, bow at the waist, gigantic shoulder pads. It was a great birthday, and I'm so glad I got to see as many friends as I did.

Spirit of the West & Dan Mangan - Stanley Park - July 10

Went to this with my friend Eric, who I dated for a hot minute this summer. I completely spaced and forgot to bring a blanket to sit on, but luckily we ran into my friend Katrina who graciously shared hers. It would have been a perfect evening except for the fact that Dan Mangan's set started an hour and 15 minutes later than planned. Since Eric had to get up early for work we only caught the first two songs before we had to hit the road. Bummer!

Harry Potter - The Rio - July 14

I ended up being pretty ambivalent about the movie itself, but I had a blast in line with Robyn and Shafin. Pixar Monopoly, umbrella forts, and vodka made the time fly by. My original plan had been to dress up as Bellatrix Lestrange (really the only character I somewhat resemble) but then I got lazy and settled for a Dark Mark and a black dress.

Heidi's 19th and Steph's 23rd Birthday - Lamplighter - July 29

Sarah, Steph, and two of Steph's friends
Happy birthday to two of my beloved classmates! The night started with drinks at Nomfundo's and ended with poutine at Fritz, so clearly it was a smashing success. I had a good time at the Lamplighter--it's nice to branch out from my usual repertoire of dive bars and slums once every couple years (ha).


Jordan, Leslie, and Heidi

Pitt Meadows - July 30-August 10

I've been spending my Sundays working at the Pitt Meadows Farmers Market, so my aunt and uncle (who are also involved with the market) asked me to house (and cat) sit for them while they were at their cabin. It was a nice mini-vacation for me, too! I enjoyed getting to spend some time with Frik, the 20 year old mother of my dear Cleo.




Me at the Maple Ridge Rotary Duck Race, posing with some of Samantha's Silly Soap. This picture made it into the Maple Ridge Times! I'm famous!
Despite an extraordinary lack of friends in Pitt, I did get to see Heidi a couple times: once for dinner and a sleepover at her house in Maple Ridge, and once when we went to Roosters. For those not from the area, Roosters is a "country cabaret" conveniently located within walking distance of my aunt and uncle's house. The crowd, mostly borderline-underage girls and ex-cons (seriously--the young ladies ahead of us in line were loudly discussing their respective times in the joint), was interesting, to say the least. But drinks were cheap, so good times were had!


Me and Heids at Roosters. I know my bangs are getting too long when they decide to rebel.


Last Friday I met up with my good friend Steve for my first real beach trip of the year. We went to Kits, where we attempted--and failed, horribly--to eat an entire meal at Vera's and drank beers and Palm Bays sneakily hidden from view. We finished the day with nachos and a plethora of beverages at Rogue, which is a great place to go if you're near Waterfront and looking for something casual, affordable, and delicious.


Contents: Ice, canned beverages
This week I didn't have much to do, so naturally I dyed my hair. I've had a tub of Punky Colours in Turquoise kicking around for a couple months, and when I saw cheap bleach at Shopper's I decided to finally go for it. I've been lusting over pictures of blue ombre hair on Tumblr for ages, so that's what I set out to accomplish.


My hair after two bleachings. I guess I should have known it would be a pain to lift years of black dye.
I bleached my hair with 30 vol developer three times over two days, with a looong session of deep conditioning after the second bleaching. Although I didn't get it as light as I would have liked, I'm really pleased with the end results!



Oh man...I'm never going so long without blogging again. Recapping months of my life at a time is too difficult! Time to curl up and rest my weary fingers...

Just a little somethin' for you

I was productive (?) today and made a mix for a friend. These songs are best enjoyed with the ocean in the background (I suppose a lake or pool would suffice if you're not fortunate enough to live on the coast) and a vodka slurpee in hand. Click on the image to download!

Meow meow et chantez-moi

I'm well on my way to becoming a crazy cat lady. Call the cops, IDGAF.

Magnitude's favourite food

Trust me guys, I'd be updating if I had anything to update about. I could tell you about seeing Yelle on Friday, but there's not much to say besides 1) trying to sing along is hard when your French is as rusty as mine, 2) c'était une soirée absolument parfait, et 3) I've never danced so much in my life.

But anyways, I suppose this is worth a post: I have recently discovered how easy it is to make popcorn. I know, right? Duh. Seriously though, this stuff is SO DAMN GOOD; I doubt I'll ever be able to have greasy, artifically yellow, potentially lethal microwave popcorn again. Good riddance.

I originally got the recipe from The Best of Chef at Home (I love this cookbook) but now I just eyeball everything. First, throw a big pot on the stove and coat the bottom with about a tablespoon of olive oil. Turn the stove on high and toss about a half cup of popcorn kernels in the pot. Shake it a bit to make sure they're in a single layer. Put a lid on the pot, but leave an opening to allow steam to escape. Then just wait! It'll start going crazy pretty soon. When the popping starts to slow down a bit, turn the heat to low until it's done. Season liberally with salt, pepper, and another tablespoon of olive oil. CONSUME.

This makes a LOT of popcorn. Even I can only eat about half a batch:



You can thank me later.

My life in two words

Music and food.

Despite being super sick, I made it out to the Commodore on Friday with Robyn and Shafin to see the fabulous and wonderful Childish Gambino aka Donald Glover. We were early enough to get excellent spots just a few people away from the stage! Although I got pretty dizzy at one point and wasn't quite sure if I'd survive, it was a great show. (Especially when he did the encore in just jeans and an unzipped hoodie.)


One of the few perks of living at home is getting homecooked food every night. On the rare opportunity that I get to cook for myself--like being too sick to go to the family Easter dinner--I usually stick to the one thing I can cook without a recipe: chicken and pasta. Chicken breast marinated in fresh squeezed lemon juice, spinach penne with a sort-of-not-really alfredo, and the only broccoli I'll ever eat. Simple, easy, delicious.

While I've been confined indoors with this awful cold I've also embraced my inner teenage girl and developed a slight Tumblr addiction. So like, follow me or whatever.

Let me see yr nailz

My attempt at a glitter gradient. OPI's Coney Island Cotton Candy (the most perfect nude shade ever) and Extra-va-vaganza. Really easy to do, though time consuming--this is technically 7 coats of polish! Worth it; I love the effect.

We love you very, very, very, very, very, very, very much.

"I like the feel of the burn of the audience's eyes on me when I'm whispering all my darkest secrets into the microphone."
I've had this new post up in a tab for the past few days in an attempt to see if I could adequately express my feelings towards seeing Bright Eyes on Friday, but I'm not sure if I'll ever get there. However, a certain someone who shall remain a name (Leslie Melvin) is impatient for a post so here goes.

I know, loving Bright Eyes is soooo 2003, but although I'm no longer an angsty 17 year old (I'm an angsty 23 year old...) I still can't stop listening. At this point my love is probably 90% nostalgia-based, but call the cops because IDGAF. My love for Conor Oberst will never die. I know a lot of people claim to have bands and artists that got them through tough times, but for me Bright Eyes was the opposite: They allowed me to wallow in self-pity and despair, and for that I am forever grateful.

To sum up this point of this post: The Bright Eyes show was probably the best musical experience of my life (No Doubt in 2009 is the second).

The show was at the Commodore. I love it. I wouldn't even mind seeing, say, Katy Perry (HATE HER WITH A FIERY PASSION) if she played at the Commodore. It's huge, it has multiple bars, there's ample seating with views of the stage, and hello--bouncy dancefloor. Hands down the best venue in Vancouver. The place was packed, which I should have expected as it was a sold-out show. I (vaguely) remember having a lot more room to dance when I saw Julian Casablancas there a couple years ago. Thankfully, no one was flailing/moshing/jostling about so although it was crowded it was still easy to stand in place and sway and enjoy the music. I even had a great view of Conor for the majority of the time, something that almost never happens due to my extreme lack of height.


Titus Andronicus opened, although I only caught the last few songs of their set. It's pretty rare that I've heard of the opening band and even rarer that I'm already a fan, so I was pleased.

But onto Bright Eyes. The set list was near perfect with plenty of songs from the new album interspersed with a lot of old favourites. Now, my idea of the ultimate Bright Eyes concert takes place pre-Digital Ash in a Digital Urn/I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning, but I've come to accept that that's just not going to happen. At least he (mostly? I can't remember) stayed away from Cassadaga. I mean, it's great that Conor's pretty much sober and all, but there's no denying his best work was during the years when he'd get so wasted at shows he'd have to cling to the mic stand for support. I don't usually read or agree with Pitchfork's reviews, but they were dead-on when they called The People's Key impersonal. I still think it's solid, but where's the neuroses? The wailing? The metaphors and references to scales and clocks?


Okay, I'm sidetracking. We took a nice, lengthy "trip down memory lane", as Conor put it. He even went way back to 1998 ("Padraic My Prince"). Going in, I was so sure I'd cry at some point, but (sadly, in my opinion) my cheeks remained dry. I did tear up once--for the entirety of "Take It Easy (Love Nothing)"--but he didn't sing any of the songs that really hit me hard in my hormonal teenage years. I assure you I would have been reduced to a quivering, sobbing wreck on the floor had I heard "Messenger Bird's Song" or "You Will. You? Will. You? Will. You? Will." or "A Perfect Sonnet" live.


One of the many highlights (who am I kidding every second was a highlight) was during the encore. "Lover I Don't Have To Love". I knew they'd play it, I knew they had to! Even if you're not a fan of the band, I feel like it was impossible to escape the mid-2000s without hearing that song...at least if you spent any amount of time on Myspace. I was only sad my sister wasn't there to scream the lyrics along with me like we used to do in the car. Love's an excuse to get hurt and to hurt. Do you like to hurt? I do, I do. Then hurt meeeeeeee. My one regret was not bringing my Flip cam to record the moment.


That's about all I have to say about the concert; or at least, all that can be said in a jumble of words. I'm so grateful I was able to be there, knowing that it was most likely his last tour as Bright Eyes. I'll leave you with this one moment that stuck with me: One or two songs into the set, Conor asked for the two lights shining on him to be turned off. It was just so Conor I nearly died.

I have a lot of really great concerts coming up (Childish Gambino/Donald Glover, Sleigh Bells, Neon Indian, Yelle) but, as excited as I am, I feel like none of them will live up to last Friday.

What's the best show you've ever been to?

The terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day

Ever have one of those days where it seems like the world is out to get you? Today was one of those days.

It started early. I was finishing up some work before getting ready for class, which included putting the final touches on a PowerPoint and handout that I was to use in my final presentation that afternoon. Run downstairs with my trusty USB stick, print the handout, everything is running smoothly and for once I'm actually ahead of schedule. Until, of course, 20 minutes later when I'm packing up everything I need for the day and realise I can't find my USB stick.

To understand the panic that pierced my heart at that moment, let me tell you what was on that stick:
- Everything.
Seriously. All the work I've done this semester as well as all the work I'm currently doing and need to hand in this week. I felt like Carrie Bradshaw when her beloved Powerbook died. Remember to always back up your work!

Of course, logic told me that it wasn't lost and it simply must be somewhere between the printer, the kitchen, the bathroom, and my room. Cut to 30 minutes and one torn apart room later, and I finally find it...in my pillowcase? I had no time to be confused by this as I immediately had to dash out the door to make it to the bus.

Finally, I'm on the bus. I'm flipping through my cue cards, going over what I'm going to say and how I'm going to say it. We're getting close to school so I go to put them away and that's when I manage to give myself two large, deep paper cuts right along the nail beds of my left middle and ring fingers. Blood. Everywhere.

Obviously, I survived and even managed to give a pretty good (I think--it's always hard to tell!) presentation on my girl Margaret Atwood. But oh man am I ever glad this semester is almost over!

Bare naked lady

My weekend, as usual these days, was homework-filled and dull.

UNTIL... I got a call from Sephora saying they'd gotten a shipment of Naked Pallettes in! On Sunday I gave myself a well-earned break and hustled down to Pacific Centre to pick it up. The girl who rang me up was shocked to hear I'd only spent a month on the waiting list; others have had to wait 3-5 months! I felt like I was going to get mugged by a horde of makeup-crazy girls on the way out.

I haven't had a chance to test it out yet, and knowing me I'll be way too lazy/exhausted to wear much makeup this week. I can tell you it looks pretty though! Ha.

Stress shopping

Shirt: MbMJ Anniversary Skull Tee
(Limited edition! I had to.)
Jacket: H&M
Pants: H&M
Because retail therapy is my preferred release of pent-up academic aggression. And because I recently discovered the wonder that is Sparky’z Kutz for Kidz, a kid's hair salon at the otherwise awful Lansdowne Mall that has the largest selection of OPI I've ever seen in one place.


Vodka & Caviar, Extra-va-vaganza, Don't Mess With OPI, OPI on Collins Ave

I know, I know

I'm a horrible blogger. I feel like I have a pretty good excuse, though:


Not pictured: Marketing final exam the week after. Ugh.

I've put myself on a strict academic lockdown which means no partying until next Thursday. Of course, it's only when I say I won't go out that I suddenly become popular and have people asking to hang left and right. Not cool, guys. Not cool.

One thing I've been meaning to do is more FASHION POSTS. Unfortunately, my morning routine (sleep in until the last minute, rush around, fly out the door) doesn't leave time for pictures and when I get home it's straight into a tshirt and my favourite neon tribal harem pants.

That said, here's what I wore the last time I left the house for non-school purposes (Cafe Crepe and the Waldorf - two of my trusty standbys):


Dress: Zara
Boots: Doc Marten
I'm obsessed with this dress. From afar it looks like your average black dress, but get up close and BAM! Lace!



My sister says it looks like something out of Big Love, but I take that as a comparison to Chloe Sevigny and thus a compliment (even if she does hate Canada).

I've been in a bit of a makeup rut lately, but one that I don't particularly care to leave: thick dark brows, black eyeliner, red lips. I recently splurged on Tarte's matte lipstain in "Fiery" and I'll never look back.

Sidenote: I hate how deceiving the prices are for Canadians on Sephora's website. The lipstain was actually $31 before tax! Would it kill Sephora to have an actual Canadian site?

I really need to get back to studying for my Marketing quiz tomorrow (UGH), so I leave you with my new-ish feather extensions:



If you like attention and random compliments from strangers: GET FEATHER EXTENSIONS. They're ridiculously easy to install (?) on your own and everyone will be oohing and aahing. Lovely.

Not down with the sickness

Well, I'm sick. I should probably be grateful that it's not the vicious flu that had more than a few of my classmates confined to bed all last week, but this cold still sucks.



Luckily, I didn't have to go further than my kitchen for my favourite remedies: grilled cheese, tomato soup, Cold FX, Extra Strength Tylenol Cold, some sort of orange-flavoured mystery beverage, and far too many channels of HDTV. Who needs health and a social life when Zach Galifianakis is hosting SNL? Not me!

But oh, oh those summer nights

Despite the fact that winter is clearly not over yet, as evidenced by my front yard in the above picture, I'm definitely in the mood for summer. Maybe it's because school has been kicking my ass especially hard as of late. Maybe it's because this time last year, not only was I out and about enjoying the Olympics but I was doing so in a cardigan with a Slurpee in hand. But okay, it's probably because warm summer nights are a hell of a lot more fun than bundling up and paying for coat check.

If you're craving the sun like I am, here are a couple tracks to exacerbate those feelings:

¡Fête du Sangria!

(I took French in high school, sue me.)

Recipe for danger (and the best sangria ever):

4x750mL bottles red wine
1.14L vodka
2L ginger ale
750mL (give or take) orange juice
sliced citrus fruits

Deceptively delicious; profoundly potent. Serve in large wine glasses in celebration of your Australian friend's visit to Canada.

Robyn's sangria fiesta was a surprising hit. People (okay, one person) even came down from Burnaby Mountain -- the place that seems to devour our friends, never to be seen again. At around 2 am my friend Dawson showed up with a few others in tow; sadly I'd already long forgotten about my camera. I swear it was still bumpin' until the wee hours of the morning.

I apologize for all the red eye going on, as well as the general lack of photo editing. I haven't installed the Adobe suite on this computer yet!


This is how I looked all night.


Katrina, the guest of honour.


Lindsey, Parsiad, and I.


Katrina, Joel, and Robyn.

Crazy 4 u

First, I'd like to let y'all know I got an iMac and will therefore be bombarding this blog with pictures of high class and importance in the future.



My cat really needs to learn how to pose better. Smizing can come later.

Anyways, I'm overjoyed to finally be rid of my Dell laptop that I got in 2006. I mean, it didn't even have a webcam or microphone. I was still running Windows XP. Sims 3 couldn't run without crashing. Get with the times, Leanna. It's been a bit of a difficult transition. I've used Windows for the past 19 years! Although I can definitely see how user-friendly Macs are, it still took me 10 minutes to figure out that getting the pictures off my digital camera was as easy as opening iPhoto and letting it do the work for me.

Victory! This is what I did last night:


Wavves


Best Coast

The show was at the Rickshaw, a venue I'd never been to before. Minus the ridiculously long lines to the bathroom (due in large part to 2 of the 4 stalls being out of order) it was great. I even bought some underaged kids beer, which I consider my good deed of the week. A couple drunk assholes nearly ruined the evening by making fun of my height (really? Is this kindergarten? I'm pocket-sized and adorable, motherfucker) but then I ran into Jamie, an old friend from SFU who I haven't seen in 3 years, and all was well...except for losing Robyn during Best Coast, oops. My lord and saviour Jamie Christ gave me a ride home and now I think I owe him my life because I would have otherwise been stranded on the Downtown East Side. What kind of concert ends at 1 am? I'm too old for this.