Things I Love Thursday
[ 24 December 2009 ]
First up, MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone in the antipodes! Hope you’re enjoying the warm weather & having a fantastic day. There is still lots of snow on the ground here & though the sun is out, it sure isn’t warm enough to melt it!
Okay, so I know that not everyone celebrates Christmas, but even if you don’t get into tree-trimming, carols, turkey, etc., it’s a great time to sit back & reflect on the year. Think about the myriad of blessings in your life, how much you’ve achieved & how far you’ve come. Think of all the people in your life who love you, all the amazing things you’ve seen & great songs you’ve listened to. Then pile it all up in your heart & smile!
Here’s my list of lurve for the week… the second-to-last TiLT of 2009!
Giant Gingerbread House Challenge on the Food Network (if they replay it, you must watch, it is aaaaamazing!!!) 
any & all cake-making shows, the obsession is massive RJD2 the Vogue Paris 2010 calendar (hello naked girls wrapped in strands of lights & covered in Swarovski crystals!) big stacks of reading material having the best boyfriend everrrr listening to Tool after an approximate zillion year hiatus Hank Williams, internet superstar! (I loved that you all loved our snow video so much!) shopping for wrapping paper & assorted accoutrements being the shoe fairy working in my office while The Dish creates magic in the kitchen, gastronomic genius that he is, & it smells sooooo gooooooood! creating new traditions for Christmas (arm triangles & gift ransacking etc.) the Magic Bullet infomercial (I love that creepy old woman with a cigarette in her mouth, WHO CAST HER & what were they thinking?!) having my favourite sandwich delivered right to my door at 2.24 in the morning, New York you are magic! Taurus girls (Chloe & Jazzi!) the fact that John might put “Namaste motherf*cker” on his business card, hahaha! THIS snnnnnnnoooooooooooooooooooooow new Frye harness boots (voilà) chocolate chip pancakes the way the house suddenly magically filled up with chocolate almond butter cup raw ice-cream from One Lucky Duck dress anticipation! the High Fidelity soundtrack buying le boyf (le boeuf?!) a knitted devil hat (there will be photos, oh yes, there will be photos) people’s reaction to Love & Sequins #7 — everyone is so psyched & I’m so excited that everyone found it so good & useful! the Yas Marina Hotel — “The hotel’s exterior surface is designed as an environmentally responsive skin that by day reflects the sky and surroundings and by night is lit by a full color changing LED lighting system that incorporate video feeds that are transmitted over the entire surface of the building” — ARE YOU KIDDING ME — & I found out about it via yumnaaa — unf unf UNF! I also think Yumna is really cool, check out her blog, it is adorbs Chloe’s snowman poo San Pellegrino Aranciata (officially obsessed, we drink this ish like water even though we know we shouldn’t) listening to weird old Christmas carols Manish Arora (the John Galliano of India!) having this as my wallpaper & I am becoming more & more obsessed with India, I really want to go. Have you been there?
1. Colors of India, 2. India – Faces – Rural women driving their own change 1, 3. India – Colours of India – Painted Temple Roof, 4. Colors of India – II (Explored), 5. Colors at the Mysore Market, 6. Colours from India,, Mahakala, 7. Holi,Festival of Colours,India, 8. India: the land of color
“The joke is on the skeptics, such superstitious self-appointed vigilantes for the suppression of curiosity.” — Deepak Chopra
P.S. Um, wow!
Love letters & feather headdresses,
Tags: things i love thursday Add Gala on Twitter!
I love green tea (just got addicted this week), I love trying new perfumes (Miss Dior Cherie, and I am eagerly anticipating the sampler my mother ordered me from Sephora), I love my boyfriend (who’s hint as to what my Christmas gift is “you can’t see it” but… It’s in a bag!?), and I love holiday food.
I love that everyone gets so inspired this time of year to really put love first, and be about love… I can only hope we carry this with us throughout the new year!
I want to go to India so bad… Read “Shadow of the Moon” or “The Far Pavilions” by M.M. Kaye. They’re really long (fictional) books about India, they’re not National Geographic style or anything, but you really get a sense of the country and the people. Long but oh-so-worth it.
Telling my mom “You’re gunna love your Christmas presents!” over and over as she calls me assorted names is my favorite time of the year :D
(Le petit ami = boyfriend, le boeuf = beef lmfao)
I’m dying to go to India. If you haven’t, read The Mahabharata! It’s THE great classic Indian epic. It’s to India what The Odyssey is to the English speaking world, only it’s a thousand times better than The Odyssey. I fell completely in LOVE with protagonist Arjuna Pandava.
I’ve been dreaming if India since I was 18 and I am now 27. I cannot wait to plant my feet on their soil someday soon. I am new to your site and I am in awe…
I had chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast ((in bed))!! One of my moms best friends moved to India this year and I’m entirely too jealous of her!
I am wishing you a great Christmas! You always lift up my spirits.
Jessica — I do my best to put love first all the time. I think it makes life so much better. My quest (ha, quest!) for 2010 is to be an unabashed love warrior ALL THE TIME.
Limespark & Alzy — Thank you for the book recommendations! I’m all over it.
Cielle — Hahaha I know, it’s just that “boyf” & “boeuf” are linked in my head! I love the idea of calling my boyfriend “the beef”!!!!!
Aaisha — You are a sweet thing! I hope you get to go there soon!
Hannah — WORD! That is living. Breakfast in bed is an essential luxury.
My friend went to India ~ she ditched her group because of drama and said, “See you in 90 days” and went off by herself. She’s amazing.
Also, is there a bigger picture of that Manish Arora pic you’re using as wallpaper? I’d love to get a closer look. Merry Christmas, Gala Darling!*~
merry christmas gala! thankyou for another year of great blogging :)
i think i’m going to get what i want for christmas: a leather satchel, perfume, and the promise of a date with a certain sweet man on my return home.
so this thursday, i’m loving: adorable young men, mince pies, snow, best friends, my family, scrambled eggs, snowballs, cider, and homemade jam.
aww! thank you so much for the love and linkage! i’m so flattered
-Planning for the new year
-Yes & Yes Calender
-Christmas Eve!!
-Christmas is tomorrow
-Rewatching tons and tons of Riverdance
-Practicing Irish Dance
-Wearing shimmery makeup
-Laughing and hugging and kissing with my family, all with candy and hot cups of tea
-Peppermint
-Writing in notebooks
-Christmas!!!
-Hot water bottles in bed with thick notebooks and black pens
-Reading magazines
-Watching movies with buttery popcorn.
Oh yeah, did I mention Christmas?!?!?
Oh my gosh, the Magic Bullet infomercial is amazing. I swear I watch it every time it’s on tv. And India is definitely one of the top places I want to visit!
India is incredible. I was born in Singapore, but my late grandparents were from India. A couple years ago, I traced my ancestral roots and found people I was related to there! It was quite the experience.
India’s tourism board’s tagline is Incredible India – and it’s nothing short of that!
TilT:
finishing early at work * seeing my brother for the first time in months and watching VMA’s for old times sake * shopping with same brother and getting what you ask for * oliebollen (don’t bother, it’s Dutch) * True Blood fanfics * playing in the snow with dog * sauerkraut & wurst * aloe vera juice * sending nice cards to nicer people
Merry Christmas Gala!
i love rjd2.. the horror, the horror!!! :)
an old song but a goodie, it’s a great pick-me-up and used to be my ringtone hehe
What is an arm triangle? I really want frye boots but don’t have the cash :/
Merry Christmas, Gala my dear. And I’ve been interested in India since reading/seeing ‘A Little Princess’ and again when I saw Wes Anderson’s Darjeeling Limited. Such beautiful color!
Your skin is really glowing! have you been doing anything different with it,Gala?
* watching Christmas classics: It’s A Wonderful Life and Miracle on 34th Street * learning about ear candling * listening to Imogen Heap and Lady Gaga * watching Michelle Phan amazing make-up tuturials videos * playing Wii Fit * baking vegan sugar cookies * playing Monpoly with friends * writing lists * thinking,writing down how I would make 2010 worthy * Aesop Fables
Merry Christmas everyone!
Things I Love Thursday! Hooray! And Merry Christmas, Gala. =) Your blog is fabulous.
Things I Love:
Eating macorini & cheese, green beans, Ritz crackers, and fruit roll-ups with my friends next to a fire; giving gifts; recieving gifts; Christmas morning anticipation; texting best friends and family; watching all six Harry Potter movies back to back; starting a new blog and getting my first comment; holiday parties; the game Alphabet Soup; the game Apples to Apples; “Triple dates! Ahh!”; seeing Ramen noodle bowls at World Market; Christmas movies; making a Christmas playlist; animal companions; sweets; cozy, cuddly, wonderful winter.
I am saving like mad to make it to India in the spring. I think it would be surreal (which to me always means amazing) to photograph the Holi festival in March. Some people I know who worked with people throwing the headphone parties in Goa said they might be able to get me work later in the year hooping, so if that works out I’m gonna hold out until graduation then drop the great bomb on my parents that I now that I have a degree in philosophy I am totally running away to the circus for real.
I haven’t made a TiLT list in forever, but I’m feeling especially grateful and have some time before I have to wrap my presents, so here goes!
- My newfound love for greens. I ate a lot of fruit this summer, got back into cooked starchy vegan and lots of mediterreanean food in the fall, now I actually ENJOY green smoothies and salads everday. Major breakthrough! I don’t plan on being 100% raw, but I’m feeling great now and not deprived at all. – Conversely, allowing one weekend day when I eat nothing but vegan crap, even if it kind of kicks my ass at first. Creamy vegan carrot cake is worth it! – Riding my motorcycle to the secret ashram in the Santa Cruz mountains at sunrise for free yoga everyday. – Finally being able to do a handstand. Seriously, big deal. I’ve been working on it for months! – Weekends in San Francisco. – David Byrne, and his blog. (journal.davidbyrne.com) – This blog by the creator of Style Statement: whitehottruth.com – The movie Wings of Desire, a 1987 German film. – The fact that I was in class less than anyone I know last semester and got a 3.5 GPA. – Stanton Warriors! I’ve been listening to a lot of breaks in anticipation for their NYE show. – Warp & Ninja Tune comps for writing to or falling asleep to. – Being done with school and having time for fiction!
-The Master and Margarita by Bulgakov and The Brothers Karamazov by Dosotyevsky.
Merry Christmas sweetpea!
And I did India a couple of years ago with my love, two sisters & mama. It was intense and profound and other-worldly… big medicine!
My favourite places were Varanasi & Chanderi :)
Oohhh Lovely things this week Gala! :) Just reading your list should be on my TiLT list every week! it always makes me smile! :)
-Gifting:
Thinking about it, I’ve gotten lots of gifts for people this year. Struck randomly yesterday to get my parents something ELSE for Christmas made me very happy to shop yesterday. :)
-Christmas Bonus:
I. Love. My. Bosses. I can now pay off my Credit card, buy a new straightener and still have money to put away for NYC next year! Yessss!!!!
-Secret Santa:
My friends on YouTube and I do a Secret Santa every year. I opened mine yesterday that came from my friend in Spain and got this: dailybooth.com/MimsieSky/22493… also a MASSIVE YUMMY chocolate bar and a Spanish mixed CD!! It has made the past 24 hours quite lovely!
-Vlog Plans:
I decided the other day, that I’m going to try and do a weekly vlog for my YouTube channel next year. It will be centered around TilT, but also news and goings on of the week. Still planning it a bit, but I’m excited! :)
-GLITTER:
I know this should be a given every week, but I got some stuff from Sephora in the mail the other day and it includes a silver glitter pot and some Glittery nail polish that reminds me of your 25th b-day Betsey Johnson dress! It’s SOO PRETTYYY!!! I was so happy to get this package! haha
-Plotting for next year:
Lots happening next year. Planning things little by little and starting to get excited. :)
My parents are from India (I’m 1st generation born here) but I absolutely love going there to visit. Although the village we live in isn’t that exciting, there are so many places to visit in India, it’s nuts! My favorite places are Agra (where the Taj Mahal is located), Mumbai (Indian version of NYC I’d like to believe), & Goa, because the beaches are beautiful. If you ever plan a trip there, you’ll love traveling to different places & looking at different customs & traditions.
Merry Christmas Gala! It sounds like you’re having a lot of fun. I’ve always wanted to visit India and that really is a gorgeous photo!
My TiLT is here: sparkleandglitter.co.uk/2009/1…
Gala, there is something marvelous about India. I love the culture and all the eccentric colors. I mean, really, who else can put that many colors on one body or deity statue and get away with it?
No matter, India = Heart
I hope you have a wonderful, white Christmas!
Merry Christmas!! Here is my TILT;
Its Christmas today!!; Watching my dogs playing with their Christmas Presents and having their special breakfast!; Having my very delicious vegetarian bacon with egg in aa sandwich! perfect Christmas breakfast; Boxing day shopping tomorro! yay; Having cobloaf for lunch, curry for dinner and brandy baskets and trifle for deserts! yum yum; Victoria Secrets fashion show was AMAZING!!; 2010 Excitement!! Im so excited only a week to go and it will be next year!!
I’m a taurus girl. You must love me too. :)
Merrrrrrychristmasss!
My grandfather is going to India soon! He is hiring a driver and trveling across the northern area of it
Giving nice, deserving people baked goods; giving gifts that were picked out with love; people waving from inside of shops on Christmas Eve night; how nice everyone is this time of year; dried apricots and sour dried apricots; supernatural hair again; clean slate (?); staring at Christmas cookies; preparing presents for people; going London in 4 days!!!; holing up in a Barnes & Noble and taking travel notes; efficiency; finally starting to eat dinner tonight; taking photographs of Xmas lights at night; my lovely hat and gloves, which keep me warm in this bitter cold.
India is a really interesting and great country. Never been either, but would really like to visit some day.
Ooh LOVE.
ps: I’m from India :D I lived there for 15 years and visit every 2 years. Going back for my brother’s wedding in Jan. SO EXCITED!!
Merry Christmas Gala!
Christmas Eve Parties. I have never had such a pleasant dinner with my girlfriend’s family.
Rose Wine. Probably the reason that the above-mentioned dinner was so enjoyable.
My New Mattifier You put it on top of any nail polish to make it matte. My Christmas present to myself!
Random Christmas Eve Eve Adventures. Trips with friends to crowded shopping malls, awkward car ride conversation, horse shoes, peppermint schnapps and 2am visits to Walmart. Yes indeed.
Christmas Dinner Anticipation. Yes, the dinner gets it’s own mention. :)
My Family. A crazy-messed up bunch for sure. But I love them for all of their flawless flaws.
2010 Plans. It is going to be the best year ever, no doubt.
*photography in central park *walking through the snow *walking through a snowstorm at 11 at night *watching RH… guilty pleasure *new laptop *having beloved, grand SPACE on my hard drive. *the snow filled parking lot at staples *editing photos and updating my blog *talking about spectator with katie *massive planning for the future *waking up at 11:11 *sleeping in *dancing *because the night
I love extravagent head bands, soaps wrapped in pages of poetry, cupcakes in decadent flavoures, peonies.
I have been to India. It was amazing and one of the most enlightening places I have been.
Watching old home videos of my brothers and I when we were little (talk about lol!); working on my hooping skills; reminding myself that with each day I’m that much closer to moving to Portland!
• christmas!
• a journal of the plague year. It was one of the best books I’ve ever read, and one of the first ones I’ve read in a long time that I feel like I’ve had any interesting critical thoughts about.
• how I met your mother, which is pretty much my favourite show ever. Just so good, I love the writing.
• the cookies my best friend made me for Christmas :D. So lovely.
• I’m seeing my boyfriend in 5 days time, he’s staying for like a week over new years. i’m so excited
The pic from Mysore Markets is just fabulous.
What fantastic colours. Absolutely beautiful
Wellington on Christmas Day is windy. Go figure :)
For being an “internet superstar”, that guy can’t spell! Reveiled? Hahaha!
A pal of mine, Anita, lived in India when she was a little girl & goes back every so often & blogs about it here.
& my TILT: – spending time with my bf’s family & not having to do anything – handmade presents (my bf & I made each other Christmas stockings!) – returning home to our mailbox stuffed full of cards & photos & mix cds from friends – feeling super full of love & positivity for 2010!
Christmas Eve tea
Artistic Christmas programs
(Santa Clause is Coming to Town , Miser Brothers Christmas)
Showing up too late to the Santa party but getting gifts from the DJ after he asked questions and digging and digging in his santa bag haha.
Kitty sleeping soundly
Pink Christmas trees
Art
Planning my new year
My pink Schwinn cruiser
Deciding to bike to work from now on for fitness and fun
Everyone smiling at me when I ride my bike..wearing poofy white earmuffs.
Family, friends, people in general of course haha
Messy ponytails with braids mixed in
Time to myself
Inspiration in eveyrthing!
Excited about finally posting the new items I made on Etsy. (I give myself one week to photograph and post)
I think I’m going to order the Love and Sequins !!!!! :)
Thankful for Gala :)
TILT: Crazy good spiritual work that makes me feel like all is right in the world ♥ My brand new Wii and Wii Fit Plus (Merry Christmas to me! I must have been a good girl this year) ♥ Ending this year in my very own apartment after setting a goal to be moved out by my 23rd birthday when I was 19 – not only did I move out but with four months to spare! ♥ Having an amazingly spiritual woman tell me that I’m on the right path. Yess.
I’d just like to give you a big thanks for introducing me to Atmosphere and Rhymesayers in general. I’ve become a major fan and received an Atmosphere God Loves Ugly hoodie for Christmas! :) Have a good holiday season and new year, Gala!
Ah! Last year I used one of those make-your-own-party-sign kits to make one that says ‘happy everything’ It still makes me smile every time I see it.
INDIA=FUN
FYI – when i went to go on lifestudent.com a trojan horse tried to infect my computer.
otherwise a wonderful TiLT
ehmagawd. i want Indiaaa :D
Omigosh! I love Aranciata! It’s so good to have for warm summer evenings in St. Louis. Have you ever tried Limonata by the same company? It is even more delicious, I think. I also love your photo of the Taj Mahal— last winter, we were planning a trip to India and I found it while researching/dreaming on Flickr. So beautiful. We went to New Delhi, Varanasi, Jaipur, Pushkar, and a few smaller cities on the Ganges. Varanasi was particularly amazing. We were there over Christmas and the spirituality of the place is just so intense. It was a wonderful way to start the new year as well. And Jaipur is one gigantic pink shopping mecca. The clothing is just so glittery and fun. I hope you get to go someday!
-Xmas with assorted family members! Even though I technically didn’t see either of my parents today, it was still a kick ass time w/ both sides of my family.
-Lovely Xmas gifts, such as chocolate, lotion, and for some reason lots of soap and socks! :D
-Getting to take an impromptu trip to visit with a lot of my friends this week before Xmas and having a BLAST!
i got a pair of new frye harness boots as well. wore them in bed watching tv the first night i got them!
+ puppy excited about new toys + christmas leftovers + giftcards and CASH (heeey tattoo money!) + climbing into my big fluffy bed after a night on the rents’ pull out couch + curly hair + getting unsick + making dates for movies + brain age games + warm weather melting all the snow + no work for two weeks + giving advice + spontaneous trips + meeting bloggers + vegetarian restaurants + reconnecting with friends +
What a fabulous list of loves!
My auntie and my cousin have both been on their own separate trips to India: it really does sound like somewhere you should be careful! Besides the heat, thieving and strange diseases, it does look very scenic indeed, haha.
Currently I LOVE: Christmas gifts, Boxing Day sales, warm, old PC games (is anyone as addicted to Zoo Tycoon as myself?), Christmas chocolate & knitted tights.
1. christmas breakfast and taking a christmas bath with my bf
2. being home
3. planing 2010
4. writing in my new moleskine calender
5. christmas cookies
6. scented candles
7. getting piles of new books
8. reading! reading! reading!
9. listen to mumford & sons
10.my new boot
Just a heads up: lifestudent.com infected my laptop with a trojan horse, which I’ve had a bitch of a time trying to remove.
do come. i live in delhi.its a fantastic city. your eyes will be so tired from seeing so much but you wont allow them a break. there’s more life here than anywhere else int he world.
Your skin looks splendid!
Hey hope you didn’t forget about me and max..the guy who was “in relationship” with a fake who looked just like you..because she was you haha..
anyway if you wanna meet up one day let me know..also for 10 mins :)
let me know..
Giona
greyeshh@hotmail.com