miss brightside.

Sufjan Stevens - Lo How A Rose E’er Blooming My choir...

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 23:26:00 -0500

Sufjan Stevens - Lo How A Rose E’er Blooming

My choir director in college was big on Christmas carols. Like, the ones that you never hear. Like the ones in John Rutter’s Dancing Day or Benjamin Britten’s Ceremony of Carols.

I had never heard any of them before, but surprisingly I fell in love with many of them. One year we did a really pretty choral arrangement by Jan Sandström of Lo How A Rose E’er Blooming, except in its original German (Es Ist Ein Ros Entsprungen).

While something refined like that is really lovely, so is something more simple. I really love Sufjan Stevens’ Songs for Christmas album — it has a lot of really great arrangements of carols and hymns that make them that much more listenable and enjoyable.

(This is also the Christmas carol Henry’s mom sings in The Time Traveler’s Wife.)

By the way, I have NO IDEA where that album artwork came from. I must have downloaded this from a covers blog or something!

Los Angeles Times: Planning the next L.A.

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:21:28 -0500

Los Angeles Times: Planning the next L.A.:

The late urban planning legend Jane Jacobs was skeptical of Los Angeles because it violated one of her central tenets: that a city be made of vibrant neighborhoods linked by public transportation.

…Which is the point of this weekend’s conference, “L.A. 2.0.” Urban planners Amber Hawkes and Georgia Sheridan kept noticing the theme of transportation woes while combing through more than 150 applications to their inaugural conference. A collaboration between the global citizen’s initiative known simply as GOOD, do-gooder media group the Public Studio and Sheridan/Hawkes, the afternoon think-tank on Saturday, Dec. 5, will call for urban practitioners to outline strategies to improve the physical environment of L.A.

The summer of 2007, I went home and took an internship that was funded by the L.A. County Arts Commission’s Internship Program. During the course of the internship, they’d bring all 350+ arts interns in the county together for workshops, networking and arts tours.

My group was led by Leni Boorstin, the Director of Community Affairs of the L.A. Phil. After touring the Walt Disney Concert Hall, we were given a tour of downtown L.A. by Aaron Paley, President of CARS (Community Arts Resources). He spoke of plans to revitalize the downtown area, increase pedestrian traffic, make the place feel more like a community instead of an urban jungle.

That tour totally got me revved up to see downtown L.A. become livelier. And then the Metro Gold Line was built and my parents were so excited to be able to take the train to work (my mom is particularly big on public transportation). Soon (or eventually, depending if you’re a “the glass is half empty” kind of person), the Gold Line extension will be built and a station will be built just one block from my parents’ house.

I say all this to say that I hope these emerging thinkers at L.A. 2.0 come up with effective and innovative plans — and that they get implemented in good time.

seriouslythough: The East Side of Los Angeles on a Sunny...

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 21:55:32 -0500

seriouslythough:

The East Side of Los Angeles on a Sunny Day

This tilt-shift video=amazing.

Video of my favorite city + Satie = a nice, relaxing way to end the day.

Megan’s Christmas Wishlist I saw this coin purse at a...

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:31:00 -0500

Megan’s Christmas Wishlist

I saw this coin purse at a store in Annapolis in August but resisted buying it because, well, I didn’t need it.

But the point of a gift is to give people things they want but won’t buy for themselves, right?

Recession coin purse, $8.00 on fredflare.com

Megan’s Christmas Wishlist / Megan’s Christmas...

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 11:15:00 -0500

Megan’s Christmas Wishlist / Megan’s Christmas Shopping, Yo

Back in September I was standing outside a Cheesecake Factory explaining a situation to Lee-Ann on the phone. I was conveying my incredulity about it with an “OH-EM-GEE”, and a couple of guys several feet away heard me and burst out laughing.

That said, I would pretty much love it if one of these photo albums showed up under my Christmas tree. BFF and LOL would store my fun everyday pictures with friends, and TMI would probably be reserved for an upcoming Vegas trip (ahem)…

These are on my wishlist, but these would also be great presents for friends and loved ones. Be an overachiever: full an album with memories (print photos at Costco or Sam’s Club). They’ll be like, OMG WTF LOL you’re totes my BFF. Oh snap!

Text Photo Albums, $16.00 at Urban Outfitters

Megan’s Christmas Shopping, Yo I have an artsy cousin who...

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:30:00 -0500

Megan’s Christmas Shopping, Yo

I have an artsy cousin who likes cool design-y things. It’s always so much fun to shop for her Christmas present, but sometimes it’s just like Can’t I just get her another Munnny doll?

I think these die-cut bear calendars would be right up her alley. They’re functional, fun and just a tad unusual.

Japanese Die-Cut Animal Calendars, $12.00 at Urban Outfitters

Amazon.com MP3 Downloads: 25 Days of Free - Daily Free Downloads in December

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 22:09:10 -0500

Amazon.com MP3 Downloads: 25 Days of Free - Daily Free Downloads in December:

Amazon MP3 is making one holiday song free for download every day through Christmas. I’ll be keeping an eye out, but it seems like it’ll be a hit or miss kind of collection.

Oh well. Free music!

Joe Williams - Jingle Bells (Bombay Dub Orchestra Mix) Back in...

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 18:50:41 -0500

Joe Williams - Jingle Bells (Bombay Dub Orchestra Mix)

Back in the day when Old Navy used to sell compilation CDs, I bought their Jazzy Jolly Holiday/Remixes Yule Love CD. Happy holiday tunes. Totally loved it.

I’m working late at work because of a huge event this Sunday (one we’ve been working on since August) and I was feeling pretty awful about it, but this came on my iTunes shuffle and completely turned my attitude around. I kind of feel like dancing around my office now…

Still at work. I love my scarf, though.

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 18:44:45 -0500

Still at work.

I love my scarf, though.

Michael Scott Declares Bankruptcy It makes me LOL every time.

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 22:56:09 -0500

Michael Scott Declares Bankruptcy

It makes me LOL every time.

Since I’ve been using the same bag for months now, I...

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 22:27:00 -0500

Since I’ve been using the same bag for months now, I wanted to switch everything to another. Here’s everything I tote around:

Basics: Wallet, keys, phone and pen
Sickness prevention/remedies: Tylenol Cold, Emergen-C, Advil, Kleenex, Vicks thermometer (yeah, seriously)
Cosmetics: Burt’s Bees lip balm (the one with pomegranate oil), Clinique Almost Lipstick in Black Honey, The Body Shop Body Butter in Coconut
Tech: Canon camera and Flip Video
Extra: Umbrella, sunglasses, notepad, mini photo album

I should downsize, but I can’t not bring any of this around with me!

What’s in your bag?

Jack Johnson - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Because I was a...

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 21:43:15 -0500

Jack Johnson - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Because I was a bit careless and didn’t wear a jacket on Friday afternoon/night, I caught a cold over the holiday vacation. (Smart, right?) Today at work I had to run to the restroom every so often to blow my nose.

Looking at my poor red nose in the mirror made me think of Rudolph. And so concludes my oh-so tangential anecdote to accompany this audio post. :)

(In all seriousness, I really love Jack Johnson’s cover — it’s so simple and happy.)

wanderlusts: these gloves are $10.99 at target. they come in...

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 21:34:14 -0500

wanderlusts:

these gloves are $10.99 at target. they come in cream, too, and i’d take them in either color. too bad i’m not spending a penny on myself until after the holidays (and maybe not even then for a while).

Oooh. These are cute…$10.99, you say? :)

Megan’s Christmas Wishlist For the nine years I’ve...

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 14:42:00 -0500

Megan’s Christmas Wishlist

For the nine years I’ve known her, my friend Lee-Ann has always carried a Harvey’s Seatbelt Bag. Made of weaved seatbelt material, they’re durable and functional — and probably why she still has all the Harvey’s bags she’s purchased!

I’ve always thought they were pretty cool (they reminded me of when I used to make bags out of duct tape), but they were never covet-worthy to me. Until now.

Behold the Lola Ruffle, Harvey’s new collection. Dainty but still durable like their straight-laced siblings, it’s a cool “tough princess” kind of pairing. (The tote, clutch, wristlet and wallet also come in a dusty rose color!)

Lola Ruffle Tote in Black, $198.00

Olivia Olson - All I Want For Christmas Is You (Mariah Carey...

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 20:12:04 -0500

Olivia Olson - All I Want For Christmas Is You (Mariah Carey cover)

I’ve been putting off watching Love Actually because it seemed a little too early. But now that Thanksgiving has passed and the holiday season is in full swing, I think it’s appropriate for me to pop in the DVD and veg out with some hot chocolate.

Waking up from my Saturday afternoon nap in time for my last CA...

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 20:13:09 -0500

Waking up from my Saturday afternoon nap in time for my last CA sunset until I come back for Christmas…

It’s been much too short of a vacation. I don’t want to leave.

I call shenanigans on the 'Glee' music producers

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 11:00:52 -0500

danhacker:

One of the new ‘Glee’ singles of the week, “Imagine” by John Lennon. It was very tasteful spoken word version of the song by the visiting deaf school glee club members, and the familiar glee members joined in which made for a very touch performance.

Sadly the deaf glee club members are not on the MP3 single that you can download. It’s a completely different performance of the song featuring the non-deaf ‘Glee’ club members. The ‘Glee’ producers missed a chance to release a very unique cover of “Imagine”, instead they chose to release a very by-the-numbers cover. One which is stripped of the originality that ‘Glee’ fans loved about the performance when it aired this week.

I wholeheartedly agree. While watching this week’s Glee, I sincerely hoped the single released would match what I was watching. That scene had so much heart and really said something about the beauty of simplicity, how “show biz” so many acts are and how everyone (everyone) can make art through song, dance, whatever — if the desire to do so is in them.

I’m very disappointed that what was released is a cover void of any meaning the show brought to it. The scene was so much more than what’s been released, and it’s unfortunate that the original doesn’t reflect its poignancy.

inbflat.net

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 10:51:10 -0500

inbflat.net:

(via nikkotine)

The people in my life I am thankful for.

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 19:10:00 -0500

my awesome parents

my family

the MD peeps

the high school peeps

the church peeps

the saudi peeps

The people in my life I am thankful for.

Aly and AJ - Greatest Time of Year Yes, I know they’re one...

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 18:29:00 -0500

Aly and AJ - Greatest Time of Year

Yes, I know they’re one of Disney Channel’s prodigy pet projects, but I love this song. Just like N’Sync’s “Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays”, it seriously puts me in a festive mood and is so appropriate for today, Thanksgiving: the beginning of the holiday season.

From now until New Years’, I’m going to try to post a holiday song each day. You can bet I have a playlist on my iTunes all fired up and ready to go!