my favourite things

I am feeling very, very lazy today. i think it has something to do with how hot it has been here lately. I have been thinking all summer, "wow, it really isn't that hot this year!" but now summer is here in all it's glory to prove me wrong.

So, i have decided to show you some links that i adore, and that keep me entertained on days like these.

Morning Sunshine is a page of adorable little games to play! I find the games relaxing but not entirely pointless - excellent also for afternoons and evenings when you are feeling stressed or upset.

Sofia Ajram's Flickr photostream is really beautiful. Her photos have a kind of fairytale aesthetic, but are also quite grown up and serious.

Being a fan of black and white photography, I love the 60 Inspiring Examples of it!

Learn more about your star sign at Astrology in India! I love this website, because it has many differnet sections on the one star sign and is very informative. I read all of mine (cancer!) and even looked up my friends' star signs as well - it's so accurate! I love reading star signs because they can describe certain things about your personality that you knew you had, but never knew how to accurately explain it yourself.

The Medicinal Uses of Lavender was an interesting read. I recently purchased a bottle of lavender oil and i love it! i use it on my skin, and it heals amazingly, as well is putting it on my pillows to help me sleep easier at night.

The Eight Irresistible Principles of Fun is amazing, amazing, AMAZING!

Ruche is an adorable (and super affordable!) online clothing store. I'm in love!

"RUCHE is a modern women's boutique with a vintage touch. We try to find items that are new, in-style, trendy, yet still inspired by a vintage look. We handpick each product to give you the perfect selection of clothing, accessories and more."

The weather is still rainy and the air is cool. I love it, I think it should stay this way until Summer is over. This afternoon I went into the garden, where the grass is overgrown. I sat down on the wet grass with my dog, and watched the wind blow yellow petals from the flowers on a tree. It was very beautiful.

I've begun to think a lot about school again. I am excited for buying new books and other things for my last year of school. I just hope that the year goes well!

Rain and Thunder and Ribbons and Journals

today, it is raining. i love the rain. it's so cosy. every now and then i can hear the distant rumbling of thunder. it's so relaxing and lovely.

i made a little cubby out of sheets and chairs today. the pictures didn't turn out so well, but i think it's very nice. it's perfect for rainy days like today.

i tied a big pink ribbon in my hair today, too. it's very pretty.

my brother and mum are outside, on the back veranda, playing "Guess Who?". Remember that game, where you had to ask questions to guess which character the other person has. Funnily enough, my mum was the one who asked to play it with my brother. Doesn't that just prove that there really is at least a little bit of a child inside of us all?!

♥

i found a wonderful journal community on livejournal today. it was full of such beautiful journals, like the one above. i think i just might start a creative journal. i have wanted to for a very long time, but the image of what i wanted it to be like was never clear in my mind. now it's quite a lot clearer and i'm very excited to start.

i very much need a new hair style. it has grown out to how i had it when i was 13. it looked pretty bad then, so i don't know why i have it like this now. i guess because it's a refreshing change to having hair all over my face. maybe i'll wait until summer is over to change it back again.

Princess Gift

I got the best best best gift from my friend for Christmas last night. It's a little Disney Princess book of quotes! I have wanted it for a long time, so I'm really happy that I actually have it now. It's filled with beautiful pictures and funny quotes from some of the Disney movies. On the back it says "Listen to Your Heart" & "Live for Today". It's funny how things meant for children inspire me so much.

Glitter Can Save the World

Singer Lady Gaga has said that glitter can solve the world's problems.

"With you little monsters, there is no hate in the world, there is only love. And you know, I believe that if a world war took place, you would all sing and dance and throw glitter until everybody stopped. Sequins are much more fun than bombs."

Source

We Are All Wild Things

Last night I went to the cinema with some friends to see a movie I assumed was for children, as it is derived from a children's picture book. I have nothing against children's movies, in fact I love them quite a lot, but I was soon to find that this movie was not like any other "children's" movie I had ever seen. It was so much more sad and problematic than the usual animated comedy. I was grinning from the first second, the movie perfectly depicted the child-like manner of which I have been longing for in my own life since beginning to read 'The Secret Garden'. I thought it was really perfect. At times it was frightening - actually most of the time it was frightening - which is why I didn't think it was very much suited for children. In fact the other children in the cinema actually lost interest and began talking and asking too many questions (which was really very annoying!). Sometimes it was sad, I came close to tears a few times! But most of all, there were the happy times when everyone just let go and allowed themselves to be true Wild Things. There was rock fights and smashing of trees, running about the forest, a giant dog and an outspoken goat!

In the end, I feel like not much was resolved - which was what made it even more unlike a normal children's movie - but it felt peaceful and right to have it end the way it did. It put an emphasis on the meaning of the story and the problems Max faced. I think the reason why I adored this movie so much is because of the child-like factor - the imagination. I don't think Max imagined going to where he did and meeting the Wild Things, but the fact that all the older people around him seemed to just be so serious was something I could relate too. All the adults around him seemed so tired, uninspired and unimaginative, whereas Max was always creating, making things and thinking up little stories - even if he was still somewhat grown up and wise. This is what made me smile the most, because I really do think every adult believes that they have to take life very seriously. Yes, there are things that need to be taken seriously, and I guess adults can be really very serious if they wish! But I am very tired of other adults expecting me to stop loving child-like things and start being serious. Well, NO, I say! I want to be a Wild Thing, like Max, and make up stories and run around in a little wolf suit and make silly little things that really have no use, other than to let the person who it is for to know that you love them.

I believe, in my heart, that the creators of this movie think the same as me. They made this movie into less of a childs movie, and more of an adults movie for the very reason I said above. Adults need to appreciate that they too, are still Wild Things, and that they can be silly sometimes too. That is why I love this movie.

The Secret Garden & other books

Yesterday, I went to a few op-shops to look for a mirror to go with my new dressing table. I did find a mirror, but I also found three new books. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne and The Princess Diaries #5 by Meg Cabot. Altogether they only cost me $9.50, so I was very happy. Buying these books at an actual book store would have cost me at least $30!

I began reading The Secret Garden right away. I was very excited because I have watched the movie hundreds of times - it was one of my favourites when I was young - but I'd never read the book before. I am only up to chapter 11 so far, but I love it already. The thought of a big old house and a secret garden and a sweet little bird who makes friends with humans really evokes the adventurous child within me - no matter how deep she is buried! I very much want to read A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and I have wanted to for a very long time, it's just that I've yet to find a copy. Quotes from that book are often found at the beginning of the Princess Diaries books (which are one of my favourite series also!)

I love how it is openly said that Mary is not beautiful at all - she is ugly! This is mainly because of her being sick from living in India, and not getting enough fresh air, as being in the garden and running about makes her healthier and look much better. But it's such a change from many books of today, where almost every main character is said to be in some way attractive, and if not, their beauty (or lack of it) is never commented on. Maybe I've just been reading the wrong books, but I feel like this is true! I will stop myself from going on about beauty standards of today, and maybe leave that for another time, though.

xoxo