{Inspiration} My Workspace and The Workspace I Want

Feeling sorry for myself... Although, I'll be finished with my study guides tonight! Yay!

Mine:

In my dreams:






source

Source: copycatchic.com via Amber on Pinterest

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Discovering Dead People Around the Corner

I just need to start these finals so I can actually feel like I've accomplished something... three weeks of studying and I have no idea as to whether I would actually pass any of these things, if I have actually absorbed any of the information I've been studying, or if I even care anymore. However, I did spend two hours on Skype yesterday making my mom listen to theories of health planning, so that's productivity for you.

This morning, Alina and I hit up one of my favorite brunch places in the city, The Modern Pantry. I had a coconut and cassava waffle with maple syrup and bacon and two lattes. I was impressed because the waffle wasn't sweet and sometimes you get that awful, sickly sweet stuff and it makes you want to vom like two hours later, but this just had a nice delicate flavor. And then the highlight of my day was the fact that the chef from restaurant is releasing a cookbook in June. It's going to be my apartment warming gift to myself, lol.

Then Alina and I walked back to our building and took a detour through Spa Fields, which is behind Exmouth Market, the location of all those adorbz boutiques, cafes and bars. Spa Fields is a park/church yard about a one minute walk from my building. Anyway, families were having picnics and children were playing, even thought the weather wasn't very accommodating - it was a warm 50 degrees. And then there was this sign. And the sign said something about how the grounds that the park is on used to the site of funeral home and graveyard. And apparently, there was room for approx. 2700 bodies. But the men who ran the burial ground wanted to make more money. So they would dig people up in the middle of the night and burn their bodies and managed to cram 80,000 peeps on the grounds or rather, their ashes once they had dug them up. However, their money-making scheme was spoiled when residents of the area began to get sick off the dead body fumes floating into their homes every night. So then the grounds were empty for a while until 2004 when a project began to bring new life (pun intended) to the area. Spooky and gruesome, yeah?

This is the park house, which stands on the site of the old bone house:

Where unsuspecting children play:

So that story went well with my drizzly, lazy day. I was supposed to meet a friend for dinner but got canceled on due to a stomach bug :-(. So I've now finished the last episode of Glee, as well as some brie, ginger beer and black licorice. Loosely thinking about studying since I just walked into the kitchen and was faced by an obviously awkward couple attempting to turn their study sesh into a pseudo-date. So cute. Kind of. Barf.

Memories of Memorial Day

I've had some legit Memorial Days - Vegas, Santa Cruz, Vegas & Santa Cruz... Last year at this time, we had just celebrated Senior Send Off and I was in the car with KB blasting music and driving to Sin City with an iced latte in hand. Two clubs, double digit drinks, and a legit tan later, I jetsetted to Santa Cruz to celebrate Benny's birthday, Aimee's senior solo, Connor's birthday, a host of mistakes and a day at the beach with Cahill and Scott, followed by a trip to a taqueria and watching Precious, at which point, Grant, Scott, Rob and Max all cried and were effing adorable doing it. It was a good weekend.

Now?

I'm in the a room in the library basement, pining after ocean waves, cilantro and lime, and the days where my skin was more tawny than pasty. C'est la vie.

On the bright side, one month and finals will be over! And I'm meeting Elisa for lunch AND I beat my mile time yesterday AND I'm happy :-)

Some memories from last year:

Got Caught in the Rain...

Now I look like a drowned rat and after running six miles at the gym, I'm ready to turn in for the night. At 7pm. In other news, how cute are these outfits? I want both of them.



source: People.com

Why. Is. There. Rain.

We were hit by a rain storm, which is now preventing our walk to the gym. Currently, I am stuck in the Starbucks, drinking burnt espresso. On the bright side, I have covered up the taste with an overwhelming amount of raw sugar and am dry for the time being. I'm listening to the new Death Cab that Karly sent me and working on a cover letter - yay keeping up with productivity. Also posted on BohoBeat :-) Some inspiration for the day:

Me, during sunnier times:

And space inspiration:

Source: vivaterra.com via Amber on Pinterest

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Source: mintlovesocialclub.com via Amber on Pinterest

The Breakfast Club

Hitting a wall with my studying, so Leils and I went to The Breakfast Club for burgers and then we grabbed frozen yogurt... I took more photos but Instagram is being difficult. Agh. Now going to try to get some work done so that the day wasn't just too much fun :-)

I'm in love with my friends...

Karly hooked me up with the new Bon Iver and Foster the People and then Alexandra sent me all The National and Dark Was The Night, so I have a lot of listening to catch up on. Currently at the library reading feminist political philosophy and eager to go home and change into pajamas and well, do more reading. I feel like I'm (finally) getting into the whole studying thing. Now, here's to hoping I can retain all the stuff I read.

In other news, I'M GOING TO IBIZA with Maya, Laxmi and Seda!!!! A perfect way to end the hell of finals before starting my dissertation and more motivation to keep up this gym business.

Also caught up on Glee - I sobbed during the last episode - obvs. And although I'm not a huge fan of Rachel, I loved loved loved her rendition of Rolling in the Deep with Jonathan Groff.

Also looking forward to skyping Carrie tonight and talking blog stuff, oh and definitely re-watching Beyonce's performance at the Billboard Music Awards. She is so my new idol, and Britney is my new fitness inspiration, which is funny to say, but she looks amazing :-)

I wish I was studying here :-)

Source: pinkpersimmon.tumblr.com via ashley on Pinterest

More {Music} Boy & Bear & We Are Trees

Harmonies sort of like the Local Natives and some catchy instrumentals, Boy & Bear are on repeat.

Boy & Bear - Mexican Mavis by cosmicsmile

And We Are Trees is making my summer playlist fo sho:

We Are Trees - I Don't Believe in Love by the beat farm

The Last 12 Books...

I need to finish to complete the BBC's The Big Read as part of my 24 before 24 goals:

1. His Dark Materials - Pullman

2. Birdsong - Faulk

3. The Wind in the Willows - Grahame

4. Far from the Maddening Crowd - Hardy

5. A Suitable Boy - Seth

6. The Secret History - Tartt

7. Notes from a Small Island - Bryson

8. The Remains of the Day - Ishigoru

9. A Fine Balance - Mistry

10. The Wasp Factory - Banks

11. A Confederacy of Dunces - Toole

12. A Town Like Alice - Shute

Weekend Productivity & {Music} The Kills

I woke up this morning pretty early to have coffee with Alina before she flew back to Canada :-)
After a latte, an almond croissant and dealing with a very persistant pigeon, I came back to my room energetic and bright, which has not been my way of late due to finals studying. It's only 1pm, but I did laundry, updated the BohoBeat with a review of the Cleopatra ballet I saw last night, started drafting reviews of the new Bon Iver and Foster the People's album, which will be posted on BohoBeat on the next two Mondays, caught up on emails to amigos, did some profesh tech blogs for my job, made meals for this weekend and am currently cleaning my room and reading the new Wallpaper Magazine, which is centered around the theme of "Reborn in India," which is inspiring me all over again to plan a trip to my mother country or at least try some new recipes. I think for my goal of seeing something new in London, I want to go to Redchurch St. in Shoreditch and check out the design stores and espresso.

Also in the works?
-Upping my mileage this next week - I did 28 miles this week and aiming for 34+ this week... so adding a mile to each run... not bad right? eek.
-Keeping on my other goal of updating my blog and BohoBeat every day - so far so good
-Finishing some applications
-Finishing my study guides on Foundations of Health Policy and US Health Policy
-Going to the gym every day
-Hopefully seeing Aniela, Hannah and Elisa at some point
-Getting these trips to Ibiza and Portland sorted
-Mailing out some penpal letters :-)
-and more studying, studying, studying

{Music} New Faves for a Good Mood

I want to marry Mayer Hawthorne's voice. Or marry him. This song makes me smile.
Mayer Hawthorne - Mr Blue Sky by movethatjukebox

Cute and breezy from We Say Bamboulee:
Solid Gold - WE SAY BAMBOULEE by Fuzzbox Music

Some folk by The Parson Red Heads:
The Parson Red Heads "Burning Up The Sky" by tadpoleaudioFTW

Foster the People = perfect morning music
Houdini by Foster The People

{Music} The Black Keys and {Shopping} B&W Dress

Loving this song:
The Black Keys - Everlasting Light by burritotree

and just bought this dress:


Now I wish I was done with finals so I could wear it.

24 Before 24

Source: flickr.com via Heather on Pinterest

Carrie and I are all over this goal thing and I decided to do another one of my goals, which is to make a list of things I want to accomplish by the age of 24 (eek that sounds so old!) So here they are and I'll be updating as I complete them :-)

1. Make a quilt
2. Run a marathon or half-marathon
3. Make croissants
4. Create an urban garden in my apartment
5. Make my own light fixture
6. Enroll in a Spanish class
7. Finish a short story
8. Learn to play my guitar
9. Go to Portland
10. Go back to vegetarianism
11. Finish the 12 books I haven't read off the BBC's 100 books you should read.
12. Integrate fashion/outfit posts into my blogs
13. Create a piece of creative work a week (i.e. photo, painting, poem, etc)
14. Start a recipe book
15. Hike the Hollywood sign
16. Work on the BohoBeat Design so Carrie and I are happy with it
17. Do a 30 day yoga challenge
18. Make macaroons
19. Host a dinner party
20. Go wine-tasting in Napa
21. Host an afternoon tea
22. Go camping for a weekend
23. Start volunteering on a weekly basis
24. Pick up a new outdoor activity (TBD - rockclimbing? biking? kayaking???)

Feeling a little unmotivated...

I really need to get on this work/studying thing. But despite my morning workout and latte, this cloudy day has me considering an afternoon nap, although the afternoon hasn't really started yet...
On the bright side, Carrie and I decided to achieve a concrete goal by June 16... except I haven't decided on my goal, but I have two in mind:
1. Do something new in London every weekend for a month - I'm finally seeing a show this Friday at Sadler-Wells which I've been meaning to do for ages, so thats good.
2. Post on my blog every day and make sure that BohoBeat.com has a new post every day :-)

and keep up with this exercising thing, because its the only thing that keeps me calm during finnnnnaaaaaalllllsssssssss
xoxo



missing California

{Music} Bon Iver - Calgary - New Single

I mean, not that Bon Iver could do any wrong, but I'm loving this new single.

My life is boring

but early morning gym session with leiley and settling into a long day of studying. ordered the following dresses on asos... excited for them to arrive... other than that, nothing very new in my life, lol... xoxo

BohoBeat: [Music Monday] Ellie Goulding

BohoBeat: [Music Monday] Ellie Goulding: "Her voice has really grown on me esp. with these legit covers."

Breaking Up the Studying

Feeling a little overwhelmed with how much I have to review. So much. But I've been doing the studying in shorter blocks and breaking it up with the gym, reading fun stuff, catching up on Law and Order and a nice dinner now and then. Yesterday, Alina and I went to Morito, a Spanish tapas bar I've been wanting to try. We order six tapas, including baby squid, aubergine/lamb, chorizo, asparagus, cod croquets, prawns with chili aioli with a Spanish tempranillo. And we finished off with a pomegranate cava for me and affogato for Alina. It was a nice end to a day of studying and the gym, but annoying to think that I just had to get up and do MORE studying. On the bright side, the chefs/waiters were hot. I like how that was the high point of my day. I suppose it's also the idea that after finals, London is over for me, which saddens me and the fact that this whole new life is waiting for me when I get back to CA that I am excited to get started. Just about six weeks left to memorize/theorize everything about gender, development, social policy, and health care - yay...

Heading to H&M for a study break, then doing a review of Sen's capabilities framework and maybe a move tonight xx

Currently listening to The National's High Violet - Loving Sorrow and Anyone's Ghost.
The National - High Violet - 02 - Sorrow by yovizna

The National - Anyone's Ghost by musicmule


Current inspiration:

Source: flickr.com via Amber on Pinterest

Source: weheartit.com via Amber on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Amber on Pinterest

Alela Diane and New Ink :-)

Seeing Alela Diane with Alina and Cailin tonight after a day of studying and gymming - I love being productive.



And as promised a pic, though it hasn't fully healed yet :-)



The line comes from a verse of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass:
I exist as I am, that is enough,
If no other in the world be aware I sit content,
And if each and all be aware I sit content.
One world is aware, and by the far the largest to me, and that is myself,
And whether I come to my own today or in ten thousand or ten million years,
I can cheerfully take it now, or with equal cheerfulness, I can wait.

studyingtattoodeathcab

Loving the new single from Death Cab


someone needs to see them with me over the summer or i might die.

got my new rib tattoo, pics coming as soon as it looks less gross, lol

xx

Catching Up :-)

Currently at Starbucks with Leils catching up on our breaks, good to be back to our caffeinate, read a page, gossip, repeat routine again :-) Excited to Lani, Aniela, Hannah and more of the crew in the following days. Excited that Seda is looking at apts today and also for Alela Diane on Thursday! But I kind of need to remember to study - NBD. Missing my CA peeps, esp. the SC ones, but the current sunshine is helping immensely. Some inspiration for the day:

Timelapse - The City Limits from Dominic on Vimeo.

unrelated but omg:

Source: dailypuppy.com via Amber on Pinterest

Source: quote-book.tumblr.com via Amber on Pinterest

Yay Nicki!

God I love this song and I love her sense of humor. I just love her.

LibraryLatteLibraryLatte

Browsed the Angel vintage market yesterday with Alina and found these gorgeous silver rings...
finishing up some straggling work from back home and then time to study for finals. yay. kind of. but with a latte in hand and jetlag at bay, I'm feeling pretty good :-) (And I have my appt on Wednesday :-) )

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to my honeybun in California! The reasons I love you:

1. Your ability to make anything funny

2. How you make friends with my friends and they probably love you more, lol

3. How you always put bobes and me first, even though sometimes you shouldn't

4. Your phenomenal cooking

5. Our common love of music: you introduced me to Bob Dylan and I introduced you to Kanye - even trade

6. How you use the word skank in the wrong way (and the way you pick up other slang)

7. For the amount of effort and love you put into your gorgeous gorgeous garden and entertaining we do there

8. When we have our chill-out days just the two of us with Scrabble, LMN, an infinite amount of tea and Mexican food.

9. How you know way more about everything than you let on, only to spring it on us at the most inopportune moment.

10. How you love me unconditionally and only the want the best for me and how you let me make my own choices even though you think (and let it be known) that you have doubts

I LOVE YOU MUSHCK!

Another tattoo consultation...

so more inspiration...
I need to commit, although I'm planning on trips with Lauren and Carrie too, so yay multiple options :-)
mos def:

Source: rioetc.com.br via Amber on Pinterest

loving the placement:

Source: rodeo.net via Amber on Pinterest

source

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It's 74 in London right now and I have a latte...

Life doesn't get better...

I just slept for 18 hours and am currently updating The BohoBeat, trying to catch up with my content writing, music and news. Going to a house party in Camden tonight with Hannah, tattoo consultation tomorrow with Alina and Maya and hopefully starting my Bikram 30-day challenge. Other things on my mind: figuring our my finals study schedule, realizing that I don't have a jacket/umbrella/pants in London, planning out my summer and reading The Male Brain (thank you Sara!), Wallpaper Magazine, and Psychologies. Some music I'm in love with (still into folk, but I need some more upbeat stuff for SUMMMMERRRRRR)

Kid Cudi-All Summer by Music From The Cradle

Aloe Blacc - "99 Problems" (Jay-Z x Kanye West x James Brown Medley) by vitroleiros

Santa Cruz Recap

Um I don't even know where to start. Obviously, the last few days were legit as trips to NorCal usually are... I got to spend even more time with my lucky charms, Carrie, Tawsh, and Bobes. We attended organic plant sales, went on hikes with Kat, Leah, and Grant, enjoyed microbrews and had some good old-fashioned exploits (aka party city), which I am still recovering from. Let's be real, the mornings after were a little rough but the last day we made an amazing brunch with Maelle, Leah, Grant and Jas after a night out with that crew plus Benny, Emile, Kat and a few other friends. I am also so glad I could spend time with Aimee, despite our conflicting schedules (the lucky girl was on a cruise the week I was in Santa Cruz.) The only thing I really regret is my Burger King breakfast on Sunday - omg barf barf. Check out my post on SF with Carrie at bohobeat.com. The overdose of bowls of soul from Lulus, several successful thrifting trips (including finding a vintage Coach purse I've been looking for!), much time playing Words with Friends, and Nicki Minaj on repeat made this a memorable trip, although I wish it were just three minutes longer. Already missing California, although so glad to be back in London with my girlz. Some of my favorite pics from the last few days in Santa Cruz: