Plant life support

Technically, vases are plant life support.

Go, Frodo!

Lord of the Rings won every category it was nominated for at the Oscars, a total of 11 wins.

Don't be so glum, you won!

Heart

I often like to doodle and illustrate the quotes and ideas in my notebook. This is one of my latest, an illustration of the beautiful quote, "Always listen to your heart, because even though it's on your left, it's always right."

My Favorite

Yesterday I was talking to someone (not on the Internet-gasp!), and he asked me what my favorite quote from my notebook was. It was a question that I had never thought of before and it took me ny surprise. But the first fact that came to mind was about dogs and how the Taco Bell dog was a girl named Gidget and that the first living creature in space was a dog named Laika. So I suppose those are my favorites!

Wisdom

"Buy experiences, not things, and take photos, not souvenirs."

Some Advice

Here's some simple advice from good ol' Ben Franklin, "Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing."

Tablecloths

Tablecloths were originally used as big giant napkins people would wipe their hands and mouth on...now that sounds like something George Castanza would do!

Hum

It's impossible to hum while holding your nose.

You just tried it, didn't you? Now walk over to a mirror and see how ridiculous you look. This is how scientific discoveries are made.

Psycho

The blood used in 'Psycho' was chocolate syrup...who knew yummy Hershey's toppings could be so terrifying?

Possibilities

"There are two possibilities: either we're alone in the universe or we're not. Both are equally terrifying."
-Arthur C Clarke

Culture

"Culture is anything we do and monkey's don't do." Darwin said that...he sure was a smart monkey on The Wild Thornberrys...

Lincoln's Funny

Everyone knows Abraham Lincoln as the one who "freed the slaves," but did you know he had a sense of humor...and was quite self aware?

When someone accused him of being two-faced, he responded, "If I had two faces, do you think I'd be wearing this one?"

A Wilde Day

Today sure has been a Wilde day...please forgive the TERRIBLE pun. Do not abandon me, oh faithful readers! I am allowed one bad pun every once in a while.
So to celebrate this Wilde day, here are two of my favorite Oscar Wilde quotes:
"Some cause happiness wherever they go. Others, whenever they go."
"Most people are other people. Their thoughts someone else's, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation."

And for kicks, here's a Twain quote I love, "The world owes you nothing; it was here first." My English major is showing!

My Favorite Artistic Mavericks

I have compiled a list of some of my favorite artistic mavericks and what makes them so awesome. Sure there are many more to admire, but these are the ones I have really come to admire because of their work and work ethics.

• Jack White: Of course he's the first on my list. Besides making the best music of this generation, Jack is always evolving. He makes him music imperfectly perfect (See everything from "This Protector" to "Want and Able" to see what I mean). His style, especially with Third Man is old timey...the man has a serious obsession with turn tables and color patterns. All this just makes him more of an admirable genius. 
  
• Tina Fey: I have wanted to grow up to be like Tina since I was 16 years old. She is a proud nerd, but not just a nerd. She is legitimately intelligent and funny with her fast-paced writing. And she gives a modern female voice like  no other.
  
• Chuck Palahniuk: This guy's writing is so quirky. That was obvious from the first read of the zany "Fight Club" and "Choke." Then, I read "Damned" and knew this guy uses dark humor to bring out the best of societal flaws. He has this extremist voice that is oddly endearing. And he writes in what I call an "ADHD" voice, meaning he jumps a lot from place to place and it's so fast-paced, but that's just another reason I like it so much. Each time you read it, you find more to love in his work.
• Louis CK: Everyone loves this guy, and it's no wonder. He's the "everyman" who is unafraid to point out societal flaws. He's really honest. And like everyone else on the list, he's incredibly hard-working. For his show, he does it all from the writing and acting to the editing.
• Matt Stone & Trey Parker: These two are way braver than I could ever be. They have received death threats for their humor. Yet, they are unapologetic about their edginess. I like how their humor can be infantile and playful while remaining intelligent and topical. Just brilliant!
  
• Stanley Kubrick: You have to admire any perfectionist, and this man is the text book definition of that. He may have been demanding and bossy, but that is how he made such well-rounded work. His films truly can be considered art. And it's amazing how he did every genre from horror (See "The Shining") to comedy (See "Lolita") to Sci-fi (See "2001 Space Odyssey") to a brilliant combo of genres (See "A Clockwork Orange" AKA his best work!).
• Rod Serling: By this point, you faithful readers also know of my "Twilight Zone" obsession. Mr. Serling is the classy man who put the whole thing into motion and revolutionized TV and the sci-fi genre in the process. Plus, he wrote some other really amazing works, all of which are timeless.
  
• Other artistic mavericks that I would be remiss not to mention include:
• George Carlin
• Judd Apatow
• Zooey Deschanel
  
• Bo Burnham
• Stephen King
• John Stewart
• Judge Judy
• Dimitri Martin
  

So who ado you admire? Maybe I can add them to the list!

Music Lyrics

I rarely put music lyrics in my notebook. I guess it's because I have so many memorized and don't give much thought after I get the words to a song down. But one of the most perfect lines to a song comes from Jimi Hendrix, "Castles made of sand fall to the sea, eventually."It's so sad, but beautiful. I love bittersweetness in music and art.

$2 Bill

I've known people that've never even seen a $2 bill...yet I read it makes up a whipping 3% of our circulation...so where are all these mysterious $2 bills hiding?

Pencils

I always write with pencil in my notebook. That way I can keep changing and adding things. But I always seem to lose them! However, if I managed to keep a pencil in my possession longer than a day, they say it could write up to 35 miles! Now that would fill a pretty big notebook!

Chuck Norris

Because this is the Internet, it is only fair I pretend it's 2003 and talk about Chuck Norris...did you know his real name is Carlos?

Is it just me or does he look A LOT like Tim Allen?

Snow

As a Jersey girl, I just take snow for granted. But two thirds of the Earth's population has never even seen that cold white stuff that falls from the sky!

Special Talent

I once read someone's special talent was to cook Minute Rice in 58 seconds. What an incredible gift to the world! All that those 2 extra seconds can bring...just imagine the possibilities.

Dress for Succss

I once read that you should always go out dressed like you're about to meet the love of your life...I love this idea, because it's the idea of always dressing your best to feel your best. Dressing well definitely can improve your confidence which can boost your mood!

Grammar Humor

This is much more accurate than the cliched I before E phrase anyway:
"I before E, except when you run a feisty heist on a weird beige foreign neighbor."

And in case you're hankering for more grammar humor, check out Weird Al's Word Crimes. It's hilarious...and very catchy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Gv0H-vPoDc

Cannibalism

In a survey, most Americans said they would eat their legs first if forced to resort to cannibalism.

Please excuse the morbidity of this post. I watched Child's Play with my mother and my Maltese last night.

Elvis

Elvis was a natural blond...no wonder he was so ditzy.
For all you Elvis mega-fans out there, that was a JOKE. I have no way of knowing whether Elvis was ditzy or not. What I do know is that he enjoyed karate and fought off people who jumped on his stage, which explains a particularly amusing scene in the movie Walk Hard where Jack White plays Elvis.

South Park

Starting on September 24, I will be writing the recaps for EW.com on season 18 of South Park, so it is only fitting that today's post be a brilliant quote by Trey Parker that shows the true spirit of the show that's been my favorite since I was in grade school, South Park, "What's so interesting about humor is that people see it wrong. If I laugh at a Mormon, they think I hate all Mormons. But laughing isn't hate, It's play."

Carlin

I have read and reread all his books. I've seen all his specials multiple times. I have memorized a lot of his material. GEORGE CARLIN's work is brilliant. Of all his amazing writing and affter much consideration, this is my favorite quote from him of all time, "People who see life as anything but pure entertainment are missing the point."

Kubrickian Wisdom

While I am not a mega Kubrick fan, I am a very big Kubrick fan. I recently listened to a podcast about The Shining and learned a lot more about this creative genius. One of my favorite things he said was, "The very meaningless of life forces man to create his own meaning." Even though this is dark, it is poetic and kind of nice...just like his work.

Writing

"We write to taste life twice."
-Anais Nin
Maybe that's why I like to write so much.

15 Kids

I feel like no one ever talks about John Tyler. He's one of those forgotten presidents. But an interesting fact about him is that he had fifteen children, the most of any president. He makes the Cheaper by the Dozen family look small.