Can't stop

Can't stop looking at this photo. I know I just got back from a quick vacation, but I want to be here for a few days:

And what's even better- the house that this view is attached to. More on that tomorrow.

How was your weekend?

My Weekend Holiday!

source.

Have a great weekend Lovelies.

Sneak Peak

Ahh Lovelies, today is Friday for me!! Whoot Whoot. Off to Seattle today.

So freakin excited.

I am leaving you with a sneak peak of the fabrics that we'll be using for the new pillows on our new couch!! All of the fabrics are from Ikea except the one on the left. On the left is a 1960s Knoll Fabric from this awesome vintage fabric shop-UrbanBurp. Thanks to Mama Sugar for the Groupon!!

What to ya think?? Big, bold, bright colors, huh??

Oh, and here's Huck enjoying the pillows shortly after we brought them home:

Have a great weekend!!

Are you a bold and bright person or more of a natural and neutral person?

Loving this

I've been inspired by this picture. The fabric on the chairs, the kick ass painting and the color combination with the rug is so freakin awesome.

As seen on Amber Interior via i suwannee

Wonder where I could get that rug and if I could afford it?? Do you love it?

Quick Drive By

Lovelies, I am just making a quick drive by on this late Monday afternoon and evening. I feel like I am on repeat, but life's crazy over here. We're beyond excited to go to Seattle this weekend for a fabulous friends wedding!! Crazy Fun. I can't wait to share with you all the stuff we've been up to- like pictures of the new couch- with the awesome new pillows that I have yet to sew (fabric was purchased this weekend) and our new dining bench- we finally having seating at our 'kitchen table' but more on that next time. Oh, and I think we have a good choice for our bedroom rug, but again, I haven't seen it in person yet. It's only taken 6 months to decide.

Obviously, I suck at decisions and uploading pictures from my camera to my computer to my on-line account so I can actually share stuff with you.

For now, a blast from my past. Two years ago today, I was soaking in the mountains and drinking the best coffee of my life. Sigh. Where has the time gone?

I hope you all have a fabulous week. I'd love to say I'd blog more again this week, but you might not hear from me until we return from our trip.

Hope all is well with you and sorry for the neglect. Happy June.

Has summer already impacted your life?

Ahhhhh... June

Well Lovelies, it's June here, and I understand that you are probably expecting Summer any moment. But us folks in SF are getting ready for June Gloom. URG.

So far June has been cloudy with rain and sun spots thrown in for good measure. In a weird way- kinda like this photo. A little bit of dark and light and bright all at once.

Desire to Inspire via Stuart McIntyre

How's June looking over there?

Book Review: Depressing Books

In general I try to avoid depressing books. Some people LOVE them because they find that they are the only true and realistic books out there.

To that statement, I call bull shit. A book does not have to be depressing to be real. Books that I categorize as beyond depressing are A Fine Balance and Freedom.

I'll start with A Fine Balance. It mainly follows four people in India in the 1970s- taking their lives from sad to pure and utter despair. I will say that I admire this book and would even recommend it to really understand deep pain and suffering around the world. The insight to life in India in the 1970s is greatly depressing and sad. To be flippant for a moment, I'd save yourself the hours of pain and suffering that it will take you to read all 624 pages and just watch Slumdog Millionaire a few times. Close to the same effect.

As for Freedom: Yes, in some parts Jonathon Franzen is able to be real and hit the nail on the head. (The Mom correctly points out to her son that fighting is good for a relationship that it allows the couple to grow and exchange ideas.) But as I was reading the 576 page book, I kept thinking about how I didn't like or even care about any of the characters. I am a character person. I want to feel for them; I want to route for them -- at least, in A Fine Balance I was routing for the four main characters. I was desperately hoping that life would get a bit better- at least for one of them. But in Freedom, I could have cared less.

Someone I know thought Freedom was the first novel that she had read that perfectly captured the intricacies of marriage and relationships. Relationships are intricate and life is complicated, but marriage and relationships can be fantastic, and they can grow- which was completely left out of the book. Maybe I am being naive. I have only been married for two years- so I still relish in the amazing-ness that is marriage and relationships. I choose to be positive. I choose to live life in a positive way and not to believe that their is only crap out there. Suffice it to say, I hated Freedom.

That said, I also recently read a depressing book that I loved and thought was really well written. It's called One Day. It follows one day a year of two friends/lovers and how their lives and relationships develop over those 20 years. I'll be honest, it's depressing (which is why it's included in the Depressing Book section), and sometimes the characters aren't all that great of people, but at least I found myself routing for them. And recently, I found out that the book is going to be a movie:

I don't know if I'll see the movie in theaters (I'll need a few full size boxes of tissues), but I will remember the message of the book. To live life, to enjoy life, and to be thankful for what I have.

Sometimes, I do want to read about the realness and hardships of the world. But most of the time, I want to read books that inspire me and that make me want to be a better person. Or books that just allow me to share in the happy moments of someone else's life (real or not). So that my friends is why in general, I avoid depressing books.

Next review: Inspiring Books.

What kind of books are you drawn to?