Some happenings in my life lately.

1. With two weeks left of school it definitely feels like the first days of something even more superb than my already excellent days. 

2. I got a ticket to Lollapalooza for one day, Sunday. Which means - I will see many most excellent bands live but most importantly....PHOENIX. 

3. Tomorrow is the start of a road trip down to Florida where I will spend a whole entire week with basically all of my homies. I cannot wait. So tonight you find me packing in a rush. 

4. I beheld The Great, marvelous, inspirational, larger than life, Gatsby. This film is a completely perfect compliment to the book. Luhrmann told the story of Gatsby in a way not only visually intoxicating but also emotionally heartbreaking. And he did this while the soundtrack consisted of will.i.am, Jay-Z or Florence Welch (to name a few) which, might I add, was flawlessly suited to the film. 

5. Summer has taken over the earth like a magical spell you can't resist.

"And so, with the sunshine and the great burst of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer."

-F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

[first and third photo via tumblr /// last photo of sofia coppola for louis vuitton /// all other photos taken by me]

"The Earth shook in the afternoon sun. Hundreds of pedestrians flocked down to the beach. Children lined the shore looking out to sea, hopping and cheering with anticipation as the rumbling intensified. I stood in the sand among the masses of impatient people, completely oblivious as to what was happening. Cameras were popping out of pockets, an elderly painter sat on the bank with his brush at the ready, and the hot dog vendors turned from their customers as the waters began to violently swell.

Within seconds, a gargantuan tidal wave rose from the edge of the shore just metres from the crowd. The children threw their hands in the air with cheer, jumping and screaming with excitement. The roaring wave climbed and climbed into the sky, blocking out the sun and engulfing the beach in shade. At the height of its growth, the immense wall of water seemed to suspend its self from falling - the waters swelled and billowed up the inside of the arch as everyone watched in astonishment.

The flood of children ran towards the wave. Flashes went off everywhere. The children leapt from the sand and landed on the surface of the water, sprinting up the inside of the arch towards the sky as though gravity was no object. Higher and higher they went without falling. The painter dabbled like mad. A minute later, I watched the children reach the top of the wave in the clouds, until finally, they began to jump off into the sky, falling slowly and gracefully back to Earth." 

- description for Prop My Sky by Pogo

I don't really have anything to add to this. I hope this new week finds you in good spirits and ready for more adventures and even more glorious weather.

{last photo by Cass Bird for Urban Outfitters, January 2012 /// all other photos via tumblr}

"Happiness? The color of it must be spring green." 

- Frances Mayes

Today I am listening to The Kooks, reading Fahrenheit 451, eating strawberries, and loving everything about Spring. These days should never end. Every window is open, every bird is singing, every tree or flower is blooming, and I have three weeks left of school. Outdoors is the best way to relish these brief days before the glorious heat of summer hits, especially with friends. On Sunday my sister and I hung out at my cousins house all evening, all of us loving the fact that we could stay outside past dark not even needing a jacket. You know you're high on this weather when just throwing a ball and running around with everyone at sunset is enough to fill the heart with joy.

{first, fifth, and last photo via tumblr /// all other photos taken by me}

in 

Spring comes (no-

one 

asks his name)

a mender 

of things

with eager fingers (with

patient 

eyes) 

renewing

remaking what 

other-

wise we should

have thrown a-

way (and whose

brook

-bright flower-

soft bird

-quick voice loves

children 

and sunlight and

mountains) in april (but

if he should Smile) comes

nobody'll know

-E.E. Cummings

This warm sun, the easy breezes, the budding trees, the birdsong, it all fills my soul with an inexpressible joy. I love the anticipation that comes in Spring, waiting for everything to burst into life, although my heart already has. Recently inspiration has been coming easier and happiness is found just by being outdoors among the Lord's abundantly beautiful creation. 

On Sunday at my cousin's house I went outside with a few under the age of 13 and we sat in the green grass, swung on this beautiful swing and talked about Adventure Time and Hunger Games as the evening sun warmed our faces and I couldn't have wished for anything else.

P.S.- Listen to Phoenix's new album, Bankrupt. It's so good for the Springtime euphoria.

x

[first photo of me taken by my sister // pen sketch by me // all other photos taken by me]

Scott Schuman posted this photo today and my heart literally skipped a beat when I saw it. It is so quintessentially Spring. While the photo just oozes fresh and air and new life, their is also a strong, healthy, good American community sense about it as well. I love the way her hair has so naturally fallen to the side as if she's just been on a bike ride. Also, the way she added bright colored oxfords sets the perfect tone for a crisp classic look. All of it - the flowers, the green trees and bushes, the glowing Brownstone apartments - makes me long for New York City during the heart of springtime. 

P.S. - I'm on the search for a perfect jumpsuit.

[photo by the Sartorialist]