Lazy Chicago Afternoons

Lazy afternoons are the best. The past few days have been nice and calm compared to my past few weeks, some time I definitely needed to recharge. I've had a lot of schoolwork to do (and its still not quite done) and that means I've neglected my blog :( But I'm back now and hope to be able to share some fun new experiences with you. I only have a few days left up in Chicago, but the adventures will keep coming to you from my friends and me in Orlando once I've gone home. I've missed those crazy guys anyway.

These guys are the best :)

 Though my afternoons have been a bit slow recently, I did have the amazing opportunity to see a show at The Second City! It was such a great show; it made me laugh more than I have in a long time (which is saying something, I'm always laughing). I've always wanted to go there so it was so unreal to finally see it. Other than that, its been relaxing at the dorm, running errands, eating too much junk, and watching movies. Don't get me wrong, I've loved it, but I think that’s due to some good company :)

I have been shopping at vintage shops and markets around town recently. I stay up near Edgewater in northern Chicago and its full of great thrift stores and vintage boutiques. I went out on a limb and bought a crazy awesome yellow vintage dress (I never wear yellow, so we'll see how that one goes) and some nice lace for a sewing project back home. There were so many beautiful rings and broaches but they were a little bit out of my budget. I think it was more fun to just go hang out at a new vintage store with friends than actually shop for anything although trying to get a group of guys to go to antique stores with you isn't the easiest. (I guess I just found some good ones:) )

I've also been reading a lot over the past few days and its been wonderful. I'm currently reading Black Swan Green by David Mitchell and I just finished A Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin. Both are wonderful, I wish I was reading A Storm of Swords (sequel to A Clash of Kings) but I decided to take a break from fantasy with some modern British literature and I'm enjoying it for a change. I'm a bit of a bookworm, so I suppose you can look forward to some recommendations and new book alerts from yours truly.

Anyways, I hope you had a good weekend and have a great week!

Anna

Just a Taste

Today held another great Chicago adventure. Some friends and I woke up early (well, early for a Saturday) and took the L down to Millenium Park to enjoy Taste of Chicago. It was such a fun morning with so many kinds of food! 

The park and surrounding streets were full of vendors selling foods and everything smelled delicious. We all delighted in different foods, from deep dish to pot stickers and of course funnel cake, and spent the rest of the time people watching and exploring the gardens nearby. It was a great time to fool around with the camera and take some (sometimes goofy) pictures. I'm not too great at it, but I think a few turned out alright.

I hope you all enjoyed your days as much as mine and maybe even did some celebrating for Bastille Day. Thanks again for reading!

Anna

             

Let's Be Kids Again

The past few days, I've had the pleasure to delight in some childish activities and its been a delight. I went to Chicago's greatest frozen custard shop Lickity Split up in Edgewater and got one of the best desserts of my life (for any of you wondering if Oreos and Nutella taste good together, they do). This little shop had so many cupcakes, candies, and flavors of frozen custard, needless to say I was in heaven. I've really loved this city and this was just the icing on the cake (pretty much literally).  Tomorrow holds many more great experiences in Chicago with great friends, and there will most definitely be a post on these adventures soon.

Thanks for reading everyone, see you next time!
Anna

The Best Summer Cupcake Recipes

Need some new cupcake recipes for summer? With outdoor get togethers, barbeques, and beach days all popping up, here's some new options for summer treats. Enjoy!

Which look the best to you? Let me know in the comments!

Bisous everyone, 

Anna

Have Albums Become a Thing of the Past?

In a recent Reuters article, a study was released by Nielsen SoundScan revealing that in the past 6 months, album sales are down and download sales are up.

For the first half of the year, album sales have gone down 3% and digital song sales have risen 6%. These statistics reinforce the idea that listening to full albums may be, in fact, a thing of the past.

The article focuses on the most popular downloads of the year so far, including (not surprisingly) Gotye's single "Somebody That I Used To Know," and Fun.'s single "We Are Young" saying that these songs are breaking records in download sales. Both songs have broken the 5 million download threshold yet their albums as wholes have failed to take off.

So what does this mean for all us album loves out there? It shows that today's bands are focusing on producing number one singles as opposed to great full albums, and this shift may not stop anytime soon. With statistics like these, there is little hope any of today's pop bands will release the next Dark Side of the Moon or The Wall, and I doubt there's anyone out there making another Kid A or OK Computer either. We're all going to have to weather the storm of Call Me Maybe and One Direction and just hope that there's someone out there ready to revive the art of the album.

Here are some of my favorite albums, what are yours? Leave answers in the comments to let me know!

A Day at the Museum

Today me and some friends decided to go to a Chicago museum. In a city with so many great art viewing options, there were many choices of where to go, but we were downtown and decided to check out Loyola University's museum LUMA. With free admission on Tuesdays and a location close to the water tower, it was the perfect place to spend some casual time with the art of the city.

When we first got there, it became obvious that it was a museum of religious art and artifacts consisting of sculptures, paintings, and iconography. After looking around a little bit, I stumbled upon an old automaton clock. It was an old golden elephant with a clock on its back and men on top of the clock. It was made in 1600, the beginning of the Baroque era, in Ausburg, Germany. A small keyhole was carved out at the very top and it appears to be a portal to another time. With a turn of the key, this ornately detailed automaton takes you back to the era of beautiful art, music, and a society fresh out of the renaissance.

After the museum, some friends and I went down to the navy pier. After a boat ride, some churros, frozen bananas, and a funnel cake, we decided to call it a night and say goodbye to the beautiful coast of a fantastic city.

Bisous everyone,

Anna :)

Hello there!

Welcome to my blog! Recently I've been feeling like my life consists of nothing but tv watching and wearing striped shirts, so I'm trying to make some changes. I wanted to document this in some way, so basically this will be where I blab to you about random things going on in my world. You'll see lots of pictures of me, my friends, and cool things I see. I'll talk about everything from food to clothes to books and everything in between. So come on with me on this journey of self discovery where we figure out our personal styles, try new things, and eat each others cooking and say it was good.