when writer's block strikes

Does it ever take you an entire day (or more) to write something worthwhile?

Lately, every time I try to start writing something new I just end up in a staring contest with my laptop (and the laptop always wins!). Nothing comes out. Funny thing is, there are all sorts of things I feel like telling you about - the books I've been reading, my first week of work (!!), what J & I named our two new kittens (!!!!), and how springtime in New York has waged a full-on war with my sinuses.

But, c'est la vie. For now all I can squeak out is a good old fashioned list. And who doesn't like a good list?

LISTENING to Norah Jones, as always 
MAKING peanut butter + banana oatmeal ♥ 
DRINKING endless cups of coffee
READING book reviews: one | two | three
WANTING these allergies to die! die! die!
LOOKING for apartment inspiration
PLAYING with my new furry roommates
WATCHING Mad Men, all over again
MISSING my best friends
WISHING for a few rainy days
ENJOYING quiet, early mornings
WAITING for this movie to come out
LIKING all of Lena Dunham's Instagrams
WONDERING if my train will be delayed

LOVING this article and that article
HOPING more friends will come and visit me
MARVELING at how quickly everything has bloomed
NEEDING comfortable shoes! (suggestions?)
WEARING pajamas, of course
SMELLING coffee (do I have a problem?) 
FOLLOWING some much-appreciated advice
NOTICING what a difference sleep makes
KNOWING that only time will tell 
TAKING advantage of a few extra minutes
BOOKMARKING fun artwork
OPENING lots and lots of emails

ADMIRING these magical strawberry scones

FEELING like I could crawl back into bed 

inspired by this post 

image via the yard 

lists // things to be thankful for

my mom. my dad. my brother. my sister. j. lauren. kate. p & m. l & c. m & c & v. all of family. friends. this apartment. having a job. having food on the table. having a heater that works. being able to go to college. almost being done with college. having the freedom to travel. freedom, at all. living somewhere that i love. working somewhere that i enjoy. being in love with my best friend. having parents who always support me. and friends that still keep in touch.


and also: music, red wine, pumpkin pie, cold weather, and being able to spend today with people i love.

happy thanksgiving!

all images via pinterest.

lists // the things i wonder

if i'll get there on time. if i remembered my keys. where we're going to live. if i can get everything done. what i'm going to say. how much it's going to cost. if i have enough time. if we'll be happy. if it will feel like "home". when we'll see each other again. if anyone else had cake for breakfast. how it'll all work out. why my hair does that. if i forgot anything. what they'll think. if things really do happen for a reason. when it's going to sink in. if that hug was enough. what things i'll miss. who i'm going to meet. if a first impression was enough.

image via pinterest

the bucket list

this morning I woke up extra extra early so that I could catch an extra extra early train. as it so happens, I'm on the train right now, and by the way, who knew trains could be so spacious? I mean, really. I practically have the whole cart to myself over here. apparently the 5am train isn't very popular.

there's something about being on a train and passing all these open fields and little farmhouses and watching the sun rise that makes me feel all nostalgic-like. (you're supposed to read that sentence with a southern drawl, if you couldn't tell) anyways. sunrises and sunsets have got to be the biggest cliché on earth, but even I have to say that there's something pretty fantastic about getting to watch them happen. this week has unexpectedly been one of the best weeks I've had in a long time and as a result, I'm feeling especially thankful for all the people in my life and all the things I've been able to do.

all this thankfulness business has got me thinking about bucket lists. (is that the silliest name or what? has anyone ever actually kicked a bucket?)

have you ever made a bucket list? it's kind of a fun thing to think about. now that I've gone skydiving, I'm anxious to continue ticking the boxes on my list of adventures-to-be.

01. go skydiving
02. run a half marathon
03. run a full marathon
04. travel to every continent 
05. learn to play the piano
06. live in new york city 
07. own my own business 
08. drive a race car
09. write a book
10. marry my best friend 

What's on your Bucket List?

(my) ingredients for relaxation

fresh flowers | saturday mornings | the smell of fresh coffee | long walks | this lotion | getting enough sleep | a good book | backyard gardens | trips to anthropologie | clean sheets | the smell of the ocean | tea lights | long hugs |

What are your ingredients for relaxation?

confessions of a book lover

books are one of the very few things that I don't mind spending money on (along with chocolate cake, the very occasional Anthropologie throw pillow, and lavender hand soap). when it comes to money, I am all about saving it - you know, for a "rainy day". as they say. I think. I don't even like to keep cash in my wallet. instead, I cram it all into a tiny jar and put it in a cupboard that's just high enough out of my reach that I really have to be committed before getting it down. (J thinks this is a terrible plan, by the way. "it's just sitting there! don't you want to collect interest?" hehe)

anyways.
books I can buy without any guilt and today was a bookstore kind of day. every year I forget that June in Oregon still means rain. every year I'm surprised. you guys! can you believe this rain??! it's June, for crying out loud! June! so in the spirit of this rainy summer day, I spent my afternoon perusing one of my favorite bookstores. I'm all about Barnes & Noble and Powell's, but there's something to be said about a  local family-owned bookstore. this place is the epitome of organized chaos. down every aisle the floors are lined with rows and rows of (neatly) stacked books that come all the way up to your knees. your knees! it's a sea of books! there's no way of knowing if they have the book you want. I don't think they even have a computer in there. you just have to search (and search and search and search). this is certainly not the place to go if you're in a hurry.

luckily for me, I had all the time in the world.

my goal this summer is to finally spend some time reading books for fun, and not just for school. I went in today hoping to find david sedaris' latest book, let's explore diabetes with owls. I keep hearing about it and figured it was worth checking out. amazingly, I was able to find it without having to climb too many mountains of books, but then - blasphemy! turns out it was $27 and we all know that wasn't about to happen. (clearly, Amazon is the way to go)

so, there I was, an hour later with 12 books in my basket. oops.

after a long debate, I finally left with 2 zadie smith books - white teeth and on beauty. (have you ever read these?) as you can see, I found two copies of on beauty - a white and a pink version. this put me in a bit of a predicament because, shamefully, I have always judged a book by its cover (sorry books!). I finally decided on the white version because it felt a little more worn in and the font was nicer. do I sound crazy yet?

I'll let you know how they go.

(p.s. those two books only cost me $11, so take that, david sedaris!)

What's on your summer reading list? Any books that you'd recommend for me?

10 things you may or may not have known (about me)

You know what "ice breakers" are, right? (Not the mint, the game)
If you don't already know, consider yourself lucky. You dodged a real bullet! Ice breakers are usually played when you join some kind of new group or club, and the person in charge wants everyone to relax and get to know each other (you know, and break the ice). Sounds pretty reasonable right?

Well.
I have played my fair share of ice breakers (joining new clubs in high school, my college orientation, moving into the dorms, etc.). I don't know about you, but I'd say 99% of the ice breakers I've had to play are just downright awkward. "Time for an ice breaker, everyone!" Instant dread.

The concept is great. Loosen people up, get 'em out of their shells. But come on! There must be some better way for people to get comfortable with each other than having to do things like go around in a circle and sing part of their favorite song. (Seriously though. This has happened to me.) We want everyone to relax and get to know each other! So here, play this really awkward game with all these strangers! Sing! Dance! Stand on your head!

(Okay, we didn't have to stand on our heads)

It's pretty painful. But, I'll admit. By the end, after everyone has successfully done something slightly humiliating, it is a little easier to become friends.

So not to break tradition or anything, but how about a less embarrassing ice breaker?

10 things you may or may not have known (about me) :

1. I am a natural blonde. Kind of. In middle school, I dyed my hair bright pink (because my mom was amazing, and let me do things like that). After that phase was over and I was ready to go back to being my natural-blonde-self, my hair started growing in brown! So now, I'm a natural brunette. I think.

2. If I could only eat 3 things for the rest of my life, they'd (easily) be: avocados, strawberries, and chocolate cake.

3. My first concert was Shania Twain. Y'all.

4. Once while traveling abroad, my best friend and I stayed with a family in France for an entire week. They didn't speak a word of English and we didn't speak a word of French. It was an interesting week.

5. Despite my best efforts, I can't keep nail polish on for more than 24 hours without chipping.

6. There are lots of movies I love, but the 3 that I could watch over and over again are: Breakfast at Tiffany's, Dirty Dancing, and Mona Lisa Smile.

7. I own every season of Gilmore Girls on DVD.

8. If I could spend the day with any celebrity, it would have to be Morgan Freeman.

9. This summer, J and I will be taking salsa-dancing classes! Definitely stay tuned for that.

10. In my bag you will always find: Burts Bees, a small bottle of lavender oil, black ink pens, and dark chocolate hearts (for emergency situations, obviously).

What are some things people may or may not know about you?

wonder / make / listen / take

(featured above: the best breakfast sandwich ever, probably the best combination of breakfast specials ever, and according to my gluten-free-friends, the best gluten-free muffins ever)

Lately I've been:

Wondering: about the summer. It recently dawned on me that I probably won't have anymore "free" summers. Do you remember those? - those summers when you didn't have to work or go to school or think or do anything besides play in the sun? I started pouting about this the other day and J had to kindly remind me that, no Heather, you are in fact not a child anymore. But I don't want to grow up yet! I'm not ready! Anyhow. I can't wait for summertime (even if school and work have to be involved).

Making: lists of the places I want to explore once we get back to New York (can you tell I'm getting a little obsessed?). Like I mentioned in this post, NYC seems to be everywhere I turn so I figured I should start keeping track of all the different spots I want to see someday. (Also - I really like this print, would love to be able to check out this installation, and would seriously love to take one of these cooking classes)

Listening: to a lot of Amos Lee, Youth Lagoon, and Norah Jones. I'm in the midst of midterms (woohooo!), so these are my go-to Pandora stations for studying and essay-writing.

Taking: the time to write letters. By now, you know how much I love anything handwritten so I've been making more of an effort to be the one doing the actual writing. I only have a few cards left from this collection so I have to be very selective about who to send them to!