{new favourite quote}

“I want to be a character, I don’t want to be defined, I want to change, everyday…I want to be silly, I want to be wonderful, I want to prance instead of walk, skip instead of run, I want flowers, lots of flowers, I want to write until the words mean nothing to others, but everything to me. I want to be enigmatic and magnificent. I want my aura to be gold; I want to wake up with the sun and with a smile…I want books, lots and lots of books, I want to read all day, completely let go, let my imagination run wild. I want to grasp life with both hands and not let go, I want to be magical and pretty…I want to watch Breakfast At Tiffany’s until I know every line. I want to be compassionate and considerate, and I want to make other people smile. I want to make them proud.”

~Victoria Hart

{the o.k. plateau}

Yesterday I was reading an article on mental athletes by the New York Times, it was a fascinating subject and contained so much information that I could probably write a whole series of blogposts about it. However, there was one section in particular that caught my attention and that I wanted to share.

In the "Secrets of a Mind-Gamer" (an article with a somewhat off-putting and tawdry introduction that will only make sense if you read the article in entirety) Joshua Foer explores his journey from journalistic curiosity to competing for the United States Memory Championship. As he related the steps he took, he tells of how he disappointed he was when he seemingly hit the plateau of his memorizing potential quite early on,

The Encyclopedia of the Exquisite

A new sunbeam has arrived in my life in the form of Jessica Kerwin Jenkins' book "The Encyclopedia of the Exquisite." This book gives me the same sort of thrill that a collection of leather bound books or midsummer morning sunlight gives me. It's pure happiness wrapped up in a red hardback with gold gilt tooling about the cover.

In alphabetical order it explores the histories of lovely, frankly inconsequential, things that make life twelve times better. Beginning with "aerostation" and ending with "yes," Ms. Jenkins explores the exquisite. As explained in the introduction "the word exquisite comes from the Latin verb exquirere, to search out, or to seek. It means uncommon delicacies, carefully selected, and the kind of beauty that can "excite intense delight or admiration." A definition that is exquisite in and off itself.

The Encyclopedia sits beside my bed and even when I don't have the time to read it, the mere sight makes me happy.

I'm an idealist. I don't know where I'm going, but I'm on my way. {sandbury}

{the carla bruni effect}

I have to admit, I have been intrigued by former model and First Lady of France, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, since I first heard of her visit to the UK decked in grey Dior. I scoured the internet for pictures, read dozens of articles commenting on her precision in styling and incredible success (in spite of a scandal that was attempting to blazon her as salacious before she even managed to put her ballet pumps down on English turf).


It is more than a little impressive how successfully she has managed to navigate the European fashion waters, particularly among European royalty. Maintaining faultless taste without ever doing the unpardonable of outshining or out dressing the settled Royals is no small task.  One of the many reporters who covered Ms. Bruni during her visit to England commented on how scrupulously she avoided stealing anyone's looks or colours, while still dressing in a manner that was stylistically flawless and entirely respectable. Dolly Jones, editor of Vogue.com, said: “With all eyes on her today – some of which are inevitably going to look for any excuse to be critical - Carla Bruni was perfectly demure, her tiny matching hat and rounded collar an elegant reference to Jackie O."

{love by dickinson}

"I had no time to hate, because

the grave would hinder me.

And life was not so ample I

could finish enmity.

Nor had I time to love; but since

some industry must be,

the little toil of love, I thought

was large enough for me."

{photography via kiss the groom}

{xxii by emily dickinson via bartleby}

{quote: Maggie Jackson}

"Technology is the key to understanding our world, but it is not the full story. Instead we must ask, how do we want to define progress? We are adapting to a new world, but in doing so are we redefining "smart" to mostly mean twitch speed, multitasking, and bullet points? Are we similarly redefining intimacy and trust? Are we so enamored of our alluring surface gains that we are failing to stem or even notice the deeper, human costs of these "advances"?

 We may be getting expert at pushing buttons and wiring our thoughts with bells and whistles and tracking two virtual enemies across a screen, but [we're] losing the skills needed to thrive in an increasingly complex world: deep learning, reasoning, and problem solving. We may be getting better at juggling three people simultaneously over a screen. . . but forgetting that what we need more than ever in a time of growing mistrust and seemingly expendable relations is honesty, unhurried presence, and care."

Distracted by Maggie Jackson, pg. 22

{in a library}

"A precious, mouldering pleasure 't is

To meet an antique book,

In just the dress his century wore;

A privilege, I think,

{Personal Statements}

I'm writing a personal statement right now and it has me quite peeved and at loss with myself. After years of teasing my father over his inability to narrow his focus onto one particular subject I find myself in similar straits. For while I've managed to narrow my subject matter into a one page statement, I sound like a hedonist who has no concept of anything but instant gratification, and I am having trouble with finding a means by which to clarify that in a concise manner.

{Quotes}

You don't really have to know me all that well to know that I love quotes. Whether they are the classic, brief, and yet keenly insightful observations by men such as Benjamin Franklin. The somewhat trite but still true sayings that everyone knows but nobody remembers to use. The less quote-able but equally insightful and thought provoking points made by professors. Or poetry and song lyrics, whose poignant word pictures cloy at the heart and imagination and resonate with parts of ourselves we hadn't previously been able to put into words.

{Disconnect to Connect}

Thailand released this commercial Disconnect to Connect. It's a beautifully done and much needed reminder for so many people, myself included.

{Intellectual Honesty}

Politico just recently posted a fascinating article by Michael Kinsley entitled Being Honest Is The Least Of It, addressing the elusive quality of intellectual honesty. A virtue he described as, "being truthful about what’s going on inside your own head."

If you take any time consider the idea it's almost impossible not to realize both the absolute importance as well as its positively shameful neglect in politics as well as in the day to day. Compromise and intellectual dishonestly have become a prevalent facet of every day life; as we reason that our little white lies pay off when you consider our cause for the greater good. But Kinsley counters that by stating,