Awards Awards!

My dear Jennifer gave me an award today!

With this award, I have to write down 10 things about myself that no one knows. Which is tough, because I share a lot about myself!

Here it goes:

1. I wear my mom's class ring on my right pinky and my class ring on my right ring finger.

2. The first character I ever conjured up was Mathilda. She was a princess who tended her own garden and read a book a week.

3. I think 90% of the things I write are shit.

4. About 6 months after I became vegetarian, I had a slip and ate a burger from White Castle.

5. But since then, I've never had a morsel of meat.

6. I can resist any type of junk food, even if I'm craving it severely. The only exception being cheese doodles. I crumble when they're around.

7. My first vintage purchase was a faded, cropped Led Zepplin t-shirt which I no longer have.

8. I have my dream wedding all written out and stashed away somewhere.

9. I believe that my family members come back as monarch butterflies after they pass.

10. In December, I'm getting my first tattoo of a monarch butterfly.

I'm giving this award to amanda & kate of the lovely blog i found you in melbourne.

Expect a poem this week! I'm back in New York and things are going wonderfully. I'm surrounding myself with people who make me feel giddy and help my creativity.

Have a wonderful day.

Awards + Summer Winds

Hello lovelies!! Once again, I apologize for neglecting my blog. But the semester is finally over and I have seemingly limitless time to lounge around, dig my toes in the sand on the beach, and read read read. I just finished up a really fantastic book called "I am Charlotte Simmons" by Thom Wolfe. I have to say, as an older writer, Wolfe completely understands (after extensive research, I presume) the life of a collegiate. If you're looking for a quick 600-page read, I suggest you pick it up.

One of these days, I'm going to put a list up of my favorite books of all time. I believe that reading is the most fruitful pastime one can partake in, as it expands your mind, vocabulary and quickly transports you to another place - cheaper than buying a plane ticket! I'd love to share my favorites with my lovely readers.

I plan on writing a lot more now that I'm on summer vacation. So look out for some more poetry, short stories, etc. And the beach town where I reside for the summer is chock full of antique stores and vintage shops. I can't wait to share my finds with you! Anyone have any plans for the summer time? I'd love to hear.

On a separate note, I've received my first award! This is from the lovely Mila of Loveology. Loveology is one of the first blogs I ever followed and is one I read religiously. Please, check it out! A million thank-yous, Mila!

Rules:

1. Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link.

2. Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you've newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen.

Since I'm a new blogger myself (in fact, May is my 6-month anniversary of the start of this blog! Hooray!) I don't have 15 blogs that I've newly discovered. So I'll just give it to the lovelies I have discovered thus far.

1. Jennifer of Make.Tea.Not.War - we have a shared interest in vintage books, and she makes the most effortlessly beautiful jewelry!

2. Kara of All Things Ordinary - who just put out her first zine! Pick up issue one, which is available via her blog. It is absolutely breathtaking!

3. Kim of  COFFEE OVER CONVERSATION - one of my favorite fashion bloggers. This beautiful girl has such a daring eye for fashion!

4. Sarah of kissing her cage goodbye - the newest blog I've been following. Such gorgeous photographs and adorable quotes. I found a wonderful quote from Rumi via her blog! Beautiful...

5. Lucia of Lucia's Patterns - this girl has such a fun and unique sense of style that I LOVE reading about! The best part is she shares her inspiring outfits with her readers!

6. Angela of Rags and Scribbles - one of the first blogs I ever read. Angela's post are raw and emotional, and she has the most beautiful eye for photography I've ever seen.

7. Micaela of The Drifter and the Gypsy - while she is currently on a personal hiatus, Micaela delivers beautiful passages accompanied by wonderful photographs. She even interviews with the photographers themselves!

8. the tea drinking english rose - I could read this blog for hours! Sprinkles with tea parties, macaroons, yummy sweets and treats and gorgeous china teacups, you are instantly transported to a lovelier place.

9. Michelle K. of Make Polaroids Not War - Michelle shares with us a wonderful collection of fun, vintage photographs. She also lets us take a peek into her world with extensive personal posts. Such a treat!

So there they are! Once again, mucho thanks to Mila for such a lovely award and for giving me the opportunity to showcase my favorite blogs!

Take care, my sweets.

xo

Maria Angela

Weekends with Tara

Thank-you all so much for all the lovely comments you've been leaving about my short stories! It's so wonderfully encouraging to hear people's kind words about my writing. You're all the absolute best!

I had such a great time this past weekend. My beautiful cousin Tara came in for the night on Saturday. We got all dressed up and met a friend downtown at this club called Country Club.

The crowd was a little older, but we had such a fun time. Our friend had a table and we danced all night. Our feet were covered in blisters. It was one of those wonderful nights where you pour yourself into bed around 4:30 am and sleep sleep sleep.

 And I had a Bellini at Country Club that tasted almost as delicious as the ones I drank while in Italy. For anyone who doesn't know, a Bellini is a champagne cocktail that includes raspberry puree, peach puree, and of course champagne! The best one I've ever had was in Harry's Bar in Venice, were the Bellini was actually created. But the one at Country Club was almost as delightful. It even had tiny raspberries floating in the flute! So yummy!

The next morning, Tara and I set out for an adventure around the East Village.

Adorable, aren't we?

We started downtown near Lafayette Street. There was this vintage shop I always wanted to go to  called Screaming Mimi's on Lafayette, but it didn't open until 1 and we got there at 12. So we went searching for some lunch and stumbled across this yummy restaurant called the B. Bar and Grill on E. 4th Street. I had the most delicious portobello mushroom burger with roasted tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and basil aioli. Tara enjoyed a panini with grilled chicken and a whole bunch of other stuff I can't really remember.

Screaming Mimi's was such a treat! It was a haven for someone like me who loves vintage clothing. It was a little on the expensive side, but they had a huge selection of clothes that were sorted by decade. Tara and I had a lot of fun looking at all the pleather and hot pants from the 80's! If you're into vintage, I highly suggest you check it out.

After Screaming Mimi's, we wandered our way up to Union Square, stopping into stores here and there. Tara bought a black Pashmina to match mine, and we both bought cute high waisted skirts from American Apparel (Tara's in red, mine in mustard.) I also got a fun cropped t-shirt. It reminds me of Flashdance!

We then took the subway up to 66th and walked up to the new(ish) Magnolia Bakery on 70th for...

RED VELVET CUPCAKES!!!

(what else?)

As you can tell, we really enjoyed ourselves! These cupcakes were a little different, though. Every other red velvet cake, or cupcake, I've had has had cream cheese icing. These ones had just regular whipped vanilla! They were still SO yummy though!! Tara said it was probably one of the best red velvet cupcakes she had ever eaten, and I'd have to agree with her.

I was sad to have to put my lovely Tara back on the train to New Jersey because since I started going to school in New York City, I don't get to see her as much. We always have fun on her visits, though. And when I'm home in New Jersey, we always have lunch (or brunch!) and go shopping. She's like my sister and I love her.

Only 4 days until I meet my whole family in Florida for Easter! I can't wait to be in the sun!

How was everyone else's weekend?

xo

Maria Angela.

Strength

The sea's only gifts are harsh blows, and occasionally the chance to feel strong.

Now, I don't know much about the sea, but I do know that that's the way it is here.

I also know how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong

but to feel strong.

To measure yourself at least once.

To find yourself at least once in the most ancient of human conditions.

Now I don't usually like doing tiny posts like this, but I absolutely adored this quote from "Into the Wild." I watched it over my spring break. It wasn't like I expected at all. 

If any of you love the writings of Thoreau, Tolstoy and London you will love this movie. I need to read the book, too. 

I'm headed back to school today, and I finally found the charger to my digital camera! So no more grainy cell phone photos or pictures I take with Photobooth on my Mac.

Look for a more interesting post soon and have a lovely day.

all photos from here.

Spring Blossoms

I'm on break from school for the next week so I've been catching up on things away from the city. My first weekend home has been lovely. Daddy picked me up on Friday afternoon and he, Mom and I went out for a yummy sushi dinner. 

I couldn't wait to spend the night in my big, cozy bed. 

The next morning. I woke up bright and early for brunch with my cousin Tara. We went to one of our favorite restaurants: Raymond's in Montclair. We munched on omelets and fruit bowls and big cups of coffee and we split a basket of french fries. After brunch, we went to Gimmie Jimmy's which is a yummy pastry shop across the street from Raymond's.

I had a delicious red velvet cupcake with cream cheese frosting... my absolute favorite.

And even though Tara said she didn't want anything, she had a few nibbles of my cupcake. I mean, who can resist a red velvet cupcake? And this one was especially yummy. It was so light and fluffy and the frosting wasn't too sweet. It was perfect.

After dessert we shopped for a bit, and then I met Lizz, my Pearl, at our old high school to see the spring musical. It was one I'd never heard of: How to Succeed in Business Without Even Trying. It was wonderful! Besides the musical itself being hilarious, the cast did a wonderful job!

This morning, Mom and I went down by our beach house to do some antiquing. She needed a new coffee table and I've started collecting old books. I found some very lovely ones.

Aren't they darling? My favorite one is the one second to the top. It's a book entitled Cassy. I'd never heard of it before, but when I opened the front cover, I had to have it.

It reads:

Presented to

Sam Woodhouse

For Regular Attendance

And Good Behaviour

at the

Methodist New Connexion

Salem Sunday School,

Berry-Brow.

October 25, 1877.

And the boy who this book belonged to, Sam I'm guessing, doodled little pictures of horses on the facing page. Adorable, right?

So overall, I had a lovely weekend. I hope yours was just as beautiful.

La Vita è Bella

Today is my birthday!! Hooray!

My mother made me  a delicious red velvet cake with hot pink cream cheese icing and a vanilla pudding center. Even though it's half-eaten in this photo, isn't it beautiful? The color of the frosting reminded me of the gorgeous cakes and pastries in Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette. And it was so yummy!

Aside from the incredible deserts my mother made me (she is so talented when it comes to cooking and baking) I got some wonderful gifts. My favorite, by far, was a DVD from my father. It was the movie La Vita è Bella. Have you seen it?

It is truly a masterpiece. You have the option to view it dubbed in English, but I prefer to watch it in Italian with English subtitles. It's a beautiful story of love and family. It begins with Guido (Roberto Benigni) who keeps running into this beautiful woman, Dora (Benigni's true life wife, Nicoletta Braschi.) He eventually sweeps her off her feet and they marry. 5 years later, they are living happily and have an adorable son, Joshua. When the Nazis invade Italy, Guido (an Italian Jew) and Joshua are taken to a concentration camp. Since Dora is not Jewish, she is left behind. However, she forces herself onto the train to the concentration camp in order to stay with her family. Unfortunately, the men and women are separated. Guido must then hide Joshua from the Nazis, because if he is found he will be killed. In order to keep the tragedy of the situation from Joshua, he invents a game in which Joshua must earn 1,000 points. You gain points by hiding, and you lose points by wanting your mother, complaining of hunger, etc. The movie centers around Guido's continual struggle to protect his son and reunite his family.

If you have not seen it, I strongly suggest you do. It won 3 Academy Awards: Best Actor, Best Screenplay, and Best Foreign Film. This DVD is one of my favorite birthday gifts ever. I'm going to pick up the soundtrack as well. The music in the film is beautiful.

All in all, my birthday weekend was wonderful. I had a lovely dinner in the city with my parents, and then a relaxing Sunday back home. I miss the country sometimes. The city feels so barren sometimes. I miss the green.

I'm in the process of writing another short story, but if I decide to just keep writing, it might turn into the novel I've been dying to write.  I'm wondering if and how I'm actually going to post it here. Perhaps a chapter every few days? Oh well, I'll cross that bridge when it comes up I guess.

Have a lovely evening.

Complexity

As a writer, I am constantly developing and expanding. After a friend, whom I love and respect dearly as an artist, read over my blog, she had one critique for me: "I think you need to stop falling in love with people."

weheartit

My friend went on to tell me that I continually focus on one emotion at a time: sadness, longing, fleeting hope, etc. She said that if I wanted to continue to grow as a writer, that I would have to take the plunge and start focusing on more than one feeling. My initial reaction to this mimicked the proverbial lightbulb going off. Of course I had to focus on more than one feeling. 

Feelings are not singular.

weheartit

Think about it. Has there ever been a time in your life where you've been sad, and have just been sad. We're constantly complaining about how many emotions our mind swirls through when we're feeling something. Sadness is usually paired with pain and confusion. Happiness goes hand in hand with excitement and jubilance. And while many may say, "Maria Angela, those are just synonyms for one feeling," I'm willing to put money on the fact that no one has ever felt just one singular feeling. 

Even love is so complex. It's the most intricate feeling a human can feel.

weheartit

And that got me thinking... Why is love so complex? Disney teaches us that love is easy: a man loves a woman, she loves them back, and that instantly equals happily ever after. But it never seems to work that way, does it? There's the initial attraction and lust that always begins a relationship. We test each other, feel each other, kiss each other. Make love to one another. But this doesn't exactly constitute a relationship, does it? Oh no. That decision is a milestone and it seems to make or break everything. Once we decide to begin the long journey that is a relationship is when all the emotions let loose.

weheartit

There's excitement, pain, longing, worrying, happiness... more emotions than any one person can articulate. And realistically, in our society, it seems like there are only two ends to this turbulent ride: marriage or a break-up. Obviously the latter happens more often. And a break-up ushers in a new batch of emotions, most of them relating to pain. So why do we put ourselves through it? Does the means truly justify the end? Is all of that upset and hurt worth the blissfulness of love?

weheartit

I believe so. We constantly think that this time will be different, he or she won't hurt me the same way. It's like women who have had children talk about childbirth. If you remembered how painful it was, you'd never do it again. Maybe we were psychologically manufactured to be able to push the pain to the back of our mind in order give it another go around.

Because if we remembered the pain, would we ever allow ourselves to fall in love again?

weheartit

So until I sift through all of this, I'll continue to write. I'll continue to use my words as a meditation on life and love. But keeping my dear artist friend's words in mind, I'll remember our human nature and lace more feelings into my words. Because my ignoring their presence doesn't make them disappear. 

xo

Maria Angela

Post Secret

I'm a huge fan of PostSecret and I came across this postcard a few weeks ago.

I saved it and thought about sending it to the person it reminded me of.

I decided to post it here instead.

Do you recognize yourself?

Have a lovely weekend.

xo

Maria Angela

Child's Play

I came across this fun little game and decided to share my answers here.

Is there much else to do at 12:30 am on Valentine's Day?

If you could invite 8 people,dead or alive, to a dinner party who would it be and why?

1. William Shakespeare

Because his plays have changed and shaped my life in more ways than I even know.

 Because Romeo and Juliet was the first romance I ever truly believed in as a mature reader.

2. Sandro Botticelli

Because "La Primavera" made me adore Renaissance art.

 Because I spent a half hour sitting in the Botticelli room of the Uffizi in Florence with tears in my eyes.

3. Edie Sedgwick

Because she influenced an entire generation without realizing it.

Because she was effortlessly glamorous.

4. Jonathan Safran Foer

Because his novels will forever influence my writing.

 Because I want to be Oskar Schell.

5. Humphrey Bogar & 6. Lauren Bacall

Because age didn't matter.

 Because theirs was one of the only pure and true Hollywood romances.

7. John Lennon

Because his music changed a generation.

 Because he influenced the country with his art.

8. Rudolph Nureyev

Because watching him and Fonteyn in Romeo and Juliet made me want to start ballet again.

 Because he is one of the greatest dancers of all time.

Now you play.