White Dress, Green Vest

I'm hoping that by the time you're reading this, I've gotten a full night's sleep. Or better, maybe I'm still in bed with a full cup of coffee waiting for me for whenever I decide to get up. Last week was so busy (and wonderful), but the only thing missing from it was just a little bit of time to do nothing and sleep. This week is slowly filling up, especially with Thanksgiving/friends and family in town visiting, but I should be able to find a chance to catch up on rest. While nothing could really top seeing Jenny Lewis or Nick Offerman, I still had a great last few days with really good friends. I got to see my friend Greg, who was visiting from Utah, on Thursday, my old Chem class lab group (who still gets together often after becoming good friends) got together for food and drinks on Friday, and I hung out with a few of my best friends for more food and drinks on Saturday. I feel like I've spent a lot of time lately really appreciating what great friends I have, especially after talking with a couple of girls at work who have had harder times finding friends who stick around. I don't know, maybe it's the fact that Thanksgiving in a few days, but I can't help but feel truly lucky to have so many people in my life who would do anything for me, and whom I would do anything for. This is too sappy already, so I'll just quit before it gets too embarrassing and my friends start making fun of me for it, which, let's be honest, is what all true friends would do.

I wore this outfit to have dinner with my family yesterday, and I really liked the contrast of this vest with the pretty white dress. This dress is still one of my favorite pieces that I own, and this time, I decided to grab a scarf quickly on my way out the door. It ended up being the perfect way to accessorize, don't you think?

Two Headed Boy

I apologize ahead of time if this post ends up not making any sense since I'm writing it late at night and half asleep, but this is what I wore to see Neutral Milk Hotel yesterday. In case I haven't said it enough times, Neutral Milk Hotel is one of my favorite bands of all time, and my best friends, Adam and Whitney, bought me a ticket to see them at the Hollywood Bowl for my birthday earlier this summer. I've been in love with Neutral Milk Hotel since I was about 14 or 15, and it's one of those bands that got me through high school and that I have a huge emotional attachment to. Since the band officially broke up in 1999 (after only putting out two albums, including one of the greatest albums of all time, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea), I've spent most of my life under the impression that I would never get to see them perform live. Fortunately, the band surprised everyone by announcing a reunion tour last year, and I knew I had to see them. Of course, when I missed the chance to see them in Illinois last year, I went back to assuming I had missed them forever, so getting to see them yesterday was an actual dream come true. I can't even put the concert into words since it was so incredible. It was surreal seeing a band I'm so attached to and have spent years listening to through headphones and in my car, especially on particularly bad days, live. Jeff Mangum, the band's creator and lead singer, is one of my musical heroes and hearing him sing "Two Headed Boy," one of my favorite songs of all time, solo on stage was one of the best experiences of my life. I have no shame in admitting that I got pretty emotional. I think it's pretty understandable though.

Enough of the emotional rants about Jeff Mangum, though. Let's talk about this dress. I had contemplated getting this Dahlia lace dress for my birthday from my parents, but as you know, I settled on the Swedish Hasbeens instead. I'm obviously happy with my decision, but I never really stopped thinking about this dress. So, of course, when Dahlia had a huge sale recently, I had to snatch this beauty up for a steal. It's a little tricky to wear since it has an open back, and I can't exactly get away with going bra-less. Instead, it just gives me another good excuse to throw on  a cardigan. Not that I need one.