set yourself on fire

hmm. november seems to have slipped through my fingers. it was a good month though. ate a lot of food. hope it was good for you too.

now it's december...finals and end of semester scramble. lots of fun times...in the library.

i was introduced to stars this year and i'm kind of addicted. take a listen, it might become your new study/chill mix. pandora radio station is worth a listen of them.

i'm working hard the last couple of weeks, to see if i can pull through. i finish next week on thursday and heading home on friday. my home and tons of books await me. i've never read any jane austen, shocking i know, so i shall read some works. throw some cecelia ahern in the mix and some old favorites. it will be a grand old time. can't wait.

and i'll be heading to the movies to catch up on all the films i haven't seen.

oh, speaking of which. i saw Amelie finally. it was incredible. so is the soundtrack. definitely go check out both. i'm in love with Jean-Pierre Jeunet and his genius.

i shall be back during one of my next study breaks. especially when i'll be studying for art history. i'll put up some of my favorites. lots to choose from since my last exam is going to cover rococo to pop art. it's a bit crazy, but i can't wait to study for it.

hope your week is starting off well. good luck to those in finals or approaching finals. it's almost over. be back soon...i promise lol

-Genevieve

give me art, or give me death

since i'm kind of obsessed with female artists, and we're now starting to see female artists in my art history class, i'm super stoked. my t.a. recommended the French film, Artemisia about Artemisia Gentileschi's early artistic career. it's very romanticized and much of the story is not true to real life, but the plot they created is interesting and the acting is pretty great. it's a super lovely time period and i'll warn you that it is a but scandalous. however, worth watching.

i spent a couple of hours at the library this afternoon finding books for my cultural diversity paper. i tend to get side-tracked in buildings with many books and films. time seems to stop and all that i can think about is i wish i could sit down and just read til i fall asleep. for my paper, i have chosen to write about the diverse population that is Native Americans. and i'm supposed to choose government policies that have affected them positively or negatively. i'm quite excited. i enjoy writing papers when i get to choose a topic. even though i took out 7 books for my paper, i also took out 3 films. i wanted to take out 4, but wasn't allowed. i think i'm going to forgo sleep this weekend. i took out Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Le scaphandre et le papillon (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) and La Prise de Pouvoir Par Louis XIV (The Taking of Power by Louis XIV). parlez-vous français?

this weekend is the downtown festival and art show, so i'll try to go and take some cool pics. this weekend should be pretty interesting on the creativity front.

last night was an event night at the museum of art where i volunteer and we had some craft stations. i kept walking around and trying out the different ones, but one that i found so interesting was making rings out of colorful wire. so simple but yet so pretty. jewelry design is something that has always fascinated me. i'd love to meet someone that makes jewelry out of metals and different materials. here's the swirly, rose ring i made (at least that's what i'm calling it)

i'm definitely going to make more rings. just need to get some wire and the tools. anyway, i'm off to go to a fine arts event, where all the different schools are going to display their recent work. should be pretty cool. hope all is well in your world. i'll be back soon, au revoir,

-Genevieve

do what you love, love what you do

happy halloween...a little late. i wasn't prepared for november, but it's here so i guess i'm just going to roll with it. the weather's getting nice, i'm excited.

so i took my art history exam yesterday and it went well. i got a bit confused with dates, as per usual. but all in all it wasn't too terrible. i know a lot of times the century, just can't quite remember if it was early or mid years of that century. names and artists are the easy part, especially when you come up with funny ways of remembering it. i chose to answer the essay question of comparing & contrasting high renaissance and mannerism. these are the works i used to argue my case:

Raphael's Madonna of the Meadow (1505)

Giorgione's Sleeping Venus (c. 1510)

Parmigianino's Madonna of the Long Neck (1535-1540)

Bronzino's Venus, Cupid, Folly and Time (c. 1545)

and i've now become obsessed with learning about women artists like Sofonisba Anguissola and Artemisia Gentileschi. i'm in the process of reading about some other women artists, but here's my favorites:

Sofonisba Anguissola's The Artist's Sister Minerva (c. 1564)

Artemisia Gentileschi's Self Portrait as the Allegory of Painting (1630s)

well that's some of my loves. i think there's too many to...oh wait. one more. this one i'm really obsessed with. mostly because it reminds me of a camera lens:

Parmigianino's Self Portrait in a Convex Mirror (c. 1524)

ok, i'm done. i think. if i think of more, i'll come on and put them up. we're almost done with baroque and now moving into rococo. can't wait.

well, i hope your week is going well. half way done. be back soon,

-Genevieve

the maps of the future blur and clear

it's not who you are that holds you back, it's who you think you're not -anonymous

i'm in somewhat shock that october has flashed before my eyes. it's been a good month. not too terrible, i've survived some crazy days and all nighters.

it's 3 am and i'm heading to bed, but i'm somewhat wide awake. i've been super anxious the last couple of days. in a good way though. i'm very aware of the present and what needs to get done, but i just want to keep planning things that i can't really plan. thinking about the future is so strange. but intriguing at the same time. the future is a big question mark within a question mark staring me in the face. it's as if i know that i can plan something, but it's not ever going to be something set in stone. and it's confusing, but oddly wonderful at the same time.

i forgot how much i like this song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cweU7DlXVAk&NR=1

it completely fits my mood.

i've been studying for art history. like hardcore studying. well maybe not completely, but it feels like i can put so much effort into art history and it doesn't bother me. it's my passion. if i could marry a subject, it would be art history. he has that spontaneous and romantic flair that i can't get enough of. enough said.

when i come back (after some sleep) and i promise it will be soon, i shall share some favorites from what i'm studying. hope you are well. remember, "don't worry about a thing, cause every little thing gonna be alright". good night,

-Genevieve

it's all coming back to me now

when i was in high school, i used to go to a lot of concerts. it was the thing to do with my friends. we didn't go to many mainstream, pay-$100-to-see-me-live shows. we went to the indie shows and warped tour. and recently thinking about going to see certain bands, i realized how much i miss it. i miss going to listen to your favorite songs, dancing and screaming your heart out, camera stalking the lead singers and moshing until you couldn't breathe. good times. it was a pretty big part of our lives. we would go and then buy the shirts to rep the bands we saw, and hope that after the show they would come out and say hello. the autographs didn't mean as much as getting a pic with your favorite band member. it was the highlight of the week.

so, i started looking up shows around here and of course started looking up bands that i saw in the line-up. there's nothing better than discovering new music.

anyway, just being a bit nostalgic. and since i haven't put up a music post in a while. i decided to share a cool find.

if you ever listened to dispatch, then you should check out state radio. it's with one of the guys from dispatch and with a similar vibe. on myspace they categorize themselves as 'rock/reggae/indie' but i don't think that's enough of a description. if you've never heard, then i suggest a listen.

i hope you like it, i'll come back with some other stuff i've found or been recommended next time. i'm going to go try to be productive as i look up some more shows. hope all is well,

-Genevieve

leaving your mark

"Have no fear of perfection - you'll never reach it." -Salvador Dalí

"This is your one opportunity to do something that no one has ever done before and that no one will copy throughout human existence. And if nothing else, you will be remembered as the one guy who ever did this.This one thing."

-Sam from Garden State

"If you can't laugh at yourself, life is going to seem a whole lot longer than you'd like" -Sam

i'm in love with this painting. i don't think i can begin to describe how much i love it. it's Salvador Dalí's Gala Contemplating the Mediterranean Sea which at Twenty Meters Becomes the Portrait of Abraham Lincoln - Homage to Rothko (1976). my mum took me to the Salvador Dalí museum a week ago. if you ever get the chance to go, i highly suggest it. it was incredible. this painting is one of his masterworks and it's ten times better in person. Dalí did his own thing and that's why i admire him so much. he wasn't afraid of doing what he wanted. he sought to stand out and sought to defy the norm. he's sort of my hero.

i've been thinking a lot about how i just want to do something no one's ever done before. set some sort of first in history. i think it would be pretty neat. just sayin.

if you've done a first, kudos. i hope your week's been good. be back soon,

-Genevieve

the older the fiddler, the sweeter the tune

i found this in my notebook. my thought, random sketch, poetry, inspiration, quotes, everything notebook. i just thought it fit my mood and i wanted to share it with you all. i tend to write myself little quotes or notes like this. because sometimes when i most need it, i come across them and then i remember. i remember how i felt when i wrote it. and somehow, it relaxes me.

this week has been the craziest week this semester so far. but i made it. and today i celebrate another awesome year alive. it's been a nice day and i'm excited because my mum is coming up to visit me. i'll try to be a bit more cyber alive next week. no exams or papers thankfully.

i hope your week wasn't too bad. and i hope you have a nice weekend.

peace and posi+ive energy to you,

-Genevieve

cause you gotta have faith

october's here. that was quick. i'm excited for this month. it is the month in which i was born and it's halloween and the weather is going to get nice. i'm stoked.

i have this weird addiction to george michael's 'faith'. not his faith literally that would be even more weird, but the song. you probably know the tune, it's one of the fabulously cheesy 80s songs that gets stuck in your head and you can't do anything but really want to listen to it. or in my case, dance around my dorm to it. i don't think i like it so much because of the music per se, but more for the lyrics. and i'm not a gay man getting over a bad break up either. but i think having faith in anything or anyone is something you gotta do. it keeps me going, when times get tough. so "before this river becomes an ocean", i'm just going to drink some coffee, listen to some music and occasionally dance around my dorm.

some interesting, cute and funny things i've seen in the last couple of weeks (that i wish i would have taken pictures of)...

i saw a student walking around with a parasol in the sun. she made my day.

i was stopped at a light and a guy in scrubs skated by on a longboard. it made me laugh and kind of want to meet him.

i eat lunch outside the library a lot and i always see the coolest people on the coolest bikes go by. especially one guy with killer dreads.

i met a seven week old kitten that had been taken in as a stray. she was fragile, under nourished and tiny, but she was so adorable.

i found the pics on flickr. but maybe next time i'll have a cam and the daring to try to take a shot of what i witness.

well i hope you have a happy friday and that you get to witness something interesting, cute and or funny. be back soon,

-Genevieve

the joys of forced relaxation

In a haze, a stormy haze
I’ll be round, I’ll be loving you, always

Always

Here I am and I'll take my time

Here I am and I’ll wait in line, always

Always

-"Parachutes" by Coldplay

one of my favorites from my class. i don't remember if it was on the exam, but i don't think i'll ever forget it. it's Filippo Lippi's Madonna and Child with Stories of the Life of St. Anne (1452). i just wanted to share it with you.

i've been sick all weekend, but i don't have any swine related illness, just your average cold. nothing to do but sleep, watch hulu and drink my weight in o.j.. i'm in the library right now, procrastinating the work i didn't do this week lol. or well in my mind i'm 'multi-tasking', but it's just a slow process of accomplishment. all in all though, i feel much better. happy to blog again. maybe tomorrow i'll come back on and have something a bit more exciting. til then, i hope your monday isn't too rough. ciao,

-Genevieve

something about table settings

i can't believe it's tuesday already. where did the weekend and monday go? well, i hope you had a nice weekend and your monday wasn't too tough. i've been writing papers and now studying for my first art history exam. things are crazy, but i'm enjoying what i'm studying so i guess it's ok.

on saturday night i went out to dinner with some friends to this really cool pizza place. i took some shots while we were waiting for the food and they also have a store with knick knacks and things. i took a pic of a door that was decorated all in beads and little decorations. i'm completely in love with this idea. i hope i can somehow recreate that door, maybe in a table or something. and last night with some people that live in my building, we had a mini tea party. so i took some shots of the scrumptious food of course. i have this new found interest in photographing tables with eating utensils and glasses. here they are...

happy news: i bought some dyes and t-shirts with my friend to tie-dye. hopefully we can squeeze it into our schedule soon.

and i don't really think many people do this but this is my 50th blog post :) woo. i think it's kinda cool, maybe it's just me.

anyway, hope you are doing well. sending warm thoughts your way, be back soon,

-Genevieve