Fuller House

Whatever happened to predictability? The milkman, the paperboy, evening TV? Well, they are all back after 29 years with a Fuller House. This revival of the family everyone loved and grew up with from San Francisco is back with most of the original cast, except for the Olsen Twins. I started watching last night and I must say, it is awesome. All the same feels of Full House, but updated with new cast members and storylines.  D.J. takes on the single mom role after her husband, a firefighter dies and is left with their three boys.  Sound familiar? While her Dad, Uncle Jesse, Aunt Becki, and Uncle Joey move to LA and Las Vegas to pursue their careers, D.J. is left to take care of her three boys on her own for the first time. Thats until her sister, Stephanie ditches "DJ Tanner" and trades spinning records for changing diapers to help out. Lets not forget the obnoxious Kimmie Gibbler... She has a daughter. Just let that one sink in.

As for the rest of the cast, they all look great. Uncle Jesse... Have MERCY! Him and Aunt Becki have aged like a fine wine. They did a great job casting D.J.'s son, Max. He is the cutest boy genius and has wit that made me laugh out loud. It was also very thoughtful to choose a set of twin boys to play her third son, Tommy. Although Michelle isn't present, the Olsen Twins will forever be a part of the Full House crew. Fuller House was perfectly and appropriately done. I absolutely loved everything about it. From the first episode to the last, they stayed true to its predecessor, "Full House" and pulled at your heart strings with references and one-liners from the old days.  You can now watch on Netflix since it premiered yesterday. Cue the violins, we have more lessons to learn!

The Girl on the Train

The way this book opened up, I started to become very depressed for the characters. It seemed every setback, illness, or hardship one could go through in a lifetime was the reality of their lives. Divorce, depression, alcoholism, etc. The "girl" in question, Rachel Watson, rides the local train past her old house where her ex-husband and his new wife and former mistress reside. She names people as she peers into passing homes and imagines what their lives are like. She does all of this while intoxicated to the point of blackout. She is an alcoholic.

One of Rachel's imaginary friends, through her observations on the train goes missing. From one blackout to the next, she tries to piece together what happened. Fumbling through vivid dreams and reality, she realizes the truth. And it isn't pretty, let me tell you! It took me some time to get through this book because it seemed like nothing good was ever going to happen and in my opinion, nothing did. Interesting read, but I wouldn't say I absolutely loved it. I suppose I just wasn't really surprised by anything. I didn't get that "Wow" factor.

Like Sunday, Like Rain

Sometimes we meet people in the most random of situations, creating unique and lasting connections that start out completely unexpected but later reveal themselves to be much more. That flame could burn for a lifetime, even if your time together is only a chapter in your book.

Like Sunday, Like Rain is about a mutual respect and understanding found in an unlikely place. Eleanor Logan, played by my beloved Gossip Girl Leighton Meester, forms a bond with a 12 year-old boy with whom she was hired to nanny. Reggie is a prodigy and wise beyond his years. While lost in her own journey of life, they share bits of each other to better understand and cope with their own realities. The pair nurture their bond with their love of music.
This independent film tells a pure, lighthearted story but still had me in tears for the beauty of its subtleness. I'm a sucker for piano and string instruments, so the fact Reggie composed and played his own score was fascinatingly touching. Leighton was stunning as always, but in a more simple way than what I was used to seeing her in with Blair Waldorf's character. I think a good takeaway I got from this movie is that we meet different people all the time and everyone has something in them that's special. You never know when you might meet someone that makes you look at life differently. Everyone's journey is their own.
I'd been wanting to see other work of Leighton's and was ecstatic when I saw it was released to Netflix. I would highly recommend viewing at your streaming convenience. I don't want to blow the ending, but I hope it touches you too.

Purpose

Since I listened to Made in the A.M. until my ears bled, I started listening to Justin Bieber's Purpose. The Biebs really disgusted me there for a while with his immature and reckless behavior, but I think he is really trying to turn things around for himself and I applaud him for that. I'm all about personal growth and being the best you, so you can then add to other people's lives too. I once read, "You can't pour from an empty cup. Work on yourself first." Those words could not be more true.
Anyway... Purpose. JB's comeback started with Jack U's "Where Are U Now?" Skrillex and Diplo were genius on this track and Justin's feature made it that much better. Super electronic. "What Do You Mean?" came next and I absolutely loved it. Slower, but smooth and makes you want to get up and dance. My favorite track by far on this album is "Sorry." I don't think anyone can really argue with that. Extremely catchy and fun to groove to. 

Its completely evident Justin did some real reflection and soul searching when writing and recording this album. With songs like, "Love Yourself" (co-written by Ed Sheeran), "Life Is Worth Living", and "Purpose," he slowed it down with simple beats, but powerful lyrics. You can feel his emotion and honesty. I've added these to my meditation playlist before I practice yoga at home.  
One thing I really like about Purpose is the simple sounds and melodies, but Justin's voice makes them all that more sweet. "The Feeling" verses start slow and then take off in the chorus with the help from Halsey. Another example is "Children." The bridge/chorus is electronic and upbeat, but almost solely instrumental. 
Other notable tracks are: "Company", "No Pressure" featuring Big Sean, and "No Sense" featuring Travis Scott. All have grown on me as I continued to listen the album through. From the live performances I've seen on YouTube, Bieber sounds fantastic live. If you're planning on buying tickets to see his Purpose tour, you better grab them quickly because it appears most venues are selling out! And if you purchase tickets, you get a free digital download of Purpose. Pretty sweet deal.

I must confess, I may now be a Belieber. 

The Guy in the Glass

I'd like to share one of my favorite poems. A friend introduced me to these wise words my freshman year of college and recently I flipped through an old journal I wrote them in for safe keeping. I've been doing a lot of reflection and when you feel at peace with yourself, everything else seems to fall into place. And thats who I want looking back at me.

So I share with you, Dale Wimbrow's The Guy in the Glass:
When you get what you want in your struggle for pelf, And the world makes you King for a day, Then go to the mirror and look at yourself, And see what that guy has to say.
For it isn't Father, or Mother, or Wife, Who judgment upon you must pass. The feller whose verdict counts most in your life Is the guy staring back from the glass.
He's the feller to please, never mind all the rest, For he's with you clear up to the end, And you've passed your most dangerous, difficult test If the guy in the glass is your friend.
You may be like Jack Horner and "chisel" a plum, And think you're a wonderful guy, But the man in the glass says you're only a bum If you can't look him straight in the eye.
You can fool the whole world down the pathway of years, And get pats on the back as you pass, But your final reward will be heartaches and tears If you've cheated the guy in the glass.

Made in the A.M.

My mind is completely blown by all the amazing music released lately. You all know my guilty pleasure and are probably tired of the One Direction posts, but I just think they are so wonderful. As Liam tweeted, "I love how music is always there for you when you need it most x." I really needed new music to jam out to in my car and occupy my ears at work.  Challenge accepted - 1D.
One Direction's fifth album, Made in the A.M. released yesterday and my eardrums were filled with catchy beats all day long. I'd be lying if I said I didn't still have the album on repeat. 
I pre-ordered on iTunes as soon as it was available, as any loyal fan would and loved receiving new song notifications leading up to the release. My Mom and I were lucky enough to watch 1D perform "Drag Me Down" live at their concert at Soldier Field in Chicago back in August. It was the perfect single to set the mood for great things to come. I got a Police vibe and knew this album would be a completely different animal than their previous works.

Then came "Infinity", which left me wanting to gaze up at the stars, light a few candles, and meditate. lol. Speaking of amazing, the guys then released their latest single "Perfect" with a wonderful monochrome music video to match. Chic, yet... perfect. I absolutely love the song and ended up downloading their EP with a stripped version and Matoma remix. I would highly suggest checking them out for anyone that likes acoustic songs or electronic club hits.
As for the rest of Made in the A.M.:
"Hey Angel" I think 1D picked the perfect track to roll out their album with this one. It was like the sky opened up and heaven was revealed. haha. Anyone hear a bit of U2 or better yet, Robbie Williams' "Millennium?" I do!
"End of the Day"  So many different transitions and collisions in this song. 
"If I Could Fly" The piano in this track reminds me of something Elton John would play. Beautiful ballad, but I think they should have called it "For your Eyes Only." What do you think?
"Long Way Down" Not my favorite song, but I really like the meaning. 
"Never Enough" Being Niall's favorite song on the album, I was dying to hear this one. He was entirely correct in saying that its a sound the band has never dabbled in before. Fabulous track.
"Olivia" This reminds me of the Beatles. The melodies are cheerful, like you're just strolling down the street to get a cup of tea. Harry's voice graced us with his presence through time travel because I could see him living the rockstar life in the 70s. He has that sound to him. And who is Olivia anyway? Gosh, wouldn't you LOVE to be her? lol.
"What a Feeling" The guys described the creation of this track with inspiration from Fleetwood Mac and I completely agreed. I hear "Dreams." But call me crazy, I hear a little Bee Gees too!
"Love You, Goodbye" Great writing. Great vocals. All the feels. 
"I Want to Write You a Song" Very simple, but heartfelt and lovely. This one is a more mature "Little Things".
"History" This is clearly an open letter to the fans. With five albums along with four years of touring, the guys have been through a lot with their fans. Thank you.
"Temporary Fix" Edgy with a whole lot of grit. Pop-rock at its best. Harry's voice is different than what we normally hear in his verse and I love it. Sounds like they rubbed a little dirt on this track with some attitude.
"Walking in the Wind" Harry was absolutely right by saying this song was influenced by Paul Simon's Graceland. Playful melodies and rich, comforting lyrics. This song is in the same realm as "Olivia." No surprise that Harry had a hand in the writing for both.
"Wolves" Such a proper catchy tune. As soon as the song starts, I feel the energy it brings. I didn't know at first, but it was actually co-written by one of my favorite Voice contestants, Will Champlin. Flex those writing muscles, lad! Not to toot my own horn, but I was pretty pleased when I got these Twitter notifications last night:

To say I'm having a difficult time choosing my favorite favourite song would be a complete and utter understatement. But, I think my favourite song on the album is between "A.M.", "Wolves", and "Never Enough." There is just something about how Harry delivers his chorus in "A.M." So edgy and raw with cool collisions leading to the outro. There is no doubt about it that 1D has matured as a group. From Four to Made in the A.M., I can feel a drastic change in their sound that will definitely appeal to a much larger audience. Not only can they sing and entertain, they can write! Almost every song had at least one member of the group with a hand in the writing process.    So many sounds. So many feels. I think they have transformed from a pop boy band to a 70s-80s inspired rock group. I hear the Beatles, the Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, a little Rolling Stones, and even Queen throughout the entire album. As soon as I listened through, I texted both of my parents because I felt like its an album they would thoroughly enjoy too. One Direction put their own personal stamp on influences from the past.
Aside from the music, how excellent of a job has their PR/marketing team done promoting this album? They have truly thought of everything. The pictures next to the hashtags on Twitter, album covers with each member on them, taking over iTunes cover stories, etc. Almost all of yesterday 1D's promo photos were on iTunes and then all of the sudden they were intermingled with Justin Bieber's Purpose. Which, I'm very excited to listen to that album, but I want the guys to make history with their fifth #1 on Billboard. And as I said, I think true fans are going to buy each album cover as well as what they already purchased on pre-order. Genius! That's potentially five albums purchased. I think the race to #1 will be tight, but I hope the Directioners pulled this one out for our four favourite lads from across the pond. 

Will this be the end for 1D? I'm not sure, but I really hope not. This album has been such a success so far that I think they would do their fans a disservice by not releasing more music and performing for fans new and old. If you didn't think they were talented before, Made in the A.M. should confirm the obvious... One Direction is one of the most talented bands of all time.  

H

Putting together a costume for Halloween is one of my favorite things to do. Whoever or whatever I plan to dress up as, I like to do it right. Much like how I like to do most things, go big or go home. This Halloween I tossed a couple ideas back and forth, which I won't reveal since I might use them in the future. But, just last week I landed upon Mr. Styles. Harry Styles, that is. He's 1/4 of One Direction and I find him absolutely intriguing. I pretty much wear a lot of what he wears anyway, I just needed a noisy shirt, tattoos, and brown hair.  Sally Beauty supply had a temporary spray for $4.99, so I had the brown hair down. I was really able to get some body using Bumble and Bumble's styling lotion. This is a product I use daily, but I used a little bit more than usual to get luscious locks like Mr. Styles. I've read that One Direction's stylist, Lou uses it on the guys hair too. Double points for authenticity! The shirt is actually from a set of pajamas at Forever 21. lol. Perfect for Harry though. He loves himself a good polka dot print. And finally, the tattoos. Harry has quite a few, over 40 actually so they were a must. You can't be H without his tattoos. Luckily, popstartats.com came through for me on this one. They were super easy to apply and their customer service was awesome!

I researched where each tattoo went, so you will find that my placement is pretty spot on! As I said before, you gotta do these things the right way!

Allow me to introduce you to, Mr. Styles.

Here is a better view of the tattoos.

Anyway, I thought I would share how I put together my Harryween costume this year. See what I did there? Until next time, you know because me and the band are taking a break starting in March! ;)

All the love. H