betsy turns 21...

...And wants a lot of things. Here's a list, to get you started:

• money!!
• TOMs!! (red or canvas are the two I'm favoring)
• a professional salon cut and color
• Youth in Revolt by CD Payne
• Down With Love and Thank You For Smoking (I used to own both, but somehow during my first year at college, they disappeared)
• All four seasons of The OC on DVD
• (almost) anything from Marc Jacobs, Betsey Johnson, Juicy, or Pink! by VS
• disney soundtracks
• The Deep: The Extraordinary Creatures of the Abyss By Claire Nouvian
• MONEY or gift cards work too (Urban Outfitters, Gap, Victoria's Secret, Sephora...)
• these shoes

• bareVitamins prime time
• new foundation
• Caitlin
• My big sister
• This gun, which i found at cracker barrel:
  
• THIS APRON. or this one, either in yellow or white. or how about this one...
  
• THIS PINAFORE, or this one, by the same maker as the aprons. how cute are they!?
• PS money is always a viable option. really. then i can do all the searching/online purchasing. less work for you!
• this HANDHELD SEWING MACHINE, how badass is that? and it's on sale!

There's plenty more, I'm sure. That's all I can think of for now, though. 21 is a big change...I'm not sure I'm ready for it. It means so many things, most especially that you're pretty much officially an adult. Fer realz. More responsibilities, more decisions...but hey, also, more fun!

<3

awesome marine animals

The ocean has always been kind of enigmatic for me. It's beautiful, scary, and powerful. And it's really a different world under there, and there's still tons we have no clue about! Plus, there are some totally awesome creatures that dwell below the surface. I think we all know where this is headed: another one of my lists. I won't keep you waiting!

Betsy's List of Totally Awesome Marine Animals (in no particular order)

• Ok, first of all: the narwhal. I mean, really. an aquatic unicorn? how is that not at the top of EVERYONE'S awesome list?
• The elephant seal. A marine version of my favorite animal? win.
• The starfish. Need I say more?
• Sea Turtles. I've always had a soft spot for turtles, and seriously, ones that live forever, go on epic journeys to lay eggs, and are apparently a bunch of surfer hippies are a-ok in my book.
• Coral. I did a project on it in 4th grade; there are a majillion different kinds and it is so delicate and beautiful and fascinating! Plus, each one is 75% hermaphroditic, (yes, only part of each), so it reproduces on its own. I know, I know.
• The pigbutt worm or flying buttocks (Chaetopterus pugaporcinus) is a newly discovered species of worm found by scientists at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute. The worm is round in shape, approximately the size of a hazelnut, and bears a strong resemblance to a disembodied pair of buttocks. Because of this, it was given a Latin species name that roughly translates to "resembling a pig's rear."
  
• Benthocodon jellyfish, which basically just looks awesome.
  
• Dumbo octopus (grimpoteuthis), because it's ADORABLE.
  
• Ridgeia piscesae, or tube worms...because when I was a kid I read The Magic Schoolbus series, and in the deep-sea adventure book, someone (probably phoebe) talks about tube worms and likens them to lipstick tubes. The association just never left me, I guess.
• The Antarctic sea sponge latrunculia apicalis because I want one as a pet.
• Plus lots of others detailed in this book, which my freshman year Bio professor (the ineffable Dr. Young) has a copy of, and which I am henceforth adding to my wishlist. Check out the two unidentified species in the gallery--they're hella sick.
• Finally, this one awesome creature my cousin showed me, but the name of which escapes both of us right now. Twig/branch/tree...something? Rest assured though, it was super cool.
• New favorite of all time: the cuttlefish. they. are. AWESOME. don't believe me? check out the NOVA special on them playing on PBS these days. so badass.

books i want to read

bridget jones

confessions of a shopaholic

the lovely bones

the adventures of huckleberry fin

roots

100 years of solitude

Three Cups of Tea

Bird by Bird (Anne Lamott)
50 Acres and a Poodle (Jeanne Marie Laskas)

Lord of the Rings

Princess Bride

Ugly's Saga

Avalon High

The Daughters of the Moon

The Thief Lord

Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister

any suggestions for good reads?