All Hail West Texas, Pt. 2 (More Pictures)

When I left off the last post, we had just started (full) Day 2 at Big Bend. We ate breakfast and packed up the camp since it was to be our last night there and hit the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive through the park. We stopped along the way and hiked the Mule Ears Point Trail, which I found more forgiving than the Window trail, despite the lack of shade. We hiked all the way down to Mule Ears Spring, which was all dried up, despite all the rain we got the previous night and back to the car, about 3 miles round-trip. From the trailhead, it was back on the road with stops at Tuff Canyon for some pretty scenic views.

See the "mule ears" in the distance?

Tuff Canyon

Cerro Castellan as seen from Tuff Canyon

When I Grow Up

The question of what I want to do when I grow up has been looming large in my life lately. A forum that I frequent just had a discussion about quarter-life crises this morning. I had a job interview last week that asked me what my dream job was. A couple weeks ago, I took a psychology test that is supposed to overlap your skills, interests and aptitudes and suggest areas of development. As my 27th birthday approaches (June 22, for those keeping score and/or watching my Amazon wish list), I think I can't help but feel a little anxious over here. Aren't I supposed to know by now? Why haven't I figured everything out? How is grownup formed?

All Hail West Texas, Pt. 1 (Picture Heavy)

I just got back from the most amazing Memorial Day Weekend, I hope all you Americans enjoyed yours, as well. And the non-Americans, I hope you enjoyed your non-Memorial Day weekend, too!

My boyfriend has been trying to get me out to Big Bend National Park in West Texas basically since we started dating a few years ago. I was a Girl Scout for ten years but with my mom being the leader, we were more Troop Beverly Hills than Red Feathers* types. I am also blessed with biology that causes me to be swarmed by mosquitos and other insects that want my blood within mere minutes of being outside, making me not a prime camping candidate. When we first got together, I wasn't as Outdoor Afro** as I am now so he had to ease me into the idea with short hikes and picnics around Austin to longer day trips and camping overnights at state parks in our area. After a successful 3 day/2 night stay at Rocky Mountain National Park last summer during which I wasn't eaten by any bears or cougars, I finally relented to the Big Bend trip last fall.

We left out late on Friday night so we didn't arrive at Big Bend until after 1 a.m. As soon as we got there, we staked out an unoccupied campsite at the Chisos Basin campground and Alex quickly set up the tent while I took care of the reservation fees. The night sky was so clear you could see the Milky Way so I begged Alex to take the rain cover off the tent so we could sleep under the stars. The drive in was especially dark and creepy (no lights along the roads) but the campsite was quiet and peaceful, so I really had no idea what to expect when I woke up in the morning.

Reason #147510751071 Why I Need a Dog

My 90s nostalgia kick has officially reached critical mass because I actually spent 99 cents in the App Store for the Hatchi app, which pretty faithfully transfers strangely addictive experience of owning Tamagotchi from cheap plastic to a $500 smartphone. Not I named my first Hatchi Joffrey I guess because for some reason I subconsciously wanted him to be the worst.

Well, mission accomplished... seriously, what kind of monster hates pizza? Pretty much up there with beheading and baby murdering.

It's not quite a substitute for my desire having a furry buddy around (which has also reached critical mass... I actually went to a pet store & hung out with some rats today) but a fun distraction for only a little over a dollar after tax.

Technical Difficulties

For whatever reason, this site has only been available intermittenly by the custom domain www.sevenbrights.com so I just ended up disabling it altogether because I'm lazy. Back to sevenbrights.blogspot.com and your regularly scheduled bullshitting.

Recovering Musicalaholic

I am no stranger to talking about my guilty pleasures on this blog so it should come as no surprise to anyone for me to announce that I LOVE MUSICALS. Some of my fondest memories as a kid are watching and singing along with The Sound of Music (and Mary Poppins and Bedknobs & Broomsticks & The Wiz, et al.) with my mom. To this day, I still think Julie Andrews is the Queen Bee. When I got older, I joined choir and I even dabbled a bit in musical theater (chorus member in high school productions of Fiddler on the Roof and Fame, here) and even got a lead role as Lucy in You're A Good Man Charlie Brown in a community theater production. But by the time I was a sophomore in high school, my interests had shifted from performing to writing so I haven't danced or sang for an audience since (outside of karaoke).

Despite my lack of performing within the last 12 (!) years, musicals still hold a soft spot in my heart. While I am not a big fan of say, Glee (although I can see myself being really into it if it had debuted when I was 14), when I saw the preview to NBC's Smash after last spring's upfronts to say that I was immediately hooked from the first few notes of Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful" would be an understatement. I knew that this was a guilty pleasure show right up there with True Blood (which thankfully comes back next month) for me, regardless of how bad it turned out... which as it turns out, can be pretty bad sometimes a lot of the time. So maybe Katherine McPhee isn't a good actress and it isn't always believable or even entirely coherent or but when Smash is good, it's really good, which is almost entirely thanks to the original music. The songs are so well-written that I would actually pay to see "Bombshell" (the show within the show based on the life of Marilyn Monroe, for the uninitiated) if it were real. I may or may not have caught myself listening to some of the songs during a Spotify private listening sessions, that's all I'm saying.

(image via.)

But regardless of my feelings about the show, what I really wanted to write about was Karen Cartwright's (Katherine McPhee) dreamy boyfriend black handbag with gold studs that I've been lusting after for the past few episodes. Apparently, I'm not the only one because the first result for my Google search of "karen cartwright purse handbag" came up with a link to the blog Justified Obsession, who tracked it down.

The brand is ROMYGOLD and the Drew Stud Hobo costs $495. Karen's version is black with rose gold studs but it comes in a few other color combinations. But really, Smash? Struggling up and coming performer, $200-a-week-workshop-salary Karen can splurge on a $500 bag? Or was it a gift from her dreamy successful boyfriend or the movie star, Rebecca Duvall? I had at least an inkling of hope it might be the kind of bag that I a girl like Karen could pick up at Macy's or JC Penney or Forever 21, you know, somewhere where poors shop. Way to dash my dreams, television. Truly nothing in the entertainment industry is what is seems.

Anyway, Smash just wrapped up for the season so now most shows are going on summer hiatus, you can probably catch up on Hulu or NBC.com, if you're so inclined. And what the hell, this post also gives me an excuse to post a picture of Raza Jaffery, who plays Karen's boyfriend, Dev, on the show. I forgive him for that embarrassing Bollywood number because he looks really good a suit.

Lately I'm Into...

Flipboard for iPad + the whole Internet

I got an iPad earlier this year and this is definitely my favorite app. Flipboard's primary function is as a news reader but I think it's best way to view almost any content on the web. When you first sign up, you get to pick feeds from sites that are relevant to your interests from several outlets, whether it's news, tech, entertainment or fashion and it's delivered to you in a pretty, easy to digest format. However, my favorite feature is the ability to import my personal feeds from other services. It's not secret that I'm a Google Reader junkie (although I am really sad about them doing away with the social aspects of the service earlier this year) and I love that I can sign in and view all my feeds (200+) and folders (22) are organized and ready to flip through in a gorgeous-magazine style UI. In fact, I actually prefer catching up on my unread blog posts this way (curled up in bed or on the couch with iPad, flipping through) instead of the Google site on my laptop or the mobile version of the Reader, which leaves something to be desired. I can quickly save an article to Pocket* for later reading or share a blog post directly from Flipboard to my Facebook, Twitter or Tumblr.

I also love viewing my Instagram feed via Flipboard (I actually prefer it over the Instagram iPhone app interface, which is already pretty much perfect). You can view photos in your feed at full-size, comment and like friends' photos as much as you want and view the "popular" feed - everything you need, just short of actually being able to take photos, edit and upload them from within the app. It's like getting to flip through a magazine with fresh daily content curated just for you. And it's freeeee!

Ming Doyle's Girl Reporter Print Set

I ordered these little prints months ago but they've sat collecting dust until recently because I was convinced I had accidentally thrown away Girl Reporter Friday & couldn't bear the thought of displaying an incomplete set. She turned up when I cleaned my room but I haven't figured out how I'll put them up yet. Ming Doyle is exceptionally talented (check out her other work)! I love these sassy ladies and at $12 for the whole set, they're a steal.

This ring.

Y'all know how I love my jewelry, the bigger the better. I seem to have misplaced** my favorite ring - doubly sad for the facts that 1) I bought it last year so it's probably no longer in stores and 2) I bought it at H&M which until recently has eluded the state of Texas but hell if I'm driving to Dallas to find out. On the plus side, I found a ridiculous suitable replacement at Forever 21 yesterday. I love it but I do not love retailers being so unimaginative and lazy the last few seasons that they slap the label of "tribal" or "ethnic" on just about everything.

Finally mastering cat-eye eyeliner after forever.

People keep asking me for tips or pointers but really all I can say is gel eyeliner (I used e.l.f. cream eyeliner - no particular reason other than because it's $3) + an angled brush + a lot of practice. I DON'T KNOW, GUYS, IT'S MAGIC.

* Another free app that I love!
** There seems to be a pattern here...