spring has almost sprung!

These past two weeks have been nothing short of exciting! Where to begin?!
As I already ranted about, two weeks ago my school was shut down because of some dumb sewer system problem... long story short, I went on a four day shopping spree that's wiped me out for a couple of months. Also in the beginning of the month I accepted an award/scholarship for my hours of community service- Special Olympics, Princess Project, etc. and the dinner/ceremony banquet I was dreading actually turned out to be pretty swell! I had no idea it was such a big deal, but the banquet dinner was held in a Sofitel Hotel, I was allowed to bring my family and one guest from my school, and I was seated at problably the best table in the house! I networked, met new people, smiled, etc. etc. and even met Congresswoman Anna Eshoo. Oh the perks.

Anyhow. This past week i only had classes for Monday-Tuesday. So Wednesday-Thursday I went on a fantastic little surf trip down in Santa Cruz! Weatherwise, we definitely got lucky. It had been raining the whole week, but for Wednesday-Thursday it stopped for some beautiful, sunny, 70 degree weather! The waves were prime for surfing too! It really couldn't have been any better. Unfortunately though, since the beautiful weather caught me off guard I got a little bit of a sun burn... which only got worse this weekend.

So I guess my thumbs up wasn't such a good idea? Hence, the leaning tower.

As you may or may not know, I'm an obnoxiously huge San Francisco Giants fan. So this weekend was my 3rd Spring Training out in Arizona! Again, weatherwise, I got SUPER lucky, as it was raining in Arizona, but was beautifully sunny this weekend! Either way, rain or shine, I would've been a happy camper... I was at Giants Spring Training! We stayed at a lovely Kimpton Hotel (my favorites) called the FireSky, in Scottsdale. One night we went to this fabulous restaurant called the Old Tortilla Factory, even though we were told it'd be an hour an a half wait, we ended up waiting only 45 mins, but it was definitely worth it! I watched 2 games, met many players, got tons of autographs, and even saw 4 Hall of Famers- Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Gaylord Perry, and Will Clark. Let me just say, I'm in love with a couple of rookies. Cuuuuties!

Last night I returned home, sunburnt... again, tired, but absolutely ecstatic for the 2010 SF Giants baseball season. We pick our season ticket games tomorrowww! Alright, that's enough ranting. Happy Monday! Am I being facetious? I can't even tell at this point.

What fantastic things did you do this weekend?

stay classy,
madeleine

oh the simple joys in life.

Your school has snowdays. My school has sewage days.

Sunday evening I got an email from my school saying classes were cancelled Monday, and I was absolutely ecstatic! I love pleasant surprises like that! Then Monday something was posted online that the school will be closed down until Thursday... due to sewage problems... gross, but I'll take what I can get! It's a bit pathetic, if you think about it (and trust me, with all of this extra time on my hands, I have had lots of time to think) a school closing down for sewage issues and water overflow is perhaps the lamest/most disgusting/poorest excuse ever! Oh well! I'm loving it! Except for the fact that somewhere in the near future we will have to eventually make up these days. I'm hoping and praying it won't cut into spring break, as that would mean cutting into my New York trip! Boo! This month will be quite spectacular. I'm assuming two days of school this week... at the most, next week I only have two days as well, as I am going on a surf trip with a couple of classmates/teachers next Wednesday-Thursday. And then, Friday-Sunday I will be in Arizona for Giants Spring Training! I'm praying to be in the hot sun, as it's been quite dreary and rainy around here lately. Blah.

Whatever. All of this downtime has allowed for a TON of shopping, and a TON of time for my art. Shopping first.... The only good thing from the rain that I have gleaned, is that I finally got an opportunity to wear my new rainboots with houndstooth print! Yay! However, I'm still on the search for another pair of leather boots. While galavanting around in my rainboots, I picked up two... not one, but two... boyfriend blazers! One in black, one in gray. Love, love, loveee them! Who said rainy days always have to be gloomy?

I decided to post a couple of pictures of the new collage/painting I started this weekend. It's about 1/4 done, minus the glossing/glazing I still have to do. I still need to repeat the smoke swirl thing on the top part, and then my UNDERpainting will be complete. I'm definitely having fun with this one! Anyhow, as I am flipping through and am watching My Life As Liz, and her prom predicament... I'm realizing my own senior prom is in less than 2 months away! Therefore, I need to find a dress! Ahhh! Oh boy...

stay classy,

madeleine

currently watching: My Life As Liz 
^It's becoming a favorite show! She's ridiculously kick-ass
currently craving: those pillsbury cookies that are pre-cut, so all you have to do is put them out on a baking sheet, and have designs according to the season (pumpkins/hearts/american flags/shamrocks/bunnies).

little secrets.

Today I took a midterm for my AP art history class... A midterm in February? I know right? A bit outrageous, if you ask me. Anyways, despite the fact that I absolutely love the era we're studying, Renaissance painting/sculpture/architecture, I have this terrible feeling that I bombed the test. Not much I can do now though, I suppose.

Anyways, I thought I'd post a picture of my recently completed collage:
(currently) Untitled - 12x12"


So funny story... This project, along with my other painting which is in progress, was selected for my art class and teacher to critique this week. All I could think was, "Shit, now I have to make up some ridiculous reasoning explaining my thought process behind this"... and that's what precisely what I did.

I constructed this multimedia collage/project to signify the importance of independence. I started this project during Valentines day, and essentially, this is supposed to represent a almost satire-like commentary on the holiday. On the borders are bits from the Commitments section of the newspaper... the ripped up, separated bits, symbolizing the superficiality of some marriages. I added pink flowers, butterflies, angels, etc. to cause an emotional overload on viewers, overwhelming them with Valentines nostalgia. Does it seem overly sentimental? Yes- and that is my intention, because that is precisely what I believe Valentines Day is...overly sentimental and superficial-at least in the way our culture portrays it. The central image of the piece is the single woman, almost liberated from the picture. Who says Valentines Day requires a significant other?

I pulled out something along those lines when giving my little artist commentary. Honestly, when I was working on this, I was just having fun! Was that meaning what I intended from the very beginning? Nope. But now that I created a fabulous story behind it, it's quite believable.... right? However, I'm not that much of a critic of Valentines Day.... afterall, no one likes a Debbie Downer.

In other news, my trip to Arizona for a weekend in March for Giants spring training, is all planned out! Everything except the hotel. Anyone know any fabulous hotels in the Scottsdale, AZ area? Hmmm. Nonetheless, I can't wait! I'm planning on getting a nice tan (I'm hoping no sunburns like last year!), watching some good baseball, and meeting some of the amazing players. I love spring training! I'm an avid, no, diehard, no, EXTREME SF Giants fan... it's my little secret!

What's your little secret? ;]

P.S. Follow me on TWITTER! please and thank you.

stay classy,
madeleine