If I Can't Go To the Spa, I'll Bring the Spa To Me!

I confess. I did not watch the Golden Globes last night. I saw a few of the red carpet entrances, and thought that Julie Bowen and Sofia Vergara both looked stunning, and wanted to push Zooey Deschanel's hair behind her ears, but other than that...I got nothing. Instead, I fought a horrible 24-hour stomach bug and watched Guillermo del Toro's Don't Be Afraid of the Dark, an episode of Sherlock, and the newest My Fair Wedding with David Tutera. I was sick. Don't judge me.

In addition to dealing with a stupid virus, I also spent much of this weekend moving house. We're nowhere near done, but things are starting to look a little less like piles of junk, and a little more like nice people live there. My living room curtains totally and completely suck, but other than that, I'm really happy with how things are turning out. I'll try to remember to take some pictures tonight when I go over with the next load o'stuff, but the guest bathroom and bedroom are quickly becoming my favorite rooms in the house.

The guest bathroom was this very strange shade of moss green, and there wasn't time to paint over it (we were already painting two other rooms), so I decided to go with it and try to create a very Zen atmosphere. I'm not done, yet--I still need to switch out the toilet seat cover and some light bulbs, and bring in a few little knick-knacks and pictures--but the current state is very promising.

As I said, I hope to take some pictures this evening, but here's how things are starting out:

Photo Credit: Bed Bath & Beyond

First off, I kept the shower curtain I bought for the apartment. It's the same moss green with chocolate sections and itty-bitty coppery sequins. Bed Bath & Beyond, $44.99. (Dear God, I didn't pay anything near that much!) There is also a matching bathmat, but I can't find it online anywhere...yet. Working on it.

Photo Credit: Target

Next, my sweet Thomas hung some pretty little white shelves for me. One is about 11 inches long, and the one centered beneath it is 18. Here's the shorter of the two. Target's website hates me, so I can't locate the long one. They're only available in stores, anyway, and the two together ran about $15.

Photo Credit: Target

Across the top of the top, smaller shelf, runs this little row of white tealights. Target, $9.99 plus tealights.

Photo Credit: Target

The white sink with chrome fixtures is set in a beige countertop over dark wood cabinetry, I tried to combine as much of that as possible into a simple, elegant floral arrangement. Here's the best I could do, and I just love it. Target, $21.39.

Photo Credit: JC Penney (I got the one with the moss green stripes)

Of course, you have to have towels in a bathroom, and I decided to go with simple, basic white. These, from JC Penney, are the best towels I have ever used. They dry quickly, hold their color, and don't shed all over the place. $4.00 each, JC Penney.

Finally, I decided to fill the entire room with a soothing scent. Bath and Body Works has a wonderful line of Stress Relief aromatherapy products (prices vary). I have the hand soap, candle, and wallflower in Eucalyptis Spearmint, and it's heavenly. Toss in some new chrome drawer pulls, a few massage stones, and some black and white photos, and I think we'll have us one gorgeous bathroom.

Any home renovations going on in your life? Tell us about them in the comments.

Surprise, Surprise!

I guess today's them is "Surprise!"  For starters, the deli downstairs had pumpkin bread available...Surprise! 

Okay, so maybe it's just sad that I'm so excited over pumpkin bread, but it's the little things, folks.  It's the little things.

The Golden Globe nominations were announced this morning, and with them came a few more surprises.  There were zero nominations for the Coen brother's True Grit, and zero acting noms for Inception (my favorite movie of the year, so far).  However, The Tourist, Burlesque, and Alice In Wonderland (the most boring, disappointing piece of drivvel I've had the misfortune of sitting through in years) were all awarded multiple nominations?  I am perplexed. 

I will say, it was nice to see Mila Kunis and Emma Stone listed among the nominees.  Mila Kunis is highly undervalued, in my opinion.  She's a pretty face who isn't afraid to be ugly.  She excels at comedy, and even in cameos and bit parts can be the highlight of a film.  Her dramatic skills are nothing to sneeze at (apparently, since her nom is for the decidedly non-comedic Black Swan), and she's a very talented voice-artist--not an easy job, if I do say so myself.  I was thrilled to see her receive this kind of recognition.

Miss Stone is an up-and-comer that I've been watching for some time.  Some of her films have been a little less than stellar (House Bunny, anyone?), but her performances in Superbad and Zombieland were real, touching, and memorable.  It'll be interesting to see where her career goes from here, and having a major award nomination on her resume certainly can't hurt her chances.

For a full list of nominees, click here.  Any big shockers for you?  Let me know about them in the comments.

So, the biggest surprise of the day came from none other than Lady Gaga.  That, in and of itself, should come as no surprise, ironically.  Anyhoo, this is purely gossip (which I tend to shy away from, but this was just too weird), but an insider told The Enquirer (I know, that bastion of truth...) that,

"Lady Gaga is planning a radical career shift after she wraps up her Monster Ball tour next spring. She wants to use her famous fashion sense and avant-garde art obsession to launch an academic career."

The queen of the Monsters has apparently applied for an artist-in-residence position at the New York Parson's School of Design.

"She thinks teaching a college course would be a great way to decompress from the rock ‘n' roll lifestyle, boost her image and make people take her seriously. She wants to be more than just a flamboyant pop star."

All I can think is, if she thinks that teaching college is relaxing, she's in for a rude awakening.  Not only did she drop out at 19, she apparently didn't pay attention while she was there.  I know college professors--they're some of the most stressed out, run-down, overworked and underappreciated folks out there.  It's not exactly the same as spending a weekend at a spa.  Additionally, if she thinks that for one moment she would be hired for anything other than her name and reputation as a fashion icon and "flamboyant pop star", she's crazier than I thought.  Generally speaking, they don't let you teach in a college until you've, at least, graduated from one.  The exceptions to that rule are the people who have earned enough "life experience" credits to become masters in their field.  Now, I'm not saying she wouldn't qualify that way.  I'm only saying that it's the only way she would qualify--by cashing in on being a "flamboyant pop star". 

In any case, if I had to lay money on it, I'd bet this is all just some publicity stunt. 

So, would you take a class from Lady Gaga?  Again, let me know in the comments.