30 Things I Want To Do Before I'm 30

In no particular order:

• audition for a Broadway show
• see a hockey game in person
• learn French and speak it fluently
• get my driver's license
• be kissed at midnight on New Year's Eve
• learn to eat better/healthier
• publish my poetry in an eBook
• take a Zumba class
• learn to play the piano
• enjoy a date at a comedy club
• cope with my anxiety in more positive, healthier ways
• move into my own apartment
• get my passport
• sing the National Anthem at a ball game
• take a huge career risk
• host a party
• fulfill my sexual curiosities
• try Vietnamese food
• finish what I start
• write a novel during NaNoWriMo
• get the balls to get a tattoo
• get a tattoo
• travel to London
• see a football game in person
• have a birthday party at a karaoke bar
• start classes towards a Master's degree
• pick up my guitar and start playing again
• meet the person that I'm going to marry
• say "no" a bit more often
• learn to love my body more

When the ball drops in Times Square, it'll be three years until I'm 30. Let's see how much of this I can be able to do in the next year. Some of these things may be a bit mundane, but broadening my horizons is what I want to do. If 2013 taught me anything, it's to take a chance and see where life takes you. 

Happy New Year, everybody! 

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December Favorites!

On my Tumblr, I started posting my monthly favorite things, so I've decided to bring that over to this here new blog. So without further ado (while it's halftime), on with the favorites!

• NOOK HD Since my laptop is slowly on the way out, I decided to treat myself to a tablet on Black Friday - more specifically a NOOK HD (got the 16GB for $99, score!). I honestly never thought that I would get any use out of a tablet, but boy was I wrong! Let's put it this way, I cleaned out my iPod Touch of unnecessary apps and got the Google Play equivalents for the NOOK. Speaking of Google Play, I've been getting used to the Android universe, which I don't particularly care for, but I can use it if it's the only thing around (forever an iOS girl). You may be wondering why I didn't just buy myself an iPad. Two reasons: the price ($349 for the mini? Fuck off! Can't even afford that on a good day!) and no way to expand memory (NOOKs have a microSD card slot).
• Britney Jean This was the year of pop princesses, wasn't it? Everyone released an album this year! Even though I'm more of a rocker chick, I do occasionally like a good pop record. I've listened to a few of the ones that came out, and Britney Jean is the winner for me. Yes, I liked it better than ARTPOP (gasp!!). Although I love Gaga, there are a couple of tracks I can do without and can't seem to listen to all the way through. I feel like Britney Jean is a stronger record overall, and I think the best album that Ms. Spears has put out in years!
• Coral makeup Usually winter time means dark, berry/wine lip colors. Well, trends be damned because I'm still rocking coral shades. I feel that it brightens up my whole face, which is something that I would need in the winter when I usually feel blah anyway! Coral products I've been using: NYX Butter Gloss in Peach Cobbler; CoverGirl Lip Perfection Jumbo Gloss Balm in Apricot Twist; Maybelline Master Glaze by Facestudio Blush Stick in Coral Sheen; Urban Decay Super-Saturated High-Gloss Lip Color in Punch Drunk.
• Will & Grace Usually my late night TV routine would contain some reruns of Frasier and The Golden Girls on Hallmark Channel, but since they were showing holiday movies for two solid months, my mom and I have had to find something to watch during the night. This is how I rediscovered Will & Grace. I was pretty young back when it was first on, so I didn't completely "get it," but now that I'm a bit older, I can relate to it more. Maybe too much. I AM Grace Adler. Right down to the curly hair. There are things that she would say and do that just scream me! But aside from that, it was such a well-written show; so incredibly funny.

Flashback Track of the Week: "When I Get You Alone"

Straight from my iPod, here comes the Flashback Track of the Week!

My iTunes library usually reflects my current taste in music with just a hint of 90's and early 00's nostalgia. And once in a while when it's on shuffle, one of these tracks pops up and I just hit repeat and enjoy.

Remember when Robin Thicke first came out on the music scene in 2002? I do. He only went by his last name then, kids. I remember when the music video was on MTV, when they actually played music (god do I sound like an old fuck. In the grand scheme of things it wasn't exactly that long ago but it sure feels like it). The first thing I noticed was that he sampled Walter Murphy's "A Fifth Of Beethoven" from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack  (yep, I knew that even when I was 15. I knew my shit even back then!) and it sounded really good. I also liked that he was biking around NYC in the video, too. I remember trying to get this on my MP3 player (no iPod back then for me, it was this clunky old thing, but it did the job) for the longest time, then I grew out of the song. Then Robin Thicke came out with "Blurred Lines" this year, which I'm not the biggest fan of, and my mind went back to this song, which is now on my iPod for the time being (my music always rotates). It really is a good jam, even though he took an entire song and wrote lyrics over it and added a drum beat. But at least he gave credit to the original artist, so it's all good.

What's In My Makeup Bag?

I can't help myself: I LOVE makeup (like a typical girly-girl)! And I buy a LOT of it, too! This is just a little peek into my makeup bag (which is from Sephora and it's adorable!) with my current product rotation. I think you guys will see a pattern with the brands I use and the colors that I go for:

Face

• Urban Decay B6 Vitamin-Infused Complexion Prep Spray
• Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer
• Maybelline FitMe Foundation in 120 (Classic Ivory)

Eyes

• Urban Decay Naked Basics eyeshadow palette
• Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion
• Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Double Ended Eye Pencil in Naked Basics
• Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara in Jet Black

Cheeks

• Maybelline Master Glaze by Facestudio Blush Stick in Coral Sheen
• NYX Born To Glow Liquid Illuminator in Sunbeam

Lips

• Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in Naked
• NYX Butter Gloss in Peach Cobbler

Allow Me To Re-Introduce Myself

Cue that Jay-Z track...

But in all seriousness, my name is Allyson. I'm a twenty-six year old New Yorker (specifically from the borough of Brooklyn) that just wants a little space of her own to blog about anything and everything and nothing. I had a blog on here years ago, but I'm not the same person that I was back then, so to go back to that one would be pointless. I'm looking to start new and share this so-called journey called life with friends, new and old! Fasten your seat belts, it's gonna be a hell of a time!