Friday, December 8, 2017

Jams of the Week 12/8/17

Howdy and welcome to jams of the week!
If you're a spotify user this past week we got our year in review which I always love,
and then they also made a "Ones That Got Away" playlist which was new this year.
Mine was pretty good and I discovered a bunch of new jams. If you haven't yet go look at yours!











John's voice is wonderful. This is his second jam on the blog for good reason.

John Splithoff - Show Me feat. Madison Ryann Ward





*****





I'm obsessed with this beat. I posted "Falling" on here maybe last month by them? Def into their sound.

Whethan - Good Nights





*****





something about Coleman's lisp...I love it.

Coleman Hell - Devotion (SMLE Remix)





*****





This has been stuck in my head so it's joining this weeks party.

Harry Styles - Kiwi





till next time,
Maggie

Monday, November 27, 2017

Jams of the Week 11/28/17

You know when you type something out with a lot of care and then it doesn't save? 
I've written this post like three times...so my motivation to re-do it has lessened and lessened.
BUT it's here! And I love these jams and I hope you do too.




I've listened to a lot of songs lately and liked them - then found out they're Matoma. 
This songs been queued up for a while for the blog.


Matoma & FRENSHIP - Knives




*****





I feel like Labrinth makes music that you can't help but dance to.

Labrinth - Misbehaving




*****





Vance Joy can do no wrong in my eyes.

Vance Joy - Like Gold







I hope you guys had a great Thanksgiving full of family, friends and delicious food!


till next time,
Maggie

Sunday, October 8, 2017

New York Comic Con 2016


SO this weekend is New York Comic Con, 2017...and I just realized I never posted my trip last year...
Guys I'm A+ at remembering to do things.
I'm gunna post it now because it was such a crazy impulse trip and I had a solid time.
Also, hilariously I started it out basically knowing I was gunna post it late...high five self!!!!





*****
Oh man, for some reason I'm really dragging my feet writing this post, even though I am super stoked about NYCC. Maybe because once I write it, it's all really over? Anyways, here is my adventure tale of 20 something hours in NY.



So last month I saw Matt Smith + Jenna Coleman were offering a photo op at NYCC and I knew I had to book tickets and go. Small problem, my window for asking off of work was very small, and it's the same week as three family birthdays at my house so I could only go for a short short time. Thank god for Southwest late flights! I left Wisco at 5pm, and got into NYC around 10pm. After a wayyyyy too long horrible Uber I got to see my good friend Andrew and crash at his hipster loft (sorry not sorry Andrew ;) ) 

Since day one of the con has been getting crazier and crazier I decided to play it safe and get there pretty early. Not as early as some people, but early enough. I ended up at will call at 9am, which was easy enough, and I was standing in front of the outside doors to get in at 9:15am. Then was 45 minutes of waiting for the doors to open, which wasn't super fun, as it was actually kinda hot outside. I think there is an inside queue but I didn't do that? Rushing in with the masses was like black friday for nerds. If you stop you're roadkill. I managed to find myself in the NYCC video, see me? I'm on the stairs!



Once I was inside I got to play assemble the shrine of the silver monkey from Legends of the Hidden Temple! My inner 90's kid was freaking out. Sadly that silver monkey is actually as hard to put together as those kids always made it look. Like, they made the back of it seem confusing so you think you're putting it together wrong. Damn you Nickelodeon. 



Hey Olmec!



The con floor is pretty big and a little confusing, but I was able to walk around before I had to head to photo ops/autographs. I saw some awesome art but didn't buy anything because I didn't have a good way to bring it back on the plane. 

One awesome part of NYCC is that it takes place at the same time as BookCon. So there were lots of big name book sellers handing out freebies. I paid for a signed copy of Gemina by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff because I only have the ARC missing some key art. If I did more than a few hours I would have dedicated a whole day to the BookCon pannels.


After some artists alley I got to check out the Fantastic Beasts booth with movie worn costumes and a spell casting area!








In the same area were Suicide Squad worn costumes, had to take pictures of Deadshot and Harley






After seeing some of the floor I headed to my photo op area. Once I got there I decided I totally did need that Alex Kingston autograph, so I got to meet that lovely lady again!! I brought my photo from Wizard World I got with her and she signed it and we had a nice chat about how horribly cold Wisconsin is. 


ALSO while in line Matt Smith was on one side of her and Jenna Coleman on the other and I got to see Matt adorably interact with a service dog. Insert heart eyes emoji here. 




ugh, he's like a puppy himself. So adorable.



While in line I got to meet a great War Doctor 







then it was the moment I had waited for! Hoorah!!! 


MATT AND JENNA!!!!


cue the freaking out!!!





they were very cute and awesome, but sadly they were being rushed through everyone very quickly so it was a very short interaction (definitely a down side to seeing them at a huge con). 

I love going to photo ops, because you literally can't stop smiling for what feels like forever afterward. *Sigh* They're both so dreamy. 




After that I just had a little time left before I had to jet, so I decided to check out the food offerings. There was actually a pretty decent selection. Of course there was the concession stands, but then the back side had an empanada seller, philly cheese steaks, pinkberry, and some other kinda concession like booths. I went for this Poke booth since I had never had it, and it looked good and filling. It was costly, a soda + a Poke was $12, but that seems like a better deal than a similar price for a hot dog. 


I had to take a picture of everything in it, so good!







I really wanted to hit up the Tales from Inside the TARDIS panel, but apparently at NYCC you have to try and get wristbands for panels as soon as you get there in the morning? I really wish I had known that, and it's kind of a stupid process. I was also very sad to miss all the BCC programming panels on Friday. If only I could have stayed for two days!
On my way out in my uber I saw this huge Doctor Who balloon that almost made me jump out of the car.



You can kinda see Peter glaring down at me, "stay for day two!!!!"




One last pit stop at the Star trek booth for a Live Long foam hand and trek symbol pin, and this awesome face swap. I think Kirk would also wear TARDIS earrings don't you? ;)




With that I had to head to the airport. It was a fun couple of hours and I am so jazzed I got to meet three Doctor Who stars. I don't think I'll do NYCC again for a long time,  but it was cool to get to say I've been. 



Till next time NYCC, love you too!


Saturday, October 7, 2017

Jams of the Week 10/7/17


Howdy and welcome to jams of the week.
This was a rough week or two amirite?
First Vegas, then hearing about Tom Petty, and it felt like the hits
just kept on coming. So I haven't jammed in a minute, sorry for that!
Either way here are three new jams:





Avicii - What Would I Change It To (feat. AlunaGeorge)

"Forever trading places with the same old me"





*****




Dark Honey - Stinging Nettle





*****




Thank you Tom for your wonderful music. 


Tom Petty - Square One

Sunday, September 17, 2017

Jams of the Week 9/17/17

Howdy and welcome to jams of the week!
This week I spent a lot of time listening to "Rake It Up" on repeat for that Nicki verse, but I'm not a huge fan of the rest of the song so I'm skipping that as a jam of the week. Instead here are three tracks I'm also obsessed with.





One of my favorite movies is Stranger Than Fiction and I listened to "Whole Wide World" by Wreckless Eric for months after seeing it. Today I turned on the radio and it was playing! Only it wasn't Wreckless Eric, it was Cage the Elephant! It's a great cover and I'm jazzed for more people to hear the song.


Cage The Elephant - Whole Wide World (Unpeeled)




*****


Lorde is love.

Lorde - Homemade Dynamite





*****




I love Tegan & Sara and this popped up on my Spotify and became an instant earworm.

Matthew Dear - Bad Ones (feat. Tegan and Sara)








till next time,
Maggie

Friday, September 1, 2017

Skele-Gro Bottles

Recently another HP fan in my area posted that Michaels had these bottles in their stores and captioned "wouldn't these be great for Skele-Gro bottles?"



UM YES
YES THEY WOULD.
Sooooo that led to a Michaels trip for a few goodies. They have all their Halloween stuff on sale...even though it's August...heck they even have their Christmas stuff on sale!! One bottle is $9.99, plus the store sale of like...30%? and then I had a coupon for 20% off the total purchase so this project is CHEAP!
I headed over to the HP Paper Crafts section of the RPF with some help for a label and they had one ready to print! Shout-out to the people who are skilled at font replicating over there. I scaled the pdf to fit the bottle and cut to to about the shape I thought I wanted. I bought a couple of the skeleton bottles so I may try to make the fit different but I don't totally dislike how this one turned out. 



Once I had the fit I grabbed some coffee and did a quick stain on the paper. The color actually turned out to be a pretty good match! 



Once it was dyed I mod-podged it in place and ta-da it's done!



Is it perfect? No. Does it make me happy? Yes! So there...
Ain't nobody got time to sculpt a real one of these from scratch. 
So if you want just a little more HP in your house, run to Michaels now!


ALSO Happy September 1st nerds, I'll meet you at Platform 9 3/4!


til next time,
Maggie









Wednesday, August 16, 2017

Jams of the Week 8/16/17

Howdy and welcome to jams of the week!
Some weeks are easier to get pumped for life than others, and thank God I can pick tunes that help me try to be a happier person. I feel like we could all use a pick me up with the crap 45's been up to this week so here are three upbeat jams to brighten your day too





This song has been on my current playlist and when I watched the video it was about music making you happy...tis perfect.

Galantis - True Feeling





*****






sometimes you just have to tell yourself it's gunna be a good day
(see also, "Good Day" by Nappy Roots or ask Ice Cube)

DNCE - Good Day






*****






Glorious makes me happy for a lot of reasons: Skylar Grey's voice, Mack doing a solo adventure, etc. 
but then I saw the music video and I cried a happy kind of happy
which can be amazing


MACKLEMORE FEAT SKYLAR GREY - GLORIOUS






*****





OK I'm sneaking in a fourth jam because this song's music video makes me all kindsa happy
(I see you Riz)


Charli XCX - Boys






til next time,
Maggie

Tuesday, August 8, 2017

Jams of the Week 8/8/17

Hola and welcome to jams of the week!
I'm being very unproductive on my day off and doing none of the things I'm supposed to be doing. 
Maybe once I post this I'll do a thing...



so this has been stuck in my head all week
I can't explain the music video but the song is awesome.

John Mayer - Still Feel Like Your Man






****






I can't believe I haven't posted my BB Jack Johnson's new stuff yet
He has three new songs out but this is my favorite
and the video is awesome

Jack Johnson - My Mind Is For Sale






****






last, lets jam

Sigala, Ella Eyre - Came Here for Love








k, going to motivate myself to do a thing now. 
Until next time,
Maggie

Monday, July 31, 2017

Magic Coffee for Harry's Birthday!


I love coffee and I love Harry Potter. No surprises these, but when the two collide I nerd out pretty hard! So you can imagine my happiness with Stone Creek Coffee's blend of the week "Siriusly Black." SCC loves to celebrate nerdiness and they made this blend for Harry's birthday. Look at its "ingredients" of powered root of Asphodel, an infusion of wormwood, and a bane of monkshood =) so clever.

This coffee made me think of Magic Coffee which is a special drink I had in Madison and fell in love with. It came from a place called Cafe Soleil, which sadly is no longer in business. They did share their recipe for Magic before closing and it's perfect to use Siriusly Black with! There are two ways to make it depending on how much time you have. I recommend the cold brew method so that the flavor is stronger.



Cafe Soleil's Magic Coffee
for a 4-cup pot (serves 4 with ice)
Brew a pot of your favorite dark roast coffee. Once it's brewed, transfer to a pitcher and add 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 cup cream and 1 shot of espresso. Chill overnight, or cool and ice it down. Serve over ice. Proportions should be adjusted to the user's taste.


OR


Cold-Brewed Magic
2/3 cup coarsely ground dark roast coffee
3 cups water
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
milk, half-and-half or cream

Put ground coffee and water in a wide-mouth jar or other container with a cover; stir. Add cinnamon and brown sugar. Stir and cover. Refrigerate for 12 hours or overnight.
Using a sieve, strain the contents of the jar into a bowl, then strain back into the jar for easy storage in the refrigerator. To serve, fill a glass half full with ice, add coffee mixture about halfway or so up the glass, and top off with your choice of milk, cream, half-and-half or any combination thereof.




I hope you enjoy and have a happy Potter birthday weekend!

Til next time,
Maggie


Friday, July 21, 2017

Jams of the Week 7/21/17

Welcome to le jams of the week!
Kind of a random three, but I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.


Max Frost - Adderall






Common Kings - Before You Go





Matt Maeson - Cringe






I felt this jams this week wouldn't be complete without a song from Linkin Park.
Yesterday when I heard Chester was gone I sat in my car and cried. How can someone who helped so many not be able to get help??
When I was a kid and felt alone, listening to Linkin Park made me feel like I wasn't the only one who felt angry and mad and sad. I listened to Meteora so much I actually broke it in half somehow. 
Thank you Chester for helping me feel heard, and making my dark days better. 

"It's hard to let you go"
Linkin Park - Waiting for the End





until next time,
Maggie


Monday, June 26, 2017

Harry Potter Awesome Art Roundup Vol 8


I was trying to think of the best way to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter and I think the occasion calls for another round the my Harry Potter Awesome Art Roundup!  
Lets get volume 8 started!



Invisibility cloak by wizardnem who has a whole wonderful tumblr full of awesome HP art.






*****






A little more love in this world by medlilove





*****






yer an artist by blvnk-art has a whole awesome blog full of awesome hp art. 
She's currently doing an Auror Potter series that I love. Heres a few:



Harry supporting Ginny






and this great Draco portrait






*****







I saw this set on my dash by Natalie and thought it was too cute not to share





*****







You know I love me some Dasstark and her newest HP is adorable. Can I have Draco in a jar?













*****







These adorable watercolors by Novahowe







*****






Too many to chose from with Natello 









*****





and I'll leave you with the trio, by upthehillart






It would be impossible for me to even try to sum up what Harry Potter means to me here, so I won't try. I hope you guys enjoy a little HP today in celebration, I'm going to go crack open the Sorcerers Stone and pretend I'm 11 again.


Till next time,
Maggie





Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Jams of the Week 6/21/17 Stiefvater Picks

Howdy and welcome to jams of the week!

I had a hard time finding some newer jams to share this week because I've been listening to audio books instead. One of my favorite books is The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater and deciding to listen to the audio book is one of the best choices I've made in recent time. I haven't been able to leave my car every day this week because I need to finish listening to the chapter or because I want to listen to the next. I literally know what's going to happen and I'm still on the edge of my seat. We've been having rainy weather making the story seem more magical and real and it's just so, so, so awesome. 

Besides for being a kick-ass writer, Maggie has a tumblr where she posts art, questions, and music. Her picks are normally awesome and since she's the reason for my lack in jams I thought I'd just share some of her recent picks I loved. 




To Kill A King - The Good Old Days
I don't remember the times that we fought
Or how you tore my world apart
Just the good old days




****




Lost Lander - Give It Time




****



SPELLES - Dead In The Water






If you want to check out some more jams and awesome other stuffs you can check out Maggie's tumblr here.





Until next time,
Maggie

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Jams of the Week 6/14/17


Hola and welcome to jams of the week



I'm kind of obsessed with Tove's voice. I also think this video is all of us dancing to our favorite song in our bedrooms.
I also considered posting "Number One" which I like a lot as well, go check that out!

Tove Styrke - Say My Name





****




I used to be a huuge John Mayer fan but I kind of got turned off because he was constantly in the media for dating Taylor or Katy or whoever and he used to be a little obnoxious. 
So I probably haven't loved an album since Continuum. I listened to this one track totally randomly in a playlist and remembered why I love John. I almost cried because I think everyone thinks about ending up like their parents or not being able to control your destiny. 
Just a great, great song.

John Mayer - In the Blood




****




I know this is on the radio but it's constantly in my head.
Rihanna & Future's voices are great together.

Future Feat. Rihanna - Selfish







Till next time,
Maggie