10 Characters on a Deserted Island

We've all thought about what we would do if we were on a deserted island. Who we would want there, if we could only pick 3 books to have, 5 music albums to listen to, etc. But what about fictional characters from your favorite novels? If you could pick any 10 to have with you on a deserted island - who would you pick?

Lydia Benett- The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet

Yes, I could pick the original Lydia from Pride and Prejudice, but the Lydia depicted in Lizzie Bennet Diaries and The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet was my favorite. She might not know much about living on an island, but I have a feeling we would never be bored. She would make us all laugh when we're down and have fun all of the time.

Zuzana - Daughter of Smoke and Bone Trilogy

Zuzana was one of my favorites parts of this trilogy! She's another one who would be there to lighten the mood and keep everyone entertained. But she's also a good friend and will do anything to help the people she cares about and is incredibly brave. Definitely needed on an island. Also- puppets.

Cinder - The Lunar Chronicles

Yeah... it might be a bit difficult with her being part cyborg and needing some mechanics. However, she's a leader and helpful in a tight situation.

Edward Zanni- How I Paid for College

I'll be honest, he's mainly on this list for entertainment reasons. He and I would be singing show tunes 24/7 and find ways to convince everyone else on the island to put on musicals. However, he is very creative and could be helpful in finding unique ways to survive.

Katniss & Peeta- The Hunger Games Trilogy

Katniss is my first choice because- HELLO! It's Katniss. She can hunt and forage and scrape for food and kill the bad guys. When Edward and I are too busy singing all of the songs from Pippin she'll get us off our asses and be sure we get work done. But then I'll add Peeta too because he also survived the Hunger Games and knows how to protect us, and Katniss will need him to keep her balanced. Also- bread for everyone!

Harry, Ron, and Hermione- Harry Potter Series

You just can't pick one of these without the other. They work as a team and with them, we could totally survive a deserted island. First, who wouldn't want to hang out with them? Second, magic. Duh. Third, they basically went camping for a majority of Deathly Hallows and could probably teach us a thing or two. Fourth, they defeated Voldemort. So... obviously.

Samwise Gamgee- The Lord of the Rings

Sam is my hero. He is the most loyal friend and can definitely survive out in the wild. Pass the potatoes please.

Peter- The Chronicles of Narnia

When trying to survive, you need some leadership, and Peter is a great leader. He also has the whole older brother thing going on so he'll be there to help protect everyone.

Technically this is eleven people and not ten. But they're all totally needed! Right?

Linking up with 10 on Tuesday. Link up here!

10 Instagrams

I've done recomendations for blogs and websites before, but never Instagram. I think it's because I mainly follow people I know and other blog friends on Instagram simply because I know them or like their blog. Not necessarily because I just love their photography. So, it took me a little bit to dig through my Instagram account to see people who are genuinely good photographers to tell people about. However, I found some!

Andrew Kennan Blogger

Being a huge musical theatre nerd, and after seeing Newsies on Broadway a couple of years ago, I ended up following about 1/2 of the cast on Instagram. It turns out, the actor Andrew Kennan Blogger (he played Crutchie), is an amazing photographer. I always love looking at his photos and all of his NYC adventures.

http://instagram.com/keenanblogger

Beauty Edit Max

I have no idea who this guy is. All I know is that one day, forever ago, he followed my account for some reason and I followed back. Holy cow- he does amazing photos.

http://instagram.com/beauty_edit_max

Neil Patrick Harris

Um... who wouldn't want to see the world through his eyes?

http://instagram.com/instagranph

The Blog Baton

This is the coolest Instagram/Blogger idea ever. Basically, everyday a different blogger takes over the account. (I did it back in January.) It's fun to see everyone's lives and to get some more exposure for your own blog.

http://instagram.com/theblogbaton

Writers Atelier

This account is awesome for writers. They post different quotes, inspiration, words, writing prompts, etc. everyday. 

http://instagram.com/writersatelier

The Ugly Mug Cafe Chicago

You know that cafe sign you see on Pinterest all of the time with the best quotes ever? That's a cafe in Chicago called The Ugly Mug Cafe. They really do have the best signs ever.

http://instagram.com/uglymugcafechi

Humans of New York

This guy is all over social media. Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, etc. But I really love his stuff. I love how he takes pictures of random people in the city and shares their stories. 

http://instagram.com/humansofny

Pemberley Digital

Hello! Pictures from behind the scenes of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, Emma Approved, and now Frankenstein MD! 

http://instagram.com/pemberleydigital

Starbucks Olive and 6th

One of my closest friends who works for Starbucks runs this account. So everyone should follow it.

http://instagram.com/sbuxoliveand6th

Colin Wright

I kinda of want to be this guy. Colin Wright travels the world, writes books, and basically lives on the Internet. And gets paid to do it. Coolest life ever, right? Right now he's living in Prauge.

http://instagram.com/colinismyname

Who are some of your favorite Instagram accounts? You know... other than mine. ;-) Yes... this is a shameless plug. http://instagram.com/lovewokemeup

How to Spend a Sick Day

There's nothing quite like waking up one morning with a crazy stuffy nose, sneezing, coughing, and watery eyes. It's a guarantee for a good day!

Not.

At first I thought it was just allergies. Even on the news they were saying this week the air was dangerous for people with allergies. I'm not sure if I have them... but I decided it was a possibility.

But yesterday when I could barely keep my eyes open at work and I felt like death... I had a feeling something was up.

Thankfully, I was able to take the afternoon off and in the evening I figured out I had a fever. Definitely not allergies.

Which means I'm home sick today. I was able to sleep in which was a HUGE help. My eyes feel way better and I can actually keep my eyes open. Still not feeling 100%, but I'm on my way.

The thing is, I'm not good at being sick. As much as I love having time to just lay around and rest... when I'm "required" to do so I tend to have problems sitting still.

However, here are some things I've been doing to keep myself occupied while recovering.

1) Drink tea. It's not my favorite, but with a lot of honey in it I'm good to go.

2) Watch as many versions of Pride and Prejudice as possible. Since I want to nap, I find it useful to have something on in the background I know well and don't have to pay super close attention to. Also, the version with Kiera Knightly has really relaxing music. That was the version I watched yesterday. Today I'm working through The Lizzie Bennet Diaries.

3) Read. I didn't get to read a whole lot yesterday due to the "watery eyes I can't keep open" thing. But since that's not much of a problem today, I plan on getting a lot of reading done for Bout of Books. The Vanishing Act is super short (only slightly over 200 pages) so I'll probably get most of that done this afternoon.

4) Plan a Jamberry Nails Online Party- AND YOU ARE INVITED!

Yes, you read that right. One of my good friends from Missouri just started a Jamberry Nails business and I decided to help her out by hosting an online party.

What's Jamberry you ask?

Well... in the words of my friend:

They are vinyl adhesives that are heat activated (hair dryer, space heater, etc.) and pressure sealed. They are super easy to apply and once applied, last for 2wks on fingers, and up to 6wks on your toes! If you would like a free sample mailed to you, please PM me your address and choose one of the 10 samples in the photo below.

They can also be applied over top of gel, shellac, and acrylic nails - although, the most popular method is directly onto your natural nail. They are non toxic and so they won't harm your nails, when removed correctly. If you have any questions at all, please ask away! Your hostess, Emily, and I are here to make sure you enjoy yourself and, hopefully, make sure you leave with some glamorous nails of your own to show off!

Pretty awesome, right? I ordered four sheets not long ago and I CAN'T WAIT for them to come in.



Want to join in on the fun? Click on this link: http://mamakat06.jamberrynails.net/party/?uid=65c64bfd-b7ab-460e-a30c-abdeb249e0fc

Just be sure you order through Emily Hornburg's party.

We'll be going through May 25 and feel free to share the link with your friends!

This Blog is Emma Approved

This week is going to be/is stressful for me. There's a lot going on at work and it's basically been stressing me out. When it's all over I'll explain... but for the time being just keep me in your prayers.

So when I saw that Emma Approved premiered on YouTube on Monday....

MY DAY GOT SO MUCH BETTER!

I saw Legally Blonde the musical this weekend... so everything comes back to that show.

What is Emma Approved you ask?

Do you all remember when The Lizzie Bennett Diaries (YouTube's version of Pride and Prejudice) was on YouTube and it was amazing? Now they're doing Emma!!!!!

Emma's Twitter Logo

The moment I saw the link I shared it with one of my best friends and we watched ti at the same time and squealed like the crazy girls we are. I then fan-girled all over the internet. I might watch it over and over again.

At last... Mondays and Thursdays will be good again. 

If you are a fan of Jane Austen, you HAVE to watch these videos. The Lizzie Bennett Diaries were phenomenal, and I have high hopes for Emma Approved.

If you aren't familiar with Jane Austen's books, this is the perfect way to get started! I know of a lot of people who had never read or seen Pride and Prejudice and the LBD were what got them hooked. 

I'll embed the video in this blog post if you want to watch it. Or you can click this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeeXkf8LZ_8

So... are you fan-girling just like I am? Did this news make your week SO MUCH BETTER THAN BEFORE? Were you a fan of The Lizzie Bennett Diaries? Will you watch Emma Approved? What did you think of the first episode? 

Tell me all in the comments!

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