halloween party monster mash playlist

happy halloween, boys and ghouls!

i have a not-so-secret life goal of someday waking my childrens up every halloween with a monster mash dance party.

as it currently stands, i am without childrens and therefore YOU must all join me in my annual halloween hullabaloo.

hit play and crank it, kiddos!

anything you would add?

it was a graveyard smash!

what effect does the president have on the economy?

i feel like it's the biggest buzzword of this presidential election:

[via]

and with a country $16 trillion in debt, that's understandable.

so this podcast via freakonomics caught my eye:

"It's Not the President, Stupid"

it's only 5 minutes long, if you want to give it a listen.

here are a couple key points they focus on:

1. the president's ability to control the economy is actually very limited

2. being a successful CEO is "enormously different" than handling political finances

the comment feed on the podcast actually made for some interesting reading from people who both agreed and disagreed with those points...and a quality, coherent comment feed is surprisingly hard to come by, isn't it?

now, remembering my strong feelings about hateful political discussion,

i want to know your thoughts:

what effect does the president REALLY have on the economy?

teach me how to dougie economize,

ModestPop giveaway winner!

thank you to everyone who entered my ModestPop giveaway!

and the winner is....

Katie Sparkalicious Devey from the blog Sparky!

yes that's her full name. even if she doesn't know it yet.

also, you should all catch up on her love story.

eees goood.

in any case, hopefully she can put that $15 credit to good use and get something that works well for her prego belly! i'm thinking the striped skirt she liked is totally doable with a baby bump:

congrats k.sparks.dev!

i'll be in touch!

and remember, the rest of you can still save 10% with the code Katilda.

i feel like bob barker but that's not a bad thing,

katilda

moonrise kingdom halloween costume

it's no secret that i was excited for this movie to come out,

and then i rather enjoyed it when i saw it.

so it was only natural that i took this as my inspiration...

[via]

and these costumes happened on saturday night...

thank you goodwill, walmart and my own closet.

dear suzy,

here is my plan.

dear sam,

my answer is yes.

what are you being for halloween??

i kind of got attached and want to wear knee socks all the time now so look out world.

that one time when i lived in darkness and it was probably my fault.

blog friends, meet my refrigerator:

now, you might think this looks like an ordinary fridge.

well, an ordinary fridge shared by four growing girls who love foods.

yes, foods.

where is my stuff in that fridge? i honestly do not know in this picture.

i would not recommend delving into its depths to find out.

you might never come back.

the point is, what you need to know,

is that this fridge of mine has been dark for some time now.

oh, the woes of a dark fridge!

not to mention that the kitchen light is also broken.

and was probably made in the 50s or 60s?

therefore the special type of spiral lightbulb we need doesn't exist?

and who has time to find someone to install an entirely new light fixture?

surriously.

as of yesterday morning, these are the lights that were burnt out in my endearing-but-high-maintenance-because-it-was-built-like-a-century-ago-but-hey-the-rent-is-amazing condo:

overhead bedroom light

overhead closet light

overhead bathroom light

fridge light

overhead kitchen light

kitchen lamp being used in lieu of overhead kitchen light

do you see that we have a problem?

well yesterday, i snapped.

a girl can only use an iphone flashlight app to get around the house for so long.

and now, after like 7 months, my fridge officially lights up again.
and so does the closet and kitchen lamp.

and what did it take to end my suffering and angst?

i simply screwed in a new lightbulb.

yeah you'd be amazed at my procrastination abilities.

also, someday i want to own a green fridge:

Source: google.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

lumos,

katilda

p.s.
the giveaway is going strong! go enter!

ModestPop.com Giveaway!

oh hey there hey!

remember that one time when ModestPop sent me a shirt to review?

and i promised to do a giveaway?

the day is here!

you can win...(insert Price is Right announcer voice)...a $15 coupon to ModestPop!
not a new car but hey it's still cool.

hint: you can buy pretty much anything they sell with 15 smackers

you can also save 10% if you use the code Katilda at checkout.

bangarang.

personally i would choose this:

or maybe this or this or this.

the giveaway closes on Monday, Oct. 29

and i gave you like a bazillion ways to earn multiple entries below.

go! get 'er done!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

who doesn't love free things,

katilda

i'm a godfather ...AND a dinosaur

you see, there's this girl i grew up with...

and she decided to have a baby a couple weeks ago.

then i asked her if the baby could be my godchild, and she said yes.

i promised to teach the child manly things when she comes of age.

behold, the offspring:

miss hannah lea williams

a whopping 9 lbs 9 oz

and she proved it, too,

when i held her for half an hour and her head pinched a nerve in my arm.

you might say i should learn to hold babies better.

i prefer to blame the child.

either way, when i handed the baby back, i discovered that i could not straighten my right arm.

in fact, the arm was stuck at a right angle for the next 5-6 hours...like a T-Rex.

and there was great pain all the way from my thumb to my neck.

what the.

also, when i left the godchild's casa the sprinklers got me a little wet.

and then they were blasting the driver's side of my car, so i crawled through the passenger side.

with only one working arm.

and it was a sight to behold.

and thus i drove back to work,

with damp clothing and a T-Rex arm,

where i discovered my coworkers were interviewing my soon-to-be new manager and i was in a state of disgrace with rumpled clothing and a crippled arm.

you know what they say...

being a godfather isn't easy.

but it's worth it,

katilda

everything & nothing

for once, the ceiling fan hummed louder than the click of the keyboard.

because for once, i had nothing to say.

nothing and everything, all at the same time.

everything to say.

but nothing i could.

i had everything of why's

and everything of how's

and everything of remember when's

everything of words

all the right words

and everything of questions

i had everything of humid nights in august

and nothing of september

and that

was the problem.

my hands, like paperweights on the keys.

feeling every letter

every word

everything

and nothing.

....................................................

can't honestly remember when or why i wrote this, but i dug it up recently!
and now i am mysterious even to myself and that's kind of fun.

read more of my random soulful/angsty?/ponderous writings herrrre.

words and stuff,
katilda

album review: "RED" by Taylor Swift

you better believe i bought t. swizzle's new album first thing this a.m.

my thoughts:

overall, it's a pretty solid but predictable album.

it didn't go very much above and beyond Speak Now,

BUT since Speak Now was a great album, it totally still works.

and major kudos for including two duets on this album.

i did notice that she's incorporating more of the breathy sound she used on the hunger games soundtrack, a la this track with the civil wars.

and i am always a fan of anything with a civil wars vibe.

my favorite tracks:

begin again

state of grace

all too well

the last time

honorable mentions:

treacherous

i knew you were trouble

i almost do

holy ground
everything has changed

admittedly, i also have a soft spot for the notorious "we are never ever getting back together."

have you listened to the album?

(in all honesty i've had "begin again" on repeat since the single was released in september.)

i have 30 mosquito bites but happy feet.

in bad news, this happened:

in great news,

mosquitoes are to blame, not chicken pox.

in unrelated news, i scored these beauties for 17 smackers:

in magic news:

did you know that baking soda is a main ingredient in a lot of anti-itch creams?

hence, i added baking soda to my lotion.

miraculous.

coming soon: a blog post on all the miracles of baking soda.

seriously, that stuff is magic pixie dust.

tell me your friday news?

gotta get down on friday,

katilda

is it time to open a retirement fund?

so...financial planning.

[via]

i mean, i'm pretty good at keeping coin jars.

but really, it's time for me to be a grown-up about this.

dun dun dun, retirement fund!

check out this juicy fact:

if you're 25 (hey, that's me!) and can contribute $5,000 per year (about $400 a month) until retirement (around age 60) and your IRA has an 8% return-on-investment, then you'll have...

$1.4 million

say what in the what what?!

someone remind me where the hooverbiebs this useful life information was in high school.

thanks for that, high school.

in any case, i asked the googles for some advice.

and i decided on a Roth IRA instead of a Traditional IRA.

now i will sell some furniture and dig up my coin jars to get it going.

you might think i'm kidding but i'm not.

but you tell me, if you have an IRA,

what's a good place to get one?

fidelity? vanguard? charles schwab?

do tell.

because i can.

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. watch this.
2. enjoy it.

not hard if you have any pre-teen soul left in you.

and you know, i have a heaping amount.

also, i don't remember devon sawa having baby fat and a high voice.

shrug.

p.s. this wasn't their only rodeo, case in point

happy halloweens,

katilda

why you don't need a man to make you happy (and if you think that, none of them will want to be with you anyway)

Sisters, it's time to buck up!

You know what i'm talking about. The cookies. The chick flicks. The self-pity facebook statuses. The my-life-sucks-without-a-man blog posts. I am here-to-hither-fore-ever-beiber-more cancelling the pity party.

You know what I mean...

when you just know that a boyfriend is what you need, that he'll solve all your problems, that life will be magically better if you have a man. (and magically delicious?)

NOTE: this epidemic can apply to boys just as well. so if you are male and the shoe fits, just reverse whatever pronouns necessary and carry on.

Look, I've been there. I've sooOOOoo been there. But here's a few honest, blunt truths:

1. A boyfriend won't make you happy if you aren't already happy.

2. No man wants to be with a girl who thinks that way.

3. The not-so-vague, semi-desperate facebooking is not helping your case.

Because really, what guy in his right mind would read the following...

"i hate men!"

"why can't i find a good guy?"

"i'm just soooo lonely."

"well, another friday night at home..."

"where have all the good men gone and where are all the gods?"

*insert not-so-vague song lyrics or meme of choice*

...and think to himself, "Gee, she sounds attractive and fun!"

Answer: They don't think that.

Here's a better idea: Get a hobby. Get a job. Read a book. Be interesting. Learn to take care of yourself. Go volunteer somewhere. Be independent. Be happy now. Odds are, your romantic chances will improve dramatically. But even if not, your life quality sure as heck will.

So put a smile on your face,  put down the angsty social media, go out there and live your life. Because guess what? Life is already magically delicious just the way it is.

I'm now giving you all a virtual pat on the bum for motivation

would you ride in a self-driving car?

okay...hold. the. smart. phone.

have you guys heard about self-driving cars?

Google made some.

and they're legal for testing in CA, NV and FL.

and will likely be available to the public in the next 5 years.

we're talking, like a smartphone as a vehicle.

radar sensors, video cameras, artificial intelligence software, etc.

wait, is that safe?

apparently, it's safer than human drivers.

in fact, there's been...zero accidents.

and it's predicted that it could lower accidents by as much as 80%

other good things:

• could reduce the need for parking lots, if a car can drop you off and go give someone else a ride
• excellent option for blind or handicapped people
• can lessen traffic jams by automating traffic flow
• less danger from drunk drivers
• safe multi-tasking during a commute or road trip

i mean, it's all pretty hooverdam amazing.

imagine someday when our grandchildren think we're old and outdated because we drove our own cars.

also, this all makes me think of herbie.

and that one time when squidward was overwhelmed by the future.

would you ride in a self-driving car?

i would definitely take naps during my commute.

i got me some of them there bangs.

"my hair is so now."

...name that quote...

but seriously,

my hair started like this:

and i was all, i want these bangs:

and then i was nervous,

so i asked my bestie to do some photoshopping...

and then i felt encouraged,

sooo after an impressively affordable experience...

shazam!

now i can say things like,

"my hair is bangin"

but for reals, i do love them so!

bangarang,

katilda

p.s.

i'm serious about the killer prices.

if you're in AZ, let me know and i'll give you some contact info.

is alzheimer's the new diabetes?

would you trade your brain for a twinkie?

[via]

last week i wrote about the paleo diet,

and got some really good feedback from you guys.

this week, let's talk diabetes.

specifically Type 3 diabetes.

wait, katie...that doesn't exist...

let me explain.

there is a whole host of research happening right now that points to a growing correlation between diet, alzheimer's and dementia,

enough so that some people are beginning to refer to those diseases as type 3 diabetes.

of course, just like diabetes,

there are genetic factors you can't control.

but you CAN control your diet.

and increasing evidence is showing that all those fatty and sugary foods are leading to higher and higher levels of alzheimer's and dementia.

you know what?

no thank you.

not to mention heart disease.

now, i'm not an extremist.

i like the occasional fudgsicle or birthday cake.

but constant fast food?

sugary snacks and cereal?

skipping real veggies and fruits?

guzzling soda all day?

is it really worth losing my mind?

nope.

your thoughts?

food pyramid you are my friend,

katilda

on blind dating ▲

i went on a blind date last weekend.

fact: i'd only been out of my previous relationship for 4 days.

eep.

so i had some legitimate concerns that i would be weird.

also, a guy once asked me in the middle of a first date:

"so this isn't really your thing, is it?"

"what?"

"first dates. you seem out of your element."

"...."

thankfully, i think i managed to quell my awkwardness last friday.

minus the small moment where i thought we might be second cousins.

don't worry, i cleared that up.

and you have to have a good time with anyone who likes to wear moccasins just like you do, right?

plus we found a random mariachi band whilst out and about.

always a good omen.

any of you out there into blind dating?

any luck? horror stories?

bad jokes about the date actually being blind?

no we didn't wear blindfolds,

katilda

feed just one: 1 shirt, 30 meals

i have me a major soft spot for nonprofit organizations.

maybe it's like when babies have a soft spot in their skulls?

in any case, i found something new for my bleeding heart to love:

feed just one

how it works:

you buy a shirt.

they feed 30 girls in Uganda.

learn more details here.

i've been chewing on making a purchase for awhile,

and then they released this shirt...

...and i am a happy clam!

because you know what?

kindness DOES matter.

i would now like it in every color so i can wear it every day of my life. 

also liking the new one they just released today.

i might just buy it.

maybe they will make me a shirt in plaid flannel & my world will implode,

katilda

p.s.

i am obsessive about my tshirts being soft and NOT stiff and they nailed it right on the head with the perfect cotton-poly blend.

is it weird that i care so deeply about cotton-poly blends...?

p.p.s.
like Feed Just One on facebook to find out when they release new shirts.

what is the paleo diet?

so, i like to eat me some healthy foods.

such as this salad from Trader Joe's, which maybe changed my life:

i mean, good bieber that was a hooverdam good salad.

i recently met a couple friends who are into the paleo diet.

i.e. the caveman diet

what is it?

basically, it's a hunter-gatherer type of diet.

so you only eat things you could hunt or gather...

e.g. meat and vegetables and fruit, essentially.

this means...

no bread

no sugar or junk food

and other stuff

i've had my fair share of my-tummy-hates-me issues,

and nothing seems to solve my woes.
and if i have to get any more blood drawn, so help me...

would you do it?

any paleo eaters out there with wisdom to impart?

food for thought and yes that's a pun,

katilda

p.s.

earlier when i typed "only eat things you could hunt or gather," i accidentally typed "father" at first.

please...please don't eat anything you could father.

why you should go to parties alone ▲

the first time i went to a party alone, i sat outside in my car for about 20 minutes deciding if i should go in.

fact: i even called a friend to help encourage me to be brave.

and we're talking ALONE,

i.e. i heard about the party from a friend who wouldn't be there and i truly didn't know anyone there.

my face felt like this:

but then i walked into that party.

and i learned something important.

it turns out,

going to a party alone is the best way to meet people.

when you're by yourself,

people feel more compelled to talk to you.

when people aren't intimidated by your group of friends,

you're 100% more approachable.

in the case of my first alone party,

the host of the shindig took me under his wing and walked me around the whole night, introducing me to everyone.

fact: that wouldn't have happened if i came glued to a wingman.

since that experience,

i've grown to love going to parties alone.

sure, the first few minutes can be awkward.

and it can be really uncomfortable to stand alone,

where people can see you,

and resist the urge to slink into a corner and hide.

but my challenge to all you party goers?

try it alone.

arrive alone,

stand alone,

look people in the eye,

and smile at strangers.

i feel pretty hooverdam confident that you'll meet more people that way than you ever would by going to a party surrounded by friends you already know.

but remember,

you gotta own it.

please report on your endeavors...

dancing with myself,

katilda

how to properly celebrate October

it is October.

and October is my most favorite!

i want to light spice candles and live in my kitchen, pretty much.
here are the things my little autumnal soul wants this year...

I WANT TO BE:

EATING
butternut squash soup

Source: cookyourdream.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

pumpkin cinnamon rolls

Source: cakeduchess.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

DRINKING
pumpkin spice hot chocolate

[via]

MAKING

glitter pumpkins

Source: marthastewart.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

berry & burlap wreath

Source: hauteapplepie.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

HEARING
new mumford & sons album

[via]

the monster mash, of course

[via]

WEARING

elbow patches

Source: thechicbizarreeffect.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

knit boot cuffs

Source: etsy.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

WATCHING
hocus pocus

[via]

devin sawa i mean casper

[via]

GOING

sedona's oak creek canyon

[via]

...what about you?

tell me your autumn things!
i kind of demand it.

he did the moooonster mash,

katilda

freelancing for Cabinet Coatings of America