THIS WEEK: a great book, funny videos, playful drawings, breathtaking photos and English language.

"But I'm telling you, something happens to beautiful people. They think that something extra is owed to them by life, by God, by all the people around them. They think their life has to be better, more dramatic, happier - in colour, not in black and white."

"Everyone wished their life were happier."

Lily shook her head. "No. Not like beautiful people. They walk on the earth, their chin up to the rest of us, and think that great happiness, great love, great joy is their right and their prerogative. Passion as the entitlement of the beautiful, the way power is the entitlement of the rich." Lily paused. "Especially when it comes to love. Beauty and love become somehow synonymous. How can plain people have great love? They can't, that's how. They can have average love, mediocre love, but their hearts can't soar. Only beautiful hearts can soar."

"I think you've hit on the nail right there," said Spencer. "Beautiful people don't necessarily have beautiful hearts."

"But it doesn't matter, don't you see? You don't fall in love with a heart. You fall in love with a woman's face, with her body, with her hair, with her smell. That's first, everything else is secondary. My mother's beauty when she was found was so extreme that she didn't understand how every man who met her didn't love her in extremis."

"Did your father?"

"He did. Another problem - after nearly forty-three years of marriage, she still wants him to."

I love these words, from page 284-285 of the book 'The Girl in Times Square'.

This week I read 'The Girl in Times Square' by Paulina Simmons. Man, it was quite a rollercoster ride. Often depressing at times, but there are hopeful and uplifting times in there, too. I picked this book up after looking at the story outline which is about a girl whose roommate is missing. I thought, this sounds fun, part drama, part mystery/detective story. It turns out that there are really a lot of drama in this book. Lily is a cancer patient who's just won a lottery, and has quite a horrible family, not the ones who abuse her physically, but the ones who's always draining her energy, which I'd say is a sort of emotional abuse. Her mom is an alcoholic who constantly being depressed and unhappy. His dad loves his wife too much to leave her. One of her sister is into her money. Her brother had an affair with her roomate who just gone missing. She is in love with the detective who investigates the case, who is an alcoholic too. And so on. It's actually quite good reading the bits about alcohol addiction, depression and cancer as now I gain a little knowledge about the issue. I really love this book because it makes me experience so many different emotions, which makes the book feels quite personal. I mean I'm sure we know at least person who has a depression, alcohol problem or cancer as it is quite common around us. Now I feel that I know a little bit of what they are going through which makes me a little sad. I remember a quote by Louis L'amour which says, "Once you have read a book you care about, some part of it is always with you." I feel that I'm always going to have part of this book in my heart. I'm looking forward to read more of Paulina Simmons's books in the near future.

"Amy, Andrew, Allison, George, Claudia, Tomas, Lily and her Spencer, to a place where they would never be found. Without dead ends, without demands, without alcohol, without protocol, a safe place with no sorrow, no monocytes, no blastocytes, no whisky, no war, just a little bit of mercy, a wet and sunny sunny life, and the remains of their fathomless frail human hearts."

- from page 601 of the book

This week I also love these funny Ellen videos:

I love Sofia Vergara & Ellen together. They are hilarious.



OMG these halloween costumes are so so so funny!! Esp the last one & the mint :)



The so so so funny Halloween costumes continue... The Prince of Wales hahaha :D

I love these playful drawings and illustrations that transform everyday objects into quirky scenes by Victor Nunes. His ongoing series is called 'Faces' and I love how imaginative, creative and adorable his works are :)

  

I love these breathtaking photos of Japanese Cherry Blossom at night. Photos by a Japanese photographer only known as Arixxx.

I love languages and I find these different British and American English words for the same meanings interesting...

I LOVE THESE QUOTES:

"Be selective in your battles. Sometimes peace is better than being right."

- TheDailyPositive.com

"A challenge is a compliment disguised."

- Michael Faudet

Sometimes the best thing to do is walk away from a problem and come back later with a clear mind.

"So, do it. Decide. Is this the life you want to live? Is this the person you want to love? Is this the best you can be? Can you be stronger? Kinder? More compassionate? Decide. Breathe in. Breathe out and decide."

- Meredith Grey

"Climb the mountain so you can see the world, not so the world can see you."

- TheDailyPositive.com

What will you do today that will make you proud in a year?

Picture Sources:

http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/victor-nunes-faces

http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/arixxx-nightime-cherry-blossoms

http://sameish.com/post/75779885399/british-to-american-food-translations