Christmas is not only a time for giving and spending time with family, but it is also a time for extensively detailed wish lists. Let’s face it, as selfless as we all try to be, no one can resist making a list of wants for the holiday season.

Here are some websites with some great gift ideas if you’re still pondering over what to add to your wishlist…or, I mean, I guess you could get these gifts for other people too…

www.urbanoutfitters.com = Don’t scoff off this site just because urban outfitters is frequented by the young and hip(per than you). Year round, but more abundantly so during the holidays, this indie haven actually has a great gift selection! If you’re looking for quirky gift ideas, this is a great place to go–especially if the person receiving the gift (or you…) likes mustaches, mittens, or quick and humorous reads. Also, although a more expensive idea, Urban offers vintage polaroid cameras, record players, and a custom bike shop!

(Personal Recommendations: the mittens that look like cupcakes, mustache straws, critter moccasin slippers, URBANEARS headphones)

www.bn.com = Although the content is just as good in the store, you can never go wrong with books! Actually, Barnes and Noble carries many toys, puzzles, and other gift merchandise as well. Considering the fact that many businesses (Games by James, Borders) have been going out of business, Barnes and Noble is a great place for last minute purchases! The music and DVD department is also known to carry a wide range of selections, and considering how hard it can be to find a trustworthy place to purchase movies with everything being on the internet, B&N is a great alternative! Also, the Nook is one of the more popular eReaders of today, with more books than the iPad, and more storage memory than the Amazon Kindle.

(Personal Recommendations: Harry Potter all 8 films on Blu-Ray, The Hunger Games series, the new Nook Tablet)

www.jcrew.com = One word: Cashmere. Or, as it’s known in my family, shmere. This holiday season, give the gift of angel soft sweaters, hats, mittens, and scarves. “When in doubt, go to J.Crew” is a popular motto in my family. The clothes and accessories are simple and classy, yet well made, and universally appealing.

(Persoanl Recommendations: Homestead waffle leggings, Funnelneck pull-over, the colorful and metallic skinny belts)

Until the divorce, I was not wholly ashamed of the fact that I liked to curl up in a blanket and watch episode upon personally invasive episode of this family’s notorious life. When Kim’s wedding episode aired I “oohed,” “aahed,” and “really-ed?!” at all the right moments, and when I found out via Twitter that Kris Humphries and Kim Kardashian were getting a divorce after seventy-two days of marriage, I entirely severed my ties with the Kardashian franchise (for now).

It can’t be confirmed that I won’t be flipping through channels one day and happen to find my eyes glued to the addictive reality show. But I will no longer defend it.

I used to get into arguments with my mom as to whether watching Keeping Up With the Kardashians or one of the many Real Housewives shows was worse. My defense? Kris was a successful business woman. Yes, they Kardashians are famous for their money, but they often exhibit proper family values and are at least taking in some money off of their own business ventures.

However, to renounce my devotion to the Kardashian empire seems only fitting following this recent scandal. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good ol’ batch of celebrity gossip, but a line needs to be drawn when a wedding begins to look like a publicity stunt.

Maybe Kim and Kris really did love each other for a period of time, and maybe the marriage just genuinely wasn’t working, but seventy-two days is too short a period of time to fall deeply in and out of love.

What really annoys me is not that the marriage turned out to be somewhat of a joke, but the fact that the general public criticizes homosexuals for ruining the institution of marriage and allow people like Kim Kardashian to make an absurd amount of money off of a divorce for a joke marriage.

The fact that people who genuinely love each other and want to spend their lives together aren’t allowed to, and people like Kim Kardashian are thrown a fairytale wedding that was titled as America’s equivalent to the Royal Wedding. Please, Kim is nothing to Kate.

From this point on, Kim can marry and divorce whomever she wants, but don’t expect me to be avoiding homework on a Sunday night just to watch the wedding broadcast. There’s no reason my viewership should go to people who truly do ruin the institute of marriage.

I think, from now on, I’m going to start watching Bravo…

What I find most difficult about listening to music while driving though, is the fact that sometimes a song comes on that is so beautiful (is that weird, to call a song beautiful?) and so peacefully composed that I just want to close my eyes and listen, which obviously I can’t do…because I’m driving (there are a few exceptions to this feeling, in this case, song number 5).

Here is a list, and short description, of some of those songs that put my mind at ease:

1) Sweet Disposition – The Temper Trap

This song first became popular after it was featured in what I claim to be on one the best romantic comedies of our generation, (500) Days of Summer. The lead singer, Dougy Mandagi, has a considerably higher voice than most male artists, which adds a softer twist to the song (versus if it was sung by a man with low bass or baritone voice). The steady layer of instruments and the sweet disposition of the composition and overall aura of the song make it enjoyable to listen to, impossible to ignore, and necessary to just sit back, relax, and wholly absorb.

2) First Day of My Life – Bright Eyes

I’m biased, because I love all the work Conor Oberst has done for Bright Eyes. However, I think this is one of the most honest and adorable love songs of the 21st century (then again, this title is only applicable within my limited range of musical awareness). As a heartfelt love song, “First Day of My Life” is appealing because it strays away from the “love at first sight” cliché and takes a different approach. To quote Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet: “Young men’s love then lies/Not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes.” Bright Eyes defies this, by singing about that first love from the perspective that it is wholly consuming and life altering.

3) Yellow – Coldplay

This song should not only be imprinted on the hearts of every soul existing, but also reduce them to tears out of sheer awe for the unconditional love Chris Martin sings of. “Yellow,” which is off of Coldplay’s first studio album, Parachutes, is just one of those great songs. Words cannot describe it, or perhaps someone with a more musically inclined vocabulary with better music-related analytical skills could describe it, but I sure can’t. What I can say (rather, ask) is this…why yellow? I have a theory, but that would ruin the whole point.

4) Creep – Scala Choir (Radiohead cover)

I’m ashamed to admit that I don’t own much Radiohead, but I do own “Creep,” as well as a couple covers of it, this is one of them. This eerie cover of the well-known Radiohead song first surfaced in the trailer for the blockbuster hit The Social Network (awesome movie, by the way). The Scala and Kolcany Brothers is a Belgian girls’ choir, so part of the reason why this cover isn’t frequently heard blasting over the speakers in my car is because I don’t even want to pretend like I can sing like them. This version is even more hauntingly ‘creep’-y than the original, and such a twist makes it ill-fitting for a ride home…especially in the dead of night. However, it is perfect to listen too when one chooses to intellectually question their existence and purpose in the world.

5) Someone Like You – Adele

To all hipsters who refuse to listen to mainstream music, or even for extreme hipsters who refuse to listen to anything on the expansive radio airwaves in general; if you are to ever buy anything from a popular artist, it should be Adele’s most recent album, 21. It’s obvious to everyone who’s anyone that Adele has the best voice of today’s popular music artists, and for anyone who’s extremely sentimental when it comes to love, this is your anthem. So, in the spirit of an anthem––although it can be better appreciated when ONLY Adele is singing––it is one of the best songs to just belt out, screaming incoherently works too, but try to attempt to sound good, believe me, it makes you feel really good about yourself when you believe you’re holding your own against the stellar songstress that is Adele.

6) Satellite Heart – Anya Marina

Yes, this song was featured in New Moon, the second installment in the Twilight Saga, but don’t let that discourage you, in fact, possibly the only good things that have come out of the Twilight series are the original sountracks for each of the films. Besides that, Anya Marina is one of my favorite female vocalists because her voice is so different––raspy, sensuous, earthy––and it’s showcased so much better in slower ballads like “Satellite Heart.”

7) Hallelujah – Beirut, k.d. lang, there are so many versions, take your pick

Originally by Leonard Cohen, Hallelujah has been covered numerous times by artists that often have very different styles. I’ve heard many of these covers (Jeff Buckley, k.d. lang) and Beirut’s Zach Condon still remains my personal favorite. Condon is an amazingly talented musician (he can sing and play about nine different instruments, though not all at once). Beirut began with heavy influence from international music styles, and this is still clear today on the band’s most recent album The Rip Tide, as well as covers such as this one. “Hallelujah” is a soothing song in itself, but when it is tackled by an individual with a melodic voice like Condon’s, it becomes even more so.

8) Almost Lover – A Fine Frenzy

For an ‘almost’ break-up song, this is pretty darn good. It’s sweetly reminiscent, yet painfully sad. I mean, I wouldn’t want to say goodbye to someone who sang me Spanish lullabies and danced with me on crowded streets. This is the song that gained A Fine Frenzy, aka Alison Sudol, fame, and rightfully so. It clearly demonstrates her vocal abilities as well as her songwriting abilities, considering she co-wrote the track.

9) Such Great Heights – Iron & Wine (Postal Service cover)

Iron & Wine, the stage name for musician Samuel Beam, is probably most well known for his song “Flightless Bird, American Mouth” which was featured on the original soundtrack for Twilight. Later, coming across this cover of the popular Postal Service song, I fell in love. The softer tone and simple acoustic style add a new peaceful, yet slightly more solemn quality to the track, making it wonderfully useful when you need something quiet and soothing to fall asleep to.

10) I’m In Here – Sia

This song is off of the eccentric Australian pop artist’s most recent album. The original track has a few more layers to it and is a bit more up-tempo, but the piano version is my favorite. The slower pace accompanying Sia’s haunting vocals adds depth to this track about needing to be found and recognized and saved.

Some hate it, some stare blankly at it, and some attempt to absorb every single piece of it.

The comment that “I could paint a blue square and call it art, but you don’t see my name in a museum” is all too common amongst those that don’t take the time to appreciate the, oftentimes hidden, complexity of modern art.

I am an art lover, and I attempt to visit art museums wherever I travel. It has become somewhat of a trend, per se, that modern art museums are my favorite––the MoMA in New York City, le Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the paintings displayed in the 19th and 20th century section of the National Gallery in London (regretfully, I didn’t make it to the Tate Modern).

While I appreciate the detail and magnificence of more classical art work, there is something extremely intellectual about modern art. One can’t stare at a de Kooning and immediately understand what is being portrayed. Modern art makes the viewer think about everything the painting, photograph, or drawing might embody.

Are the colors being used supposed to show emotion? After reading the title, does it make sense in the context of the painting? If clear figures and objects aren’t present, the shapes and lines that do exist in the art––what do they create? And, of course, my personal favorite, if I tilt my head to the side (and manage to make myself look like an idiot) does the change of angle change how the contents of the painting are viewed?

Modern art challenges the viewer to examine beyond the brushstrokes or the pencil markings, which is especially appealing for people like me who have no affinity for artistic handiwork. Just because my hands are twice the size of the average teenage girl doesn’t mean I can’t intellectually appreciate some Jackson Pollack splatter paintings.

Last week I started to come down with a cold, which included a slowly progressing sore throat. Add on top of this, two and a half hours of belting out song lyrics at my homecoming dance followed by little sleep, and voila, I awoke Sunday morning unable to utter my desire for plain pancakes.

As of right now, I can’t really talk. My voice is monotonous (unlike usual, where it employs a wide range of pitches and tones) and raspy. If I try to speak any higher than normal, or intone my voice higher, it cracks and I go silent. Because of this, my usual exclamation of friends names is perceived as mute lip movement, and I can’t squeal excitingly about anything, which sucks.

For an excessive talker like myself, laryngitis is a huge problem. I’m afraid to speak up in class for fear of my friends making voice jokes and asking me to repeat myself.

Possibly the worst part is the fact that my dad, the family clown, has used my cursed throat condition as opportunity to make me the butt of his jokes. After he found out I was having some vocal difficulties he proceeded to dance around the kitchen.

Last night he whipped out the all to clever, and entirely cliche: “We really need to talk about this smoking problem.” (disclaimer: I am not a smoker, nor have I ever smoked in my life, so ha ha ha Dad)

Luckily, I derive a little confidence from the fact that my mom now compares my voice to that of some old-timey movie stars, and some of my friends enjoy the raspy-ness. One even commented that by maintaining this more masculine sound quality I could potentially be a very successful singer, like Ray LaMontagne. While this was most definitely a compliment, not only would I never dare to compare myself to the songster God that is LaMontagne, but I also think my limited range could be detrimental to any possible musical career.

The largest problem with this bout of laryngitis is not, however, the jokes of my friends and parents, or realizing that musical dreams are most definitely not a possibility, but the fact that I can’t cure it. Tea with honey isn’t working, nor is excessive amounts of water, and let’s face it, the whole “rest your voice” thing doesn’t go over to well with me.

So who knows, maybe I’ll end up toneless and laryngitic forever (God forbid).