The last book I read...
Less Than Zero - Bret Easton Ellis

Less Than Zero is the debut novel by Bret Easton Ellis (who is perhaps best known for writing American Psycho) and I picked it up in a second hand shop years ago following an 80s movie phase where I ended up watching the superbly-soundtracked Robert Downey Jr film loosely based on the book.
The novel follows Clay, a college student who has come home to LA for Christmas and does nothing but get high, attend mind-numbing parties and listen in to the vapid conversations his Valley friends have. There is a loose plot concerning Clay and his former best friend Julian, but the book is more like a list of events detailing the lives of these teens who live a dream existence of wealth and celebrity and excess but are bored by it all.
The idea of a book without any storyline might sound like a waste of time but I loved it; the prose is immersive not only in the way it puts us in that world but in the way it feels like we're rolling around in the mind of the character along with the 'Disappear Here' billboards on the Californian highways and the Joan Jett lyrics from the café stereo.
I definitely plan to read more of Easton Ellis' books, which conveniently are often among those sold really cheap in Fopp/HMV.


The last movie I saw... 
Nowhere - dir. Gregg Araki

Nowhere is kind of like Less Than Zero in movie form - it follows bored LA teens whose only interests are sex, drugs, parties and gossip (in fact some consider it a direct rip-off). The trailer makes it look like an action-packed coming-of-age tale when in fact it's surreal, lurid, neurotic and overall bizarre. The cast of this movie includes 90s icons like Rachel True, Mena Suvari, Kathleen Robertson, Rose McGowan and Shannen Doherty, plus a whole host of other gorgeous kids with piercings and green hair and lipliner.
I first watched it a few years ago and didn't really get it but I'm glad I revisited it because I adored it the second time around. Again, I'm not sure if there's any plot to speak of but the visuals and the Valley dialogue and the casting and unexplainable scifi moments make this film so great that I'll probably end up watching it a few more times in the near future.


On my turntable...
The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses

I found this record amongst my dad's collection and saved it from storage with the intention of eventually listening to it, which I got round to doing at the weekend. I expected to find it monotonous but was pleasantly surprised and kind of didn't want it to end when the needle was getting closer to the centre.
 I was familiar with the band's legacy and their song Fools Gold (not included on this record) and song titles like I Wanna Be Adored and I Am The Resurrection. I Wanna Be Adored turned out to be one of my highlights, along with Waterfall which is one of those lovely dreamy songs that makes me want to lie in the grass and watch the clouds go by. Add that to the Pollock-esque artwork that looks great on display in my room and it's safe to say this is one album that won't be going back into storage.

Clothes

At the moment my uniform consists of ripped black skinny jeans, comfy band t-shirts, a choker, my leather jacket and platform shoes; I am a cliché.  At work I'm still all about Peter Pan collars and cute dresses with leggings which make me feel like the office princess.

My favourite recent purchase is probably this The 1975 t-shirt which I ordered from Amazon for about £5 because it turns out it's really easy to pick up cheap replicas of shirts Taylor Swift (left) has worn. It's light and sleeveless which makes it perfect for sunny days and also people talk to me about the band when I wear it - I got tricked into re-activating my HMV card the other day when the cashier told me they were giving away goodies...

Although I bought them in December to replace my much-loved creepers, I've recently discovered that there is no outfit that isn't improved by my platform shoes. They were really cheap (£7.99 on eBay and still available), add a few inches to my height, and generally make me feel like the boss in any situation. They probably don't count as workplace-appropriate shoes but they're comfy and weatherproof and go with all my outfits so I don't really care.




On my nails... 


This week I'm wearing one of my favourite looks, glitter tips. I've blogged about how much I love glitter before but I have to state once more how much it cheers me up to see it twinkling on my fingertips (and everywhere else that it lands once it starts to flake off). In this case I used w7 Green Glitter (my number one Christmas colour) on top of my all-time favourite, Barry M matte polish in Espresso, except on my thumbs which are painted in Stargazer's grey shade. They have a dark Halloween vibe which shouldn't be seasonally appropriate but it also snowed last week so who cares? I've been extra careful all week in an attempt to make this look last as long as possible but I know it's only a matter of time before the sparkle will be all gone, so I'm enjoying the compliments and glitter while it lasts.

My playlist... 

The Spotify playlist above is a combination of the music I've recently been listening to on the bus, in the shower and in my bedroom. Highlights:

2, 5, 9, 13, 21, 24, 30, 33, 38: all of my current favourite songs by my current favourite band, The 1975 (narrowed down from a much bigger playlist)

6, 10, 36: adorable love songs by Nicole Dollanganger from her Ode To Dawn Wiener: Embarrassing Love Songs EP

1, 11, 12, 14, 17, 19, 29: current pop songs by Drake, Rihanna, Zayn, Years & Years, etc

23, 31: my two favourite songs by The Sundays

7, 22, 34, 37: selections from the 60s

4: Transgender Dysphoria Blues by Against Me!, which psyches me up for work in the morning but also makes me want to get off the bus and do something more adventurous

28: Animal Nitrate by Suede which gives me much the same feeling, but sexier

3, 26, 35: favourites from Frankie Goes To Hollywood's album Welcome To The Pleasuredome

15, 16: aspirational bad bitch anthems

20: Local Roses, the newest song by Dear Boy.

TV shows I'm currently watching... 

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Love, Angie Tribeca (more on those another time)

A random image from my aesthetic blog on Tumblr...

Debbie Harry in Hairspray; an 80s recreation of the 60s and a movie I need to see.

(This is my first blog of 2016 - pathetic!)

R