the checklist

The News: A Woman Was Awarded The Fields Medal for the First Time Ever
At this point in history, it might seem a little ridiculous that we're celebrating the fact that a woman has won a medal. After all, we don't celebrate when a man has won a medal just because he is a man. But we still have to acknowledge that a "first" is always something to celebrate. This time, for the first time ever, a woman, Stanford University professor Maryam Mirzakhani has won The Fields Medal, the top prize in mathematics, commonly referred to as the "Nobel Prize of Math." And yeah, that totally rules. 

The Look: Bed Head Braids
Bed head is bad to deal with—unless you know how to work with it. I have a lot of hair and wake up with bed head often. Sometimes it looks good if I swoop it up into a ponytail and sometimes it doesn't. But, if you ever catch a glimpse of yourself in the morning mirror and just don't know what you can do to fix what you see, I'd like to suggest throwing in some braids a la Blake Lively. This look is a bit intense for everyday, but adding some varying sized braids to your already wild mop might just make it look a little more cool and a little less "I just woke up."

The Face: Pond's Original Clean Wet Cleansing Towelettes
Let's face it: There are some times when you just don't feel like washing your face. For me, it's post-party late nights when all I want to do is fall asleep in my clothes or early morning when I've already slept through my alarm three times. One of the best beauty timesavers I've discovered is the facial cleansing wipe. Even better is Pond's Original Clean Wet Cleansing Towelettes. These bad boys actually make you feel like you washed your face and didn't just wipe it±probably because two of its key ingredients are Triple Anti-Oxidant complex and Vitamin E.

The Inspiration: Alexa Chung
Just because It Girl Alexa Chung appeared on NYLON's October '13 cover doesn't mean I can't be inspired by her during August '14, or any other time for that matter. The actress, model, and writer has it all, from an awesome personality to to-die-for style. I love this photo of her from the previously-mentioned cover shoot. It represents everything Chung is and everything that she inspires: confidence, happiness, a sense of humor, and fearlessness. And of course, I have to mention her adult pigtails. I'm still trying to figure out how to make that last one work for me, but where there's a will, there's a way.

The Song: "The Pains of Being Pure at Heart" by The Body
How can I just choose just one song by indie noise pop band The Pains of Being Pure at Heart to feature in my checklist? Well, it's not easy. The truth is, I have a Spotify playlist with over 7,000 songs in it. I just keep adding and adding until I reach shuffler's content. When I hear a song I especially like, I "star" it. On Spotify, that means all these songs go into one playlist. AKA the best playlist ever. In that playlist, you'll find "The Body." And since that is apparently my favorite song by The Pains, here I am sharing it with you. Comment below with your favorite track by the band.