Jennifer Aniston covers the December issue of Harper’s Bazaar. Finally, a decent cover subject. No disrespect to Allison Williams and Anna Kendrick, but I have no idea why they are noteworthy enough for December magazine covers. We like to complain about Aniston’s PR machinations, but can we all agree that she’s deserving of a major magazine cover? Especially when she’s actively hustling for that Oscar nomination. HA. Anyway, this was a really good read – she doesn’t shy away from talking about tabloid rumors, Justin Theroux, etc. You can read the full interview here. Some highlights:

She loves home renovation projects: “It’s what I love to do,” she says. “It’s a great outlet for me, a hobby, if you will.” The next plan is to renovate Theroux’s apartment in downtown Manhattan. “I’ve got to get my hands on something because I can’t sit still.” She adds with a verbal wink,”I mean, I haven’t done anything since June, for Chrissake.”

The tabloid narrative (which she helped create): “I think people are starting to feel like, Are we that stupid?… Seriously. How many times can I be out there in the world, enjoying my life, and yet the narrative is ‘Poor, Sorry, Sad in Love Jen’ … whatever the stupid headline is.” Aniston, frankly, doesn’t “give a sh-t.” She pauses. “It’s the detachment from it. There was a part of me that used to get very upset. I was guilty of getting too up in arms about stuff that wasn’t real, phantom boxing with something that’s not even there. Now I’d rather just focus on people and things that are here, happening, and what’s yet to come. My friends, my family, wonderful people I work with. We know what the real is.”

The idea that she would do rom-coms forever: “Ha! That sounds like a terribly boring existence. I love doing comedies, though. It takes skill to bring that joy.”

Wanting to “punch” someone: “Ah, there are some people I would punch. I’d do that to a paparazzo probably.”

But she’s “a forgiving person”: “I absolutely am. I think it’s extremely important to forgive. Otherwise it just builds up like toxic waste. There’s nothing worse than holding a grudge. Listen, people can do unforgivable things, but you have to let it go and say, ‘Look, we’re all human beings. We make mistakes.’ To hold any kind of resentment is like taking rat poison and waiting for the rat to die.”

Who is her creative crush? “Justin Theroux. Not only is he a great actor but he’s one of the best comedy writers out there. And he directs and paints murals. And I just think it’s so attractive to be that good at so many things and to have no ego. He’s one of the most humble, decent human beings. He’s not an ass. He’s not like some of our friends who are young and up-and-coming and they hit celebrity, and all of a sudden you’re like, ‘Oh! You’re different. Now you don’t say hi to people?’ ”

She’s never bored with Justin: “It’s almost impossible to get bored with one another. We’ve tried so hard! And even that’s interesting because his eyes are so pretty, but we can entertain ourselves and talk about endless things, which is pretty great.”

Justin doesn’t mind being with The Jennifer Aniston: “He’s just been doing it so graciously and gracefully, and it’s a strange ballpark to walk into. He’s in his body, for sure. He’s a pretty realized person. But he’s been doing this for 20 years.”

On her 40s: “When am I supposed to freak out? When am I supposed to feel like, ‘Oh, my knee! Oh, ouch!’ I don’t feel any of those things! I feel like our aging marker needs to be rejiggered. I heard Halle Berry refer to her pregnancy at 47 as a ‘geriatric pregnancy,’ which is ridiculous! It’s insulting. Obviously, as women we’ve evolved. My eyesight is sh-t, though. I already was nearsighted, but now I can’t see anything.”

Her pre-Theroux life: “It really helped me get to a place where I was more comfortable with myself, truly ready for love and for a partner. The past wasn’t ‘less than.’ It was extremely important to my growth as a woman. But if you take the law of attraction, if you only love yourself 70 percent, that’s what’s going to come back to you. So you fill up that 30 percent, then all of a sudden there’s this pure, good love standing right in front of you. Then you realize, ‘Oh, this can be easy! It doesn’t have to be so hard.’ ”

Her amethyst earrings: “These are Ted Muehling that my sweetheart got me.” Theroux, he of the storied motorbike and leather, has great taste. “He can buy me jeans! I’ve never had a man be able to buy me jeans.” Theroux’s urbanity plus Aniston’s sunniness equals “ebony and ivory, or tawny and ebony! That’s another song altogether.”

[From Harper’s Bazaar]

There are actually way more interesting/noteworthy quotes in there, but I was running out of space and the whole interview is worth a read. She keeps bringing the conversation back to Cake and how it’s “the most challenging part I’ve ever done” and how “horrific” it was to go outside without makeup, wearing prosthetic scars. As for all of the Justin stuff… it sounds like she’s promoting her relationship just as much as she’s promoting Cake! No, clearly she adores him. But I have my doubts about what he feels for her. And I think it’s fascinating (!!!) that she wants to renovate his NYC apartment. That’s the same apartment he shared with Heidi Bivens. That’s the same apartment he’s called home for much of the past year and a half.

Photos courtesy of Harper’s Bazaar.