Friday, August 31, 2007

Beef, Fish, Vegetarian?



I love these stamps from Paper Source. They would be perfect for a homemade RSVP card for a party where guests have a menu choice and you need to know that choice in advance.

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

A Fad I Hope Will Never Die


I will eternally be grateful to Sex and the City for shining the spotlight on Magnolia Bakery and cupcakes as decadent dessert. The attention paid to cupcakes in the past 5 years has spawned so many specialty cupcake bakeries that a cupcake lover now has her pick and can choose a richer or lighter buttercream, a lemony or more vanilla-y cake, classic or exotic flavors.

This is a great list
of the best cupcake bakeries in the city. My personal favorite is Sugar Sweet Sunshine. Today I will enjoy some of the 36 cupcakes sent over for my birthday. Yum.

Monday, August 27, 2007

Happy Wedding Mishap


Mackenzie at Something Old, Something New asked readers to share stories about things that went wrong on their wedding day that left them with good memories. So, here's mine.

Our ceremony was held in the sculpture garden of the Baltimore Museum of Art. Our guests sat on the covered terrace of Gertrude's facing out into the garden where our huppah was placed. We and our wedding party entered the garden from the back gate. The ceremony was perfectly imperfect. It wasn't exactly how I imagined it but it was better.

Our rabbi was funny when the wind blew the ketubah over, Ross made a joke about the ring not fitting on my finger, my mom made a joke about how you could tell that two lawyers had written the vows ("...in all conditions, under every circumstance..."), and Ross' personal words were more meaningful and loving than I could have made them if I had written them myself.

After the ceremony--and here is where the really happy accident took place--Ross and I began the recessional, hands held, toward the gate in the back of the garden. As we drew closer we saw that it had been chained and padlocked shut. With our parents and bridal party approaching behind us we turned to the right and walked behind a large sculptural wall so that the guests would not see us huddled in the garden and so we wouldn't have to casually walk through the chaos as they all hustled to the bar for the beginning of the cocktail hour. Our wedding coordinator, walkie-talkie in hand, told us that security would be right there to unlock the gate. In the meantime we tried to keep our family and friends hidden behind the wall even though they too were anxious to head to the party.

I loved being locked in the garden for those few minutes, waiting with everyone for the gate to be opened. We were all there, stopped from moving on to the reception, frozen in the ceremony of the day. I could have been held captive in that garden behind the wall forever.

By the time the security guard came to take care of the gate, Ross and I were locked in our our private conversation. Even after our friends and family walked up to the reception, we stayed in the garden behind that wall absorbing what we had just done and privately sealing the words we had just shared so publicly. That is one of my most loved memories from our wedding, and it happened by accident.

Friday, August 24, 2007

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

You Play With What???

This Clorox commercial is disturbing.

It sounds like this kid is saying "I play with my poops in the toilet," and the answer apparently is a Clorox disinfecting product.

No. The answer is kiddie therapy.

Like Every Day of My Life

pic courtesy of scienceblogs.com

Perfection in a Dress


I have to get to Saks to try this on as soon as possible. It's like my personality summed up in a dress. And unlike the other adorable mini dresses, it looks like this one won't actually put me at risk of showing my ass to the world. Awesome!

Monday, August 20, 2007

Best Pain-Reliever in a Bottle


Massage therapists and physical therapists I have seen for my back issues all use Biofreeze and I love it. It smells like menthol but the smell goes away really quickly. And it does such a great job of easing my many pains.

Would You Wear a Headie Hoodie?


Like a lot of exciting finds, these hoodies are cool and kind of disturbing at the same time.

Camera Lust


I really want a digital SLR and a macro lens. I love our Canon Elph but I want to get those super-detailed up-close shots that really show the beauty and texture of things. Just look at this detail!


And if I got a new camera, of course my life would change and instead of watching Scrubs reruns I have already seen twice I would be taking my new camera and exploring the city, going to museums, and sitting in cafes reading Kafka.

Friday, August 17, 2007

A Country Without Melons?


Deuce and I had lunch at The Red Flame today, which is kind of close to Times Square, so it ends up attracting a fair number of tourists. On our way out we saw a family of 5 (teenagers and adults), and each of them had ordered a large plate of cut up cantaloupe. Yes, there were 5 people at a table, each eating his/her own plate of cantaloupe.

Are there countries that don't have cantaloupe?

Spectacular Spa Bargains


I frequently visit Spa Addicts' Red Hot Specials page for NYC to find deals at great spas.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Greatest Night Cream for the Face


I have tried really expensive brands but haven't noticed any real improvement in my skin. And then I realized that the retinol in anti-aging products not only gets rid of wrinkles, it also helps turn over skin cells to produce fresher-looking skin without as many breakouts. Think about it - dermatologists prescribe Retin-A for acne, not wrinkles.

I have been pretty dedicated to this product for a while now--especially after each misguided attempt to upgrade to an expensive product. There is no substitute - Roc Deep Wrinkle Night Cream is the best!

Good Sales and Sales of the Day


I have a couple sale-of-the-day sites for online stores bookmarked on my computer. The offerings vary in quality, bargain, and excitement, but I have found some great finds here in the past.

Garnet Hill .................... The Company Store

Paragon or North Face or Patagonia used to have one but not anymore.

There are also a few stores that regularly update their sale selections and have lots of good deals and fun items.






Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Yummo!

I haven't yet used our new blender for anything other than healthy smoothies.

This recipe for a Milky Way milkshake may change that very soon.



The. Best. Candy. Ever.

When you're working late or at the movies, normal candy is fine. Starburst, M&Ms, Hershey's Miniatures--they all get the job done. But I never really get excited about any of those candies.

My favorites, though, make me ride the subway up to Dylan's Candy Bar, stalk the candy aisle in CVS and Duane Reade when Easter is approaching, and bring them back from England to stockpile for days when I need a boost.



Crunchie................... Skittles bubble gum

My Own Skee-lebrity

I have to give a shout out to my new husband, Deuce, for taking home the championship in this skeeson's New York Brewskee-ball Mug Tournament with his team, Skeechiro.












If you haven't tried competitive Brewskee-ball, you should give it a go.

Great Sale at Flight 001


I love Flight 001. It appeals to my desire to organize and neatly contain everything. Also, I like buying things for "travel" (mostly home-work-home, but sometimes uptown or Brooklyn) because it makes me feel like I have a vacation coming up soon even when I don't.

Right now Flight 001 is having a huge sale on lots of really cool (albeit unnecessary) things for "travel." Since when was necessary a requirement for shopping anyway?

Gorgeous Green


I love these green roses. Our florist put some in my wedding bouquet. They are fresh and surprising and beautiful.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

It's Not Just a Cup of Coffee



These mugs from Uncommon Goods (one of my favorite online stores) are really great. Each of them--the global warming mug and disappearing civil liberties mug--change (for the worse most would say) when filled with hot liquid.

They remind me of the t-shirt I insisted my mom buy me back in the day that changed color in response to the heat of my body. Except instead of letting the world know that your armpits are hot, you can clue them into your political views and cynical sense of humor.

Bathroom Humor Never Fails



I can't explain it. Really, I should have grown out of this many years ago.

I absolutely adore all of the pooping candy dispensers that hit the market in full force around Christmas and Easter.

Poo-lar bear. He he.

Monday, August 13, 2007

An Oldie But A Goodie


Marbles never disappoints.

The Opposite of Terrific


Last weekend I took a ride on the famous Coney Island Cyclone.

It felt like a 2-minute-long violent car accident. I am not exaggerating--it goes 60 miles per hour!!! I couldn't stop screaming because after we went over that first hill I thought I was going to die and that Ross was going to die too and it would be my fault for talking him into going on the ride. This should be run continuously for spies who are being cajoled/tortured into confessing their crimes.

I cannot believe that anyone voluntarily takes a second ride on that thing. If you have a friend who has been on the Cyclone more than once, you may need to stage an intervention because only a serious drug problem or mental illness could lead to such a stupid choice.

You can ride along with a lunatic in the first car of the Cyclone here. (By the way, they tell you to put away hats and eyeglasses because people lose them on the ride, and this guy took a camcorder with him.)

Sickly Sweet, But So Good


I bought a tube of Peeps lip balm last weekend at Dylan's Candy Bar. Yes, Peeps. It smells and tastes just like the little marshmallow bunnies and ducks. I love it!

London Calling

When we went to London two years ago to visit my uncle, we stayed in Harrington Hall, a great hotel that was an awesome deal, too. I really want to go back soon.

Beautiful Belize

In searching for well-regarded eco-lodges, I stumbled upon Jaguar Reef Lodge in Belize. It is situated on a peninsula where the rain forest meets the ocean and is very close to the Cockscomb Basin Jaguar Preserve, home to the largest concentration of jaguars, pumas, and ocelots. And, of course, there are monkeys!


The New Nicaragua

We are thinking of going to Nicaragua for a vacation in March. Neither of us has been, it's got an interesting history and great nature, it is beautiful, and--best of all--it has monkeys!


We're considering Morgan's Rock, an eco-lodge near the Costa Rica border.

The Absolute Best Makeup Base Ever


I love this primer from Smashbox so much. It doesn't feel heavy, it contains sunscreen, and it makes anything I put on my face look better and last longer.

Cheesecake + Brownies + Ganache = Nirvana


Deb at Smitten Kitchen just reworked Susan Purdy's recipe for brownie mosaic cheesecake originally published in A Piece of Cake. You cut up little cubes of brownies and fold them into a cheesecake batter, then pour it all into a chocolate cookie crust. To cover up the inevitable cracks, you top it with chocolate ganache.

I haven't been this excited about a new cheesecake recipe since winter 2003 when I found a bootlegged recipe online for The Cheesecake Factory's Pumpkin Pecan Cheesecake.

Gorgeous Shoes With a Normal Heel!


I want to order these right now, except they are sooo expensive. I am so excited that heels are coming down! These Loeffler Randall pumps are exactly what shopbop says--just high enough.

Tick Tock



Hourglasses seem to be appearing in a lot of stores now. But, really, who is going to actually use an hourglass? There's no alarm when the sand runs out. They are cool looking, but just not practical.

That's why I love this hourglass clock from Anthropologie. It's got that hourglass look and it's a real clock.