Nora's Birthday Party

My sister sent me an email earlier that said, "You could be the entertainment for Nora's birthday party!" (which she's planning right now) and a link to this:




Yes, it's a kit to make balloon animals.

Um.... I don't even know what to say about this.

I mean, does she really think I'd be interested in making balloon animals for a three-year-old's birthday party? I mean, maybe if I were drunk it wouldn't be so bad... but a grown woman smelling of liquor and dressed as a clown probably wouldn't go over too well with the other parents.

OMG, she didn't even say anything about dressing as a clown. Now I'm worried that, somewhere deep in the corners of my mind, I might be considering doing this, seeing as though I'm thinking of ways to make it better for the kids.

No way, I'm not doing it. I love Nora, but my sister's going to have to hire a professional for this. I'll make the cupcakes. (Something from this cute cupcake book I saw on the Today show.)

Bad Last Names

I have a friend whose last name is "Hyman."

I'm glad I don't have that last name.

That's all.

Whoops

I accidentally deleted half my blog. (The sidebars.)

It will be back to normal by the end of the day.

UPDATE: Eight hours later... all fixed!

Jelly Shoes

Thank you, Jennifer Campbell!

And, I wore jelly shoes, too.

Ooh! And guess what! I was just at a store in Brooklyn called Epaulet, and I overheard the saleswoman there talking to someone about some shoes they were carrying that were designed by Melissa, creator of the original jelly shoe.

Here they are:





Now, if only Forenza would make a comeback...

Via epaulet blog

Yay, Christy Smith!

Christy's article in the NY Daily News today, "In 'Sex and the City,' number of sex partners true to New York life," is the second most read and second most emailed article on their website today.



Also, the article was mentioned on Gawker and Oh No They Didn't and Cele|bitchy.

What Is This?

I'm cleaning out a box of computer stuff in my apartment and have no idea what this is for. Anyone? Anyone?



I'd type it into Google, but the only way I can describe it is "two prongs, one hole" or "two males, one female," and, as you can imagine, that doesn't quite pull up what I need.

UPDATE: Headphone airplane adapter! Thank you, everyone!

In Loving Memory

Uwe Anderson ~ 1996 - 2008




In Save Karyn, I briefly wrote about my old neighbors' dogs, Uwe (Ooh-vay) and Jazzy. Uwe, a big red Doberman and the sweetest thing ever to live, died this past weekend.

Sometimes, when my neighbors would go out of town, I'd dog-sit for them. At night, when I'd go to sleep, Uwe would hop in bed and sleep next to me. He wouldn't curl up at the bottom of the bed by my feet, but put his head on the pillow and sleep next to me long-ways, like a person. He wasn't allowed to sleep in the bed when his mommy and daddy were home (probably because there was no room), so it was his treat and our little secret.

Uwe was fascinated with Beverly when I got her. She was just a wee little thing, 2-1/2 pounds, and he would smell her and lick her... he was her first real boyfriend.

Goodbye, Uwe. You will be sorely missed and will always have a place in my heart. (And Beverly's.)

New York Daily News Article

I'm quoted in a great article in today's NY Daily News about the women of Sex and the City's "numbers."

In 'Sex and the City,' number of sex partners true to New York life

From the article...

During the course of 94 episodes and six seasons, the women of "Sex and the City" hit the sheets with a combined total of 94 men and one woman.

Of the four women, public relations exec Samantha racked up the most sexual partners. She bedded 41 men and one woman, while Carrie hooked up with 18, Charlotte 18 and Miranda 17.

Read the article!

Home

This is the plane...



...that I would've taken a ride on had it not been so windy.

Such a disappointment.

My friends and I went to the Rhinebeck Aerodrome on Saturday, paid for a plane ride, walked out to the field, had our goggles and caps in hand... only to be told by the pilot that the wind had suddenly changed and it was now too windy to go up.

What was I to do, argue with the man?

:(

↑
Me, Saturday

Anyway... I just got home and now I have to take Beverly to the vet for her annual checkup, so I'll tell you more about my weekend later!

Crocs

This is for everyone who commented about Crocs in my post about gladiator sandals.

Via Jenny Alison via Lolcats

Sad Excuse For A Human

I don't like to wish ill will upon others, but someone needs to run over Perez Hilton, pronto.

Things That Bother Me

Things that bother me:

18. When you accidentally pour too much salad dressing on an otherwise perfect salad.
    

(This is an ongoing list.)

Balding Penguin Gets Wetsuit

Meet Pierre:



Here's his story. From USA Today...

What's black and white and warm all over? A penguin in a wetsuit, naturally.

Sounds like a joke, but it's quite serious for biologists at the California Academy of Sciences, who had a wetsuit created for an African penguin to help him get back in the swim of things.

Pierre, a venerable 25 years old, was going bald, which left him with an embarrassingly exposed, pale pink behind.

Unlike marine mammals, which have a layer of blubber to keep them warm, penguins rely on their waterproof feathers. Without them, Pierre was unwilling to plunge into the academy's penguin tank and ended up shivering on the sidelines while his 19 peers played in the water.

"He was cold; he would shake," said Pam Schaller, a senior aquatic biologist at the academy."

The Kaufmann House

Wanna. Live. Here.




According to the Los Angeles Times, the house just sold for $16.84 million.

Via The Real Estalker

Cliquey Dogs

My mom has two Yorkies, Gracie and Ruby.

They're very cliquey, these two...

...and they always ignore Beverly when she comes to visit.

A few summer's ago when I was visiting my mom, I took a picture of them looking at me through a back window of her house.

At the time, I only noticed Gracie and Ruby on the left-hand side. It wasn't until I downloaded the picture that I saw my little fat Bev standing all by herself on the far right.

Do you see her?

Here's a close-up:

Isn't that the funniest/cutest thing ever?

She has such a sad look on her face, like, Mommy, please come back inside. Don't leave me in here alone with these two. You're my only friend.

I don't know why I shared this... I've just always loved this picture, I guess. It makes me laugh.

Obama on Kennedy

This made me get all teary-eyed.

I would not be sitting here as a presidential candidate were it not for some of the battles he fought as a senator: He battled for voting rights and civil rights when I was a child. I stand on his shoulders."

—Sen. Barack Obama on Sen. Edward Kennedy

Gladiator Sandals

Am I the only person who's not a fan of gladiator sandals? I think they're so unflattering.

I think they make even the longest legs looks short and stumpy.

None for me, thank you.

Holy Airplane

This coming weekend, I'm going to Rhinebeck, New York with a group of friends for Memorial Day, and, if weather permits, we're going for a ride on an open-cockpit biplane, which is an airplane that looks like this:


Isn't it exciting? I'm going to wear a cap and goggles, just like Snoopy.



This is part of my new year's resolution to do more things. (Like parasailing.)

I'm both excited and terrified.

Mmm... FreshDirect

Attention all you FreshDirect groupies...

You know how FreshDirect has all those incredibly delicious 4-minute meals prepared by expert chefs? Their cool packaging steams the food as you cook it, so most of the ingredients inside are fresh, never frozen or vacuum-packed.

Well, if you're a fan of these (and if you're not, you must give them a try), they have a new line of vegetarian meals out that are absolutely fabulous and under 500 calories each. Even if you're not a vegetarian, you must try them—they're amazing and totally filling.

The meals were developed in conjunction with EatingWell magazine and there are eight different kinds. So far, I've tried these four:

Portobello Ravioli with Three-Tomato Sauce

This one was definitely my favorite. The raviolis were filled with a blend of ricotta cheese and portobello mushrooms and the tomatoes and basil on top were fresh and delicious.





Black Bean & Hominy Succotash with Barbecued Portobello Mushroom

This one ran a close second, mostly because I have it bad for hominy. No, actually, I think it was the barbecued mushrooms that stole home.





Tofu & Shitake Lo Mein with Coconut-Peanut Sauce

Totally filling. Totally delicious. I love coconut.







Balsamic-Roasted Seitan with Beets, Basil & Farro Pilaf

There's no mention of the grilled radicchio in the name of this meal, but when I saw it in the picture, I knew I had to have it.
I. Love. Grilled Radicchio.
And the seitan in this was awesome.




So anyway, I'm totally going to make these meals a part of my diet. I don't cook much, mostly because my kitchen is not an enjoyable place to be, so I'm kind of an expert on prepared food and these are top-notch. Yay!

Democratic Nomination

I'm so ready for this to be over.



← BTW, the Obama PROGRESS poster was designed by artist Shepard Fairey. Signed originals are selling for thousands on eBay. There was a good story about them in Sunday's Washington Post.

Nora Words

I know you're supposed to correct a child when they mispronounce things, but I want Nora to speak the way she does now for the rest of her life. Is that wrong?






Some of my favorite Nora words and phrases:

• "I love you" is "I lub you."
• Yellow cupcakes are "lellow pupcakes."
• Jack isn't her brother, he's her "bruver."
• Ariel is a "wormaid," not a mermaid.
• Chipmunks are "chick-munks."

Oh, and I love the way she counts...

• 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, eleventeen...

I'm going to keep adding to this list.

In Memoriam

I think I'm going to replant her now... put her in a bigger pot.



(Oh, and if you look closely, you can see where Elvis snacked on the leaves on the left-hand side.)

Beverly's Haircut

I gave Beverly a bath and haircut yesterday and it looks like she lost, like, 35 pounds.

I mean, seriously—look at her before and after pics:

Beverly before, as Pigpen:



Beverly after, as her new, svelte self:



BTW, she had denied this.

Otto Tootsi Plohound

If you read Save Karyn, you might remember a story I told about buying a pair of shoes at a store on 57th Street called Otto Tootsi Plohound. Well, that location of OTP is now closed, and according to this article, the SoHo one just closed, too.

Dying A Slow Death: Otto Tootsi Plohound Exits SoHo

I know it's silly to be sentimental over a shoe store, but every time I pass an OTP, I'm reminded of the feeling I had when I had just moved to New York.

I hate when places from my past disappear.

I suppose I'll always have Bloomingdale's.

Sophie's Choice

It's a rainy Friday night in Brooklyn so I stayed in to watch Sophie's Choice. I've never seen it before.

Meryl Streep is so beautiful in it. Stunning.




I love her red lips and nails. And her pale skin and blonde hair. Everything just works so well together. She's gorgeous.

Norma Kamali's Bill Swimsuit

I just checked my blog traffic for the the day and I'm getting a gazillion hits from people looking for the Norma Kamali "Bill" swimsuit. (I wrote about it when I was looking for a swimsuit in January.) See? This is just in the last 15 minutes.


I wondered, What on earth could've happened today to make all these people search for this swimsuit? Well, the answer to that is Oprah. She chose the suit as one of her top picks for summer, which is what the show was about today.

I linked to Norma Kamali's website from my initial post so I clicked on it just for fun (wee! clicking links! fun!), but I got a page saying her website is unavailable. I'm guessing it crashed because of traffic.

Oh, the power of Oprah.

UPDATE: Okay, I just started watching the show because I recorded it, and you know that one SNL skit where the audience goes INSANE when Oprah announces that she's going to do a "Favorite Things" show? Doesn't even compare to how crazy the folks went today. They started crying. Seriously.

UPDATE 2: Okay, this whole episode could be an SNL skit. With a straight face, Oprah just said, "I was recently celebrating Maya Angelou's birthday at Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump's Palm Beach resort..." like this is something we all can relate to.

To everyone who just celebrated their cousin's/brother's/friend's birthday at ChiChi's... sorry you're such losers. (That was a joke. No hate mail please.)

Bon Iver on Grey's Anatomy

Did you all hear Bon Iver on tonight's Grey's Anatomy? They played "The Wolves (Act I and II)."

I included a song by him in a playlist I made for my friend David in March and told you about his album in April.

I'm ahead of the curve here; just wanted to toot my own horn. "Toot! Toot!"

Oh, and my favorite line from tonight's episode:

Don't wonder why people go crazy; wonder why they don't. In the face of all we can lose in a day, in an instant, wonder what the hell it is that makes us hold it all together."

—Meredith Grey

Lolcats & Loldogs

So funny...

more cat pictures



see more dog pictures


Thanks, Sully, for the heads up!

Love Coat Hooks

I think I might need to buy this.


LOVE Double Coat Hooks @ Rockett St. George

Brooklyn Bridge, Take Two

Because I'm obsessed with the picture I took of the Brooklyn Bridge last week and angry that I cut off the bottom, I went back last night to take another picture, determined to get it right this time.

Here's what I got:



So, compared to the first picture...

I think the second is definitely better, but I like the perspective of the first more. I was closer to the center when I took it, which is why it appears more exaggerated. Also, I took the first a bit earlier in the evening than I did the second, which is why the background is brighter and more blue; the sun was further away from setting. Oh, and the colors are more intense in the first *I think* because I was closer.

So anyway... yes, I'm crazy, but I think I'm going to go back again and give it one more try. I'm going go a bit earlier and get closer again. I'll keep you posted.

Dr. Brandt

I don't mean to be mean and I do like this man because he makes great skincare products, but Dr. Brandt was interviewed on the Today show a while ago and um, well... he was one of the doctors at the forefront of the "injectable revolution" and was actively involved in getting the FDA to approve Botox and collagen injections for the face.

Can you tell?

SJP's Hat

If I had this hat, I'd wear it 24/7 along with my bug glasses.

BTW, who knew Cynthia Nixon was such a babe?


Way to work those Hobbs, Miranda.

Papercraft Hermes Kelly Bag

Oh, now, this is fun.


Make your own Hermes Kelly bag!

Visit the Hermes website, click the little icon in the middle of the welcome page that looks like the above picture, choose one of eight Kelly bag templates, print, color, cut, fold, glue, and voila! You just made your very own Hermes Kelly bag.


Via Craftzine via NOTCOT

Bug Glasses

I found my bug glasses this morning. I forgot I had them.


I'm going to start to wear them 24/7 and tell people I have light sensitivity.

PS - Here's Nora wearing them in September 2006.

Gardenia Question

I read that if the soil is damp, then I shouldn't water it. But the soil's been damp for two days, so I haven't watered it in two days, and now the flowers are browning. This might be normal—they're not going to last forever—but I just don't want to kill it.


Thoughts?