Hump Day Crush

There is something that is hot about two men trying to punch the daylights out of each other in a ring in Las Vegas that I kind of have a crush on this week.  I don't find Manny Pacquiao or Ricky Hatton particularly attractive, but I am thoroughly intrigued by both of them and this fight.  Both have a huge following and both are bruisers who prefer punching to dancing around the ring.  Fueling this fire is the HBO show following their daily life with Moms and Dads, kids, girls, church, friends and trainers with juicy stories.  I am curious about it all - how boxing is still seen as a 'glamorous' event where spectators dress up to watch two men slug it out, the hype of promotion, and how two people can turn off their normal everyday lives and punch their opponent to knock them out.  Count me in.  Can't wait for Saturday. xx

Do, do you have a first aid kit handy?

Spring has sprung here in NYC.  Better than walking in the sunshine pre-summer sidewalk funk and getting rid of my winter coat to enjoy the cool breeze is the first trip to Shake Shack of the season.  Tonight, the long wait with friends went by quickly, not just because we were laughing, but there was the cutest French Bulldog hanging out playing with a friend.  The dog was rocking a mini-leg cast on his back right leg (!) that was neon green and white, but it totally wasn't hampering him from enjoying Shake Shack as well.  Smart dude.  xx

Like I already got the beat, all I need is the words...

Weather in NYC has been weird.  Sometimes 77 and sunny, the very next day cold, rainy and gross. Stuck in the rut like the weather, with nothing too crazy going on, I figured it would be a good time to re-read this short book filled with interesting quotes and perspectives on how to improve (with a slant on the ad industry).  One of my favorites in this book is how it presents one of my favorite quotes of all time by Einstein, page 51.  

"There is nothing that is a more certain sign of insanity than to do the same thing over and over and expect the results to be different." xx

Hump Day Crush

Recently there hasn't been anyone that I am really feeling...so this week, we are going back in time 10 years ago to a crush from 1999.  In the summer of 1999, I spent the summer home from Boston, teaching swimming at my old high school.  Our pool, just so happened to be used for filming the amazingly terrible 'Baywatch: Hawaii'.  It was so terrible, and the taping would be so tedious, no walking on the pool deck, needing to be quiet.  But the one thing that made it worth it was Jason Momoa.  Tall, tan, amazing eyes, hot body. He would be hanging out in his red trunks and all us girls had some free eye candy on the deck all summer.

Hadn't thought about him for a long minute, until last year my friend (who was also at the pool that summer, and may or may not have taken a picture with Jason who wasn't wearing his shirt) dropped me a line and told me that our crush had re-surfaced and just had a baby with Lisa Bonet. This is him, circa now.

Which do you prefer? As for me, I'd take either! xx

My dirty little secret, who has to know?

While trying to be good in more ways than one today, I made my lunch...and shock of shockers, it was a salad.  In my attempt to be healthy (for one meal at least) and to be conscientious and bring my lunch, I ended up spilling salad dressing down my silk button thru.  It left a visible oil stain that I started to panic about.

I tried the Tide pen.  No good.  So I googled how to get rid of oil stains.  There were tons of suggestions - most including pouring talcum or baby powder on the stain and letting it sit for 12 hours.  With no powder and no time, I went to the next suggestion which was to wash the spot with dish soap, which totally removed the spot.  I thought it was so clever and was psyched that my attempt to be good didn't end poorly that I had to share. xx

Hump Day Crush

This is one of those blind crushes that you just know is going to work out.  I may know nothing beyond surface things - a sneak preview of a name, some outfits, the sound of their voice, random details - but I am so excited about Grey Gardens, the HBO movie.  There is something about this eccentric true story, the glamorous fashion and the heartbreaking reality of the Edies that I really can't wait to see unfold.  I hope this crush won't let me down. xx

Take it or leave it, and take it or leave it, just take it.

7th Ave @ 39th street.  Spotted today when I was out on lunch.  I don't know what was more random, the one man band set up shop on a wide plaza (that is normally empty) on 7th Ave next to the sewing statue and the giant button when it was supposed to rain, the filthy Easter Bunny who was not contributing to the music but holding a giant tip bucket, the fact that the one man band's kick drum was also accepting tips or that there was an older man just in awe, chilling, eating chips and taking in the show. xx

Start spreading the news...

I am loving the NYmag cover article for this week.  With 50.5% of New Yorkers moving here from somewhere outside of NY, this article chronicles the experiences of people's 'First New York'.  From Amy Sedaris seeing a man shitting against a wall to Diane Von Furstenberg's charmed Park Avenue life, the stories are as varied as the city itself.  

I had always known I was going to eventually end up in NYC.  At the end of August 2003, I moved here with no job, no apartment and no money (a long story for another time).  But before I moved, I came and I visited a friend for fun.  I figured this would be a good time to bring a few bags and leave it in her apartment to make the move easier.  It just so happened that my visit was on August 14, 2003 and my bus pulled into Port Authority in the middle of The Blackout.

I ended up strapping on one bag, wheeling another and trekking from Port Authority crosstown to the Waldorf (dropped my bags off at a family friend's restaurant), up to 86th St, hopped a bus crosstown and waited at my friend's apartment.  During my wait on that ridiculously hot day, a nice random lady asked me who I was waiting for, and when I told her my story, she pointed out where she lived, gave me her phone number and told me that I could stay with her if I couldn't get in touch with my friend.  It started to get dark, and as nice as the offer was, I didn't want to stay at a random person's house.  I got in touch with another old friend, who was at Columbia Law at the time.  So I hiked it up another 30 blocks to 121st street, and up a bunch of stairs, and spent the night giggling with friends and sleeping on the floor in my filthy clothes.  

I remember being asked "are you sure you still want to move there?"  And there was no doubt in my mind that the answer was still yes. What's your story? xx

Give me just one week of danger at a time...

Okay, weird choice - I know.  But I saw a friend reading this book recently and had to laugh since the last time I saw a copy of 'The Eight' was the summer before high school, when it was summer reading for Modern European history (one of the few that didn't put me to sleep).  I was curious to read it again and see if it was as juicy as I remembered.  

'The Eight' follows two stories - one of Mirielle, a French Nun in the French Revolution (1790s) and Cat Velis in the 1970s and their relationship to the Montglane Service, a chess set that was supposed to bring great powers to the person who possessed it.  There is deception, murder, worldwide chases, lust and mystery.  When I finished, I couldn't believe that it was school approved for 13 year olds to read.  The content is borderline if-y, the writing isn't that great, and there was no real history anywhere to be found. Funny to take a trip back in time and read this with older eyes! xx

But I don't wanna be a pirate!

Walked by this gem today while out and about.  Street vendor @ Prince and Mercer.  Make it happen - if you are going to be on the Today Show.  Or plan on joining an FLDS polygamist family.  Or are the costume director for Big Love...and have a floor length acid wash denim pencil skirt to go with it. xx

Your groove I do deeply dig...

Model Daul Kim went blonde and I am really digging the look.  Something about her fair skin, with the blonde hair and dark eyebrows...this is one look that I would love to try but just don't know if I have the balls to pull off.  Or more likely upkeep.  I have had an angled bob, highlights, a perm (I blame the 5th grade lapse of judgement), layers, bangs, boy-short and hair to my bum.  I have been wanting a change for spring.  Could this be it? xx

Hump Day Crush

Tall, carefree, a little crazy and quite dapper in a scarf.  Sydney Fife, you are my hump day crush. I know I should really be saying Jason Segel...but it is something about him playing Sydney Fife that is appealing, since he just doesn't do it for me as Marshall on 'How I Met Your Mother'.  Something about Sydney's shadiness, willingness to try and fight Lou Ferrigno for screwing over his friend, his penchant for scarves, shorts and man-Uggs (a difficult feat), rocking out in his man cave, or his enthusiasm to push his friend to be his best - Sydney Fife is the ultimate bro and no brainer crush. xx

I paid a grip for them jeans, plus the slippers are clean.

Cut-off short shorts.  Ripped jeans.  Boy's shorts with holes.  I have been rocking these styles for a while now and enjoying them thoroughly.  But my eyes and wallet can't believe the prices on some of these things. I totally understand and appreciate the time it takes to craft holes, perfect the worn in wash, and to distress jeans but I just can't get my head around $250 denim shorts!

Okay, I might have caved and bought the Alexander Wang hole-y Boy's shorts last fall.  But the rest have all been on my own and here is a DIY that is easy, cheap and will get you prepped for Spring. (it also made me look forward to doing laundry!)

1) cutoffs.  

Take an old pair of jeans and cut the legs off!  For me, it was easiest to cut at mid-thigh and slowly cut more off until I reached my desired length.  Use a sharp scissors and leave a raw edge.  Once you throw it through the wash and dryer, all of the fraying and fringe will be set.  I personally like the look of pocket bags showing, so I put a 1/4" slit on both sides of the shorts and fold up to make a mini-cuff.  A light version of these took me through spring/summer last year and this dark pair was a staple with tights this winter.  

2) Ripped jeans.  This works the best on skinny, straight or boyfriend jeans (like below).  These are old classic 501s that were given to me.  To funk it up a little, I added the cuts.  I am not a fan of rips on my knees, so I made sure not to cut holes there...but I love the pocket rips and the random sizes through the leg.  Just take a sharp scissors and snip a small section at your desired placement and either snip straight, or carefully rip the rest of the hole.  Try to make it a little random.  Throw it in the wash and dryer, and wear them around your house to break them in before Spring/Summer is in full effect.  That way they will fit great when they need to and you will have built in air conditioning! xx

I'm trying not to love you, but you don't make it easy babe...

Tarrytown. You see, me and Tarrytown are in a fight.  Well, not the town, but me and the security guard at Walgreens.  Last November, two friends who are culinary fiends allowed me to crash their NY food mission, which included the incredible Blue Hill at Stone Barns (see the Degustation and Devastation blog in the sidebar for pics).  We had such a spectacular meal, that we ended up missing our train and needed to wait for an hour.  During the wait for the train, nature called and I dragged everyone to the Walgreens that was walking distance to the station, only to be told by the guard that there were no bathrooms to use and that I would have to take a cab to the 7-11 up the street.  When I asked him where he went when he had to use the restroom at the 24 hour Walgreens that he worked the night shift at, he said that he went at home before work.  Our cab driver later told me that there are three bathrooms in the Walgreens and that is where he goes when he was working his shift.  When I hopped the last train back to the city, I figured that I wouldn't be going back there anytime soon.

This morning, a friend called with an extra ticket for a concert of her favorite singer, Josh Ritter since the dude she was supposed to go with bailed out at the last second.  1) I don't know who Josh Ritter is 2) I was prefaced that I would probably be the only non-white person there and 3) it was in Tarrytown.  All duly noted, but wanted to be a good partner in crime for a friend and got over myself and made the trek to Tarrytown this evening. 

The day was beautiful so the Hudson was sparkling in the sun while on the train.  The concert hall was first built in 1885, with many random details (see silhouetted dancers) and had no bad seats.  The music was fun and catchy, although I can't say I would have initiated going to this concert.  His music is a blend of folksy guitar driven songs, that somehow combine love and historical figures and storytelling and he makes it work.  His smile is infectious (even the quite large dude standing next to me told his buddy that) and he managed to sing acoustically with no mic, chug two bottles of water on stage while lying down, have a dog do tricks on stage and invited all of his friends to sing along with him for his last song on stage.  Like no other concert I have been to before.  I stepped out a little tonight and am glad I did.  Thanks AJ.  And will one of my friends please get on the ball of becoming a semi-well known musician?  Since I would love to dance on stage a bit.  thanks. xx

I'm keeping my secrets mine...

What is the rarest animal in the forest?  A White Tiger.  The story follows a boy who grew up without a name in the Darkness, who eventually broke all odds and was the rare story of making good and coming to the light.  Only his path to success was crooked, including hard work and murder.  A White Tiger amongst his people.  Somehow charismatic yet completely flawed, this murderer spins a good story, and was not easy to put down.  xx 

So Fresh and So Clean, Clean

The Roots.  I can't get enough and love that I can get a daily dose from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.  Whether rocking the slow jam, freestyling songs about the audience or performing with Public Enemy, the thing I appreciate the most are their intro songs for guests while walking on the set.  Here is a list of recent ones that impressed me fully.

Mike Meyers - a musical version of his "woman, wo-man" poems from 'So I Married an Axe Murderer' (a personal favorite movie)

Glen Close - 'Close to You', only change the words to 'Glen Close to You'

Kristen Wiig - 'Wiggle It' (which totally took me back to high school!)

If you had your choice, what would be your theme song?  

A strong contender for me would be the title of this post...xx

Hump Day Crush

James Franco.  Smoldering good looks made less overwhelming by his sly slow smile and ability to be funny, what's not to love? Whether rocking a sketchy 70s porn 'stache and perm in Milk or as the clueless lovable pothead, Franco can't lose.  And frankly neither can the ladies. For crying out loud, I watched Tristan and Isolde, which was terribly tragic (and not in a good way). And I just may have enjoyed every minute he was in it. Two times. xx