Stilettos at the Dinner Table

Happy New Years!

2012-01-01T14:13:00.000-08:00

Let's make 2012 a rockin' new year!

This HAT

2011-12-23T16:41:00.000-08:00

US Vogue January 2012
Styled by Grace Coddington, need I say more?

Pomplamoose and Motilo!

2011-12-17T16:30:00.000-08:00

Check out this amazing video made by Pomplamoose and Motilo! It's to promote Motilo's new and improved website, whose aim is to have cute and stylish clothing available all in one place, so you don't have to miss out on the rest of what life has to offer. Very cute concept and very cute video!

Randomly Me

2011-12-16T16:00:00.000-08:00

I tried to jump.

And an extra shot of my midnight snack!

Chipotle hummus is my new obsession.

Holiday Windows

2011-12-14T16:00:00.000-08:00

Passing by Bergdorf's window display. Gorgeous.

Homemade Breakfast

2011-12-12T16:00:00.000-08:00

Homemade oats, homemade jam, and homemade smoothie! The breakfast of champions.

The new kid on the block.

2011-12-11T20:35:00.000-08:00

Howdy. How is everyone doing?

I've been super busy with work and running around trying to hang out with friends and generally trying to make everyone happy. Am I burnt out? No. But I think my flame is flickering. Hospitality is a tough tough job.

So of course I needed to buy a present for myself. Okay, well, no, I actually just needed to use the apple gift card my friend gave me (but no one forced me, if ya catch my drift).

Welcome my new little wonder, the ipod nano!

I originally thought of getting something bigger, but I run and workout a lot and this has the nike+ fitness app already installed so I thought, why not? Plus, it's so damn cute. I love it.

Speaking of new things, a few other items I've indulged in in the past month or so . . .

I bought these on Black Friday but of course, cosmetics don't go on sale so I paid full price. These are my staples though and I was running out so I figured why not. Let me just say that these are some of the best cosmetics I've ever bought and definitely worth the extra $10 or so. Lasts pretty much all day and even survives tears and sweat! Amazing.

I bought these two to add to some homemade sugar scrubs I've been working on, but I seriously just apply them straight to my skin and hair sometimes. The coconut oil especially leaves you smelling tropical and moisturized. The lavender oil is also AMAZING for massaging tired skin after a soak in the bath. Both from Trader Joes!

Last but not least, a wallet from Forever21! Quite the cutie and about $10 so it was definitely an impulse buy. It fits all my cards and money though in separate compartments and I love the size so I say it was worth it. Plus the vivid red and hearts make me happy just looking at it!

Have you bought anything lately that you just have to tell everyone else about?

I will try my hardest to update more often. See you soon!

Obsessed

2011-11-23T15:51:00.000-08:00

Harper's Bazaar, Spain, Model: Aymeline Valade

Lindsey Wixson W Korea November Issue

2011-11-05T07:37:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, how is everyone? New York is brittle outside these days and my face is frozen like an ice cube! That being said, I am nice and toasty right now and ready to post some editorials!

I don't know what it is about Lindsey Wixson. I was not the biggest fan of hers. But I am slightly obsessed with the recent editorial with W Korea. The cover is flawless.

J'adore!

I also have some other fashion related news that gets me in a frenzy. We all know I love the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. And with the actual show being 1 week away, many have reported which model is walking and which isn't. I was a bit saddened by the news that Rosie Huntington-Whiteley will not be walking this year, HOWEVER, guess who is walking this year?

Karlie Kloss. My absolute FAVORITE.

I wish her all the best. As for my readership, please keep warm and talk to you all soon!

Perfection

2011-10-14T15:47:00.000-07:00

Kasia Struss, Vogue Russia October 2011

Obsessed with Eyebrows

2011-10-11T08:14:00.000-07:00

Bambi Northwood-Blyth on the cover of Metal, Fall 2011

At the new job . . .

2011-10-07T14:21:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! It's Aya here, just updating you guys on my life.

I've been fairly better at updating lately than before, but just wanted to let you guys know I have a new job. What is it you ask? My little secret. But I will be hanging around Brooklyn more often now.

As always, obsessing over music. Freelance Whales on repeat.

If you don't know them, check them out.

Make-overs in blue!

2011-10-03T18:07:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, how is everyone doing?

I recently endured a long day of rain, brunching, and a trip to my workplace (kinda weird to go when it's your day off, no?), until I finally arrived at Sephora, my make-up place of choice (although after I bought that MAC eyeliner, it's been kinda a scandalous situation). I was with some old high school friends, so I decided what would be more fun than to do a little make-over on my friend Ka Yee!

Sorry it looks a bit washed out, the lighting was a bit bright.
I loved the really bright turquoise blue scarf she had on, so I decided to go that route and put it on her eyes. A little cat liner, bit of blush for contouring, and a natural pink lip and we are good to go! The hair I just pushed to one side. I like that edge.

Anyway, more pictures to come of how I've been as of late. Tata darlings!

New shoes

2011-09-27T19:33:00.000-07:00

Olive lace up boots from Spring

Food is a friend o' mine . . .

2011-09-26T16:53:00.000-07:00

Seafood Curry at Menkui Tei (63 Cooper Sq)

Chili with a side of Nachos and Red Onion at Olive Tree (117 MacDougal St)

Ham, Cucumber, and Cheese Croissant Sandwich, Curried Tuna Salad, and Hibiscus Iced Tea and Pomegranate Lemonade at Made Fresh Daily (226 Front St between Beekman St & Peck Slip)

Roasted Chicken with Carrots and Peas at Marseille (630 9th Ave between 44th St & 45th St)

An extensive post will come soon enough! For now, enjoy the pictures, and stop by those places if you're in the area!

My 5k and Recent Buy

2011-09-10T07:06:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! It's another bright day in NY. The weather earlier this week was wet and dreary, but summer decided to show it's face yet again.

I recently hung out with my friend Melissa.

Cardigan- Sexy Dynamite London, Tank- F21, Shorts- thrift, Leggings- H&M, Boots- Ebay, Glasses- Peach Frog, Bag- Friend's gift, Headphones- Sony

Shoe shot!

After lolly gagging in Bryant Park, we headed to Lily O' Brien's and got hot drinks!

My salted Lily! It was a good pick me up. Pretty sweet, so I would just go with a small. I love the combination of chocolate and salt.

Then on Sunday (Labor Day Weekend!) my friend Kievan and I went to Governor's Island for the Run to Remember (9/11) 5k race!

Waiting in line (another shoe shot).

Waiting in line and camphoring. Fun-zo!

I had a lot of fun. I did the same race last year and though I went over my time from last year, it didn't matter because I still had a blast running. I also mildly got obsessed with coconut water after that and I've been drinking one everyday since!

Finally, I snagged this cute cardigan at Forever 21. I'm not the biggest Forever 21 fan because their quality is so-so, but they have cute things from time to time that I just can't stop myself from buying. This cardigan is a good example.

Anyway, I'm off to sleep a bit more, drink kombucha, and eat lunch (maybe not in that order). Tata and see you guys soon!

Doing the art thing...

2011-08-29T22:12:00.000-07:00

Cell post #2!

Recently doing art again. Love color eyeshadow!

First time updating on the phone!

2011-08-21T12:14:00.000-07:00

Technology seems to have come pretty far in terms of phones. How else would I be blogging now?

I recently went to a friend's party in Staten Island. It was my first time on Staten! Similar to some parts of Queens I've been to...

I need to get used to phone posting more but this is a start, right? See you guys around!

Recently decided to try this new thing called updating.

2011-08-16T23:17:00.000-07:00

Remember in my last post I was wearing some new shoes?

These are my new shoes. Oxfords, to be exact. I adore them.

Mango, on sale, for $58!

And then I decided one pair wasn't enough so in the next 3 weeks or so, I managed to snag a new pair of sandals. I seem to like tan.

Aldo, on sale, for $57!

I like shoes.

But I can't say no to food either! Sorry wallet.

I went to Alice's Tea Cup Chapter II with a family friend from Japan. I've gone many times before but I can't seem to resist their pumpkin scones every time I go. I highly recommend getting those if you decide to visit!

The family friend also went to Prince Edward Island in Canada before she came and got us these chocolates. I love Anne of Green Gables (I own the box set and vhs tapes!)

My favorite eating out experience as of late was when my friend Kievan and I were wandering around South Street Seaport, and discovered a place called Made Fresh Daily!

Seriously adorable, casual, and slightly Amish, this place has good food for good prices. They seem to change the menu daily because what we ordered (above) doesn't seem to be on the menu page. Regardless, we're planning to go back again (Kievan will be very upset though if no tuna melt is around).

The sky the day we went to South St.

I seem to eat out a lot with Kievan (and it's great because apart from olives and probably garbage, we pretty much eat anything) so we also recently went to a restaurant called Spice.

The place is actually a chain and has many locations. I went to one in Chelsea. It was nice and casual as well. I had green curry for the first time. It was sweet and hot and after the first few bites, I got really into it. I had a lot left over for my lunch break later that day too (dinner break rather).

Finally, while I'm on the topic of recent happenings, I also cut and colored my hair!

Less volume, darker color. My roots were growing back so I thought might as well go dark brown. The cut is very flattering. I just can't wait till Fall, when I don't have to worry about the heat messing with my hair so much!

That's it for now. See you all in a bit. Toodles noodles!

New.

2011-07-09T06:42:00.000-07:00

New dress. New Shoes.

Dress - Zara, Shoes - mango, pants - uniqlo, socks - forever21

To do list reminder:

2011-06-23T10:37:00.000-07:00

1. Make time to prepare food and eat out (slightly) less.
2. Enroll in a gym.
3. Train for a race again, pick up rock climbing again, yoga . . . again.
4. Save up for a camera!
5. More concerts to keep myself sane.
6. Keep on lovin' life.

Yesterday was Thursday Thursday

2011-06-16T22:23:00.000-07:00

Today it is Friday Friday (if you don't get the reference, then you're missing out on a generational sensation! Youtube Rebecca Black "Friday")

Yesterday I had a day off, so I decided to hit up some sales in Soho with my friend Lesley.

Before I left, I ate lunch. Sadly it was 2 pieces of chocolate and a Power Crunch Bar.

Delicious and fairly filling, but not a meal. I do recommend these for in between snacks (maybe at work?) because it has 1/3 day's worth of protein, which actually keeps you fuller longer.

After Lesley and I met up, we went to Mango first because everything is 50% off and who can resist that?

I scored the cutest culottes ever, and everyone who knows me knows I love polka dots!

We also went to Uniqlo, where I snuck a picture of their new Barbie display. Everything is so wonderfully hot pink!

At that point though, I was hungry, so after a few more shops, we headed to Quantum Leap for some tasty veggie dishes!

I ordered the Dos Enchiladas (top) and Lesley got the Portobello Burger with garlic fries. It took me forever to choose something to eat, but I was highly drawn to the words "large" and "cheese" in the description for the enchis. Did not disappoint--I think I'm still in a food coma. And I have to say that things doused in cheese never really lose it's finesse.

I have a morning shift tomorrow at work so I should skidattle, but I'm actually having a life this weekend so look forward to updates later!

I may change the layout soon!

2011-06-15T23:05:00.000-07:00

I'm that girl that changes her profile picture constantly on Facebook.

That said, I've kept this layout for a while. It may be time for a change soon.

This song is irrelevant to change (what needs to change is my ability to cleverly connect my topics together), but I recently became obsessed with it.

Mindy Gledhill is quite adorable and quirky.

I forgot to post these pictures weeks ago. I had a mini impromptu photo shoot with my friend Melissa from school. These were taken in Forest Hills, Queens.

(maybe you can see I'm not actually wearing a watch?)

Extras!

Wachu lookin' at?

I take pictures of unisex bathrooms. In train stations.

Mmmmmmm, caffeine.

gasp!

We made sugar cookies afterward, decorated with nutella and chocolate chips. I made a sumo wrestler and the fat pony. They were best friends before I ate Mr. Sumo.

SEE? I eat diapered men for breakfast nom nom nom

Anyway, that's it for now. I'm itching to do another shoot for fun! Look forward to it!

The days are long and cold.

2011-06-11T19:11:00.000-07:00

When I was little, every time I got sick, I stayed home and watched a Disney movie.

Today was no exception.

I appreciate animated movies on VHS (yes, I still use VHS players).

Also for some reason this old picture I uploaded a few months ago resurfaced. Before I couldn't use it because the Starbucks name was so obviously in your face that I think it broke some copyright laws by the image server. But now it seems fine.

Do you like the handy work? That's what I do when I get bored in class. Math class, to be very specific.

So I don't write often.

2011-06-10T19:14:00.000-07:00

Bloggers, and by bloggers, I mean, PEOPLE WHO UPDATE REGULARLY (I'm yelling at myself), are amazing people, because they do what they are expected to do. Which is, to blog about their opinions/lives in a very CONSISTENT manner (okay, stop yelling!)

I am clearly not one of those people. In fact, this can be an ongoing joke amongst my readers and I (who I bless for still being my readers).

But onto more important things.

Lately I've been into this song:

The singer, Cocco, has an amazing voice. I could listen to this song forever.

I also hung out with my friend Judy from school!

She looks so sweet right? But in reality, she's a big bully. Look!

Haha. kidding. She's as sweet as a double fudge ice cream sundae.

I also hung out with my friend Crysbel. Is it just me or does this picture make us look extremely young?

This was taken actually right after I got my ears pierced! Most people assume I have them pierced but I don't (until now!) It's kind of exciting. I finally got them done because I found the coolest pair of dinosaur earrings and I needed to wear them ASAP. Nerdiness drives me.

Us being sassy:

(outfit rundown: dress f21, cardigan Sexy Dynamite London, socks random, Bahttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifg Vivienne Westwood, Shoes Boutique 9)

That day we went to Red Bamboo and gorged ourselves silly on vegan delights.

"Chicken" Parmesan

Dante's Cuisine

This is probably my 5th (?) time at Red Bamboo, so I clearly like it. It's also always crowded when I go, so I think it's a hit with other people too. It's definitely a place where meat eaters can go and feel satisfied as well (I've tested with many). I just wish the servers would smile more often ! But if you're ever in the mood for tasty vegan food in the West Village, I recommend this spot for sure!

Okay guys, more updates are comin' soon. Now that I've just killed my phone, I won't have distractions anyway . . . (yes, the hint of bitterness is there) Have a good day and see y'all later? Toodle-loo!

It's raining it's pouring.

2011-05-19T18:17:00.000-07:00

Wow.

I'm ashamed.

I have a blog, a perfectly normal not-so-normal blog, where I rant about fashion and post food pron (ew, I became one of those people who switch the "r" and "o"), and I've been neglecting it. In fact, I've been avoiding it. Because I, outside of my normal not-so-normal life, am not really all that interesting.

I mean, take case 1, a few weeks ago, when I made brown rice for the first time on the stove.

I legitimately burned the edges and spent half an hour picking out every grain of burnt rice from the bowl. I know, a cruel Asian nightmare.

Case 2 consists of going to a concert of the best band of our time, Jukebox the Ghost, and rocking out with this girl with the ridiculous face.

I was talking about the face on the left, not that gorgeous girl on the right.

And case 3: getting this shot.

Not shooting stars, but airplane clouds. But it was kinda after a storm, and even though that's Jersey across the ways (yup), I thought it was pretty darn pretty. I would make a wish anyway.

Okay, so maybe my life is not so uninteresting, but hey, wouldn't it be easier if I just won the lotto, met Joseph Gordon Levitt (yes, I did watch 500 Days of Summer recently), and heck, married him? In one weekend?

Now that would be a story worth blogging about.

I like me a good sale.

2011-04-16T19:20:00.000-07:00

Par-don the poor grammar, but this is serious business.

Vivienne Westwood sample sale in NY? Yes please.

Editorials I love ft. Vogue China March 2011

2011-03-15T12:10:00.000-07:00

I usually don't like Lindsey Wixson. I have nothing against her personally. I'm just not the biggest fan of her looks (and her sky rocketing popularity). That said, I can't say enough good things about the latest editorial she was in for the March edition of Vogue China.

\

Some seriously fierce leg-wear going on.

Hey diddle diddle!

2011-03-03T20:47:00.000-08:00

Hey y'all! I'm back and so soon! What a glorious day it is for my blog's reputation.

I just bought an amazing living social deal!

$385 (Pay $100), $500 (Pay $125), or $675 (Pay $170) to Spend on Designer Clothing at Apartstyle.com!

For those of you who don't know living social, it's a website that hosts daily deals, saving you a lot of money on local eateries, spas, boutiques, websites, etc. There are other similar websites, such as Groupon and Daily Deals--all you need to do is sign up and spend! So far I've used the sites to get great deals on gym memberships, shopping sites, and however much off on food at certain places. It's pretty great.

The deal I bought right now is for clothes at apartstyle. I never heard of the place but after a quick look at their stuff, I knew that it'd be worth it. The clothes look great!

Check out the deal HERE!

I can't wait to get some nice pieces for spring. If NY weren't so bipolar with the weather lately, I wouldn't have to cover up so much all the time. Lets all hope for a speedy transition! Til next time!

I've become quite the bore.

2011-02-26T07:16:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone. How is life? Actually, I should refrain from asking this question since this question seems to be driving me insane and I like you guys.

I've recently been addicted to smoothies.

A-ha! Rainbow smoothie collection. I make sure to blend these the night before so I can have it for breakfast the next day. The first two have spinach, but all three have protein powder (amongst other amazing things). I suggest vanilla almond milk for added sweetness without the extra sweetener!

Other things I've been up to:

A bottle cap off an Honest Tea I got at Whole Foods.

Finally got magenta/fuchsia lipstick! I've been dying to get the shade for a while and since this season, bold lipstick is in, I thought why not? I think I have yet to pull it off (my skin tone is olive so actually, warm colors tend to work better for me), but once in a while shouldn't be bad.

I met Tom, Matt, and Otto. I ate them. They were delicious.

Made a salad beast for the first time in months. What is it about Winter that makes me want to make pasta and soup instead? Oh well, this was delicious (contains mixed greens, tofu, goat cheese, carrots, red peppers, roasted brussel sprouts, celery, and balsamic vinaigrette) The roasting of the brussel sprouts was the best--I could eat just a plate of brussel sprouts everyday for maybe the rest of my life.

With that being said, I apologize for the lack of updates. School + work is a deadly combo. Hopefully I don't turn into a complete bore by the time I update next.

Drowned

2011-02-11T09:25:00.000-08:00

When I was seven years old, papa told me a story of a boy who lived by the sea. Everyday he would go and sit at the docks and stare out into the ocean as if he were waiting for someone to pick him up. People would approach him for polite conversation but he would never respond. He just sat and watched as the sun went down everyday. Then at around eleven each night, he would stand up and slowly walk back home.
One day, on a stormy October evening, the boy fell into the water and drowned. One fisherman claims to have seen something come out of the water and grab the little boy by the leg, leading him to his death. I remember asking papa how he knew the boy was dead. He stared at me for a few seconds before letting out his mighty laugh. "Little tulip, how could a boy possibly overcome a raging sea?"

-written by me long ago

As of late.

2011-01-20T20:13:00.000-08:00

Hey y'all, how is everyone?

I've been pretty jolly (as jolly as you can get in 20 degree weather and no gloves). I've just been doing the usual--going to work, staying up til 3 in the morning, getting hyped on caffeine, and sleeping on trains (wow, I'm a college student now momma!)

Speaking of sleeping on trains, I AM that annoying girl that sleeps on people's shoulders. I need to fix that ASAP.

So recently (2 weeks ago?) I went to Dallas BBQ with some friends.

I AM that girl that ordered hot tea and a veggie burger. At Dallas BBQ. And actually, the veggie burger was quite tasty.

Then I bought some chocolate and dried apricots and combined them together.

I AM that girl that is addicted to salt. A pretzel with no salt is like a Taylor Lautner with a shirt on. In other words, SO VERY WRONG (however, I'm not a fan so actually, I don't mind him clothed. I just like cultural references) But salt and chocolate is a winner always and forever !

Then I had an impromptu photo shoot with my friend Jenna. It turned out like this:

I AM that girl that has run out of witty things to say. As you can tell, nothing really cohesive here, but it was still a lot of fun. Perhaps next time it will be more "official." The run down: striped shirt from Zara, faux fur hat from Gap, thrifted coat, jeans from Zara, socks from H&M, and boots from ebay.

That's all for now folks! Happy Friday!

Japan, land of the ultra stylish.

2011-01-17T07:35:00.000-08:00

On a recent facebook conversation with my friend, she introduced to me this website FILMDANCER.COM.

Although small, there is a collection of street snaps from Japan (mainly Tokyo) that they seem to update from time to time.

She's adorable.

Check out the website for more !

True Grit

2011-01-06T07:40:00.000-08:00

Hey y'all! Guess what I've been up to lately.

I'm sorry, did the poster give it away?

Yes, I watched True Grit. Nothing like a Western to make me want to talk like a cowboy and spit like one (the second part is a lie thankfully). The girl who played Mattie is lovely--there is something about her androgynous face that is so likable. I also thoroughly enjoyed the costumes. It's standard Western clothing, but I am a nutter for the boxy silhouettes of female clothing at the time. I want to walk around with puff sleeves and long skirts now. I think I'd like to watch the 1969 version now and compare the two.

Next post will be more extensive but I wanted to just update. Happy Thursday y'all!

Get the beach bodies ready . . .

2011-01-03T06:01:00.000-08:00

Naturally, this is what pops into my head come January.

In Store Sale starts January 4th (this Tuesday)!

Totally Obsessed.

2010-12-31T10:59:00.000-08:00

This man is a genius (yes, it is a man).

I'm naming my food baby Gerber.

2010-12-24T19:23:00.000-08:00

I deemed myself cool today for watching A Charlie Brown Christmas.

I deemed myself foolish for only wearing a shirt and jacket today. And cotton pants. Clearly I need to remind myself it is FREEZING as of late.

I deemed myself intrigued at the thought of owning a video camera pen (how do people not find that super creepy?)

I deemed myself an idiot for forgetting my camera batteries at home.

I deemed myself hungry for eating cake, then going home and eating steak, and then eating some more cake right afterward.

. . . But enough about me, how was your Eve?

I'm alive.

2010-12-23T07:59:00.000-08:00

Hey guys and girlies. Guess who's back?

I've been trying to update on and off for the past few months but in all honesty, it's been tough juggling a job and going to school. I'm glad now I at least have this break to catch up.

So what I have been up to:

1. A hangout with friends:

2. A trip to the Met (museum report):

I LOVED THIS.

3. Finishing my term garment:

The belt I made for the dress.

A classmate made cute gingerbread men!

An extra picture, I modeled the sweater my friend made for term garment!

4. Gift wrapping:

I bought little baskets and stuffed them with cute little gifts, candy, and ornaments! This is just a mock up (I haven't decided final arrangements and what to give!)

As you can see, I've been a busy bee! I've also been working and doing other school work. But I'm still alive and well, which I feel is always a blessing. I have to finish wrapping gifts, but see you soon?

Quote

2010-12-09T12:38:00.000-08:00

"Same grave, more shovels."

A professor comparing Illustrator to Photoshop.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T09:30:00.000-08:00

Today is the day of the gobble gobble, and by that, I don't mean the turkey. I mean what I'll be doing tonight along with a lot of sleep sleep.

I wanted to resurrect the blog! And what better day to do it than Thanksgiving, a day to show how much I am grateful for the people in my life and you guys!

Here's a follow-up of what I've been up to as of late.

Learning how to make patterns on illustrator

Group work in Fashion Art (I dare you to guess our inspiration)

Recent purchases at Sephora (got the Viktor and Rolf perfume I mentioned months ago!)

Outfit rundown: H&M tube scarf, polka dot shirt, dolman zipper cardigan, thrift cut off shorts, Gap tights, Anna Sui over knee socks, Capezio boots, studded belt

Recently bought African roses opened

Eating Vegan food at Curly's Lunch with ma friend Crysbel

Drawing a cartoon of my favorite band and their ghost logo. At Curly's. On their napkin. With their crayons.

Now as a wrap up, I just wanted to share a few words. I'm very grateful for my family and friends who make everyday worth living. It's been tough lately with the workload at school and at work, but the people I'm with always make it a hundred times better than it would be otherwise. I'm also thankful for my health and ability to keep doing the things I love. Finally, I'm thankful for this blog, as it's allowed me to connect with many different kinds of people and readers from all over the world. Thank you guys! I hope you have a lovely Thanksgiving and please, eat a lot. 8D

Comment Responses are Delayed

2010-11-09T16:36:00.001-08:00

I just wanted to write a formal apology.

I am busy lately and swamped with work. I'm currently on the computer right now to message some group mates and to charge my mp3 player (I'm going to need my music for the rest of the week).

School is kind of eating my soul right now. I'm also kinda eating these right now.

Seasonal items are the best.

Anyway, that's pretty much what I've had time to do as of late. Now I'm off to message people, then marker my night away. Commenting back will happen in the future, but not until all of this is over.

Later and g'night.

Just roll with it.

2010-10-28T21:24:00.000-07:00

Recently my friend and I had a feast.

Shoot time flies.

2010-10-16T04:19:00.000-07:00

Hey y'all, what's up?
I like using the term y'all not because of the implications, but because I'm literally so lazy I like it when words come jam packed together. I swear if I could, I'd shorten all my words.

For example, "How y'all do?" would be "How are you guys doing?" Judge me hard, but that's just the way I roll.

Anyway, lately I've been coloring my life away.

Flats:

All for my fashion art class. I have to admit, I don't think I ever was so meticulous about a fashion art project. I am after all, the lazy one. Here is my end result, photoshopped and ready to be graded.

What'cha think?

Sadly, I heard my professor gives terrible grades (apparently he's a nitpicker) so you can expect me to be very sad and exhausted come Monday. Fun.

I did come across a beautiful spice rack recently in a Lower East Side Co-op though.

Random I know, but this got me excited and happy. I love my spices.

Well, now I'm off to go and drink tea and catch up on some pre-afternoon z's. See y'all 'round?

My hands are dirty. With markers.

2010-10-03T21:09:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! I've been sleeping, drawing, and watching S Club movies all day (make that singular since they only had one movie, and yes, it is on demand). I'm glad I at least got some sleep in since this week is gonna be rough (school wise). I also have a lot of events planned, so I'll keep you updated on that in the future.

Recent look for fashion art class:

Striped long shirt, vintage patterned shirt (overlay), Anna Sui scarf, fake glasses, jean shorts

I was going for the pattern on pattern, kinda Marc by Marc vibe with it. I luff colors.

During fashion art, my professor handed out books for us to look at. I love looking at fashion pictures and illustrations. If I had lots of money to spend, I would probably have a whole library of books pertaining to that subject. However, I don't. But I did take a couple of choice pictures that really spoke to me.

After class was done, I was starving, so along with two friends, we headed to Korea Town to get some nosh. We chose to eat at Pho 32.

The place was packed but we managed to find seats. I order the vermicelli noodles with pork and prawn and it was delicious! A ton of fresh and crisp veggies, a broth of some sort, and savory cuts of pork and prawn on top of thin noodles. It just worked. Our waiter was also super nice which was a plus!

That's pretty much what I did as of late. I also have good news: I got a new memory card! I've been running on the memory of just my camera, which is not too little but I have to constantly delete pictures to fit new ones. Now I can just about take thousands of pictures and videos. Pretty fantastic.

Anyway, time to sleep. I shall see you all later! Tata!

Gareth Pugh Spring 2011

2010-09-30T13:35:00.000-07:00

Love Gareth Pugh.

Images style.com

Jersey Politics now have a song.

2010-09-26T17:54:00.001-07:00

Hello guys, I have gone from MIA to being angry at the MTA to not being able to think of anything clever to say at the end of this sentence. Boo-hoo-eh?

But yesterday the MTA decided the Uptown F train should not go to Broadway Lafayette, the subway stop I ended up walking to, so of course I had to wait for either the B or D, except that only the D runs on weekends and it runs SLOW. It took me 1.5 more hours getting home than it should have.

That was NOT FUN.

However, I did have fun yesterday. Can't you tell?

The Drunken Sufis at the Lit Lounge. They were quite possibly the coolest people ever with the most interesting sound to ever enter my ears in a pleasant way. That and they sing about politics. I think you ought to check 'em out (linkage below)

I forget why we laughed initially, but we laughed afterward when we saw this. We look like babies!!

FIERCE.

An Indian restaurant in the East Village.

Space invader ice cubes! The best thing to happen to ice cubes since, well, the invention of them.

As you can see, we went to see the Drunken Sufis late last night. Along the way, we drank cups of water with space invaders in them, had some delicious Italian ices (not pictured because we scarfed down those bad boys), and I also got myself three cans of these:

Sucks when your favorite product is seasonal. But the pumpkin is back and you will see it popping up in my morning meals more often.

Here's an extra picture of me being silly. I was aiming for a Nylon magazine feel.

H&M cardigan, Stigmata Addiction t-shirt, H&M boyfriend jeans, Gap argyle knee socks, Capezio combat boots, Liz Lisa hair tie, fake glasses from St. Marks Place.

Peace out.

My keyboard sucks.

2010-09-20T17:46:00.000-07:00

My computer is getting old. The touch pad doesn't work and now, the "J" isn't working unless I pound on it hard.
A lot of things require the letter "J": Jelly beans, Jokes, Justin Bieber, and of course, Jukebox the Ghost. And no, I NEVER plan to write Justin Bieber and Jukebox the Ghost in the same sentence again, unless I use it in the context of "Jukebox the Ghost went to go eat at a diner next door to the Hooters Justin Bieber performed at for free fried pickles." Yes, this happened (minus the Jukebox bit which I'm pretty sure I made up).

But anyway, back to what matters, I've been listening to Jukebox's Everything Under the Sun on repeat for a couple of days now, and I've noticed several trends:
1. Tommy mentions God in 80% of his songs
2. Tommy is my male counterpart, except cooler and way more blond (amongst other things, ya know)
3. Ben's softer songs are good to listen to before bed

And now that I cleverly made the bridge between Ben's softer songs to the next topic, I gotta say, the style of the song Summer Sun is a lot like that of this Japanese band, Bump of Chicken.

Okay, not exactly alike but it's definitely the style. You just gotta listen to more Bump to know.

No more excuses.

In other news, winter drinks are back at Starbucks. Boo to the ya.

Peace out y'all.

Another day . . .

2010-09-17T05:41:00.000-07:00

. . . in the life of a fashion student.

Cowl neck; draping class.

The early bird gets the worm.

2010-09-14T16:26:00.000-07:00

I put off a major project yet again. If sleeping in class were a sport, I'd have gone past olympics and claimed my title as queen of all class sleepers.

This song I just discovered 5 seconds ago is rocking my world right now:

The band is The Happy Bullets and the song is The Vice and Virtue Ministry. I highly recommend a good listen, but I just checked their website and looks like it's been dead for years. Sucks when you get into things late, huh?

Speaking of getting into things late, I am the prime example of that. I never watched CSI, The Office, Sex and the City, Friends, or any of the shows I like now until maybe I don't know, 6 seasons later? It's the same with fashion. While all the young girls around me were wearing pretty little patterned frocks in the 5th grade, I wore boring ole' blue jeans and solid sweaters. Sure there was a butterfly here and there but lets just say I used to be a plain jane.

Now look at me, lusting over next season's patterns.

Chris Benz

Custo Barcelona

Suno
images from style.com

Oh, I know you're questioning my taste right now.

Now I have to get back to work, but before I do, some pictures from today.

I went to Chelsea Market during my break and after acting like a tourist, found some crack in the form of juice. You know those Tropicana ads where there's a straw in an orange? IT FELT LIKE THAT BUT WITH CANTELOUPE.

Thank God I didn't know about it earlier, or my fridge might've exploded. Sometimes it's a good thing I suppose.

I'll update later with what I've been up to this fashion week! Peace and love, y'all, peace and love.

I draw flats

2010-09-11T16:59:00.000-07:00

Hello guys! Sorry I've been so MIA as of late--school and job is actually killer. I don't get how anyone does it.

That being said, I am currently doing my fashion art homework. Today I went major swatching (major being I woke up early to go to B&J for their student swatching hour, followed by a trip to Mood), and I can honestly say I am stoked about some of the swatches I got.
Here's a preview:

Can you tell what designer's sister brand I was inspired by?

Now for the big report: WHAT WENT DOWN FASHION'S NIGHT OUT? Well, a picture's worth a thousand words. And I have several:

Vintage Hat, Black Lace Tank, Zara's Red Heart Ruffle Tank, Sexy Dynamite London Cardigan, Uniqlo Jeans, [New] Capezio Boots from Ebay !, Bag from Daffys, Gucci Necklace, H&M Wrist Cuff

VV Brown (she's killer)

Twin Towers but I liked to think UFO

Versace Pumps

All in all, great night. Didn't get to see as many celebs as last year (celebs meaning models, designers, and uh, celebs). Did also see Pharell and Max Azria (although nobody seemed to notice when we passed but me . . . ). And today I happened to be walking past Soho and of course, KARLIE KLOSS PASSES BY AGAIN. I swear, it's a fashion week tradition now that I end up in the same vicinity as her but never tell her that I think she's AWESOME. Oh, and she always ends up driving away in a taxi, this time, a Derek Lam shopping bag on her wrist. Maybe some day.
Anyway, I ended up buying nothing because I couldn't hit as many spots as I wanted, so of course, I end up buying a $10 smoothie today at Health King. OF COURSE.

Well, all hail kale smoothies. Now I think I'll bounce and finish up that pesky fashion art homework. Adieu!

Fashion Week September 2010 Part 1

2010-09-09T09:11:00.000-07:00

Images taken and edited by me

Irina Shabayeva Spring 2011

A Quickie

2010-09-01T13:25:00.000-07:00

Fall is coming. Celebration.

Recent thoughts and photos

2010-08-28T08:39:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, the title is plain because I was feeling a little less than creative 5 seconds ago.

Recent thoughts that entered my head:

1. Why does everyone dream of owning a Louis Vuitton bag when all I want is a Christopher Kane printed dress?

2. Why is CSI crack?

3. Am I really allowed to listen to Let Live and Let Ghosts a million times in repeat and be called normal?

4. How will my first race go?

(source build-africa.org)

Okay, so the first three are self explanatory but number 4 is a new one.

I run as a hobby from time to time around my neighborhood. I've been doing so for a while, but it's never consistent (I prefer doing more boot camp style cardio exercises, with variety in moves). But at work, I have a coworker who likes to run races, and he convinced me to join him on September 5th for the World Trade Center, Run to Remember 5k run.

Click HERE for more info.

It's going to be my first race and although I don't think it'll be as intense as that picture up there, I do think it's a big step for me. I've been training, and each time I've noticed I can go longer without taking a break and generally, I feel stronger. It's a good feeling and I hope it continues up til race day.

Wish me luck. :)

Today's Agenda

2010-08-24T05:54:00.000-07:00

Today I plan to go watch this:

I never read the book (I STILL am on the waiting list at the library), but I've heard many great things about it. I figured might as well watch the movie first, since if I read the book beforehand, I know I'd only be comparing it to the original.

Also, you'd think I was excited to see James Franco. Don't get me wrong, I am. But have I mentioned I have a secret not-so-secret crush on Javier Bardem?

He's smokin'.

I also have a not-secret-at-all girl crush on Penelope Cruz, and it's funny how they ended up together, no?

Anyway, I'll see y'all sometime soon. Pictures of things that's been going down as of late will come. Bye!

Why you can't put me in the same room as . . .

2010-08-21T06:56:00.000-07:00

Well, there are several things you can't put me in the same room as. Some things start or end with the word "chocolate" (or it could be the word itself!) Other things include Food Network stars or bands.

But clearly, you can't put me in the same room as a single sharpie and a paper bag from a certain warehouse sale, because I will be inclined to draw hands and other worldly things.

I usually try to draw realistically, but this time I just decided everything should be mangled. And my sea creatures should be angry. And my tomato should not really look like a tomato.

Speaking of that warehouse sale, basically what went down:

I waited early to go in, and took no time at all to get in. But once in, there were just women EVERYWHERE. Clothes were on the floor (oh no, my brands!) and women were trying on all sorts of shoes.
I saw those gold Givenchy boots I posted about before (yeah, dream shoes right THERE) but they were still pricey. So watch me check in around September to see if it's still there (no one seemed interested when I was there).
I left with a pair of pants (will pop up in the blog in the future).

But now that we're on the topic of fashion, let me show you what I found recently.

THIS JACKET IS BOMBER. Not the style, I mean, THIS IS AWESOME.

Lately I've been into two things:

1. The combination of black and brown.
Years ago, I thought it was taboo because of that one episode of Will and Grace where Jack says it's basically terrible if you wear black shoes with a brown belt (and gay men are almost always right). But now I really like buying pieces that mix the two colors together.
2. Beaded
I don't know what it is, but I'm so into beaded embellishments all of a sudden. During the warehouse sale, I kept staring at the really expensive designer clothing and looking at the bead work. Also, lots of vintage has beading.

Hence why this jacket I found at Beacon's Closet is like, WOAH. I also like velvet jackets so it was like win. However, I felt broke and it felt big, so I felt unsure and I didn't buy it.

Now, a recent outfit.

And a face shot (Look! I can smile!)

Lowdown:
-Long wig
-Urban Outfitters printed shirt
-Uniqlo yellow shorts
-Urban Outfitters lace leggings
-Booties found at Buffalo Exchange
-Bag found at Daffy's

I wore that to karaoke with my friends I haven't seen in a while. Here's the lunch I ordered there!

I love salmon!

Maybe a week or so ago, I went to the new Crumbs bakeshop in the financial district and picked up some cupcakes. They have a promotion special going on until Sept. 5th that on weekends, you can buy one cupcake and get the second free (coupon here)

The chocolate covered strawberry wasn't as good as that coconut one right next to it. Chocolate and coconut just rock together!

Finally, I tried the ULTIMATE in waffles and food trucks, Wafels and Dinges.

The first topping (dinges) is free, so I got the BEST SPREAD IN THE WORLD. It's called Spekuloos (as is on the menu, but when you search for it, it's actually spelled with a "c"). It's a sort of cookie spread, but it was such a "Move over Nutella!" moment.
I recommend them if you find their truck somewhere because although a tiny bit pricey for waffles, it's delicious and the guys are super nice!

So this post was nice in that it summed me as a person: fashion, art/sketches, food. Now to go and walk around Manhattan for no reason! See you guys later!

Blogger Girls We're Unreliable

2010-08-14T05:13:00.000-07:00

Actually, it's just me.

Sorry chickee-doodles, I haven't been as active on the blog as of late. I keep coming here to write something, only to be distracted by something else. Then I forget and when I come back, I hate what I wrote before.

Oh well, so is life.

So some pictures from my past few days:

Food Truck Fest

Nothing too special. Was way too hot and crowded, and I ended up not getting anything. Instead, I walked up until I stumbled across an Amy's Bread and I got a rosemary twist. Yum, CARBS.

I did see this purty booth.

I love dramatic jewelry.

I then met with my friend Lesley to go get some 8 cent crepes at Motek. The line was SO LONG. So we cam whored.

I like red lips.

The crepes:

We both got the same flavor (Pesto). It was good, but we ended up waiting 2 hours on that line and it really wasn't 2 hour wait worthy.

After failing at buying some cupcakes at Crumbs afterwards, we settled on sweets elsewhere. I got a hazelnut ball at Black Hound. I normally love Black Hound, but this was just a little dry and there were too many nuts around it. I did finish it though.

In the end, I just went home and had a banana soft serve with kiwi. This might've been the best thing I ate that day.

I also did Restaurant Week at Club A Steakhouse! I have no pictures to post here because everything turned out red and dark due to the lighting at the place. HOWEVER, that was the least of my worries. The food was delish and the service was SUPERB. My water was constantly being replenished (but not annoyingly so), and they even gave us a side dish on the house. My favorite dish was the cauliflower soup (I must have it again someday!), but trust me when I say I enjoyed all courses.

I doggy bagged half the salmon so you at least get to see what I did with it.

Mmmmmmm, salad.

Then the other day, I went to Murray's Bagels for well, bagels.

They only had a few bagel choices because it was 6 in the morning and the hadn't baked all of them yet. So I had a sesame bagel with some maple walnut spread.
I've been wanting to try this place because it's got an impressive list of awards received. I gotta say the bagel was really good. Maybe I should just get one with no spread next time because it sort of takes from the pure taste of bagel, but that might be hard to do since the spread was tasty too . . . Ah well.

Finally, my boring dinner from the other day.

Salad + TJ chips!

Okay, so I believe I best be off to eat some dinner and then hit up the SEASON FINALE OF NEXT FOOD NETWORK STAR. I'm rooting for Aarti or Herb. Are you watching?

I love nerds

2010-08-07T17:49:00.000-07:00

I love nerdy people. They are the only ones who will watch sci-fi movies with you, talk philosophical theories about the power of mind and the existence of God, know what's going on in the world of politics, and of course, get really excited about tv shows that no one else gets.

I think I just described myself and the majority of my friends. No matter.

So recently I made some more energy bars. This time though, I made it extra special by making labels for all of them.

I made them mainly for coworkers, so a small batch it was. One for that kinda quirky nice guy who listens to my ramblings, one for that hard working fellow who gets overlooked, one for that guy who got me the job and who I can never thank enough, and one for that dude whose impossible sweetness makes every shift I'm working better. I should've written that on the back of those labels too, huh?

And now for some recent eats:

I went karaoke-ing with mi madre y mi hermana (4 years of Spanish and I get this, I know). This is what I ordered.

I finally ate at Bonobos! I had the nori roll.
You know, I really love eating raw from time to time. It's filling and I think it's a pretty spectacular way to be really creative with what nature gives you. These nori rolls were colorful and tasty, and I ate about half before being full. The rest I saved for the next day, and the dressing on that salad?

Saved it for some tofu salad two nights later.
That's also a boiled sweet potato. I wish I could bake the darn thing but my oven's busted and has been for over a year now. 8D Another reason why I have been making raw desserts lately.

And speaking of raw, some more!

The sandwich is from Westerly, along with the chunks of energy. The water is courtesy of Whole Foods.
I gotta say, I'm hooked on raw bread now. It's too expensive to justify buying it often, but it's okay to indulge once in a while. It's just so nutty and rich and just plain GOOD.

Finally, I went to Lifethyme and grabbed myself a raw chewie.

It's HUGE. Kinda like eating a big hunka dough. I still have some left over.
I contemplated buying it because I could easily make this, but I thought hey, why not? There were 3 other flavors, and since the original tastes like eating ole fashioned raisin bread, I wonder how lovely the coconut one will be?

Finally, some of the best economical hummus to be in my tummus. You really can't turn it down at that price, can you?

So to sign off with some substance (because mucho food pictures aren't enough), a NY foodie update taken from Time Out NY's website.

SUN 8 FOOD TRUCK FEST
The Hell’s Kitchen Flea Market welcomes a convoy of mobile eateries for this food-truck bonanza. Arrive early to beat the inevitable lines for vendors such as Go Burger and Jersey City’s the Krave, which serves tacos and burritos filled with Korean BBQ staples. Hell’s Kitchen Flea Market, W 39th St at Ninth Ave (hellskitchenfleamarket.com). 11am–4pm.

Will you be there?

A Friendly Reminder

2010-08-03T07:34:00.000-07:00

The world should know three things about me.

The first two are a given:

1. I love fashion.
2. I love food.

But the 3rd one, well, many of you DO know this about me, but some of you don't, so here it is:

3. I am a Food Network junkie.

Now, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking "Well, that kinda goes with #2, doesn't it?" And yes, yes it does. But I even frighten myself sometimes when I can list the line up of shows happening on what day of the week and when I get really excited at just the mention of Alton Brown or Paula Deen.

Of course, this took years. What many people (even my closest friends) don't know is, I've been watching the channel only a few years after it started. As a kid, my favorite thing to do was go home and watch Cooking Live with Sara Moulton. Or Sweet Dreams with Gale Gand. Or Emeril Live with . . . well, you know who. And I would often tape Sweet Dreams so I can watch it later and pause it every so often to write down the recipe in my recipe book. Yup, I was a determined little nugget.

One thing I remember enjoying writing the recipes of the most were smoothies. As a kid, that's one of the few things you can do without any help what-so-ever, and it takes only a few minutes to pour yourself a snazzy glass of deliciousness.

Some things never change.

"It's Not Easy Being Green" Smoothie

Handful of Spinach (abt. 1 - 1.5 cups)
Half a Mango (I used the Alphonso variety, as it's sweetest and bigger)
1 Organic Pink Lady Apple (found at TJs)
Splash of Water

Put all ingredients in a blender. Enjoy.

Some people don't like green smoothies because the flavor from the greens can be too much for them. The thing about greens are, the darker the color, the more nutrients it usually has, but it's also more bitter and tends to taste harsher. I opted for pre-washed baby spinach in this case because spinach in general has lots of Vitamins A and C, along with iron and calcium. It's also commonly found raw.
A word of advice for green smoothies in general, if you're just starting out, I recommend adding a sugar fruit with them. Things like bananas, mangoes, watermelon, etc. all have higher sugar percentages so it'll cut out the bitterness. You also won't need extra sweetener (although if it's a must, I suggest natural ones like stevia or honey).

Now I think I may have to go. The Next Food Network Star is On Demand, and since I have work later on in the evening, when else can I catch my food related melodrama?

That pepper is burning my tongue.

2010-07-31T07:34:00.000-07:00

Hello guys and girls, today I plan to do nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

Words were never strung together so beautifully.

The only things I do plan to do today is write on this bloggy, watch some CSI, and listen to Rooney.

I checked my emails this morning and was greeted by one saying I was one of 45 top dinner blogs of 2010 at OnlineSchools.org. I checked it out (sometimes I get spam so I really have to check everything) and scoured the homepage. It's actually a very nice site--I appreciate information being put together collectively for people to use. Check out the other blogs that were ranked too because they are pretty banging !

Speaking of banging (hey, don't blame me if your mind went there), these bagels are also pretty up the radar.

I went to Brooklyn Bagel in the wee hours of the morning to get one of these. Well, no, actually, I was already in the area and after having a 30 minute nap at the Rite Aid next door (I hope you know I'm NOT kidding), I decided a nice warm bagel was in order. I got the rye with cinnamon raisin walnut (I think that's what it's called?) cream cheese and t'was glorious. Seriously, these bagels are huge and worth the price.

I also have been craving Nutella recently.

HOW CAN YOU NOT?
I need to get myself a jar soon, so I can start spreading it's delicious chocolatey hazelnutty goodness on everything. Mmmmmmmmm, nutella omelets . . . (kinda joking)

If this post weren't random enough, I thought I'd just say that I did watch Project Runway's Season 8 Premiere.

And I thought Andy's and Gretchen's Looks were pretty boss. Man, I love me some black draping.

Andy's Look from mylifetime.com

Anyway, I should probably jump off the computer and go watch some of that CSI I've been hankering. Hodges is slowly becoming one of my favs. Toodles guys!

Fashionably Fed.

2010-07-28T07:37:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! How is everyone doing?

Today I'm off from work so I decided to post here on the bloggy on what I've been up to.

So I went to Curly's Lunch again.

Sorry, the lighting was terrible so I had to color edit these photos. But it's Chili and Rice on top, and my friend's Nachos on the bottom.
I wrote a review a few posts back about how the first time was not the greatest but I wanted to go back and try something else. Well, after realizing how big the entrees were and being stuffed the last time, I opted for a "small plate" item. This for me is entree size.
The Chili and Rice was really good and SUPER filling. It went well with the brown rice (although they also just serve the chili too). As far as service, it was average again since the waitress had another friend visiting her, but ah well, at least they're not rude. And I prefer service that's not too overbearing anyway. ;)

Last week, I also visited this place called Northern Spy Food Co. with my friend Jenna (after a recommendation from her).

I ordered the House-made Head Cheese. The portion was good (enough to fill me without nausea) and it was fresh and lovely. I really miss simply used good ingredients, and it's great that this place only uses local ingredients (i.e. from the east coast/mid Atlantic). I would also recommend this place to vegetarians as many of the items on the menu is veg. They also seem to have a special apple pie that uses the Northern Spy Apple (hence where the name of the restaurant came from) but I didn't try it [yet].
The service is prompt and friendly, and they give you water in a ship-in-a-bottle kinda bin, so you just pour yourself. Overall, pleasant and nice.

My 0utfit for that day:

-Sunglasses from my friend Lesley!

-Urban Outfitters T-shirt
-Shorts from Buffalo Exchange
-Belt from Steve Madden (I think)
-Shoes from Bloomingdales
-Anna Sui bracelet
-Tote from Muji

After eating, Jenna and I headed to Buffalo Exchange. She had never gone, so I decided to show her what all the hubbub was about. Of course, I end up spending almost $80 there. I am so weak.

The purple dress was just something I tried on but didn't buy. I think it was an ADAM piece. I did however buy that skirt. I couldn't help it--I love drapery! The silk material makes it chic, but it's neutral enough to be played casually. I love it.

I also left with a few other items that will show up on the blog in the future.

Now I'm off to listen to Rooney and browse some blogs. Toodles y'all!

Blue skies, hot suns, and colorful dancing.

2010-07-25T07:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to the Annual Thunderbird American Indian Mid-Summer Pow Wow at the Queens County Farm Museum.

I go every year with my mom and because I conveniently didn't have work yesterday, we kept the tradition! Here are some shots from yesterday's event.

I tried to get a better picture of this man's face but I failed. HE LOOKED LIKE KARL LAGERFELD. But you know, with braids and color.

Zoom was good to me yesterday. This kid's hair is awesome!

After the afternoon show, there's another show in the evening that involves a bonfire and more dancing. My mom and I always miss that one because it takes too long to get back and make dinner if we stay. So of course, we used the rest of our time to shop the booths.

Gorgeous beaded hair accessories.

This doll was adorable!

I also saw this tiny owl emblem that looked like one of my co-workers and it entertained me quite a bit. Other than that, my mom managed to buy a cool necklace, a dream catcher, and I got some pretty leather strips (a future arts and craft project perhaps?)

Finally, I loved snapping pictures of the tribe's colorful clothing because it's so inspiring! I love color and it's just fun to see all the patterns and the beading they use. I was talking to this one man who was explaining a lot of the symbolism of the colors and the animals. For example, purple signifies heart (purple heart), green is grass, brown is earth, dark blue is night sky, white is the north wind, etc. And turtles signify mother nature because it carries the earth on it's shoulders. Quite poetic.

Right now I have to get ready to go to work and after that, I'm hanging with one of my amigas! See y'all again!

Eureka! Everything Under the Sun!

2010-07-18T06:30:00.000-07:00

A few days ago, I had a bit of a concert splurge and just decided to go see Jukebox the Ghost on Tuesday, followed by Rooney on Wednesday. Hence my plugging of the bands' new albums in the title.

I met with my friend Juliana at the 92Y Tribeca for Jukebox. Funny story: I thought for 1.5 months that the show was at the 92nd STREET Y, so I kept checking their calendar but never saw the Jukebox concert listed. It was only the day before that I re-googled 92Y only to find there was a 92Y Tribeca, and I saw the concert listed there. Well, the next morning (day of), I got back on and ordered a ticket. That was silly.

The ticket!

Juliana's birthday gift to me. Yes, no more fanning myself with Shakespeare!

We waited on line for a little while, and made some new friends (you know, the regular people, like the guy who writes backwards and the guy from Connecticut who has his own band and knows like, half the people that went to your high school). I was pretty shocked a lot of the crowd was guys! That's a good sign when both genders like a band!

It's a ghost! <----free awesome yellow things

Then Jukebox came out!

They were FACE MELTING! AWESOME TASTIC WITH A SIDE OF SWEAT AND WINE (um, Ben was sipping wine the whole time cause he's that cool). At one point, I stopped and realized how much I respected them as musicians and people. Their music just feels so good! Kinda like that feeling after running; like you did something good for yourself.

Most noted parts of this concert:
-They played the whole new album, Everything Under the Sun, in its entirety! It's coming out September 7th
-Ben telling us a story of how he went to the 92nd street Y only to be told it was the one in Tribeca (ha! It's not just me!)
-Tommy's "So you think you can acapella?"
- After the concert:
FINALLY TALKING TO TOMMY (by the way, I didn't get super blurtastic Tommy pictures this time!) I just had to say hi since I missed it the last two times.
Also telling Shervin, the tour manager, that he's the nicest person ever! Seriously, he's always smiling and just being nice to everyone. Where does this guy come from, Denmark? Although I highly doubt they would get a European import to manage their tours.

After having a blasty at Jukebox and exchanging facebook info with aforementioned person from Connecticut, Juliana and I headed out.

The next day, I braved myself for some more rocking good times.

I met my friends Melissa and Crysbel at the Museum of Natural History.

I REALLY wanted an ironic picture. Oh my god, I love ironic pictures.

There was already a small line forming when we got there, but luckily only 3 minutes after us, 20 more people came and we didn't get stuck behind them.

My amiga is reading Japanese while I cam whore my outfit by myself. Don't I look happy? 8D

After a while, we went in and waited for another hour or so. Sans two girls who tried hitting on the guys next to us (and pushing my friend on numerous occasions) the crowd was pretty friendly.

The first band was Black Gold.

They were quite good. The drummer and the singer/keyboardist was really into it, and on numerous occasions the singer clapped his hands to the music so we would do the same. At one point, he even had us sing words to one of his songs.
I think the only problem was they lack some stage presence. I wished the bassist and guitarist did more/moved around. But I definitely see a lot of potential. And their music is good.

Second band was The Young Veins.

I expected so much and got so little. Their music was pretty good (I could tell they were influenced by the Beatles and California), but as far as performance goes, they barely moved. AT ALL. Only maybe once or twice did the two in the front move in. And I believe smiling some more may have gone a long way.

Well, after another moment of waiting, Rooney came out and I finally felt inclined, neigh, I just couldn't control moving around all over the place.

DO YOU SEE THE BLUR? It's a good sign.
I've seen Rooney once before (I believe I blogged about it but I don't think I took pictures the last time) so I knew what to expect to some extent. But they BLEW MY MIND AWAY. They played a lot of oldies but goodies, along with new songs from Eureka. The playlist was really impeccable. That and Rooney songs are just plain fun. Really California sounding (Side note: I have my itunes on random and California Girls just started playing). Everything is just kind of sunny, bright, and fun. I danced to everything.

Also, I know I'm rambling, but I'm so proud they went independent. After issues with major labels (the labels wanted a hit song and kept discarding and making them rewrite a lot of stuff), they decided to break off and build their own studio and edit and record everything on their own. I guess when you've been doing it for as long as Rooney, a major label might be more of a curse than a blessing. Anyway, glad they did because we got to hear songs they really wanted to make! Bravo!

As a final note, there's been quite a few great giveaways in the blogging world. I believe many are ending, but check out the Lil Veggie Patch's Giveaway for a $40 CSN Giftcard! It goes on til Tuesday.

Anyway, at the risk of making this an insanely long blog post (well, it already is), I'm signing out! Have a nice leisurely Sunday!

Raw Vegan Cheesecake

2010-07-16T06:57:00.000-07:00

Last week on my birthday, I made a raw vegan cheesecake. This is the recipe I used:

Just Like Cheesecake
By Emily Lee Angell ("The Complete Book of Raw Food")

Makes: 24 slivers

For the Crust:
2 cups raw macadamia nuts
1/2 cup dates, pitted (medjools)
1/4 cup dried coconut

For the Cheese:
3 cups chopped cashews, soaked for at least 1 hour
3/4 cup lemon juice
3/4 cup honey
3/4 cup coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt (optional)

To make the crust, process the macadamia nuts and dates in the food processor. Sprinkle dried coconut onto the bottom of an 8 or 9 inch spring form pan. Press crust onto the coconut. This will prevent it from sticking.

To make the cheese, blend the cashews, lemon, honey, gently warmed coconut oil (do not use microwave), vanilla, sea salt (if using), and 1/2 cup water. Blend until smooth and adjust to taste.

Pour the mixture onto the crust. Remove air bubbles by tapping the pan on a table.

Place in the freezer until firm. Remove the whole cake from the pan while frozen and place on a serving platter. Defrost in the refrigerator.

--------------------------------------------

My only revisions is that I used almonds instead of macadamia nuts, I didn't use dried coconut, and I also didn't use coconut oil. I really wanted to because it's what keeps the cake from getting too gloppy and firms it up like real cheesecake, but I was short on time and I needed to just get the ingredients from one store only and they didn't have it.

Pictures:

Some ingredients.

Soaking cashews.

Packing in crust (I didn't have a cake round so I used a skillet)

After pouring in cashew blend and adding fruits on top.

On a plate! Yum!

Just so everyone knows, I just finished the last of it yesterday. It lasts a really long time and holds well because there's no eggs or dairy in it. I can also eat it in the morning (which I did a few times) without feeling sick. I mean, it's just nuts and fruit!
I recommend it for anyone who has never tried raw vegan desserts!

Food is good.

2010-07-11T08:12:00.000-07:00

Good morning everyone! Last night I had a good ole fashion sleepover at my friend's house. We feel asleep to the Star Trek movie which is pretty much the best way to fall asleep. I think y'all know by now I'm a nerdy little boy on the inside. ;D

Anyway, thought I'd review a few food places today. I've been getting a lot of comments lately about how my food posts make everyone hungry. Think about how I feel! I have to re-live the moment the food party happened in my mouth!

I recently went to a veggie place called Curly's Lunch. I knew about this place for a while and was dying to go, so I finally did when I was with a few of my friends.
The place is pretty small but cozy. They have drawings on the walls and also some crayons on the tables to provide you with some entertainment while you wait for food. I went here on a really hot day which was not the best since the place is just kind open in the front and has no A.C. But they do have a fan overhead.
The food, portion wise, is HUGE. I think you get your moneys worth. However, the food itself is not the best. I'm still the biggest fan of Vegan Loving Hut when it comes to fresh veggie food. This food, although good, was just a little . . . off. I had the Portobello Burger, and I feel the burger was a bit blackened (apart from it being made of black beans) and it just didn't feel good in my tummy towards the end. The curly fries are great though.
My friend also had the Open Faced Turkey Sandwich, and besides it being sloppily put on the plate, the turkey was way over salted. The stuffing though was tasty. I think I want to come back and maybe try something else, and maybe not get an entree next time since they're so big.
The service is average. It was Independence day so I understand why the waitress and the waiters' friends/mom came in. They did keep chatting with them, but it was done in a non-obnoxious way and they still did their job in between.
Overall, just an average place, but I will visit again.

The second place I visisted recently is Sugar Sweet Sunshine Bakery. Now doesn't the name just rot your teeth? ;)
This was my second visit, and also my second pudding. I've only ever had their puddings because well, I'm a pudding girl and they charge pretty well for theirs.
The above picture is the chocolate chip cookie butterscotch pudding. Now, 12 oz. (the smalle size: $4) is a lot of pudding for one sitting, so I suggest splitting with a friend or just saving some for later. Before this one I've had the banana one. They're both sweet but delicious, and it's a good indulgence if you're sick of cakes and cupcakes.
The place also has a bunch of seats/love seats so it's a cozy place to sit and chat. However, there's no AC so I might suggest getting an iced drink to down the sweets. The people working here are also pretty sweet nice people so I plan to keep coming back when I'm in the mood for a little indulgence.

Rice to Riches is pretty popular. I mean, like get on Food Network's "Best Things I Ever Ate" popular. Although, granted, most NYers seemed to know about the place way before that.
I actually remember coming here maybe 2 or 3 years ago with my friend Zoe. That was the first time. And the second time? Just yesterday, with the same friend Zoe. :)
The place is pretty popping, with the funniest phrases that encourage rice pudding lovin' all across the walls.
I had a Tiramisu flavor with Cloud 9 (whipped cream). Okay, so I can't justify spending almost $10 on a dessert all the time, but it's okay once in a while. And despite knowing that I can get some good rice pudding in other places, there really is something special about being able to choose from maybe 20 flavors and special toppings. Not to mention you get to keep the cute plastic pudding bowl and spoon too, so souvenir much? Also, if you don't have a big appetite and just want a good portion, maybe split the solo size (I was stuffed after eating mine). It's really worth it.

So that's about it for my food reviews. But of course, I never seem to stop at just that, so here's some more food in general.

What I had when I went karaoke-ing on Monday: Spicy tuna, avocado salad, and mushroom soup.

My friend Lesley made me vegan chocolate walnut brownies! They are AWESOME. I am slowly eating it at home. I think I shall have to take some to work tomorrow.

Recent lunch brought to work: celery sticks and a asian mushroom medley under that plus a slice of raw cheesecake. The cake was a success! I shall post pictures and the process in the next post!

Have a lovely day everyone!

It's my party and I'll bake if I want to!

2010-07-07T08:53:00.000-07:00

Hey guys!How has your July fourth weekends been?
Lots of crazy stuff on my end (crazy meaning, I just walked around a lot and ate even more, and sweat even MORE). NY is like, an open oven right now. Currently my home has no air conditioning. We also don't have fans. You better believe I fanned myself with a little Shakespeare yesterday (I am now reading A Midsummer Nights Dream)

I awoke to a slew of Happy Birthday messages on Facebook! All shucks, I feel loved. :)
But is it a "getting older" thing that birthdays aren't as big a deal anymore? I just wanna sit back and enjoy life.

Here's a recent coordinate (didn't y'all miss those?)

How I manage to dress like it's fall, I don't know. But trust me, I was dying.
-Red plaid shirt
-Ripped up hammy-down jeans (Yes, I did spell it that way on purpose)
-Anna Sui tights
-Double Decker boots
-Sonia Rykiel for H&M bag

Sadly, the boots broke yet again because I keep trying to resurrect them! This time I used rubber bands to keep the sole on (this happened after the above picture). However, I think if I really wanna save them one last time, I'll have to use glue instead of tape.

Did that cool ya down?

Today I'm going to go and do some rock climbing (finally abusing my lovely monthly voucher) and then buy some ingredients for a Raw Vegan Cheesecake. It's really my first attempt at a raw dessert, so hopefully it all flies well! Pictures shall be posted!

Well, that was a quickie from me. Upcoming are reviews on a recent food joint I went to, reviews on Christian Dior and Chanels couture shows, and well, that cheesecake. See you guys later~

I don't know the difference between East and West

2010-07-02T20:19:00.000-07:00

I also don't know the difference between right and left. Hello, my name is retard. :D

A few days ago, I met up with my friends Yijia and Yujing, plus her friend Tara for some good ole' fashioned shopping and eating.

We went to this Malaysian restaurant called New Malaysia Restaurant. They're located at 48 Bowery (between Bayard St & Canal St) .

After trying to decide what to order for a super long time, we ended up with these three dishes (above). Everything we ordered tasted REALLY GOOD! They all had great flavor. Sadly, I was stuffed before coming, so I barely ate most of it. However, I did try everything at least once and I give it all a thumbs up. I need to come back on an empty stomach, because there were so many other things that sounded great!

After eating, we headed to Soho for some retail therapy. I saw this truck outside the Top Shop store.

They were giving away keys to unlock a wardrobe to win prizes. I tried but failed. It was fun though.

Then I tried a denim dress on at Zaras. I however, decided to buy a top instead.

Work has been going on all week, so I had to stock up on a few items for easy food. This is a salad I managed to make, with some NUT BUTTER CRUSTED TOFU!!! I got the recipe HERE from Mama Pea, but then I tweaked it according to how I liked it/what I had. T'was amazing.

Then I went shopping at TJ's recently so I can make myself some homemade energy bars. Woo hoo for saving money, huh?

Yes, I label my foods. My fam likes to snack, if you get what I mean. ;)

The bars, flavor wise, came out GREAT. But I can't post the recipe yet because the texture is not quite there yet. I'll have it the next time I make another batch. Until then, I had to finish this one, so I prepped lunch for work.

A salad with shrimp dumplings and some bars.

Finally, I bought what has been on my list forever.

A Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler!!! I totally mentioned how much I wanted this before on the bloggy, and decided to treat myself. Mainly because the curler I use now is my mom's Revlon, and it has already damaged my lashes numerous times in painful ways, so I knew I had to get this. Oh Shu, you make me happy. Just look at it glisten atop my WWD.

Oh man, and did I mention it really works? It's got a much firmer spring action, so it don't clamp down too far like the Revlon. And after applying mascara, I definitely see the difference. I am happy now.

Good night everyone, and have a fantabulous July 4th weekend!

Groove, Slam, Work it Back, Filter that, Baby Bump that Track

2010-06-27T05:52:00.001-07:00

I love how I quote a Lady Gaga song when this post has nothing to do with her. But then again, who hasn't quoted Lady Gaga out of context? She's just that random and everywhere.

Anyway, so I went to a concert last Tuesday with a great group of people. We went to see the Empires, but there were three other bands playing as well: Tiger Riot, Harvard, and Lights Resolve.
I'm normally more of an indie rock/folksy pop person, whereas these bands were a bit harder, but I still enjoyed myself!

Tiger Riot was the opening band. From what I get, they're from Long Island. And apparently it was their second time playing a show (their first time being a sweet sixteen). Well, after hearing that, I really gotta hand it to them because they were really quite catchy. The members were also super sweet and seemed happy to be there. I enjoyed watching them.

Before I say anything more, some of y'all know I don't like using flash because I think it destroys the moment. Well, I gave up, and I started using it. Trust me, I will be doing it again, because pictures turn out way better (and less editing).

Anyway, the second band was Harvard. They were GREAT. Such energy and stage presence! And I mean, any band with a frontman that collects random masks is totally cool in my book.
I talked to them the most after the show. The singer, Jesse (the one who collects masks) is THE SWEETEST PERSON EVER. He was super easy to talk to. My group and I also got posters signed by the members later, and we all got personal messages from Tim (I believe?) Anyway, I can't wait to check 'em out the next time they're in the city!

Empires came out third! We were actually confused because we thought they were the main act, but ah well, that didn't matter too much once they started playing.
They also exuded a lot of energy! Around this time, everyone started getting really sweaty and sticky, but it just upped the greatness factor. I could tell we were surrounded by a lot of empires fans (my friend Lesley included), so it was a lot of fun when they came out and played!
After the show, we spoke with Sean and Ryan, both of whom were great conversationalists and quite easy on the eyes as well (I swear, it's like a sweaty rock thing).

We had some time before the last act came out so we took some pictures:

Woah, I am tan.

Obligatory shoe shot! Also, our shoes were super mondo different, hence why. We are artists after all!

Woo hoo, finger star!

The last band was Lights Resolve. I got the best pictures of them but sadly, they were a disappointment. Their music was kind of generic emo music (for lack of better terms and quoted from my friend Tony), and I kind of got this cocky vibe from the bassist. Sorry guys. But hey, other people seemed to like them. It's just me.

After the show, we headed to the restroom. I don't usually take public bathroom pictures, but this was awesome!

I think I need to make a dress or outfit based off of this bathroom. It's just so kitschy and LOVE.

Oh, and bonus pictures!

The group with Jesse from Harvard!

Then with Sean from Empires! Sorry, I hid me face again, but you can tell I'm making a goofy face still.

Thanks for the great memories guys (as in, the bands and the great people I went to the show with)! Lets do it again~

This Summer is the Summer it all changes . . .

2010-06-25T04:51:00.000-07:00

Hello everybody! I just thought I'd make a quickie post today, and save my concert pictures for the next one, since writing up a thoughtful report will take longer than the time I have now.

So I decided this summer is going to be my summer for reform. Let me explain.

I really want to put my health first this summer and change a lot of things around so its better for me. I'm starting by trying to fix my insomnia. Now, I know I'm not a doctor so I can't diagnose myself, but judging from my symptoms and how long I've had them, I'd say this pretty much sums it. I wake up periodically, I can't fall asleep right away, I only sleep a few hours, and I feel groggy and terrible in the morning (also my back feels sore). I'm trying to fix all that I can on my own before talking to the doctor, so I'm doing a bed reform.

I've also purchased a month long rock climbing voucher off of Living Social! Yes for rock climbing and yoga! I convinced one of my friends to buy one too so I have a belay partner! I'm super excited!!

Now, on to random pictures of late:

My first pineapple Chobani. It's SO GOOD. I just ate it walking the streets. I love greek yogurt so of course, no surprise that I'd like this. I highly recommend it!

Vegan chocolate chip cookies my friend Lesley made! They were AMAZING. She baked them for the concert, so I should've saved this picture, but just look at it's delicious baked goodiness!

I got this tea when I was on my lunch break. I would've ordered food except I had some already, so I just got some jasmine tea. I forget how good jasmine tea is . . .

Sorry this picture doesn't look so appetizing since I bit into it, but a chicken pesto panini from a random deli on 23rd. I don't know if I've really had a panini before this one, but they're really filling.

I purchased this recently at the Anna Sui store! All the Look from London tights/socks in the back were half off, so I had to get these. I mean, yellow and polka dots? Très bon!

Finally, I went to the "Biggest Ever Sale" at Urban Outfitters yesterday. They actually do have a bunch of things on sale that were great. I mean, brand new ten-hole Dr. Marten boots for $40 is a pretty good deal. But I got myself a pair of pants since, well, I apparently have way too much funky clothing for work and I'm in need of pants. Cool wash, right? It was on sale for $10~

Now, I gotta get off if I want to go to school before work (ugh, paperwork). I'll see you all later!

I listen to bees and butterflies

2010-06-21T20:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I met up with my friend Ana for a photo shoot. The weather melted my face away, but everything else seemed to work quite nicely.

I contemplated showing the face one because it's not really part of the shoot, but thought you might want to see what the top part of me looked like.

Tomorrow I plan to go to a concert of this band called The Empires that my friend is really into. I mentioned them before on the bloggy, but now that I'm going to a live of theirs, I can experience them in the real and report back !

I also plan to go to two other shows later on in July. I swear, concerts will devour my money the way Giada is devouring beer nuts behind me on the Food Network (extra points if you know which show I'm talking about!)

Now for something random. My breakfast:

Kinda like a yogurt parfait with apples, strawberries, pb, and cinnamon toast crunch.

And for something new: I cut my hair.

No pictures yet since I pretty much hate the bangs. Really, they just kept cutting and cutting. R.I.P. poor hair. Anyway, I'll style it well and maybe then we'll see if it looks presentable enough.

For lack of better things to end this with, au revoir everyone! I will post again soon!

Days of My Life . . .

2010-06-18T17:25:00.000-07:00

Hey guys!
I just wanted to start off the post with a quick thanks to you guys for the advice about the phone issue. I ended up calling them and it just turned out to be a weird mishap. I guess I shouldn't worry so much next time, eh?

So here's a quick recap of the past few days:

I started work officially. I don't want to say where I work for safety issues, however, if I know you directly, don't worry, I'll let ya know. If anything, it's a place some of my readers would and do go to.
I met some really snazz-tastic people so far. And everyone reminds me of someone I've met before. It's like a reunion of strangers (is it just me or would that make a great band name?)
Oh! And there's this guy that just . . . LOOKS like Uncle Jesse from Full House (John Stamos). How GNARLY IS THAT? And I also met a guy whose running his first 10k this year, and he turned me over to active.com. It's great, I'm actually looking at it now!
Anyway, everything else is just like me, making space in my brain for all this information they're giving us, so I'm just a little wiped out right now.

Yesterday, I had cake for my brother's birthday!

It's from Black Hound. I swear I've tried almost all of their cakes. I highly recommend though, they're so delicious!

Then for breakfast, I had some of this:

Yogurt and berries are a winning combo on hot days.

Okay, so I told you guys how I've been working lately. And on the first day, I was given this packet concerning dress codes. Now lets be honest here, I'm so used to dressing for art/fashion schools, it's been YEARS since I've dressed for anything else, and the first thing I thought was "How can I dress so I can be as fashionable and me as I possibly can without breaking codes?"

Well, I've been testing the waters so far, and this is what I wore today.

I actually went and bought some new long pants for the job! Since if you haven't realized, I'm a tights and shorts kinda gal . . .

Rundown:

-Liz Lisa Hair Tie
- White fake glasses
- H&M Polka Dot shirt
- My mom's belt
- Uniqlo pants (SUPER comfy)
- Boutique 9 Metallic Oxfords

I got the oxfords at Bloomingdales the day I bought the pants. THEY ARE PERFECT. All I need now are golden cowboy boots (heck no, I've not given up this search!)

Then for lunch, I had vegan mac and cheese at Loving Hut.

It was my first time with vegan mac and cheese. I gotta say, t'was delicious, but not quite the same as good ole real mac and cheese. What can I say, a girl's gotta have her cheese.

So I got home mighty early and after a few hours of the Food Network, I realized I was bored outta my mind. That's when I got out some makeup and just decided to go with it.

The first two with my short wig on, the last without it.
I would say I edited the lighting of the images because it came out kinda dark on the images. But the eye make-up is basically a nice turquoise, which I blended with a light gray towards the inner corners. The outer corners I actually used scotch tape so it wouldn't go past a certain point, then I blended it back into the skin. Then I used pencil liner and two types of mascara, making sure to lengthen the outer eyelashes more.

What do ya think?

Anyway, this post took more time than I thought it would. I'll get off and rest up. See you guys around~

Work Issues

2010-06-15T11:01:00.000-07:00

Hey guys.

Isn't it terrible that once you THINK you have a job, you start thinking you don't? Well, that's not common, but let me tell you what's been going on over here.

I told you guys I had a job interview. It went well, and they called back. I accidentally missed the call (there's some phone issues with the house number), so I called back. They tell me that they would like to hire me. They also say they'll call me back. I ask them to call on my cell that very day, so the phone issue doesn't occur again.
Well, my cell is . . . not very good (this is being kind). And it got worse that very same day due to an accident I dare not mention. So now I have a glitchy cell phone. I also have T-Mobile which has terrible reception, so about 50% of the time, I don't have service.
I never got a call, so I called back on Monday (yesterday). They told me they intended to call all the workers later that day, so to wait. I waited all day yesterday, with no call. These are my thoughts/feelings as of now:

I'm freaking out because I don't know whether it's my phone, or they genuinely haven't called.
However, if they wanted me, you'd think they'd call home if cell wasn't working (no?) Or at least leave a message.
I'm also starting to think it was a mistake and maybe they didn't need me after all. Needless to say, I feel awful right now. I don't know if this is common, but God, this is causing me some stress.

It's becoming late for me to find a job because all these people are applying for the summer. So now I think this may be more of a curse than a blessing. What do you guys think?

I'm snacking my leg off . . .

2010-06-12T08:32:00.000-07:00

Hey guys.
Lately I've been waking up really early for no reason. I don't understand it because I don't go to sleep early (actually, I'm in bed early, but I can't physically sleep for hours). It's pretty bad because I get more hungry as I'm awake, doing things. So of course, I've been snacking myself silly . . .

This is completely unrelated to my next topic. Lately there's been a focus on American Apparel's Hiring Policies in the news and I thought I would throw in my two cents.

First off, I've never been a fan of American Apparel. I don't own anything by them. This is not because of anything other than the fact that their fashion is not my style. That, and just by looking at heir mannequin displays, I can tell their targeted audience are skinny androgynous dancers. I think it's one thing when a high end label focuses on skinny girls because that's been going on for decades in the fashion world. But fast fashion labels like American Apparel, I feel, should aim for a broader audience because it's mass market, and more people can afford to buy from them.

So of course, I see this article on Gawker, and am not surprised.

Last July, a disgruntled AA store manager told us that AA CEO Dov Charney "made store managers across the country take group photos of their employees so that he could personally judge people based on looks. He is tightening the AA 'aesthetic,' and anyone that he deems not good-looking enough to work there, is encouraged to be fired." Charney later issued a conspicuously vague denial, saying only that AA hires employees who "have good fashion sense...But this does not necessarily mean they have to be physically attractive."

I don't think it wrong to necessarily have a certain look that you want your employees to represent. You have to be selective to a certain point. But I think it's wrong that a manager is using fashion as an excuse to reject people, because truthfully they find them too ugly.

Another article was posted on Gawker on Thursday, with some quotes from employees. This is one of them:

American Apparel is full of it when they tell you that staff photos or "class photos" as they call them, are infrequent. When I was managing we had to send photos into our store consultant (a high school dropout) weekly... Not only did they police our clothes but our eyebrows, makeup, nails and hair color. They also openly mocked employees by posting photos of them online. Our store consultant also on several occasions told girls to lose weight or told them they were "too top heavy for crop tops"...They routinely denied applications based on looks or shoes.

I know this is not just American Apparel. Many other industries do this. It's not really something that can be stopped. But AA is a big company. The fact that these articles are being published on the web, I think, will maybe swing some potential buyers into not going in the stores after all. Or maybe not. What do I know?

Actually, what I do know is, one commenter on the first Gawker article wrote:

If only the vapid and pretty can work for your company, that means the smart people are working for your competition.

Funny thing, ain't it?
Well, whatever happens or doesn't happen to American Apparel, those were my thoughts. Happy Saturday, everyone?

I have 8563 Unread Messages in my Inbox and I don't care.

2010-06-10T08:42:00.000-07:00

My, what a day. Woke up early this morning (6:30??) instead of the recent 9:00 that I've been experiencing since summer vacation started. This is great because I need to do something about my bad sleeping habits anyway.

So today I have several things:

[1] Job Interview.
Hope it goes well, because this place that I'm applying for, I actually LOVE and visit frequently.

[1] Picture of Yesterday's Lunch.

I went to Guy and Gallard with a friend. It was a different one than the one near school, so I noticed they charged extra for some things. However, they were generous with other things, so I guess it all evens out.
Salad (Spinach + Egg, Chickpeas, Egg Noodles), bread, small steamed chai.

[1] Hair Modeling Experience

Okay, so on Tuesday, I met up with a friend's friend, who now I'm allowed to claim a friend of mine (wow, weird sentence huh?) at a salon in Soho called Projet.
I got asked maybe 2 weeks ago to go in as a hair model. At first, I thought Wait, my hair is equivalent to George of the Jungle. But I rolled with it, and after running around Manhattan, landed in this insanely clean and pretty establishment.
My hair was done by Leo, who's in training right now. After examining my hair, he shampooed, treated, and blow dried.

Results?

I personally love it. Its actually tame and feels good to the touch now. That, and he didn't disregard the fact that I sweep my hair to the side ! So no middle part. I can't vouch for anything when it comes to cutting since I just got it blown out, but still, quite snazzy, no?

I also thought it would be obnoxious to have a bunch of pictures of myself one after another. So I collaged them into a film strip instead. Haha, talk about NOT being obnoxious. Hush hush.

I tried to take it from different angles so you can see the hair better. Please excuse the "after-a-long-day" make-up on my eyes !

An extra pic, this is me make-up less and looking like a granny. "Get off my lawn, yer darn kids!" This is where if I did have a cane, I would shake it vigorously and angrily.

To commemorate such a good looking 'do, I dressed up the next morning (regardless of rain) and took pictures.

Wow, I look liked I robbed . . . a hipster.

- Fake glasses
- Gucci Necklace
- H&M Bolero
- Uniqlo Raglan Tee
- Blue Jean Shorts
- H&M Floral Tights
- Payless Booties
- Black Purse (technically it belongs to my mom)

I literally haven't worn heels since probably fashion week in February so I opted for my more comfortable chunky heeled ones. I should do it more often since it ups the trend factor.

Now I'm off to eat [1] lunch and mentally prep myself for the job interview I have. Toodles guys!

Japan Day and Applications Galore!

2010-06-09T00:34:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone. How is your Wednesday? Mine is pretty relaxed. I'm meeting a friend later, but for now, I'm just kicking it back.

So lately I've been on a job hunting frenzy, trying to find jobs in every place I may want to work. I know it's such a spoiled thing to say to do what you love in this economy, but I strongly believe that at least finding a job that involves things you like (for me, it would be clothes/food) would really help secure a job. It would also make the road ahead a lot less bumpy. Besides, I think managers can tell when you're not telling the truth anyway.

So Japan Day was last Sunday, and I haven't posted pictures yet, so thought you may want to see!

My eye make-up and wig. Since it was Japan Day and all, I thought I would kinda amp up the pop culture-ness of my outfit. That, and the super Asian pose does half the work for me.

I got to Central Park around . . . 2? IT WAS PACKED. Look at all those people! And the lines for everything was insane. I couldn't even get tea. [tear tear]

A pic with my friend Melissa. Note: I am actually tanner than you may think I am.

I haven't looked so Japanese in a long time . . . Oh, and face censor because I had a strange expression (looked painful . . .)

Outfit Lowdown:
- Aristocats Marie Cap from Tokyo Disneyland (or Sea? I can't remember!)
- Long Wig
- Homemade Bow
- Polka-dot t-shirt/dress from H&M
- Belt from 6% Dokidoki
- Pink tutu from Japan
- Lace Tights from F21
- Boots from Double Decker (these officially broke but I still want to repair them again!)
- Tote from Muji (and I painted on it)

The Taiko drumming booth, and some of the performances I saw. I'm amazed zoom came out really well (oh camera, I love thee). But furthermore, I'm amazed at myself for realizing just now the guy in the last pic holding the curtains.

So after watching some of the performances and playing phone tag with my friend Jenna (and FINALLY FINDING HER THROUGH MEANS OF A POLICE VAN), Melissa, Jenna, her boyfriend, and I all headed to midtown for a little snackage.

Vanilla Bean Frappe with WHIPPED CREAM YAY (yes, I am a little kid) and Melissa's Coffee Frappe (?) with a Chicken Sandwich from Zaiya Cafe.

After snacking, Jenna and her boyfriend left, and I broke my boots. So I bought replacement shoes at H&M (you will see them soon). Then Melissa and I got hungry, so we decided on a little field trip to Serendipity!

Inside decor pics and a menu picture. Man, I missed this place!

We started with a mint frozen hot chocolate!

Looks killer, don't it?

Then we moved onto entrees. I got a Bleu Burger, and Melissa grabbed a BLT.

Sorry to the bunch of people who are vegan/vegetarian out there!

We basically then walked to the train to go home. T'was a fun fun day! I hope to do something like it soon.
Also, I'll be introducing something cool that happened to me yesterday in another post. So wait for it~
Tata!

The same ole excuse . . .

2010-06-07T10:19:00.000-07:00

Dear Body,

I'm sorry that I've mistreated you lately.

It's so easy to blame the Food Network for running all the best shows so late at night, causing you to stay up until 2 and not get enough sleep.

It's also easy to blame others for going out and eating, only to come home to more food that you're expected to finish.

On top of that, I've been blaming the wretched heat for making you roll around and rest all day long. With no exercise.

I apologize.

I promise to be more committed to your needs.

I will fill you up with more nutritional foods and water, and let you rest up for glamorous things in the days ahead.

I will take better care of your skin morning and night, and I will exercise your booty back to Healthsville (not forgetting to give you a rest every so often).

You have my word,

Stilettos at the Dinner Table

A Food Adventure with a side of Art

2010-06-05T06:40:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! What a lovely Saturday it is. Of course, it's going to be a killer day weather wise (88 degrees!), but I'm hopeful. Today I'm going job hunting with my friend. We're basically starting down and going up. If I'm up to it, I may join her for a concert later, but if not, just expect me to go home and sleep! I've written another set of goals for June, and one of them includes sleeping earlier. Hopefully that gets accomplished!

This morning I had a lovely breakfast of Fage Greek Yogurt + honey and a banana.

I also added raisins to that. (Note: I found Fage on sale at Westerly for $.99! That never happens . . . I love Westerly)

Okay, so about yesterday. It all started out with a text to my friend Lesley, asking if she was free for some good ole Moma hoppin' and possibly shopping. Eating wasn't really on the agenda initially, but OH MAN, I should always know that being with friends who are also foodies will ALWAYS lead to food.

I started off with this bad boy.

Yeah, I don't really do iced coffee, but on a blazin' day like yesterday, it hit the spot. I may or may not have had a donut with that.

After meeting up with Lesley and her sister and her friends in the Upper West Side, we decided it was only fitting to hit up Urban Outfitters. And of course, because we've been talking about going to the Lite Choice forever and Lesley just happened to have a phone with internet and she just happened to check their twitter and see that there was a bogo special for bars, we had to go. And go we did.

It was sad to see there was no almond butter left, but ah well, I never say no to frozen treats.

Buying retail now is really a challenge for me because unless it's really worth it, I tend to think I can make it for myself. Or thrift it. So nothing was bought at Urban Outfitters.

OH WAIT, but you know what was HAD at Urban Outfitters?

I call it the monster, otherwise known as a cookie from Levain. I remember seeing this insane monstrous cookie on Throwdown with Bobby Flay months ago and I've been dying to try it ever since. Well, we were in the area, and Lesley's sister so kindly got us one, so we split the devil.

COOKIE HEAVEN.

Well, after stuffing our faces with sweets galore, we knew the only thing left to do was walk all the way to the Moma in the crazy weather. Yay, sore feet.

After getting to the Moma, we split into two groups and wandered around.

They had a weird curtain projection, so of course, everyone was taking pictures in front of it including us.

Lesley had a museum report so off we went to look for the gallery she was told to visit. We seriously went on a wild goose chase cause we couldn't find the Irving Penn gallery at all, until someone told us the gallery was actually CLOSED for a temporary memorial. Fun.
Well, some of the stuff was apparently upstairs, so after fooling around, we went to the third floor for some photographs.

I saw some Cindy Sherman which got me excited (since I actually know who she is). Although some of it got me a little annoyed because I feel like it wasn't really worth putting in the museum, or rather, the artist was banking more on their name than the quality of the piece. Just like my art teacher said, "Just because it's in a museum, doesn't mean it's necessarily good."

Well, we were all pretty exhausted after walking around the museum too, so we went downtown for some eats. Let me tell you, the village is PACKED after 7. We gave up on two places, and only when we say Hummus Place did we sit down to eat.

My Hummus Fava.

The decor was nice and I was kinda in love with the little hand wash station in front of the bathrooms. The service was also cheerful and polite, so no complaining there. I think the only thing may be to have a little more variety in the dishes, just because I didn't really expect my dish to be a plateful of hummus. Good hummus, but a lot of hummus. And beans. Everyone cleaned their plates well though, so me thinks this was a success!

After the meal, we all headed to the train, stuffed and tired.
When I got home, I blended myself a smoothie for today and went to sleep. I think I'm going to go and actually have that smoothie now.

I hope today will be as slammin' as yesterday was! Good day everyone!

Someone up there likes me . . .

2010-06-02T09:06:00.000-07:00

Seriously, someone up in the Heavens must REALLY REALLY LIKE ME if I got an A in Tennis and furthermore, NOT a C in Textiles.

I mean, I'm good at things like yoga and rock climbing, but holy smokes! I have been sucking at tennis the whole semester. I did improve, but . . . I'm pretty sure the essay I wrote for my finals is what got me to the land of the higher GPA. And that not getting a C in textiles is a miracle because I spent the semester suffering under a smart alec teacher and being unmotivated.

That being said, I am a good student guys! Even though I am seemingly not so . . .

So, Memorial Day Weekend . . .

Well, let me tell you ahead of time, all weekend I found myself in St. Marks. I don't know why, but I guess my friends and I just gravitate towards that street.

On Saturday, I went to see Jukebox the Ghost and Free Energy.

On Sunday, I went to go see Exit Clov at the Rockwood Music Hall with my friend Melissa!

They were AMAZING! I found out about them a few months ago and really wanted to see them live, but the last time they were in NY, it had an age restriction so I couldn't go. Well, when I learned they were playing at Rockwood AND with no cover fee, I had to go, and go I did.
It was a small venue, but they rocked it. And seriously, Emily and Susan are so multi-talented. I'm jealous.

After that Melissa and I headed to St. Marks where we did some karaoke and I noshed on froyo.

The place was this Korean joint, and it was so clean and big and trendy looking. I think I prefer smaller cozier places, but the English song selection was actually more extensive than other places I've been to. AND THEY HAD MULAN'S I'LL MAKE A MAN OUT OF YOU. That was a first.

Then on Monday, unexpectedly, my mother and sister were all "Lets Karaoke!" so I went again, to a different place, and sang my wee little heart out.

My food, followed by all the food.
And that's water by the way, next to my food.

After a few hours of singing random English and Japanese songs, my sis went home and I accompanied my mom to the Japanese grocery store.

On the way, I saw apparently an open art gallery! THIS blew my mind.

I couldn't stay for long, but just some of the things I saw. Seriously, I hope they do more of these because I love that anyone could just stroll around and enjoy art. It's also a great way for artists to showcase their stuff!

Now I'm off to eat some food. Seriously, I AM STARVING. Have a lovely Wednesday everyone!