lemon juice & olive oil

Dear Spring,

2011-04-05T19:24:00.000-04:00

Please stop acting like the chorus of "Hot n Cold" by Katy Perry. I need an excuse to get my Sperrys.

In other news, I survived my first full week of yoga (if you count Friday-Tuesday as the week, because I go on Friday-Sunday and either Monday and/or Tuesday due to my schedule). Not that bad! Today in hot vinyasa, I accomplished this one pose that starts in downward facing dog, lift a leg and open the hip then twist over with the opposite arm so that you are now facing the ceiling.

My hamstrings are lengthening too which is a good thing. Little by little. I am always worried about injuring myself because I have bad knees which means I can't support myself fully on the one leg when doing things like standing splits and it's not because of injury but rather genetics. Joy. So I take time outs when needed but still need to push myself.

Sick of the yoga talk yet? Hope it's alright but if anything writing it down helps me motivate myself to go more.

I Just Realized!

2011-04-04T21:31:00.000-04:00

By starting up yoga this weekend, I inadvertently crossed off one item on my 27 Before 27 List: start up yoga. I meant to start in the summer but decided to start earlier. Woot! Still taking suggestions to fill in the blanks. I think one of them will be to ride from my apartment in Queens over the Queensboro bridge (I refuse to call it the Koch Bridge) all the way down to South Street Seaport and then take the ferry to Governor's Island in the summer with The Aussie and my sister for a picnic. Or at least take our bikes on the subway to South Street and take the ferry to the island.

And in even more woot, my yoga bag came in today. I LOVE it. Very well made! Chella Bella is awesome when it comes to well-made and pretty yoga bags that are really unique. Can't wait to carry my yoga mat with me when I go to Hot Vinyasa tomrrow (couldn't make it to hot yoga today because I had a really bad stomachache).

More Ow.

2011-04-03T17:21:00.000-04:00

Went to my first Pilates class today - talk about ab work! It was really good though and definitely looking forward to it again.

One thing I learned about myself is that I have alot to do to get stronger - I hate the plank position so much because my upper body is really weak. I do like the magic ring.

Tomorrow is going to be Bikram Yoga - 90 minutes of in a 105 degree room. Wish me luck.

PS. Still taking blog and 27 Before 27 list recommendations!

The Black Hole

2011-04-02T21:35:00.001-04:00

I got this idea from Alex over at Running Just as Fast as I Can - showing you what is in my bag, that is. You can really learn a lot from what is in someone's bag.

I have a lot of bags (what woman doesn't) but I do have a bag to hold all of my necessities to get me through the workday. I will say that being a teacher there is one thing that is usually in my bag but isn't at the moment - students' papers. I'm very good about leaving class materials at work in my office and bringing only the necessities but I haven't gotten the students' first essays yet. So let's also imagine a stack of papers 2 inches thick. I'm getting 60 of those by the end of the week.

First, I'd like for you to meet my everyday bag. I call it The Black Hole. It's the Herve Chapelier N925 Tote:

What have we got inside to start with?

First is the food related stuff - I bring my coffee and my lunch to work to save money. Lunch is in a mini Herve tote bag that I got years ago, just so that my tupperware and cutlery don't go all over the place. My Kate Spade thermos really does a good job of keeping my coffee warm, and I never leave the house without my handknit coffee cozy sleeve, in case I need more coffee. Try to save a little bit of paper.

Next, we have my makeup pouch, which was a going away present when I was leaving Japan. From left to right we have Burt's Bees cuticle cream, 2 Bobbi Brown lip glosses and 2 Burt's Bees lip balms, a Tiffany pen, L'Occitane Hand Cream and below that we have a paper clip, band-aid, post-it flags, Sea Bands, rubber band and a mirror.

I never leave the house without a knitting project. Here we have a pattern

for socks, the bag its in and the beginnings of a sock.

I also don't leave without my knitting kit bag. I got this pouch when I was in Italy on my honeymoon. Next to it is a Japanese box which stores a small sewing kit, then we have my needle size checker/gauge measurer, crochet hook, knitting needles for my interchangeable set, a highlighter, and Hello Kitty tin of stitch markers. Below, we have a Wraps Per Inch gauge in the shape of a sheep (measures the thickness of yarn), a darning needle, row counter, scissors and another tin of stitch markers.

Next, is my Kate Spade pencilcase. Lots of pens, a mini ruler, hand sanitizer, dry-erase marker and lots and lots of binder clips and paper clips. Those are my saviors.

Last but not least, my eyeglasses and sunglasses (both Ray-Ban), Driver's Manual (going for my permit by the end of the month), iPhone (in Kate Spade case), wallet (Kate Spade) more dry-erase makers, another binder clip, keys with USB stick attached and Bloom lip balm.

Now you see why I call this bag "The Black Hole." In addition to all that other stuff, I can also throw in a set of gym clothes and shove my hat and fingerless mitts if it gets too hot. I need to keep things in pouches, or else they get lost in the depths of the bag and then I have to take everything out in order to get to it. In addition:

While I have way too much Kate Spade stuff for one bag, my love/obsession with it does not extend to eyeglasses or sunglasses. Classic Ray-Ban all the way. I also have the aviators, but my Wayfarers are prescription for distance (my prescription is weak - I see perfectly in terms of focus, but I have excessive eye strain and am near-sighted in one eye-farsighted in another. Both pairs are supposed to help me lessen the cross-eyed effect).
One can never have too many binder/paper clips. Especially when you are a teacher and can't really rely on your department to provide such office supplies. Plus, I like my colorful and fun supplies.
2 lip glosses (granted, one is clear) and 3 lip balms. Too much.
While my Sea Bands are with me usually, I am going to get another pair to keep in the glove compartment of my parents' car just in case I forget them. I keep them in the bag so that I know where they are.
There have been times when I forgot my knitting kit bag, and really regretted it.

Still, I love this bag. It holds so much stuff and I am a stuff person, especially during college when I needed to carry things that I would need from when I left my parent's house at 6:30 to go to class until I came home at 10pm after running around to internship, gym, and class again.

This is actually my second one - I got my first Herve bag in 2001 when I was a senior in high school and that lasted me till 2007 when I got this one in Japan at the Herve store in Kyoto during the big July sales. I can also just chuck it in the wash, which is definitely a bonus (and why I won't get Longchamp bags).

Bit Better.

2011-04-01T19:14:00.000-04:00

Went to yoga - got my introductory 1 month unlimited membership and took a Hot Yoga Flow class. In case no one has never heard of Hot Yoga Flow, here is the class description:

A powerful blend of the healing postures of Hot Yoga with the strengthening flow of Heated Vinyasa. This class balances the entire body by strengthening, opening and flushing all the anatomical systems. The sequence is thoughtfully designed for all levels and with continued practice promises to become a moving meditation. The postures have no end nor does the perfect, ultimate posture exist. Hot Yoga Flow is a yoga practice students can evolve and enjoy throughout their lifetime.

Here is a couple of things I picked up from the class:

1. I hate hate hate the plank. Boo hiss.

2. Because I have overtight Achilles tendons (I "bounce" when I walk because I can't put my heel down all the way. I have to think "heel, toe, heel, toe." Ironically this doesn't help me wear heels) I can't do a really proper Downward Facing Dog.

3. OW. OW OW OW OW OW.

4. My lower back is very tight.

5. I need good yoga shorts/capris for hot yoga.

6. Mixing Gatorade with water does really help. The only reason why I stopped because 1 position was a bit difficult for me to do and I got out of Child's Pose too quickly and was lightheaded.

7. Oh my poor knees. I have really bad knees - and it' not because of injury, but genetics. They creak. I'm hoping yoga will help.

My body was shaking after class which was because I was using new muscles. Hoo, boy. I think I am going to be in it tomorrow. But I have a date with Little Sister to go to the 4:30 Hot Yoga Flow class and want to make my unlimited pass worth the money.

Have to say, I do feel a bit better mentally. More relaxed, at least.

Trying to Find Inner Peace.

2011-03-31T20:57:00.000-04:00

One two separate occasions this week, I almost quit my job. The one at the tutoring center that is. I could go on and on for a good 20 minutes about how poorly run and dirty it is, how my coworkers are immature dirty hipsters and how most students mistreat tutors in terms of what we are supposed to do.

But I won't. Because I have done so and I am trying to just survive there these days. I totally disagreed with something my day supervisor did to me today and she never lets anyone get a word in, so I decided from now on to just keep my mouth shut, and leave there on a good note.

I hope to never come back. You can get too comfortable there. One of my coworkers, who is also an adjunct told me that after his son was born he had an epiphany on how he realized that he was there for 10 years and does not know what to do next.

Don't get me wrong I love my classes. I have a good rapport with students (one called me a "groovy teacher" this week) and I get to teach them about Japan through writing and can change it up in a couple of years. For me, given that I will be teaching Special Education in the public schools this fall and going for my second Master's, I'm content with doing the professor thing on the side.

But the tutoring can suck the life and soul out of you.

That being said, I hope just getting this out there will purge me of the negativity and stress I've had as of late. I'm stress eating again, which isn't doing me any good. And while Curves really helped me lose the weight I needed so I can fit into my wedding dress, it isn't working anymore. My knees have also been bothering me as of late. That part is hereditary. But it's getting worse.

After realizing that this summer when I begin my program to become a teacher (there is a mandatory accelerated summer session) I will not be able to go to Curves at all. The timing won't work and it's not open Sundays. I'm also hoping to swing a Saturday class at the college to make a little extra money. Curves is open from 9-2 on Saturdays, so I can't make it there then.

I reconfigured my budget, and I am going to start going to Yoga at the studio in my neighborhood. I've been there before and Little Sister goes there too, so I know the teachers are great. I'm going to start again Hot Yoga (various forms) and they also have beginners Pilates classes on Sunday mornings. With the may my schedule is this semester, I can go Fridays-Mondays and maybe swing a Tuesday depending on how my body feels.

I am actually looking really forward to it - I know my body is going to be crying after this weekend, but it will be a good thing, especially if it also helps me regain a bit of my inner mental peace and help me feel a bit better and stronger about myself.

It also helps that Little Sister got me a new yoga bag since she took mine when she started up yoga. Pretty, no?

In Search Of...

2011-03-29T19:19:00.000-04:00

...new blogs to read. When I was in Japan, I had a whole slew of "bloggy friends" as a explained to my mom. I commented alot, they commented on my blog and you all kept me company especially when I was just rambling away and a bit homesick.

Some of them I still blog and tweet with, and after my blogging hiatus, I'd like to get back into the swing of things.

So, my previous and current bloggy friends, any new people to meet? Say for an almost 27-year old who is a teacher, native New Yorker, wannabe traveler, sometime cook, knitter, and a newlywed who dresses like a prep (although branching out a bit more. JCrew stinks these days).

27 Before 27. Let's Do This.

2011-03-27T10:54:00.000-04:00

Here is my list for 27 Before 27, as always inspired by Janet from the Slice of Pink blog. I am starting a bit late, and am running out of ideas - so I have left a few blank and up to you. Some were leftovers from last year because I still want to do them, but didn't get to. Any suggestions?

1. Pass my NYSTCE Exams (to become a certified teacher, starting in the public schools this fall!).
2. Visit a Long Island winery.
3. Get back to riding my bike and master the clipless pedals.
4. Master 4 of my favorite childhood recipes: Pastitsio, Avgolemonowith Chicken (my kind of chicken soup) Karidopita andGalaktobureko.
5. Knit a sweater.
6. Lose 10 pounds - and keep it off.
7. Begin going to yoga in the summer.
8. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge and back.
9.
10.
11. Hiking somewhere in the Catskills or Bear Mountain.
12.
13.
14.
15. Go to the Brooklyn Flea market on weekend.
16. Submit my master's thesis to scholarly journals.
17. Have a Mad Men-themed birthday/cocktail party for my 27th (and maybe The Aussie's 31st)
18.
19.
20. See live Greek music.
21. Learn how to sew.
22. Read a new book for each month left in the year (starting in March, try and make up January and February).
24. Spin my own yarn (and not just practice spinning).
25. Apple picking.
26. Print out and create/finish my London and Japan photo albums; create a wedding album.
27. Get my learner's permit.

26 Before 26: The Final Roundup

2011-03-27T10:50:00.001-04:00

If anyone is interested in what I did accomplish before I turned 26, here is the final tally and the details for most of them:

1. Visit the Guggenheim
2. Ride in the Tour de Brooklyn, Tour de Queens, or complete a century ride - since my first one ended up with me in the ER (did the Tour de Queens)
3. Go to a museum exhibition (Tim Burton at the MoMA
4. See another ballet besides The Nutcracker (I ended up with 3 ballets and 1 opera this past performance season)
5. Go to a country/area of the United States I haven't been to yet (Italy!)
6. Go to a trivia night/quizzo at a bar (Went in August to the trivia night at Black Rabbit in Greenpoint, Brooklyn)
7. Go to one of the yarn/wool/craft festivals (Maryland Sheep & Wool)
8. Knit a throw blanket (I did the Hemlock Ring Blanket for my in-laws for Christmas)

Hmm. If anything, I did accomplish alot of the big stuff (that blanket took me 4 months!).

Listing is a Good Thing.

2011-03-27T10:37:00.000-04:00

Hey all...is there anyone still interested in my random ramblings? Hope so. Anyway, it's been very busy here in my neck of the woods for the past several months, so I figured a list is the best way to summarize what's been going on:

1. I had to teach evenings and Saturdays last Fall, which really messed up my personal life and my blogging mojo. The students were great, but the schedule wasn't. On top of that, I was "lucky" (the word being used loosely here) to get a second class during the 6 week winter session. The good thing was that I didn't have to work at the tutoring center (which I am hating with a passion. Not the working with students part - well a bit - but the coworkers and annoying boss part. There are dirty hipsters at my job. Gross.) but I had to teach the equivalent of 4 classes and get the papers back to students twice as fast.

2. Knitting took up a lot of my time because it was the best way for me to relax in spite of all the craziness at work. Yes, teaching can be a psycho profession at times. Especially when you had to speak with a student outside in the hall and security got involved. Let's just say I have learned from that and moved beyond it. But I have been getting into knitting alot more - so much so that I have a podcast now! I keep it a bit separate from this blog but if anyone is interested, check it out.

I've been interviewing designers, talking about my knitting projects and the learning experience as I try and become a better knitter. And talk about knitting on the subway and travel knitting because for those have have read my previous blogs (the one in Japan and the one when I was in grad school) you know I like to travel. If I do mention knitting here, it will probably be when I finish a project. Currently working on a sweater and socks.

3. Speaking of traveling, I did do a bit of it recently. I went down to Florida with my sister to see my yiayia and my mom's family. That will be a post in and of itself. One of my personal goals is to go somewhere every year (preferably international) but you see there is this thing that comes with being an adult called taxes. Ugh. I got so screwed this year because my paperwork got messed up. So that meant even a trip to Montreal (which is an 8 hour drive) was out of the question simply because of the expense of staying at a hotel and paying to eat out.

So, The Aussie and I are driving down (with my parent's new car, they trust The Aussie with it) over my Easter break to the Middle of Nowhere, South Carolina (aka Greenwood? Greenville? I get the 2 mixed up) to see his parents because they recently moved down there. I insisted on a side trip to Savannah. We got a deluxe room at the Holiday Inn Express with a balcony and view of the bay in Savannah for $50 because his parents are Platinum members. So, in a way we are going somewhere new.

4. Twitter. It totally killed my blog. I got a twitter account to keep up with the girls in my knitting group (who are all over the country) so we save on text messages and I just got hooked. Did more tweeting than blogging.

So, all in all it's been a crazy past several months. I do plan to finish up my Italian honeymoon recap, and a summary of my Florida trip and how I did on my 26 Before 26 List. A few months late, but I am going to work on a 27 Before 27 list.

Oh, and by the way, like the new layout? I figured it would be perfect for Spring, even though the weather has been such a bloody tease. Today is the Greek Independence Day parade and I refuse to go because it's 10-20 degrees below the normal temperature.

Hello.

2011-01-27T15:24:00.001-05:00

I'll be back. Soon, I promise. Just been very very busy as of late.

Buon Viaggio! Part 1: We Landed, We Saw, We Walked

2010-09-30T22:44:00.000-04:00

On our first day in Italy, The Aussie and I dropped our stuff off at the hotel (which was one train stop outside of Venice, in Mestre), freshened up and proceeded to walk around Venice for 7 hours.

It was worth it.

What started as a search for a particular restaurant and mask shop that Little Sister found when she went to Venice became a whole loop of Venice and exploring the tiny, narrow alleys and coming up on shops that wouldn't otherwise be mentioned in a guidebook.

The alleys were really narrow at some points.

The Aussie began to obsess and bemoan the fact that he couldn't bring back the really good prosciutto home.

We came across a mask maker in his workshop,

and crossed the Rialto Bridge to walk around St. Mark's Square.

Then we did some more exploring:

We also started to drink alot of wine and espresso, and eat alot of gelato. I supplemented this diet later with prosciutto and buffalo mozzarella. Yum.

Our hotel had an amazing breakfast - complete with mini nutella packets to go with my toast.

Our second day in Italy took us to the Palace of the Doges and the Secret Itineraries tour. We saw the prison of Casanova, and went into the attic of the palace. To get to the Palace, we decided to go via the Grand Canal - but not on a gondola. We did the local thing and rode a vaporetto along the canal.

The Palace was really amazing, even though we only saw a small part of it. Still, it was the really good part - the Palace is open for people to walk around with regular admission, but only the tour takes you to Casanova's prison and other deeper parts of the Palace. While we waited for the tour to start, I knitted my socks.

After the Palace, I finally convinced The Aussie to go to Murano. We rode in a teeny tiny vaporetto (we later learned that it was so small so it can clear the low bridges) across the Venetian lagoon in the middle of a thunderstorm.

Murano was quiet, but very pretty. We didn't see any glassblowers because they were on vacation (August is the worst time of year to go to Europe but we didn't miss out on much).

Keeping the time in mind, we took the vaporetto back to the train station (in another bout of thunderstorms) got our things and headed to Florence with the Eurostar.

Up next: Firenze!

Buon Viaggio! Prologue

2010-09-27T21:31:00.000-04:00

So now I am finally (after a month) getting around to the Italian Honeymoon recap. Honestly, there are SO many photos (687!) that I am going to break this whole she-bang down into four parts: Venice, Florence, Rome and a Surprise Bonus. After that, I'll post the link to our photo albums so you can see everything.

To get us all in the mood - riddle me this: in which film was there a scene of a famous actress walking down the Spanish Steps eating an ice cream cone?

Not exactly us walking down the Spanish Steps with an ice cream cone, but a bit of a teaser:

Clearly, I had my priorities.

Round and Round I Unfortunately Wasn't Able to Go

2010-09-27T07:00:00.010-04:00

Crossed another off my 26 Before 26 List!

#1: Visit the Guggenheim Museum.

My friend K came up from Florida where she is a law student to visit her family here for a few days, and she was able to squeeze in a trip to the Guggenheim Museum so we could hang out together this past Friday.

If anyone has been keeping tabs on the column to your left where my 26 Before 26 List is, visiting the Guggenheim is at the very top because simply, it was the first thing to come into my head.

For years, I've always gone to the Metropolitan Museum of Art - one of my most memorable trips was in the 5th grade at Christmastime after reading From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. My class sat down in front of the medieval screen to compare what we read about in the book with the museum and there was a Christmas tree. I still have my tattered copy.When I was in college, my friends and I would trek crosstown from campus and hang there because it was so cheap to go (hint: don't pay the suggested fee. I pay a dollar. They are loaded).

The Guggenheim is amazing as a part of Frank Lloyd Wright's architectural repertoire. I love how it looks. As a museum in and of itself, my reaction runs along the lines of "meh." It is an amazing building to look at and in fact, last Friday was the first time I ever saw it in real life. I never really had occasion to go up to that neck of the woods (my stomping grounds are more in the Upper West Side, the Flatiron District and Union Square). But I wasn't particularly awed by the collection. To each her own.

I'll admit - I am a bit biased here because they were installing a new exhibition and thus the ramps were closed, so we couldn't see all of the collections. Still for $8 (reduced admission) it was not that bad.

Hands down, the Met is still my favorite. I've been to the MoMA and still need to check out the Whitney, but nothing can top the Met here.

Love Trellis Patterns

2010-09-26T17:18:00.000-04:00

So much so, it's part of my new twitter design. Like?

Thrift Shop Finds

2010-09-26T08:30:00.001-04:00

The other day I popped into the local thrift shop on my way to the gym earlier this week in search of a letter holder to hold our mail that didn't look like it came from Staples (I was bidding on an antique English silver toast rack, but lost). No letter holder to be had, but I did come out with these beauties:

I got the milk glass vase (jar?) for The Aussie to hold his wedding ring and collar stays so that they don't clutter the bedside table, and so I can take away the ring bowl from our wedding and use it as a Christmas ornament and keepsake instead, which is what he is currently using now. It has "Avon" stamped on the bottom. Now its on our beside table along with the sea urchin tealight set I got from a local interiors shop called Inside Astoria.

The half-liter carafe was a bit of an impluse buy; I saw them all the time in Italy when we were having wine, and it reminded me of our honeymoon (which reminds me to remember to post some pics! I have to wait for the weekend when I have more time).

I'm thinking of using it as a vase or even as a carafe itself. Anyone have any other creative ideas for a carafe?

Changing the Google Terms

2010-09-24T12:33:00.000-04:00

I'm planning on checking out the Brooklyn Flea and Chelsea Flea markets in search of the ever elusive affordable-but-not-for-a-bathroom etagere, but I thought I might share some other finds I found while googling "etagere living room."

I found all of these at World Market:

Alameda Wood/Iron EtagereTall Spinnaker Tower (also comes in Small)

I really like both of these, and the price is great too (even better than the first one I posted, which is way more expensive and subject to unfavorable reviews). I have a couple of things to consider: which would look best with the couch and what kind of look am I going for? Will the second one make the living room look too "country"? Also, what would look good with walls that are soft gray (we are painting our living room in 2 weeks)? I'm torn!

I'm Looking for an étagère

2010-09-21T11:01:00.004-04:00

I was flipping through Real Simple (again) when this piece in the "One Room, 3 Ways" feature caught my eye:See the red shelf system in the back? That's an étagère. And I am on the hunt for a curvy-ish one. Something that is slim, slender and not just looking like a box, or else it would look like it belongs in a bathroom. I want to put it on the other side of the couch and get rid of our $7 lack tables, or just have one in front of my pharmacy lamp which is on the other side of the couch.

So far, my google searches have come up with a Cindy Crawford étagère from JCPenney:
It is on sale, but I would like to see the price go down a bit further and see what else is out there. I also want to do a little more research. Any suggestions on where I can find affordable étagères?

The Four Week Dinner Plan

2010-09-20T21:13:00.003-04:00

The Aussie got his hands of my October issue of Real Simple before I had a chance to thoughtfully peruse it, complete with colored MUJI pens and sticky tabs (yes, I am that person).

One of the features that caught his eye (among other things, like Decorating with Gray - now he wants to paint our living room gray but that's another story) was the Four Week Dinner Plan. He likes the recipe section and I suggested that we try every single recipe for the next four weeks.

Real Simple's recipes were in fact the main reason why I subscribed - I tried a few from the website, realized I didn't burn the food or the apartment and had some tasty, easy meals. Win!

The rules of the game, so to speak was originally to go for each recipe when specifically stated, but we had shrimp in the freezer so we first went with Curry Shrimp and Snow Peas, which was for Monday of Week 2. I think the Real Simple gods won't mind, since the idea is to use what we have first (and they like to tout things like that).

Every week, I'll post a roundup with photos and reviews.

A bit of a sneak peak for Week 1: that Curry Shrimp was AMAZING. I went for seconds.

Begone, Fugly Pillows!

2010-09-20T07:10:00.005-04:00

I recieved the pillow covers I ordered from west elm last Thursday and eagerly tore into the box (I like getting mail. Even if it's just a postcard from somewhere beyond the NYC area).

But, I encountered a little problem. My fugly "70s TV Room" (as my friend S put it) pillows were too big and the pillow cases too small (the cases are 16x16). In addition, the alpaca pillow shed a bit and the silk profile pillow was a little too shiny because it is silk. The Aussie liked the idea of the silk pillow for our bed (and get another one for "his and her" sides of the bed) but "Better if it were of cotton."

True.

When The Aussie and I were at Pottery Barn this weekend to look at curtains, I picked up the Textured Linen pillow cover in Blue Smoke and returned the west elm pillows since the store was a few blocks down Broadway.

What do you think?
I am so happy with them! In fact, the FPs (fugly pillows) actually fit and stuff the pillow cover better than any Pottery Barn insert - they don't loose their fluff and still have structure. Now I know what size the FPs are - 18x18 - so that I can change it up in the future. I still might get a lumbar pillow and either a smaller or larger pillow in a print to spruce up the couch a bit more.

Phase 1 of decorating the living room - Operation Begone, Fugly Pillows - is complete.

Trains, Trains and Well, Trains

2010-09-19T19:07:00.002-04:00

I love subways/metros/undergrounds/chikatestus. You name it - if it's underground and a train, I love it. If it's a light rail, I love it. If it's a high speed Eurostar, I love it. Sadly, I never got a chance to go on the shinkansen when I lived in Japan.

I also love subway maps (and maps in general!). When I lived in London and in Kyoto, I made it a point to bring a NYC subway map with me so I can post it to my wall.

So in case anyone was wondering where I got my header photo from check it out: nycsubway.org (Image 6573). I figured it's pretty apt; Astoria is the Greek/Mediterranean enclave and they mostly use lemon juice and olive oil only for flavor in their recipes, hence the name of the blog.

If anyone is interested in a really great history of the NYC subway and public transportation system (and history of NYC in general) check out The Bowery Boys podcast - they just did a series of podcasts about the Staten Island Ferry, the trolleys and elevated lines and the subway system itself. It's one of my faves; I always learn something new, even though I have lived here all my life.

Now I'm Happy With It

2010-09-19T13:06:00.004-04:00

It took me 3 hours to finally find a design that I liked for my blog that didn't look silly, and has a spiffy header that I did myself.

In case anyone was wondering, this is a photo of the N train from the early 20th century at my subway stop as a child. The buiding in the background is my elementary school.

Still, I do have the "Chair" Template" saved in case anyone liked that more.

Finally Fixed and Admitting an Addiction

2010-09-19T00:22:00.005-04:00

In case anyone has met my blog with nothing but a blank white screen for the past few months, it was me, not you. Thanks to Kiki (Hi Kiki!!!) I finally figured out my blogger template.

Sadly, I had to get rid of my old template which, made me pretty proud given my sheer lack of graphic design skills. This particular background picture caught my eye because of the warm colors and the chair itself. Figured I need a little bit of decor inspiration (I have to return two of the west elm pillows. They don't fit the fugly ones. Sigh.)

Also changed my profile picture too - it's another kate spade ad. I know. I'm a big sucker for them (there is a folder on my hard drive marked "kate spade ads"), but I did not run out and get the new iPhone4 case from kate spade. It's silicone. I want a hardshell case. Was kinda proud of myself that I resisted the temptation.

(ETA: Oh dear. They do have a hardshell case. In POLKA DOTS. Polka dots is my downfall. Just come have a look in my china closet - I got the kate spade sag harbor serving dishes and soup/cereal bowls in the navy stripe and polka dot prints. ).

Now I just have to stop obsessing about this dress that I would get around Christmastime if it's still there (and if I get back into a size 8 by then) for the 2, possibly 3 weddings I will be attending next year.

Did I mention that when I went to a job interview on Friday, I had kate spade earrings, silk shell, bag AND shoes?

I need to join a kate spade 12-step program.

(On second thought, most definitely not).

Wait Wait - I'm Going to Carnegie Hall!

2010-09-18T08:43:00.000-04:00

Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! is one of Little Sister's and my favorite podcasts. Usually they record in Chicago where the show is based, but they do go on tour occasionally. One of my life goals is to play one of the games and get the prize, which is Carl Kassel's voice as my voicemail message. I am a geek.

Little Sister and I are going to see them record the show live at Carnegie Hall on October 7. So excited! I really hope there is an actual guest to play Not My Job as opposed to them calling in. We got center balcony seats so it's really high up but we have a good view.

This is actually my first time going to Carnegie Hall. Can I consider that a bonus for my 26 Before 26 List?

A Spiffy Bike I Aspire To Ride

2010-09-17T06:00:00.000-04:00

When we were in Italy, I may have overshopped a bit.

Just a bit.

The Aussie on the other hand, refused to get anything for himself - except for truffles, and a cashmere scarf for himself. Why, you ask?

When we got back from Italy, he took the unspent money, converted it back to dollars, and treated himself to a pair of fancy cycling wheels in lieu of his upcoming 30th birthday. You don't want to know how much they were (the wheels alone were about the price of a high-end aluminum road bike). I was supposed to get one of those wheels for his birthday and now I am scrambling for a really, really good 30th bday gift.

Have to say with his new frame (his old one had a crack in the carbon frame and Orbea replaced it for free) the wheels do look quite spiffy. Now he is working on getting a spiffy seat that fits him.One day, I'll have a spiffy carbon fiber bike. With spiffy wheels that go whiiiirrrr!!! too.

It's a Beautiful Morning

2010-09-16T09:59:00.002-04:00

I got off to a slow start today, but I always make sure to get a caffeinated start.
Have a lovely Thursday, everybody.

Hooray! New Shelter Mag in Print!

2010-09-15T14:18:00.004-04:00

I was too late to get in on the Domino Magazine action and only really got into (neophyte, at best) decorating just as it was closing. Sad.

There are some great new online shelter/lifestyle/cooking magazines to pick up where Domino left off (Lonny and Sweet Paul, to name a few) and I have recently subscribed to Real Simple. Domino is back on Brides.com as well. I also follow some great blogs (such as Decor8).

In spite of the whole new "digital" age and people getting magazines on their Kindles, Nooks and iPads, there is still something to be said for the tactile feeling of a magazine in your hands. Same thing goes for handwriting notes and feeling the heft of a book you can't wait to read in your bag after picking it up from the library - I picked up The Omnivore's Dilemma and The Big Oyster: History on the Half Shell yesterday.

I was so happy to see this pop-up via my Craftzine google feed:There is a new PRINT shelter mag out called Anthology. It comes out quarterly, which in my opinion is great - you have just enough time between issues to really go through the mag and if there is anything that strikes your fancy, you have time to try it before the next one comes out (while I love Real Simple and the recipes in it, sometimes what you want to do from the mag can get a bit overwhelming. I still have get to deeply go through my June & Jul issues!).

Needless to say, I immediately got my subscription all sorted. The cover is so fun! Can't wait till I get my first issue.

Figs For Fall

2010-09-14T20:57:00.006-04:00

Although the semester just started, the Writing Center isn't open until next week which means I still have time to putter about, knit, spin (new hobby!), begin decorating the apartment (more on that in the future) and more importantly, cook. And bake.

After seeing this fig tart recipe over at Figs, Lavender and Cheese, I knew I just had to make it.

This coming from someone who kinda stinks at cooking (but can make a mean lasagna and apple pie). Still Cindy is a real inspiration in the kitchen - I love her blog and the food she posts on it. It gives me hope that yes, I can cook and bake. Even in a teeny tiny NYC kitchen.

Have to say, the food processor is my best friend. But lets look at some figs, shall we?After posting the pics to my knitting group's forum, I got alot of the same question: "Where did you get figs?!?!?!"

My answer pretty much went like this: "At the local fruit market down the block from my apartment?" I was even able to get California figs too boot - but I'm guessing they are pretty hard to find on the East Coast. There are 2 fruit markets and 2 supermarkets within a 2 block radius in my neighborhood and only 1 had the figs.

I guess this is one of the benefits of living in a Greek/Mediterranean enclave - we still get the goods without having to schlep over to fancy Whole Foods for them. Still, I had to make The Aussie go to Whole Foods for marscapone cheese after work and non-stone ground corn meal (which I later learned, both the local supermarkets have. But this is proof of me being a cooking neophyte: I didn't know what non-stone ground corn meal looked like).
It was delicious. My apartment smelled of rosemary while the crust baked. The Aussie only tried a bit ("Not that big a fan of figs") but my family came over and noshed away. There is still half of it left.

All for me, then. Which is not a bad thing, at all.

Feeling Inspired

2010-09-12T17:29:00.006-04:00

It's been awhile. I needed to take a little vacation away from the blog, and now with fall around the corner, I feel the urge to blog again. I felt like this summer wasn't very blog worthy and as opposed to fill the space up with random rambles (which I am trying to cut back on) I decided to lay low for awhile.

But now I'm back - there is something in the upcoming fall air that is making me want to blog again. That and I am feeling inspired lately - I finally convinced The Aussie that we need to decorate our apartment (after a year we still have nothing on our walls besides the bulletin board we made for our wedding) and we will, if a bit slowly (which is on my 26 Before 26 list). I think once a month I will make a purchase towards our place, be it big or small.

For the month of September it was throw pillows, or actually, throw pillow covers. This are my current pillows, that came with the couch:Ugly, ugly, ugly. I got the bag in Italy in case anyone was wondering - more on the Italian honeymoon in another post. I love our couch - it's a Pottery Barn feeling without the Pottery Barn pricetag and the pillows did come for free but the colors are gross. I'm going for a chocolate brown, cream and somewhere in the range of robin's egg blue to aqua for the living room and these will not do.

Since West Elm has free shipping, I thought I'd give these three pillow covers, using my old pillows as inserts a shot:

Alpaca Textured Pillow Cover in Oregano (bottom left)
Profile Silk Pillow Cover
Solid Silk Handloomed Pillow Cover in Blue Sage (middle)

Let's see how this turns out. The Profile Pillow cover is a bit of a lark, but if I really like it I could always put it in the bedroom. I want a bed with tons of pillows like how you see in the department stores. Also want to get a lumbar pillow for the couch.

Technically, I could knit myself some awesome pillow covers out of chunky cotton or sew myself one, but as I have eleven knitting projects on the needles, a wrist that is acting out again and no access (or skills - yet) to a sewing machine, I'll work with what I've got which is online shopping.

I'm on the lookout for some really good home decorating resources besides (what I call) The Big Three: Pottery Barn, Crate and Barrel and West Elm (with a dash of Target and IKEA on the side). Anyone have any ideas? I'm going for a modern/urban/Pottery Barn look (it's the couch that calls for it, sigh - The Aussie picked it) with a wee touch of glam in terms of accessories.

Up next in terms of decorating: frames. Tons of frames. Going to wait for my next Michael's coupon for that. Also curtains. We only have one (big) window in the living room, so that means we can go a little overbaord with the curtains. I like the Pottery Barn Alessandra Curtains in blue since it brings a bit of a patter into an otherwise solid-colored living room. We plan to save money on the curtain rod (while will be oil-rubbed bronze to match my pharmacy lamp) by going to Century 21 in Brooklyn.

Why Couldn't This Have Happened on My Subway Line?

2010-07-30T20:38:00.002-04:00

Awesome. That is all.

(Happened on the 6 train, starting at 23rd street, btw).

ABC's of Me

2010-07-17T14:29:00.003-04:00

A- My AIR CONDITIONER is set on: between 68-70 at night on low. We only have one in the bedroom.
B- My BEDROOM theme is: aqua, white and black.
C- The CAR in the driveway is: more like the bikes are in the bedroom and on the wall. Car? Me? Heck, The Aussie says he would rather get a Cervelo bike before a car. Parking is hell in our neck of the woods.
D- My DESK looks: like organized chaos.
E- The EXACT time I wake up daily is: Now around 7:30. I'm going to try for 6 next week so I have time to get to the gym before I go teach.
F- The FIRST thing I wash in the shower is: my hair.
G- My GARAGE is filled with: Nope, no garage.
H- My HOUSE is: actually a 1-bedroom pre-war apartment in Queens.
I- If you peeked INSIDE my bedroom you'd see: Bed, side table, dresser, my two towers of yarn, 2 desks and 2 bookcases. It's a pretty big bedroom.

J- My favorite JUICE is: pomegranate blueberry.
K- The best part of my KITCHEN is: our chrome storage rack. It's open air storage, but we set it up so we have more counter space by putting two $10 IKEA cutting boards on it.
L- The LAST person who visited my home was: my sister
M- The last piece of MAIL for me was: my August issue of Real Simple magazine, and some knitting stuff.
N- My NEIGHBORS think I'm: a pretty cool professor. The girl across the hall from me was a student in my class last semester. She got an A.
O- If you OPENED my fridge you'd see: hummus, carrots, nashi pears, manchego cheese, feta cheese, lemonade and milk. We are going to go grocery shopping tomorrow.

P- My last house PARTY was: I think our New Year's shindig.

Q- A QUICK meal I like to fix is: scrambled eggs and feta cheese with red peppers. Nom.

R- My favorite ROOM of the house is: bedroom.

S- The SHAMPOO brand I use is: Herbal Essences - the give more volume one.

T- My largest TELEVISION is: 46" and way too big for our living room.
U- UNDER my bed you will find: a flat plastic box with all of my bags and a folding chair.
V- The last time I VACUUMED was: this morning.
W- Looking out my WINDOW I see: the back concrete courtyard of our building. Snooze.

X- I wish I had X-TRA: cash. Definitely.
Y- My YARD is: at my parent's house. I think I am going to go there every day until Italy once classes are done to do a bit of tanning.
Z- ZZZZZZZ My bedtime is: usually between 10-11. I'm boring I know. When I had to teach the 8am class last semester, I went to bed at 9.

Back on the Bike

2010-07-16T10:07:00.004-04:00

This past Sunday, I crossed off another thing on my 26 Before 26 List:

#14 - ride in the Tour de Brooklyn, Tour de Queens or a century ride, since my first century resulted with me in the ER.

Ever since my cycling accident in September 2008, I have been terrified of riding my bike - my road bike that is. Put me on my hybrid and I can zip through Astoria quite nicely, and I even ride it out all the way to Long Island City for free yoga on the pier (mostly on the bike paths of course). Add the prospect of clipless pedals and I am even more freaked out.

Or was, actually. Through my job, I was able to register for the Tour de Queens for free and even at the last minute - the whole thing slipped my mind (I really should keep my list on my iPhone). The Aussie went with me.

I even insisted that I ride with my clipless pedals (I use the Keo Pedals by Look for now, if anyone is curious. I was having problems with the Speedplays so my bike mechanic - aka The Aussie - swapped them until I get the hang of the clipless pedals, but I like these alot).

The Aussie insisted that I use the regular pedals, but I needed this ride to put me back on the bike and get over my fear of a) riding in crowds b) riding my road bike in NYC and c) riding with my clipless pedals.

All in all the Tour de Queens as a ride in and of itself, was....ok. I wouldn't do it again. It's billed as a "family friendly" ride but there were still some speedster show-offs, alot of bottlenecking because at some points, the Tour took us through narrow residential streets and there were alot of stopping and starting. But with all of that I did not crash once or trip over my bike. That was The Aussie's biggest concern with me going on my clipless pedals for only the second time. Granted, I still can't really push off on an angle and then go into the crowd (I need to push off straight into the flow of traffic), I still need a little bit of room to push off and I can't push off on an incline but I am still figuring it out. And want to ride again, and again.

The bones in my derriere were sore all this week and my shoulder blades were all achy (I couldn't ride in the proper road bike position because I constantly needed to keep my head up due to the crowds), but I realized how much I missed right proper going at 30mph road cycling. Next year, I'll aim for the NYC Century or the Five Boro Bike Tour.

I also got something else out of the Tour - a cycling pants/jersey/glove tan.

Playing Catch Up

2010-07-10T12:00:00.006-04:00

Teaching from 10:30 to 12:45 for 4 days a week and then tutoring from 1 to 9 (with a break between 3:15 and 4:30) for 3 days really cuts into blogging mojo. Here is a recap of what I've been up to lately:

1. Saw ABT's production of Sleeping Beauty at the Metropolitan Opera. What a beautiful ballet. The costumes were amazing, the music was wonderful (it's the same in the Disney movie I never knew that!) and my mom and I had AMAZING seats.

Little's Sister's coworker's boyfriend is a corps member at ABT and we got comp tickets through him. I also went and saw the All-American Repertory Program. Contemporary choreography is not exactly my cup of tea, but the second act (done to the music of The Andrews Sisters) was alot of fun.

Here is this Spring's Met Opera/ABT ticket haul (and I didn't pay a thing. The Don Quixote ticket was through my mom's school and thanks to Little Sister, we ended up in the private boxes for the third act):2. Got tickets for museums/sites in Italy! We are going to see the Palace of the Doges in Venice, Gallerie d'Academia and Uffizi Gallery in Florence, the Vatican Museums + Sistine Chapel, the Coloseum, Pantheon and a bunch of other places in Rome. The last thing I need to figure out is how to get to the Apnean Way so The Aussie and I can go cycling there - Little Sister did it when she lived in Rome and had a blast.

3. Speaking of Italy, I got my suitcase. It's actually the 25" one (need a bit of room for goodies from Italy!) bright fuschia pink on the inside, and comes with both a laundry and toiletries bag.

4. Knitting: started my sweater, finishing up a shawl, have a pair of mittens, a cowl and a baby onesie on the needles. Have to be extra careful with my wrists. Once I finish all of thes projects, I plan to block them all at once using the wool-wash (so that I can conserve it) and then do a mass knitting post.

5. Tomorrow, I am going to cross off another item on the 26 to 26 List: Go on a century ride, Tour de Brooklyn or Tour de Queens. Through my job, I was able to register The Aussie, Little Sister and myself for free for the Tour de Queens. It's a 20 mile ride and luckily, the weather will not be as hot as it has been. Our electric bill doubled this past month.

6. Went to see Eclipse with my knitting group the day before it opened (one of the girls got tickets to a special screening). Much like how it was at Maryland Sheep & Wool, the usual shenanigans ensued - though some of the women on the line waiting for the movie were downright psychotic in their Devotion to Edward (I like Jasper myself).

Cupcakes and unicorns are our mascots (inside joke) so I brought along my unicorn beanie baby, Mystic for the ride (in my defense, my mom got her for me at the height of Beanie Baby Mania in 1996 and I kept her out of all the Beanie Babies my sister and I collected). She got sloshed between the beer, wine, and sangria. We went to Lillie's after the movie, which is a great bar. Talk to you soon.

Anybody Out There?

2010-07-08T19:51:00.000-04:00

Lost my blogging mojo for a bit. Will be back soon.

Tweet Tweet

2010-06-29T08:01:00.000-04:00

Finally joined twitter: @fuerivenus.

Say Hello to Audrey

2010-06-24T21:05:00.006-04:00

Isn't she a beaut?Much like her namesake, this Audrey also "wears" a black turtleneck.

I am having so much fun with my new iPhone. Especially when it comes to photography - the camera is amazing. Here is a panoramic photo of my bedroom taken with the Pano app:When I came across this app, my first reaction was, "This would be PERFECT for Italy!" Imagine the panoramic landscape shots I can get with this. It will take a little bit of practice. I've been to the Pano Flickr group, and some of the photos are really beautiful. I've also downloaded Hipstamatic and iMovie; can't wait to try those out!

Summer Eats

2010-06-23T19:21:00.006-04:00

It's been really hot lately (especially today!) so The Aussie and I have been eating lighter fare. We both love eating tapas style, so a couple of nights ago, we made our own tapas plates for dinner: canteloupe, fresh bread, prosciutto di parma, manchego cheese, homemade sundried tomato tapenade, olives and crackers.
Like I mentioned before, Ollie got in on the prosciutto action:
Yum.

Testing...

2010-06-23T16:12:00.003-04:00

I think my blog is broken...

ETA: Phew! One of my friends told me all she got was a white screen. Coming up in blog posts: I go to the ballet (twice!), meeting up with my knitting friends (again!) and I FINALLY started my first sweater, which is actually a cardigan, but I thought was really a sweater. And school started again. The countdown to Italy begins.

New Phone!

2010-06-15T17:11:00.003-04:00

I waited an hour to buy a cell phone. I must be crazy.
Just pre-ordered my iPhone 4 today. Contrary to lots of reports about people saying they were having alot of problems, it was really easy for me, but alot of people are also saying that its easier for new customers since I didn't have to deal with the red tape regarding upgrades.

Another reason why I didn't have any problems is because I went to the ATT store in person; they were really organized (they had a sign in sheet so you can come and go as you please so long as you are back in time when you are at the front of the line) and since I get an Educator's Discount (woo!) I needed the paperwork for that and better be done in person. The lady who processed me was really sweet about the fact that my state ID (my VERY expired learner's permit) was in fact expired; she said "I don't want to turn you away after waiting for so long."

Note to self: go to DMV on Friday. Take learner's permit test. If fail, get NY State ID for the time being.

I kinda wanted the white one but no one knows when that one is coming out and at the end of the day, an iPhone is an iPhone. White shows scratches more anyway. So far, my experience with ATT has been very nice, customer-service wise. Can't wait to record some video and make a movie of my Italian honeymoon.

Gourmet Cat

2010-06-08T20:19:00.002-04:00

My cat likes prosciutto and manchego cheese. From Whole Foods, natch.

The Aussie spoils him rotten.

Weekend Update

2010-06-07T21:43:00.003-04:00

The semester is almost over! I have to just put the grades in and get over my cold, hence the lack of posting. Hopefully everything will be done by Thursday and then I am free until the 21st, when I start teaching the summer session - a six week dash till early August; grades are due by August 11 at noon and then on August 11 at 5:45 pm, I will be on a plane to Italy!

The family and I went out to Long Island this past weekend (with a weeeeee quick pit-stop at the Kate Spade outlet, where I picked up the Keswick Caning studs in gold, Little Sis got the same ones in the drop earring style) for an engagement party.

My camera died so there aren't that many pictures. Still, we had a good time:

My sister, mom and I
The Aussie and I My dad and I

It was so hot, The Aussie stole my vintage Japanese fan that I brought with me:
It has been very hot in NYC this past weekend and just now, we got a bit of a break. Still, its so cold at work, that I have to wear a cardigan and even my new Ptarmigan cowl that I finished last month.

Jet-Setting, But What Luggage?

2010-05-22T20:23:00.004-04:00

The one luggage set I own is a pretty big Samsonite 2-piece set in olive green. For 8 days in Italy, especially when you are lugging a suitcase over teeny-tiny streets with cobblestones and through airports and train stations, big suitcases is not the best idea. And I need a weekend/overnight luggage bag/suitcase anyway. Lugging my LeSportSac duffel through the streets of Manhattan after MS&W was not my idea of fun.

I'm window-shopping through Target and this caught my eye:
A vintage-style luggage set! This totally looks like the hella overpriced one from J.Crew, except in red. It's good for carry-on size but I'm trying to find a picture of it open.

What do you think? Should I eschew the regular black suitcase and go for something like this for the honeymoon? All I need are big Jackie-O sunglasses, since I've got the capris, white tunic top and espadrille flats down pat.

Unless I can get the carry-on of the Kate Spade Lisbon luggage set for under $100...it's a dream but if anyone hears anything, let me know!

Cross Another off the List

2010-05-21T19:08:00.003-04:00

Item #9: See a ballet besides The Nutcracker.
I did ballet as a kid and LOVED the Nutcracker, but to this day it's the only production I've seen at Lincoln Center. My mom got tickets to Don Quixote from the principal at her school so we are going for free!

My sister will be there too but on the other side of the seat so to speak - she is an usher at the Metropolitan Opera House. She started her senior year of college and is doing it now while she starts up grad school. Last week, she got The Aussie and I tickets to see The Flying Dutchman opera. Fell asleep a bit during the first act - German opera isn't really my cup of tea, but hey no one turns down free orchestra tickets. Especially when it's at the Metropolitan Opera House.

In other news, The Aussie is showing an interesting change of behavior lately. Normally he whines and cries abut Whole Foods being expensive; he went there not one but two days in a row. Normally he gets his recipes for dinner from allrecipes.com, now he goes to Real Simple (I got a magazine subscription).

Can't help but say it kinda makes me smile and say, "I TOLD you so."

Summer Days Are Here Again

2010-05-16T21:54:00.004-04:00

Last night, The Aussie and I went out for our first sidewalk dining experience of the spring/summer at Bareburger. I love this place. The bonus is that we live only two blocks away. We both had some of the gluten-free, vegan, organic hard cider which was very good.
You know when summer is just around the corner in NYC when all the sidewalk seats are full to bursting.

Bora Bora

2010-05-16T15:28:00.002-04:00

So we are watching "Couples Retreat" - The Aussie did not beleive that the water could be that blue so I put "Where did they film 'Couples Retreat'?" into Google.

Wow. I want to go here on my ten-year wedding anniversary.

26 Before 26 Update

2010-05-13T19:42:00.005-04:00

Since one thing has already been crossed off my 26 Before 26 list, I thought I'd update you all on what I've been up to lately:

Item #22: Going to a Museum Exhibition (Completed April 2, 2010)

Before it closed, I went to the Tim Burton exhibition at the MoMA during the Target Free Fridays:
I went with one of my friends from my knitting group, L, and her son who is the most amazing 11-year-old I have ever met. He gave me a big hug before we left our separate ways to the different subway stations. The exhibition was pretty cool (I never knew he was a part of "Beetlejuice"!) but a bit creepy.

I still want to take the chance to see more museum exhibitions. Up next on the museum docket: Item #1 on the list, which is going to the Guggenheim. It's right bloody expensive but Little Sister, who volunteers with a group at the Met Museum gets in free anywhere with her Met ID. Free tickets to the Guggenheim!

Item #7: Go to one of the wool/yarn festivals (May 1 &2, 2010).

This is the one thing I have been dying to do ever since I became a knitter and 3 years later, I finally went! I went with my knitting group who is scattered mostly all over the country and we congregated in Maryland for a rolickin' good time.

I went pretty crazy over the sight of the sheep while everyone laughed at me (I've never seen sheep this close before), and alpacas but unfortunately, there were no angora bunnies to be had. I'm holding a gigantic cup of lemonade, my parasol and have my sleeves rolled up into my bra straps because it was ridiculously sunny and hot.
This is a picture of my haul (the cost of which, while QUITE modest compared to most people - the girls in my group said I was pretty thrifty; I budgeted and I went in with specific patterns to get yarn for, complete with price comparisons on my iTouch - has been the subject of quite a kerfluffle within my family, particularly The Aussie. He nearly had a heart attack when he saw one of the price tags by accident and heard the total amount. He will get over it).
There is another festival up in Rhinebeck, NY (by Poughkeepsie) but I think it's best that I stay home for that one. The next day, we went and saw Edgar Allen Poe's grave, as we were in Baltimore for the weekend.

We all plan to meet up again next year, which is going to be just as exciting since there were alot of things I missed (like awesome yarn at 50% off) and people who couldn't make it this year will be there next year.

On a sad note however, I did something that no one ever really likes doing: attend a funeral. My dad's best friend of 35 years passed away last week, and I attended my first Greek funeral. Very sad and very emotional.

Highly Upsetting.

2010-05-05T19:09:00.000-04:00

So bad, my sister is canceling her trip for this summer. I can only imagine what it's like to be there now.

A Couple of Reasons

2010-04-23T20:58:00.002-04:00

Reason #5,467,873 why I love living in New York:

I saw Channing Tatum filming a movie in my neighborhood. Just as I got off at my train stop.

Reason #1,267,589 why I really, REALLY need an iPhone:

I saw Channing Tatum filming a movie in my neighborhood. Just as I got off at my train stop.

I'm So Excited, and I just Can't Hide It!

2010-04-22T19:42:00.009-04:00

In just about a week, I am heading down to Maryland via Philadelphia to:
Maryland Sheep & Wool! I'm heading down there with my knitting group and staying the night in Baltimore so we can be there both days. I'm definitely going to be seeing alot of these:And these:
And pet some of these:
See some dogs round up sheep a la Babe:
And try not to get toooooooo much of this:(Seriously, if looking at Brooklyn Tweed's Flickr photostream doesn't make you go, "I want to learn how to knit that!" I wouldn't know what to do).

River Rocks

2010-04-17T18:40:00.005-04:00

I finally finished my first shawl: the Akimbo, designed by Stephen West. I call it "River Rocks" because the multicolored and solid yarns I used for this remind me of looking through a crystal clear river to the flat rocks within.
I kinda like wearing it more like a scarf around my neck. Perfect for this recent bout of cold weather we've been having.

My Knitting Action

2010-04-09T16:05:00.004-04:00

Last week, I went with my local knitting group to a talk given by Jared Flood, one of my favorite knitting designers. I seriously want to knit up everything he has done (so far I have done a Hemlock Ring blanket for my old koto teacher back in Japan).

Anyway, there were people taking pictures of the event, and I ended up on the blog! Here is an action picture of me knitting:That's me wearing my Fetching fingerless mittens, working on my Akimbo Shawl.

Decorating Inspiration; To-Do to Da Apartment

2010-03-31T15:55:00.010-04:00

I am on a big budget and of course, living in a rental apartment is to some extent somewhat transient, so decorating is a bit tricky. Especially when your living room's decor only consists of this:Cycling store/garage a living room does not make. Mind the stuff in the lower right hand corner, that's for recycling/Salvation Army.

First, I needed to figure out what the heck to do to my couch - as you can see in the photo, its brown with cream piping but those pillows are really ugly. I hate them, but they came with the couch. Not one to turn down free throw pillows.

Thankfully, I still read the Perfect Palette - not only are her inspiration boards great for weddings, but also for a newbie decorator and fair-isle knitting junkie like me! Thanks to her, I FINALLY figured out the perfect color pallete for my living room: brown, latte, ivory and shades of aqua/turquoise/blue to give it a bit of pop. Woo!

So now I have my color palette, I can slowly but surely turn this living room into a cozier space. According to my results on a design quiz I took in real Simple's March issue, I am a Cozy Casual/Sophisticated Chic combo, but more on the Cozy Casual (re: Pottery Barn) end of things. The kind of couch I have helps.

During an impromptu visit to Michael's today with my mom (she needed to pick up ribbon to make her godkid's Easter candles with for the anastassi, or midnight mass) I picked up some fake blue hydrangea (because I'm on a budget and I kill succulents, for pete's sake) and sorta arranged them in the tall glass vase that my wedding bouquet came with.
Total cost? $10 for the flowers, the vase was free, and I used some extra ribbon lying around just because. The ribbon is a really bright green, but with so many neutrals in the living room, I needed something bright. Seems like a bit of green is popping up, at the AAS conference this weekend, I picked up Liza Dalby's new book in hardcover for $10:
I love the idea of "coffee table" books and changing it up once in awhile - I have a few Japanese/Chinese art books and plan to change it up a bit.

We also need to change our rug - it has so many spots from spilled food that we cleaned up with the Tide To-Go pen but its pretty blah. The Aussie picked it up in his last moments of bachelorhood and while it's serviceable, its gotta go. Rugs are pretty pricey but I finally found one that works perfect with the color scheme I want: the DwellStudio for Target Floral Block Rug:I'd get it in April or May, but since we have Italy coming up, I am on a shopping moratorium (minus the Sheep and Wool festival in Maryland this May with my knitting group) till after August 19. But for the size, the price is good. Still need curtains - those I know will be in aqua. I already found the fabric for the pillows - its cream jaquard with an aqua damask print - at my local fabric store.

As for the walls - painting a rental is quite risky, and we have these gorgeous moldings; after staying with my friend J in Philly (whose apartment is GORGEOUS) I was inspired by her walls - her apartment has the walls in cream, but the moldings in bright white, so they stick out more. I really liked it a lot and remembered that when my dad fixed our bedroom, he had cream and white paint.

I proposed the idea to The Aussie and he seems all for it (heck the paint is free), we just need to find some time to do it. Unfortunately, our landlords did a crap job with the painting when we moved in. I'd also like to redo the kitchen - the walls cream, but our built-in cabinets white. We also need to put new lino tiles in the kitchen.

We are still on the lookout for a semi-affordable tv stand that is not from IKEA; any suggestions? Where do you look for design inspiration on a budget? I recently discovered Overstock.com's home section and it's fantastic; I am also planning to to a "travel/city" themed gallery wall once we move the tv back across our couch (it's in the corner since its not mounted to the wall but on our coffee table. I want that corner back to make a reading/knitting nook with a small armchair and my pharmacy lamp).

Testing...

2010-03-29T15:47:00.001-04:00

Ravelry came up with this new option to share projects with people outside of the site (because in order to see them, you need to be a member; I like this security feature, but I still would like to share my projects, too!).

So, I am testing this link out: my Rattlesnake Creek socks were finished this past Friday and I am SO HAPPY with them! They are a bit snug, but blocking them will help. I wore them too and showed them off to all of my coworkers (the last stitch was knit during my break). Handknit socks feel so nice and squishy and soft on my feet. What do you think?

A Roman Honeymoon

2010-03-26T13:19:00.006-04:00

After months of hemming, hawing and a month-long moratorium on the phrase "Italian Honeymoon," I finally have some news to report.

The Aussie and I are FINALLY going on our honeymoon! Viva Italia! Buon Viaggio!

This means that number 10 of my 26 Before 26: - Go to a country/area of the United States I haven't been to yet - is complete! Cross that one off the list.

Long story short, we weren't sure if we could go, then the Tax Man came in and the fact that the PIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain) are really ruining the Euro helped - the plane tickets are cheaper now than they were a few months ago.

We fly into Venice on Aer Lingus via Dublin on 8/12 (10.5 year dating anniversary!) stay till 8/13, and make our way down the boot: Florence from 8/13-8/15 and Rome from 8/15 till 8/21.

Little Sister's Italy expertise (she lived in Rome for a year) will be called in for this trip, especially for transportation; she only paid 15 euros as opposed to $65 to go from Rome to Venice so going local and avoiding tourist stuff will definitely pay off. That, and I want to try and squeeze a day trip to Capri, since we can't get to Ravenna.

The Aussie just booked our tickets and I got the confirmation email - woo! So excited! We definitely know where we are going to stay in Rome, but does anyone have any recommendations for Venice and Florence?

Looks Like It Will Stay on the Rack for Now

2010-03-19T07:52:00.003-04:00

Thank you ladies so much for the comments! But it turns out, I won't be getting the dress. For now, at least.

I technically already have a dress for this party: the ink-dot dress from J.Crew. It's navy blue and white and really versatile: I've worn it already to my bachelorette party, rehearsal dinner, a birthday/grad party and will wear it again (with my Carolyn espadrilles, this link is the exact color of them) to a backyard engagement party this June.

When The Aussie spoke to his mother about the party and how I needed to get a dress and he wear a suit and we needed to get a gift (we thought this was a formal party, you see), his mom said that I can wear my "navy polka dot dress" (she likes it alot).

The point of the "Black and White" attire note was to make sure that the guest of honor - his godfather - stood out amongst the guests. I think he doesn't know that this party is being held.

But when you get an invitation to a party and it says "Black & White" attire, don't you think it's a formal one? As in the evening? Or early afternoon into early evening?

Well, not when it's 12:30pm in the afternoon. Sigh. I will keep an eye out for that dress - maybe I can try to get it on sale or at least, I won't be in that much of a rush to get it. That gives me a bit of time to lose some more weight that I gained from PTWS (post-traumatic wedding syndrome).

Wanted: A Little Black Dress

2010-03-17T19:34:00.005-04:00

Confession: I am 25 years old and I do not own my own Little Black Dress.

I have this black and white dress but its more of a day dress; this lack of the LBD proves a problem when you and your husband are invited to his godfather's birthday party out on Long Island at a fancy catering place, and the invitation says, "Black and White Attire."

A lot of things ran through my head when I read that and I will not repeat those here.

I don't do black and white. It washes me out like no tomorrow. Heck, I don't think I own anything black in my closet, except for my suit (which for some may come as a shocker - this New Yorker does NOT wear black).

I have two options: either suck it up and get a black dress, or not go.

This dress is making my decision a wee bit more difficult. The not going decision that is. Because this is a black dress that I actually like (pigs have flown!):It's the optical illusion dress from Anthropologie. Reviews of the dress have been pretty good, saying that curvy, chesty gals (like me) fit the bill for it. I love how it mildly screams Mad Men too.

Now my question for you sartorial ladies: would this be a dress that you could also wear to a wedding? I have a wedding in June 2011 (my godsister's) that I am going to and in the name of economy, I will get this dress if I can reasonably wear it to the wedding.

My Dad Is the BEST Dad Ever

2010-03-14T20:01:00.004-04:00

Because this morning, he woke up early, picked me up at 7am and drove me to the Target out in College Point for Liberty of London at Target.

On the way, however, he mildly chided me for getting him out of bed and schlepping him over when he said, "Missy, you need to learn how to drive. SOON." (Working on it, dad...)

I have had my eyes on these kinds of prints since Fall 2004 when I stumbled upon the Liberty of London store on Regents Street in London; I was able to pick up really affordable neck scarves in Japan in their bright prints. Great with a white tshirt and simple shorts with sandals during the summer.That said, I discovered while I was running around Target in circles, I can only really do Liberty prints in small doses. I tried on a few of the dresses, and wasn't really impressed with the fit. Also, I saw that the threads on the shirts started to fray even while they were on the rack. Not going to spend money on things that are already short of falling apart.

So, I focused my efforts on home goods and accessories - my dad and I got to Target at 7:40 and waited in the parking lot. At 7:59, I bolted out of the car (not like there was anyone there, really) and was the second person in the store. My first aquisition? The Stick Umbrella in Mark Pink:

Hanging off the door in the entry hall of my apartment.

Detail of the pattern.

The minute I saw the umbrella in the previews, I knew I needed to get it - I had an umbrella very similar to this when I lived in Japan. It was polka dots, survived numerous bike rides (I would stick it through the rear fender on my bike as I zipped around Kyoto in case it rained), I left it outside on my bike and brought it back home with me - only to have it stolen one day in the library when I was in grad school. I miss that umbrella. Now I have a really good replacement!

This was in the accessories section the minute you walk into the store, so I grabbed it. There were only 3 and as the morning wore on, people kept on asking me where I got it. Sold out within 15 minutes of the store opening.

I saw the pillows and the bedding and while the prints were nice, again, for me it really didn't suit. In terms of my personal style with regards to decorating, I'm more of a DwellStudio kind of person. That, and I have a brown couch and none of the pillows matched.

Those were gone within half an hour, too. The bedding kept refilling during the day. No matter. I had bigger fish to fry.

That fish were rainboots. The Poppy Pink rainboots to be exact. After I grabbed my umbrella and tried on and rejected the dresses, I was out on the lookout for rainboots. My Tretorns cracked, and I promised a friend that I would get the boots for her too.

Little bit of a problem: they were not out on the shelf. Turns out, the Target out in College Point was really unprepared for the (small) onslaught of Liberty-obsessed women dragging their husbands/boyfriends and in my case my dad (like The Aussie would really put up with these kinds of shenanigans, my dad likes to shop) so very few things were out on the shelf.

So my dad and I waited. I told the Target people that I am on the lookout for the boots.

We waited some more. My dad retreated to the Starbucks while I continued my loop through the store. While I looped I picked up the following goodies:

Two each of the Dunclare Pink and Black small acrylic tumblers.
I have broken all of our water glasses, so these were a cute replacement.
The Dunclare Pink small tumblers were sold out by the time my dad and I left.
I don't know the name of this print (it's not even online) but I liked this acrylic tray alot. I saw it in the shopping cart one of the Target employees was using to bring stuff out to shelf - people were already picking at the shopping cart while he was unloading. I like it because it has a nice print, but it's subtle. I got this for the living room. Detail of design.Lotus and White Flower Candle - it smells HEAVENLY. I originally had the Sweet Grapefruit
but went back to the display as I waited for those rainboots and swapped it for the
Lotus one because again, the shelves were not fully prepped. Apparently, this is supposed to be for the garden (the picture in the label shows it stuffed
with leaves, but I use it as a really awesome and adorable hamper. The Aussie and I needed a new one BADLY).

At some point during the proceedings, I even took my cart, left the empty shelves that I was keeping guard (seriously, it was that mildly crazy) and had breakfast at Starbucks. Unfortunately, by the time we left, the employees still didn't put put the teapots and the ceramic mugs and didn't even have those in their stockroom, so I was a bit disappointed.

My poor dad took it all in stride (and kept commenting to me in Greek his astonishment at how all of this stuff is practically gone within 20 minutes), and kept himself occupied by looking at the grills in the summer/garden section. Even he got in on the Liberty fun when he saw the watering cans next to the grills and asked if we should pick one up for my mom. We got her the one in the Dunclare black pattern.

And then the boots finally arrived. I was waiting with one other woman who had her cart stuffed with pillows; this English lady came by with her cart (later on in the morning, we were both there since 8am) and was oohing and aaahing over the pillows. She saw my umbrella, peered into my cart and said, "That's ALL your getting??!?!?!?!" I like Liberty but small doses work for me. I didn't want to get stuff that I barely needed just because it says Liberty on the inside tag.

Did I ever mention that while my dad and I got to Target at 7:40, the boots finally came at 11am? We waited three hours for rainboots! I can't beleive I did that. Still, I promised my friend I would get her the boots and I got her the boots.

Like? I'm a bit iffy on them, but they are growing on me.

The funny thing was, everyone started to crowd around the boots section, and I noticed that there was only enough room on the display for 1 boot per size. So my evolving tactic was to let the Target people know (politely and graciously) that I am looking for a 9 and 10. I pretty much made myself known, since the employees that were on the "Great Liberty of London for Target Rainboot Search of 2010" saw me at oh, 8:15 in the morning when I asked for them in the first place.

So the one employee who knew the sizes I needed was holding the boxes, and walking down towards the display was short of accosted by other girls asking for the sizes. Her response, was "We only got five pairs for the entire store, and these are marked for that lady over there [me!] because she has been waiting patiently since 8am."

And with that, my dad and I got the boots and hightailed it out of Target. My dad also picked up some cucumber and parsley seeds for his garden in the backyard, which guarantees my mother using her new watering can (she loved it!) a lot this Spring.

THANKS DAD!
(^_^)

Did anyone have a chance to check out Liberty of London? I read online that the pop-up store here in NYC sold out and is already closed!

Finally, A Place Where I Can Get A Bike With a Basket

2010-03-12T16:39:00.005-05:00

I REALLY want this bike if I am ever able to sell my Trek 7200 Hybrid step-through bike with both seat and front-wheel suspension (any takers?):It's from this new bike company called Public. Their idea is to create European-style bikes for the American market. My reaction? HALLELUJAH. I've been looking for a bike like this to zip around the city with in a flowery skirt and cute shoes (pipe dream really - I'll settle for bermuda shorts and a cute shirt with my Superga sneakers. I've ridden a bike in heels and those little suckers make you slip even while you're still sitting on the seat, unless you have clips. The pedals also chew the bottom of the shoe).

It's a bit wrong of me I think that I am more concerned with upgrading (or downgrading, depends on how you look at it because I have to admit, the Trek is really really good with those potholes) my everyday bike instead of building up my "Spandex Glory" cycling skills so I can get a carbon fiber bike (again, unless I get a kick-ass job anytime soon, another pipe-dream).

And really, who wouldn't want to buy a bike from a company that has bunnies photographed along with the bikes?

I'm SUCH a Doofus

2010-03-08T09:57:00.002-05:00

I get to work today at around 8:15 in order to tidy up any last minute admin duties - pick up my rosters, copy some stuff, etc. I needed to to this this morning because my classes start at eight am tomorrow and i won't have time otherwise (it also means I finish at 2pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays, woo!).

So I go to my mail folder and get my stack of paperwork. But there is something wrong here...my rosters say T/Th from 8:00-10:15 and 11:45-2:00 but my schedule from the English department says M/Th from 9:15 to 3:45? And I have a DIFFERENT class? Oh. My. God.

I almost run to the English department thinking, "Oh NO! I have a class that starts TODAY in less than 45 minutes and I don't have a syllabus or ANYTHING!"

Turns out, the schedule was the one for my class that got canceled for the winter term. It said "Fall II 2010" very clearly on the top.

Brain fail, clearly. And already at the start of the semester? Oh, joy.

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, I'm Cycling, Tomorrow

2010-03-06T10:16:00.002-05:00

Today is a gorgeous day! So will tomorrow - which means The Aussie wants to ride his bike. Lately he has been whining that he really wants a Madone as opposed to the Orbea bike that he has; I'm just shaking my head and reminding him that we already have THREE bikes in our apartment and no room for a 4th. He is not going to mount another bike on another wall in our living room. I have plans for said wall.

The Aussie is dragging me along the ride as well - although I am doing it a bit begrudgingly and with a few conditions:

1. Not 50 miles in one shot
2. Not over 15mph
3. We do not ride over the 59th Street Bridge to go home.

The main reasons for these conditions is that I am a bit out of shape and more importantly, I'm still getting used to my clipless pedals. When you ride over the bridge from Manhattan into Queens, there is a slightly steep incline, then you coast down at around 30mph into Queens (and oncoming traffic). Not the best idea when I am locked into my pedals in case something happens.

Granted, I won't look like an idiot this season, since I have said shoes and pedals.

"A Modern Greek Drama"

2010-03-05T17:18:00.000-05:00

The economic crisis in Greece is something I've been keeping an eye on, if a bit tangentially. Colbert has a slightly humorous take on it (watch out for the "modern Greek drama" line, its hilarious!)

26 Before 26

2010-03-03T13:05:00.002-05:00

One of the blogs I read, Slice of Pink, did this really neat thing where she listed 30 things to do before she turned 30. She inspired me to create my own list of things to do before I turn 26. Wish me luck!

1. Visit the Guggenheim museum
2. Visit a Long Island winery
3. Make 10 different cupcakes (1 for each month left in the year) from Cupcakes Galore
4. Master 4 of my favorite childhood recipes: Pastitsio, Avgolemono with Chicken (my kind of chicken soup) Karidopita and Galaktobureko
5. Knit a sweater
6. Lose 10 pounds - and keep it off
7. Go to one of the yarn/wool/craft festivals (Maryland Sheep & Wool)
8. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge and back
9. See another ballet besides The Nutcracker
10. Go to a country/area of the United States I haven't been to yet
11. Hiking somewhere in the Catskills or Bear Mountain
12. Go to a trivia night/quizzo at a bar
13. Decorate my apartment
14. Ride in the Tour de Brooklyn, Tour de Queens, or complete a century ride - since my first one ended up with me in the ER.
15. Go to the Chelsea Flea market on weekend
16. Submit my master's thesis to scholarly journals
17. Have a dinner/cocktail/wine & cheese party for no reason whatsoever and go all out (invitations, outifts, the nice dishes, etc.)
18. See a movie at the Ziegfeld theater
19. Go eat Indian food in Jackson Heights
20. See live Greek music
21. Learn how to sew
22. Go to a museum exhibition (or 2, or 3...)
24. Spin my own yarn (and not just practice spinning)
25. Apple picking
26. Print out and create/finish my London and Japan photo albums; create a wedding album.

Bonus Points:

a. Get my learner's permit
b. Go to one of the Australian-cuisine restaurants on the Lower East Side
c. Knit a throw blanket
d. knit something with handspun yarn
e. read a new book for each month left in the year
f. Update my recipe box

Hurray!

2010-03-02T13:37:00.003-05:00

When I opened my email this morning, imagine my surprise when the talented Chloe of English Tea Paperie sent me a message via Facebook. Turns out, I won a gift certificate for my own personalized stationery! Woo! I have never won anything via Facebook or the blog giveaways, so I'm really excited about it.

Now the question is, what design to choose? There are so many of them! After going through the site several times, I ended up with this one:This is the 3 Sailboats notecard from the Nautical Themed line. Like the card, I have my name in the Copperplate font in Kelly Green. I wanted something that was classic, but fun at the same time and this definitely did the trick. Thanks, Chloe!

Long Time No See

2010-03-01T14:49:00.012-05:00

Hello all. It's been awhile. The weather is getting nicer here, and Spring is definitely in the air. I am still on vacation and a bit bored out of my mind. However, that doesn't mean I have not been preparing for the new term for next week:
Grammar terms. Gotta review them, and take a test tomorrow at my job. But, to make it more fun for me, I used my brand new Staedtler pens in Spring colors. I LOVE color pens, and these seem like they definitely do the job of grading, color coding and general doodling and in fine point (.3mm).
I also got a new notebook in Spring Green to take notes for my lesson plans in - going to teach remedial/basic writing (2 courses) this semester using Greek Myths as readings. It's going to be fun and challenging. Apologies for my crap handwriting though, as I am wearing this:Good thing those pens are ergonomic. People ask me what happened to my wrist and I tell them that this hat happened to it:That picture was taken while it was drying over a dinner plate. The pattern is called Selbu Modern and it was my first complete fair-isle project. The colors are navy and what looks like orange in the photo, is really coral (navy and coral is one of my favorite color combinations).

It took a whole season and one more episode of The Tudors to finish it, but I knitted for 6 hours straight on both Saturday and Sunday (total of 12 hours) last without taking substantial breaks. Very, very bad idea.

The muscle strain started when I tried to knit the Fiddlehead Mittens. This was all last week; I didn't get the brace till last Friday and since I'm lefthanded it was just a bit worse. I've been wearing it 24/7 and will do for all of this week; I will also not knit a stitch this week. Next week, I'll start knitting very slowly with the brace on and see how it goes. Kinda hard to not knit when all of this amazing yarn has been arriving in my mailbox these past few weeks:

All of the yarn is hand-dyed, the "Starry" yarn has a bit of sparkle to it. The dark blue I'm planning to make a shawl with, "Starry" I'm thinking of something for my baby godsister, the MadeleineTosh a cowl of some sort, and the rest are socks. The last yarn, Three Irish Girls actually has bamboo in it. It's soooo soft.

The colors in the pictures are pretty true to real life, thanks to a new camera that The Aussie got me/us for our 10-year dating anniversary. I've been playing around with the Manual feature, though the kitchen light is horrible and that is why the picture of my hat looks more orange than pink.

I'm so sad that the Olympics are over. I loved the whole campy set with Michael Buble singing along to some song about maple leafs. These Olympics were pretty good. This month is the World Figure Skating Championships and while I do not have cable, I do have Universal Sports.

Oh, Beautiful Day

2010-02-21T11:34:00.004-05:00

The Aussie and I went for a walk around our neighborhood this morning. Barring the wind, it was quite lovely; I even had to wip out the sunglasses because it was so sunny.

Our route was pretty basic (just a square with two of the main shopping drags as two of the sides) and we picked up Starbucks along the way. It's a good thing that I don't have a Starbucks within a 2 minute walking distance, else I'd be totally broke.

When I lived with my parents, I had to take a bus to the subway stop and there was a Starbucks right on the corner. The Aussie and I used to spend our Saturday mornings at that particular Starbucks in college doing our homework. We would listen to the old Greek men discussing politics, and had to get there really early (about 9am? The Aussie would take the train from Brooklyn to meet with me) before they grabbed the only big table in the corner.

Mornings like today remind me of those Saturdays.

Happy Valentines!

2010-02-14T12:59:00.002-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day! What are your plans? The Aussie and I kinda celebrated last night since February 12 was our ten year dating-anniversary. More details on that later...right now I'm kinda riding on a bit of a high now because I was able to turn this mess:
Into this piece of yarn-cake glory without ANY cutting or knots:
It took me about 4 hours over two days to get it done, but my first event for the Ravelympics (Aerial Unwind: you frog/take apart a project that you don't like, and rewind the yarn for future use) is complete! Onward to Mitten Moguls and the Hat Halfpipe!

Enjoy your Valentine's Day!

Who's Ready for the Olympics?

2010-02-12T12:05:00.006-05:00

I am! Woo!
And so are the mascots. Aren't they ADORABLE?

I LOVE the Olympics. You can bet that I will be parked on the couch tonight watching the show and watching some of my favorite events (short track, figure skating, freestyle skiing, just skiing in general) - and knitting along!

The Ravelympics start tonight at 9pm - tons of knitters, crocheters, spinners, dyers and weavers will be starting their projects the minute the Opening Ceremonies start. They even have their own Master of Ceremonies/Mascot:He is known as Adonis Dionysus Bobicus Maximus, or Bob. In real life, he is the pet French Bulldog of Ravelry's founders.

I'll be posting my status updates as I go along - wish me luck!

Masochists, I Tell You!

2010-02-10T09:23:00.001-05:00

So...almost all of the colleges in the CUNY system are either completely closed today, or have cancelled their classes.

Where am I blogging from?

In a classroom at my CUNY school, waiting for students to arrive to lab.

Boo hiss.

Snow-mageddon 2010!

2010-02-09T18:13:00.004-05:00

So last weekend, the snow only made it as far of as Staten Island. Everyone in the NYC area was pretty much poo-pooing over the fact that NYC was supposed to get 12-18 inches last weekend; there was barely a flurry in my part of Queens. The Aussie and I took advantage of it and went to BJ's to stock up on groceries.

Tomorrow is supposed to be the real-deal Snow-mageddon; the NYC Department of Education closed the schools a DAY IN ADVANCE which is never done. Heck, snow days in NYC are just rare. My mom (she works as an assistant teacher in a public elementary school) is thrilled.

Personally, I think everyone is going gaga over this because the news cycle is pretty slow - anyone remember the 1996 Nor'Easter? The public schools in NYC were closed for THREE DAYS. Now that was a storm. If the schools are still closed on Thursday then I will believe that this was the "storm of the century."

My sister and I are waiting with bated breath to see if our CUNY schools close - she is taking some graduate art history classes at one, while I work at another. So far, neither of our schools are listed as the closed ones (go figure, because hers is on top of a subway station and mine is next to a subway station) while the others are in the middle of nowhere.

So, what are your plans for the so-called "Snow-mageddon"?

My Knitting Self Squeals With Delight

2010-02-05T21:35:00.006-05:00

So you know those "Keep Calm and Carry On" posters that are popping up everywhere? The history behind the posters is really interesting. The parodies are ridiculously awesome - if I ever become a professor with my own office, I might just want to hang this just to scare students (muah ha ha...I have a really bad sense of humor sometimes):
That should pretty much set the record straight.

Anywhooo, there are TONS of parodies out there - the easiest thing to do is go to Etsy and type "Keep Calm and Carry On prints" - this is what you end up with. KeepCalmShop has some of the best ones out there.

While browsing through Ravelry for some pattern ideas (as if I do not have 300+ things I want to knit already - dead serious) I saw a thread in the forums about these posters, but the Ravelry edition so to speak:So fun! I love how they incorporated knitting/crochet notions into the design of the crown. I am totally going to pre-order the knit version (as I cannot crochet to save my life, except for a chain that is used in a particular kind of cast-on for knitting). I also plan to get one or two others in the future: Keep Calm and Travel On, and Keep Calm and Ride On.

Men Are Strange Creatures

2010-02-02T21:46:00.004-05:00

Ever since I got back from Japan, I occasionally tell The Aussie that we should hang 1 of the 2 kimono on a nice curtain rod as a decorative piece. He always refused or just didn't bother with it.

But, OOOOHHHH (insert sarcasm here), since he saw it in an episode of "The Office" in Jan's apartment, he is all for it.

Men. Seriously.

Kitty!

2010-02-01T15:00:00.006-05:00

I haven't posted any pictures of Ollie in awhile, so now is a good a time as any:
He usually ends up like this throughout the day, even when he is sleeping on the heater. Weirdly enough, however, he HATES getting his belly rubbed. Hard to resist, though.

The catnip mouse on a stick is his favorite toy - if I do it long enough, he leaps through the air. Although I think he is falling in love with the tennis ball in the first picture (I tell you, this is a teeny tiny dog in cat's clothing).

Let There Be (just the Right Amount of) Light

2010-01-31T19:44:00.006-05:00

The Aussie likes to watch tv in the dark. I also like to watch movies in the dark.

But I also like to knit while watching movies and I need to see what I am doing, since I have not quite yet mastered the art of not looking while knitting.

Hence the conundrum - while we only have one of our 3 lightbulbs in our ceiling fan screwed in (when people come over then we turn all of them on, saves us a ton of money on the electric bill) sometimes a overhead light can be a bit annoying.

The solution? I bought a lamp today. I originally thought I was going to get this set from JC Penney, but I wasn't impressed at all by the lamp shades. It was just eh for me. I have this thing for drum shades, and those lampshades were too tiny in proportion to the lamp. I sound very picky, but at the end of the day even though it was 3 lamps for $80, I couldn't reconcile with the fact that I reaaaaaly would love them if I went out and spent more money on getting good lamp shades for them. Blah.

Then The Aussie revealed the fact that he couldn't care less about a lamp since he "doesn't use them." So that meant I could just get one lamp that I really really like as opposed to finding 2 lamps for the living room that I was meh about.

This was the lamp that I ended up with:That is how it looks with our current living room setup (on the To Do List: make pillow covers for the throw pillows that came with our couch, get curtains and start framing stuff). It's pretty bright so I need to get a smaller lightbulb that isn't so "white."

There is nary a drum shade to be seen, but I really like it (Once those two little tables in front of the couch resume their proper function as end tables again, I WILL get a table lamp with a drum shade, I really am feeling this base from Target).

Here is the kicker - it's called an "Antique Pharmacy Lamp" and while I didn't get it from either Restoration Hardware ($699!!!) or Pottery Barn ($279!!! Yikes!!!) Don'tcha think my lamp looks pretty similar?

Restoration Hardware's Rowan Pharmacy Floor Task Lamp

Pottery Barn's Hayes Task Floor Lamp

For a floor lamp, I think mine is quite spiffy. What do you think?

Yum...

2010-01-30T17:22:00.005-05:00

The Aussie and I have been cooped up in the apartment all day (hence the third post of the day and scores of movie watching) due to the nasty cold weather. While we both saw "Julie and Julia" we had our own personal endeavors for the day: I knitted, while The Aussie continues on his quest to Master the Art of Making a New York Cheesecake. Et voila!
The first time he made it there were two huge cracks in it, and now after the third (maybe fourth?) there is only that teeny little one at the top. This one is for his parents, we also have half a cheesecake left in the fridge from when he made it last week. As someone who LOVES cheesecake, the cracks do not bother me at all, it tastes delicious!

He got the recipe from AllRecipes.com; if you plan to make it (totally worth it) make sure to read all Tips for Making a Cheesecake. The first time he made it he didn't realize these existed, so the cheesecake was a couple of pastry crusts short of a cheesecake souffle.

The Aussie really kicks cooking butt. Now if only I can convince him (or I will do it myself, using his precious KitchenAid Mixer and all) to make chocolate mousse cheesecake.

Julie & Julia

2010-01-30T15:55:00.003-05:00

So I'm watching "Julie and Julia" and I have to say, I am not one of Julie Powell's fans. I have not read her book so I'm pretty basing my opinion on the movie (which I am watching at the moment) but what reaaaaally got me was her whining about her moving from Brooklyn to Queens as if it was the end of the world in the first 30 seconds of the movie (though I'll admit, me moving from Astoria to Bay Ridge would be the same for me and I have whined about it on my other blog).

Way to make a first impression; I just really don't sympathize with her. In the meltdown scene before the reporter called, it was as if she was just going to give up and the only reason why she kept going was because the reporter called which meant she was getting public recognition.

I'm enjoying the Julia storyline much more than Julie's although seeing bits of Astoria/LIC (I live 3 blocks away from the fishstore where the lobster-buying scene is filmed) is fun - seeing Coach Sue from Glee in a dress as Julia Child's sister is hilarious!

Going for Gold!

2010-01-30T14:19:00.010-05:00

I finished 1 of a pair of socks today - I'm such a slow knitter, it has taken a month for me to just knit one sock:
Let see the cables up close shall we?
I'm definitely going to have to step up the ante - the Olympics are coming up (woo!) and that means the Ravelympics are sneaking up on me as well. They are a kind of "Knitting Olympics" on Ravelry, the knitting/crochet website that I am on. I am on three different teams, and while one particular project can count for multiple events, only one project can count for each team. So here are my projects (and some photos of what others have done) and their events:

1. Selbu Modern (Team Stash 'n' Burn, Events: Hat Halfpipe and Nordic Colorwork Combined):2. Rattlesnake Creek Socks (the socks you just saw above for Team Stash 'n' Burn, Event: WIPs/Works-in-Progress Dancing)

3. Fiddlehead Mittens (Team Unicorns Unlimited, Events: Mittens Moguls, Nordic Colorwork Combined):4. French Press Cozy (Team Unicorns Unlimited, Event: WIPs Dancing):5. Toddler Basketweave Socks (Team Greece, Events: Junior Olympics, Sock Hockey, Stash Compulsory Dance):6. Springtime Beret (Team Greece, Events: Hat Halfpipe, Stash Compulsory Dance):Note: only the first two pictures of my Rattlesnake Creek socks are mine, the rest I swiped off Ravelry to give people a sense of what I will be knitting (FO's or Final Objects will be posted of course!) and I provided links to those patterns that can also be found off Ravelry (though if you are a knitter/crocheter and not on Ravelry, you are reaaaaaally missing out!)

I think I have figured out a plan of attack for all of this crazy stuff: finish those WIPs ASAP (including as of this afternoon) because the idea for the Ravelympics is that you are supposed to cast on new projects the night of the Opening Ceremonies, but those that are a work-in-progress have their own category and cannot count for another (say, my socks are a WIP, but they can't count for Sock Hockey because they aren't a new project). Once those are out of the way, it's a flight to the finish.

Maybe I should have been on Team Hopelessly Overcommited (yup, there is a team called that).

Wish me luck!

Whoosh, Whoosh

2010-01-29T22:32:00.005-05:00

Yikes! It was sooooo windy today! Just walking the 3 blocks from the apartment to the (elevated) train station and then the 2 blocks from the (elevated) train station to work today and back gave me windburn. Sure I had my hood up, a scarf up to my eyes, but the wind was so strong that there are two big, round patches of pink of my cheeks.

It actually got bigger and pinker over the course of the day because I had to get home and then I went out to and from the laundromat twice since Friday night is laundry night.

I felt like I was in the Arctic tundra and I was really unprepared today: I did have my North Face parka, earmuffs and Thinsulate mittens, but I only wore a tank, tshirt and a wool zip cardigan and forgot to put on my cycling leggings underneath my jeans, so my thighs were like two blocks of ice. Add to the fact that I was walking against the direction of the wind and calling today's commute "fecking cold" is an understatement.

NetFlix Streaming via PS3: A Really Unprofessional Review

2010-01-28T13:46:00.004-05:00

The Aussie and I got our first DVD ("Julie and Julia") from Netflix, but we still haven't seen it yet because we have been too busy playing with the "Instant Streaming" option that we also have as part of our NetFlix account. Thanks to our PS3, we are watching tons of stuff! I thought I might let you know how it is in case anyone is considering it or is curious about it.

So how is it overall? It's really great. Watching shows/movies via the streaming doesn't affect our physical DVD queue, and it's great how we can switch easily back and forth between what is in our queue. The Aussie is in the middle of watching "The Office: Season 5", I'm in the middle of watching "Naria: Prince Caspian" and "Mythbusters."

In terms of the quality, it's pretty decent. We have the HDMI cable which really helps in terms of the quality but I think it all depends on what you are watching. Mythbusters looks pretty average but watching The Office makes you feel like the action is literally happening in front of you. When The Aussie and I saw it for the first time on our TV we were like "Whoa. That's hot" a la Paris Hilton. It was so clear and sharp!

In terms of loading movies, it's pretty quick. You just pop in the Netflix DVD and within 30 seconds your Instant Queue pops up. So far we haven't experienced any lag or delay in terms of loading and the movies/shows haven't froze either.

As for what can you watch via the streaming, it's pretty much up to your own personal taste. I LOVE geeky shows like Mythbusters, Dirty Jobs and almost anything from The History Channel, so I have tons of that on the queue, along with whatever movies I can find that look interesting and are available for streaming. I've found that tv shows are more common, and getting whole seasons is really simple.

In short, this totally rocks, though if i do find any problems, I'll let you know. I have a feeling that The Aussie and I will never get cable (for a very long time at least) since the option that we have for Netflix ($8.99 with one DVD + unlimited streaming) is way cheaper than our cable options.

For those that have Netflix, have you tried the Instant Streaming option be it by something like a PS3 (it's coming out for the Wii soon) or by your computer? What do you think of it?

We Have a New TV!

2010-01-23T18:19:00.009-05:00

One word can describe the feelings I have surrounding "The TV":

Hallelujah.

We got a new 46" Toshiba flat-screen tv, which was a major upgrade from our circa 1998 (?) hand-me-down tv that I guess had a 20" screen. We got rid of it (as in, it's in my parents garage), but imagine one of those old tv's that have the "bum" in the back. So we really needed a tv, because our living room looked like a big hole and the old tv was pretty far from us in the corner - we had to squint to see subtitles!

It used to sit on an IKEA end table. The "bum" was hanging off the end, and that constituted our "media center." Complete with rabbit ears. I kid you not. We had the DVD player and the dvds on the shelves below.

This is what our current "media" situation is like:
It's BIG. I took that picture sitting right across from the couch with no zoom. As in, we may have overestimated the size that would suit our living room (a 40" miiiiiight have been better, but hey, go big or go home I guess). We FINALLY got rid of the old school rabbit ears because we refuse to get cable (never home during the day) and replaced it with a spiffy new HDTV antenna (that still has rabbit ears, but they are hidden:
PLEASE tell me it looks like a sideways Christmas tree. However, it kinda sucks so we are returning it.

We have the tv on the coffee table now and are using our end tables as a coffee table, because we are planning to get this media console from Crate and Barrel and later add the side towers, but need to save up for it (and also want to check out some other places first):
Our living room is a bit of a mess, but hopefully the situation will be rectified by the end of the summer. In the meantime, I can deal with the mess so long as we end up with something that we will keep and use for a very long time.

To go with the TV we got a subscription to Netflix (in lieu of cable), and using some Best Buy gift cards bought a PS3 ((wifi, hd-dvd and Blu-Ray oh my!) and got rid of the old dvd player - did you know with the new TVs if you want the best picture you need to get an hdtv-ready dvd player too? . We have a queue set up, but I also created my own queue, which I posted in the sidebar and will cross off as we watch the movies.

Our Netflix DVD for the PS3 should be coming tomorrow so that means we can stream to our tv! I'll let you know how that goes.

:::Head Desk:::

2010-01-21T18:47:00.003-05:00

Help. Me.

I have run out of blog inspiration...and this is coming from the person who has really long blog posts. I still have to (kinda? sorta? Does anyone even really care?) post the rest of the wedding photos, but the pro ones came and I'm a bit disappointed in them (we were "matched" with our photographer through a biggish photo company because we couldn't afford an "independent" one, and at the time I was so stressed with grad school that I didn't really give a damn, which I regret).

Too many photos of the guests themselves and not enough of The Aussie and me, which is why I am terrified to go through the 1000+ images on the 2 DVDs we got. And this October, I am going to try and hire a photographer to do a "one-year anniversary" photo shoot a la engagement photo shoot style because we couldn't afford it and dammit we didn't get any of those "good" shots during the wedding.

Maybe I'll do a couple of posts on my latest knitting projects. I've been knitting up a storm lately.

A Few Days of Shrimp, With Some Ouzo on the Side

2010-01-16T11:58:00.007-05:00

This past weekend, The Aussie and I went with my dad to Costco in Long Island City and among other things, picked up a 4lb. bag of tiger prawns for $33, which is a good steal, apparently. For 3 days we had nothing but shrimp for dinner, which was a bit of a change from our regular ol' chicken and occasional steak.

We went to our standby, allrecipes.com, but we found nothing other than shrimp scampi, and alot of pasta dishes. After looking through the small collection of cookbooks, I found the recipe for "Garides Saganaki" or "Shrimp in a Small Frying Pan."

Saganaki is the popular pan-seared cheese appetizer found in Greece (oh, yum) but I also learned (no thanks to wikipedia!) that "saganaki" means "small frying pan." Huh. Anyway, the picture looked good, the recipe looked pretty easy, and I paired it with my Roasted Veggies recipe:

Garides Saganaki for 6 (from Krinos Greek Gourmet Cookbook)
Ingredients:
1.5 lbs medium-large fresh shrimp, shelled and deveined
Juice of 1 lemon
1/3 cup olive oil
1 bunch scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 small chili pepper or 1 pepperoncini, minced
1.5 cups chopped plum tomatoes
1/2 cup water
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 cup feta cheese crumbled (imported, although more expensive, tastes much better)
1/4 cup ouzo
salt, pepper to taste
2-3 tbsps. chopped fresh parsley

Directions:
1. Sprinkle the clean shrimp with lemon juice and let stand until sauce is ready.

2. Prepare the sauce: heat the olive oil in a large skillet and saute the scallions, garlic and pepper until wilted. Add the tomatoes and water, lightly crushing them in the skillet with a fork, and simmer for 20 mins.

3. Drain the shrimp and add them to the to the skillet. Add the oregano, feta, and ouzo and cook the shrimp for 5 mins. over medium heat until pink or al dente. Remove, season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve hot.

Roasted Vegetables (from allrecipes.com)
Ingredients (I altered this a bit because I pretty much used whatever veggies/potatoes were on hand - this recipe is good for using extra random veggies lying around):
1/2 red bell pepper
1/2 green bell pepper
8 carrots, diced (substituted with several handfuls baby carrots sliced into 3 pieces each)
1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced
2 red onions, sliced
16 grape tomatoes
4-6 red potatoes, cubed
8 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
2 bay leaves, crushed
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Take the baby carrots/diced carrots and the red potatoes and steam them for about 5 minutes. This will help them get tender, so that you don't have to spend eons trying to do so when roasting them in the oven and then overcooking/burning the rest of the vegetables.

2. In a large bowl mix the red potatoes, carrots, carrots, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions and peppers with the oil, rosemary, thyme, bay leaves, oregano, garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours, and preferably overnight (Note: I just mixed it before I popped it in the oven and they turned out fine, so if you're in a time pinch this works well too).

3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

4. On a large roasting pan, roast the vegetables, uncovered, for 20 minutes, or until the tomatoes have split and the edges of some of the vegetables are starting to crisp. Remove from the oven and stir before returning to the oven for another 20 minutes. At this time reduce heat to 200 degrees F (95 degrees C) and continue cooking until vegetables are tender, turning every 20 minutes.
Couple things I learned from this:

1. Need to cut back on the sauce for both dishes - I used too much olive oil for the veggies and made too much sauce for the shrimp.
2. Add the feta cheese at the very end, so that it doesn't melt.
3. The ouzo doesn't taste half bad!

The Aussie then had his turn: Shrimp on the Barbie (his words, not mine and rather in our broiler) with the actual saganaki:
He pretty much stuck the shrimp on skewers with green peppers and red onions, kept the shells on the shrimp and brushed butter and oregano periodically while in the broiler. As for the cheese, it's The Aussie's own recipe (I can email it to anyone that wants to know it's really simple - ouzo and the flames are optional), but the video speaks for itself (that's me giggling in the background like an idiot):

Suffering Through American Idol on the Couch, Day 2

2010-01-13T21:16:00.004-05:00

"A singing police officer is hot." - Randy

Well, any man in uniform is hot. It's an established fact.

Still listening to Emi Meyer to tune out the bad ones - she's really good. I was her sort of Teacher's Assistant for a class I helped with/sat in on at a study abroad program in Japan. If anyone wants her cd, drop a line with your email and I'll email it - it's 8 songs in total (indie release, though she is really popular in Japan now) so it wouldn't be too troublesome.

PS. All those Coke ads in between made me crave for Coke.

Seriously.

2010-01-12T20:42:00.003-05:00

Ok I'll admit, I am totally getting my "Japan-Snob" on but that self-proclaimed otaku on "American Idol"?

Really?

My apartment is not big enough for me to hide from this, so I am listening to Emi Meyer through my headphones while The Aussie is laughing at the bad ones.

Oh, Hallelujah

2010-01-12T19:36:00.004-05:00

The Aussie has informed me that this is going to be the last season of American Idol (because you know, sometimes he can act like a prepubescent teenager as almost-30 year old men are apt to act like :::giggle:::).

I maaaayyyyyy be bringing down the wrath of Hell upon me when I say this but I will go ahead and say it: HALLELUJAH. I hate that show. I pretty much dislike reality tv in general. Not having cable kinda helps when it comes to shows like "Jersey Shore" (which I hear is a guilty pleasure in every sense of the word, but it really lowers my faith in humanity).

(Although I do know that the reason why is because Simon Cowell wants to bring some show called The X-Factor from the UK over here? Meh.).

New Decade, New Blog

2010-01-10T23:42:00.000-05:00

Hello again! After 411 posts, the close of this decade and the inspiration from a fellow blogger (hi Midge!) I decided to move over to this neck of the woods. There has been alot of stuff that I have been meaning to blog on and just haven't since I had a lack of motivation and I think blogging wise, I ended 2009 on a bit of a whiny/negative note.

If anything, my New Years Resolution is to be a "doer" - no more lying about and moaning that I've got jack to do! Time to get off the couch (unless I'm knitting, been doing a lot of that lately) get out and actually do stuff.