{Photo via The Selby}
Showing newest 43 of 137 posts from December 2008. Show older posts
Showing newest 43 of 137 posts from December 2008. Show older posts
December 31, 2008
Resolutions
If you're still trying to figure out a good list of New Years resolutions for 2009, look no further. I could not have said it better.
December 30, 2008
Emerson
"Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be cumbered with your old nonsense."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
December 29, 2008
Apologies
My sincere apologies for being a very bad remiss blogger the past few days.
At first I was just trying to be cool like all of the other bloggers, you know, the ones that actually have real lives and are way too busy to be sitting at their computers detailing their every thought and move for the anonymous masses of the Internet. I was trying to seem really busy during the Christmas holidays. Which, I guess I kind of sort of was.
But now I am in fact QUITE busy. Can you even believe it? I can't. It just figures that after months of sitting around in my PJ's all day whining about my boredom I'm suddenly slam dunked with things to do.
Today I actually had to set my alarm (gasp!) and get up at 6:45 (double gasp!) in order to drive to WORK (Gasp x 1000). Yes, I am actually doing some work on site for a few days. I was in an office, in real clothes and everything. Aren't you proud? I am. I am proud and simultaneously remembering why I dislike full time work and offices. Very bad bad sign after only one day. What is wrong with me!?
So, that is my apology. You can expect to hear more frequent unstable rants from me post New Years. Hope everyone's relaxing and enjoying their holidays! (unless they suddenly have to work for a few days, while the rest of the world does NOT... ahem...)
{Photo by B Tal}
December 27, 2008
Say Cheese!
For a long time, I deprived myself of pizza. I thought it was bad. A bad food. A fatty cheesy slab of badness that I should stay away from.
I said, Kathryn, order a salad. Order some grilled chicken. Make yourself a sandwich. Do not eat the pizza. And I did not. I did not eat the pizza for a long time.
But I am dating Jared. And Jared is The Pizza King. This is not an exaggeration. If there was a realm of pizza, Jared would be ruler. There is no food about which he is more passionate. He lives in a town known for its magical pizza. He is surrounded by pie-throwing mobsters Italians.
I fought off his influence for a long time, but I could hold out no longer. I had a taste of his pizza. I had a slice of his pizza. I began craving pizza. I needed my own pizza. All. The. Time.
Now, when I drive to Jared's house, I have a Pavlovian reaction. From the minute I get on Parkway North, I begin to salivate. I dream of marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese and oil and dough. I think of brick ovens. I imagine flour flying as pizzas dance in the air, spin in circles, land gracefully on waiting hands.
I have become a pizza addict. I need it at least once a week. When I get to Jared's I say "Hi Honey" and what I mean is "GET ME PIZZA NOW BOY!" I am ashamed. It's an addiction. He has me under his spell. The spell of him and his evil pizza.
Note: This post was composed last night, after the consumption of two slices of pizza and one...okay, two...fine, maybe a little more than two....glasses of sparkling wine, at which point I found it incredibly necessary to write a long and detailed post about the attributes of pizza. Please keep this in mind when questioning my mental well-being after reading the above.
{Photo by Adam "Slice" Kuban}
Deer Country
One buck
Two buck
Three buck
Four.
Oh deer. Everyone else thinks it's so cool that we commune with nature on a daily basis. I think I'd like to eliminate you and your entire clan and claim your antlers as a victory prize.
Poniatowska
"Pienso en ti muy despacito, como si te dibujara dentro de mi y quedaras alli grabado.
Quisiera tener la certeza de que te voy a ver manana y pasado manana y siempre en una cadena ininterrumpida de dias; que podre mirarte lentamente ya me se cada rinconcito de tu rostro; que nada entre nosotros ha sido provisional o un accidente."
- "El Recado," Elena Poniatowska
December 26, 2008
Recuperating from a Day o' Fun
I hope everyone had an absolutely wonderful Christmas. Santa brought lots of goodies to my house and we had a lovely time with a whole crew of friends and family that came by for our annual Christmas hoopla. I'm still reeling from massive quantities of clam dip and Italian Delight. And punch, the glorious glorious fruity punch. And the evilness of my homemade Jewish Apple Cake. And Jenny's Pear Bavarian Cream Tart. Oh yum. It was a happy day.
I will admit that now I have sunk into a bit of a post-holiday funk, with the inevitable boredom that descends on the day after Christmas goodness. I have eaten a few too many cookies over the past few weeks and now going cold turkey is clearly messing with my brain chemistry. I want to do something fun but I am lazy and I can't think of anything to do and really my sweatpants are so comfortable and it's already getting late and it's kind of gloomy out and WHERE ARE THOSE COOKIES!?
December 24, 2008
How I spent my evening
Because clearly we haven't done enough damage with the five other varieties of cookie we've been scarfing down over the past week. Oh well. My oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are a breed of their own. Really.
It's been a while...
...since we experienced some extreme kitty cuteness.
Here we have a brief series of photos that illustrate the kitties let loose in Jared's room - aka - the beginning of extreme destruction. They may look innocent in these particular photos. Do not be fooled.
Pippi explores The Law.
Boo and Pippi playing their favorite game - swatting each other through the slats in the bookcase.
Finally tuckered out.
Kitchen Envy
Can you see the drool forming at the corner of my lips? No? Well, it's probably better that way anyway...
{Photo via Design Sponge}
December 23, 2008
Can you believe...
...that merely a week ago this extremely large plastic tupperware container was filled to the brim with spritz cookies?
Oops.
Voila!
Ze coat!
Isn't it beautiful?
PS - Apparently the coat is by Andrew Marc. NOT Marc Jacobs. Oops. Close enough, no?
PPS - Please ignore my crazy eyes - this must have been the start of the hormones taking control of my soul.
The Beckoning of Lovely
I just came across this video and insist that you watch it.
Right now.
Pretty please?
It's kind of long-ish by YouTube standards (isn't it sad when 7 minutes is deemed "too long"?), but absolutely worth it. I teared up and got goosebumps pretty much immediately.
(This may perhaps also have something to do with the fact that I am HIGHLY emotional today, because it's that time of the merry month, if you know what I mean. Jared can attest to this fact. He dealt with my monster alter-ego all day. I was scary. When I left his house he told me to wish my parents luck. Teehee. Who? Lil ol me? I'm sorry Jared. Me and my hormones love you!)
Anyhoo, this film is so sweet, and I hope it gives you goosebumps and makes you cry, even if your hormones are completely under control.
I also believe that this marks the official beginning of a star-struck obsession with the amazingness of Ms. Amy Krouse Rosenthal. I am in awe.
December 22, 2008
Closet Envy
Holy moly. I think I just screeched with envy. A blinding green hue of jealousy is currently clouding my vision. Hello you lovely closet you. Come to mama.
{Photos by Making it Lovely via decor8}
Muriel Rukeyser
I want now to be close to you. I would
link the minutes of my days close, somehow, to your days.
- "Effort at Speech Between Two People," Muriel Rukeyser
This is my snowgirl
She sits on the deck watching us eat dinner through the sliding glass door. She is a wee bit creepy. I built her on Friday after shoveling the driveway. Do you know how hard it is to shovel five inches of snow that have been soaked with hours upon hours of rain? Hard. Very hard. My abs haven't had that good of a workout in ages.
The End.
December 21, 2008
Another
I know I'm about two months behind the times in terms of calendar prowling, but apparently I just can't think that far ahead. All of my favorite bloggers have been posting fantastic option after fantastic option for I can't even tell you how long, but my heart just wasn't in it. Now, as I've reached the holy-crap-2008-is-almost-over-where-the-heck-did-the-time-go point, I'm all about a calendar search.
{Calendar by Jess Gonacha - plus you get a free print!}
Success!
I
got
a
coat!
A beautiful coat. A beautiful Marc Jacobs coat. A beautiful Marc Jacobs coat that was 40% off. A beautiful Marc Jacobs coat that was 40% off and therefore ended up being $70 cheaper than the J.Crew porridge coat which I finally returned because it's been almost two months and it's been sitting in the closet all lonely-like because it just isn't cozy enough for me to choose style over comfort.
But this. THIS coat. It is beautiful. It is cape-like, but not a cape, and therefore actually serves the intended purpose of coats: warmth. And it has a wide collar that snaps up high like a turtleneck. And it passes the arm flap test* and is STILL COZY.
And I know that pretty much no one cares about this accomplishment. Except perhaps Mama and Jared, because if they had to have one more half hour long discussion about coats coats coats it was likely that they would go drown themselves in a snow bank. And that's ok. This is MY accomplishment.
And, truth be told, it is slightly disturbing just how excited I am by this purchase. It's one of those times in which I feel rather guilty for experiencing such extreme glee and happiness as a result of a material purchase. And a somewhat unnecessary material purchase at that.
BUT I suppose I could also argue that it's the thrill of the hunt. That even with all of my unrealistic expectations and standards of perfection, I FOUND something that fulfilled all of those things.
I
found
perfection!
And though perfection currently manifests itself in the simple form of a beautiful Marc Jacobs coat that was 40% off, I'll take what I can get.
PS - I was just browsing through some old posts (oh man I have a coat problem) and LOOK WHAT I FOUND! That gray Laundry by Design poncho is the very same Laundry cape that I tried on in Bloomingdales the other day and wrote about at the end of this post. The one that took me about ten minutes to figure out how to put on. Will you look at that consistency?
*The arm flap test: relatively self-explanatory; involves flapping arms about to see whether coat feels tight and squashy and claustrophobia-inducing across back and shoulders and in armpits. Looks ridiculous. Incites comments like: Kathryn, how often are you really going to walk around flapping your arms like that? My response: You never know.
December 20, 2008
Page 9
"Now and then, when I'd finished, I'd go to the movies. It's always a big event for me. Maybe I buy some popcorn and - if people are around who'll look - spill it. I like to sit up front, I like for the screen to fill my whole view so that there is nothing to distract me from the moment. And then I want the moment to last forever. I can't tell you how happy it makes me to watch it up there, blown up. I would say larger than life, but I've never understood that expression. What is larger than life? To sit in the front row and look up at a beautiful girl's face two stories high and have the vibrations of her voice massaging your legs is to be reminded of the size of life. So I sit in the front row. If I leave with a crick in my neck and a fading hard-on it was a good seat. I'm not a dirty man. I'm a man who wanted to be as large as life."
- The History of Love, Nicole Krauss
Page 6
"Bruno, my old faithful. I haven't sufficiently described him. Is it enough to say he is indescribable? No. Better to try and fail than not to try at all. That soft down of your white hair lightly playing about your scalp like a half-blown dandelion. Many times, Bruno, I have been tempted to blow on your head and make a wish. Only a last scrap of decorum keeps me from it."
- The History of Love, Nicole Krauss
Page 3
"I try to make a point of being seen. Sometimes, when I'm out, I'll buy a juice even though I'm not thirsty. If the store is crowded I'll even go so far as dropping my change all over the floor, the nickels and dimes skidding in every direction. I'll get down on my knees. It's a big effort for me to get down on my knees, and an even bigger effort to get up. And yet... All I want is not to die on a day when I went unseen."
- The History of Love, Nicole Krauss
December 19, 2008
Dashed Dreams
My coat hunt has now morphed to a level of full blown obsession, which means that all day I've been sitting at the kitchen table with my laptop staring at the snowstorm a-brewin' outside, eating, drinking tea, and searching for coats and capes. It's really disturbing.
What is also disturbing is that I finally found the CAPE OF MY DREAMS - that adorable little red ridinghood cape above - which looks so classy and simple, and is also a perfect length, AND even has little holes for your arms to come out (unlike many capes that either a) assume you have no arms or b) have slits on the sides for your arms to move about which pretty much obliterates the warmth factor). So, this cape is gorgeously gorgeous. And I love it very much. And I very much blame {this is glamorous} for introducing me to this fashion wonder, because now I have fallen in love and it will remain unrequited because there is no way in hell that I am spending $745 (yes, that's the sale price) on this masterpiece. But that will not keep me from mourning my loss. Sniffle.
To somewhat console myself, I've been searching every last nook and cranny of the Internet for an alternative. Some kind of coat that I can wear on a day to day basis and be stylish and yet also comfy cozy and not look like a schlub in my Northface (though, don't get me wrong, I do love my Northface).
Implausible option:
Plausible options:
I also found a rather lovely black Laundry cape with a fur collar in Bloomingdales. On sale. Hurrah!
Any thoughts? Alternatives? Please help me put an end to this obsessive hunt. I don't think Jared will love me much longer if I send him one more link to an outer-garment.
December 18, 2008
Coat Hunt
For whatever reason, perhaps because I am truly a masochist at heart, each and every year, without fail, I embark on a massive winter coat hunt.
Perhaps it's because, when it comes down to it, I DESPISE coats - I mean, really hate them - so I'm always looking for one that will change my mind. I always feel claustrophobic. Too poofy. Too hot. Too tight. Too loose. I hate the way they make you look like an abominable snowman in 88% of cases. And the ones that don't make you look huge inevitably smush up under your armpits or pull so tight across the shoulders and back that it feel's like it will rip in half the minute you lift your hand to take a bite of Christmas cookie.
Hence my new cape obsession - no structure equals no need to worry about fit. I found an equally beautiful Laundry cape with a purty fur collar in Bloomie's today. Still undecided as to whether I will surrender to the splurge.
Anyhow, I keep coming back to the above coat, which basically looks like a slightly more stylish equivalent of wrapping yourself up in a gigundo plaid blanket. And that sounds quite appealing to me indeed.
{Minimarket plaid hoodie coat via Pixie Market}
Faulkner
"You could do so much for me if you just would. If you just knew. I am I and you are you and I know it and you don't know it and you could do so much for me if you just would."
- As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner
Wishlist
I was browsing my embarrassingly long list of daily blog reads and saw this photo of one of Anthropologie's store windows in NYC.
And let me tell you. I. Want. That. Outfit. The yellow skirt and white shirt. Want. It. Want. Want. Want.
Do you think if I say "want" enough it will magically appear on my body, without me actually shelling out a single dollar?
Right. Didn't think so.
And because the Internet is a marvelous thing, it took me about two seconds to track down these lovely little darlings: Hello Jacquard Tulip Skirt. Hello Mt. Joy Blouse. Do you want to go steady?
Oh, and while I was searching, I found this little beauty. I like it a whole lot as well.
{Photo via Design Sponge}
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