la Oca

If you gotta nest....

2009-11-09T10:19:00.000-08:00

Vintage Broke-Ass Stuart. Ha! If You Gotta Nest, Get Inspiration for FREE

I have a secret obsession.

Some people collect boxes and boxes of vintage G.I.Joe figurines. Others watch sexy Nigella cook her food on TV religiously. And some people walk around in Yankees Flannel PJs everyday during post season (my landlord).

My obsession may seem fairly benign, even mundane – at first. But it is something I have hidden away for years from roommates, friends, boyfriends… In fact it goes against everything I try to project upon first meetings. I like people to see me as a carefree, go with the flow, independently minded, world traveler type. Someone who’d be fun at any hour of the day. Someone who you’d want to take with you up and decided to go to Thailand or Budapest tomorrow. I even lie to myself. I used to boast that I could fit everything I loved and needed in one backpack, and travel through the world making a home wherever I happened to lay my head. WRONG. And I’m finally facing it: I am a “nester.”

My discovery of the full range of my home-making obsession came as a bit of a shock to me as I’m not the Suzy-Housewife-Nurturing-Cooking-and-Cleaning-Type. I’ve also realized, however, that after living in 7 different apartments in my 8 years in New York - each with their own different feel, architecture, and neighborhood – and all on an artist’s budget - I’ve also discovered some interesting online resources for home decorating and design inspiration. And so for Broke-Ass Nesters everywhere – this is for you!

My favorite design/decorating blog is:
Design Sponge with amazing examples of DIY befores and afters of rooms, furniture, etc.

I also can get completely lost in these fantastic blogs:
Swiss-Miss
Paper n Stitch
Innumerable Goods
Little Green Notebook
Abbey Goes Design Scouting
All Over Print
An Indian Summer
Automatism
Grijs
Mme Herve
Oh Joy!
Style Court
Urban Sardines
We Love You So
Today I Saw

(p.s. I’m going to assume that by now, most of the guys have decided to look at some other Broke-Ass Writer’s post, given the estrogen dripping nuances of this article. But if you are a fellow and still sticking with me, I just want you to know that I find you very, VERY SEXY.)

My obsession was discovered about a year and a half ago by my roommate, Nadia. She walked into my room while I was organizing pages upon pages of magazine clippings, computer print outs, drawings, color swatches, feathers, ribbons, photos, and lists. I had an opened Domino (before it was discontinued *sob*) in one hand and was ripping out all the parts I had marked upon my first perusal. “Do you always do this?” she asked, more with a tone of awe and wonderment, than judgment. “Yes,” I sheepishly grinned. And my secret was out! But not out in a big way. Just in a – oh, that’s cool, she likes decorating – type of way.

Well, when my boyfriend Carlo and I moved in together last winter, he was in for a bit of a shock. Every couple has their “thing” that they might always have to deal with. For Carlo and I, it’s IKEA. Let’s just stay that aside from the $1.99 dish of pasta with red sauce, the trip was a total and utter disaster. We left not speaking to each other, without the bookshelves we had set out to get in the first place, and with a lot of other (inexpensive, but totally unnecessary) tchotchkes that he resented having to lug around. (And I couldn’t understand why he didn’t have the BEST TIME EVER!) That IKEA trip made me realize that I have a lot more than just a “little thing for decorating.” I am obsessed with discussing, planning, painting, rearranging, adding, and subtracting to our home. Carlo’s a good sport, and I’ve learned that sometimes “No means No.” (We don’t have the full size vintage cow’s hide rug and matching stools I found on Ebay, yet.)

My favorite thing about “nesting” is that no two places are the same, and the feel of the place pretty much dictates what I start to fill it with. It’s like uncovering a secret, or unlocking a language, when you figure out how the room wants to be decorated. I hope you get as much pleasure and thrills (YES, thrills!) scrolling through the above list of online mines of color, structure, and creativity as I do! And I promise, boys, next week I’ll be writing something a little more gender-neutral in flavor.

Things I Love Today

2009-11-01T13:07:00.001-08:00

Dia de los Muertos

2009-11-01T09:41:00.000-08:00

Hey folks! I wanted to post my article from Broke-Ass Stuart for today. Hope you enjoy your celebration.

So maybe your Halloween sucked. Maybe you spent all day dressing up to find that the one dude or dudette you planned on going home with was more into the sexy nun than you. Or maybe no one got the obscure comic book reference for your costume but members of the gender you were NOT trying to attract. Have no fear. Today brings a new day, and a new holiday to celebrate! El Dia de los Muertos. Day of the Dead.

Now besides being the title of a cult classic horror movie, Day of the Dead is also a holiday marking the day that departed souls are believed to return to earth. Celebrated on November 1^st and 2^nd, Dia de los Muertos might at first hit you as a pretty morbid affair. However, in Mexican culture, this is a delightful celebration filled with live music, food, colorful decorations, and family. Octavio Paz notes that a Mexican person generally reacts very differently to death than an American does, in fact he "chases after it, mocks it, courts it, hugs it, sleeps with it; it is his favorite plaything and his most lasting love." Instead of being trying to ignore death, Day of the Dead is a beautiful festival filled with lively rituals to honor ancestors and dead loved ones.

Day of the Dead evolved out of a combination of Aztec (and other Meso-American civilizations) and Roman Catholic practices and beliefs. Many pre-Hispanic peoples viewed life as a dream and believed that only in death did one become truly awake. Their celebration of death freaked out the Spanish Conquistadors, but they were unable to eradicate it. They did manage to move the holiday to coincide with All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day. While Day of the Dead is celebrated differently all over the Americas, all traditions share a sense of tremendous pride for the work that goes into honoring the dead.

For your Dia de los Muertos celebration, you are going to need a few things. Because the spirits of the dead who visit you will need sustenance for their journey back to the dead-people realm, you really should provide them with some of their favorite dishes and delicious goodies, plus it wouldn’t hurt to show them a good time with decorations, color, and flowers. Two common rituals that go into a Dia de los Muertos celebration are creating ofrendas, or altars, in your home or cemetery and visiting your loved ones’ burial plots.

In creating your altar, try to touch on the four main elements of nature – earth, wind, water, and fire. It is believed that souls are fed by the aroma of food, and the crops that go into making these dishes represent earth. Papel picados, colorful strings of tissue paper cutouts, represent wind. A glass of water to quench the soul’s thirst represents just that, water. And, candles (usually one per soul, with an extra one placed for any forgotten souls) represent fire. Altars are covered with the fragrant cempasúchil flower, or orange marigold, whose scent is used to guide the souls back. Moles (or thick sauces made from a variety of ingredients, including chilies, sesame seeds, herbs, spices, chocolate, and fruit), tamales, sweets like the edible sugar skulls (calaceritas de azúcar), pumpkin candy, and other traditional desserts decorate the altars. Non-spicy versions of adult dishes will even be found for children who have died, angelitos (or little angels). A unique Pan de Muerto, Day of the Dead bread, made with flour, butter, sugar, eggs, orange peel, anise, and yeast, is also set out. The bread is adorned with strips of dough that resembles bones, crosses, or teardrops. You’ll find all varieties of items, including skeletons, dolls, macabre toys, fruits, vegetables, incense (burnt copal), statues of saints, photos of the deceased, wreaths, crosses, even bottles of alcoholic mescal, beer, soda, and the traditional atole (a corn gruel, also known as the “original power bar” for its nourishing qualities). Ofrendas seem to be open to interpretation, and creativity is always celebrated!

The second ritual that is common to the Day of the Dead is visiting the graves of your ancestors. Now, I have to admit, I have no idea where most of my ancestors were buried as family plots aren’t so common any more, but there can’t be much harm in going to a cemetery and choosing one or two tombstones to (tastefully) decorate, right? Think of it as a random good deed for a deceased stranger. Traditionally, families will decorate the graves of loved ones with candles, marigolds, bottles of tequila, and altars. Family members will clean the graves, sing songs, set up hundreds of candles, reminisce about their loved ones, pray and reflect. Picnics are laid out, mariachi bands play, and sometimes even fireworks are involved! For the most part, however, it is a quiet and wondrous affair.

Besides the homemade sweets and steaming dishes, the Tim Burton-esque skeleton statues, and the colors and crafts, what delights me about the tradition of Dia de los Muertos is the fact that people are allowed to enjoy the inevitable. Let’s face it. The one thing we can count on for each of our futures is that we will die. Wouldn’t death just seem so much less frightening if you knew your friends would celebrate you once you’re gone? It’s an old-fashioned tradition for our modern American culture - honoring our ancestors – but to my thinking, it might just be something we want to reinstate. Get your friends together, head to your nearest bodega, and celebrate today as if it was your last! (Seriously. It might just be. And that’s ok.)

For Recipes and DIY Craft Instructions, check out these links:

Recipes:
Pan de Muerto
Calabaza en Tacha (Pumpkin Candy)
Fruit Atole
Candy Skulls
Mole Poblano
White Chocolate Mole

Crafts:
Day of the Dead Wire and Clay Sculpture
La Calavera Lino Cut Memory Cards
Easy Paper Flowers
Day of the Dead Sugar Skulls
Matchbook Shrines

Further Reading:
MexConnect – Day of the Dead Resource Page
Day of the Dead History
El Dia de Muertos
Traditions: The Altar
Day of the Dead Food
Day of the Dead in Mexico
Day of the Dead Glossary

great shirt.

2009-10-24T12:00:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I forget just how talented he is.

French Car Commercials

2009-09-27T13:53:00.000-07:00

via Lark About.

a short film: Hauschka-Morgenrot

2009-09-27T13:34:00.000-07:00

Hauschka - Morgenrot from Jeff Desom on Vimeo.

Reminds me of my summer in Amsterdam.

The Cove

2009-09-27T12:37:00.000-07:00

Sorry I've been away so long, my four loyal readers! September brings with it such a strange mix of excitement, activity, and frenzy, and I barely can believe that we are almost through. I'm still writing for Broke-Ass Stuart on the regular, so you can see my posts on Tuesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Here is today's: Travel Books Part 2.

Opening Act got off to a fantastic start last week. I'm teaching at Franklin K. Lane in Cypress Hills in addition to Graphic High School in Hell's Kitchen this year. The students were excited, threw themselves into all the weird and strange games and exercises we brought in for them. I adore teenagers. They get such a bad rap, but underneath their tough exterior, they are so desiring of love and to be listened to. I think this year will provide tons of interesting learning for both me and them.

And in preparation for my mom and dad's visit to Brooklyn, I've been finally getting those annoying boxes left over form our January move unpacked! Feels great to have a home. Petunia is blundering along, despite the growing tumor. She's happy and still eating and chillin with Carlo, Marrakech and I.

We've also decided on a name for the new organization that has come out of LYDIA. ASMI International. "Asmi" means "I am" in Sanskrit, and it also stands for "Aid, Support, Mentor, Impart" which is the process our organization will go through to teach specific curriculum for Arts and Literacy to groups of refugees and displaced communities. With a focus on healing and then teaching others to teach our process, we are excited to start fundraising for our first 3-month trip to Liberia with The LYDIA Project.

Political Subversities, a political cabaret I write and perform in, has had 3 awesome shows at The People's Improv Theatre this month. The final showing of our most recent incarnation will be next Friday, October 2 at 8:00pm. If you haven't seen it, I'm pretty proud of the work we've done this time. Only $10, it's something not to miss!

BAPT (Big Apple Playback Theatre) Company has also been so much fun. I have been apprenticing with this theatre company and learning all about a form of improv called Playback for the past 6-months, and have now joined as a full-fledged member. My first show was at Hunter College for a group of Foster Care Case Managers on a mandatory work retreat they were on. Scary, exciting, fulfilling, and exhausting, I am so grateful for the opportunity to learn the type of audience interractive theatre that Playback is, and to work with such a unique, talented, and passionate group of people.

FINALLY, the point of this post. This last week, I saw a movie with Carlo that blew my mind, and that you all need to go see. "The Cove" is a action-packed, spy thriller documentary about the yearly systematic slaughter of 2300 dolphins in the small fishing town of Taiji, Japan. Informative, masterfully shot and edited, and something I was completely unaware of, I cannot encourage you to see this movie more. The official website for the film is here.

Grace McLean Sings

2009-09-05T08:33:00.000-07:00

She's so amazing! and she's my friend! The newest demo by Grace McLean is out.

Listen to her songs here (my favorites are the colorful "We're Just Friends" and the simple, unearthing song "Poverty Triumphant"). You can buy all 5 songs for just $4.

With her monster of a voice and whimsical, intimate lyrics, I know that Grace will someday perform sold-out shows in some of the biggest venues across the world. However, she'll also be performing a solo show at Joe's Pub on Wednesday, September 16th at 7pm. Tickets are just $12. And you can say you "saw her when..."

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://gracemclean.bandcamp.com/album/grace-mclean-demo"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;We're Just Friends by Grace McLean&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

an evening at home w MJ

2009-09-04T08:43:00.000-07:00

Carlo's been working up a storm lately, almost 80 hours last week. He loves it (for the most part), and I'm sure Gossip Girl love it too (for the most part). So I've had a lot of time to myself in the apartment - writing, getting organized for Opening Act, continuing work for LYDIA, cleaning, and learning material for Political Subversities. Though Carlo is the better housekeeper of the two of us (i'd say housewife, but he might take offense to that), I'm starting to enjoy the glimmer of pride I feel at the end of the day when the dishes are done and our place is in order.

Last night, after meeting Nadia at Bianca's for a delicious and long awaited catch-up dinner, the rats Petunia and Marrakech, and I curled up on the couch and watched The Wiz.

If you haven't had the pleasure of seeing the film made in 1978 staring Diana Ross and Michael Jackson, you are in for a treat! With horrible special effects (in today's standards) and dramatic, but beautiful, Diana Ross faces, The Wiz is a musical retelling of The Wizard of Oz set in a 1970s New York City-ish Land of Oz. I have to say, maybe in light of recent events but probably just because he does it so well, my favorite moment is Michael Jackson's song with the Crows, "You Can't Win."

You can't win/ The world keeps movin'/ And you're standin' far behind/ People keep sayin'/ Things'll get better/ (Just to ease your state of mind)/ (So you lean back, and you smoke that smoke)/ (And you drink your glass of wine)/ So you can't win, Chile/ You can't break even/ And you can't get out of the game

This song, dismissed by Dorothy as full of "negative thinking," is both funny and heartbreaking. His voice is the same voice that we have always adored, but the goofy, clown-like movements are much less slick than the "Thriller" and "Bad" era MJ. It's like a glimpse into Michael Jackson in transition.

Petunia and Marrakech seemed to enjoy the film as well. By the end, they were both curled up on top of each other close to me, sleeping soundly. Petunia's tumor is getting bigger rapidly, but as of yet she seems to be pretty oblivious to it. Funny how I could care so much about a little rodent, but her personality is so affectionate, bossy, and huge, she is hard to ignore.

It was a wonderful, quiet evening at home. Sometimes it is nice to watch a movie by yourself!

for you mom, two photos of me

2009-08-28T20:30:00.000-07:00

If you want to see me looking very crazy, here's a photo of me taken by Jesse Dittmar 2 years ago at a fashion show in NY. I didn't even remember the photo being taken, but a friend of mine (who is also a friend of Jesse) was looking through his work and found it. I was in the show, not dressed like that just for fun. Here's another one from the same show...
(My mom is the main reader of this blog, so I figured I'd post some stuff she'd enjoy)

Seeing Beauty Everywhere

2009-08-28T10:02:00.000-07:00

Interesting study my friend Jill sent me from her friend's blog (don't know which, so I cannot give him/her credit, but maybe Jill will post a comment with the blog link?):

THE MAN WITH A VIOLIN

"HE EMERGED FROM THE METRO AT THE L'ENFANT PLAZA STATION AND POSITIONED HIMSELF AGAINST A WALL BESIDE A TRASH BASKET. By most measures, he was nondescript: a youngish white man in jeans, a long-sleeved T-shirt and a Washington Nationals baseball cap. From a small case, he removed a violin. Placing the open case at his feet, he shrewdly threw in a few dollars and pocket change as seed money, swiveled it to face pedestrian traffic, and began to play.

The man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes in . During that time approximately 2 thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After 3 minutes a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.

4 minutes later, the violinist received his first dollar. A woman threw the money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.

6 minutes later, a young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

10 minutes later, a 3-year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The child stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother was persistent and they continued to walk. He turned his head the entire time.

45 minutes later, the musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.

He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

The violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.

This is a true story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities. The questions raised: in a common place environment at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made.... How many other things are we missing?

What do you choose to see today?"

(Here's the Washington Post article on this topic)

Sometimes I Feel Like This Baby

2009-08-21T08:56:00.000-07:00

if you have a moment...

2009-08-19T12:53:00.000-07:00

Today I Saw Blog

Absence of Water Photo Project

SeeSaw Designs' Surprise Ball

The Perfect City Bag! Moop

The Art of the Timeshare

2009-08-17T12:33:00.000-07:00

I promised you all this quite some time ago, and I forgot to post it. Here is my travel piece on Cabo. It's also up on Hack Writers and TravelMag.

My story starts with a sailor landing on a lush Mexican beach. He comes across a sun-bronzed Canadian cowgirl living in a palapa. The cowgirl joins the lucky sailor’s crew, and in the time it takes to down a bottle of tequila, the pair falls madly in love. The couple sails away together singing folk songs as the sun sets, as all love stories of the 1970s require.

In 1978, Cabo San Lucas was just a little fishing village on the tip of Baja California. It was here that my parents, the lanky sailor and poised cowgirl, spent months anchored off the coast. My mom found a white Mexican dress in the back of a shoe shop, and they made their vows to share a life of adventure together.

When my sister and I were born they included us in their travels. You know how people will tell you not to drink the water in Mexico? Well my parents are not these types of people. Eat some dirt, sail in a hurricane, brush your teeth with apples - this sounds more like my parents' style of travel. As a family, we rarely stayed in a conventional hotel. In Hawaii, we almost stayed in a mosquito-infested tree house. (I say almost because the guide never arrived to pick us up, and we warded off suspicious stares from the local "growers" in the valley all night.) In the Caribbean, we were taken under the wing of a wacky shell collector who shared with us homemade guava bread, and his home boasting of over one million shells. In Canada, we hiked 15-miles to a remote mountain retreat while singing, shaking homemade bear-scaring instruments, and attempting to kill bird-sized horseflies.

Thirty-one years after my parents’ auspicious meeting, we are resting on the same beach, at the massive complex that is Playa Grande Resort. Euro-pop circa 1997 blasts over the central 7-pool area, while a fit Mexican aerobics instructor leads six (pink) women in the pool, chanting "Tequila, Margarita, Tequila, Margarita!" Enter the "Timeshare Factor.” In an action that defined the word paradox, and to the scorn of all well-versed travelers out there, my wild-loving, Mexican-water-drinking parents had – yes – purchased a timeshare.

You are asking what went wrong, but have you ever been on a timeshare tour? I witnessed it. We were on a family vacation in Cabo to commemorate my parents' 20th anniversary, staying at a charming boutique hotel called the Bungalows. Someone at the car rental dealership told us about this great deal - free rental for a week if you sit through a little tour of a new hotel. Always the budget-minded travelers, we immediately were in! We get to the hotel the next morning, and a seriously, super-duper nice sales person gave us the tour starting with an absolutely gorgeous lobby. (This is where your defenses start to go down.) We are fed, liquored-up, my sister and I start exploring the pools. And after two or ten extra strong margaritas, my tall and handsome father turns to my mom and - with the romance of the past on his side - says, “Honey, wouldn't it be nice to come back here every year?” SOLD. Our incredibly smart, incredibly manipulative sales person does the impossible. She gets my parents to throw down money to buy 40 weeks, one week a year, in a hotel that hasn’t even been built yet! Bells (literally bells) are rung and a bottle of champagne is corked and shared in celebration. My parents stagger home repeating honey-thank-god-we-wanted-the-free-car-rental-or-else-we'd-never-even-know-about-this-paradise.

Of course, the next morning, the story sounded a little different. With splitting headaches and a bad case of buyer’s remorse, they turned to my sister and I. “What did we do??!!”

But we were stuck. Despite what you might think, it hasn't been all bad. Aside from some loud and large neighbors over the years, we've also gotten to know a side of Cabo that many travelers are not able to see in one trip. Our first year, we stumbled upon my favorite restaurant, Misiones de Kino. Take a walk past the old town square, make a right at the street with the open aired laundria, and another right onto 5 de Mayo Pl., and you’ll find it! This open-air bungalow restaurant was a secret ten years ago with dirt floors and a small menu, but good things are hard to keep undiscovered for long. On our first visit, we were greeted as family by Chef Israel and invited into the kitchen to watch him make his famous Chilpalla sauce – a rich combo of garlic, cream, spices, and onions. The dirt floors are now wood, but year after year, we are surprised by the consistently low prices and friendly staff. Lit with candles and Christmas-lights, at Misiones de Kino, you will find the freshest and most delicious seafood in all of Cabo. Because of the blue crab appetizer with Israel’s special sauce, we usually go twice each year. Some other treats on the menu are the Fish of the House (seabass marinated in chipotle with fresh papaya sauce), the giant coconut shrimp, the Seafood Soup (an explosion of scallops, crabs, fish, and shrimp), and for you meat eaters, Teresita’s Aracherra is a flavorful beef dish cooked over mesquite wood. This past June, we arrived later than usual, and after the meal as the restaurant started shutting down, a travelling mariachi band got us all up, singing and dancing around the dining room!

We’ve learned over the years that a week of eating out for three meals a day is not only horribly expensive, but when your week consists of lounging around by the beach, extremely unpleasant. Our timeshare units have pretty swank kitchens, so the day we arrive, we hit up the local grocery store to stock up on bread, eggs, cheese, cereal, beer, and juice for the week. Breakfast and lunch are pretty much “every man for himself.” Dinner, however, is a different story. While we’re not deep sea-fishing for every meal, a lot of energy and friendly banter goes into deciding which delicious restaurant to visit each night. Pancho's Restaurant and Tequila Bar is a family favorite, in part because of the unsurpassed menu of tequilas, but also because of the colorful décor and divinely simple Mexican combo plates. Mi Casa gets my vote yearly, as much for the spectacular gift shop as the homemade warm tortillas and bougainvillea-decorated ambiance. An evening or afternoon in the smaller San Jose del Cabo requires a stop at Damiana with it’s striking outdoor garden. And this year, we discovered the authentic Las Marias Restaurant at the still unfinished Hacienda Encantada Resort and Spa. (At a tip from the waiter, we requested the lantern lit VIP table, and found ourselves perched over the churning ocean under a sky strewn with stars.) And if you are in the mood for tortilla soup, my father, an expert, claims that the Shrimp House right off Cabo’s main strip has the worlds best.

About timeshare year number two or three, I went through my rebellious, teenage angst stage. Mooning over Indie rockers while pretending to be Kate Winslet from Hideous Kinky, I envisioned a trip to Mexico, not surrounded by beer-guzzling, shot-downing, boom-box toting fellow timesharers, but one where I could learn about the local culture, sift through markets of art, and explore the romance of Mexico’s revolutionary history. Luckily, my mother was a step ahead of me. With our rented van, we drove through the stark and beautiful desert, past colorful roadside graves and granddaddy-sized cactus, to a little town called Todos Santos. Moderately famous as the home of “the Hotel California,” Todos Santos to the untrained eye was just a few dusty streets and uneven sidewalks. To me, it was an escape to heaven. With my imagination soaring, we explored local artisan shops, conversed with ex-pats, drank hot chocolate in the mid-day heat, and discussed the possibilities of me someday spending my honeymoon at the Todos Santos Inn, a magical hidden world of lush green leaves, old brick, and traditional Hacienda style décor in the heart of the town. We still take the drive out to Todos Santos some years, and I plan in the future to spend a week learning how to surf at the Pescadero Surf Camp where there is private palapa camping.

When we first started going to Cabo, it was just my little sister, mom, dad, and me. However, this past year, my sister and I each brought our boyfriends. At the begging requests of my sister and I, my goofy dad managed to get through the week without having a frightening heart-to-heart with either of them. The influence of sun, beer, and sleep allowed the guys to chill out as well. We read and swam at Chileno public beach (Santa Maria is also a lovely choice), took a sunset sail on the catamaran La Princessa (where the open bar and stunning sunset view of the Cabo Arch made up for the horribly blaring music - why is the music always so bad?), and discussed renting surf boards for $20 a day at Costa Azul surf shop (lessons start at $85), but didn’t manage to fit it in. Every dinner, the way only family can do, we’d all tell the new fellows hilarious and embarrassing stories of Cabo in years past! Laughing, eating, glowing with health from the sun and rest, it was a common occurrence for us to shut down the restaurants with the chuckling wait staff.

When they met, I doubt my parents envisioned Cabo San Lucas turning into the massive beast that it now is, but ultimately the Cabo of the 1970s is still to be found – you just have to be willing to get a little lost in the back streets. Interestingly enough, taking a yearly dip into the timeshare “dark side” has not dulled my family’s zest for adventure. It actually has taught us how to chill out and just enjoy spending time together. We arrive every June with grand plans to hike a mountain or go deep sea diving, but by day three, we’ve eaten and slept ourselves into a comfortable oblivion. Our exploration starts to limit itself to the culinary realm. Sure we’ve got a hell of a lot more jungle treks and cave spelunking left in us, but to our surprise, regular vacations with little hassle have allowed us to continue the family tradition of travel, even as my sister and I start to create our own lives and families. In my story, tequila has had a surprising influence of wisdom on my unsuspecting parents, from their first date, to their shocking timeshare ownership, to today. Once you’ve been caught in the Timeshare machine, you have no choice but to surrender; take the good with the bad. And with a shot of Patron, that feels delightful for a change!

Monday musings and some Sad News

2009-08-17T09:51:00.001-07:00

Isn't it hilarious how we spend the latter half of any season wishing, dreaming, and fantasizing about the next? It's mid August, and we have at least a month of blistering heat left in NY, but I have been thinking non-stop about turtle-necks, boots, fall blazers, and hats. I even stopped in at Urban Outfitters on Broadway and Bleecker (yes, I know... wasn't i shopping there in 8th grade??!), and they have a crazy 50% off on top of 50% sale - we're talking nothing I bought cost more than $15! Woah. All i could think about was looking for things I could wear teaching in the Fall. So now I have a couple items stashed away in my closet for the first chilly day of the year. Makes the heat a little more bearable.

On a sadder note - no transition here at all - Petunia, our beautiful, pushy, demanding, hilarious dear of a pet rat, has a tumor on her belly. It seemed to have just popped up there over night! Pet rats are prone to tumors, and from my experience as a rat owner, it's sorta just the way they go. Petunia's not in pain yet, so we're just going to keep an eye on it and her, and see how she does. She's almost 2 years old, and I think she's had a pretty fantastic life so far. She's sleeping a lot more these days, but still has her weirdo sense of humor. Last week Prentice was over for a LYDIA meeting, and he was sitting on the couch with Petunia. All of a sudden, I looked over and see her dart her head in Prentice's pocket and emerge dragging a $10 bill out. She stealthily pranced along the back of the couch with the money in her mouth looking like she knew exactly what she was doing, the little thief! We all had a good ol belly laugh. We're all going to miss her when she goes, especially our other rat Marrakech. (Marrakech, who has had problems bonding with humans in the past, has started to become a lot more friendly with us. She even fell asleep on the couch watching a movie with us the other night!)

Here are a few finds I've enjoyed on the web recently. Hope you love em too!

I cannot wait to try this recipe for Pasta, Vegetables, and Lavender!

Illustration Friday

mmm... Recipe for Caramelized BBQ Pineapple and Hot Chocolate Sauce

My So Called Life is now on HULU!!! (via For You, For me)

Cool news of shipping a floating home in Amsterdam - Someday I will spend a summer living on the water in Amsterdam.

A nice feminist thought for the day.

Oh and Equality California has decided to wait until 2012 to pursue a repeal of Proposition 8. Really?? (via Joe.My.God.)

And here's the link to my most recent Broke-Ass Stuart Feature on Tetrahedral Kites.

My new haircut looks like this kinda:

Ciao loves!

Quote for Today

2009-08-13T14:29:00.000-07:00

Have to share my favorite quote of today:

"I just want to be clear before we decide to do this together: I’m gay. My music is gay. My show is gay. And I love that it’s gay. And I love my gay fans and they’re all going to be coming to our show. And it’s going to remain gay." - Lady Gaga to Kayne West before agreeing to tour with him. From her Out Magazine cover story.

via Joe.My.God

She's awesome. It's about time hip-hop gets over its fear of "the gays"!

New Inspiration

2009-08-08T20:08:00.000-07:00

Hey folks - I've been working hard writing for a political cabaret called Political Subversities (at the PIT for 4 Fridays starting on Sept. 11th) and posting new stuff on Broke-Ass Stuart's Goddamn Website (3 of my posts are now up, I'm writing under the title of Bargain Soul Huntress. hmmmm. My posts will be going up every Thurs, Sat, and Sun).

Anyways, I'm planning on updating La Oca about twice a week from now on - just in case all 4 of you who are reading this are wondering where I've gone! Here is some awesome stuff that has provided inspiration for me as of late.

We Love You So - a Blog written and updated by the team of people who worked on the upcoming film "Where the Wild Things Are"

The Pop-Up City - fantastic source for "new concepts, strategies and methods for a dynamic and flexible interpretation of contemporary urban life" - I absolutely love their article entitled "Light is the New Graffiti"

The coolest iPhone case out there! (via SwissMiss)

Free Matryoshka Doll Icons for your Desktop. (also via SwissMiss)

"Neogreene" Laptop Sleeves.

CNN.com article on some of the effects of the civil wars on Liberian refugee children

Video clip with Michael Pritchard and his amazing solution to the devastating world issue of unclean water. TED is so revitalizing!

Old-school dancing animation (via Now Voyager)

This beautifully animated and super creepy music video (via my main man Carlo)

Hope these provide a little inspiration to you too. Talk soon, and have a wonderful rest of your weekend.

a day for free

2009-08-04T13:23:00.000-07:00

Talk about necessity being the holy mother of invention. Ever since I lost my nannying job at the end of June, I've been looking for other part-time work to supplement my income until Opening Act starts in September. It's been a bit difficult because I have such specific time restraints come fall, and a lot of restaurants and catering companies are slow in August. With the help of friends, however, I've found some fantastic babysitting jobs and done background work on Gossip Girl. But a big portion of my summer has also been looking for things to do to keep me motivated, focused, and having fun - without spending anything.

Today was a perfect example of that. I woke up, ate my cereal and made my coffee, and headed off to The Foundation Center (79 5th Ave, NY) to take a free seminar called "Before You Seek a Grant: A Checklist for New Nonprofits." This place is kinda like going to that class you had in college that you know will completely help you in the long run, and is a requirement for graduation, but has no frills - just good ol information and fluorescent lighting. The first time I went there with my friend Marie, I could feel my pulse rising just entering the seminar room. And when the power point presentation got started, I was very grateful Marie was there with me or else i'd have peaced out entirely! Once I got past the corporate/office-like setting, I could start to see The Foundation Center for what it truly is - an amazing resource for people who are starting non-profits, and have no idea what they are doing. The people are so full of information and helpful, and there is an entire library of resources and places to start your grant search.

Then I raced off to Yoga To The People on St. Mark's between 2nd and 3rd Aves for the 2pm class. Now YTTP is a diamond in the rough (pardon the cliche), but lets face it, the process of getting to diamonds is pretty damn brutal - blood, sweat, and dirt is involved before getting to the goods. Going to the 6pm or 7:30pm yoga classes are kinda like what i can only image taking a public train in India might feel like. People EVERYWHERE and not enough room to get in, go through, hop around, or about. Sometimes in class the mats are lined up so tightly that your face is in someones feet and the mats next to you are touching your own. The lines for the bathroom are long, it is hot in the summer, and it's also pretty confusing to find your spot. Once you understand the routine, it becomes easier. Get there plenty early, and be prepared to wait a little bit. However, that being said, YTTP is the only yoga center I have ever been to where the center acts upon what it preaches. They believe that Yoga should be for everyone, not just wealthy NY housewives and models who can afford to drop $17 - $25 a class. Their many classes are all donation based, and they operate on the premise that they will not turn anyone away. With 3 floors of rooms, if one room overflows, they just open up the next one. Sometimes there can be 4 different huge rooms practicing at the exact same time! I absolutely love to support their mindblowingly simple philosophy. Everyone deserves a place to unwind, recharge, focus, sweat, and breathe. Admittedly there are a lot of the NYU contingency, but there are also older people trying yoga for the first time, foreigners, and people of all different sizes, races, and religions. It is community yoga in action. On top of the chaos upon entering and exiting, there are some other special quirks. With no schedule available for who is teaching when, I have to overlook the times when I find myself being taught by the one teacher who REALLY annoys me. There is also a strange, Pilate's-like sit-up session mid-class, lack of time for a proper savanasa, and Tibetan Singing Bowls to end the classes. (When I first started going, I could NOT stand them. I felt like i was going to go deaf, I had to cover my ears, I was stressed out. But interestingly enough, now I look forward to the circular, all encompassing resonating of the bowl that hollows out my insides.) Their schedule is up here, and they have studios in NY and SF now.

After yoga, I headed back to Brooklyn to pick up a book i had requested online at my public library. Now I LOVE going to bookstores. I love discovering new titles, looking at the displays, taking exciting books bursting with potential influence over my life home with me. And the Brooklyn Public Library is the same way! FREE to join with proof of your Brooklyn residency, I go every couple weeks and completely stock up with a mix of titles I have requested to be sent to my branch, and random books I find. The Carroll Gardens Branch is small, but still full of plenty of wonderful titles. The main branch at Grand Army Plaza is a Palace.

I brought home these titles:

"Paris to the Moon" by Adam Gopnik

"A Death in Brazil: A Book of Omissions" by Peter Robb

"Boombox" by Gabriel Cohen

"Outer Dark" by Cormac McCarthy

"Black West: A Documentary and Pictorial History of the African American Role of the Westward Expansion of the United States" by William Loren Katz

"Ines of My Soul" by Isabel Allende

"Maharanis: The Extraordinary Tale of Four Indian Queens and their Journey from Purdah to Parliament" by Lucy Moore

I cannot wait to dive in! (ps. I am not recommending all these titles yet, they just looked interesting to me. I'll let you know how it goes.) And now, I am gonna get down to business. LYDIA emails, bills, writing, talking with my agents, cooking dinner, playing with the rats, make the bed. And yes, take a nice cold shower. Hope you have a wonderful day all.

ride

2009-07-31T09:56:00.000-07:00

Hey folks. Do you ever feel like you have so many things going on that your head might spin off like a top? I feel that way today. one minute I have nothing but free time and am scrounging for a way to try and make money, and the next, I feel like I am so overloaded that I just stare at my iCal and change the colors around, in hopes that my mind will be able to process all the different avenues I am setting out on at once.

When i feel this way, I tend to waste some time looking through photos I have plucked off the internet because they appealed to me at one point. This looks like a pretty perfect retreat. Isn't the draping inviting?

Course, at the end of the day, this might just be the best thing to do.

i love pretty gold jewelry

2009-07-27T12:51:00.000-07:00

I love contradictions in people. And in NY, you certainly find a lot of them!
Either you are an actress-turned-fasionista-vegan-yogi-cab-driver or a hipster-goat-cheese-selling-editor-with-a-passion-for-the-Pythagorean-theorem-and-2nd-Amendment-Rights... And while I try to be as thrifty and ethical with my money as I possibly can be, I love pretty gold jewelry.

These are by Albeit, which I found on A Cup of Jo's blog the other day. Out of my price range? Certainly. Recycled metals? Of course not. Necessary? Not even a chance of convincing myself of that! but I still think they are lovely, and if you do to, you can check out Albeit's full collection here.

amazing things I love today

2009-07-24T18:35:00.000-07:00

A photograph of my parents in Mexico in 1978.

Edits to former Gov. Palin's resgnment speech:
http://being-red.blogspot.com/2009/07/somewhere-over-rainbow.html

A lonely and lovely beach umbrella.

A homemade postcard.

A shower.

A bikerider.

A message in ice.

A Disney Princess gone GI.

A flower and a cup of chai.

A woman on a hook.

A movie still.

A sign.

(i forget where i found these all, so my apologize if you are not credited here for your fantastic images.)

Firefly

2009-07-20T11:24:00.001-07:00

I recently moved in with a man. Now there are many things one thinks of in this situation. Sweaty clothes in piles in the bedroom. Half eaten microwavable meals on the desk. Beer cans strewn on the coffee table. Wet towels lying on the bathroom floor growing mold. Luckily, my guy isn't an offender of the stereotypical situations.

What I have found is that he has his own set of household habits. He cooks on the regular, and thus we always have a sink full of dirty dishes. (Which I always promise to do and get around to about 30% of the time.) He is obsessively neat, tidy, and organized - which throws my chaotic order into a hyperventilating tizzy. Where I would leave the door open, he insists we lock it promptly upon exiting and arrival. Where I would move the furniture around bi-monthly and decorate our space with tchotchkes and little pieces of collected junk, he likes consistency and calm. Interestingly enough, I've found that we make a pretty fantastic pair - one making up for the others weaknesses, and vice versa. I shake his life up a little, he calms me down.

But one of my favorite of his habits is his obsession with movies and anything sci-fi. He is a walking IMDB encyclopedia! I never can remember the names of actors, writers, directors, and he can fill in the blanks without me even asking. Recently he introduced me to a couple amazing TV shows that had been canceled before their time. We all know about "Freaks and Geeks" and "Arrested Development," but somehow I had missed "Studio 60" and "Firefly."

For those of you who have not yet been introduced to the world of "Firefly," let me be the first to encourage you to dive in. This show is the most incredibly written and conceived sci-fi/western series by Joss Whedon - the man who brought us "Buffy" and most recently "Dollhouse." Set in a fictional, futuristic world where Chinese (along with English) is the universal language, "Firefly" follows the renegade crew of the space ship Serenity trying to make it in a universe under the control of the Alliance. What makes this show different from, say - Star Trek - is the blend of styles, old and new. Instead of this futuristic world being sleek, shiny, and hyper modern, we see a culture very similar to the Wild West frontier lifestyle, with horses and dirt and outlaws. Think Deadwood meets Star Trek. Amazing. The characters stick with you, the situations are both satirical, hilarious, and touching, and the effects as kitchy as every good sci-fi show should be!

To the sadness of geeks everywhere, "Firefly" was canceled after just one season, however, due to its huge and devoted fan base, Joss went on to create a feature length film called "Serenity" to finish up the stories and offer some more adventure tales. After watching the season, "Serenity" is such a satisfying end - a real gift to everyone who has ever been disappointed in the cancellation of their favorite show.

"Firefly" and "Serenity" can both be rented. If you are spending some time at home this summer, I encourage you all to treat yourself to this series!

broke-asses rejoice

2009-07-19T20:01:00.000-07:00

I am very excited because I have just been told that a website called "Broke-Ass Stuart's Goddamn Website" is bringing me on board to be a NY correspondent!! So awesome!

It is a website for broke-asses who live in NY or SF or for people who just want to see how other people are making a go of it and enjoying themselves without spending a lot. "What makes life interesting is not the things you own, but the shit you do." Love that.

I met Stuart playing Wii a couple years ago at my friend Rebecca's apartment in Greenpoint. He mentioned that he had created a "Broke-Ass Stuart's Guide to San Francisco" and was in NYC to write the sequel. His mission and vision was something I really appreciated and connected with, and since that day, I had been keeping up with his books and website. A couple weeks ago, when I saw that they were looking for more NY correspondents, I sent in some sample articles and application. And I heard back a YES.

I never had actually realized that my extensive experience being broke in NY would actually pay off... well eventually... maybe... i mean, this isn't really a paid gig to tell the truth. So I'll just continue doing my thing in NYC - making my coffee, sneaking into double features, enjoying a hell of a lot of slices of pizza, scouring Barnes and Noble displays for books I want to read, and then picking them up at the library, getting mileage on my Monthly Unlimited MetroCard, squeezing as much out of the city as I possibly can without spending a dime - only now I get to write about it!

I'll let you know when my first stuff is up, but for now, check out the website at www.brokeassstuart.com.

public enemies to escape the heat

2009-07-17T22:46:00.000-07:00

Ugh. The past 2 days have been hot and humid and nothing puts me in a crankier mood!
To escape the heat, Carlo and I saw "Public Enemies" tonight. (I would pretty much see ANYTHING to escape our un-ACd apartment.)

A decent biopic, Public Enemies tells the story of John Dillinger, otherwise known as Public Enemy #1, and other criminals in the 1930s. Johnny Depp is always engaging to watch, but my favorite part of the movie was Marion Cotillard, his lady. She is delightfully simple and open, and without force, she turns a role that had the potential of being just eye-candy, into a warm and thrilling portrayal.
And just look at her style!
If only I had curls, I'd cut my hair off! Wardrobe did a fantastic job all around. There's not much surprising about the film, except for the fact that they managed to avoid the obvious cliches of a 30s Chicago gangster flick... which is a feat in itself. But like all biopics, we know how it ends. Giovanni Ribisi was fabulous in a tiny role; Christian Bale was boring as hell.

mr. bojangles

2009-07-16T05:42:00.000-07:00

Last night I spent the night with another man. A 2 year old man named Jack. His mother is an ER doctor, and a couple times a month, I come over to spend the night and put Jack to bed and wake him up in the morning.
This little boy Jack is the most cheerful, easy-going child I have ever met. He smiles every time I see him, regardless of if it's been a few weeks - or if he just woke up. Before going to bed, he has this ritual of turning on the CD player in his room. He cranks the volume, and just shakes and moves and dances like a wild man! It is so amazing how his entire body reacts to the any type of music. His knees and shoulders start bouncing, his head wobbles left and up and right, and his face is blank as he listens and reacts with every cell in his tiny frame.
While this isn't Jack, this picture reminds me of the Mr. Bojangles that he is.

Snowmobiles

2009-07-15T12:27:00.001-07:00

Friends and foes - Sitting next to my fan, I have to share with you my favorite throw-back photo of the week.

Taken from the National Geographic archive found here, this is an image of one of Yellowstone National Park's snowmobiles in 1967. I so want to ride one!

I also am dreaming about a piece of Avocado Toast today, as described here on A Cup of Joe. When we were little, Virginia and I would fry corn tortillas in a pan with oil, spread em with avocados, and sprinkle pepper and Parmesan cheese on top. Delicious.

Hope you are having a wonderful day!

books and books

2009-07-14T12:55:00.000-07:00

Do you ever read a book just to get through it? It's not the best habit, I know, but sometimes it just feels great to complete something.

I just finished two books, The Old Gringo by Carlos Fuentes and The Missing by Tim Gautreaux.

The Old Gringo is a dreamy and meandering novel about an old writer from America who comes to Mexico to die. What he finds, however, are people who remind him that he is very much still alive. Hoping to die at the hand of Pancho Villa, this old gringo joins the revolutionary army where he meets General Arroyo and a young American teacher, Harriet Winslow. Both are searching for their destinies, and the old gringo becomes an important part in them. This book is a trippy, almost sepia colored read. I fell in and out of the story the entire time, but the compelling desperation and passion of these characters and lives makes it worth reading. A reflection on love and loss, family and ownership, I wish I could have read it in Spanish (the original language it was published in).

The Missing is a dive into the life and struggles of musicians working aboard a Mississippi River Steamboat in the 1930s. Full of suspense, the Missing tells the story of a man searching for an abducted little girl and at the same time discovers a secret about his past. Life is dirty, hard, short, and full of unfulfilled dreams in this book. Communities are local, the law is subjective, and trains, boats, horses, and telegraph are the means of communication. It is especially delightful to read the juicy scenes where jazz emerges as the newest form of music in the lives of the musicians and party-goers! The viceral world of the bayou and post-WWI Louisania makes a dank and appropriate backdrop for this type of tale, and I couldn't stop thinking how different our system of law enforcement is now just because of technology. While this book was an enjoyable read and succeeded in taking me away from my day to day existence, I wouldn't care to read it again. If you want a historical novel with some suspense to divert your mind, the Missing is a fine option.

kite-making - part 1

2009-07-12T10:46:00.000-07:00

After watching all the jazzy kites flying in Prospect Park on July 4th, today called for a little kite-making action with Heather V.

(Not our kite)

Following a very simple Tetrahedron design, found here, we set out in Carroll Gardens to get non-bendy straws, string, glue, and tissue paper (we already had scissors). Rite-Aid provided the glue and tissue paper, but straws and string were harder to find.

We got a little desperate, and we all know desperation is the true mother of invention! Here's Heather counting the straws we stole from Starbucks. (We also found that Dunkin Donuts not only has a plethora of non-bendy straws, but their employees are less attentive than Starbucks, and thus less likely to catch us swiping em.)

We got distracted with the Smith Street Bastille Day Celebration - who doesn't like some chilled wine on a sunny afternoon?
And finally, we found string at G. Esposito & Sons butcher shop.

Here are some pictures of the kite-making.
Supplies:
Step 1: Making the Straw and String Triangles
Step 2: Making the little Pyramids
Step 3: Gluing the Tissue Paper On and Letting it dry
Step 4: Tie the Pyramids Together
And we have our kites!

Needless to say, by the time we factored in a lazy Sunday morning, shopping, Bastille day, and actually making the kites, the sun had gone down. But the plan is to fly them next Sunday in Prospect Park! Make your own and join our picnic.

Stokes Farm

2009-07-09T18:27:00.000-07:00

In my line of work - which I fondly call, making money wherever I can barring illegal activity - there are days when I'm stuck outside in the rain and snow, and there are days when I am stuck inside when it is gorgeous out. Today, however, was one of those magical, momentous days when I got to be exactly where I wanted to be - selling produce at the farmer's market with Stokes Farm. It was sunny and breezy, and aside from a few nasty customers, it was amazing getting my hands dirty with some good ol vegetables!

Here are some photos of the produce I brought home...

Olive Loaf

Tarragon, Swiss chard, Tomato, Blackball zucchini, Smoked mozzarella, Persian cucumbers

a Beet and green beans

Radishes

and this is what I made for dinner...
mmm.

Stokes Farm is in Old Tappan, NJ. Go here to see their NYC Greenmarket schedule in Union Square, Lincoln Center, and Tribecca. Heirloom tomatos will be at the markets in a couple weeks. Don't miss them.

cheap friends

2009-07-08T10:35:00.000-07:00

Ever wish you had a buddy to come home to? Now you're thinking that I'm talking about a dog, but let's face it, dogs are really expensive and require a time commitment that I'd be unable to make at this point in my life. No, I'm talking about a being even smaller, the world's greatest apartment pet: the fancy rat.

Most city-dwellers squirm and gag at the "r-word," and if you landlord ever asked, I'd recommend you say it's a hamster, but domestic or “fancy” rats have a lot more going for them than you'd initially think. Intelligent, affectionate, clean, quiet, hypo-allergenic, and low-maintenance, rats are the types of pets you never thought you'd fall in love with, but you inevitably do. Now these rats are not of the subway variety. I'm talking about the healthy kind that you can buy for a fair $6 at PetCo.

My roommates and I picked out Petunia from the PetCo on 2nd Avenue between e.32nd and e.31st St. when she was a couple months old, and we have fallen madly in love with her! She leaps to the top corner of the cage whenever I walk into the room, knows to come when I call her name, and seriously never fails to make me laugh. She's a dear, quirky little soul who in her excitement to see me, or any human being in fact, occasionally misses a rung climbing and falls down the cage on her fat ass. What solidified our relationship, though, was a moment about a year and a half ago when I was going through a raucous breakup and crying on the phone with my soon-to-be ex. Petunia climbed up onto my shoulder and caught the tears that were streaming down my face with her tongue. (It's cool guys, I give her a bath once a week and make sure she eats a healthy vegetarian diet.) Now maybe she just liked the salty taste, but I choose to believe it was love.

Because rats are very social animals, it is best to get your pets in single-sex pairs. When we’d had Petunia for 2 weeks, I found a breeder/rescuer on Long Island named Luna who had a litter of baby rats that she was giving for free to “loving homes.” Luna met me at the train station with a free cage and a 4-week-old baby Marrakech. When you become a new owner of a rat, you will learn that there are communities of “rat people,” like my breeder Luna, all over the world. They are fiercely loyal and passionate about rats as a breed, and many of them even belong to Rat Clubs that you too can join, if you so desire. Check out NYC's Rat Group here. (I haven't been... yet.)

Most “rat people” will recommend getting your rats from breeders because it will save the rats from the trauma of being treated as snake-food or the opportunity to catch diseases in pet stores. Personally, I think that either way, you can’t go wrong. If you do decide to go the pet store route, call first and make sure that they have young rats for sale. (Rats live on average about 2 years, so a month or two is a good age.) If you want to be super-conscious, check out the Rat Group's message board or this website for more information on adoption and care.

If you are the type of person who has dead plants all over your apartment because you cannot remember to water ‘em every 3 days, maybe rats are not for you. Like any living thing, they do need some attention and care. But if you have a hole in your heart that needs some filling, a pet rat is a delightful fix! Trust. Think of Ratatouille.

Veg No More

2009-07-06T22:07:00.000-07:00

After 13 years, I am now officially breaking my vegetarianism.

Why, you ask? Well, I think I lost track of why I chose not to eat meat in the first place. I do believe it is important to eat locally and in a humane way as often as possible (grass-fed, free-range, etc), but I am not against the human consumption of meat from time to time. Things have changed a lot in terms of our societal awareness of the food industry since I became a vegetarian, and I don't have religious views that ask it of me. It has just started to feel like a privileged point of view for my life; many people don't have the option to refuse certain types of food. When I've been traveling, it has always been something I have struggled with - if someone offered me a meal, would it be more disrespectful to refuse? I have started thinking that moderation is a healthier way for me to live.

This doesn't mean I will stop supporting veg places, and I don't plan on eating meat every day. Eating lower on the food chain is still the most economical and environmentally conscious way to go! I will never eat veal or fast food.

What do you think? What are your views on meat?

Happy 4th

2009-07-04T09:06:00.000-07:00

Happy 4th Ladies and Gents.
If you are searching for a last minute dish to make for tonight, here is a link to 101 Picnic Recipes.

I'll leave you with a quote from the good ol 90s when DMB was my obsession:
"Eat, Drink, and be Merry, for tomorrow we die!"

Summer Reads

2009-07-02T14:26:00.001-07:00

Summer is a great time to delve into those books that you've been putting on hold all year - especially if you are unemployed! You know that 2666 you've had working as a doorstop for the past few months...

If you are traveling, or if you wish you could be traveling, and in search of a location appropriate book, this list from National Geographic is pretty awesome.

I just finished reading two books of the "travel writing" category:
God's Middle Finger and Eat, Pray, Love (ok... I was protesting it, and then thought maybe I'd better actually check it out before I talked any smack.)

God's Middle Finger: Into the Lawless Heart of the Sierra Madre
by Richard Grant

This is a fascinating journey into a part of the world most people will never go. Grant, a self proclaimed dare-devil, writes his first hand account of small Mexican villages in the Sierra Madres where AK-47s, cocaine, and a deadly machismo attitude has made common dope selling widows, isolation, federal raids, and a murder rate higher than that of NYC in the 80s. Recommended NOT to travel there by some hard-living old-timers from the area, Grant takes us into the lives of the surprising, heartbreaking, and unique individuals he encounters on his trip. Written with an interesting balance of skepticism and romanticism for the hard living lifestyle and attitudes, this book reads and entertains like an action movie. My only problem with it was the abrupt ending. Grant is an engaging writer and ultimately has respect for the people and the culture he gets to know. If you are traveling in Mexico at all, this is a fantastic read to bring along!

Eat, Pray, Love
by Elizabeth Gilbert

Here is my haiku about this book:
(Not the right number of syllables, so i guess it is a contemporary type of haiku.)

Perfectly positioned
To capitalize on our society's lack
of spiritual joy

Ok. so you got me! I only eat pasta now, and I am moving to an ashram!

All jokes aside, this book is right for someone who likes self-help and is going through a major change in her life. (Excuse me for being sexist, but I think this book is one that will most strongly connect with women.) Aside from a few moments when I couldn't get over the jealousy of reading about a woman who for a year enjoys life and focuses ONLY on herself, this was a decent beach read.

Soon to come, my thoughts on Carlos Fuentes' "The Old Gringo"!

My Blue Bike

2009-07-02T11:17:00.000-07:00

As a new biker to Brooklyn, I can’t contain all the excitement I have for these websites:

www.bikingrules.org
www.ridethecity.com
www.tourdequeens.org - the ride is July 12th, anyone wanna join me?

I was gifted my no-gears, rusty, and semi-tuned beautiful blue bike by my yogi friend Heather upon her move back to Manhattan. I couldn’t be happier! Got my helmet, so it's time to explore all the ins and outs of alternative transportation in NY and BK. (Though I do have to walk it up hills – either I am super out of shape or this whole no-gear thing is gonna be a little challenge.)

NOTE: My camera's battery is dead, so these are not pictures of my actual bike, but it is somewhere in-between the two.
(And if you love the last pic, check out an article about the person who took it and the optimistic seller here.)

photos from Mexico that make me happy in spite of the NY Senate

2009-07-01T12:19:00.000-07:00

Quorum False Alarm

2009-07-01T11:29:00.000-07:00

I am horrified, embarrassed, and disheartened by the childish behavior of our NY State Senate. Joe from Joe.My.God has a great solution: fire. them. all.
And I learned a new word - quorum: "the minimum number of members of a deliberative body (an organization comprising members who use parliamentary procedure for making decisions) necessary to conduct the business of that group."
Too bad the quorum on Tuesday night was a false call, and the Republican who walked into the chamber where the Democrats were convening was only taking a short cut to get a soda. Here's the story. Give me a break. With important issues like NY's same-sex marriage hanging in the balance, we need everyone to get over their bruised egos and dizzying rhetoric.

Impermanence by my Friend the Yogi

2009-06-30T13:22:00.001-07:00

I am lucky to have my own little guru, Heather Lilleston. We met at NYU in Drama School and became fast friends while rehearsing a version of Romeo and Juliet (where I was Romeo and she, Juliet!). We were roommates for 2 years, and now still find time in our crazy and unpredictable lives to keep our friendship alive and kicking.

While I tend to take a more conservative view on spirituality and the leap of faith it requires (meaning I am scared to lose myself in it), Heather has forged ahead and devoted her life to the sacred teachings of Yoga and Buddhism. I love her for it! She is fearless and still compassionate to those of us who might be dragging our feet. She also is a fiery yoga instructor.

If you are in NYC or the Hamptons this summer, don't miss her classes:

Manhattan - Pure Yoga pureyoga.com
Mon 9:30am/12:15pm - Wed 12:15pm

Williamsburg - Greenhouse Holistic greenhouseholistic.com
Tue 2pm/6:30pm - Wed 6:30pm

Sag Harbor - Yoga Shanti yogashanti.com

Thur 9:30am/5:30pm - Fri Noon - Sat 6:30pm - Sun 4:30pm

and if you need inspiration to get the engine going, here is a thought-provoking essay that Heather wrote.

'Embracing Impermanence' by Heather Lilleston :: Yoga Shanti :: June 2009

Prospect Lefferts Gardens

2009-06-30T10:20:00.001-07:00

These lovely photographs of an apartment in Paris remind me of the top floor of an old Victorian house I lived in a couple years ago in Prospect Lefferts Gardens, Brooklyn. They are by incredible Stylist Sasa Antic, via SeeSaw Designs.

While I don't live in PLG any longer, I still have a soft spot for the neighborhood. My favorite websites on the hood are Planet PLG and Hawthorne Street. Right by Prospect Park, the neighborhood is a mix of old and new cultures, food, architecture, and stories making it an especially vibrant and diverse place to explore.

a Cup of Chai and a Pint of Lime

2009-06-29T19:39:00.000-07:00

The sheer Force of New York City is overwhelming sometimes. It fills me with this desire to Achieve. Lists and lists of things that need to get done start piling up in my head. My mind tells me that I have to Keep Up, and Get Ahead, or Reach the Next Level. And then everything starts getting faster and faster... and I get more and more anxious.

When I feel this way, there is one place that never fails to make me feel better, slow down, enjoy the moment. Hampton Chutney Co.
It is this little Chutney and Dosa cafe on Prince St. between Lafayette and Broadway. Simple in design and usually crowded, my favorite of their modern take on the dosa (a Southern Indian crepe made of rice and lentils) is #5 - Avocado, Arugula, Cheese, Tomato with either the Cilantro or Curry Chutney. The ingredients are fresh, the people friendly, and the mood serene. But the best thing on the entire menu - in my opinion - is a nice simple cup of hot Chai. Be it a freezing winter afternoon or a humid dark summer morning, a cup of Chai - perfectly sweetened and blended with milk - makes me remember to cherish the simple things and to take a breath.

If you also enjoy Chai, check out this blog where a photo of a beautiful cup is added from time to time. www.rangacupofchai.blogspot.com

If that does not do the trick, then I head home to BK for a pint of Ciao Bella's Key Lime and Graham Cracker Gelato.
I discovered this gelato about a year ago when I was working a restaurant that had a key lime tart on the desert menu. Unable to afford to buy a $8 tart after every long shift, but craving the chilled sweet-sour flavors, I discovered Ciao Bella's version and have not looked back since! I adore this ice cream to the point of obsession. Creamy with swirls of graham cracker through out, this gelato makes relaxing in front of the telly such a pleasurable experience. It is a little difficult to find, so whenever I do, I always stock up on 2 or 3 pints to store away in the fridge for the right moment. I actually found that they sell them on Amazon, but I have not gotten that desperate (yet). Things are looking up for my gelato flavor, however, because when it first came out it was a "special" flavor, and now it is a part of their collection. I love you Ciao Bella!

back fom la playa

2009-06-29T10:48:00.000-07:00

hello my loves! sorry about being missing in action for a week. I forgot to mention that I was leaving town to head off to Los Cabos. it was a beautiful, blissful, sun-soaking, refried bean-eating, family-hugging, tequila-tossing, hurricane-twisting, riptide-roaring, timeshare-talking, drunken-sailing, sleep-and-eat-and-fish-catching kind of a week. I'll post all about it in a couple days. Until then, I'm back.

Rain Rain Go Away

2009-06-18T19:57:00.000-07:00

What's with NYC's turning into the Pacific Northwest? Rain Rain Rain and Clouds. Rain in 14 of the last 17 days!

The other night it was, yes, raining, and C. and I were in bed thinking and half reading. Lightning and thunder raged outside, but our tiny bedroom felt pretty nice. C. rolled over and asked me if we could spend a month or two in Italy sometime soon. Could we?!! I would absolutely love to have a lifestyle where long-term travel was incorporated!

Now I have a lot of "plans," but this one might actually have the chance to live. A downside to being self-employed artists is that you never know when the next job will come, but a perk is that once you've saved enough and find yourself unemployed again, you can take a month off!

I have a friend who works for AirfareWatchdog.com, and I've signed up to get bi-weekly updates about fares from NYC area . It is amazing! In my last e-update, I saw a ticket to New Orleans for $178 rt, and flights to Palm Springs for $261 rt. And my favorite deal is $679 for roundtrip (taxes included) to either Bangkok or Manila!! Time to start saving. The travel itch is here.

Matt & Nat

2009-06-18T18:42:00.002-07:00

Matt & Nat is a vegan, eco-friendly handbag company who hosted our LYDIA Benefit tonight at Bloomingdale's. I knew I liked them for offering to support LYDIA, but I wasn't planning on falling in love with the bags also!

Inder Bedi, the creator of Matt & Nat, is a lovely, understated human being. At the event tonight, I found myself drawn to chat with him multiple times... I think because he seemed so calm and warm. The story behind Matt & Nat and their new initiative, as written on their website, is this.

In 1991, Inder was challenged by a mahatma to go vegetarian for 30 days. During this time he devised the business plan for an eco/vegan fashion house. The "21 Water Bottle Initiative" is exploring eco fabrics on a whole new level. Two collections as well as the linings in each bag are made of recycled plastic water bottles. Each hangtag is a reminder of this fact with an average of 21 bottles being recycled to produce the linings; as many as 55 bottles are recycled when the shell is included as well. By combining a design centric focus with environmental consciousness, a perfect balance of opposites emerges, representing the duality of Matt & Nat's soul.

Not only are they a conscious company, but the bags and wallets are absolutely beautiful in design and texture... and the bags are on sale on Matt & Nat's website right now (like 40% to 50% off)! I am debating between which wallet to jump on. I love it when my money can both go to a great company and make me look and feel good!

WNYC

2009-06-16T17:25:00.000-07:00

NPR has become a staple of my morning. I look forward to it before I open my eyes. I'm not sure if I'd even be able to get up without it. It is as necessary to me as my morning coffee is... or air.

A couple of weeks ago, when WNYC (my local NPR radio station) was doing their drive, I got seriously proud of the idea of "doing my part" (and for those of you who are chuckling at me, trust, they are damn good at making you get excited.) As an actor looking for work, a part-time teaching artist on break for the summer, and an unpaid non-profit founder, I don't have much extra money to spend. Still, I delightedly logged onto WNYC one morning when - yes - they were holding a matching period! (If you had been listening, you totally would have run to the computer too... nothing is more appealing to a penny-pincher than to hear that your $60 would magically be turned into $90. If only there was a matching period for my life... I'd enroll in a master's program, buy tickets to Delhi, Zanzibar, and Manila, refresh my wardrobe, buy and renovate a brownstone in Fort Greene... An idea for the government maybe! Matching periods to stimulate the economy! I wouldn't want to be the one on crowd control, though.)

Anyways, there I was on the WNYC website, trying to "do my part," when I reached the gift page. A gift page? Awesome! They ask me if I want to give all of my $60 to the station, or if instead, I would like a gift in the form of a tote bag - the cost of which would be deducted from my donation. I'll admit it. Like the good consumer I am, I chose the gift.

So now I proudly sport my WNYC eco-tote, and I try to convince myself that "at least it is good advertising for them!" But still I blush with a little guilt when a passerby on the street shoots me a knowing grin. I was one of the ones who caved. Who can resist getting a present delivered to your doorstep? I didn't.

If you want to "do your part" and help keep this amazing source of news and information alive, check out WNYC or NPR.

Food Obsessions

2009-06-15T16:27:00.000-07:00

Two of my current obsessions in the food department are Sullivan Street Bakery's sandwiches and 9th Street Espresso's Americano.
I was turned onto them by a woman I work for, and my taste buds start to water at just the thought of em! So today, I had the most delicious sandwich at Sullivan Street... "Patate Italigne Omelette" - Potato+Egg Omelet/Arugula/Red Peppers/Aioli on one of their fresh soft rolls. mmmmm.

I'm still craving a thick dark Americano from 9th Street, but their locations are in the E.Village and in Chelsea Market. (Not on my path today.)

I was also pleasantly surprised to discover that after what felt like years, Washington Square Park has reopened! I'm pretty sure they didn't move the fountain (a rumour I'd heard floating around), but they have nice new benches and some beautifully gardened patches. The sun was out... as was the breeze. Mid 70s. It was just delightful to sit by the fountain and watch New Yorkers take a break from their crazy days. If I hadn't already had lunch, I would have gone to the Dosa Man of NY DOSAS at the Southwest corner of the park. He has been around for years, and even won a few Vendi Awards. He stays as long as his ingredients last, so if you are looking to try them, it's a better bet for lunch than dinner.

Oh, and of course I had to hit up a Mr. Softee... well Captain Softee actually. but the chocolate soft-serve cone tasted just as good!

World War Z

2009-06-14T14:36:00.000-07:00

Just finished reading...

World War Z by Max Brooks

Awesome book about a fictional oral account of a world war with zombies. Gotta admit, I wasn't much for zombies before reading this. And I certainly am late getting on the boat with this one. (NPR already has featured it.) Zombies always seemed pretty stupid and irrelevant to me, irrelevant to anything having to do with the world we live in in fact. I had this image of green oozing things who walk in packs down suburban streets. And I guess that's still what they are, but within the first few pages, this book got me past any negative stereotype. Imagine what would happen if the world had to deal with an epidemic that would not be contained, and upon infecting someone, it didn't just kill them, but turned them into the attackers? How do you fight a war when your enemies feel nothing, think nothing, cannot starve, grow old, or lose morale? These were the types of questions World War Z posed. A fascinating look into the sociology of human beings and our approach to war. I honestly got lost in the world Brooks created, and even started seeing zombies reaching out for me on dark street corners. (That's probably just a curse of my overactive imagination, and not a normal side-effect of the book.) Read it!

things I love today

2009-06-14T14:00:00.000-07:00

Strawberries from the farmer's market

2009-06-14T11:31:00.000-07:00

2009-06-14T11:05:00.000-07:00

2009-06-14T10:55:00.000-07:00