Sunday, May 30, 2010

Birthdays & Saturdays [Things I Love]

So I've been MIA from Sleeping Venus
for the past week, because I've been in midtown
full time, everyday working for Paper Magazine
I can sum it up with: rotten flowers,
hunting for the perfect shade of chartreuse taffeta,
Excel, desperately trying to get Marc Jacob's assistant on the phone,
holding real life prison letters from Michael Alig (I die)
and wanting to have Pinkberry for lunch everyday with an empty wallet
oh, the life of an intern
but onto other things
like all the lovely things that happen on Saturdays and birthdays
and all the wonderful noms and sights
the things I love:

Good restaurants!
like Risoterria, where I went on my bday
(I'm 19, I'm nearly a dinosaur, even though 19 is one of those really liminal ages...)
it is on Bleecker Street,
which is easily becoming my new favorite place
not only did I get to have all my favorite foods on my birthday
(a momlet, ice cream, pizza)
but the pizza was brick oven,
mozzarella, asparagus, and white truffle oil
and white truffle oil just makes everything sexy
did I mention this restaurant gives you free one and a half feet long breadsticks,
yes, breadsticks,
I'm totally smitten with any place that gives free bread
anyhow, this pizza was mind blowingly delish
and I want it every single day, desperately


Candy!
not just any candy though, my new obsession is grapefruit gummies
and my not so new obsession is basically anything from Economy Candy on Rivington
it's so authentic, and its one of the only places where I can find
vintage goodies
like Sixlets and Bottle Caps
its also one of the only candy places that doesn't feel gourmet & overpriced
so it makes me feel really nostalgic
I'm dying for a little lunchbox tin from there
so I can tote my peanut butter & jelly sandwich and my apple to work everyday in style

what's better than good restaurants and candy?
getting Thai takeout to eat at Tompkins
so romantic
since it was just impossible to squeeze in pad thai on my birthday
I had it the next day, and it was everything I wanted
a lunch special from Tara Thai on First Ave
a sunny day in the park
bull dogs with chubby paws
and lots of pup watching
why is it that lime tastes so good on pad thai?
it really gives it a depth of flavor
(everyday I consider going to culinary school instead of Vassar)
one day I'm going to own my own food joint
it will happen, even with a Sociology degree
and it will be made possible
by all the hours I spend watching the food networking and food joint hopping
I can't even tell you how many ways I know how to prepare pork loin
my fave recipe is for an herb crusted pork loin
but I'm a vegetarian....

I also love getting free ice water at Starbucks,
and it's even better when it belongs to someone else
sorry William, but this girl was so thirsty
thanks for helping a sista out

And it's totally awesome when streets in the city happen to look like Europe
I could sort of feel like I'm in Delft, or Harrlem
maybe even Tuscany, if I squint...and ignore all the cabs


Lastly, I gotta love Washington Square Park
street performers and the wonderful sounds of doo wop,
fleetingly beautiful sand art by Joe Mangrum (he is amazing),
botanical garden worthy flowers
eccentric couples
frolicking children,
and that refreshing fountain mist
are more than enough to keep me smiling all summer long.








Saturday, May 22, 2010

Photo Diary

Today was a best day
a long walk, famous gelato
from Cones on Bleecker
the hazelnut literally tastes like eating a Ferrero Rocher chocolate
and the white chocolate just blew my mind
it was expensive,
but oh so worth it to sit on a random stoop
with the 8 dollar cone dripping on my skirt
as I tried to get every last bit of white chocolate deliciousness


I also had my first slice of real (nonvegan) New York pizza since being home (nomlicious)


there was also an impromptu dance parade on St. Marks

and an unexpected street fair
(that was sadly all out of my fave Thai springrolls)

and lots of other beautiful sights



I don't think there is much that's better than cradling dumplings & beautiful architecture.

Friday, May 21, 2010

Beauty All Around.

The other night
I woke up at 5:04 in the morning to readjust my blanket
and I caught a glimpse of the sky
and it was just gorgeous
it looked like watercolor
so I did what anyone else would do...got out my camera and took some pictures
before I dozed off again
it reminded me of how much I love being home
I know I say it every single day
but to see the sky when I open my eyes every morning
just makes every day so much better
there's just beauty everywhere here, I'm never ever moving away

I mean, where else can you buy mini cupcakes right on the street
(at the Little Cupcake Lover Cart on Broadway, I recommend these noms)
it was like the size of my thumb and the frosting was so great
and the sprinkles were like technicolor
I must try the strawberry tiny delight
I'm so obsessed with mini noms

and eat vegetarian shrimp & southern fried chicken, all in a 4 block radius
even though it was so hot out today, I can't even imagine what 95 degrees feels like
I needed to have one nice stroll around Soho
before ascending into the whirlwind of being a full time intern.


Thursday, May 20, 2010

Paper Summer

The other day I was just a girl
walking around the Meat Packing District
resumes in hand, looking for a hostess job,
or god forbid, another retail job
when I saw this Vespa
and it was beautiful, I looked at it and felt instantly transported to Miami
I mean, cmon, look at that palm tree and those aloof outdoor diners
it screams Miami
the sad thing is, that I had to snap a shot of this beautiful, shiny, bubblegum baby
while the owner was standing right behind it, about to board,
with apparent admiration, spiked with envy,
I dream of this Vespa
I also dreamed of not having to scour the city looking for a summer job,
that dream came true
I am now Paper Magazine's newest intern
I'm pretty much speechless
I've been seeing a lot of monarch butterflies lately,
and whenever I see them something good always follows
there were a lot of monarchs around before my first kiss
way back when,
thank god for butterflies, and amazing opportunities.



Tuesday, May 18, 2010

The Daily Cone

I think I need to start documenting
my obsessive, unhealthy, insane love affair with ice cream cones
so I am going to photograph every cone I have this summer
and it will be epic (for me at least)
because I was so deprived at school
and now I am free to love & eat
today I had a cone at home
nom nom banana split Turkey Hill froyo
and I ate it while watching Spongebob, so taking a picture slipped my mind
it's tricolor, banana with fudge swirl, chocolate with walnuts, and strawberries
best thing? it was on sale at Fine Fare for $3.24
I love cheap noms.

Carvel cake mix, with neon confetti in it, um this is one of the creamiest & best
gotta love the patriotic cone hugger

Pistachio almond
gotta love the matching nails
and my love of all things seafoam
since I was sitting in the window,
I got to see all the passerbys and their utter envy,
for I had an ice cream cone and they did not
the other day my uncle expressed his concern
about my vegetarianism and how I might not be getting
enough calcium & vitamin D
which may just mean I have to eat more ice cream
and if ice cream has vitamin D in it,
then it is like eating sunshine,
which totally explains why it makes me so happy.

Mini Eats.



Just for anyone who has ever wondered
"can you buy just one munchkin?"
like i have wondered on many occasions,
I have an answer for you: yes!
and they are just 25 cents each
sure, you'll probably get a weird look from the cashier
but who are they to pass judgement,
some people like their food mini
and yessir, I had a chocolate one, and a glazed one
on the M9 yesterday
twas great, although they were out of jelly
which is truly unfair
no one ever likes the jelly ones
but they are just so divine,
sure the jelly tastes a tad bit artificial,
with a hint of that cherry medicine taste
that brings you back to the ear infections and throat aches of childhood,
but hey, I love em
and next time I pass a Dunkin Donuts
(tomorrow) I will treat myself to one (or two, maybe four) small sphere(s) of joy
speaking of small, doughy creations
I had the best garlic knots of my life the other day
and let me tell you, Poughkeepsie garlic knots do not compare
I got them in Queens, Jackson Heights, believe it or not
they were luscious, oversized, and coated in olive oil
and were even better once I sprinkled parmesan cheese all over em
like little Italian biscuits, gotta love the marinara on the side
best thing about these? they were only a dollar
dollar garlic knots, munchkins
this is eating mini, on a budget
being broke at home isn't so bad after all.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Home Sweet Home


I got home yesterday
and let me tell you, the LES is looking beautiful
I've really learned my lesson
I promise to pack lighter next year
maybe I"ll bring only 20 pairs of shoes next time
but, this morning
I woke up in a room, alone
and it felt good
I could hear all the traffic on the Williamsburg bridge
and right outside my room door
was a patiently waiting pup
just dying to play fetch and lay on the couch
I had my mom's Spanish coffee
right out of my Hello Kitty mug
(college coffee is so nasty)
and a mom-let
with yellow american cheese on white bread
my classic favorite food
there was Spongebob
and lots of revolutionary things happened
Spongebob got round pants, and a booty
Patrick turned into a sexy woman complete with blond pigtails and red lipstick
I must say, he was a hottie
it feels so good to be home
where everyone wears shoes at all times
each street smells like a different type of food
halal is always the most tantalizing
and sometimes you run into a street fair (which made me oh so happy)
thai spring rolls, nom
and you don't see the same face,
or the same college sweatshirt or
ethnic print harem pants (oddly popular at Vassar) twice
I was just speechless as I walked around
I forgot how beautiful Essex Street is, it's an acquired taste type of beautiful
but lovely, and welcoming all the same

I got reacquainted with my non-edible-double-decker love Forever
I was on the L train and I had the fleeting worry
"oh my god, I have so much reading to do tonight"
I forget that those are the worries of the past,
goodbye Art History flash cards
(they really got to my head, I was working in the library the other day
and as I scanned out some books for a girl,
instead of telling her the due date, May 21,
I handed back the book and said 1921)
but, the triumph of the day was the noms
vegan Pizza from Vinnie's in WillyB


Barbeque chicken slice with vegan cheese
I load on the hot sauce and parmesan cheese and I'm just in heaven
granted, when I eat spicy food I feel like my lips swell
but it hurts so good
and who doesn't like a lil added lusciousness.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Fruit, Finals, & Frustrations


So, it's study week for finals
and I'm pleasantly overwhelmed
overwhelmed to the point
where I'm on my sixth hour
of sitting in the Deec writing my Hemingway paper
it hurts
just 2 finals, one paper, and 120 more Art History flash cards to memorize
oh, and a Dada collage, great
I bought some used books for my English class this semester
and I don't think I will ever do that again
because you wind up with a book
that someone has decided to permanently scar,
with pen, and odd insights
like on page 36 of my The Sun Also Rises
the person who had it before me
felt it necessary to look up all the French slang and cultural allusions
and now I can always know, since its forever there in blue pen
that Zizi is "French slang for peepee", wonderful insight
I'm trying to relish in academia,
and she taints it with the word peepee, come on


on a better note, the other day
the Deec had real live fresh fruit
not your normal apples and bananas kids,
pineapple! and strawberries!
I was the loon with the two plates of pineapples
and nearly all of the strawberries
I was also the loon who turned into a thief
and stole a bowl of fruit so I can have some happiness in
my dark, dusty room
being bad feels so good sometimes
especially when you can eat a nice big slice of pineapple before going to bed
nom, and everyone knows I'm dangerous around strawberries
so no more must be said about them
om nom nom fruit

Also, I have a large bug to pick with Raymond Ave (the block right outside of Vassar)
there is absolutely no place to get an ice cream cone
a real life, sugar cone
gosh, it's a simple request
but I'm so over wafer cones
they taste like Catholic communion
and I don't want my ice cream to taste like church
so instead I got an italian ice from the pizza place
it was the next best thing
its not the same as home
where you get an icee from the same Puerto Rican man on Delancey
who you've been buying from since you were little
man, do I miss home
but this icee was delish
it tasted like a scoop of childhood
now only if I could have a slice of childhood: a slice of Elio's pizza
you know, the microwaveable kind
that was always on sale when I was younger
and I would put it into the toaster oven
and wait wait wait
then cut it into little cubes
and nom nom nom
I can't wait to go home
I have five more days till I'm free
then its 3 months of shopping, puppy time, Coney Island
oh, and mom-made omelets,
that's the best part.



Monday, May 3, 2010

Formula for the Perfect Day

At Vassar, the Leprechaun bus is the quintessential symbol of escapism
the mall, the train station, Stop & Shop
are the basic adventures that Leprechaun will make possible
and most of the time, that's just fine with me
because I usually just get my kicks from food shopping and browsing at H&M
but on Saturday, the Leprechaun bus came in jumbo size
with TVs that broadcasted Zoolander to take me to Six Flags
and so my perfect day began:

One super sized Leprechaun (or any available charter bus)
minus Vassar

plus awesome roller coasters

I love roller coasters almost more than anything else
a bit less than I love ice cream
but thats a whole lotta love
the more apprehensive I am to put my hands up,
the steeper the drops,
and the more terror involved
the better
what can I say? I'm just a simple thrill seeker
and that's why I love wooden roller coasters
they are the best because every second you feel like
some bolts and screws are going to loosen
and crash the little cart will go



plus Cookies & Cream Dippin Dots

I've said this a thousand times
but Dippin Dots are just to delish
and love them
over and over again forever
om nom nom
I told the girl working in the little Dippin Dots booth
that she had my dream job
and because it was 90 degrees
and she was wearing long khakis and a neon yellow polo
whilst working in a small box
she must have thought I was mocking her
I wasn't
plus Johnny Rockets onion rings

which are definitely the best I've ever had
especially because they come with ranch dipping sauce
and extra crunch
and they are never especially fat, gross slices of onions
at Six Flags the ranch came in packets and not in a small plastic cup
and at first I was disappointed
but! I realized they had many other condiments available
and I seriously love condiments
I literally had a condiment buffet with a side of onion rings
ranch, honey mustard, barbeque, sweet&sour
it was blissful

plus a large watermelon icee
which really speaks for itself
when its 90 degrees outside
and you've been waiting on lines for hours
plus a sweet dinner at an outdoor table
at Babycakes, its the best thing to eat outside at night
and let me tell you, the lemon thyme vinaigrette on some baby greens
is out of this world

and lastly, add Tom Poppa & The Marriage Ref
Tom Poppa has great suits, and an annoying laugh
its always funny to watch couples arguing about country line dancing,
not having enough sex, and odd home furnishings
plus, he does a great puppy impression

and that all equals a best day, and a very happy me.

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