Wardrobe Daydreaming

Damn you JCrew and your adorable things I want to wear right this second.

Grapes vs. Cucumbers

Not only is this (another) interesting lecture from the TED series, but it's also really funny.  Personally, I like cucumbers. But I certainly don't blame the cucumber monkey for his reaction.

BK Your Way, On The Way

Burger King has decided to introduce delivery to a number of Chicago locations.  My first thought is that this is totally ridiculous and unnecessary.  And then I remember that I've long been requesting that Dairy Queen and Taco Bell get together and start a delivery service.

So I guess what I'm saying is- Burger delivery BAD. Taco delivery GOOD. Blizzard delivery also GOOD.

Do These Dungarees...

Friday needs these moves

Breath Of Fresh Australian Air

I was NOT expecting to like this book.  It's not that I was expecting to DISLIKE this book, just that  I was expecting a slightly better than average book.  And I'm still not 100% sure why I loved this book as much as I did (there isn't anything specific that would generally draw me?) but I think it's because I never could quite tell what was going to happen.  Tom and Isabel are the only inhabitants of an island that is the home to a lighthouse off the coast of Australia.  They have had many heartbreaking problems having a baby of their own so they are shocked (for more than one reason) when a lifeboat washes up on their shores carrying a dead man and a small, very much alive, baby.  Isabel convinces Tom that the baby must be an orphan and instead of reporting the incident, they should simply give the baby a loving home.  Tom reluctantly agrees.  This choice has very serious repercussions that ultimately threaten everything that they've built together.

The moral dilemmas are plentiful and the ability to see both sides of the argument makes for a compelling story.  With even as few as 20 pages left, I could see multiple different outcomes and wasn't sure which one I was rooting for.  I think the fact that my feelings for each character were never cut and dry made this book really interesting to me.  I enjoy multidimensional characters and feeling like things are more gray than black and white.

This would be a great book for a book discussion and I'll recommend it to anyone who enjoys historical fiction and a unique setting.  I loved this book.

Game Of Thrones Watcher For Adoption

Who's letting me come over on Sunday to watch Game of Thrones with them?  I promise I'll try to not ask too many questions, I'll bring a bottle of wine, and I'll devote 100% of my attention to the show instead of also playing with my iPad.  I might even bring snacks.  Pretty please??

Just Tryin'

Even when my legs are tired, I'm stuck at work on a Tuesday night, I forgot to hold Andy to his plans for Game Night with wine on Sunday, and all I want is to be next to a pool with a margarita....



Sometimes you just gotta put it out into the world when life isn't glittering in your face...

So Amazingly True

*image from an awesome blog: Flourish In Progress

Foodie Mind Blown

Little Goat. Stephanie Izard. Go there RIGHT NOW.

Andy and I went this weekend for lunch and had a fantastic time from start to finish.  I started things off with a kick ass Bloody Mary at their bar while we waited for our seats.  Which of course gave us plenty of time to peruse all of their merchandise featuring the cute goat image.  Spoiler: We definitely left with 2 coffee mugs, a travel mug, and a couple bags of coffee.  I could have easily purchased a couple shirts too.  After a little bit of a wait, we were seated at the luncheon-type counter facing the kitchen.  We drooled over every single item coming out of there until I suddenly realized that Stephanie Izard herself was cooking directly in front of us!

I don't know how many of you are Top Chef fans, but I am.  I LOVE Top Chef and Stephanie sits firmly in my top 5 chefs from the show.  Probably only being beaten out by Richard Blais.  But it's close. Real close. Like, she may have scooped him after this meal close.

Anyway, while trying not to stare too blatantly, we enjoyed fried pickle and onion rings (with a RIDICULOUSLY good curry mayo dipping sauce), a grilled cheese filled with tomatoes/smoked gouda/bacon/spinach amazingness, and a Spanish omelet that I can't even begin to remember what it entailed besides more awesome stuff.

Side note- the manager of this place is also really fantastic.  As it was the Saturday before St. Patty's, we were having a couple cocktails with our lunch.  Andy asked if they had Red Bull and the manager said "Nope. But I'm pretty sure I can make some appear." At which point, he literally sent someone to the store to buy a can of Red Bull.  He also stopped back to chat with us later about the music (which was a mix of hip hop and 80's) and also gave us his card if we wanted him to hold a table for us at any point in the future.  I don't know if he thought we warranted some sort of special treatment or if he just has a way of making everyone feel like they're ballers, but whatever the reason, I was impressed.

The cherry on top of this lunch was that we actually got to meet and have a conversation with Ms. Izard before we left.  Our waitress knew I was interested in just saying "hi' and she brought her over to talk to us.  Stephanie was really cool and talked to us for about 5 minutes.  My only regret is that I didn't think to ask her what she thought about this last Top Chef finale!

Seriously, if given the chance to pick a new place downtown to try out, go to Little Goat.  I'd go back tomorrow if I could.

Little Goat Menu

Little Goat

Mental Vacation

In my head, I'm in Bora Bora right now...

Stop The Excuses

I've heard a lot of people lately saying "I had a job/kids/life. I didn't have time to read!" or "I don't know who has time to read?!"

I call bullshit.

Turn off the television.

I'm not saying you need to turn off the tv from 7-10 p.m. That's just ridiculous.  I'm saying you should spend 15 minutes reading a book before you go to bed.  Or for 5 minutes when you get up in the morning while having your cup of coffee.  Or maybe during your lunch break instead of cruising Pintrest for the 900th appetizer recipe you think you'll need sometime.


I'm not saying it has to be a TON of time.  I'm just saying that I'm really sick of hearing "I don't have time"

Yes you do, you just choose not to use it to read.

p.s. Just because I do find time to read, doesn't mean I have a less important life than you, don't watch television (I watch a LOT of television), don't get errands done, don't have a social life, and must have massive amounts of free time.

p.p.s. I also make dinner most nights and go to the gym. Oh, and I sleep 8-9 hours a night.  Knock off the excuses.

DO IT DEXTER!

I'll Take Scandalous Stories for $100, Alex

Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight

If you're a Pretty Little Liars fan, you should probably pick up this book. If you're looking for a fairly juicy thriller, go ahead and put your name on the hold list. If you're looking for the next award winning title, eh, this might not be it. But let's be real, sometimes you just want something entertaining. This was right up my alley when I finally hit my window of getting to pick my own reading material for the month. I wanted something fairly quick, a bit salacious, and new. Reconstructing Amelia won't be published until April 2, 2014 so I'm a bit ahead on this one. I got an advance copy at the library and thought I should actually try and read it before it came out! I'm glad I did because I think this will be a fairly easy book to recommend to patrons.

 This "Mean Girls"-type thriller is definitely an older teen crossover. Kate gets a phone call saying her daughter, Amelia, has been suspended only to get to the school and find that she's supposedly jumped off the roof and killed herself. None of this makes sense for the straight A student but Kate accepts it until she receives a cryptic text saying "She didn't jump". So starts the chase to figure out what actually caused Amelia's death. What made this book more interesting to me was the format of the story. It goes back and forth between Kate's current day chase to find out what happened and the months leading up to the event from Amelia's point of view. Turns out, there is much about Amelia that Kate was unaware of and it isn't pretty. I explain this as a "Mean Girls type thriller" due to the fact that a large part of the storyline is based on a secret high school club with some brutal hazing plans...I enjoyed Amelia's voice a bit more than Kate's, as Kate comes across a bit too unhinged at times. I never really felt like I knew exactly what was going to happen but I had a good time making my different guesses as I read!

 I'd recommend this to women looking for a thriller and older teens who are fans of the Pretty Little Liars series. Due to the sexual nature of some scenes, I would set a minimum age of 16 for this one...chapters are a little longer so it's not super speedy but it's definitely an engaging, fun read!

My New Workout Routine

I cannot tell you how many times I've said pushing a cart full of books around is a good core workout.

One Thing I'd Like To Be

Pharon and I had a Skype/Facetime date last night that lasted approximately 3 hours.  There was wedding talk (Yeah! to us being engaged at the same time!), shopping talk (it's totally fine to return something you've worn if it's defective, but NOT if it smells like you sleep in an ashtray), and rehashing of conversations we've had 12 other times...pretty much the best 3 hours EVER.

One part of our conversation was the discussion of Kate Spade and telling Pharon that Ms. Spade has an awesome coffee table book out right now.  Which made me wish that #1- I had just sent her the book as a gift without telling her and #2- I had the ability to keep that sort of surprise secret from her.  

I also told Pharon that some day when I'm rich, I'm probably going to be the sort of friend who buys her (and presumably my other favorite girlfriends) fun random gifts.  I once had a conversation along these lines with my super fun friend, Courtney.  We talked about what we would do if we won the lottery and she told me that not only would she spend her money going on trips and buying fun stuff, but she would also take me with her.  She also told me she'd do nice things like paying off my student loans.  Granted, if she actually wins millions of dollars, I don't know if she'd actually do this (nor would I do something like sue her if she didn't) but it made me think "I've got great friends!" 

And then I saw this on YoungHouseLove today

You should probably just follow that blog and read the story yourself (and every single other post they do) but the short version of the story is that Sherry and John (of YHL fame) went to visit their friends Katie and Jeremy Bower (of also fun BowerPower fame) for a fun weekend that coincided with a book tour stop for their great new book (which I definitely purchased immediately upon it's publication).  As a nice surprise, Katie left Sherry this box of treats outside their guest room door to celebrate their great year.  

I immediately looked at this and thought of the conversation that I had with Pharon last night and went "I want to be THIS sort of person!" I want to be the person who sends random fun gifts to people out of the blue.  I want to be the person who puts together thoughtful welcome packages for visitors.  I want to be the person who tells people when they're thinking of them.  

In general I'm not that person.  I do buy gifts for people but then I usually hang on to them until I see them next which means I'll have them for like a year or I'll forget them for the next 10 times I see that person.  *which reminds me that I have a Christmas gift for someone I've seen on almost a weekly basis that I should probably give them* I need to just send those gifts in the mail.  STOP BEING LAZY GIFT GIVER, MADELINE! And I do try and buy welcome gifts for people but usually it ends up just being a bottle of wine so it doesn't look so gifty when I'm opening it up myself when they get there...or in the case of my mother, it's a dress that doesn't fit me anymore and a bottle of patchouli shaving cream that I hate with a passion.  Way to keep it classy, Solien.

Anyway, watch out folks, this is my new personal goal.  Don't expect me to start sending out massive amounts of trinkets but you just might get a heartfelt card someday...and maybe a cute coffee mug next to your bed...or something like that.

Just Call Me "Captain"

That title has literally nothing to do with anything.  But when I was thinking of titles for this post, that was the first thing that came to mind. Sometimes I think my brain has a short in the wires somewhere *no comments from the peanut gallery, m'kay?*

Anyway, I don't know if you guys know this or anything but

I GOT ENGAGED THIS WEEKEND!!!!!

*hold on while I scream in excitement for the millionth time*

So of course, now that I have absolutely nothing planned and no idea what we're going to do, I'm filling my time looking at pretty married lady things like these earrings from Kate Spade



Granted, I'm also then looking at things like this bangle that Kate Spade probably made with me specifically in mind



But whatever, I still just want to go run around being giddy.  I'm probably going to.  And I very well might take all of you down with me so be prepared.

No Way No Neva'

There was a lot of awesome stuff to come out of my weekend with the girls...Mostly things like hangovers, meat comas, and bargains from the mall....

This might be one of my favorite things from this weekend.  This is a cartoon version of a guy sitting in his closet while tripping on acid.

Trust me.  It's HILARIOUS.

Big Girls Weekend

I get to spend this weekend with these ladies....Pharon and Kelly...2 of my best friends in the whole world...I'm so excited to see their pretty faces I can hardly stand it

Start Your Valentine's Day Practicing

Seriously, Don't Judge Me

It's a long story of how I came to be searching for this book...It's not worth explaining.

I'm not judging the book.

I am, however, trying not to die laughing about the last 2 things customers also viewed.

Just in case you can't quite read them:
A mechanical bidet
and
An adult bear coat

I've officially seen it all, folks.

I Dare You Not To Laugh

Act Like A Grown Up For Gosh Sake!

I always see the lists of "How To Be A Good Person" and "What You Wished Someone Would Have Told You Because You Have No Common Sense" and "You're 32 Stop Acting Like You're 23" but I've never agreed with the entire list.  Until now.  

The following is from The Frisky and I think it's spot on.  Read it, appreciate it, remember it, do it.

You're welcome for finding it.

 1. That guy or girl at the bar or party that you want to talk to? Just fucking do it. If you don’t, they’ll leave, and you’ll always wonder what would have happened. If you need an opening line, use mine, it works 9 out of 10 times: “Do you know Tyler?” Everyone knows a Tyler. They’ll talk about their Tyler, you’ll talk about yours, you’ll realize they’re not the same Tyler, and you’ll go from there. If they don’t know a Tyler then you say, “Sorry, I meant Ryan.”

2. Please, just dance in your room. Put on your favorite song or playlist and just do it.

3. Eat when you’re hungry and stop when you’re full.

4. Be kind to people. You could gain a friend or someone who could help you out later in life. Being mean to them will gain you nothing.

5. “The future’s open wide.” — Modern English.

6. Again, I just have to reiterate: don’t be a dick.

7. Help your friends.

8. But don’t loan your friends anything unless you’re okay with never seeing it again.

9. Buy the good tampons. This is not the place to save money.

10. “The Shining” is actually a really good holiday film. And not just Christmas — Valentine’s Day is coming up!

11. Please don’t ever tell anyone “You look tired.” We know when we look tired.

12. You’re more likely to spend more money when you don’t have it than when you do. So basically hide your credit card when you’re broke and use cash only.

13. It’s so hard not to want everything now. But some things require a slow burn.

14. Some things, however are not worth waiting for. Like the dude who hasn’t texted you back after a week. Not. Worth. It.

15. It helps to have a favorite TV show to look forward to every week. It’s just nice to have a little something that makes you think, Oh yay, I get a happy little slice of time for 30-60 minutes.

16. I’m just going to say this again,  because it’s important: don’t be an asshole. Especially not on purpose.

Find the original HERE

Bring On The Coffee

Being as I had to stay late at work last night, get gas in the -million degree temperatures, and got pulled over for having a headlight out (Seriously??? Did it go out while you were pulling me over??), I'm gonna need a lot of coffee this morning...

What's Up Now, Friday

Just trust me, you need this today.

via one of these places?

Four Smurfs Attack A Man Who Refused To Light Their Cigarette

For real.

Yup.

All The Single Librarians

This postcard to PostSecret just makes me smile...I'm not sure if it's because the image makes the crush seem sweet instead of what is probably totally creepy? Or if it's just because someone has a "favorite librarian"...I like to imagine some normal, nice guy secretly loving the sweet, smart librarian from behind a book...

It takes a lot of willpower to not envision the mentally disturbed, poor personal hygiene sort of person that comes to mind first...

To all the "favorite librarians" being loved from afar!

Roscoe Needs This

We have a black squirrel that runs around our yard that we've named Roscoe.  Andy likes to feed him peanuts.  I'm now positive that we need to add this for him to lounge on and eat corn. Lowes had a genius idea with this one.

Book Roundup of 2012

Another year has come and gone and I'm officially shutting the door on the books of 2012.

Without further ado:

1) The Memory Palace by Mira Bartok
2) The State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
3) Stay Close by Harlan Coben
4) Call Me Irresistible by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
5) Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
6) When She Woke by Hillary Jordan
7) Witness the Night by Kishwar Desai
8) Autobiography of a Face by Lucy Grealy
9) My Friend Dahmer by Derf Backderf
10) The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides
11) Oxford Messed Up by Andrea Kayne Kaufman
12) Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
13) Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
14) We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver
15) Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling
16) Little Princes by Conor Grennan
17) Catch Me by Lisa Gardner
18) The Black Isle by Sandi Tan
19) Room by Emma Diffenbaugh
20) The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown
21) Love You More by Lisa Gardner
22) The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks
23) The Romanov Conspiracy by Glenn Meade
24) By The Iowa Sea by Joe Blair
25) Wild by Cheryl Strayed
26) Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
27) Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James
28) Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson
29) Loving Frank by Nancy Horan
30) The Odds by Stewart O'Nan
31) The End of Normal by Stephanie Madoff Mack
32) Lies Chelsea Handler Told Me by Chelsea Handler
33) The Map of Lost Memories by Kim Fay
34) Guilty Wives by James Patterson
35) Home Front by Kristin Hannah
36) Black Belt Librarian by Warren Graham
37) MWF Seeking BFF by Rachel Bertsche
38) Drop Dead Healthy by A.J. Jacobs
39) Defending Jacob by William Landay
40) The Story of Beautiful Girl by Rachel Simon
41) The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
42) The Most Talkative by Andy Cohen
43) Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
44) Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
45) The Lifeboat by Charlotte Rogan
46) The Big Bang by Linda Joffe Hull
47) Wife 22 by Melanie Gideon
48) The Abstinence Teacher by Tom Perotta
49) Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
50) I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella
51) Sleep No More by Iris Johansen
52) Cruising Altitude by Heather Poole
53) Wallflower in Bloom by Claire Cook
54) Everything Was Good-Bye by Gurjinder Basran
55) Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker
56) The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis
57) The Clover House by Henriette Lazaridis Power

Alright.  There it is.  The list of 2012.  My general thoughts of this list?  This sucks.  Largely, generally sucks.  Last year, I had one book that I wanted to punch myself for having read.  This year, multiple books made me just flat out angry.  I did read a couple very good books but it was a stretch trying to find 5 of them.

Here's a general breakdown:
Fiction: 43
NonFiction: 14
Classics: 2
Audiobooks: 1
Series: 2
For Work: 6
Library Journal: 8
Books That Made Me Want To Punch Myself: 8
Most Overrated: Tie-- Defending Jacob and Fifty Shades of Grey
Most Underrated: By The Iowa Sea

Lessons learned? James Patterson just needs to stop putting his name on anything and everything. I'm not really a fan of the silly chick lit (Sorry Sophie Kinsella).  I very rarely agree with the masses (Oprah, Wild was just not really all that great. Let's be honest.  She just walked.)  What I don't find weak women and emotionally unstable men sexy. At all. I'm more moved by a book where the characters make me cry than the ones that make me cheer.

Top Five: (in no particular order)
1) The State of Wonder
2) Gone with the Wind
3) We Need to Talk About Kevin
4) By the Iowa Sea
5) The Night Circus

So? Do you agree? Do you disagree? Did I miss reading the best book ever?

Love, Luck, and Laughs

Happy (almost) New Year!

Holiday Hangover

So it begins..the can't-quite-put-my-finger-on-it post-holiday slump...I'm trying to think of things to look forward to but being as my NYE plans haven't solidified, I'm coming up empty!

In the meantime, I'm going to sit around and gaze lovingly at my new toys...


Kate Spade Minka  Sorry, you can't get my pretty green anymore....



Moxie Bluetooth Showerhead by Kohler  So you can rock out in the shower with your iphone tunes...I used it this morning and it was glorious


Marc by Marc Jacobs Amy 36MM  Classing it up just a little bit, folks...


Nine West Tip-Top Knee High Boot Thank god..now I can replace the pair that no longer has a heel..

Today Is A Gift

via Etsy

How Did I Not Know About This?

Cynthia Rowley's Flask Bangle. $225.  Currently not available but supposedly there's a wait list.  It's kind of amazing.

Book Quicksand

What the heck does "book quicksand" mean, you say?  It's my new phrase to describe the timeline of how I got to be pretty in-over-my-head in books right now.

One day I'm putting down a book discussion book thinking "hey! I don't have anything specific lined up! I can read whatever I want! Probably for the entire holiday! I just finished that Library Journal book so I won't get one from them for a while!".  So I walk over to my trusty bookshelf full of books I haven't gotten around to reading and I pull out one of the most entertaining, non-brain-needing books I can find.  I tuck myself in bed and let myself get gobbled up in trash.  It's glorious.

Fast forward approximately 36 hours and I've gotten a notice from LJ that they're sending me a 2nd book to review in less than a month (due on the 4th! who is dealing with this over 2 holidays?!?! that's just mean), the new Oprah pick came in on the holdshelf for me and needs to be read in 7 days (I need to know what's going on with Miss O's books when I get asked 900 times how I liked them), and I realize that I probably need to start my library book discussion book that I need to lead on the 11th..And need I mention that my copy of Hunk for the Holidays came in and is begging to be read before Christmas?? Should I have admitted that? Probably not...but if I'm going to be in charge of buying romance books for the library, I should probably pick one up every once in a while...

Anyway, I'm now slightly entrenched...in the book quicksand, if you will....

Here's my list for the next couple weeks!

 (my initial entertaining read that I've had to abandon for the time being)

 (Oprah's book club choice that I'll be powering through..and am currently enjoying!)

 (My library book discussion book for the 11th)

 (My 2nd LJ book this month which is due on the 4th..just came in the mail today)

 (My steamy romance waiting to be guiltily enjoyed)

 (The other random book I started and need to finish)

There are a number of other books from the library that are currently sitting at my house with no start date in sight...

I think my brain is actually shutting down...Wish me luck!

*Side note- my first Library Journal book this month was Everything Was Good-Bye by Gurjinder Basran and it was FANTASTIC! I highly recommend it to start your 2013 reading!

*Extra side note- I just realized if I manage to finish all of this by the 11th, I'll have read 2,016 pages.  The Clover House is officially the longest at 432p.  Yikes!

Best Buddies Take 2

I blogged about these guys a little over a year ago.  They never cease to amuse me.

No, You Don't Have To Take Your Shoes Off

I'm getting ready to host my first real adult dinner party this weekend.  I mean, I've definitely hosted bbq's and parties with lots of appetizers but never a sit down fancy dinner.  I'm a little bit nervous that I'm going to screw something up or just be too much of a ball of cooking stress...I mean, the key rule of dinner parties is that you're supposed to have most everything done by the time people get there right? and have drinks ready so you're just like handing people drinks at the door?  I'm pretty sure I'm required to put people's coats on the bed too...  I don't know..I think I heard something along those lines..I probably need a butler...I haven't even started to think about my playlist..luckily, my awesome friend Peter has a website called The Mixcast that has AMAZING music mixes for FREE! So I'm pretty sure I'll be relying on him to set the mood..

But what I DO know, is that I'll be making the most amazing stuffed shells ever.  And I already feel fancy just  thinking about it.  I got the recipe from my favorite food mag, Food and Wine, and I've made them once before.

Ricotta and Fontina Stuffed Shells with Fennel and Raddichio

I also suggest using their "best ever marinara" recipe too. It's included in the recipe above.

Anyone have any good dinner party tips for me? Things like "Hey, Madeline, don't drink a bottle of wine before the guests get there" or "Maybe its ok if Andy doesn't wear white gloves when handing people drinks"?

Nice Jacket

I'm not even sure what to do with this.

Please read this in Tommy Boy style

Little Monkey In A Biiii-iiiggg Coooooo-oooaaatttt

I Can't Even Pretend

(I don't know who to credit this image to but I found it on this blog)

I don't pretend to be a history buff.  When it comes to historical battles and wars, if it wasn't included in a Ben Affleck movie, I probably don't know anything about it.  But I read the book Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson a few years ago and LOVED it.

(go buy it or get it from your library immediately!)

It's a nonfiction story about a group of divers who found the wreckage of a WWII German U-boat off the coast of New Jersey.  There were no government records of a boat ever being near the area and certainly no records of one sinking.  The men spent years attempting to gather enough information about the boat to identify it and be able to provide information to the families of its crew.  The story is absolutely fascinating and reads like an excellent documentary.  You simply don't need to be a history/war buff to enjoy this book. Although, if you are anything like me, you'll find yourself simultaneously intrigued and totally freaked out by submarines afterwards.

There's a cool Nova sight about it HERE btw.

That being said, ever since finishing this book, I've been really interested in stories about wreckage from WWII and it's retrieval.  This morning, I was excited to read in the Chicago Tribune that a WWII fighter plane had been pulled from the Waukegan Harbor, not even 15 miles from my home! From what I've read, it doesn't have quite as exciting as a background that the U-boat from Shadow Divers had, but I think it's very cool anyway.

Check out the story HERE 

Bottoms Up!

While Grain Belt is one of my favorite Minnesota beers, the friendly folks at First We Feast have compiled a list of the best beers from every state that makes a different choice.  It's a good choice too.

Best Brews from each of the 50 States

Drink up!

True Words

(from Johnny Cash to June Carter Cash)

If you're anything like me, you love getting a letter but probably aren't great about writing them.  You might like to read a diary (not your own..yikes, that's just a lousy idea..you never sound smart or romantic in your own diary..or at least I don't) but skip out on writing in your own.  I got a One Word A Day journal for my birthday and I've written approximately one word every other month.  It may be added to my New Year's resolution list...

If this is you, then you're going to LOVE this website.  Letters of Note is an amazing site filled with letters from celebrities, scientists, mothers, athletes, authors, musicians, and more...Some of them are laugh out loud funny, some are the dagger of words you always wish you could throw, and some will bring tears to your eyes.  The bottom line is you need to set aside an evening to read every word.

My personal favorites are the the letters that Johnny Cash wrote to June (one of them is above), a response from a writer of Will and Grace to a despicable religious organization, and the letter from Fiona Apple about her dying dog.

Letters of Note
Amazing

Listen Up, Jokers

Ok, I'm trying to get back on the blogging train.  It's my pre-New Years resolution.  Along with losing the last 10lbs...

Seriously, What Did You Expect?

Now, I can't say I appreciate it, but Guy Fieri's bleach blonde mess of hair is not what should have tipped you off to his lack of culinary (and life) refinement.  What should have tipped you off?

The fact that he wears sunglasses hanging backwards on his neck while hosting a national televised restaurant show.

As far as I'm concerned that's the equivalent of dressing up for a black tie (or any, really) wedding by wearing your nicest wranglers.  It's not ok, and it's not appropriate.  It screams "I don't care about anyone else but myself and I'm going to hope you take my lack of common fashion sense as 'man, that Guy Fieri must be really cool'"  No one thinks that.  Ever.

Anyway, I'm getting away from the point....The point of this is that no one in their right mind could have expected a guy who grills sushi because his friends were too chicken to eat it the correct way, to have put together a half assed decent menu in a huge Times Square location.

This review from the NYT is so brilliantly awful that I'm not sure how Guy doesn't just immediately go there and lock the doors.  You should read it immediately in it's entirety.

First up, the cocktail list, which is a glorious piece of white trash ephemera—a love letter to food coloring and sugar. I go for the El Azul Watermelon, a mix of Tequila Blanco, watermelon, pineapple, and blue curacao rimmed with shocking-pink sugar. It's not so much a drink, as it is a cup of diabetes that tastes like a crackhead with a sweet tooth melted down blue raspberry Dum Dums, gum balls, and Sour Patch Kids and put it on ice.

– Talia Baiocchi, Eater

BYOBTW

Otherwise known as Bring-Your-Own-Baby-to-Work



I'm sure many of you have seen pictures of Italy's Licia Ronzulli voting with her adorable daughter on her lap before but just in case you hadn't....

Licia Ronzulli has been bringing her daughter with her to work since she was breastfeeding her as a 6 week old...the tradition continues and Ronzulli continues to show what a wonderful mother and politician can look like...

The Guardian wrote a great article and included a link to many images of Licia and her daughter, Vittoria.  Check it out HERE

Also, Congratulations to our newly re-elected President!  I'm so glad to celebrate your victory!

Mind Melt

Sorry that I've been MIA.  I haven't posted lately because I've been fairly uninspired to show or blab about anything.  But today is Friday.  And, dammit, I feel like sharing something silly.

Have a great weekend!