Travel Karma

After dealing with loud crazy children hopped up on candy on their way or coming back from Disney, loud twenty year olds and people farting non-stop on both legs of my Orlando trip, the travel gods finally were convinced that they have tortured their Job enough.

I got to Penn Station with enough time to get some trashy magazines (e.g., US Weekly and Life & Style), a turkey sandwich (hold the cheese), and a seat on the quiet car. My strategy (see Amtrak) finally worked. I had a reading girl sitting behind me, a reading woman to my side and cranky ladies who shushed people. It was a peaceful, quiet and relaxing ride to New Carrollton. And, there were less fumes in the quiet car - I think really only one incident of fumes!

Unfortunately, M and I missed each other at the station and for some reason, she didn't have reception and I kind of freaked out because there was some drama going on, this lady was crying and there was a police officer and I was worried M had gotten in a car accident or something. But, we found each other and she brought me home and gave me some of her homemade chicken shitake mushroom ginger congee. She is too good to me.

Bag by Dogeared (www.dogeared.com)

*8th St. Winecellar & G

Originally, I had suggested that we meet at Back Forty but...it is cold, it is a long walk from 1st Ave to Ave B, and I wasn't interested in anything on the menu. Luckily, G is a wine bar girl - a nibbler - and suggested one of her favorite places, 8th St. Winecellar (www.8thstwinecellar.com).

It was perfect. Firstly, the ACE is around the corner from it. There are interesting stores to peak into and a really nice restaurant that we want to try on the way there. The service is prompt and polite and the ambiance, warm, rosy and cozy. The wine list is not too expensive and varied.

I had four beautiful oysters on half shell - 2 west coast and 2 east coast (Malpeques). I'm an east coast oyster girl but the west coast ones were surprisingly tasty. We shared chicken liver pate which is so good with mustard and 3 types of bruschetta. The mushroom with truffle oil one was so amazing. I like things on toast.

Miss Green Eyes was fabulous as usual and we caught up on all the people having babies, the economy, shopping, family and loved ones. I love her style and she had on an adorable vintage cape. Even though it has been over 4 years, I miss seeing her at the office every day, seeing her eat variations of tuna, going to the make-up and flower stores in the basement of our building, and devouring an entire 3 lb brick of toffee together. The ridiculous ways her name got mutilated always make me laugh.

Note: Alas, lactaid is rendered powerless by the evil forces of ricotta cheese.

Baby Q

My friend E just told me he and his wife are expecting in April! I'm so thrilled!

A Shot of Inspiration

Go ahead, accuse me of drinking the corporate punch but I love my firm and learn so much from firm events. Today, there was a lunch time discussion with the senior vice president of Philanthropy who is also part of the firm's executive committee.

She was amazing. She talked honestly about balancing raising two children, a marriage to a busy and successful lawyer who is a true partner (which she said was one model, that there were many models like the model of her mother who raised 3 children when her father died in Vietnam when she was 5), and a varied and rising career. She talked about women giving themselves permission to not be perfect and to do the best that they can. Focusing on perfection and over-analysing can lead to paralysis and sometimes, by the time you get to a decision, the opportunity has passed.

Secondly, she also said to stay relevant. To read 4-5 newspapers and magazines a week. They don't always have to be business related - she gave People magazine as an example! You need to know what is going on around you, in your industry, in your country, in the world. You never know when you will have the opportunity to contribute to a discussion or when something will add to the way you think about something.

Thirdly, she said to have the courage to take risks. She had focused on building competencies not specific job roles and that has led her to new and varied opportunities. She took the risk of moving from the revenue side to the support side, from managing a team in the U.S. to also taking on a team in Latin America, and to me most impressively, asking for a year long sabbatical to build the Center for Leadership and Civic Engagement at Spelman in order to increase the preparedness and presence of women of color leaders. Further, the firm felt that this was such a critical initiative for the firm and the world that they continued to pay her during that time.

She is on the advisory boards of the University of Virginia/Darden Business School, the London Business School, and is on the board of trustees of the Kenan Institute (University of North Carolina/Chapel Hill). She is a member of the Executive Leadership Council (ELC), Jack and Jill of America, and The Links, Inc. She has set up programs to mentor teenage mothers and support them through getting a college degree.

I don't know how she is able to do it all - she says you can do it all, just not at the same time.

Halloween Scrooge

I think the last time I dressed up for Halloween was when I was 14 or so. I was a "punk" - more Punky Brewster than Johnny Rotten. I got to spray my bangs really high and put colors and glitter in it. I remember that it started raining - sharp, cold, needles of rain and I was chilled to the bones and soaking wet. My hands were stained navy blue from the GAP bag I used to hold my candy. That pretty much was the end of Halloween for me. M has continued to party on and has been Cat Woman and Laura Croft. Yeah, she's pretty hot.

It's now about avoiding being at home (we live a block away from an elementary school) and trying to keep Petunia from totally losing her voice from barking at all the kids "trespassing" on our property. How dare they walk on the sidewalk!

While I'm going to be recruiting on Halloween night (corporate costume), I got to thinking about what I would be if I did dress up for Halloween. I would LOVE to be Wonder Woman. So, that's definitely high on the list. My friend was like, "good luck, all the gays want to be Wonder Woman for Halloween." That could be true because I did see a trannie Wonder Woman the last time I was at P-Town. I didn't see any good costumes when I went out with N last night to look for a police woman costume for her - wee-oo-weee-ooo-weee! Lots of fun Sarah Palin costumes but the high voltage lewdness of some of the costumes took me aback! The "Snake Charmer" had a snake coming out of his crotch!

I'm also kinda cheap when it comes to Halloween (and like to be warm and comfortable). I started to think about what I could be without spending a lot of money. I love the costume where you are in all blue and covered with tampons and maxi pads - Picasso's Blue Period.

My brother has a blonde mullet wig and Doris was like, "you should be a lesbian! You could wear a flannel shirt with the sleeves cut off, mom jeans, socks and Birkenstocks!" M, "Can't you be something sexy?"

And then I was like, "oh, I could be the Wellesley stabber!" I've been trying to google her for months and have no idea what she looks like but I figured, I'd wear my glasses, have my hair a little disheveled, wear a Wellesley t-shirt and duct tape 7 knives to my puffer vest. M, "Can't you be something sexy?"

At the costume stores, I saw a pimp hat, stein, grills, cane, bling - I could wear that with my track suit! M, "Can't you be something sexy?"

Oh, well, I guess at least for this year, I'll just be a corporate recruiter.

Won Jo & N

[in progress]

Did I say that I wasn't going to eat Korean pancakes? Um, yeah. They are AMAZING with O.B. beer. I think that's my new favorite beer.

Zara Opening Near Me!

Woohoo! They are opening a Zara on 42nd and 5th Ave! It's right across from the HUMONGOUS H&M. Shopping heaven.

Huge Make-Up Discount

http://www.eyeslipsface.com/shop.asp

Most make-up on sale for $1, and enter CAROLINA when checking out to get an additional discount! This is a great way to stock up for the holidays!

Need my Sous-chef de Cuisine

I love to cook and M sweetly said I was a great cook but, I'm no good with knives. When I was 13 or so, in a matter of 2 weeks:
- 1 stitch in my wrist from cutting cardboard with a Swiss Army knife (sort of cooking related - trying to feed my rabbit)
- 9 stitches in my left index finger from cutting an apple in my hand. I finished baking the pie after I got back from the hospital. Note that this really is 18 stitches since they stitched it wrong the first time and I had to get it reopened, cleaned and restitched 2 weeks later. My first run in with the plastic surgeon.
- 9 stitches in my foot from getting it stuck on a nail (ok, not cooking related)

I break a dish nearly every time I wash dishes and cut my right middle finger last night without even being in the midst of cutting! I was washing dishes and the knife was in the sink and I was scrubbing the cutting board and jabbed my finger into the point of the knife. There was a lot of blood and I asked Doris to staple my finger back together but she looked at it, sniffed dismissively and said it was not that serious. But honestly, there was a lot of blood.

Having a finger injury is REALLY annoying. I keep forgetting about it and get it wet. I'm going through my stash of Hello Kitty bandaids really quickly. I need M, my gorgeous sous-chef de cuisine. Or, as she says, my "soup chef". She cuts everything for me perfectly (I've never seen such tiny diced shallots) and sets up a beautiful mise en place from which I can cook with less risk to injury. She also handles the meat, is the grill master and helps in every way. Love her.

Trying to Get Back on the Wagon

See pathetic tally of how many times I've gone to the gym in September and October. The goal was to go at least 7 times a month to justify the cost. I did hear on my Wall Street Journal podcast that gym attendance is at an all time low due to the current economic state. I'll just chalk it up to that instead of my laziness.

The good news is that I have been faithfully attending my S Factor classes and begin Level 3 tomorrow! I graduated to "Father Figure" by George Michael 2 weeks ago (such a perfect song). I'm going to try out "She's Your Cocaine" by Tori Amos in this next session. We're going to learn the flying half pint and the fact that the word "flying" is in there is pretty exciting. I also hit the gym today for my lunchtime run and plan on being more disciplined through the rest of the year. Further, this past weekend was the last weekend of pure gluttony (good timing since M's mom is an out of this world chef). It would be one thing if I was burning thousands of calories but I'm not. So, I'm going to have to watch what I eat.

I tried to send an email reminder to myself to buy the "Skinny Bitch" book but my email refused to send it due to the word "bitch." Plus, Doris said I knew nearly everything in it so it was really just a matter of eating better and portion control. I cooked a fabulous dinner last night and packed myself some lunch so it's a good start. Good bye deep fried food. I will miss you, deep fried oysters, french fries, Korean seafood pancakes...

Pig in a Blanket

H & Z

[in progress]

39 Hours in Orlando

[in progress]

Better than "What Not to Wear"

Gov. Sarah Palin’s makeup artist was paid $22,800 for the first two weeks of October, according to a new filing. She also got $150,000 for a new wardrobe. Maybe if Hillary got the make-over money...

You know, this may be worth switching over to the GOP. Hello, Neiman Marcus!

*ATE Ave. & My Boys

[ in progress]

Nighttime Charades

[in progress]

Nightly ritual with Doris, trying to have a conversation with 1 hand while brushing teeth with the other.

What?

5

plus

1

Rock and roll?

*Soba Totto & O

[in progress]

http://events.nytimes.com/2008/02/06/dining/reviews/06under.html

Sparkly...

A month or so ago, I was sitting in a risk meeting and I saw this incredibly sparkly ring on S' hand. It looked like it was on fire. A couple of meetings later, I told her that I was riveted by it and asked if I could see it up close.

Her dad had purchased the ring in 1946 with $300 from his college savings. Her parents have been happily married for 60+ years. Her mother had been very sick but is better now. S had found the setting one day (her mother had the diamond reset into a different setting) and her mother gave her the diamond. S had the diamond reset into the original setting and it is just beautiful. Her parents are happy she is wearing it and it reminds her of the happiness they have had all these years.

It's less than a carat but so perfect in cut, color and clarity. It has a life of its own. I love the thin gold band and the gorgeous prongs. I have no idea what that type of prong is called and have been googling all kinds of derivations. Ah-hah! It is called a triple prong. I would love to have those prongs on a plain, slim gold band made of recycled gold with a cushion cut diamond. Gorgeous.

Japan and Back in 1 Hour

My hair had gotten to the point where I couldn't run my fingers to it. My hand would get stuck a couple of inches from the ends and I'd have to yank it through. The change in weather had also dried it (and my skin out). I needed help and with our schedule, wouldn't get a chance to see my normal hair stylist until 11/7. Plus, I wanted to look nice for our trip this weekend to Orlando to see M's grandmother, mom and brother.

Back when I had super short hair, I used to have 2 really great Japanese hair stylists - both in the Lower East Side. I remembered there was a Japanese salon half a block from my office called Hisako Salon (47th between Lex and Third). I made a lunchtime appointment for a cut and conditioning treatment. You could get your hair cut by a stylist, top stylist, or senior stylist with prices increasing accordingly. Since I had never gone there before, I let them pick one for me. Having a cut at lunch today was more important than with whom. Plus, I figured I had a high chance of getting someone good.

One thing this salon is known for is a shiatsu massage during your haircut. It was so nice. I nearly fell asleep and could get used to getting a little head massage at lunch. My stylist, Ikuko, was great. She had been at the salon for 8 years - 8 YEARS! Man, 8 years should get you to be a top stylist at least. She was very sweet, we chatted a bit and she did everything I asked for perfectly.

She was conscious of the time and had me out before the hour was up so that I could run to Cafe Zest next door and get a vegetarian bento box: brown rice with carrots and hijiki, edamame, eggplant, tomato, broccoli, shitake and bamboo shoot tempura, tofu veggie patty, hijiki salad, asparagus with sesame ginger sauce. Amazing.

Dreaming of Me

When I got home tonight, I joked a bit with Doris about my dream about the colored dot infestation. I had looked it up in the dream dictionary and dreaming about itching means that someone in your family is going to give you bad news. Really, my skin has been dry from the change of seasons and that manifested in my dream somehow.

So then, mom was like, I had a dream I was searching for a particular shoe and someone handed me a gray shoe and insisted that it was what I was looking for when it clearly belonged to someone else. That one is easy because mom is ALWAYS looking for shoes that don't exist. [By the way, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree because I returned the grey spats boots. I love my UGGs and apologize profusely for my infidelity.]

Doris said that a couple of days ago, she had a dream where I was showing her million dollar bills and cutting them up. She was like, "What are you doing?" And I said, "Oh, it's okay, they'll take it like this." I wonder what that means...

Soccarat w/ E & C

I once had a dream of a tiny place with lots of white cabinets. I remember thinking to myself, what are all the cabinets for? Turns out I dreamed of Soccarat.

I love paella and Soccarat is named after the crispy rice that you find along the pan. It was a cute place with a long communal table made of an old mirror. Across from the white cabinets was an exposed brick wall with paintings and antique mirrors. The staff was cheerful, helpful and really terrific. I had a glass of albarino, and we ordered lots of tapas (tortilla, tomato bread, fried artichokes, gambas al ajillo) and the paella carne.

As you know, things haven't been tasting incredible for me lately. The food was executed perfectly and was good. The fried artichokes reminded me of my trip to Rome with Doris. The tomato bread was my favorite. I guess I'm a simple girl. I just like the crispy bread and the bright flavor of tomatoes.

E & C are so fabulous. I love having a peek into their lives and between the 3 of us, we answered so many questions that were swirling around in our minds. Not to be cliche but it was a quintessential Wellesley, sex in the city, we are here for each other, we will figure it all out moment. E, thanks for letting me know it's okay to miss reunion next year.

Threatening Letters to JPMorgan

Threatening letters with white powder have been sent to some JPMorgan retail branches and offices. One was sent from Amarillo, TX (why does it seem like Texas has a monopoly on crazies?).

"STEAL TENS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE'S MONEY AND NOT EXPECT REPERCUSSIONS. IT'S PAYBACK TIME. WHAT YOU JUST BREATHED IN WILL KILL YOU WITHIN TEN DAYS. THANK MR. DIMON AND THE FDIC FOR YOUR DEMISE."

The white powder in some of the envelopes were determined to be chalk, ground up Tums, crushed clam shell powder. Still, this is so scary.

Angie

Excerpt from interview with Angelina Jolie (my BFF):

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/19/movies/19harr.html?pagewanted=2&8dpc&_r=1

"...Nonetheless, she said, she looks forward to the day when she can put “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” in the DVD player for the children; “not a lot of people get to see a movie where their parents fell in love.”

“What’s going to be funny is when they think Mom and Dad are a little bit cool,” she added. “Because right now, we’re not cool Mom and Dad.”

“Even video games, you know, it’s: ‘Mom, you can’t play this. You won’t know how.’ Oh, they all think I can’t do anything, that I’m just there to snuggle with. But the other day Madd said, ‘Can you do a cartwheel?’ And I said, ‘Yeah, I can.’ And he was like, ‘Wow, Mom.’ And I thought: ‘Oh, yeah. I can do some things. You wait. You’ll find out. I’m capable.’ ”

Malaise

Maybe it's Keno's passing, not seeing M this weekend, the recession, exhaustion from the weekend, not sleeping well, the fact that it's Monday and there is so much to do...

I've been waking up around 3 or 4 and when I go back to sleep, I have nightmares. I remember one where I was vacationing in Italy or Greece and I passed by a person who had brightly colored dots floating around his/ her head. As I passed, the colored dots floated over to me and I began to itch. I was infested with colored dots and I itched everywhere so badly! I had to lie down and douse myself with this white powder that was supposed to kill the dots.

Today in the office I felt hot (I'm usually freezing in the office), I couldn't breathe (no one around me seemed to think that the AC was off), achy, fatigued, and anxious. I'm so happy that my eyeliner touch-up appointment got cancelled and I can do some work, go home and relax.

Oh, I got my flu shot today so hopefully, I will avoid catastrophic illness this winter.

Drivin' Around in my Automobile

Well, my sister's automobile (but it used to be mine). Home to Port Jefferson Station to Short Hills Mall and back. Met gorgeous baby Ava for the first time, ate D's incredible rice balls, pasta and tomato salad made from tomatoes from her garden. Caught up with D who looks amazing, as usual. Drove to Short Hills to meet L for dinner at Legal. Mmmm....fried oysters. Congrats on your new job, babe! I'm so going to France with you.

Drove home at night and remembered how great it was to blast the music and sing at the top of my lungs.

Keno, Always in our Hearts

After 18 wonderful years, our dog Keno has passed away. I first met Keno nearly 7 years ago. He was a small, feisty cream colored Pomeranian with 3 dreadlocks - one by his chin and two from the top of his head. M called him a grumpy old man and even though he barred his teeth at me, growled and ran away, I knew that inside, he was a love bug.

Nearly two decades ago, M was playing at her friend's house and she saw the father abusing the puppy. She grabbed the dog and brought him home. She has cared, loved, and protected Keno and he has had a long, comfortable and really good life. Last year, she brought him down to Orlando to retire with her mother and brother. I got a great video of Keno swimming in the pool. Now that's the life, warm sunny days, cool marble floors to sleep on, 24/7 access to the plush green yard, a pool to swim in and lots of people to take care of him. He passed away comfortably in his sleep yesterday and I know that he is now pain free and basking in the sun.

Hair, Make-Up and Flowers

Here are some photos from C & B's wedding. See fabulous arrangement that M created from B & C's vision. I had a lot of fun with the make-up and hair.

The Party is Over

Doris meows at me when I start ranting and raving. Meow! Meow! Meow! The state of our economy has me in a tizzy and I am asking, IMPLORING people to take this moment, review their finances, and make the necessary changes even though it may be difficult.

We are in the worst recession in the past 25 years. For most of my peers and especially those who are younger, we've grown up in plentiful times and have barely experienced the hardship that others faced before us. I think that my parents' struggle made an impact on me - I finish all the food on my plate (to the detriment of my waist line), I binge spend like someone who just came into money, I take responsibility of my finances because they can't bail me out, they rely on me to support the family now, and I will likely continue to support them as they get older because they haven't managed their finances appropriately along the way.

For the majority of the past 25 years, marketing has succeeded in creating a culture of consumerism. Forget the need to do well in school, be present, be part of the global solution - it's really about having the newest toy, game console, the flashiest SUV, the biggest house, etc. I'm sure you are questioning me because I'm a shopper but I'm not in debt because of my shopping. "The average American household with at least one credit card has nearly $9,200 in credit card debt." This means they aren't saving, that they have put themselves in a really precarious position if the economy turns and they lose their jobs.

Oh, right, that's happening right now. "Unemployment claims are at steep-recession levels." Let's take Jane and times her by tens of thousands of people. Jane had a good job, she was able to get a nice home and got a new-fangled loan where she only had to pay interest. She figures that she'll sell the place when the mortgage payments balloon. Life was good, housing prices were soaring (housing bubble that replaced tech bubble), things were cheap thanks to China and the low cost of gas, and she figured, live it up now because things are getting better and better.

Increased global demand results in rise of the prices of commodities - the basic stuff that you need to make other stuff. People are feeling the pain and the good news is, have cut down on driving, etc. Global demand has dropped but that also means tougher times for businesses and thus, their employees. Also, these new mortgages that are variable (changes interest rates after a certain period of time) did change and to higher levels than people were able to pay for. Foreclosures across the country have been rising. People are losing their homes.

So, let's get back to Jane. Jane's mortgage is about to balloon. She has also just lost her job. She can't sell her house because the bubble burst and the amount she borrowed is more than what the house is currently worth. She can rent the house but it will be hard to find someone who will be able to pay what she needs to cover expenses. This exacerbates unemployment because people can't move to places that have jobs because they are tied to their house which are rapidly losing value. No job, out of control expenses and no cushion of savings. This is where our country is at.

I pray that you are not in a desperate position and have a chance to protect yourself as things are likely to get worse over the next 18 months (this bailout won't trickle down to you for awhile). Take a look at your finances. Have 3-9 months worth of savings in an interest bearing account (I use INGdirect.com). Don't panic when you look at your investments - selling now would be like paying full price on a Gucci purse and selling it for 20% less at a garage sale. If you have a crazy mortgage, try and refinance to better terms. Watch your budget, live within your means. Learn about what is going on in the world, our country, and your employer and how it affects you. All this shall pass but in the meantime, take care of yourself.

The Obama Store

I hate to admit this but today was the first day that I looked at Obama and McCain's websites. McCain's website is really well, ugly. It is low tech and feels really old. Obama's is sleek, smart, and links to your entire world (makes sense since he hired the founder of Facebook). There are online tools for you to organize locally (my.barackobama.com) and links to youtube, myspace, facebook, linkedin, blackplanet, asianave, migente, etc. You can get text messages to your phone. Oh, my phone is vibrating, hello Barack!

The most exciting item McCain has in his store is a very sad Palin cap. What does "1 of 2008" mean? The Obama store is so awesome. Obama has art by amazing artists for sale and this section called Runway to Change where designers have created t-shirts, bags, scarves, etc. Designers include Isaac Mizrahi, Rag and Bone, Jeffery Costello and Robert Tagliapietra, Juicy Couture, Tory Burch, Russell Simmons, Pharrell Williams, Vera Wang, Tracy Reese, Jay Z, Zac Posen, Narciso Rodriguez, Diane von Furstenberg, Marc Jacobs, etc. I love the Maria Cornejo t-shirt pictured. I love that designers I love love Obama! There's even a "Gear for Less" section with tank tops for $10. N says that she had seen guys in clubs wearing Obama t-shirts that lit up. Can't wait for those to go up in the Obama store!

Before you go, oh, this is just about shopping. That it has nothing to do with the election. I think that this shows that Obama is someone who inspires and who is current. He is someone who can take us into the future, not bring us back. Also, he surrounds himself with great people. He may not know all the answers but he knows who to go to.