Going Places and Staying Cool

Westside-Eastside-Hamptons-Eastside-Westside-Annapolis-DC-Atlanta-Omaha-Rockwell City-Pomeroy-Yankton-Omaha-DC-Annapolis-Westside.

All within a week. 

What makes it worth it? Spending time with LOVED ones. How sweet is that?

Do you know what else is sweet?

Remember my infatuation with Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream?

Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream

Well, now there is a cookbook!

Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home

Just in time for summer!

Pick A Little, Talk a Little

But mostly picking.

Berries are on my mind...

...and in my basket.

(Don't worry, I'll have post after post of apples come the fall)

An activity best shared with friends...

 BriGuy

or family.

PWS


After all of that hard work picking ("one for the basket, one for me, one for the basket, one for me"), it's time to create some goodies.

Berry Shortcake with Chantilly Cream:

Triple Strawberry Cupcakes:

Topping everything with fresh berries:

Mixed Berry Pie:

Blackberry Apple Cake (see, I never forget apples for long):

Or just as they are:

Plucked from one of these adorable containers:

Farmers Market Baskets - Jayson Home & Garden

Very, berry, good.

Sweet Nothings

Sometimes it is best to just tell it like it is.

Etsy - 4four Cards

Don't you just love Etsy?

LEG-HOs

I can't take credit for the post title - my friend Jasmin brilliantly came up with the new brand name for LEGOs. LEGOs such as this shady lady that I discovered today:

Jersey Shore LEGO

I mean, really? Safety pins on her hot pink denim? A tight strapless belly shirt? Multiple chain necklaces? Shame on you, LEGOs! :)

If anyone knows what theme this LEGO actually comes from, I'd love to be informed..

Lobstah!

Luke's Lobster now has an UWS side location. Ruh Roh...

Follow those women!

 It's always Happy Hour at Luke's.

Where the magic happens.

 OK, so both meals aren't for me, although I wouldn't complain if they were...

 Not lacking in lobster.

Have I made my point yet?

Saving Face

Summer sun requires skin TLC.

Start off with this:

Supergoop! Products

With the addition of this:

Colorblock Braided Straw Fedora - Urban Outfitters

And you are good to go!

Of course, some people look better in fedoras than others...

Dad's Favorite Card

iLove iKat

It's true. See below.

Ikat Table Linens - Neiman Marcus

Sequin Small Ikat Enamel Bangle - Nordstroms

Ikat Scoop Halter Tank - J.Crew

Cynthia Vincent Sage Ballet Flats - Bloomingdales

Tinalak Clutch - Anthropologie

People Tree Woven Ikat Print Dress - ASOS

Ikat Ogee Linen Window Panel - West Elm

 

Ikat Cushions - Calypso Home

AC in a Drink

I'm still working on getting a much needed air conditioner. I guess it's my own trick to keeping guests away...

Until then, I will be brewing up this:

from these:

Above pictures along with the perfected Homemade Hibiscus Soda recipe can be found at The Broke and Chic Project.

Just looking at the glass of rouge liquid cools me down.

Perhaps I can request a few leaves from Pete Sorensen's beloved hibiscus plant, Hildy.

Yes, her name is Hildy.

Hildy Sorensen

Now, about that air conditioner...

Oh Please

Let this come to fruition:

East River Floating Pool Concept

She Let Go - Ernest Holmes

She let go. Without a thought or a word, she let go.

She let go of the fear. She let go of the judgments. She let go of the confluence of opinions swarming around her head. She let go of the committee of indecision within her. She let go of all the ‘right’ reasons. Wholly and completely, without hesitation or worry, she just let go.

She didn’t ask anyone for advice. She didn’t read a book on how to let go. She didn’t search the scriptures. She just let go. She let go of all of the memories that held her back. She let go of all of the anxiety that kept her from moving forward. She let go of the planning and all of the calculations about how to do it just right.

She didn’t promise to let go. She didn’t journal about it. She didn’t write the projected date in her Day-Timer. She made no public announcement and put no ad in the paper. She didn’t check the weather report or read her daily horoscope. She just let go.

She didn’t analyze whether she should let go. She didn’t call her friends to discuss the matter. She didn’t do a five-step Spiritual Mind Treatment. She didn’t call the prayer line. She didn’t utter one word. She just let go.

No one was around when it happened. There was no applause or congratulations. No one thanked her or praised her. No one noticed a thing. Like a leaf falling from a tree, she just let go.

There was no effort. There was no struggle. It wasn’t good and it wasn’t bad. It was what it was, and it is just that.

In the space of letting go, she let it all be. A small smile came over her face. A light breeze blew through her. And the sun and the moon shone forevermore.

+ Signs

Hopeful words are popping up unexpectedly in my everyday life.

My Metrocard:

Optimism

The inside of my phone cover:

Have Courage


I'm thinking these signs come in threes, so I'm waiting to discover #3.
Any guesses?

Where Do I Begin?

Love Story - 1970

Sappy song. Sappy movie. Sappy LuRuSo.

First saw this movie at a Bryant Park Summer Film Festival back in 2004 with some best girlfriends. We competed for a coveted picnic spot, almost had our cheese & crackers stolen, and cried our collective eyes out along with thousands of other New Yorkers.

It might have been the vodka spiked pink lemonade, but the tear level was up there with Beaches.

Ms. MacGraw was on Oprah not long ago, and as they revisited scenes from the movie, I fell in love all over again - but this time with the outfits & style.

The perfectly parted flaxen hair, knitted hats and scarves, use of red, mini skirts paired with tights and turtlenecks, pea coats, wool & tartan, and simple lines never made me say I'm sorry.

I mean, come on...

 The wool trench and shearling boots. Pops of red.

 I need that dress now.

How many wool coats and skirts does this girl own?

Digging the plaid. More red.

Way ahead of Harry Potter-wear.

It almost makes me yearn for winter again, if only to wear a maroon knit hat and eat snow with a crush.

A little leftover sixties.

 Crisp whites and a nostalgic tee. Anyone else notice that his shorts are just as short?

And look at those don't-mess-with-me-I-attend-Radcliffe glasses. Maybe that's why I'm so into THESE.

OK, nothing fashionista about this shot - I just love it.

Who's up for a Bryant Park movie this summer?

I'll bring the lemonade...