Funny Chicken

I can't help it. I love stupid commercials. This one KILLS me. This man gets TOLD by a chicken wing! It's a TUMS commercial... But funny nonetheless.

The Man's Hair was Blue

(photo via stateofthemedia.org)

New Yorkers are pretty candid. And, it's pretty refreshing. 

As I sat on the subway on my way home from Brooklyn this evening, a nice looking gentleman got on board at Wall Street and sat down in the free seat next to me. I glanced up from my book (currently reading Lolita) and gave the man a courtesy smile. 

And then a double take. 

The man's hair was blue. I grinned sheepishly and he grinned sheepishly back. An interesting conversation ensued... 

Blueberry Man (BM): "You can say it. I know my hair is blue." 

(I bursted out laughing.) 

Giggling Lauren (GL): "Wow, yes it is." 

BM: "I fell asleep drunk this weekend and my friends dyed my hair. One of them is a cosmetology student." 

GL: "Crappy weekend, huh?" 

BM: "You have no idea. Work was a lot of fun yesterday."

GL: "Haha! Happy Monday! And it won't come out?" 

BM: "You bet I tried."  

GL: "At least you're not lacking any good nicknames now." 

BM: "Haha! You have no idea." 

And then we chatted casually about the weather. I'll admit I like a good joke as much as the next gal... But blue hair falls in the sketchy friends category. Bless this guy's heart for not shaving his head. Haha!

Feeling Spicy

I've been feeling very spicy today. And it's only Monday! Work went well, got lots accomplished, feeling motivated to get a lot done this week before I head out of town for Betsy and Micah's wedding on Saturday (crazyyy!!) We all know I'm anti-shopping, but this dress simply screams spice. No, I didn't buy it. But, I want somebody else to so I can "oooh" and "aaaahhh" over it!

(photo via francescascollections.com) 

Happy Monday! 

Brooklyn Fare

Today, I joined my dear friends Rachael and Aaron and Brooklyn for a walk through the Brooklyn Flea. They hadn't been before and are always down for something fun. I could seriously spend all day in that place.

Afterward, we took a walk over to Ceol, a sweet little Irish Pub on Smith Street. Alix was able to join us for a few drinks and some appetizers. And yes, I fell in love with the bartender. He was Irish. :) The more time I spend in Brooklyn, the more I fall in love with it. I could totally see myself moving to Brooklyn after graduating.

Finally, on our way back to Manhattan, Rach suggested we swing into Brooklyn Fare, a sweet little grocer and bakery. We picked up some divine little baked goods and Canadian booze. (Alix and I wanted Canadian beer to keep us company while we watched the Olympics tonight!)

Happy Sunday!

Post Secret

Please visit postsecret.blogspot.com. It's a website that posts postcards sent in anonymously by people wanting to share their secrets. I bet it's really freeing to submit a huge secret for everybody to know. I heard about it from my dear friend Rachael. She got me a wonderful book full of postsecrets.

My favorite so far...

Happy Birthday, Dad!

A dedication to my dearest Father on his special day... 

Today is your Birthday! You're so good to all of us. Your caring and sweet demeanor paired with your passion and charm for our family is absolutely unmatchable. I look up to you more than you know... And more than I tell you. I love you, Dad. Happy Birthday! xo

Austerity Update

Oh my! It's time for an update on my Austerity Program.

So I had a gift card... And got a cardigan. I've decided this doesn't count. Plain and simple, as I did not spend any money out of my own pocket. And, I did purchase a few storage boxes. However, I have also decided this, too, doesn't count, as it was not a frivolous purchase and absolutely necessary for my move in just a few months. I know what you're thinking... "Excuses, excuses!!" The idea behind my austerity program was to keep from spending money on things I don't need. Storage boxes I need. And, the cardigan, well... I had a gift card. :)

So, Lauren: 1, Shopping Impulse: 0

However, it is taking all my might not to pick up these little numbers. Somebody send me a gift card to Francesca's ASAP!!

(photos via francescascollections.com)

Some stats

(photo via ffffound.com) 

I'm four weeks into my last semester at John Jay.
I'm four weeks into my externship.
I'm two months(ish) away from better weather.
I'm four months away from moving back to Phoenix.
I'm four months away from moving away from New York City.
I'm three months away from graduating.
I'm three months away from entering the real world. (Yikes.)
I'm seven months away from turning 25. (Crap.)
I'm ten months away from submitting my PhD apps. (Whoa.)

I'm two months into what will likely be the craziest year of my life.

Gosh, do things seem to be moving awfully fast??

The Olympics!

(photo via reuters)

I'm obsessed! I race home at the end of the day to flip on the tube so I can watch the Olympics! I've totally become a huge Lindsey Vonn fan. She recently injured herself (like... a week ago), so she was really nervous about performing well in the Olympics this year, but the games were rained out on her race day, so they had to postpone all the outdoor events. (She's an American speed skier.) The extra days helped her recover. (Oh man, listen to me! Ha!) Anyhoo, she had her first run and she took the gold. If that's not motivation for you, I don't know what is.

Note to self: Work hard. All the time.

Valentine's Day

Ahh, I love my girlfriends. I especially love when my girlfriends share my "passion" for silly old holidays and smutty old love stories. This Sunday, my dear friend Rachel and I rendezvoused for a night on the town. We decided to see Valentine's Day. I'm such a sucker for a good love story. And, this movie totally did it for me. It reallyyyy got panned by the critics, but, as a hopeless romantic, I was satisfied.

I'll be honest, I'm not a big fan of Valentine's Day. I think it's a corny Hallmark holiday. But, I guess I kind of love it, too. It gives me the chance to sent out some snail mail to my dearest friends and hangout with my closest pals. I was going to share some insight on the holiday and what all of the history books say... (Apparently the real deal isn't all roses and cupids...) But, I've decided against it. In reality, I don't think I need a holiday to tell those people I love them... That I love them... But, I do think I should take every opportunity to reflect on why I love those that I love. And, Valentine's Day is an opportunity to do so.

So then, I had some Valentine's Day candy and spent the evening with a a dear childhood friend. And, that's all I need. :) Happy Belated Valentine's Day!

Shenanigans!

I've been slacking... Which is downright odd because I'm pretty sure blogging is my therapeutic outlet.

However, I have been having some serious fun recently...

Had a night out with my pals in Brooklyn... 

These gals are so much fun!

And naturally, we tested out the mouth-open-laugh... 

Visited the Brooklyn Flea on Atlantic Ave... 

It's currently being hosted by the Williamsburgh Savings Bank. 

Which is a totally beautiful building! 

Oh yeah, did I mention there was a rad blizzard last week?? 

New York Lottery Commercial

It's corny, I know... 

But I'm such a sucker for a funny commercial. I saw this commercial last week and I've been scouring the internet for it all week. I finally found it! I'm totes in love with Boston's "More Than a Feeling," and I'm pretty sure the NY Lottery nailed it on the head. Plus, the guy in this video makes me wanna die laughing! Enjoy! 

Snow Day

(9:30a this morning - 2/10/10, anticipating 12 inches by 6p tonight)

It's my first, my very first...

Snow day.

The weather man has been advising of a major winter storm scheduled to hit the mid-Atlantic for the past week. He's been hoo-ing and haa-ing over this "epic" storm. I'm not gonna lie, I didn't believe him. The last time he expected an "epic" storm, we got an inch or so of rain and dreary looking clouds. Bogus!

This time, he was right.

I'm not a huge fan of the cold. Or snow. Or walking in the cold snow. But, this is kind of cool. Growing up in Phoenix, we never had *snow days.* Granted, I never really wanted one (Refer to previous sentence.) My elementary school did close down one day in August because the air conditioning unit malfunctioned. (Arizona in the summer + no air conditioning = death). Ha. Ha.

I woke up early this morning to make it to my externship, scurried through the blizzard to the subway, only to be greeted by a "Due to the weather, we're closed!" sign on the door of my externship office. So then, I scurried back to my apartment eager to snuggle up with a cup of coffee and some light reading.

Happy Snow Day! :)

Memory Makers

It's my last semester at John Jay. (Hooray!) I'll be heading back to Phoenix soon after graduation, so I'm trying to make as many memories as possible with the short time I have left. Since returning to New York for spring, I've made several greatttt memories!

(We recently visited Panna II, a wonderful Indian restaurant in the East Village.)

(The decorations were crazy! The entire restaurant was the size of a walk-in closet and there must have been 30-50 people inside.) 

(The food was fantastic!)

(The company was phenom, as usual!)

(After Panna II, we took a swing by Jules Jazz club for a pitcher of Sangria.) 

:)

Ahh, I dooo love this city. 

A Good Shoe Repair Man

(My black Nine West boots. Bummer!)

Bless the soles of my winter shoes. Bless the soles of all my shoes, for that matter. As it turns out, this concrete jungle does a number on my boots, flip flops, and sneakers... 

It would be ridiculous to go out and buy a new pair of boots (when a good pair runs around $100), so I've become rather friendly with my shoe repair man. He's a little rough around the edges. So, I walk in with a smile, say please and thank you. He seems to appreciate my sincerity, as he does a fantastic job repairing my shoes. Although I had to barter a bit... I got the man down to $20 for two heel replacements, two sole replacements, and a shoe shine. He seemed to buckle under pressure when I mentioned the reasonable price I payed for a shoe repair in Phoenix... I won't lie, it was odd to discuss the price of a standard service. Is this a New York thing? I figured there might be a sign on the wall listing the standard price for different repair options. Maybe not? 

It seems I've developed some great professional relationships with my neighborhood's small business owners. These types of relationships are those that develop well over time. I walk in, say hello to "Charlie," and discuss my newest sole issue. And, I kind of love it. It's nice to hob-knob with the locals. And then I have to remind myself, I'm a local, too.