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every winter when the new york temperatures plummet, i consider my state of residency. why do i live here? why wouldn’t i live somewhere warm, like i don’t know, santa barbara? sb may seem a bit random but i’ve been coming across it recently. it was the picture perfect backdrop for the film, it’s complicated and in a recent sunset magazine spread, there was a feature on santa barbara architecture.
architect jeff shelton was featured in this article. i love his spanish / california style: the bright colors, tiles and iron are so warm and inviting. i can just imagine the bright community feel that this courtyard would offer. to see more of his gorgeous work, go here.
late blooms has a new gallery addition, featuring streamlined photographs and beauty. i invite you to peruse now and check back in for updates.
photograph from lidya’s flicker page.
my friend dana bakes challah bread for friends trying to conceive. now that she and her husband are trying for their second child, she is turning to her friends/community for help. there is a tradition and belief that with the unified prayer of at least 40 people and performance of this mitzvah, conception may be possible.
dana rounded up more than 50 people – from the us to mexico to australia, to make a challah between sundown thursday, december 17 and sundown friday, december 18. i will be participating tonight, making my first challah! i’ll follow up with a report, and perhaps pictures.
easy challah recipe:
-dissolve 1 tsp. sugar in 1/2 cup warm water. sprinkle 1 pkg. yeast on top and let stand for 10 minutes in large mixing bowl. stir to dissolve.
-combine with 1/2 cup oil, 1/2 cup warm water, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 tsp. salt and 2 eggs. beat well. then stir in 3 1/2 – 4 cups flour. dough should be sticky. cover dough and let rest for 10 minutes. knead for 10 minutes.
-cover bowl and let rise in a warm place about 2 hours. punch down, cover and let rise about 45 minutes.
-divide dough in to 3 equal parts, shape in to strands and braid loosely on greased baking sheet. fasten ends securely. bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.
photo from is that my bureka
i never knew that brussel sprouts grew on stalks. in fact, i never knew how they grew; i never gave it much thought. but i keep seeing stalks at farmer’s markets, grocery stores and veggie stands. so strange how one never notices something and then sees it everywhere.
preparing them from the stalk makes cooking even more fun. a quick steam before roasting them in the oven doused with olive oil, garlic, sea salt and ground pepper, makes a tasty side. i don’t know why this vegetable gets such a bad rap (picture kids being forced to eat brussel sprouts before they could have dessert), they are delicious.
jack the horse tavern, a great haunt in brooklyn heights, serves roasted brussel sprouts and radishes with a vinegary vibe. my husband and i love to snack on them at the bar while waiting for our meal to arrive. as a side or as an app – brussel sprouts are a great way to veg out.
i just watched the pool aka la piscine, a picture perfect french glossy film. take inventory: a beautiful villa in saint tropez, silky keyhole dresses worn by romy schneider (sans bra, naturally), and a sullen, nubile, jane birkin. despite the eye candy, i oscillated between two opposing feelings:
1. excitement and fascination
2. total boredom
the more i think about it, many foreign films have a dichotomy of being both intriguing and dull. the prime proof is often in the dialogue – deep and substantial, yet mundane and phony. and i quote:
i don’t really like the summer; i only like in between seasons
are you hungry?
some nights anything goes.
i’m afraid. i do not know why.
you don’t find good rice very often
you’re pisces aquarius rising, you were born to be loved
you know, a case is never definitely closed.
and the ultimate question: what does this all mean? nothing….everything?
photo from i.bp.blogspot.com
as many times as i have heard the terms ‘free range’ and ‘grass fed,’ i don’t think i fully grasped what that meant until i watched food inc. i guess i shouldn’t be stunned by dispicable farming practices and the mega corporations that control it, but i never understood the implications that it has – on the immigrant worker trying to survive, the small farmer who is imprisoned (basically) by corporate greed – even me ordering a burger at my favorite joint. you can bet i will be asking questions before i order my food from now on.
the film is jarring, scary and real. some farmers even feed corn to fish! fish! that is not right. food inc contains some positive messages, however. awareness. companies becoming more conscious and mindful (even if their motivations aren’t completely pure). and the fact that i (one person) was touched enough to tell you (many people) to watch it. so what are you waiting for? netlix…blockbuster…joe’s video den…enlighten yourself!
the dress that grace kelly wore in to catch a thief is jaw dropping. she honestly takes my breath away. paired with cary grant, they are a force to be reckoned with.
is there a comparable style icon or actress today? who rivals grant….clooney? the grace and class of that age seems to be absent in modern day times. i quite like the suavity of that era – there is almost something magical to it. in a world where robert pattison is revered (granted i read twilight and new moon), i think many of us crave polished style.
photos via zimbio and dancefloortragedy respectively.
this post explores the age old question of: what the heck is a cheese curd? cheese curds is cheddar cheese in its natural, random shape and form, before being processed into blocks. this regional phenomeon started with wisconsin cheese makers taking handfuls of the morsels home to their children. i experienced this first hand in madison, wisconsin this weekend.
it began with a trip to the farmer’s market where i sampled many a curd, and my husband purchased several bags for friends. i learned that the orange color associated with cheese curds is really a dye; the natural color is white. later i learned that cheese curds that are fried and dipped in horseradish sauce is the most decadent and divine snack ever created. we tried this delicacy at the old fashioned , a jamming restaurant near the capitol. the bartender described them as fried mozzarella sticks, but better. indeed. we should have stopped here, but alas our meal was on the way – chili (served over spaghetti) and bratwurst. but no need to dwell on this over-indulgent, calorie infested meal…
let’s face it, sconnies love cheese, and who can blame them? whether it’s cheese curds in a plastic bag or artisinal cheeses from fromagination , it’s all delicious. just one of the many reasons why i love wisconsin.
lately, i’ve been clocking time at bloomingdale’s to help launch the bumble and bumble styling bar. i never realized what a cult following their frozen yogurt has. women stroll the “b way” with towering cups of fro-yo. friends sit across from each other at 40 carrots, chatting over piles of the frozen treat. weary shoppers lap it up to reenergize before throwing down more cash.
did i mention how big the serving is? it’s just not normal for someone to consume that much yogurt in one sitting. i’m happy to say i did not finish mine (although i made quite the dent). my regret, however, is minimal. i got vanilla + berry, the latter to support breast cancer.
photo from flickr.
the other day, i found myself walking down 59th street between 1st and 2nd and passed by pierre deux. a flood of memories rushed over me. when i was a young teenager, i wanted a pierre deux handbag more than anything. all the cool girls at temple carried them and i thought they were the most wonderful purses in the entire universe. i begged my parents for one and they wouldn’t let me have one. not even if i bought it myself (i remember it was $35). i was beside myself.
then, someone went to france. i can’t remember who – it must have been a friend of my mom’s. and she brought me back a purse in a blue pattern. i should have felt estatic, even privileged that i had a a bona fide french purse. but i couldn’t help feeling like a phony, like i would be spotted a mile away with a faux deux. although i felt a sense of shame, i wore the purse – which would eventually contain a true pierre deux coin purse that i purchased (with my own money).
of course, today i can appreciate that my mom arranged for me to have a french purse. it was thoughtful and kind, considering her (most likely) desire to delay my inevitable growth. but i will never forget that sense of longing and desire that i felt.
a few weeks ago, i bought my first pair of clogs. up until then, i never thought of myself as someone who wears clogs (whatever that means). but buying them felt strangely liberating and exciting. the clogs made their debut at the office today and i got a slew of compliments. in a place where louboutin’s are coveted and blahnik’s worshipped, sven got props. as the weather turns cooler, i must find some sassy socks and sexy stockings to go with them. happy socks may just be the place to start.
image from free people
i’m kind of fascinated by prince’s vanity 6 (photo 1) and appolonia 6 (photo 2). apparently, ‘6′ stems from 3 female group members x 2 breasts. simple mathematics, i suppose. the old images are fantastic and i’m posting a few. the only thing that baffles me is the teddy bear. thoughts?
photo credit: vibe magazine and appoloniakotero82.tripod.com respectively
facial hair, as old as man itself, has taken it’s place in the spotlight in the format of the mustache. mustaches seem to be everywhere these days – above the lips of hipsters, gold ones adorning the necks of trendy chicklets, and on oklahoma’s qb landry jones (that was for my husband). i secretly like this quirky trend and after doing a little research on the topic, found that there are groups and organizations dedicated to the mighty stache.
no one seems more dedicated than the american mustache institute whose mantra is ‘protecting the rights of, and fighting discrimination against, mustached americans by promoting the growth, care and culture of the mustache.’ they are hosts to the ’stache bash’ in st. louis on october 30, where mustached legend, john oates will perform. also, those interested in entering the robert goulet mustached american of the year contest, you still have a few weeks. it isn’t solely for gents either, the online submission form asks for gender!
illustrations and logo from american mustache institute; advertisement credit tbd
my dear friend katie asked me to write an entry for i loved new york – her blog dedicated to her passion for the city and nostalgia for what is no longer. to read it, click here.
photo credit: kottke.org
growing up, my bedroom’s pastel wallpaper was covered in magazine tears – kate moss and marky mark interwined in a calvin klein ad, cute boys from details magazine and a slew of absolut vodka ads. i love the graphic wit of the ads, such as absolut marilyn, featured on a grate with its “skirt” blowing up, or absolut manhattan, with central park shaped like the bottle. i even used to try to come up with ideas for ads, which hadn’t been produced. i recently stumbled across the iconic bottle, wrapped in leather and studs (by designer natalia brilli) for their special rock edition. naturally, vodka and rock and roll make quite a nice pair. after all these years, the product and campaign remains creative, current and cool.
image from luxuo.com
last weekend was my first exploration of the catskills. we want to buy a getaway spot and this was our initial trip to get the lay of the land. first impressions: stunning scenery (often reminiscent of california), kind people, tremendous food (more on that later) and good vibes all around. we stayed at a wonderful b&b called breathe inn. from the impecable design to the delicious breakfast to the owner’s adorable kids, it was welcoming and inspirational.
when we first arrived in phoenicia, we ate at sweet sue’s. i had the “carrot cake” pancakes and made the mistake of ordering 2 cakes (1 was plenty). while waiting for my meal, i flipped through edible hudson valley and noticed a feature on the owner of peekamoose, a restaurant in big indian. i didn’t think much of it until a shopkeeper on main street recommended it – and later the owner of breathe inn just assumed we would eat there. nevertheless, i have already claimed peekamoose my favorite restaurant. we dined in the tap room, soaking in the cozy atmosphere, with the rain gently falling outside. we were unable to enjoy the best feature, however: the rain prohibited us from roasting marshmallows on the pit in front. you can bet i will be back to do that.
the teepee at breathe inn:
breathe inn decor:
pancake menu at sweet sue’s:
the perfect house (with a red door):
the bar at peekamoose:
i’m currently reading waiter rant, by steve dublanica. waiter rant began as a blog, where dublanica aka “the waiter” chronicled his interactions with restaurant patrons – the good, the bad and the ugly (mostly ugly). it’s a fun read, especially for a new yorker, and i can’t help but have a different perspective when i eat in restaurants now. mostly what i find inspiring, is what started as something casual, fun and an outlet for frustration evolved into a book on the ny times best seller list. compare his original blogspot blog to his current wordpress blog, and you’ll see how far he’s come. no wonder my husband encouraged me to use wordpress for late blooms. below is an excerpt from his site.
The phone rings.
“The Bistro,” I answer, “How can I help you?”
“What kind of cuisine do you serve?” a female voice asks.
“Northern Italian madam.”
“And what’s your sushi special tonight?”
I pause a moment.
“We don’t serve sushi madam.”
“Why not?”
“Because we’re not a Japanese restaurant?”
The caller thinks about that for a sec.
“Do you serve tuna?” she asks.
“We do.”
“Can’t you make sushi out of that?”
“No.”
“Why not?” she asks incredulously.
“Because.”
“Oh.”
There’s a long pause. I can visualize this woman sucking her thumb.
“Would you like to make a reservation?” I ask
“No, I really wanted sushi tonight.”
“Sorry,” I verbally shrug.
“Could you suggest a place?” she asks testily.
I give her the name and number of a very expensive sushi house and hang up. I look at the clock and sigh. So far I’ve put in eighty hours at the Bistro. When Fluvio comes back this Sunday it’ll be 110 hours without a break. Phone calls like this threaten to destroy whatever sanity I have left. It’s time to self medicate.
bet you can’t wait.
pomme frites
March 10, 2010 in commentary, illustration | Leave a comment
this pretty much encapsulates my knowledge of the french language…as of now. next month, i begin french lessons at french institute allliance française. i am excited to learn and a bit intimidated by this beautiful language. when i inquired about classes, i had a difficult time understanding the man who took my call. he was speaking english. wish me “chance.”
founded at the turn of 20th century, the french institute and the alliance française de new york operated as two separate organizations, the first promoting french arts, the second teaching french. in 1971 they merged to form what has become one of the largest and most respected centers of french-american activities in the u.s: the french institute alliance française.