Workin' for a Livin'

Apparently my gut has on sense of intuition.  I got the job, which is a nice metaphoric ray of light breaking through my dark little rain cloud of a day.  This explains a little bit why I have never been particularly good at multiple choice tests.  If only I'd known years ago: just do the opposite of what it tells me the answer is.

Bad Day

I'm in a mood.  Not a good one.  Today is one of those days where I've cried twice in the last 2 1/2 hours and have asked myself repeatedly if I will ever like living here (I mean really like it to the point where it feels like home).  My bad day reasons are extremely selfish and I'm fully aware of it. 

I had an interview this morning at the same place I interviewed a couple of weeks ago but for a different job.  The good news is they still like me.  My interview was fine but I'm not feeling like the job is mine to lose.  I'm not sure if that's because I didn't get the last one or what, but I'm just not expecting fireworks.  THAT is what started my mood.  It continued when I got home from my interview and realized that the silence I met when I opened the front door is my weekend.  L is in Houston with his college friends for a quasi-bachelor party, so I'm all by myself, and I've had enough of that.  I'm a people person and I've spent the last week by myself, not to mention the majority of the last 8 months.  Plus, I just wanted a hug when I got home from my interview.  Is that so wrong?  I had to settle for a quick phone call with him and my parents and then a longer one with Tri-ing Something New.  Also, if I'm being honest, I'm just jealous of L right now.  He got a weekend with his bff last weekend and now he gets 3 whole days and nights with all of his best friends from college.  Yes, I am bitter, mostly because he was going to try and get me a buddy pass to fly to Houston so I could hang out with my Houston friends and it didn't happen, and I don't really understand why but it's not my buddy pass to give away so I won't question it.  Yes, I am being extra selfish.  Right now I do not care.  This is the kind of weekend where I would drive to my parents' house and hang out with them if we were still in Texas.  I'm annoyed that it's not an option and that I don't know anyone within driving distance to go visit besides my aunt and that's not an option this weekend.  I looked up flights to anywhere in Texas and it's cost-prohibitive.  I guess you could go ahead and say I'm officially, seriously homesick today.  As in, to the point where I am seriously considering replying "yes" to attending the A&M summer barbecue here in August because it'll have Blue Bell ice cream and Rudy's barbecue.  I am so not into the Association of Former Students stuff, here or anywhere else I've lived.  This is also reminding me that I neglected to wear my Aggie ring to my interview today.  It wouldn't have mattered, but the only time I ever wear it is to job interviews.  Also, I want a puppy.  Specifically, Boomer.  I could use a puppy hug from him right now.

Lest you forget what he looks like, that's him in all his glory popping out of the picnic basket.  One of my favorite pics of him because it's so ridiculous.  Also, for the record, my parents did NOT take him to get this picture made.  The place where they board him took it one time while he was there and surprised my parents with it.  Also, I have an 8x10 of this framed in my living room.

The bright side of the my day: the message I got this morning from Samantha (previously mentioned for his love for Heidi Montag's newest album).  A transcript for you:

"Team LC*...  That name is soooo seeeeexy!...  Team LC!  Hahaha!  Um, before I get too inappropriate, HI!  It's Samantha!  Ummmm, it's 8:19 here and I love having friends on the East Coast because I wake up so early and I can call them and it's an hour laaaaaaaater, but I'm on my way to get coffee and I'm very, very tired (YAWN). OOOHH!!  I'm looking at a hot guy riding his bike!  Gotta love Austin... Boys on bikes... BUT, I want to talk to you about Sex and the City and everything that means something in my life that has depth so CALL ME BACK.  BYE!!"

That's what I've listened to now repeatedly in an effort to stop being Debbie Downer.  Fingers crossed that I can successfully pick myself up by my bootstraps this afternoon and stop wallowing so that the weekend gets better. 


*My voicemail actually says my married name now and he just now noticed, thus the fascination.

Nothing Suits Me Like a Suit

I have several suits in my closet, the newest of which was purchased sometime in the winter of 2008.  That means all the others are older.  I can still wear most of them with some appropriate updating, but it occurred to me a couple of weeks ago that it might be time to go ahead and pull the trigger on a new one.  I'm a huge fan of the Capitol Hill Style blog, and her preferred suit is from J. Crew's Super 120s line. 

On one hand, I know suits aren't going to be a cheap purchase, but at the same time, I don't want to blow a ton of money on something I may not wear too many times since I'm still looking for a job (thus the immediate need for the suit) and have no idea what the dress code will be at my future office.  J. Crew is very proud of their clothing (and rightfully so in many instances) and their suiting options aren't the most affordable out there, and given my non-existent "fun" money these days, I was hesitant to pull the trigger on the J. Crew stuff.  Luckily, I got an email from them last Wednesday announcing that their summer sale was on.  Off I clicked to see what I could score for a "deal". 

Lo and behold, their Super 120s pinstripe suits were on sale!  Sweetness!  I immediately filled my shopping cart with a jacket, pants, skirt (all in gray), and a couple of blouses to try out with them.  Bonus feature of living in Virginia: the items were being shipped from Roanoke, so instead of it taking 4-7 business days to arrive, I got them the day after they shipped!  Super exciting.  However, because we had company, I was unable to try them on when I got home from work on Friday.  We had places to go and people to see.  I finally was able to try everything on this morning and I love all of it (which is a problem, as I didn't intend to keep it all when I ordered it, but I'll figure out what will make the final cut before the week is out).  I did notice, though, that the gray of my new suit is incredibly close in color to L's gray pinstripe suit.

My new suit jacket:

L's suit (he's the one in gray, obvi):

Yes, for those of you who know us personally, you know that this is an old pic, as the tall gentleman in pink glasses is not part of our group anymore (for those who may be concerned or alarmed, I assume he's fine; he was simply issued walking papers).  This is the best pic I can find right now of this particular suit.  Anyway, L still has his gray suit and keeps it in his rotation of preferred suiting options.  His stripes are a little wider than mine, but I assure you that the fabrics are the same shade.  Awesome.  I've always wanted to have an outfit that matches my husband's.  Maybe we can dress alike one day and high five each other as we head out the door to work.  Or maybe we'll wear them together to a wedding sometime. 

I'm still going to keep my new suit, though.  Matching or not, I need a new one and this was a good deal that happens to fit really well and looks sharper than what I've got hiding in the depths of my closet. 

Don't Fear the Reaper

L's bff, The Gamblor, was here over the weekend and adventures were had.  Saturday night The Gamblor and I stayed up late chatting about all kinds of things, including irrational fears.  His irrational fears are falling off a cruise ship and getting hit with a jump rope by people who are jumping rope at the gym.  (Note: he's never been on a cruise, due in large part to this fear.  This same fear does not extend to vessels of any other size, which is important to note, as he has owned a boat before.) 

Over the years, several of us have repeatedly explained that it's pretty much impossible to accidentally fall off a cruise ship, and he's slowly coming around to understanding and accepting this, but the fear still remains for the time being.  The jump rope fear is newer for him.  I have no details to add, as it's pretty self-explanatory. 

I have fears, but I don't know that any of them are irrational in the same way that The Gamblor's are.  I mean, I hope I don't get hit by a jump rope in the gym while it's in use, but I'm not so afraid that I won't use the weight machine that's closest to where the jumper is jumping.  Lord knows I survived getting slapped in the arm with jump ropes plenty of times during elementary school p.e. classes (and they were those jump ropes that have the long, plastic bugle beads on them, so it stung extra bad when you accidentally got hit).  I definitely have a somewhat debilitating fear of roaches and spiders that are bigger in size than a dime.  In my last apartment in Austin, there were two occasions where I ended up on the phone with L for roughly 30 minutes (okay maybe longer) so that he could talk me through slaughtering a roach.  Luckily for me, on the second occasion, my friend Mosie was already on her way to pick me up to take me to the airport, and being the bug killer that she is, she just used half of a paper towel to pick up and squish it (yeah, sick.  I died a little bit watching her but was simultaneously so proud and so in awe of her).  I just can't handle that crunch of crushing bugs and I HATE IT when they are large and leave a mess behind.  I also hate that when you spray them with bug killer, their instinct is to fly at you.  Oh and in case you are wondering, I made it to the airport on time but I was totally flustered and perspiration-y due to the roach incident.  Something like that might cause me to have a heart attack someday (in my defense, the roach appeared dead and did not move AT ALL when I uncovered it.  Then when I went to try and kill it with spray- while wearing rubber gloves and brandishing the biggest wad of paper towels you've ever seen- it FLIPPED OUT AND RAN AT ME.  Stupid roach).  Also, for the record, I lived on the ground floor and those were the only 2 roaches I ever saw in that apartment during the 2 1/2 years I lived there.  Just don't want y'all thinking I'm the trashy, dirty girl with a roach infestation.

As I type this, I'm reflecting on the fact that I recently informed all 5 of you about my fear of watching Home Alone or any other potentially scary movie or TV show by myself at night.  Perhaps that counts as irrational fear, as there is literally no reason to be afraid of Kevin McAllister's zany antics and his plight to save his home.  So maybe that's my irrational fear.  Scary movies and TV shows.  I have another one to add to the list: freaking Unsolved Mysteries, which I just learned APPARENTLY is still a show with new episodes!!  I mean Robert Stack is just eerie with his monotone narration.  Plus, add the menacing music and you've got a nightmare waiting to happen.  If you want to learn more about the new show or just scare yourself silly at work, peruse the website here.  If you just want to reminisce about the old version with the creepy music and Robert Stack, watch the YouTube video below.



In case you're wondering, L is apparently superhuman and has no irrational fears, or so he claims.  I think it's quite likely that he probably has some kind of irrational like, dislike, or belief of something, though.  I've tried to think of what my friends' irrational behaviors are and off the top of my head, it's mostly stuff like fears of riding horses and some other things that I'm realizing I won't share because the more I think about it, these things would just make them sound racist and they really aren't in real life.


UPDATE: I just searched Google with the phrase "falling off a cruise ship" and found this article on how to react if you should find yourself in such a situation.  I feel compelled to share it.  Please take special note of numbers 2, the last sentence of number 7, and number 10. 

Hoedown, from Rodeo*

My bestie MAS and I were just discussing a wee problem L seems to have when it comes to purchasing meat.  I'm all for buying food when it's on sale, particularly meat.  You can get some killer deals on various cuts of different meats from time to time.  I'm also no stranger to freezing said meat if I'm not ready to prep and cook it within a day or two of purchasing it.  L is on board with all of this.  The problem becomes when L's primal instinct to get more for his money kicks in.  While I look at the number of pounds and equate how it plays out for 2, his instinct screams, "BIGGER IS BETTER!"  This means that the lovely Easter ham we made weighed in at 8 pounds.  For two people.  We I ate ham for weeks, and I'm not exaggerating with that S on the end of week.  That ham stuck around for a long time.  L also broke in his new smoker (happy 31st birthday, L!) last Monday and smoked a pork shoulder.  Another example of a time when we had more meat than was necessary for two people with average appetites. 

This is all relevant because L just called and asked me if I could hurry home after work and work on vegetables for the roast he started this morning.  A couple of months ago, L proudly returned home from the store with a piece of beef for a pot roast.  I didn't have the heart to tell him that that is Winter Food for me and that with the weather getting warmer (which is code for SWIMSUIT SEASON), the last thing I want is a thick, hearty stew for dinner (plus, as I was telling Champagne and Sprinkles, I like the pot roast I make more than his, but shhhhhh!).  Apparently after our dinner discussion last night about how we both want to eat better these days, he came home and pulled out the roast and left it defrosting in the fridge.  (Side note: I realize we bought vegetables for this over the weekend.  However, I was hoping to deter him and just use them for other purposes.  I failed.)  My current temping job requires that I leave the house before him, as in, before he's even awake yet (he goes in to work late), so when he got up, apparently he went to town with the roast and the Crock Pot.  I'm told this also created quite the mess in the fridge but that he was able to help clean it up.  We'll see...  What I know for sure (channeling Oprah here) is that he didn't get the vegetables in ye olde Crock Pot.  My job is to now figure out a way to cook them enough so that when they are added to the meat, they'll taste like they've been cooking with it the whole time.  THANK GOODNESS I HAPPENED TO GO GET A VEGETABLE STEAMER FROM BED BATH AND BEYOND LAST WEEK!  We're going to be all about steaming the freakishly large carrots and the normal-sized onion and potatoes. 

And with that, I'm done. 

BEEF.  IT'S WHAT'S FOR DINNER.




*If you are not familiar with this song, it's the song in the Beef: It's what's for dinner commercials from the 90s.

Sunday, Bloody Sunday

Season 3 of True Blood starts tonight!!  Get excited for new episodes with Eric and Jason (and Bill, if he's more your flavor)!  If you aren't watching or don't have HBO, I highly recommend that you add seasons 1 and 2 to your Netflix queues.  The TV series is also loosely based on the Sookie Stackhouse novels by Charlaine Harris, but after reading books 1 and 2, I have to say they're a little cheesy/ hokey, and bad romance novel-ish.  Plus, honestly, the outfits she has Sookie running around in (lace-up pants and scrunchies??  No thanks) are so small-town ridiculous.  However, they are definitely quick reads and would be great for the beach if you're looking for something that's light and easy to read.  Just don't expect them to be as good as the Twilight series if you're a Twilight lover.

Jesus Loves Me

Does anyone know how to politely but firmly drive the point home to Jehovah's Witnesses that you are not interested in converting?  I tried explaining that L and I are both Christians and we attend a church around the corner, but it doesn't dissuade them. I still got the whole spiel (which is apparently a real word- I just looked the spelling up on Dictionary.com* and was surprised for some reason to see that it's not slang), as well as their questioning who I was ("Are you L's friend?").

It should also be noted that they only target our house on our street.  I know this because I ran home yesterday during my lunch break (I'm currently temping) and imagine my surprise when a man and woman were getting out of a car directly in front of my house as I pulled up and parked.  Back story: the girl who lived here before us gave them her name and they stopped by after we moved in looking for her.  L answered the door and explained that she moved but they got L's name and continue to come by our house at random to "chat" with us, although most of the time we don't answer the door anymore.  Why they thought he would be home at 2:00 on a Friday afternoon instead of at work is beyond me, but they did ask when a better time to visit would be and they suggested weekend afternoons before giving me literature about who Jesus Christ really is and the basis of their beliefs and then getting back into their car and leaving.  Now the part of me that avoids confrontation is making me feel like we need to be out and about every weekend for the foreseeable future so that we don't have to risk answer the door to them and getting sucked into a conversation about their version of Christianity.

This has also sparked an internal conflict within me.  I realize challenging conversations like this are actually a good thing.  They help you reaffirm why you believe what you believe, give you clarity about your belief(s), and they make you stronger.  I shouldn't be afraid to have the conversations.  I'm actually not afraid to have the conversations, and in fact, in the right setting, I enjoy conversations like that.  I like learning about what other people believe, whether it be religion, politics, or just their general beliefs, and their reasons for their beliefs.  I think it makes me a more well-rounded person to know more about other people.  I'm definitely not of the mindset that you have to agree with me on everything in order to be my friend.  If we have differing opinions on things, it doesn't mean one of us is wrong and the other right, it just means we have a difference is opinion.  While I can definitely be opinionated and vocal about my beliefs, I really do enjoy the differences that my friends and I have.  But I digress.  Going back to the original point, I don't want to have a debate with the Jehovah's Witnesses.  The part that I dread is not the actual conversation but the possibility that they may not take no for an answer.  That's where I start to lose respect for other people who are trying to impart their beliefs and opinions on others: when they lose respect for the fact that I already have my own beliefs and opinions to which I am firmly committed.  I respect what they are doing, as well as their desire and passion to spread their beliefs, but L and I are not interested in converting.  I don't want to be rude to them, but there comes a point when their efforts are honestly annoying and intrusive. 



*If you don't use Dictionary.com, oh my gosh, definitely do so!  I see misspellings on blogs all of the time- for some reason, a lot of people particularly have problems with the words "voila" and "petite four" (yes, I know how random that sounds but a lot of the blogs I read are about food and apparently magic).  If you're not sure, as my dad used to tell me growing up, "Look it up, dear."  Drove me crazy in the '90s but I learned my lesson.

To market, to market to buy a fresh pig...

One of my favorite things so far about D.C. is the Eastern Market.  Honestly there's nothing that's like OHMYGOSHYOUHAVETOSEETHIS! about it, but I just really like it.  For you non-D.C.ers, it's basically a farmer's market with one building that has permanent vendor booths in it (think refridgerated cases) and then on the weekends, lots of other vendors come and set up booths outside in tents.  The bonus is that there are also non-food vendors that have lots of fun stuff!  I made a quick visit last weekend and this morning L and I went together because he had never been.  Plus, on Saturday mornings, the lunch counter there has a good breakfast, so we were able to eat first and then shop.

I took some pics of the permanent counters inside.  Check it out: they have fresh, handmade pasta. 

If you look closely, you'll see some dark-colored ravioli on the bottom row in the picture above.  That's a dessert ravioli that is made of chocolate and filled with some kind of cream.  I have no idea how you cook it, either, but it was interesting!

And look at all these meats:

Some of the pretty flowers:

There was lots of seafood that I didn't get to take a picture of.  At some point I want to try some of the meat counters and pasta.  I also want to get some mussels and, if we can go back again while it's in season, some soft shell crab.  Never tried making either of the latter but it seems like they'd be fun to try.  And delicious.  We ended up coming home with peaches, blackberries, cherries, a cantaloupe, fresh garlic, potatoes, and 2 of the biggest carrots I've ever seen.  The best part of all is that all of the produce we bought is organic and fresh-picked.  Everything tastes that way it's supposed to taste.  I wish food from the grocery store tasted this good.

Completely unrelated: if you are like me and SRG and you don't love reading blogs in Google Reader, you can now sign up to get my posts emailed directly to you via the feedburner I installed this week.  If this is of interest to you, enter your email address into the "Become a Regular" field on the top right side.  Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!!

I Hope I Get It

I forgot how much job interviewing is like rush.

P.S. - When did leotards for adults go out of style?

I Get a Kick Out of You

Right in the shins.



Saw this on the news. And it's a real competition. Note the spectators.  I have nothing more to say.

Pink. It's my new obsession. Pink. It's not even a question.

When husbands go out of town for work for days on end, it's important to make sure you have your own life and activities to occupy your time, particularly when you are unemployed.  Also, given that last little factor, it's important that these activities be free or low-cost.  My Saturday morning was not free and it's not what I would call low-cost ($40 for basically an hour and a half, plus parking and Metro fare), but that gets overlooked because it's an important cause to me.  What was I doing?  The Susan G. Komen Global Race for the Cure! 

RFTC is something I've actively been a part of for so many years that I actually can't remember when I started.  My mom is a 17 year survivor (woo hoo!!) this year, so at some point along the way- either in high school or college- she and I started doing RFTC together as a way to celebrate each year that has passed.  Luckily she's never had any sign of recurrence!  Fingers are crossed that it stays that way forever.  In addition to my mom, my dad's mother lost her life to breast cancer several years before I was born, as did the mother of one of my aunts.  We always remember them when Mom and I walk together.

About 5 years ago, I found more reasons to support RFTC.  Tiffany (from Life is Glam & Fab) organized a team in Austin- Team Zsa Zsa- to support her mom, who had been newly diagnosed that year and was undergoing treatment.  Along with Champagne and Sprinkles, Pearls (from Chopsticks and Pearls), Liz (from A Joy-Filled Journey), and several others, we walked in support of Tiffany's mom then, and over the years, we've added more names to our list of women we honor and remember at each race.  As I type this, Mrs. Z, the mother of one of my friends from high school, is in surgery to have a double mastectomy.  Mrs. Z was diagnosed right after I moved here and has completed the chemo portion of her treatment.  After she recovers from surgery, she'll wrap up the remaining months of 2010 by going through radiation.  Not a fun way to spend an entire year, but she's one strong lady, both physically and spiritually, and she has such an amazing attitude about life! 

Anyway, the odds of me being able to go back to Austin or Dallas this year for those races is pretty low, so I wanted to be able to make sure I represented Team Zsa Zsa (in spirit- I didn't have time to make shirts for us) by participating here.  I recruited a friend to walk with me since L was still out of town for his work conference, and off we went to the National Mall to walk.

I have to say, this might be my favorite venue for RFTC so far.  Austin's is nice- you walk through downtown and usually around the capitol.  Dallas's has been around Northpark Mall for years and years, which is nice because there's plenty of parking and you can go shopping afterwards (although I don't normally recommend wearing workout gear to shop at that particular mall).   D.C.'s route starts on the eastern end of the Mall, facing the capitol and in between all the Smithsonians, then goes west on Constitution, then doubles back and goes around the Washington Monument to Independence, and then back east toward the capitol.  I gotta say, the nerd in me loved seeing the streets and monuments so empty at that hour (well, except for the 39,999 other walkers and runners) with the sun shining low in the sky.  So pretty.  Also, this race immediately made me wish that every city had a Metro system to take to the race starting points.  SO. MUCH. EASIER.

So here's to the fabulous ladies in my life that I thought of as we walked.  The sign in the picture below was made in 2008 and includes names of the family members who had been diagnosed at that time.  For me, there are actually more names to be added to it, namely Stephanie Z., Carlin G., Nita P., Donna H., Sheron K., Mary Ella G., and my grandmother, Connie C. 

Clearly this something that has affected a lot of women in my life, which is why I am passionate about finding a way to completely erradicate it from our lives.  If you're interested in participating in a race near you, check out this site: http://ww5.komen.org/

I Think I'm Paranoid

For those who may not know, L travels quite frequently for work (for example, working in NYC for all of May, although normally he's only gone for 3-5 business days at a time).  Don't worry, I'm not paranoid about him cheating.  I just realized that if you don't know us, that might be where your head goes first.  No, after living by myself with pretty much no problems for 5 years, I have become the crazy lady who is paranoid about being at home alone. 

How so?  Well, I long ago adopted the policy of not answering the door when I'm home alone if it's someone I don't know.  It's not something that happens often, but when there's a knock at the door 3 times in one afternoon, as was the case on Wednesday, it starts to mess with my head.  I mean, I definitely hid.  Yeah, hiding was my first instinct.  And we're talking full-on crouching on the floor and duck-walking over to the front door to look through the peep hole in the door.  Also, I always feel like if you're at our door, you can tell if someone's looking through our peep hole, because ours is huge and a lot like a telescope.  You can aim it and everything.  Anyway, my door knockers never left anything, so it was probably the same overly persistant person but who knows.  Better safe than sorry! 

Our house is also very creaky at night.  That means I have to sleep with the bedroom door shut so I can't hear the noises out there.  In case you're wondering, I also have a highly active imagination and the first few times L went out of town and I was left here, I could have easily been convinced that we had a ghost.  Not the case anymore, but I was totally freaked out because it sounded like someone was walking through the back of the house on all the creakiest spots on the floor. 

Last night I hit a new low, though.  In addition to sleeping with the bedroom door closed, I also usually turn on a movie and fall asleep with it on in the background when L is away.  I didn't want to watch any of the ones in our personal library, so I decided to watch one on demand.  I should take a moment to explain what kinds of movies are acceptable for falling asleep.  I need something light that I've seen a million times.  Prime examples would be Legally Blonde, Can't Hardly Wait, When Harry Met Sally, Forgetting Sarah Marshall... the list goes on and on.  But nothing scary or even close to it.  As I scrolled through the available movies that we get for free through On Demand because of our HBO and Cinemax subscriptions, I had a hard time picking one.  There were lots I want to see, for example, I've never seen Fatal Attraction, but I'm smart enough to know that a movie about a crazy lady who cooks the family pet is not a good one for me to watch by myself.  Sleeping with the Enemy is really good but HELLO CREEPY!!  Again, totally out.  I paused on Home Alone and almost selected it, but then I ruled it out because it's basically about two robbers trying to break into a house when they thought no one was there.  Yeah, that's right, HOME ALONE WAS TOO SCARY FOR ME LAST NIGHT.  Houston, we have a problem. 

I've known for years it's never a good idea for me to get sucked into TV shows on TLC and A&E about supernatural/ paranormal activity if it's dark outside.  My mind will run away EVERY time.  But Home Alone??  Yeah, apparently I'm a huge scaredy cat who hides from people at the front door and who gets scared by G-rated movies.  I really don't even have anything to say in defense of myself.  Please feel free to ridicule.

Underneath Your Clothes, There's An Endless Story

Random topic to address: the white bra. 

I don't understand the point of them.  I actually don't own one and haven't for several years.  You might be wondering why not.  Well, you don't wear them under white and you certainly don't wear them under black.  Plus, it's not 1950. There are better options out there.  I suppose they are the equivalent to a "fun" colored bra, i.e., the hot pink one that I got at my bachelorette party, but white bras are just not fun.  At any rate, nude (oh, how I loathe that word) bras have long-since replaced my white ones.

Also, let's address white bras under white clothing and why that's a no go.  I'm not talking a sheer top or dress that you can see any bra or tank underneath; I'm talking about a regular white top that, when you put it on, you can see your bra underneath.  You can totally see white bras under white clothing.  It's not fooling anyone.  I'm all for everyone wearing bras, but I'm also all for leaving something to the imagination.  Kathie Lee and Hoda discussed this very topic with a bra expert a couple of days ago during that 4th hour of The Today Show, and I was so glad to see the segment because I wholeheartedly agree!!  It's just too bad that so few people ever see that 4th hour.

Should you disagree with me or just not believe me, I'm supplying you with a link to some experts.

http://www.ehow.com/way_5215006_wear-under-white-dress.html

I tried to find a clip of KL & Hoda but was unsuccessful.  Sorry!

One final note about bras: why the clear straps on strapless bras?  I was at a wedding over the weekend and saw at least 3 offenders in a group of about 80 guests.  That seemed high to me.  Those don't fool anyone and to be honest, in many cases they call more attention to the issue than if you were wearing no bra or a bad strapless.  We all know strapless bras aren't that great, but there's always NuBra chicken cutlets!!  Or go buy a strapless that was made in the last 5 years- they are infinitely better than the ones from back in the day.  More structure and they stay in place better because now they all have that "stay put" rubbery stuff.  OR, you can really blow some minds and double up on the NuBra and a strapless. 

Since I don't have a relevant picture to post, I'm adding a pic of the peonies that are on my dining room table, courtesy of my backyard:

Aren't they lovely?  I think I may have to grow peonies at every house I live in from here on out.  I just love the texture and richness of the petals.

New York State of Mind

Part 2 of the NYC trip:

Met up with BK and his fabulous boyfriend for drinks and bar hopping on Friday afternoon and due to our hopping of bars, I got a tour of the Lower East Side, part of SoHo, some of Nolita, and part of the East Village.  Loved it all.  Might be my favorite areas I've been to in NYC.  BK is just so great- in the 13-ish years I've known him, he really hasn't changed.  Aside his sexuality.  L and I ate dinner at S'mac, an all macaroni-and-cheese establishment in the Village. 

Very good but definitely the kind of thing you only want once every so often.  After that, more drinks at McSoren's (oldest bar in NYC) and bar hopping. 

Saturday L and I got up and hauled it all the way up to Harlem to try Dinosaur Barbeque.  Good but not great.  Then we hauled it all the way down to the West Village to watch BK in action on the trapeze (he teaches at a trapeze school on the Pier) and then we were off for day drinking.  I swear to you that L and I are NOT alcoholics.  At any rate, I (okay WE) was THISCLOSE to having drinks with Lance Bass (he and BK are tight) and a large part of me is disappointed that it didn't work out (he was on the way and decided to bring friends but we didn't have room for them all, so BK told them not to come.  Boo.) but on the other hand, I am afraid I might have TOTALLY geeked out and been a huge nerd.  I have no idea.  I don't often meet celebs and I loved N'Sync, so that could potentially be a recipe for disaster.  Anyway, BK promised another time, so we'll see.

Sunday was off to NJ again to spend the day with my aunt, only L came along this time.  No pics to share or details anyone else would find terribly interesting.  We had dinner that night at the famous Grimaldi's pizzeria and stood in line for about 45 minutes to get our table.  Totally worth it!  The only thing that made the wait somewhat intolerable was this gross guy:

In that pic, he's lighting up his 4th cigarette (that I counted; I may have missed one or two.  Or twelve.)  Anyway, GROSS.  And P.S. - if you're going to smoke in public, BLOW YOUR SMOKE AWAY FROM THE PEOPLE STANDING AROUND YOU. 

Moving on.  Monday was working out in the fab hotel gym (seriously, it was pretty awesome), and eating lunch at Forty Carrots at Bloomingdales and shopping.  Lunch was so simple but so FANTASTIC.  My order:

Quite possibly the best chicken salad sandwich I've ever had.  Seriously.  And the dessert that came with it:

The yogurt looks pretty ordinary, but I promise you it was some of the best I've ever had.  Apparently they have a small selection of flavors that changes based on the day of the week; I picked peanut butter on the recommendation of my waitress, which is weird because normally I don't love pb-flavored ice cream.  Loved it.  Then it was off down Lexington and over to Rockefeller Center.  I could have done a lot of damage but given the current unemployed status, I was good and only looked.  Gold star for me!

Tuesday started out with another workout in the gym, followed by lunch at Shake Shack and a day of reading outdoors because the weather could NOT have been prettier.  Shake Shack is a lovely establishment in Madison Square Park that has burgers, hot dogs, shakes, and various other ice cream-based treats.  I stood in this line behind a lovely European couple that couldn't stop making out:

 You can see the corner of the building on the left.  The line is a little hard to make out because of the people walking through the park.  This is what the line behind me looked like when I was much closer to the front:

And here's what my lunch was:

Wasn't a fan of the gross cheese on the fries, but the burger was great and the perfect size (4 oz).  Being the nerd that I am, I also loved that it's a green establishment!  They have tons of little tables set up outside in the park for patrons to eat at.  So lovely.  After that I moved over to a grassy patch in the park and read for a while, then headed off to the piers on the west side to grab a drink and continue reading at Frying Pan.  My afternoon view:

Tuesday night, L and I managed to get stuck on the subway between Brooklyn and Manhattan (read: UNDER WATER) on the way to dinner, and while we missed our reservation time by half an hour, the awesome wait staff at Cara Mia was so accomodating and said they would hold a table for us when I called to explain where we were and why we were so late.  They got us in and out and fed us well, all in time to make our show.  If you're in the theater district and looking for a good meal, I highly recommend visiting them!  Very charming and good, plus it's also very reasonably priced.  L and I scored 2nd row orchestra seats for Lend Me a Tenor prior to my afternoon adventures, and it was so great! LMAT is a play that opened this spring and stars Anthony LaPaglia, Tony Shalhoub (aka, the guy from Monk), and Justin Bartha (Doug from The Hangover).  Incredibly funny and entertaining. 

My final morning was spent having brunch in Brooklyn at Apartment 138.  Not as good as the dinner L and I had there a few nights prior but I love their back patio, and the weather was perfect for breakfast al fresco. 

After that, I did a little window shopping and then it was off to the train station to head back to D.C.  All in all, a fabulous way to spend a few days! Hopefully the opportunity will present itself to do the same again sometime.