Sunday, March 29, 2009

a seal, a piano, & oscar's of st james

after work on friday i went to the music building of stony brook to meet up with the sister. this little guy reminded me of an article i read about russia banning the practice of seal slaughter. and i figured i needed a pretentious artsy shot of the fluffy thing.

i also came across one of these. which for the life of me would not focus in macro, reminded me of my childhood and is called....something somethingerator.


for dinner, leah and i went to oscar's of st james. since it was smithtown restaurant week last week, we ate with the rest of us plebians instead of the usual crowd. and unlike some douchebags, we tipped the appropriate amount instead of 5% cos it "wasnt enough food."

from the tapas menu, i had the buffalo tostada [very rich but inspired me to buy ground buffalo meat at the grocery store next trip], fried smoked calamari with thai dipping sauce [delicious spicy sauce, calamari rings are fine but the tentacles, while crisp and tasty, definitely weird me out], oven roasted chorizo with onion compote [not an onion fan, but an avid chorizo fan], and moroccan merguez wrapped in potato chips [lamb was also very rich and the potato chips were a very interesting complement, although i spent most of my eating wondering how they were wrapped but still crunchy]


the pic is a little dark as i didn't want the flash to blind everyone in the restaurant. on the left is the chorizo and the right is the merguez. in all i had the real man's meat dinner [meat with a side of meat] and it was a bit too rich, although delectable. i had the berry dessert [mini raspberry napoleon, pannacotta w/ blueberries, and strawberry sorbet] as i felt a molten chocolate cake, hot chocolate milk w/ cookie, and a chocolate truffle would have put me into a food coma under the table right then and there. as it was, i went home after, donned sweatpants, and then rolled around on the couch for awhile like a trussed turkey.

that being said, after i get a raise at work [not holding my breath], we will return to oscars. or more likely during restaurant week next year.

leah had grilled octopus with warm fingerling potatoes, frisee, and orange aiole viniagrette; scallop crusted salmon [minus the scallops] with sunchoke cream, fingerling potatoes, pearl onions, asparagus, and shallots [pic below]; and apple beignets with maple syrup and vanilla ice cream

im hungry now...

domo and a weird outfit

domo, the mascot of a japanese tv station, has a hilarious back story and multiple fansites. leah bought me a domo and he visits various places around my bedroom but has not yet left the house on any crazy adventures.




in other news, i wore a kind of odd outfit the other day and realized why old navy had to switch to "super modelquins". their clothes really dont fit people that move.

  • necklace: pac sun [$2 clearance!]
  • dress: old navy
  • sweater: dkny
  • jeans: gap clearance
i hardly buy anything full price. fuck yea. and um i had some problems with my selftimer. the sister wasnt home to take a pic of me so i attached my sweet gorillapod to the treadmill. here is another picture that resulted. i like how my crazy face is also in the mirror. oops.

Saturday, March 28, 2009

more scenic LI

out checking speed limit postings i came across an idyllic little pond. i have no idea where i was now. but on my way back out i passed a restaurant with a name having something to do with a mill. and the speed limit i was looking for was a school zone at a fork in a road. regardless...here are some of the best pics










the yard

as a leasee, i realize i signed for a house and a sweet bachelorette pad in the newly finish basement. but the yard is atrocious to put it lightly. granted, three guys lived in the house prior to us and my current male roommates are delegated to yard duty which got done maybe twice last fall... but here is the current state of the yard

on the north east corner there is a bush and a pile of broken concrete

south east corner has bushes and some ailing ivy. the fence seperating our yard from the neighbor's is part wood like the back fence and part chain link. the bushes i think were supposed to disguse the chain link but are doing a piss poor job.

this is the gap under the fence to our other neighbor's yard. its basically a kitty door..which allows the kitties to come and sit in the sun, roam around the yard, poop at will, and leave.

an upside.. my tulips and lilys are sprouting! it looks like they all made it through the winter!

tomorrow i am venturing to home depot to attempt purchase and transport of 2"x12"x14' boards in my sister's car. i figure since planting the bulbs was a challenge due to rocks and roots and generally really crappy soil... i am planning raised beds. also, since posting my powercad drawing i have made some changes to my garden plan. on advisement from our office bookkeeper [former electrical engineer for secret government cold war things/tae kwon do expert/gardener], i found a really old version of this book and revised my planting arrangment.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

anomalous long island

whilst driving at high rates of speed today..ironically also whilst [a word which should be used more] checking posted speed limit signs for the town of brookhaven... i happened upon places that noone would consider "normal long island".

now with a grain of salt...long island is a neon strip-mall angry traffic jam.

these are not.


the amount of woods surprised me upon moving to LI. i then learned there used to be massive duck farms in suffolk county which both astounded and utterly disgusted me.


i have no idea wtf this is. id guess an old greenhouse, but after driving past i realized it was massive. like 20+ feet high massive.


while outrageous houses may be the norm for the hamptons... wrought iron fences and brick/masonry stairs and driveway are uncommon for the mastic beach/shirley area.


and lastly... umm a crazy weather alien tv cell phone tower? thanks canon photostitch. you make life more fun. and give the ability to take pictures of tall things without actually having to leave the car!

inappropriate uses for powercad

well not so much inappropriate. it was designed to do cool shit. but this has absolutely nothing to do with traffic or transportation.

firstly-a rearrange idea for our awkwardly shaped office. due to weird jutting portions of the wall [load bearing columns?], the boss man's desire for a bigger office, and enormous desks that were way too expensive for their cheap and tawdry result [i digress]... we are veeeeery limited. i took a photo of my print out and my actual paper cutouts. cos theyre on my bulletin board now. along with a glycemic index food pyramid, a calendar, and a business card from our recycling organizer. and about 20 extra thumbtacks.


  • top left option is what we currently have. the two tiny rectangles on the left are bookcases that are currently blocking the window that the bossman spies on us through. the desk at the bottom is also next to a window..but this one looks outside into a behemoth bush and barely sees daylight.
  • top right option is what we intended to do with the space...but were foiled due to the large rectangle on the bottom left. it is the bossman's office.
  • bottom left is what we just thought of so sarah and i could talk without having to yell over 5" shelves. did i forget to mention that our "U" shaped desks are an L desk with a massive cupboard/desk attached?
  • bottom right is just another option ..but it leaves me completely vulnerable to the spying of the bossman..even thought we shut the curtains and moved coats around to block any remaining iota of space thru which to peer.

this next thing is my new pride and joy. i have since edited it a bit and will post the final version when i get my garden created [but not planted cos its still a bit too cold].




the orange things are potted herbs and they are quite far from the scale the rest of the drawing is in. also, after i measured tonight i realize the bush on the left side is a big off and some other minor things. but its cool damnit *click for a larger view* and its much more creative than my usual cad drawings..which consist of plans someone else did or surveyed which then need to be in the right format. thats right. i put someone else's plan from paper to computer...and they call that enginerding work. BAHH.

Monday, March 23, 2009

violent movies

lately i have renewed my adoration of brainless action movies. and apparently one word titles are all the rage. here are the cinematographic masterpieces i have seen recently, each with a twitteresque synopsis.

taken:
girl gets kidnapped and sold into prostitution while vacationing with dumbass friend, father kicks literal arse

transformers:
boy likes girl, boy gets car, car turns into crazy space robot, car saves boy, boy saves world, world goes on not caring or noticing, surprisingly best movie of 2007?

in bruges:
two hitmen await orders in bruges after massive fuckup, bloodshed and tourism ensue, belgians don't seem to notice

watchmen:
big blue penis disconnects from humanity, humanity tries to recover, bombs "cleanse" humanity, world keeps on turning

wanted:
fraternity of weavers translates binary into targets/hits, boy duped into killing father, has "luke i am your father moment", kills lots, moves on

the international:
bank finances murder and treachery, heroes temporarily save world, normalcy returns, new bank finances murder and treachery

push:
crazy future people gain weird talents, fight for their lives, soy sauce is injected to a really sweet soundtrack in attempt to save the plot

max payne:
detective searches for family's killer, takes crazy valkerie drug, goes on killing spree with mila kunis in 4" heels, has 2 near death experiences

the theme seems to be death/revenge, saving mankind, or generally wearing as little clothing as possible.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

quilt continuation

i spent another 4 or so hours today obsessively cutting and sewing little bits of fabric to make another panel for my awkwardly narrow blue, green, yellow, and white quilt. fortunately i manned up and bought new blades for my rotary cutter so i don't have to cut things 2 and 3 times just so they separate.

someday [probably next weekend..] i will do the yellow and white panel to go along the opposite side, square everything off, cut the yellow flannel backing and the fluffy layer to fit...and then pretend i know how to do the actual quilting part. or take it to someone who has a quilting machine.

o sole mio ristorante & lemonleaf grill

so far in long island i haven't come across any "bad" restaurants. but two particularly good ones that i have been to recently are of the italian and thai persuasion.

o sole mio is an italian sitdown/pizza takeout restaurant in stony brook. we went for an early dinner one friday night, waited about 10 minutes for a table for 4, and watched as the entry way filled to standing room only capacity. having heard rave reviews from my sister, our parents, and her friends, i finally got to experience the delicious wonder that is o sole mio. after the appetizer of garlic knots and bread with olive oil, parmesan, and olive paste, i ordered my fallback-fettuccine alfredo. the sauce was rich and creamy [death for lactards like me] but not too oily. the pasta was as close to homemade as you can get in a restaurant and was light but not flakey.

after stuffing myself...then came the dessert tray. i ordered canoli bites, but as they had run out for the night, was given tiramisu bites. AMAZING. the picture doesnt nearly do justice to the rummy mousse surrounded by crispy white chocolate.

leah had a chocolate mousse on top of biscuit-like crust filled with pudding

all in all, i will definatly return to o sole mio. the regular evening wait would most likely be 30 min, but worth it as the food is amazing, the portions are huge [but unfinishable], and the price is about $25/person including dessert and tip.

the lemonleaf grill is 2 blocks from my house. since it opened last summer, i have eaten-in twice and picked up take out [on foot] probably 5 times. so far ive tried the tom kha gai [soup], shu mai [mini dumplings], pad see ew [spicy noodles], mango chicken, gai fad prik king [green beans & chicken], and green curry. even doing takeout, everything was hot and delicious, actually spicy instead of "white-i-fied", and really really cheap.

random shit casserole

for dinner i boiled tricolor rotini and went about making an alfredo sauce. however, i was missing all the appropriate ingredients and there were a few random leftovers in the fridge that required using. so using the neufchatel cheese i happened upon [which i cant actually say outloud as i dont know the silly french pronunciation], 3 other random fridge cheeses, leftover chicken, and leftover roasted veges... i made this sauce. heres an approximation of what i did:

mac and ghetto alfredo sauce orrrr random shit casserole

2 T butter or olive oil
3 cloves garlic
1 T flour
2 C soy milk
2 oz nefchatel cheese
1 C extra sharp cheddar
1/2 C parmesan
1/2 C pepper jack cheese

heat butter over very low heat and cook garlic until bubbly but not colored. add flour and several tablespoons of milk and mix very well. let warm, add more milk, and mix well until all milk is mixed in. DO NOT LET FLOUR LUMP IN MILK. i have ruined many an alfredo sauce like that. add each cheese mixing well between, until smooth and bubbling.

after the sauce was nice and bubbly i added leftover roasted orange moroccan chicken and roasted carrots, brussels sprouts, and red pepper. and unceremounsly dumped the noodles in a pan, the sauce on top, and then baked it at 375 until crispy on top.


heres an extreme closeup

Sunday, March 15, 2009

tshirt dress

leah and i did some shopping at the outlet mall..and to atone for our sins we both cleaned out our closets. we manged to fill several bags to drop off at goodwill or one of the random bins at grocery stores all over li. copying this tutorial, i made three of her ratty shirts into a dress of sorts.

i like the colors but due to the completely threadbare nature of her shirts, when i undid the seam [in front of course] between the grey and the white layer, the grey basically shredded. but theres a pretty decent looking pleat between the pink and white layers:
unfortunatly... the dress is a bit small and shows all my bulgy bits. so its once again going into the goodwill bag. so um, can i get a "nice try"?

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

el jardin


really bad shot i know... but it shows all my baby plants!!! here is what im attempting to grow:

vegetables [or fruits as im told]: soy bean/edamame, bok choi, zucchini, multicolored bell peppers, heirloom tomatoes, green and purple beans, eggplant, mesclan lettuce, and cucumbers cos they came in a pack.

flowers: sunflower, aster, snapdragon, morning glory, sweet pea

herbs: thai basil, rosemary, lavender [for leah], fennel, italian basil, oregano, flat parsley

so far i havnt planted the herbs or the sweet peas. and everything but the eggplant is growing. out of three plantings [maybe 12 seeds?] one tomato has sprouted but probably wont make it thru the night as our house is rather chilly. basically the two reasons im trying to grow my own garden...are COMPLETELY FAILING.


but heres some lettuce in an extreme closeup

and some little sprouties and..tin foil.

someday soon ill make a garden plan rather than just a sketch. but mostly im worried about how to get the cat shit out of the back yard and how to keep the strays from ...repooping in the yard. and digging. and generally being a crazy cat herd cos the damn woman across the street feeds them every day.

clothes horse

kloz'hors'

1. A frame on which clothes are hung to dry or air.
2. A person excessively concerned with dress.


  • scarf: grammie
  • tanktop: forever 21
  • sweater: ny&co
  • jeans: gap
  • satan cat biting the hand that feeds it: humane society
  • coat: kohls [1+ years ago..just took the tag off]
  • shirt: h&m
  • shorts: glassons [nz!!!!]
  • tights: target?

Sunday, March 8, 2009

start of the slowest quilt ever

as a slightly impatient person, i like to do crafts that have tangible results...quickly. that said, i dont like things that are speed vs quality, but good lord. i know quilting is usually a "leisure activity" but this one square took me about 3 hours to make.

since my rotary razor thing is still a bit effed up and i have a tendency to cut crooked even with a straight edge...the yellow triangles dont exactly meet up. but its kind of close. and hopefully wont look as shitty once its all put together.

i got the pattern from weekend scrap quilting, which i think implies..one weekend.

im not sure why the picture is sideways.. i uploaded it again and it's still turned. oh well. my quilt isnt going to have the fancy dark and light diagonal stripes as im too damn lazy to find 800 shades of fabric and im using the fat quarters i bought from fabric.com which are in 5 general colors. but hopefully ill finish this someday and either attempt to actually quilt it to batting and a backing or take it to the pfaff store where i got my machine.

nyc daytrip

leah and i took another expensive eating and shopping tour of nyc on saturday. and by that i mean we wandered, ate, shopped, and packed like sardines or cattle into the subway. but one stop which i now cant place for the life of me, had these little decorations on the wall

i also snapped this picture while venturing thru a crosswalk. assuming she did the applique herself this is an amazingly cute purse. however, being nyc i would guess she bought this at an overpriced botique. nevertheless, i may try and make one.

and now, another smaggleesque style picture. which is actually not what i wore into the city but rather the day before.

  • shirt: calvin klein
  • tanktop: somewhere cheap
  • skirt: forever 21 [shameful i know]
  • watch: fossil
  • necklace: present from the boy

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

capitalism at its finest

i am all for handmade jewelry. and commercial jewelry. and vintage jewelry. ok just jewelry in general. regardless. i get emails from ideeli, which i found out about thru nytimes emails. i havnt bought anything as i believe a dress which was originally priced at $2000 "specially offered for a limited time only" for $399....is still not a good deal. im cheap. what can i say. but today this gem [literally] was in the sale email. this is a prime example:

if this image is copyrighted i am truely sorry. but it gets the point across. this "vintage safety pin" has 5.5" of ribbon and chains and a swarvoski crystal. firstly, this is something that i would pass by at a garage sale. secondly, IT IS A SAFETY PIN WITH CRAP SEWN ON TO IT. thirdly, the lace is raw on the edges, the chains are mixed metals for that "artsy" look, and theres a brass "R" on it. and it retails for $235. why? im not sure. ideeli offers it for the low low bargin of $69! um still wouldnt buy it. if i were gifted this item i would graciously accept it and then weeks later, unworn, it would go in my "donate to goodwill/salvation army" bag.

in case you still would like to purchase a product such as this, many like this, although each uniquely handmade, are available from marquis & camus' online store. as they say, the collection "...strives to exude class, allure and elegance, while bringing an edge and profound sense of individuality." so what the fuck do i know. i clearly do not have the class or the je ne sais quoi to understand the art of recreated vintage overpriced gawdy jewelry. i am scum.

cheesecake palazzo

for leah's birthday eating extravaganza part 1 we lunched at cheesecake factory. delicious, expensive, and noisy. and we had the waiter bring a slice of fudgeychocolatelybrownie with a candle and NO SINGING. it was quite nice.

for leah's birthday eating extravaganza part 2 we supped at bobby's burger palace. again delicious, expensive, and noise. and the weirdest music ever. i have to say the burger was pretty amazing...but im not sure if it was $7 amazing. the sweet potato fries were crispy and not greasy with a honey mustard horseradish dipping sauce. as much as i really dont like the weird burning bitter taste of horseradish..it was really good. and the thick chocolate shake wasnt bad.


this guy joined us for a few minutes.

for leah's birthday eating extravaganza part 3 everyone is going to applebees [?] for dessert and drinks. unfortunatly i have to work tomorrow so im going to bed.

as a sidebar, since leaving work at noon today i ate 2 gigantic meals and was in the smithhaven mall area for 7 hours.

death of a shoe

my beloved high heeled black sandals from target bit the dust. the sole of the right one came unglued and was flapping most of the day, but we persevered. and frankly, the shoes were 3 years old and originally $20. so i think i got my money's worth.


the shoe

the damage

a glamour shot and a haiku:

strappy black glory
blisters were a guarantee
click clack click no more

Monday, March 2, 2009

gardening

since i finally have a yard and am staying in a house longer than a year, i can plant a garden! granted, most plants i have ever had have died or learned to survive without sun or water... but im going to attempt a green thumb regardless. i got two books from the library: complete idiot's guide to edible gardening and crops in pots cos it had a cute title. turns out im not a complete idiot and dont need such a basic book. but they had some good ideas on mixing crops and growing an arch trellis covered in beans and tomatoes. too bad arch trellis or arbors are like $400.

instead of looking for seed starting kits, i decided to buy a burpee newspaper potmaker and "super growing pellets". the potmaker is cool buuut the dirt pellets are definatly not worth it. they take too long to absorb water and are pretty clearly designed for the plastic cell containers. it took 2 pellets to fill one of the newspaper pots and after 4 days, several of the dirt things are molding on the top layer. i hate to think what is happening to the seeds buuuut i planted like an impatient schitzo so there are probably 5-10 seeds in each paper pot. i also assumed none of them would grow, but my bok choi have proved me wrong already!

next plan of action: find gardening book about not killing plants...

uncle giuseppe's

driving around randomly on a sunday evening, my sister, my boyfriend, and i happened upon uncle giuseppe's marketplace [website has music]. now the one thing i will miss with 100% certainty when i leave new york is the delis. uncle giuseppe's is one gigantic deli with some amazing looking produce and a very clean fresh meat department. upon searching for the website, i came across this blog and its rather rude comments. i agree it was quite expensive and rather far away from port jeff, but totally worth it. and now for your viewing pleasure:

calamari from the deli counter. complete with baby octopus

fried mac and cheese balls!!!!!
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