You are currently browsing the category archive for the 'Life' category.
My favorite poster by Decoder Ring
I went over to Chapel Hill last night and met up with Angie to see The Hold Steady at Cat’s Cradle. Before the show we stopped in at Southern Rail for a drink and a bite- so similar to pre-shows in DC, where we would go to Saint Ex before heading to 9:30 Club (even our bartender used to work at Saint Ex). I was so excited that Southern Rail decided to continue the tater tot tradition started by Bar Pilar (Saint Ex, Bar Pilar and Southern Rail are a group of restaurant/bars all started by the same man; two are in DC one is in CH) – we used to have dinner at Pilar at least once a week in DC, that is until it’s menu switched entirely over to tapas. It was sad, but now I can once again order the tater tots I know and love!
By the way, it was an awesome show, lasting almost two hours! My hearing is still not back up to 100%…
Since I moved back to the Triangle, I’ve accumulated a long list of new restaurants to try that weren’t around during my Chapel Hill college days. This area is up and coming in the eatery department, with several restaurants jumping on the locally grown bandwagon. I’ve been happy to see all three cities (Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill) featured in recent Bon Appetit write-ups and learn about all the great new places that are popping up to accompany Chapel Hill institutions like Crook’s Corner, Elaine’s and Lantern. So when I read about Raleigh’s barbeque restaurant The Pit in the July edition of Bon Appetit, I knew I had to try it!
from Bon Appetit, July 2008
It’s my long awaited return to the District. I haven’t been back since I moved and I’m DYING to see all my friends, go to Ikea, have a bloody mary at Logan Tavern, get my haircut (haven’t had the strength to cut the Bang ties yet), take public transportation, go to West Elm, ride in a cab, eat at Falafel Shop, take a jello shot at Millie & Al’s, dance at Chief Ike’s, and walk around a city that I have missed since the second I left.
Finally, FINALLY, I’ve started that poster collection I’ve been talking about. I decided to go with a couple prints from Methane Studios- I discovered the shop during my search for letterpress and silkscreen work and I love the variety of their work- great prices too! I decided to go with a Cat Power print that I thought would add nice accent color to the black and white decor of one of my rooms. I also chose an Iron and Wine print because I love the colors and composition of the piece.
One of the reasons I’ve held off on the posters is the expense of framing, but once I searched for frame shops online, I found an awesome, cheap (but great quality) shop! It’s called American Frame- they will cut your frame the exact size you need, there are tons of frame colors to choose from, and you can get plexiglass, mat board and foam backing cut to size. The only catch is that you have to put the frame together yourself, but it took me 10 minutes to put both frames together- it was seriously dummy-proof. I highly recommend this store- I got my posters and everything I needed for framing for just over $100- it usually costs more than that just to get a piece framed. Ok, enough of my American Frame love fest.
Today is my last full day in DC and although I’m sad to be leaving, I’m also looking forward to being back in NC and starting fresh. I will miss all my DC friends, but at least I won’t have far to travel to see them! I’ve decided to compile my own personal “best of” list to commemorate my time here…
With the impending move, I’m trying to keep this phrase in mind. I have yet to start my new poster collection, but I think it’s imperative that this piece be a part of it, especially with school starting in the fall.
Apparently it’s a replication of an old WWII poster and I love it. Simplicity in design is my thing.
I’ll be moving back home to NC in a few weeks and I’ve been doing some serious internet “window shopping” for weeks now. One thing I’ll need once I’m settled in is some flatware- the set I use now belongs to my roommate. After browsing the internet, I decided to go check out some silverware in person and took a trip to the Chinatown Bed, Bath and Beyond. I had already settled on a brushed, matte finish and wanted a more modern handle. When I saw the Meridian set (made by Robert Welch, but a cheaper version), I really liked their look- that is until my eyes fell on the shape of the spoon.
In the half hour that I stood at BB&B staring at the wall of flatware, I kept coming back to Meridian, thousands of questions flying through my head about (what I previously thought was) the simple spoon. As it is not clearly visible in the picture, I can only describe the shape of the head of the spoon as “whomp-head”. Now, one of the things I like about a spoon is it’s tip- it’s great for eating ice cream in small bites or sipping soup. Alas, these spoons have no tip, but they had everything else I’m looking for. Oh how I wish you could test a spoon out in the store, just to see if you would actually like eating your cheerios out of it.
I ultimately decided that I would keep looking for my flatware, but I did have quite a time weighing the finer points of, what I’ve now concluded, is the most important utensil. I now know that the design of a spoon could kill an entire meal and I just can’t risk it…
until I took a trip to West Elm this weekend. They had so many attractive storage options for the home office that it prompted me to do an internet search to see what other items I could find. I really love the products by Russell and Hazel. The colors are subtle and blend well together. I love the espresso and celery colors. Hmm… maybe some new organizational goodies would be good for all the new school supplies I’ll be buying soon.
Russell and Hazel Letterboxes
Compilation of the best storage options I came across:
The other morning while I was walking to work I saw a discarded Safeway soda can. I’d noticed that the Safeway soda line had recently been redesigned, but I hadn’t really taken a look at the new cans. So last night I made my way over to my neighborhood Safeway and spent a little time in the soda aisle.
I like the new designs – they’re much more interesting than the old Safeway Select design. They have a pop art feel to them and the design is simple enough that it can be altered according to flavor. I like the way that the name of each soda is presented in a straightforward way. The designs are so simplistic, but they emit such a fun vibe of “try me, i’m fruity and delicious.” The bright color blocks really tie the whole lighthearted design together.
I got to thinking, wouldn’t it be interesting to repurpose empty cans into a some sort of pop art piece – maybe a sculpture? Or what about a series of prints, each featuring a single flavor, a la Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s soup print? How about a play on a Rembrant-esque still life featuring a can placed beside the actual fruit it represents on a bare wooden table? I think that’s my favorite.
The folks at Safeway have included some pretty interesting flavors in the mix, grapefruit being the one that caught my eye. Then again, that may be because the grapefruit soda was the only flavor still fully stocked on a Wednesday night at 8:00. They don’t call it Soviet Safeway for nothing.
During my childhood, I always loved visiting my dad’s store around Valentine’s Day to stare at the elaborate seasonal Whitman’s candy display. Dozens of heart-shaped boxes wrapped in pink and red frills that could only have come from the recycled costumes of a long lost production of Gone With the Wind. It was the 80s after all, and tackiness was king, but to me the heart-shaped arrangement of boxes on a lone section of pegboard was one of the most beautiful things I could imagine.
I would stand in front of it wondering which one my dad would choose for me this year. Would it be pink or red? He always got red for my mom. I wanted pink. Maybe I would get a big box this year instead of a medium box. I was bigger, so why shouldn’t my box of candy be bigger?
Come Valentine’s morning, my excitement would build up to its highest level, almost too high to make it through breakfast, despite the appeal of the newest rubber heart toy with bendable arms or plastic heart beaded necklace that my mom had given me. That’s because I knew that this year’s box would be waiting in my room for me when the cereal bowl had run dry. I’d race back to my room and there it would be, in all it’s fabric-covered glory. Pink. Yes.
