table topic #17

in honor of the season premiere of the amazing race tonight here is this weeks table topic, from the travel topics edition:

17. Who would you want to be your partner in a race around the world?

hmm...interesting question. you have to choose these things carefully. i think i would choose my brother-in-law. my sister & i would probably get into a few stand-offs (sorry, sweets). but i think my brother-in-law and i are equally resourceful and just polite enough to not kill each other. unless, of course, he questions my sense of direction. 

scarily bad (checkout edition)

now, i understand the psychology and marketing behind an impulse purchase. and the fact that the checkout is prime real estate for this - magazines, gum, chocolates, etc. 

but hard cover books at the checkout? and, "Blonde Ambition: The Untold Story Behind Anna Nicole Smith's Death," no less? 

quote of the day

from last week's group breakouts:

"wait, you don't watch TV? you don't read Us Weekly? what do you, like, do?"

rain rain go away, redux

this weather is not doing me any favors. i do not do well with humidity. 

case in point, my hair - freshly washed and styled no less - looks like cross between sir isaac newton & louis XIV right now. sigh. 

mmm...politics

so, in case you couldn't tell from the comments, i went with something sweet, instead. "bipartisan cookies," to be exact. yum. 

what would martha do?

in an effort to care more about the elections, i'm planning on watching the debate to night with my peeps. 

now, don't get me wrong, i am entirely pro-democracy and intend to exercise my right to vote come november. i'm just not a huge fan of politics and platitudes. 

but, back to the dilemma. what is appropriate to bring to a debate viewing party? is it an intellectually challenging wine & cheese sophistication? or, should one go with a chips & beers "we the people" route? wwmd?

rain rain go away

it's a rainy fall day in new york. but new york isn't quite committed to it. 

when i went out for coffee earlier it was that annoying please-either-rain-or-don't type of rain where you're not sure if you should put up the umbrella or not, but there is mist on your glasses. 

 

on the return, it was the annoying why-isn't-my-umbrella-working-the-rain-keeps-coming-up-under-the-umbrella rain. let's hope we dry out soon. 

in an absolut world

i suppose that this means that since taxi drivers are so crazy, it'd be much more ideal to have full harnesses in the back. 

but i like to think it's because taxi rides should be just as fun as roller coasters. 

the ultimate disaster movie

i will watch "the day after tomorrow" any time it is on. it is the ultimate disaster movie. disaster to the 25th power if you will. 

here's just a sampling of the plights of humanity that are contained in just 2 short hours:

deadly hail 

catastrophic tornados

instantaneous freezing 

plane crashes 

torrential rain 

transportation chaos

widespread flooding 

tidal waves 

super-storm cells

shipwrecks & errant supertankers 

familial separation 

unrequited love 

pediatric cancer

a new ice age  

reverse border crossings 

burning books

blood poisoning

and, of course, the pièce de résistance – rabid, hungry wolves

always watch out for the wolves, people. if there is anything i've learned from this flick, it's to always watch out for the wolves. 

you don't see that everyday

another reason i often feel dwarfed in new york - giant balloons in central park!

good deal? or recipe for disaster?

sundays may be meant for drinking, but looks like weekdays are all about shots. check out this tempting offer down on the sidewalk. sweet deal? or big trouble? 

(thanks, MB!)

big up to the LHC

much like the niche marketing that was the intersection of tacos & fine art photography, we have an excellent example of two seemingly unrelated worlds colliding - physics & hip-hop. behold the large hadron rap by alpinekat:

here's what i consider the highlights:

- guest narration by prof. stephen hawkings 

- excellent sample of "It Takes Two" by the illustrious DJ E-Z Rock & Rob Base

- the fact that "antimatter is nowhere to be found"

- the fact that, turns out, gravity is "weaker than weak". this disturbs me. it is apparently 10 to the 25th power weaker (that's 10,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 if you are counting) than the Higgs force. 

we are destined to be sucked into a black hole, aren't we?

ps - shout-out to new TFAAF reader, MB for sharing this vid! 

what's worse?

the fact that the ice cream in the center is "green apple gummy bear" flavor? or, the fact that the color is a nuclear shade of booger? 

oh david brent, you are so wise

current circumstances have reminded me of one of the best lines from david brent:

"I thought I could see the light at the end of the tunnel, but it was just some bastard with a torch, bringing me more work."

here's to 2010, kids.   

OPP, take 2

so, mixed response to the last OPP posts. but, i'm still totally fascinated by them. thankfully, i now have a new scanner, so the image quality is way better. here's a second:

She learned a valuable lesson at an early age - you can never have enough pool toys. 

hello, it's me

thanks to last in london for introducing me to FutureMe.org. 

it's a website whereby you can send a note-to-self email to, well, yourself. as a prolific journal writer who loves retracing her steps, i was intrigued. 

last week, i received the following email to future me/now current me:

The following is an e-mail from the past, composed on Thursday, March  6,  2008 and sent via FutureMe.org

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Dear FutureMe, 

Interesting experiment. It's 6 months from your birthday. You are writing this from your Ikea couch, watching the 10 o'clock news & facebooking. 

You just picked up a book called, "How did I get so busy?" which wants you to take stock of your life & try to do what matters most to you. Can you do it? Have you done it?

A few other questions...Have you gotten your Eames-esque kitchen table yet? Hosted a game night? Gotten your deposit back (sore subject)? A dresser? Any progress with you know who? Will you make it to New Zealand? 

Don't forget your goals!

Stay strong, 

Current Me 

 

is it just me, or does this seem sketch?

i believe "friendship meetings" are Quaker gatherings. but "friendship party"? with the "no refunds" bit, it looks like you are on your way to joining a cult. 

why i feel old, part 13

quote from a training session last week, in which teams were charged with finding similarities amongst the group:

"we're all from new york state. and we were all born in the 80s." 

needless to say, my group couldn't claim the latter. 

why i feel old, part 14

the nominees for the 2009 rock & roll hall of fame were just announced. can run-dmc and metallica really be eligible? has it been 25 years?! 

table topic #16

easy one this week:

16. Do you have a lucky number? 

yes. it's 6. i think it stemmed from a game of yahtzee from many, many years ago. multiple yahtzees scored with 6s. and ever since i've considered it my lucky number. it probably has no more luck than any other one. but hey, you never know. 

i know it's graffiti

but she's kinda cute this one. 

oops ups

should i have tipped off the UPS guy that he was getting a ticket on the other end from horseback? 

it was a good idea at the time

what was described as: "Apple's most architecturally innovative store, Apple Store Fifth Avenue features a stunning distinctive 32-foot glass cube entrance," has turned out to be a humid sweatbox of condensation in the summer, hasn't it? oops. 

gangstas 4 pres?

i get that it's an election year, so presidents are top of mind. but, who approved gangsta lincoln and washingtion raising the roof? 

nana's favorite joke

remember the days of prank calls, pre-caller ID?

Do you have Prince Albert in a can? 

Well, let him out! 

chic? or chick?

either way, the price of these gems have really deflated. 

agreed - but ewww

yes, dear food worker - or any worker for that matter - please do not work if you have diarrhea or vomiting. thanks.  

table topic #15

a yes or no question this week:

15. Do you believe in aliens?

interesting. i've seen a lot of movies - close encounters is a classic, and men in black being one of my faves - but i don't think that i've really given this question serious thought. 

my father is fascinated by crop circles - and i have to admit i am too - just how do they happen? 

but, i just don't think that i do believe in aliens. i feel like, by now, we'd have definitive proof, no? 

quote of the day (new age edition)

"I'm thinking of converting to Mayanism." 

oh, and we may or may not be in a black hole right now.

holy boobs, batman!

who approved those enormous knockers on the mannequin on the left??

bizarro on the subway, part 2

now this, i've never seen before. i sat near a gentleman in a dapper business suit. apparently needing to blackberry with two hands, he held his redbull (or related drink) between his calf & thigh, behind the knee. bizarro. 

bizarro on the subway, part 1

tonight, i first came across an errant eggroll beneath the seat.

speaking of eye patches...

last week (ok, fibbing a little - 'twas the week before last) i saw two people in one day wearing an eye patch. 

one looked like a veteran wearing it functionally. but the other was clearly some sort of young, female hipster going for a 'look' à la this kooky dude. the gold detail is a nice touch. 

get an eye patch, man.

thinking good thoughts

...for our favorite librarian and any other (?) TFAAF readers down in Texas affected by Ike. 

stay strong!

sundays were made for drinking

way to drive awareness (chalkboard scrawl) & trial (great call to action). 

my new obsession

they've been around for a while now (three, going on four albums), but i am completely obsessed as of late with kings of leon. 

unfortch, their next new york show is sold out. but, perhaps i can "schedule a meeting" in nashville to check them out on their home turf. 

not yet, autumn

the forecast for new york today was a humid 88° today. i am SO not ready for gourds, mini-pumpkins and mums in the stores. settle down, fall pushers. summer still has a few more days to go. 

admirable, but coco loco (invention edition)

gee, i really love my scooter. 

gee, i really love a frosty bev. 

i wish i could combine my two faves.

well, look no further - it's the cruzin cooler! while an admirable idea - making coolers more portable - i think the verdict is coco loco on this one.  

happy anniversary to us!

fun with avatars deux

i forgot i had made this one.  

here is simpsons me! 

who knew?

that john quincy adams was on the dollar coin? which, i'm pretty sure is only in use in metrocard & stamp vending machines. 

i'm curious - why not the original adams? and while we're at it, what happened to Sacagawea? 

i guess my other question is why does JQA look like a corpse here? to be fair, when looking at the coin in actuality, he doesn't have nearly as defined cheekbones, softening his features. but here he kinda looks like skeletor. 

left or right?

i get a lot of catalogues and have started to get one from 'touch of class'. tagline: a home like no other. i'll say. while i will refrain from commenting on the 'class' part, i can say that this is the complete antithesis of my tastes. 

 

that said, here are two of my favorite pieces - hands hushing sculpture and hand blowing kiss sculpture, respectively. i think 'touch of class' is going to give perennial fave skymall a run for its money. 

ps - is it just me or does mr. hush kinda look like bill murray?

table topic #14

this week we have a multiple choice:

14. Would you rather your home had a pool, a tennis court or a rose garden?

well, assuming that i had a home...

i would like a rose garden, but that's only going to be in bloom about 2 months out of the year. a tennis court would be fun, but i don't know how much i'd actually use it. 

so, in all practicality (plus the fact that i do like a good swim), i'd have to go pool. 

well, that'd be nice

any takers?

two dudes waitin' for the bus

why i feel old, part 12

haven't had a why i feel old post in a while now. 

but, i have to say that watching the mtv vmas last night really had me feeling my age. 

who are these jonas brothers characters? has anyone heard of paramour? and is that singer from tokio hotel a dude? he's got crazier hair than winehouse. 

i'm back, but is it over?

sorry, this little gnome was away at the beach last week for one last hurrah. 

can the summer of iced tea be over so fast? ho hum. 

at least we have fall foliage, brisk air & sweaters to look forward to...