I had 30 minutes to experience B&H Photo Video, lust over lenses, hold the mini fuji instax, and generally run through what I’ve heard described as the Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory of electronics. It is quite a place and much more efficient than the Service Merchandise of my childhood.
I picked up some black and white film and these new outfits for my Canon:
This one for those outings when I just want to put the camera body in my purse and go, and this Jill E one for days when I need more lenses with me,
My back is already happier.
This post from Purl and a Bee about a Hot Chocolate Festival/Night of Knitting has me thinking about booking another flight to New York. For my New York readers, it’s on February 18th at 7 pm, City Bakery. All you can drink hot chocolate, beer, wine and knitting workshops. They will have 5 knitting workshops and one demonstration being hosted by 6 of New York City’s local knitting shops. Purl Soho has come up with a chocolate bar coaster knit pattern for the event. Hot chocolate flavors to be served include:
* Caramel Hot Chocolate
* Banana Peel Hot Chocolate
* Ginger Hot Chocolate
* Lemon Hot Chocolate
* Moulin Rouge Hot Chocolate
* Milk Chocolate Hot Chocolate
* Darkest Dark Chocolate Hot Chocolate
* Creamy Stout Hot Chocolate
* Bourbon Hot Chocolate
If I am honest, I am so so J-E-A-L-O-U-S. Go you lucky dogs! GO!
Back in the days of cable, I saw this episode of Iconoclasts on Sundance Channel with Michael Stipe and Mario Batali. They are both kind of interesting on their own, but together in conversation as good friends, they are really fascinating. They talked about food and music, of course, but also about friendship, photography and their careers. It was an episode that really endeared me to the Iconoclast series.
In the interview, Michael Stipe talked about the first time he ate at one of Mario’s restaurants Babbo in New York. He said he was surprised that they were playing PJ Harvey – loud PJ Harvey – as a backdrop for a very elegant restaurant. So, while we were in New York, for the first night away for the two of us together since 2007, it was the perfect time to check it out. Who knows when the next date night will be, so I post this here to revisit.
Stipe was right. Music is as important to the Babbo experience as the wine list. I loved it. We heard INXS’s album Kick and Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On both in their entirety while we ate. It was great that they played entire albums from start to finish, not just a disk changer on random. Albums used to be played this way – like a mix tape prepared by the artist to be heard in a certain order – and it really did give the meal a chronology. So good. It’s not too loud and you can still have a great conversation.
When you get there, they bring you marinated chickpeas. We tried this wine and liked it a good bit and it was pretty affordable, so I took this with my phone to remember the name.
I had the prosciutto San Daniele “Riserva” with Black Pepper “Fett’unta” to start which comes with little pomegranate seeds on the prosciutto. It’s one of those perfect flavor combinations that would never occur to me. For dinner, I had the Pumpkin “Lune” ravioli with Sage and Amaretti. { I’m copying these names from the menu.} I can’t remember everything my husband ate because I was practically passing out from the butter sauce incredibleness that was on my plate, but I know he started with the Grilled Octopus with “Borlotti Marinati” and Spicy Limoncello Vinaigrette and said it was the best thing he’s ever eaten. Chocolate Hazelnut Cake with Orange Sauce and Hazelnut Gelato for dessert and it’s pretty much perfection.
If I make it in to CD Central , it’s usually on my lunch hour so I don’t know that I’ll get to go to this appearance, but it’s cool to know this is coming up so I wanted to pass it on.
Here are some highlights from a recent Paper Boat Photography shoot. To view all of the images click here and log in.
Music is Peng! 33 covered by Iron & Wine.
I tried something new in this slideshow {a bit of HD video here and there} which slows things down, but it was too adorable to leave out. If it stalls while you watch the first time, just pause and come back in a bit and it should play fine. Big files take a bit more time to load the first time around, but once it makes it all the way through once, it will be fine. Enjoy!
February 7, 2010 - 11:42 amjeannette - cute, cute, cute. what a cool thing to do for birthday boys. Great shots - it did play just fine the first time . . .
I loved this display. So many of the items in the case you can find at any flea market, but it has me thinking about how everything we put in our homes, on our desks, in our cars should be in a shape we enjoy. It doesn’t have to be expensive or even sentimental. Sure, there are exceptions {the cat box for starters} but why not choose a mug that you like to hold in your hand, a color that makes you feel better, glass to let the light in.
February 5, 2010 - 10:12 pmAmanda - Beautiful picture. One commentary, you always know you are out of the South when the color disappears from the clothes. I hope you all had a great time. I haven't been to NYC since I was nine. Something tells me I would appreciate it more now.
I actually walked into Purl Soho on Tuesday! It’s one of those places that I visit often online, but it was so inspiring and different to be there in person. I have wanted to visit since I saw them in Blueprint Magazine {sniff, sniff} in their premier issue. Ami, you are right, it is perfect!
The people there are completely gracious, even when {let’s just say…hypothetically} a girl from Kentucky comes in and gushes all over them like a groupie about how much she loves the store and how their blog is such a comforting and inspiring place to visit and how she can’t believe she’s actually there, for example. They don’t even throw such customers out or give her strange looks. They are so kind, in fact, that they let her {clutch the pearls} TAKE PHOTOS!
I was quick mind you -in and out in 10 minutes- but man oh man. So many of the projects that they have featured in their blog The Purl Bee were sitting around on the shelves.
I picked up their beautiful calendar that I blogged about before Christmas. You can too here. I have more photos, but will spread the love a bit over a few posts. Swoon City.
February 5, 2010 - 7:35 ammargie - i am so out of my league in a store like this but i have sent this post to a good friend who is a seamstress/artist. she will drool.
A little bummed that I discovered this book, New York’s 50 Best Places To Take Tea, too late to check any of these places out when I was there, but reading the descriptions is really great.
February 4, 2010 - 5:01 pmAmi - I have to ask myself, why am I not spending my days looking for great places to "take" tea and then writing about it? Somewhere along the way I went very, very wrong. I wonder if it's too late for a course correction? ;-) ... I can't wait to hear all about your trip to the city.
I finished Lucado’s book Cure for the Common Life.
I love what he says about raising children, “Don’t see your child as a blank slate awaiting your pen, but as a written book awaiting your study.” He quotes a book called You and Your Child by Charles Swindoll who writes, “the child is not, in fact, a pliable piece of clay. He has been set; he has been bent. And the parents who want to train this child correctly will discover this bent.”
Lucado explains, “God gave you an 18-year-old research project,” to decode. “Study your kids while you can. The greatest gift you can give your children is not your riches, but revealing to them their own.”
Easy right? Good grief it’s all daunting – but it’s much easier to think about helping her figure it out than imposing my identity upon her.
I was talking to a good friend one day and asking questions about parenting and she asked me “when does your daughter thrive?” I thought that was a great question for all things: parenting, reflection, problem solving. When does she thrive? When do I?
February 5, 2010 - 9:02 amMwabi - I'm loving these quotes. I fought for months with son #2, trying to mold him into the perfect 2 year old until one day I decided to simply follow his lead. Wouldn't you know that we've had PEACE since then? He truly taught me that you came to me his own person already.
and this Jill E one for days when I need more lenses with me,
by Teaworthy
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