October 2011 Archives - not your average ordinary

Entries from 31 October 2011

Oct 31

Do you remember when you were young and you believed you could do anything, be anything? All you needed to challenge the world was a cape and maybe a mask, though I always ditched the mask because it didn’t work with my bangs.

I’m still working on my superpowers. I may not be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound or move things with my mind (that’s one power I really wanted), but I can make a difference in little ways and big ways. And there are so many ways: I can give my time to a cause, give some money when I can; I can speak out when there is an injustice being done and make sure my voice is heard.

I think it’s time we rediscovered our superpowers as adults. Capes and secret identities optional.

What superpower did you always want? And how will you change the world today?

Happy Halloween, friends!

{first image via Rookie Moms, second image by wei-li heng photography found here}

17 CommentsCharmed

Happy Weekend!

Oct 28

Let’s have a little party to celebrate my first full week of work. Say yes, won’t you? There’ll be some delicious baked goods — you know me. But a little warning: if you find me up on a tree branch, stretched out and asleep, let me be for a bit. I’m positively exhausted, and today is going to be a long one and thus a short post.

Moments of gratitude:

starting this new job
getting to work with some really incredible people
tres leches cake
discovering some wickedly good Mexican food
lounging in a gorgeous Victorian hotel
watching cheesy romantic movies
reading blog comments from so many incredible people (you all got me through this week)

I’ve got a full day of work and a 4+ hour drive back to NJ tonight so I’ll check in with you all later. In the meantime, get over to Naomi’s blog and enter her super awesome giveaway (you could win a copy of her book!).

Happy Friday, my friends! Please tell me you’ve got some Halloween-esque plans this weekend, yes?

{image here}

12 CommentsGratitude, Wander

A New Address

Oct 27

A new address means a new address stamp, and I’ve been hunting on etsy for the perfect one. I just haven’t decided yet if I want something that’s handwritten, or simple and sophisticated, or elegant.

What do you think? Did I mention I have an insanely long street address when added to my apartment number? Should I split it on two lines?

{stamps from Primele, Note Trunk, and foryoo}

22 CommentsDiscoveries

A Cabinet of Curiosities

Oct 27

My latest ideabook is up on Houzz. This month I had fun doing a collection of unique and strange natural items for a cabinet of curiosities. These cabinets were the predecessors of natural history museums. They were meant to shock and awe — and sometimes scare. The bigger the reaction from guests, the better.

What would you put in your cabinet?

{images from my Houzz ideabook; I also recently wrote an article on ombre cakes and interior design for Houzz}

3 CommentsHome

Daydream: Pacific Northwest

Oct 26

She woke in the middle of the night. The mountains she hadn’t seen in months were calling to her, pulling her toward them like a gravity in her blood. She packed, and early in the morning, she began her drive. This time, she’d need an airport and she was there before it opened. When it did, she booked the first flight she could. There was one to a big city, another on a smaller plane to the peninsula. She rented a car and drove to the cabin by the lake.

How could a place that she’d never really been to, that she’d only seen from afar call to her this strongly? But there she was in late autumn in the mountains drowning in tall trees. She didn’t remember when her life was so still and quiet, when it was just her and the sky, the sun, the stream, and the earth. In the afternoon, she drove into town for some food and supplies. Town was tinier than a city block, but the locals were friendly and they made her smile.

She spent the next few days wandering the woods, sitting and breathing, feeling the whole world in herself.

{incredible photographs by Quentin Bacon}

17 CommentsDaydream

The Night Circus

Oct 25

After a very long wait, I finally got my hands on a copy of The Night Circus this past Saturday.

I read it in 24 hours.

I couldn’t help myself. The story was that enchanting, the writing like cotton candy being spun around me in a web of sweetness and sugary intoxication.

The book begins with a small snapshot of the circus, as if you were taking it. The circus arrives without warning. It opens at dusk and closes at dawn, and what you find inside is like no other circus in the world. From there, the story unfolds: a bet between two men traps two young children in a game as adults, a game set in The Circus of Dreams. But the players unexpectedly fall in love, and that changes everything. Can they survive the game and can the circus ever survive without them?

This is a must-read, must-own, must-reread book. You’ll discover yourself falling into it and almost hoping you don’t find your way out.

Have you read any good books lately? I do love suggestions.

22 CommentsRead

Daily SPF

Oct 24

The inevitable has happened: I have begun to age. While most people typically guess I’m younger than I actually am (a whole class of undergraduates in the spring placed me at 25), my occasional laziness with my skincare routine is showing. I now have three small darker spots on my face that look like almost like a giant freckle patch. And though I do naturally have lots of freckles, I know this is not good. So I’m stepping up my game and putting more SPF into my facial sunscreen — let’s face it: SPF 15 isn’t enough. Here are some favorites:

md Formulations Total Protector 30 // Clinique Super City Block Daily Face Protector SPF 40
Neutrogena Healthy Defense Daily Moisturizer SPF 30

I’ve also reminded myself that just because it’s late autumn and winter will soon be approaching isn’t an excuse to forget about sunblock for the rest of my body. The problem is that most sunscreens smell strongly of summertime and beaches, and I have no doubt that lathering the stuff on will make me seriously yearn for some time on a tropical island. Instead, I’ve found two natural body lotions that incorporate SPF into their ingredients:

Alba Daily Shade SPF 15 // Yes to Carrots Hydrating Body Lotion SPF 30

SPF and moisture and I don’t smell like a beach? I’m in.

Do you have daily SPF favorites?

10 CommentsIndulge

Charmed: Wander Outdoors

Oct 24

It was easy in San Diego to clock in ample time outdoors: I ran in the early morning, walked around campus, spent weekend afternoons in cafes bathed in light. Lately, getting outdoors has been a challenge; it’s simply not practical in the Northeast to build outdoor malls and my time spent outside on a normal day has been minimal. This has convinced me even more of the necessity of spending time outside, just wandering around whenever you can, wherever you can. A good dose of sunlight does more for my body and spirit than anything else.

How often do you get to wander outdoors? How does it make you feel when you do?

{image from Pride & Prejudice 2005}

16 CommentsCharmed

Have a Beautiful Weekend!

Oct 21

I missed last week’s gratitude list, which is unfortunate because I’ve had so much to be grateful for lately:

a sweet one-bedroom apartment in the Capitol Hill area of DC, walking distance to all of the major museums and Eastern Market
an afternoon of shopping with my friend Jenny
randomly running into my friend Carly on the streets of Princeton
Gertrude Hawk Milk Chocolate Crispy bars (love these)
finding a moving company that I think is going to be great
eating Ethiopian food with a former professor who is now a friend
getting a massage (even if left me aching for days afterward)
catching up with my friend Sonjelle before she left for Ghana
grabbing some Pho for dinner with a high school friend
coming up with some wonderful ideas for my new job — which I start on Monday(!!!)
the autumn wind blowing
rice krispy treats, made by my mom (so made me feel like a kid again)
staying warm with cups of rooibos tea
being inspired by the film Miss Representation

What’s kept you busy this week? What are you most grateful for?

Also, the Circle Prints giveaway has closed and the winner is #13 — Kate. Congrats! Thank you to everyone who entered. Remember you have until October 31st to use the code NYAOblog and receive 30% off your order from Circle Prints!

And before we all run off to party our weekends away, I wanted to ask: do you prefer one or two posts a day? Lately I seem to have so much I want to share, though I suspect for the next two weeks, things will be a little light as I’ll be moving and adjusting to a new job. But going forward into the future, what do you prefer?

Happy weekend, my fabulous friends!

{image via Vintage is For Lovers}

21 CommentsGratitude

Delicious: Spaghetti Squash

Oct 21

Once fall hits and squashes become plentiful at the store, I begin stockpiling them, especially those of the butternut and spaghetti varieties. Last night I roasted up a spaghetti squash and topped it with some sauteed heirloom tomatoes, then quickly tried to snap a photo before I ate it all. The lighting in my parents’ kitchen isn’t the best for photography but it’ll due for now. My new apartment has ample windows and lighting, most coming from the north and west, and I’m looking forward to seeing how that transforms my photos.

But back to the food. This recipe is actually one of the simplest I know, as it calls for no actual measurements. Here’s all you need to do:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Take a spaghetti squash, cut it in half along the longest axis (you’ll need a little muscle for this — be careful), scoop out the seeds, and place cut side down on a cookie sheet lined with tin foil. Cook for about 30-40 minutes, until the inside is soft and scrapes with a fork easily.
Chop 4-5 heirloom tomatoes. In a saute pan over medium heat, warm some olive oil then add the tomatoes. Cook until tomatoes become soft. Add some salt and basil and other herbs you’d like. (You can also skip this step entirely and just open a can of tomato sauce.)
Scrape up the spaghetti squash and put the spaghetti-like strands on a plate. Top with the tomato reduction. The end.

What’s your favorite squash recipe?

(I’ll be back with another post later today.)

14 CommentsSavored