4.30.2010

california, here we come!

It's official! I'm moving to California for the summer!

I received an incredible job offer from a Major Internet Company That Isn't Google, and to say I'm excited would be an understatement...I've been listening to the OC theme song on repeat for the last 3 days. This is pretty much my dream job, and I can't believe I get to live so close to the beach!

Of course, I'll miss all of my friends in New York, but lately I've been feeling a little jaded by the city. When I moved to New York three years ago, living here excited and invigorated me. Now, I'm feeling increasingly apathetic toward the big city life. I realize how incredibly cliche that sounds, but it's true. I moved to NYC when I was relatively young and I think I might have grown up a bit too fast-- obviously, I can't change that now and there's no point in feeling regretful. There are so many things I love about living in NYC and in some sense, I can't imagine moving away permanently. But maybe a sunshine-filled 3 month break is exactly what I need to reevaluate everything and get back on track.



The fun part of this story: Britta and I are going to be roadtripping out to Santa Monica from my family's home in Chicago! People are always shocked when I tell them I still own a car, but I could never imagine parting with my beloved Honda Civic. Google Maps clocks the drive at 32 hours, but we plan on meandering our way through the country and spending a few extra days visiting every ridiculous roadside tourist trap in the West. Also, please note how the suggested route goes directly through Las Vegas. Watch out, America!

Side note: I wonder if this means I should change the blog's logo graphic?

4.29.2010

Dogs: Bjorn

On Friday, during a break from frantically writing 10K words in four days (WORDS OF WISDOM: START EARLIER [I say this every time and never do.]), I went and picked up Bjorn. He's a rescue dog that I found on Petfinder.com. I've been wanting to get my own dog for awhile now, and I finally persuaded my parents (who I'm living with till I finish my MA) to let me get my own dog. I picked Bjorn because I wanted a smallish terrier with an old man dog face. His age and breed are unsure, but they guessed he's around 2 years old and a Norwich terrier mix.

Bjorn

Bjorn

As always, click to enlarge!

4.25.2010

an ode to somerset creamery

“Hi, my name is Rubie, and I’m an ice creamoholic.”

This is not an exaggeration: I’m addicted. Not a day goes by that I don’t crave a delicious frozen treat. Ice cream is my favorite food by far, an unfailing happy pill on even the coldest winter days. I know that this makes me a little bit nuts—I often get the side eye from friends who come to my apartment and see the trash can piled high with empty pints, and from strangers on the street when I happily stroll around in 20 degree weather with my cup of Pinkberry (medium original, with blackberries, raspberries, and yogurt chips). In the past few years, I’ve learned that frozen yogurt is equally satiating as the pints of Ben & Jerry’s that I love so dearly—and much easier on the waistline.

But still, there’s nothing like old-fashioned homemade ice cream. As a product of my addiction, I’ve become somewhat of an ice cream connoisseur—you name it, I’ve more than likely tried it. Ben & Jerry’s is my trusty standby, but when it comes to my favorite ice cream EVER in the history of life, there is no contest.



Somerset Creamery in Somerset, MA: the holy grail of ice cream. Believe me, I spent a summer in Italy sampling every gelaterĂ­a in Firenze and none of them came close to the utter amazingness of Somerset Creamery. All of their ice cream is handmade on the premises; waffle cones and bowls are constantly being freshly baked.

I’ve always loved cookie dough ice cream, but Somerset Creamery takes it to a whole new level. I think the best thing about their ice cream is the texture—it’s so creamy and gooey that it’s difficult to eat with a spoon. No iciness to be found at all! The base of the cookie dough ice cream is a delicious French vanilla ice cream. A lot of people think of vanilla as ice cream’s boring old grandma, but at Somerset it has a rich depth of flavor that perfectly compliments the waffle cone. I should mention that I’m not a cone person at all, but at Somerset Creamery, the waffle cone is the only option you should consider. The cones are fresh and cakey, not like the stale shells found at most ice cream shops.

Of course, the only thing to complete the perfect combination is copious bites of cookie dough sprinkled throughout the ice cream. I love the end of the cone, where little chunks of cookie dough mix with melting vanilla ice cream and folded waffle cone batter to create the perfect bite.

If you live anywhere in the Providence/Boston area, there is no excuse not to visit Somerset Creamery. Hell, it’s even worth the 3-hour train ride up from NYC. My fellow ice cream lovers will not regret it, especially as we move into the glorious summer months—prime ice cream eating season! Not that cold should stop you, but…Somerset Creamery isn’t open in the winter. Just saying.

Somerset Creamery, 1931 G.A.R. Highway, Somerset, Massachusetts. 508.672.5510

4.21.2010

Holga: Christmas 2009 + New Years 2010

As everyone who knows me knows: I can be really lazy. Which is why I just now got my prints done from my Holga Lomographic Camera I got at Christmas. Only since it's a Holga, I've put off shooting any more film because I wanted to see if it had any major light leaks or weird spots, etc etc. And I am kicking myself because these pictures are amaaazing and I wish I'd been taking ones like this the entire past few months! C'est la vie, I suppose.

Unlike my poor compatriot, my processing and printing was really cheap. I got two rolls printed and developed for only $21!!! So I will definitely be shooting tons more film in the future. I am pretty sure I have another 9 rolls of films somewhere in a shoebox yet to be unpacked from London. Or I should, anyway, as I bought 10 rolls of film (5 rolls of 400, 5 rolls of 160) for only £22 off amazon.co.uk.

As always, you can see more photos on Flickr!

Tommy
My horse, Tommy

Andi
My little sister, Andi, in her stylish ironic Christmas sweatshirt

Rubie
The illustrious Miss Rubie on New Years. I think that umbrella was from her cocktail.

Playground
My childhood playground.

4.20.2010

Outfit: April Showers

Today's weather was really strange. First it drizzled and then there was this beautiful, brisk weather during which my mom and I took Beans for a walk. And then, after about an hour, it started to thunder and suddenly downpouring around dinner time! I love the rain, though, so I greatly enjoyed today's very spring-like rain showers with patches of sun. Soon enough it will be May and then June and hot as Hades. That's one disadvantage of living in California: summers are BLISTERING. But for now it's nice enough to wear light sweaters and coats, but you could totally rock shorts with tights too!

Click to enlarge any picture and go to our Flickr page! More photos of spring flowers and Beans are there too!

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Jacket: Tara Jarmon for Target, Cardigan: H&M, Hat: Hand-knit by my sister, Dress: Handmade by my mom from Liberty of London cotton lawn, Boots: Born, Leggings: American Apparel Winter Weight, Belt: Talbots, Necklace: H&M

lomography

During winter break this year, I took the opportunity to study abroad in London. To be honest, it was just an excuse to visit Britta and explore a city I'd never visited before. I arrived a few days early so that we could celebrate New Year's Eve together in style.

To document our scandalous night out, Britta decided to bring along her new playtoy: a Holga 120 CFN camera.

Although I pass the Lomography gallery store in New York all the time, I'd never had the chance to try one of these fun little cameras out for myself. They're entirely plastic and shoot medium format (120) film, although they can be modified to shoot 35mm and instant. Britta's Holga also included a flash with 3 built-in color gels. The camera's results are often unpredictable, with dream-like coloring, light leaks, and vignetting.

A few weeks ago, I decided I needed a Holga for myself. I stopped by Adorama in NYC (my favorite photography supply store) and picked up a starter kit, which included a roll of 120 film. I had no idea what I was doing, but with a Holga, that's sort of the point. I did end up with a couple of pretty shots:

view from the roof of my apartment building


around the neighborhood

another double exposure! spring in nyc is beautiful.


The only downside to the superfun Holga-- one roll of film cost $20 to process and scan at my local lab. Kind of defeats the purpose of a $45 camera. Next time, I think I'll have the film processed and then use a drum scanner at school to scan & print them.