and back to what is important.......

By now, I'm sure that most of you know that Alexander McQueen is doing a line for Target. It's not under the 'Go' line, but a new venture that is Designer Collaborations. The price point is slightly higher.....but from the looks of it, well worth it.....
you can check nitrolicious and some others for some other pics, but these are my favorite so far:

Jumpsuit.....and totally wearable. with flipflops (another one of my litmus tests for clothing)....or heels or cute flats. love this.

love the little shift. Again looks super wearable. And harkens back to the 80s. And from the looks of those leggings, they zip up on the sides. I might have to have those as well. They also show them in the same print as the dress for the more adventurous (and probably younger) of us.

And how about this jacket?! Cute, studded grey denim......I need jackets like holes in my head, so, this might be my pass, but I can dream and stroke it.
The lengths that I might have to go to for this stuff is slightly scary to think about.....camping out at some target in the middle of nowhere. I'm fairly certain you won't get any of this stuff in West Hollywood without some bruising.

Its coming in March, so start saving your pennies!

new music

I'm angry.

There is no doubt that it's been a tough week for the new President. But when you really look at it, where is it coming from? Polls will almost overwhelmingly show that Americans are behind the stimulus package. His approval ratings are better than Bush's almost ever were--at least in the last few years. So why is it that every time I turn on the TV I see these over-combed republicans railing about how this package is the final nail in the coffin of our economy?

The Obama administration kept their word about bi-partisanship. They asked them to the table, listened to their ideas, tried to work with them. And seriously, it seems to me that the republicans have not acted in good faith. It's like they thumbed their noses at him and his overatures. They mocked the bi-partisan efforts. All because they didn't get what they wanted.

And what did they want? MORE of what hasn't worked! All of what they want is all of what got us into this mess in the first place! The Bush administration passed TRILLIONS of dollars of tax cuts in 2001, 2 and 3 and look where we are! The Dems worked in good faith on those, only to get shoved out of the way and trampled on....AND those cuts have not helped our economy at all.

The farce that the republicans would have you believe is that Obama wants higher taxes. PLEASE! no one in their right mind wants higher taxes. We all want to keep as much money of what we earn as we can. Period. BUT, we are now in a place where we are each going to have to pony up a little bit more than we would like for a while in order to right the ship.

Part of me wonders if the republicans are just in their little DC bubble and can't see the forest for the trees or do they see it and don't care? Either way, it's nasty. If you were to get a tax cut--ie: your tax bill was lower this year and next would you just spend more? Right now? Hell no! people are socking it away. No one's job is secure. We're all worried. So, wouldn't it be better to spend the money upgrading and fixing our infrastructure? Giving our education and health system a boost? Fixing the roads? Doing some of these not just large-scale but enormous projects that we just haven't undertaken yet as a country? It's just insane that other countries are ahead of us in these things. Meanwhile, we just go out and buy more junk from China to fill up our own homes. Not investing in our children, our health and our communities.

So, are the republicans that dogmatic? That bitter about losing? That out of touch with the country and what is happening? Yes. And I guess the good news is this: Obama can put out his hand and hope that they extend theirs, but when they don't, they should not underestimate this man. He beat Hillary after they said it couldn't be done. And he did it calmly with a smile on his face. And then he went on and took down their candidate......the easier race of the two from my vantage. There were moments when we were sweating. When we would watch in horror as a black minister went off the rails. As the prom queen from Wasilla produced huge crowds and started picking up steam. But none of this ruffled them. And every time it happened, he just got better.
I know what Obama is capable of. The over exposure in this last week or two is just them getting their bearings. DC is a bubble. And especially the White House. As long as Obama can hear what we are talking about around our kitchen tables and on the street, he will navigate this thing. He will emerge the victor. AND, as long as Lindsey Graham and John Boener (don't you just want to call him Boner?) want to keep on with their vitriol, Obama can smile and stick the dagger in. Don't like our brand of bi-partisanship? That's ok. See what not having a real voice in this will do to you. See what silence is like. They will lose their voice in our country in the new politics so fast it will make George Bush and Dick Cheney seem like a footnote....ok, that's pushing it. We're still going to be cleaning up that bio-hazard for a while....but I can dream, can't I?

All sorts of bargains......

Before we start, I highly recommend this short story by Woody Allen.....and if you haven't ever read any of his short stories, go out today and get a book of them. Before David Sedaris, there was Woody. Only his stuff tends to have a fantasy aspect to it that takes it to the absurd.

http://woodyallenitalia.tripod.com/short-uk.html

This is called the Whore of Mensa. need I say more?

I was looking around for Valentine's Day for Joel and I happened into H&M--I swear it was not intentional......definitely some cute Spring stuff, although with the weather here, I'm not sure I'm ready for anything 'Spring'. Did I mention that my Uggs were my best purchase this year??? What would I do without them?

Anyway, if you're at H&M, then you have to top it off with a quick run through F21. There I found a little clearance sale in the back (read: hurrry up and go before the weekend is up!) I picked up a cashmere blend turtleneck (they had a few colors--I, shocker, opted for Navy) for $11.99. They also had a bunch of cute tshirts and stuff for $8. Who can beat it? And the cute scarves from India for $8.
The crazy thing about both H&M and F21 right now is the straight back to the 80's thing....I swear there was a flannel buffalo plaid mini skirt that I looked for for about 8 years straight in my youth.....it was just hanging there for like $15. Of course, I am now way past the age that I can wear a buffalo plaid mini skirt, but hey, I finally crossed it off that mental list.

Made me also think of how easy the girls have it today. We had to hunt for it. They have it right there.....or maybe that was just my mother.

Then, trying to make my escape, my eye caught blue and white stripes--I have to touch them whenever I see them. It's like going to the light.....It was a little blazer with great navy buttons. fully lined, great for the spring and summer. $22. I will have to put it in the closet for a couple of months, but I'm going to love it.

Oh, one last thing: I'm reading books to Isaac tonight and he says, "Mom, my bed is made of springs, isn't it?" and I say, "yes" and he says, "Well, tempurpedic says that springs are bad for you. I think we need to get me a tempurpedic bed". I'm not kidding. I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried. Makes me want to pull the TVs off the walls.

Happy Birthday Joel!

Big day in our house:
Joel's birthday, Grammys......too much for one little Sunday......And Isaac and I went to visit my aunt who was in town for the balloon convention. Yes, the balloon convention. These are people who make sculptures out of balloons. Not your regular clowns who make swords and princess crowns and stuff--although, that is what my aunt does for a living--no, these folks do this dressed like you and me with a passion normally reserved for......at the moment I can't think of something I'm that excited about doing....you get the point.
Other than the amazing sculptures that won the big grand prizes, there was this room that I thought Isaac was going to pass out in where the conference/convention attendees would go at night and just make stuff. It was full of the remnants of half-tied hats or boats or whatever else you could dream up. There were a few other little kids in there just rummaging around finding things and popping balloons and sword fighting.......

Why we voted for him

I am a pretty patient person. At least on the big stuff. So, I haven't been too worried about all of the noise coming out of Washington.....I mean, last Spring was tough, don't get me wrong, but we survived it. And every time that we thought that we were sunk, the Obama team proved that they were one step ahead.

So, I was thrilled last night when I was in the car and heard him speaking to the House Democratic Caucus at their retreat (why are they retreating right now??!!! Anyone??).

It's 20 minutes, but really worth it.

<http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-A-15159>.


A few great lines in there.......

eco trouble

I've been using reusable bags for a while now. I really love my Chico bags (even though it did take a little bit for me to get into them)......but yesterday a woman in line behind me trumped me. She whipped out a neon pink 'Baggu'. I'm such a sucker for neon pink.
And then I hit their site......beware. The whole site is just designed for you to start clicking on the pretty colors.......
so clean and easy. And it comes in three different sizes.....baby, regular and big--and patterns....oh I could totally go on and on about it.
go there and see for yourself.
Oh, and I like that at the bottom they have a little 'grocery kit' with a bunch of bags that come in their own bag. duh. perfect idea.

http://baggubag.com

Spencer, don't do it. Don't even click. Yours are on their way......

And for your little political/community activism hit for the week:

There will be house meetings going on all over the country this weekend to discuss the economic recovery plan that President Obama and his team are working on (for that matter, our entire government is working on).
Please go. We ALL have a stake in this. Big time. And what happens in those meetings will filter up and become part of the dialog.

To find a meeting that you can go to or to host your own, go to communityorganize.com

because we all need more shoes.....

While running errands today, I passed by a nearby Payless shoes. I must say that I haven't really ever purchased too much in there (shocking to some, I know given my proclivity for all things cheap) other than shoes for Isaac.

I saw the Lela Rose line that they carry and I was blown away! For those of you who wear heels, I definitely say check it out. She had some cute peep toe flats as well....all super super cute. One thing I really loved about it was that the shoes weren't plastic trying to be leather (or trying to pass itself off as eco friendly). She is using canvass and ribbon and other cute fabrics that are really really sweet. For those of you, like my mother, who like everything to match, there are some matching handbags that are pretty cute as well.

She's also doing a line of wedding or prom shoes (in case any of you are pulling bridesmaid duty soon) just like Leed's did when we were younger with the dyeables.....again, some pretty cute designs.
You can't beat a $30 pair of shoes that are fairly well made from a designer who worked for the likes of Richard Tyler in her time.....

if you can't get over to your local payless:

http://www.payless.com/Catalog/SLCategory.aspx?TLC=Womens&SLC=WomensDesigners&BLC=WomensDesignersLelaRose&ShopBySize=1&viewAll=true&sort=newarrivals

Oh, and they also had some cute old school keds knockoffs for around $15. all black or navy blue and white. I loved the all black because it was lined with white polkadots which reminded me of the Comme des Garcons line for H&M that I didn't get. I still go on ebay every few days and look at the tuxedo jacket. But when would I get a chance to wear it???

These gray ones are a wool fabric with a really cute wedge. And they were pretty comfortable. And the black ones below were a sort of linen or canvas.....both really cute for spring.

Orla Kiely update

I was at Target yesterday (shocker, it was Monday) and I noticed that they had some of the little bins there. I looked around and there was nothing else......and I will say, it did look like they must have had some other stuff, but it was gone.
However, after combing, and some tips, I found out that the full collection will hit the stores on the 15th. Something to do next Sunday.

Another little peek:

New favorite play date drink:

Shandy.
I think I have heard of it before, somewhere in the recesses of my memory.....but I had never really considered it before tonight. Joel's aunt came over and ordered one for the Superbowl.
He made her half 7up and half beer. Sounds horrible. Tastes pretty good.
It's a little tougher than a wine cooler. More girly than a beer straight.
Joel's mother then proceeded to order one--and Patty seemed to know all about this thing.....

I looked it up on Wikipedia. It's basically a beer Arnold Palmer--lemonade and beer. The mix is to taste. And apparently in England you can get them pre-made. Who knew? And everyone has their own version of it.

I kind of like the idea of having a little beer and 7up on a hot summer afternoon. A little sweet, and since both are carbonated, it didn't taste flat. I'm in. Kind of girly, everyone sitting around sipping shandys......or is it Shandies? Have to work on that.

Apparently there's a rock shandy which is orange soda and beer. From Ireland. That just sounds nasty. But to each his own.

Poor John McCain, it just isn't his year. Lose the election, lose the Superbowl. And he was so close on the Superbowl.

my new spring bag

because I needed a new bag like a hole in the head......
I accompanied Kirstin downtown to Michael Levine's to look at some fabric for her new venture (have you checked out Maven Studio on Etsy yet?). Of course, this fabric caught my eye and here I am buying fabric and begging Kirstin to make it into a super cute bag for me.......
Well worth it. I'm into the birds......sort of like peace doves.

Making turkey chili today for the Superbowl. I think it comes from my mom. It's pavlovian. I think football and chili just went together for her, and consequently, for me......and Isaac wants to make corn bread muffins, so we'll do that too.
If you haven't gone yet to get your 3d glasses for the cool commercials, head to the grocery store right now. I was surprised that they had a bunch left yesterday. There's supposedly some Monsters vs. Aliens thing and Pepsi or Sobe or some drink thing in 3D. Or you could just watch Bruce in them. That's all Joel cares about...apparently a joke on SNL last night: this year the Steelers and the Cardinals are opening up for Bruce Springsteen.
But note to self: DO NOT buy the new album. It's pretty cringe. Just download the two or three good songs. ouch. Let's hope he sticks with oldies today.

Oh, and Hotel for Dogs: If your kid can do live action, totally fine afternoon. The only mildly weird thing is that the kids are orphaned brother and sister who are threatened with being split up. Isaac wasn't bugged by it. I kept telling him it would be alright and he kept saying , "I know mom--its just pretend!!" like he was reassuring me. Not a ton of story there, but cute. And fine.....And if you like dogs, then pretty cute. Isaac says to tell you he thinks its a REALLY good movie. Rolling the R on 'REALLY'.....

I'm having a thing......

for flat, black, lace-up boots. I'm not entirely sure where it came from. I've had plenty of pairs before in my life, but for some reason, whenever I'm sitting in front of my computer for 5 minutes and I have a blank moment, it's the thing I search for. I've searched Zappos, and Amazon, and Piperlime (how annoying is that name and of all of the affiliated websites pushiness about them??)....Anyway, I have not found the right ones yet.

I found these:

which are pretty cool. In black I can only find a size 8.5. ugh. I'm not going brown. And basically, they are the same price as buying the real thing. The real thing being paddock boots from a western wear company. That's what these are from--well, sort of a hybrid of paddock boots and motorcycle boots. I guess I could just rock the Doc Martens again. Go old school.....But I think I am starting to push the envelope of acceptability on that. I'm no longer in my 20s or even early 30s. I might have to meditate on that.

Ok, while I'm meditating, I must tell you that I got a call that apparently Lucky Brand Kids is having some sort of $10 sale!? It's not on the website and I haven't gone in to confirm (what with Isaac still being feverish and all) so, check it out and let me know......who can beat $10?

Ok, meditation over.....went to the DM website......they had me at 'vintage collection'. Takes me right back. I really like the maroon ones all of a sudden (I'm totally getting off track here)


I mean, for those of you older than 33, these will take you right back......(arbitrary age).
And for those of you with kids: I'm sure you noticed those cute little green boots on your way in here. Those come in a veritable rainbow of colors and patterns. Killing me. Who can spend $60 on boots for the kids right now? Well, who can be buying boots at all right now? Certainly not me. Which is why I am ranting here.

veggie soup for dinner.....

This might be turning into a cooking blog.....at least for now. That's what happens when your kid is home sick for a couple of days......you have to find ways to not go crazy. And I can't get to the store--the best I've done is Rexall in the last few days--and don't get me started about that.....

So, below you'll see the video--that's sort of the basic recipe. I mostly put it up there to get my feet wet with embedding, but it is pretty good for 3 minutes. It will get you started.

Soup is like Jazz. I might have read that in an article. I feel like cooking is like Jazz--that drives Joel slightly nuts. He likes me to follow the recipe. I have a hard time measuring stuff. The great thing about vegetable soup is that you can mostly put anything in there and it will be fine. I had broccoli and some rainbow chard and little baby tomatoes, so I threw all those in there.
The twist for me came in using fennel in such a savory dish--it was so fragrant and really gave the overall flavor some depth. Also, I cheated a little and started with the 4 pieces of bacon that I had left in the fridge--gave it a little bite, a little minestrone vibe.

So, the soup itself was really good, but it was the additions that really made it for me. I did the croutons, that was easy and gave it a crunch and then I did a twist on the 'pistou'.....If I had a few minutes, I would look up the word, but I just rolled with it. I mixed some italian parseley, savory, garlic, lemon zest, dijon mustard and then a dab of olive oil.....I chopped the first 4 ingredients up super fine, then added the mustard and olive oil and mashed it all up together (you could do a mortar and pestle probably). This little thing added to the soup once its in the bowl was like a flavor explosion. That, a little parmesan and the croutons made a great dinner that didn't take very long to make.

HC 09

Just got back from counting the homeless tonight in Los Angeles. In case you haven't heard, tonight, tomorrow night and Thursday night are Homeless Count O9. Happens every 2 years and helps to determine the kind of funding and services that the homeless get all over this country.

If you didn't get out there tonight, you can still make it for the next two nights. It sounds slightly daunting, but it's really not. They train you, give you a map and all the supplies you need and a team, and you hit the streets and just count the homeless and their encampments. I met the loveliest brother and sister: Joseph and Patsy. Patsy is 76 and she owns a little company that makes priest and choir robes. Yeah. And she was out there trekking around fearlessly with us to make sure we accurately counted the homeless. And actually, there were over 100 people who showed up tonight and word on the street is that all of the meeting spots were overwhelmed with volunteers.

This isn't to say you are off the hook. This is to get you on the bandwagon. I know you're tired. It's been a long day, but I swear, you will actually go to bed with a little smile on your face knowing that you spent a few hours doing this. It's a new day here in this land we live in, and in order to make the change we have so desperately fought for, we are going to have to work for it. Work at it.

lahsa.org

The Bag Lady of LA.....

While the rest of us were recovering from the election, trying to deal with the holidays and our families and just generally sleeping through these last couple of months, my friend Kirstin was busy. I remember that she mentioned at one point that she wanted to learn to sew......and then all of a sudden, she had purchased a machine, taught herself to sew and was making EVERYTHING!

Then one day she made a bag. And that was it. She was off and running. Her bags are perfect and stunning and durable and I could go on and on and on.......
Need a new computer bag? She's your girl. A cool diaper bag for the baby shower of your best friend next month? Go see Kirstin. She'll do custom work....and wallets and little insert bags for travelling...you name it, she's got it covered.

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6760809

And it's aptly named: Maven Studio.

Tuna Cass

Lest you think that this endeavor is just about shopping, you're about to discover my other passion: cooking.
We went through a period where Turkey Casserole was in heavy rotation. Probably once a week or so. And who can blame? veggies, ground turkey, cheese, tomato sauce and pasta--sort of covers all the bases.
Lately though, I've been going through a new phase: Tuna Casserole. Not the Campbell's cream of mushroom soup kind--although that is certainly very much a comfort food from my youth. The great thing about tuna casserole is that you really can make it out of stuff that you keep in your pantry: canned tuna, pasta.....but this new version that I've discovered and now messed around with takes it up a notch AND makes it much healthier.....

1 bag of pasta or egg noodles or whatever you like
1/2 a brown onion roughly chopped
2 big spoonfulls of capers
1 1/2 cans of artichoke hearts*
3/4 cup of finely grated parmesan cheese
3 cans (6oz ea) of tuna packed in water (reserve the water when you drain!)
1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tsp. of finely grated lemon zest
1/4 cup of flat leaf parseley
1/3 cup of bread crumbs

optional:
1 cup of frozen peas (cooked)
1/2 to 1 cup of chopped mushrooms
*I just substituted 1 bag (trader joe's bag) of cauliflower (steamed) for the artichoke hearts and it turned out great

Preheat oven to 350.
lightly oil an 8 to 10 cup casserole dish (better a round or tall one than a big baking dish)
cook your pasta and drain.

Puree onion, artichoke hearts (or steamed cauliflower) and capers in a food processor until smooth. Add parmesan cheese and reserved tuna water and pulse to combine. Run machine and add olive oil slowly to emulsify. (The last time I made this, I didn't use quite 1/2 a cup). season with black pepper.

Move everything to a large bowl and add the lemon zest, parseley, pasta and drained tuna. And if you're adding veggies, add those now too. Mix it all up and transfer to your baking dish.

sprinkle bread crumbs (and I put a little more parmesan on top as well).
Bake for about 40 to 45 minutes--until cooked through and brown on top.
Let stand for a few minutes before serving.

This recipe comes from Martha Stewart and has been altered in my kitchen.....I think that's what I like about it: like Turkey cass, you can move it around to suit your tastes and your pantry.

post dinner note:
worked out great. And my husband couldn't believe that it didn't have some sort of 'cream' base.....woo hoo!
a

and one more little tip......

So, I asked Isaac to write his name in sharpie on his friend's birthday card today......well, not sure what I was thinking, but all of a sudden I had a bunch of dark blue sharpie marks all over our wood dining room table.....409, no. some organic cleaner, no........panic, panic.....toothpaste. Yes, toothpaste. After a little research, I've now learned that some people mix it with rubbing alcohol, but it worked fine just as it was, with the added bonus of my table getting a little polish. It actually looks a little sharper in that spot. Go fig. File that under what-to-do-when-your-kid-draws-on-your-table-in-sharpie......of course you could go the route of keeping permanent markers out of the hands of your 4 year old, but what fun would that be?

A beautiful, cold Sunday.....

New idea for a kid's party: make a compilation cd instead of a bag full of plastic and sugar.....Isaac and I went to his friend Levi's birthday party, and came home with an awesome mixed cd that starts off with his buddy doing a little intro at the beginning. It will, no doubt, get waaay more play than the usual little trinkets that the kids usually come home with. Of course, all the kids were whining a little at first about not getting the goodie bag (did we get them at every party when we were kids? I don't remember, but it seems like we didn't), but once we got into the car and the old school version of the Spider Man theme came on, all was forgotten.

Then I took a little cruise through Old Navy since I was making a return upstairs anyway....a couple of cute things--lots of cute rain slickers in nice spring colors. They aren't on sale yet ($32-$39), but still super cute if you're in the hunt for a new rain coat. And this super cute green dress with the rolled sleeves and my favorite for comfy dresses--POCKETS! Cute with boots now, flip flops or tennies later and it meets my criteria for a great dress--perfect for the park. Some of you don't have that issue....but those of you who do, will appreciate.
Also cool there right now are the knockoff Sigg bottles. $7.50. They are tall too, which is cool. They only have the screw tops and I tried to fit my Sigg spout on it, and it doesn't work, BUT, it's still great to have another water bottle in the stable that isn't plastic. The one I got has peace signs on it, but these are all cute as well.....and who can beat $7.50??

update on Converse at Target

So, if you go to target.com and search for Converse One Star, you will notice that they are having a women's clearance sale that is something like 14 pages long.......I notices some super cute vests (a shiny red one, Mad Dog!) and some great simple dresses that can be worn with tights and boots now and then flip flops or flats in the spring and summer....some of the dresses were under $10! crazy.....I know I'm a little on about the Converse thing, but they are on to something right now.....

ok, and shout out to Sheigh for the preview of the new Orla Kiely line for Target.....launching next week (first of Feb), super cheap and super cute. Does it remind you of your grandmother's kitchen?? I think mine had the canisters.....

And another shout out to Patty for the tip on the hanky panky's....on sale at Macy's right now for $10 ish.....(regularly around $20).....that's worth a trip over to Bev Center this afternoon......

a

These bargains of which I speak.....

alrighty then.....
went to Target today.....I must say that the Converse One Star line at Target has been my new favorite for a little while now. I have a few items, and all of them I've been quite happy with: The white dress shirt and the identical one in Navy Blue, my denim vest, today I purchased some little One Star tennies for Isaac. I got the black (see photo) $17.99, but they had pink and madras and cammo and for men they had them in high top.....super cute.
Also picked up a bunch of these great t-shirts by Merona. $9.99. great mottled cotton. I love the blue and white stripey one because it feels very french sailor. Also had yellow and white stripe and a bunch of solids. Runs slightly big--and by that I mean, xs is roomier than you would think. First review by Patty elicited an 'I would pay much more for this!'.....so hurry over to target. Or check it out online:

http://www.target.com/Converse-One-Star/b/ref=nav_t_spc_1_61/190-2849559-1533014?ie=UTF8&node=393216011

And about my very slight comments on DC I will say this: It is really hard to sum the last 4 days up in any kind of meaningful way this soon. To say that I'm glad that I went is the understatement of the decade. To have shared that moment--those days with thousands of people who all came there for their own reasons was profound. Older black ladies in wheel chairs out there with young children.....we have taken the first steps at lifting our country and our communities back up. We have given ourselves and our children a gift like no other.

DC

I guess it's fitting to start with my recent trip to Washington DC. My brother Drew and I went out for the inauguration. Good time had by all. Better time had by some......and COLD as.....well, Ice Cream or something really freaking cold. It was 2 pairs of leggings under your jeans cold and handwarmers in your gloves cold.

tomorrow....bargains. I promise.....

Well, I finally went and did it......

I know I've been saying I'd start blogging for about forever, so here we go.....I'm not totally sure what's going in here yet, but I'm sure it will be a mixture of all the things in my life......Joel & Isaac and our adventures, the bargains I am constantly on the hunt for, working in our community to make it just that much better and possibly the occasional rant. Comments not only welcome, but needed.
peace, love and finally a president we can believe in.....
a