Interesting....

I read this article in the New York Times Sunday Magazine this past weekend and have been thinking about it ever since.  What an interesting concept that men become functionally obsolete from a reproductive standpoint at not entirely different ages than women do!

                    photo credit: Robert Capa/Magnum Photos via  New York Times

And I must say that I think the author is onto something when she hypothesizes that if this idea of male reproductive obsolescence was more widely accepted, the ways that society views older men and older women would be more similar than they are currently (i.e. not so many 20 year old women would be willing to date the 50 year old silver fox).

By the way, how much do you love the photo above?  Pablo Picasso at age 66 with his son, apparently.

You May Have To Have Me Committed Soon

If my freezer, closet and spice cabinet haven't already convinced you that I'm not quite right in the head, then my love affair with my new label maker will.

I'd been eyeing the label maker that the Container Store carries for quite some time, but at $50 it just seemed gratuitous.  So imagine my delight when I came across this little beauty at Staples the other day:

The Brother PT-80 P-touch cost only $19.99 with the in-store rebate, and if you want to go the online route, is only $16 on Amazon.  The device could not be simpler to use, and the results seem to be as good as with any label maker to my untrained eye.

And it allowed me to realize my dream of complete bathroom cabinet organization.

See the perfect labels?

Hide all of your unlabeled items, I'll be coming for them before you know it.

Finger Lickin' Good

Peter turned 29 this past weekend, and this was his invitation to the big event:

so isaac suggested that since we're in somewhat of a global credit crisis, we should be a little more sensitive to the location of our birthday dinner.  he suggested kentucky fried chicken.

of course, knowing all the high rollers in the group, i scoffed...i said "isaac, my dear friend, for a dinner party like the one me and jason want to have, we can do no less than...

bon chon chicken

314 5th ave

2nd floor

(upstairs past the really fat black guy...you'll know what I'm talking about soon enough)

Now I'd heard Peter rave about the fabulosity of Bon Chon in the past, but the only thing I knew about the place was that the one near me on Chambers Street looks pretty similar to a KFC, so I was wondering if maybe he had taken the whole frugality thing a little too far.

But no, we were going to the Bon Chon flagship, if you will, in the heart of Koreatown.  It is a full service restaurant, although it might be mistaken for a club when you first walk in.  Dim, with low slung furniture and music pumping, it somehow managed to be festive rather than annoying (I would normally be annoyed with the music but it somehow enhanced the experience rather than detracted from it).

Upon arrival, I sat down in front of this very handy beer dispenser that Peter had had the foresight to order...

...and helped myself to some of the chilled (you see the column of ice in the middle?  Brilliant!) Coors Light.  Again, not generally my favorite, but I was loving it in the Bon Chon setting.

And then the platters of crispy, crispy fried chicken began to come, and with Peter ordering, there was no stopping them until we were all stuffed.  According to the New York Times, the crispiness comes from a multi-stage frying process.  First the fat is rendered from the skin, then a very thin batter is applied, then they are fried, then they rest, then they are fried...I don't pretend to understand the process, I simply enjoy the end results.

And the pickled radishes that go along with the platters are simply perfection.  I could (and did) eat pounds of the stuff.  

Also loved the kimchee pancakes, and the shoju was delicious as well (and deceptively alcoholic...oops).  Lychee was the winning flavor, pear was number two.  AVOID WATERMELON AT ALL COSTS.

We completely over-ordered (Peter:  I think I over-estimated demand.  Marissa:  Wow, you really are a real estate person!), both on the food and drink front, and yet still the whole dinner only cost $40 per person.  So basically the perfect restaurant.  Festive, delicious AND cheap.

Home Economics

I am a massive fan of Gilt Group.  Probably because I love sample sales and this website allows me to do battle with other rabid shoppers with my mouse rather than having real life confrontations in various states of undress.  Who's excited for the Louboutin sale coming up next Wednesday!!!

Anyway, you can imagine my excitement when I started reading on all of the design blogs that there is now a home version of Gilt Group called One Kings Lane.  Same concept...you have to become a member, if you refer a friend and they buy something you get a $25 credit (hook me up with some credits if you feel so inclined), and they've got many sales per week (in this case, it seems to be a sale per day).

They've got quite a few good things going on at the moment...

Ann Gish has got some cool pillows and whatnot:

Arte Italia has got some lovely serving pieces (I'm a total sucker for dishes of any sort, because they indicate food will be filling them at some point).

I love how this bowl is sort of basic country but that silver rim makes it quite sophisticated at the same time.

And Lunt Silversmiths has got some adorable stuff.

How funny is this bookend?

And I love the silver plated leaf serving platter.

Ah, I can feel my productivity levels dropping already as my internet browsing time increases...

Harvest Time

I feel lately like I've been forgetting to eat my vegetables. I think it has to do with the fact that I do a lot of my produce shopping at the Green Market, and there hasn't been to much in the way of inspirational veggies there of late.

But all that is about to change as the weather turns and the growing season begins. And have I got a plan to take advantage of it (and to force me to eat many times the volume of veggies that I would if left to my own devices). Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)!

The way it works is this: you pay (often through some sort of volunteer middleman, somewhere between $250-350) in advance for a weekly delivery of veggies from a local farm. Your payment allows the farm to pay for their planting expenses up front, and in return you pick up your box every week (often from the middleman's store, or some community facility) containing 6-8 different kinds of vegetables from roughly June through November.

I just dropped off my payment at a lovely food provisions store at the South Street Seaport, and can't wait for June to come! The deadlines to join most of these CSAs are coming in the next couple of weeks, so if you have any interest I would highly suggest looking into it now (here, for New York residents).

History Repeating Itself

I've always loved hearing about how previous generations grew up.  And it is a good thing my grandparents, parents and aunts and uncles are good storytellers, because they've got a lot of stories to tell.

Whether it is a story from my grandpa about his days in the Navy, one from my dearly departed grandmother about growing up in the segregated south, or from my dad about living in Timothy Leary's house during summers in grad school (I am told that Mr. Leary was out of town during these stays...let us hope, shall we?), I generally find something amusing, intriguing or deeply touching in these tales.

But it doesn't necessarily have to be a family member telling the story for it to be a good one.  Today's New York Times article on how people coped during the Great Depression is good evidence of that.  You know when older people say that young people don't truly know what hardship is? Evidently, they're right!

For The Ladies

A tip for the curvier ladies out there:  you must pick up a pair of H&M jeans, the fit is amazing, and there is no tailoring necessary.

I'm actually not the hugest H&M fan generally.  I think it makes a lot of sense for people who buy clothes and get tired of them quickly, but my shopping style tends more towards the see-something-too-expensive-and-become-obsessed-with-it-and-occasionally-save-up-enough-in-a-year-to-buy-it.  So for me, H&M is a little torturous.  I buy something that I love from them (which, happily I don't have to save up for) and then it falls apart before I'm ready to part with it.

But my fellow curvy girl Vivian swears by H&M jeans, and since she is unfailingly impeccably turned out I decided to take her advice and buy a pair.  Besides, for $30 it wasn't much of a leap of faith, now was it?

Let me tell you, I have never gotten so many compliments as I have on my super dark wash boot cut H&M's.  Paul literally asked if I was ill because I looked like I had lost "too much weight".  And I've had them for nearly a year now and they seem to be showing no discernible wear, which is pretty impressive, even for non-H&M clothes.

So no more three figure priced jeans.  No need, simply no need.  In a good economy or a bad one.