Ch-ch-ch-changes

Did you hear Laura's big news? I'm so excited for her and Dave and the good people of Vermont who will now have delicious cupcakes available to them.

Guess who else has big news? Me!

Finally, 5 weeks after moving in, I have a photo tour all prepared for you. Where is it you ask? My new blog!

Go on over and check it out to find out why it is called Intellectual Domesticity and how you can be entered into my giveaway!

I HAVE been posting

I promise I have. I've been doing the email-remote-post thing that worked once before (see: Kale Chips), but apparently hasn't worked since.

It's not too big of a deal except that you haven't heard my latest thoughts on the swine flu or on the tshirt choices of my co-workers or about the lack of a foosball table and espresso machine in my office as of this morning. See? You didn't miss much.

Today was quite a big day. Nathan and I purchased our first piece of Le Creuset tonight! We had a 25% coupon and a super generous gift card from some friends in Boston, so we bought one of those things that I've always wanted, but felt somewhat out of reach.

I'm so excited. We got the round 3.5 quart in Caribbean Blue. Oh man. I can't wait to bake some bread in it.

We also browsed coffee tables and benches at Macy's while we were there, but nothing seemed worth the exorbitant prices. Imagine our delight when walking home from the subway we stumbled upon a fantastic wicker storage bench that was the exact size we needed! Hoorah! Finding free things on the street is really in my top five favorite things about living in a city.

So for the past hour or so I've been browsing Craigslist hunting for the perfect coffee table. In the meantime, Nathan has somehow managed to break our bamboo dish rack and put it back together again. He claims it is even better now than before. I don't want too many details--he involved power tools in the dish rack project. I would have used glue to fix the one broken place, but he uses power tools to completely restructure the thing. This is how we are different.

Tomorrow's big plans include sitting around the apartment waiting for a certified mail delivery and cleaning. Whoohoo. Exciting life, huh? I can't wait to update you on it.

Highlights

Here are the highlights of my day so far:

1. HEROES. What is going on there????

2. Love that on The Hills last night Ashley mentioned Heidi's plastic surgery. HAHAHA.

3. Also, my best friend asked if I was still going to the gym even with the swine flu problems (she's been jogging on the beach for fear of communal areas). Um, well, I live a pretty communal life. The gym is the least of my worries. The subway and living in a building with 200 other people are sort of topping my list. So yes--just as I continue to travel to work and live in my building, I am indeed still working out in the gym. I washed my hands (no joke) 6 times this morning at the gym. Go me. I will agree that it is pretty terrifying and sometimes I wish that I could get on with my life with less people coughing near me. Oh well. It is what it is and the soap at work smells like lillies. My hand sanitizer smells like cotton blossoms. Our soap at home is lemon verbena. The only soap in my life I'm not too fond of is the soap at the gym--it smells institutional. Oh well. Whatever keeps those germs at bay now that HUNDREDS of people in New York City have swine flu.

4. On that note, my hands are honest to goodness SQUEAKY. This is also freaking me out.

Like whoa.

Today my best friend told me I needed to update my blog "like whoa." I'm not one to ignore that kind of command, so let's catch up.

I still haven't shared photos of our meet up with Laura, Dave and Lilly. I know. I'll work on it.

I still haven't shared photos of our new place. I know. I'll work on it.

Did I tell you I went to a fancy party at the Empire Hotel rooftop and that Nicholas Cage was having a party there too? No. Alright--there you go. I went to a fancy party on the Empire Hotel rooftop. All the extra Nicholas Cage security felt a little silly to me, but, hey, a fancy party is a fancy party.

We did work around the house ALL WEEKEND except for a Trivial Pursuit party on Saturday where we ate rice and beans and yummy feta basil dip that I made with homemade crackers made by the sis-in-law. Oh, and our team won.

We went to an evening church service yesterday followed by Moe's so that made Sunday fantabulous.

So who is freaking out about swine flu? I AM. LIKE WHOA.

No, seriously, y'all. Ask me how many times I have washed my hands today. Want to know why I am freaking out so much?

Since the temps hit 90 this weekend, we've slept with the windows open the past few nights. I sleep right next to a window, FYI. The temps have still been dropping down into the 40s at night, so we go to bed hot and wake up cold. Pair that with all the pollen my face is absorbing through the open window in my sleep and you have serious sore throat potential. That is, serious potential--my throat is only mildly sore.

Pair that with confirmed cases in Queens and the fact that people from my office just returned from Mexico and you end up with me--Nervous Nelly. I am super jumpy about this swine flu business. No joking.

So, that my update, like whoa. Life is fun and busy and the temperature swings and pollen make me think of swine flu. Constantly.

Kale

Kale chips are so, so yummy! A few people asked how I made them and it was easy peasy.

1. Buy some kale.
2. Wash it well—get all the gritty stuff out of the leaves.
3. Dry it and break it into 2-3” pieces (discard the stalks and large ribs).
4. Arrange pieces on a baking sheet in a single layer.
5. Spray with olive oil (I have a sprayer, but I guess you could do anything to lightly coat them).
6. Bake at 375 degrees for 20ish minutes.
7. When you take them out of the oven, sprinkle lightly with salt or other seasoning.
   

I also read that you can lightly coat them in balsamic and olive oil. I haven’t tried this yet.

Nathan was super skeptical when I brought home kale the other day, but he loved them! I bought a bunch of organic kale at Whole Foods (in NYC, no less) for $2.50, so it’s  a cheap snack. That one bunch made two baking sheets of chips.

Happy super-fooding!

Oh man...

I'm beginning to feel as if we will NEVER have everything finished in our apartment. It was certainly much easier to accomplish in Boston when we were both unemployed and home all day.

Yesterday, we had a fantastic time meeting Dave and Laura of A Dozen Eggs fame. Oh, and we met Lilly too! I took pictures and I'll try to get those up tomorrow. I'll explain why I don't quite have the energy to upload them now below.

After our meet-up at Shake Shack (where Lilly got her very own puppy bowl of ice cream) we walked around, chatted and Nathan and I saw our very first famous New Yorker--Richard Kind from Spin City. He was out and about playing with his kids in the park.

After bidding farewell to Dave, Laura and Lilly, we headed to The Container Store to get necessary implements for this ridiculous plaster-covered masonry walls we have. Well, The Container Store led to Home Depot where we dropped a chunk of change for Nathan to get the fancy drill that he wanted and we needed if anything is to be hung upon these walls. The good news is that the drill should last 25+ years, so we're in the clear for a while.

Then, last night in the middle of the night, I woke up with a migraine. Ugh. I brought it upon myself. I rarely get them and it's always for the same reason. Anyway, there it was and, needless to say, I didn't stumble out of bed today until 3:00 pm. I'm still not feeling 100% (hence, no uploading of the photos), but I did find the energy to make some pizza dough and kale chips. By the way, kale chips are CRAZY yummy.

So, all this is to say that some day we might get things hung on our walls and I can show you pictures of the new place. It won't be today though. Between the migraine and our frustrating walls and me breaking the plate I keep hanging above the stove, I've decided to call it a day.

Happy Founders Day!

I've only met one other Alpha Xi Delta here in Blog World, but if you are a sister, then Happy Founders Day! I loved my time in Alpha Xi in college and I'm hoping to reconnect with alumnae here in New York City. I'm grateful for those founders who shaped our dear fraternity.

The Symphony of Alpha Xi Delta
These things do we earnestly desire:

A clear vision of life that with gracious and kindly hearts we may share both joy and sorrow, and bring into living reality the sisterhood of women.

An appreciation of real merit and worth, steadfastness of soul, that without bitterness or defeat we may encounter misfortunes and with humility meet success.

These things Oh Lord, help us to instill within our hearts, that we may grow in courage, graciousness and peace.

“No sorority is better than the individuals who compose it; no matter how high may be its ideals, the chapters compose the sorority and the individual members the chapters, and it rests with each and everyone of us to make or mar this work we have undertaken.
Let us highly resolve that our founders shall not have given so freely of their strength and brains in vain, but that we may prove their worthy successors in thought and deed.”
Ellen Leib in Volume I, Number I of the Alpha Xi Delta