Sick Day...

Just a friendly reminder to WASH YOUR HANDS every chance you get. Because right now, I'm home with pink eye. 

Yuck.

Be well everyone!

Battle of the Darcy's

I know, I know. I broke my "post every day for thirty days" rule... but it was for your own good. I refuse to let this blog wither into inane blathering, which is surely what it was going to come to if I didn't take a short hiatus. Besides, doesn't absence make the heart grow fonder?

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Stacks upon stacks of clean laundry are currently sitting in my room waiting to be put away. As my Monday nights are typically void of any obligations, last night would logically have been a great night to tackle that. A little stop by the gym first shouldn't have gotten in the way of that, right?

Wrong. Because on a whim I decided to attend a boot camp class. If you know me at all, you are laughing right now.

Needless to say that when I got home, I was good for nothing more than tossing a frozen pizza in the oven and collapsing on the couch with my roommates to catch the last half hour of Pride and Prejudice on television.

Now like millions of girls across the world, I claim Pride and Prejudice to be among my very favorite books and movies, Elizabeth Bennett among my favorite literary heroines. And wherever two or more true Austenites gather, immediate lines are drawn on the following debate:

1996 Colin Firth Pride and Prejudice miniseries vs. 2005 Keira Knightley Pride and Prejudice feature film

Each has its merits, and I could discuss these at length, however, only two words are truly necessary for a solid defense of the first: Colin and Firth.

Honestly, though, despite its smattering of inconsistencies with the original text, it's the second one that captures my heart over and over again. Between the captivating cinematography and the beautiful soundtrack, I just get lost in it every single time. So with the following clip, I rest my case:

I meant to go to the gym...

I really did. But it wasn't where the website said it was supposed to be! So I really had no choice when I couldn't find it other than to come home, cook dinner, and pop in disc one of the HBO John Adams miniseries. Initial review in a nutshell:

Really interesting point of view on our nation's birth. It makes you appreciate the fact that we are a nation at all when you realize how close we came to not having independence at all.

Also, Abigail Adams was pretty wonderful.

"We have too many high-sounding words and too few actions that correspond with them."
-Abigail Adams, letter to John Adams, 1774

Gleek Out

I love Glee. Love it. Enjoy:

A Little History Lesson

I've been on a documentary/biography/history kick lately, so today when I was deciding what to put at the top of my Netflix queue I finally boosted the HBO miniseries on the life of John Adams to the top. It arrives tomorrow, so I will be sure to let everyone know how it is. 

Living in a part of the country that is so rich in history, it just feels like a shame to not spend at least some time finding out about it. PBS came out with a fantastic documentary series on New York in 1999 and we (the roommates and I) have been watching it in several installments. Last week we learned about the Lower East Side tenements and the heartbreaking poverty that went on exactly where we live today.

Equally as amazing to me as the profound progress that has occurred here is how much some things have stayed the same. The Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, even the grid that lays out the city, all have remained relatively unchanged over time and I just love that! So for anyone interested:

New York: A Documentary Series

I recommend it!

Holiday Gift Guide

I've never been one known to get my holiday shopping done early, but this article in Real Simple makes me want to this year. They have great ideas for everyone on your list!

Real Simple Holiday Gift Guide

One of my personal favorites on the list? These pretty, re-covered Penguin Classics. ($20 each, penguingroup.com) 

Happy shopping!

I Recall Central Park in Fall...

Today was one of the most gorgeous days so far this fall, and on a day like this there is only one place to go. Central Park was completely breathtaking and prime for people-watching:

I hope that we get many more days like this to enjoy before winter sets in! This was such a great weekend and I plan on enjoying it to the last drop before Monday rears its ugly head tomorrow. :)

Lazy Saturday

This is the first weekend in a long time that I have made plans to not make plans and it feels pretty great. I would normally avoid inane posts like this that just tell a lot of nothing, but I'm taking this 30 days of blogging thing pretty seriously!

You know it's a good day when you shower and then put your pajamas right back on. I think I can, however, force myself to get dressed in order to meet friends for dinner. :) 

Happy weekend, everyone!

(And just for giggles:)

5 Things I Love

And so what if they all happen to be from Anthropologie? I just got the new catalogue. Gets me every time.

In other news: I saw my first holiday commercials of the season last night. You have no idea how hard I've been fighting the urge to start listening to Christmas music since then! Of course it doesn't help that twinkling lights are already going up everywhere around the city.

Let the holidays begin!!

Money Money Money

It's not exactly news that we live in troubled economic times, but in some ways I think the tumultuous economy has helped bring everyone back down to earth in terms of personal finance. For the first time in a long time, people are learning the value of living within your means and just saying no to unnecessary debt!

After my first year on the little adventure I like to call "financial independence," I just wanted to share one of the best tools I've found for helping me manage my money. The best part? It's free.

Allow me to introduce you to my friend:

This website links to all of your online bank accounts, credit cards, savings accounts, investments, and even loans to help give you the best snapshot possible of your personal financial health. A few of my favorite features:

• Budgeting tool
• Automatically imports all of your transactions
• Categories for your spending and income that you can customize
• At-A-Glance Insights: Charts and graphs galore to show you where your money goes, your net worth, how your habits are changing over time, etc.
• Ways to save: Mint takes a look at your overall finances and tells you how much alternate banks, credit cards, savings accounts, etc. could be helping you save money every year
• Alerts you when unusual spending takes place or when bills are due
• iPhone application makes it easy to use and access on the go

It's as safe and secure as any U.S. financial institution and comes highly recommended and recognized by BusinessWeek, Money Magazine, you name it.

Just my two cents. :)

Spotted: Gossip Girl Filming

Hey there Upper East Siders (or just my readers)...

A few months ago Gossip Girl was filming near my apartment in SoHo and I never shared the pictures. Selfish, I know. This episode aired a few weeks ago and it was so weird to watch it- like a very fabulous case of deja vu.

This scene featured Dan, Blair, and Vanessa who was making out with long-lost half-brother of former flames Serena and Dan (classic GG story line).

Enjoy!

XOXO,

Gossip Girl

One More Chance?

So I hear from my dear friend Bethany that November is National Blog Posting Month (fondly referred to from this point forward as NaBloPoMo). Upon reading about her commitment to post every day for just one month, I was immediately convicted about my own pathetic lack of posting and basic abandonment of my own sad little blog.

30 days... Surely I can do this? I have a backlog of pictures and subjects I have been meaning to blog about, so this is my golden opportunity to get caught up! Starting now:

Every day on my walk to work, I pass the flagship Saks Fifth Avenue (you know, the one actually on 5th Avenue?). The window displays are always gorgeous, but recently they had a Chanel display that I loved so much I actually suppressed my fear of looking touristy for a few minutes and took some pictures:

They had set it up to look like a fabulous black and pink vintage train and some of the cars were cut away so that you could see into them. Several car windows (like the one above) were playing scenes from the movie "Coco Before Chanel" which at the time hadn't yet been released.

I still haven't seen this seemingly delicious movie, but it is definitely near the top of my list! (Ah, the list... perhaps that will make a good post for another day this month?).

For all its reputation of being such a hard city, sometimes New York just has a way of sending you little love letters that melt your heart and this was definitely one of those times... le sigh.

Five Things I Love

Another Tuesday, Another few things I'm loving this week...

1. This Weekly Workout Plan Checklist from RealSimple.com

For someone like me who is lacking in the fitness self-discipline department (to put it mildly), this workout plan makes having a daily workout routine actually seem manageable and dare I say... FUN?

2. Wash and Fold Laundry Service

A staple on the Lower East Side unless you enjoy spending an entire Saturday in a hot, crowded laundromat. If only they could put it all away for me afterwards... le sigh.

3. The Dave Ramsey Show Podcast on iTunes

Call me a nerd for listening, but I love the hopeful way Dave talks people through their personal finance issues using the philosophy of living within your means. Especially in these economic times when so many are losing sleep, not to mention their homes, his message is more important than ever.

4. Project Runway's Althea

She may only be 23, but Althea is one of my favorite designers so far this season. I can't wait to see what else she is going to come up with!!

5. American Wife

This fictional account of a Republican first lady is definitely inspired by the life of Laura Bush, but fictional is still the key word here. One fact not in dispute: Curtis Sittenfeld is an amazing writer with a gift for vivid characterization and I loved this book!

My Bonus crush for the week: This SEPTEMBER weather!! Blue skies, not too cold for shorts, not too hot for a cute cardigan. Ah, perfection.

Love,

Allie

P.S. I will definitely be hitting up my neighborhood bakery Sugar Sweet Sunshine for their pumpkin spice cupcake with cream cheese frosting this week. So much for #1 on my list!

Apologies from a Wayward Blogger

Dearest Reader,

I hope you have not lost all faith in me as a blogger just because I went missing for so long. With this post I will begin to make amends and hopefully restore your trust. There are so many things to share due the amount of time that has lapsed since I last posted, but I will try to dole them out separately rather than overwhelming you with it all at once.

As an appeteaser, let's start with the long-awaited pictures of my apartment, shall we?

My Room

A Few Details

Our Living Room

Our Purple Nook

The People Who Really Make This Home

(Please note our fifth roommate, John.)

I do hereby pledge to post more faithfully in the future!

Cupcake Out.

Five Things I Love

In an attempt to add a little structure and direction to the blog, I'm implementing daily columns. Tuesday posts from now on will officially be dedicated to:

Five Things I Love

Soft White Sheets

Mad Men on AMC

*Ben & Jerry's Cinnamon Buns Ice Cream

Hydrangeas

This Anthropologie Dress

*The combination of the first three items on the list may lead to dangerous levels of enjoyment and have been known to induce addictive behaviors. Please enjoy responsibly.

Ah, Summer...

Sunday afternoons were made for this...

Lyndsey and I had to catch up on our vitamin D intake after the serious lack of sun all through the severely rainy month of June, so we found a great hidden valley in Central Park to lay out:

Just for fun we made wreaths out of clover flowers that we put in our hair. We left them in our hair on the way home and this little gem of a conversation happened while at Jamba Juice:

Random Woman: (very seriously) "Excuse me Miss, I was just wondering what the flowers in your hair represent?"

Me: "Oh, umm, boredom?" (Sorry, World Peace- maybe next weekend?)

*embarrassing*

Peace Out.

Our New Digs

We recently decided to make to move from our beloved Brooklyn Heights into Manhattan's notoriously hip(ster) Lower East Side, picking up a couple more roommates along the way. Though still knee-deep in boxes, the new apartment already feels like home! We are attempting to channel the spirit of the Friends apartment... 

I can only assume that we have plenty of zany sitcom-worthy moments to look forward to this year... (Turkey's stuck on people's heads, our own Ugly Naked Man neighbor to spy on, etc.)

The most exciting part about the move for me is probably the fact that I now have my own room for the first time in 5 years!! Don't ask me how this is possible- I've been lucky to have amazing roommates all the way through- but as you can imagine it feels pretty awesome to have a little nook to call my own in this massive concrete jungle. Decorating has been so much fun and though mourning the death of my beloved decor magazine Domino in my hour of need, I actually have discovered some fantastic design blogs that are a wealth of ideas, even for a girl on a budget! Here are a few of my inspirations and their sources: 

http://www.katyelliott.com/blog/

http://www.designspongeonline.com/

http://joannagoddard.blogspot.com/

I'll post some pictures of the finished product when it's all done, which will hopefully be in time for our housewarming party in just a couple weeks!