F:  What are some restaurants that you have been to recently and liked?

L:  The other night I went to Il Buco Alimentari & Vineria.  It’s the second time I’ve been there and it is delicious.  Lately, I’ve also recently had really nice meals at Rye in Williamsburg and Madiba in Fort Greene.  They were both great but I particularly liked Madiba – the food was super good and the feeling in the restaurant was really cool.

F: Can you share with me some summer trends you are seeing on the street?

L:  I’ve always got my eye out for a good jumper and saw a great looking casual, yet polished one the other day.  Today is one of the hottest days yet, so not sure how long this’ll last, but lots of girls are still wearing low boots with their dresses.

F: What do you do when you are exhausted?

L:  Cancel plans and sleep as much as I can.

F: Have you starting planning your trip to Colombia in July?

L:  Yes, a bit!  Flight and accommodations are set; I’m feeling prepared.

F: Have you seen any good art lately?

L:  The art pictured above was being displayed on the outside of Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall on my way home today.  It caught my eye and I ended up talking about it for a bit with this older woman who was also quite into it.  It was a nice New York experience.

Marina in Santa Barbara

L: Do you think I should start watching Game of Thrones?

F: I think pretty much anyone who has two eyes and an interest in being entertained would love Game of Thrones. It is somewhat of a fantasy world which is not my normally my thing, but this show is golden.

L: What was your favorite part about our family vacation?

F: My favorite part of our family vacation was having margaritas in bed and then having a congo line down to the living room and playing Salad Bowl and eating pizza.

L:  Do you have any plant care tips?

F: I have been involved in plant parenthood for a while now. My best tip is: never forget to re-pot your plants. Your plant can only grow as big as you let it.

L:  If you were able to grow facial hair, how would you style it?

F: Image found here

L:  Have a parting picture you’d care to share?

F:

F:  Is there anything in LA that you would like to do when you are here?

L:  Hmm…I’m pretty excited to just chill with you and the rest of our family!  I’m down for whatever really.

F:  Do you have any big trips planned for the rest of this year?

L:  I actually just booked a trip to Cartegena for July.  Pretty pumped about that!

F:  Do you like doing puzzles?

L:  Yeah, I do.  I don’t do them often but it’s a totally satisfying activity, in my opinion.  I find them somewhat annoying to get started but once you have the boarders in place, I’m into it.

F: Have you pulled an Osho card recently? If not, why don’t ya and share it here.

F:  Are you reading anything lately? I know you always say no, but I am always interested. It could even be an article.

L:  I thought this post that I recently read, “Side projects are the new resume,” was really interesting.

Albert in his happiest of places: The Getty at dusk

L: I miss you!

F: I miss you too. So much. Every day. All the time. I loved having you in my every day life. It seems like it flew by, doesn’t it?

L: What did you have for lunch today?

F: Today I had a salad with olives, onions, chickpeas and avocado. It is what I usually have every day. 

L: What’s your favorite show tune?

F: Oh, girl! No you didn’t! That is an impossible question to answer.  While I sing this one a lot: 

the first show tune I ever truly loved is:

L: You’re always playing beach volleyball. Are you pretty good?

F: I would say, for me, beach volleyball is something I am pretty good at. When I compare myself to others (never good), I know I could use some practice. Once I can spike and set the ball – which is all volleyball is about – then I will be better. 

L: Are you doing anything special or Memorial Day weekend?

F. Yes! Amy (Albert’s sister and my lovely friend) is coming for the weekend. We will hike, beach it and take many pictures. It’s going to be great. She always cracks me up.

F: Have you ever been to Mexico? If yes, what was your experience?

L: When I was a senior in high school I told mom that my friends and I wanted to go to Florida for spring break. Clearly unaware of its reputation for debauchery she responded, “Why not go to Cancun or somewhere like that?!” I could hardly believe my ears and jumped at the suggestion. It was a fun, though pretty disgusting trip.

F: Show us a picture of New York in bloom.

L: Ha! Well I took that picture above before even getting to this question. It’s been pretty pretty flower wise in New York & on Columbia’s campus where I work.

F: What are your summer-ish plans for this weekend?

L: Am hoping on a trip out of dodge. We’ll see…

F: What is one look that you would love to rock, but you are scared to?

L: I really like these patterned, high waisted skirt/cropped top looks I’m seeing lately; but I’d have to be in the right frame of mind, with the right place to go, to wear one.

(photo via here)

F:  What is the last thing you watched that entertained you?

L: Got down with some classic Crank Yankers a couple nights ago.  Pretty raunchy so I’m not going to link to the one I watched but it was funny.

L: What’s a U.S. city that you’ve never been to but think you might like to visit?

F: New Orleans sticks out the most. It seems so fun! I gotta get there. I also want to go visit Bozeman and see Julie.

L:  What is your favorite recipe in the new Clean cookbook?

F: The Mediterranean Rice Noodles. It is SO good. I made it for my co-workers last week. It is such a light spring time noodle dish that is great for summer picnics or even lunch.

L:  Are you working towards any goals right now?

F: This might sound like a silly goal but I am trying not to be so lazy after work. I am trying to get a work out in or go on a bike ride. It is so easy to just lay around after I am done with work. I rarely really do that, but I feel like doing it every day.

L:  Do you think you’re in danger of embracing the re-emergence of the Birkenstock sandal?

F: I thought we promised never to go down that road?! I haven’t seen any that I have liked yet. Thank the good lord!

L:  What’s the most recent photo you’ve taken?

F. Rhubarb is only in season for a blink of an eye and when it is, you have to whip up a strawberry rhubarb pie. I promise you will never regret it. I think this is my best pie so far.

Rainy day

F: What is something fun you have found on the internet this week?

L:

“If you could change one thing about adults, what would it be?”
“A lot of them are grumpy.”
via Humans of New York

F: What are your weekend plans?

L: A friend’s send-off party & meeting two-week old, Miles!

F: I know I ask this all the time, but any new Spring trends you are seeing on the street?

L: Ah the last couple of days have been so nasty I can barely think of anything.  It’s mostly a cold, wet look around here.

F: What is something you have never done in New York City?

L: I have never been to the Statue of Liberty or to the top of the Empire State Building.

F: If you could have dinner with anyone dead or alive tonight, who would it be?

L: Conor Murphy

Albert and me waiting to be picked up from the airport after our Denver / Vail / Evergreen / Boulder trip.

L: What’s your go-to outfit these days?

F: I believe that I have shared them before on this here ol’ blog, but my overalls. When I don’t feel 100% I throw on my overalls. I pick myself up by the straps and approach the world. They are my favorite new item of clothing.

L:  How do you feel about 3-D movies?

F: Yeah, they are ok. Are there any news ones out? I loved Avatar – mostly the story. “I see you.”

L: Are you afraid of growing old?

F:  I am not afraid of getting old, but I am afraid to be old.

L:  What’s so funny ’bout peace, love and understanding?

F: I was never under the impression that it was funny. Maybe this is a lyric from a song or some famous poem, but it went over my head.

Peace, love and understanding is where it’s at!

L: What word would you like to do for the next One Word, Two Ways post?

F:  Spark? Texture? Surface? Space?

Hand-me-down shoes from mom’s closet

F:  What are some summertime plans that you have?

L:  I don’t have much planned yet but I’m hoping to get some good Cleveland time in. In my ideal life I would spend a month or two in Cleveland every summer. If anyone has any work-from-anywhere job leads, hit me up!

F:  Can you share with me some spring trends that you are seeing on the street?

L. Well it hasn’t really warmed up enough here to see a real switch in fashion. However, I have been noticing a lot of jeans plus high heel shots on various style sites. Also people seem to be slowly busting out cute jean, leather and spring jackets.

F:  Do you have any tips for setting up a new apartment?

L:  Think about how you want to feel in each area of your home and make that the top priority for setting up each space.  Also, as you unpack, find ways to display the little things you come across that make you happy.  I was going to say something like don’t be afraid to get rid of things but then I remembered that I got that advice from you on this very blog.

F:  If you could live a day in someone else’s shoes, who would it be and why? (I know it’s best not to compare yourself and yada yada but this is for fun!).

L:  Good question. I think I might choose a painter.  I like the idea of waking up, having my coffee and stumbling over to my studio (which I like to think would be in an old barn connected to my house).  Then I’d spend the whole day painting, without even realizing the whole day had gone by.

F:  What have you found interesting this week?

L:  Yesterday morning I got to work, sat down at my desk and thought about how – even without much change – every day feels a little different.  There’s something fascinating to me about that.

L:  How are you?

F: I am currently sitting at the DMV and am surprised by how fine I feel considering I have been here for 2 hours.

L: Do you have any good tips for staying organized?

F: Hmm. We all know I love organization. I would say that my first tip is to stop saving everything! Get rid of things all the time. My second tip would be cute boxes, shelves and drawers to keep things in throughout the house.

F: I am actively trying to be more creative. Last night , I told David (the older of our two brother) and Albert that I have always loved cutting things with scissors because it makes me feel like I am being artistic but really i am just being a control freak 😉

F: I feel like we would really fight so hard between being super emo and dance pop-ish. I think in the end we would settle on dance music because we understand its importance. I imagine a keyboard senerio a with lots of bright colors.

F: This is hilarious timing because a man asked me to text him when his number was coming up like 2 hours ago. I thought it was a pretty whack request but my mid-western politeness said ok. He just showed up with a plastic bag of food for me that smells so strong and insisted that I take it. I haven’t looked in the bag yet and am pretty sure I won’t be eating it. Nice gesture though.