You Belong with Me

I cannot stop thinking about this hat. If you aren’t familiar, the Goorin website is worth checking out, especially if you have a bit of a hat fetish like I do. I always gravitate towards hats in vintage stores, but hormones in milk be damned, my head is way too big for the hats I covet. It’s such a pain when I find a vintage jewel from hats to belts to shoes, my build is just too large to wear them. I am destined for scarves, free-sized waist bands, and high waisted belts (that were probably originally worn on the hips of some frail sprite).

Thank goodness Goorin makes most of their hats in multiple sizes. Many of the hats are vintage-inspired, so my little cabeza problem stings a little less.

 

 

 

 

1.  The Harriette: Brim knit. Ultra fem.

2. The Eric B.: Unisex straw fedora.

3. The Bella: Floppy, felt. 70s retro is in again. Trust.

4. The Oh Ret: A stiff competitor to the Robin Road hat above.

5. The Eleni Rose: Straw cloche hat. Love.

6. The Teebaby: I have a have a hat in this style, and I adore it.

Fashin’

I had a introductory interview at a prestigious public relations firm yesterday. It didn’t go well for a number of reasons. 1) I don’t have enough professional writing experience. Even though I write every day for various functions, and am an editor… 2) The firm is not into learning curves. This is one of the worst things about being unemployed right now. No one wants to hire you unless you meet every little requirement they list.

I’m not that sad, because they have some clients who I historically have ethical issues with; however, I was loving the idea of working downtown and not having to hustle everyday. I really pulled it together (got my hair did), and spent a lot of time this week learning about the company, twitter stalking the interviewer, and obsessing over every line of my resume. Hopefully, it’ll make a difference in the long-run.

I took a risk on my interview attire and wore a dress with a blazer and low-heeled, knee-high boots. Of course, I looked hot I obsessed for most of the morning, thinking they would turn me away at the door for not wearing a business suit. (They didn’t.) I think I will buy a suit, though. I just don’t want to go through that worry again, regardless of how I feel about antiquated women’s suits.

I need to do some major soul searching and figure out what the hell I want to do.

Onward!

I could not wait to get that interview nude color off my fingernails, so I dug through my collection and found the porniest pink I own.

Imagine my joy when I discovered Essie is now being sold at Walgreens. It made my week. I hadn’t been doing my nails much, because I bought a quick dry top coat by China Glaze that sucked so bad, it made me hate painting my nails. Dropping 8 bucks on a product I can’t use makes me sick! Turns out, the Essie quick dry is the business.

Another tidbit:

I am totally obsessed with French Connection lately. I was drooling on their website, when I discovered they have an ‘outlet‘ section for us little people. If they get on the free shipping bandwagon, I’m in trouble.

Protein Pancakes

The moment I laid eyes on this recipe, I knew it would be my friend. Minimal ingredients. Wholesome products. Easy to execute on little to no coffee. I especially like to rock these the morning before a workout.

1 cup: old fashioned oats, low-fat cottage cheese, egg liquid egg whites

1 tsp: baking powder, vanilla extract

1/2 tsp: cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice

(Note: Don’t you love that hot cottage porn wallpaper? Me too.)

Load it all in the blender.

I like to add the oats to the egg whites first, so it has a little time to soften.

Blend until smooth.

Let the batter sit for 5 minutes for extra fluffy pancakes.

Pour batter into a greased pan.

Look out the window and cry about the cruelest joke ever.

Eat em’!

I avoid syrup, but you can doctor these puppies up any way you please. I found raw, organic agave nectar at Trader Joe’s that works great. Another tip: You can make a huge batch of these and freeze them. Just pop them in the microwave for a minute. They aren’t the same as fresh ones, but still worth having around.

I personally sucked at making pancakes before I started making these. Now, they’re looking pretty profresh, if you ask me. Of course, as with any other pancake, you can pimp these out any way you please. Make a snazzy glaze out of almond butter and honey. Drop some blueberries into the batter. Whateve.

Packin’ Protein: Addendum

Ingredients: spinach, pineapple, raspberries (all frozen), 7 oz soy milk, 1 scoop protein powder.

This spinach was a bit of an experiment this time. I’ve seen some lovely green smoothies in my day; however, this smoothie was not lovely. It was a chunky and mealy, but it didn’t *taste* bad. The texture wasn’t all that appetizing, but I usually knock these puppies back quick, so the discomfort was fleeting. Just don’t think too hard about what it looks like and you’re good!

Packin’ Protein

I’ve always wondered about protein shakes. They seemed appealing, but I never really understood why people were slamming them. I recenltly joined a new gym where you can buy a protein shake at the front desk.  With a tendency to head staright for my favorite cardio machine, I couldn’t fathom taking in drinkable calories.

This may also be the reason I’ve never had significant weight-loss. And like any normal human, I denied the lack of  progress and continued, pushing myself through high-intensity cardio, very little weight training, ignoring every ache and pain.

I haven’t set foot on a piece of cardio equipment in 4 weeks. I know what you’re thinking: No, I haven’t gone psychotic and burned down my gym. I simply (ha!) invested myself into a new program.

Rachel Cosgrove takes a totally different approach to weight-loss than I’ve ever attempted. That’s right, she challenges her readers to get off the treadmill and sashay on over to the weight room. The first time I attempted this, I got scared half way in, turned around and went straight back to my cardio machine.  True story.

Almost 4 weeks in to the new program and I’ve had more ‘ah-ha’ moments than a guest on Dr. Phil. Turns out, it’s all about timing your carbs and your proteins. She is also kind enough to explain that elusive protein shake (which is a must if you’re taking on her training program). After an hour of metabolic weight training, you need to replace your depleted resources, so you don’t burn your lean muscle when you’re supposed to be burning fat. Ding!

These days, I come directly home from the gym, and mix up a protein shot before I even get in the shower. As you can see from the photo above, sometimes the protein shake comes into the shower with me. I have places to be, people! Actually, that’s a lie. I just usually can’t wait to get gym-stank off me.

I will go ahead and say: I haven’t lost much weight yet. I have lost inches, though. I do see that this program has a potential to help me where running couldn’t. You know when people call losing weight a “journey”? I’ve always thought that was schmaltzy thing to call it, but I’m starting to understand why they say that.

There are so many ways to make protein shakes. Do you have a favorite recipe?

Product Review – Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Roasted Pistachio Toffee

We are in a day n’ age where 13-year-old girls are wearing thongs and purging what they eat. Being body conscious is an epidemic. I can’t tell you the last time I looked in a mirror, and didn’t judge what I saw.  Despite my continual quest to slim down, I do allow myself occasional morsels. I usually go for things in pieces rather than a huge hunk of something, so you can understand why these little tasties blew up my radar. At about 90 calories each, one would hope they would be the dirty little secret you hide from your fiancée in your underwear drawer. This treat should be more than a chocolate; it should be a moment, a breath of richness in the low-cal desert that is your diet. What? You think I have high expectations? You try my Rachel Cosgrove workouts and you’ll want every splurge to be worth it, too. Every. Calorie. Burned. Hurts.

I hoped for silky dark chocolate laden with salty pistachio pieces pregnant with caramely toffee. What I got? Cheap, waxy, flavorless chocolate laden with unsalted pistachio pieces pregnant with caramely toffee. The toffee is by far the highlight of this little sin, which isn’t really my jam. Chocolate is my poison and anything else that comes with it better step, and be the less-talented backup singer. I’ll say it; this chocolate is an insult to chocolaty-love everywhere (unless you put it up next to a Nestle Crunch, which is pure blasphemy, if you ask me).

Get it or skip it?

Get it: If you aren’t a chocolate lover, this might be the treat for you. You might be able to taste the chocolate, if you’re more sensitive to the darker varieties. It may be the case that I’ve burned off a small portion of my taste buds with the amount of Sriracha I eat everyday. That aside, the flavor of the toffee really does make up for the awful chocolate…a little…

Skip it: If you even like to taste chocolate and want every calorie to count. If you want toffee, just get some toffee. Skip the flavorless extras.

P.S. Please don’t hate on my photo. I know it’s a tad blurry. Hopefully the genius styling with lull you into photo-apathy until I can get it right.

Handmade Monday

Julie Nolan is a Brooklyn, New York jewelry artist. She was recently featured on the Etsy main page and I have been drooling over her pieces since.

Particularly this little Art Deco-inspired ditty:



I love everything about this down to the photo styling. I think it would fit quite nicely in my cuff collection, don’t you?

To take a look at the rest of Julie Nolan’s artwork, sashay on over to her Etsy store. Boners abound.

Trader Joe’s vs Aldi – For Clean Eaters

Being on a strict budget and having the time to run around to different stores for sales and good deals is a natural by-product of being laid off. For the budget conscious, there is Aldi.  No frills. Bag it yourself. Insert a quarter for a cart. The shopping atmosphere is not appealing at all, but it seems like 

The dilemma for me is: I can’t afford organic, but I do want to eat as clean as possible. If you are a label reader, like myself, you will know that things that are seemingly low-fat and healthy are seeping with modified, hydrogenated, processed things. There are great items at Aldi, but if you want to eat clean, you have to read the labels.

At Aldi, go for:
Milk: I recently learned that the cows are hormone free. This doesn’t necessarily equate happy cows, but at least it’s a step in the right direction for people who love milk (not me).

At Aldi, avoid:
Bread: Full on unpronounceable ingredients.

For the budget conscious yuppie, there’s Trader Joe’s (Aldi’s spiffed-up brother). It’s great, but not great for all things clean.

At Trader Joes, go for:
Cheese: Affordable goat cheeses, Gorgonzola, Brie

At Trader Joe’s, be weary of:
Frozen dinners: Don’t go running through the frozen foods section, throwing items in your cart willy-nilly. I would say that the frozen dinners are the worst hidden-ingredient culprits. All you Lean Cuisiners, I found hydrogenated soybean oil in a (impulsively purchased) frozen dinner here.

Have you ever been shocked by an ingredient in a health-food item? Check in again for Aldi vs. TJ’s advice for clean eaters.

Phantom Name Badge

Five years. Five days a week. I’ve worn that badge. I worried about its location, left it in cars, lost it in various places, but I had the same one the entire time I was there. I’ve been through so much in that time. I’ve lost and found great loves. I’ve cried. I’ve swallowed my soul whole for the great consistency and security of it all. That badge was something of a talisman. The photo on it, taken my first day, shows a nervous girl, but a girl pink with newness of it all, wearing a neckless made by her best friend. I used to snag on everything I waked by. Walk by a door frame, snag. Walk by the copier, snag. Handing it over made it all feel real. I was walking around in a daze until then like I’d been slapped in the head and the lights went dim. Feeling it leave my hand brought the color back, fully revealing the brightness of the door.

Days later, my mom has been taking me on her errands with her. That dumb feeling is back and it’s not going away. I wander around with her like none of it’s real, knowing all of it is. Going through the motions, as they say. Leaving the store, I swore it snagged on the automatic door. I heard it catch in the metal and the drawstring snap back to the badge. I even looked back for it, expecting to see it stuck in the hinges.

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