Works and Days

Fashion, fashion, fashion Show!

2009-09-15T12:07:00.002-04:00

image courtest of about.com

Fashion is in the air as designers flock to New York to show off their Spring 2010 collections.

For me, this translates in my attempt at reveling in the glow of "fresh-off-the-runway" models who are gawkily invading restaurants and shopping areas all over the city. Their knob knees and highly pronounced jaw lines beckon me to a world so close and yet so far...

Granted scoring a seat (though of course, not front row) at Bryant Park is completely doable, but finding a way backstage to congratulate Mark Jacobs, or good ol' Diane is...not. I'd even settle for lunch with Christian Siriano, but alas, no one is offering.

Also, why can't I wear what I see in magazines to the office? Who says taffetta is too much? I scored an AWESOME pair of vintage Sofia Loren sunglasses (she made sunglasses?!) during Fashion Night Out but I can't imagine that my manager would understand if I wore them to a meeting. Business casual has cock-blocked my parade yet again...

Viva la revolution!

Dinner Party

2009-09-11T12:58:00.004-04:00

Look at this feast!

My friends and I gather for a much over-due Dinner Party. That is what we, now adults, do. As guests, we are instructed to bring wine and dessert. As hosts, we scan our brains for how to entice our visitors and how to make them stay. The party favor at this dinner party was Humphrey the cat. Look at him mean mugging.

This time our hosts actually out-did themselves. Five courses! Fig and blue-cheese starters with boar prosciutto, an heirloom tomato bruschetta, a three-tier eggplant,squash and mozzarella magoo (not a real word, i know, don't worry) and we were satiated enough to skip the main raison d'etre; the fish. We went straight for the cannolis (from Arthur Ave, obvi).

Insert "lackofblogtopic" Anxiety Here

2009-08-24T18:08:00.002-04:00

I've been willing myself since...err...last week, to blog almost every single day just to get into the habit. So far so good. Until today. Today I have no blogging topic. I did not see anything strange/funny/ironic on my way to work today. No one has said anything witty or moronic enough to quote since Friday night. I'm in a generally good mood about work since this morning. Hence the anxiety. In an effort to keep the dialogue going (with all two of you) I'm going to list some things I thought about today. Here goes:

The "Megan Wants A Millionaire Killer" -- how scary! VH1 did a terrible background check on one of the contestants of their reality show this past season and did not notice that he had a previous assault charge. Fast forward months later the man has KILLED his ex-wife, cut off her fingers and forcibly removed her teeth and fled to Canada where he hung himself. This is truly frightening and awful. I thought of a joke about VH1's terrible PR blunder but I can't even go with it -- it really does make you think about all the crazies out there who we continue to give media attention to.

Pants -- I hate pants. I might blog about this in the near future, but for now I'm happily frolicking in skirts and dresses and toasting to summer.

Yeah...those two sum it up I think.

Till tomorrow!

The Upper East Side Bar Ode and a Commentary on Dress

2009-08-22T12:24:00.003-04:00

This will probably be short. It is an ode to the Upper East Side Bars (UESBs)on a Friday night.

UESBs, why are you so crowded with people my age -- why don't people like to travel 15 minutes to go to a more bearable part of town?

UESBs, why do you always play the same 5 songs no matter what your bar theme is? Sports? Tiki? Irish? You're all listening to Bon Jovi.

UESBs, why do the majority of your patrons like to high-five? I find myself doing it too...maybe it's in the beer...

UESBs, why do your patrons swing insult's like "Your dress looks like it's from Marshalls!"

Here I have to explain: in all fairness my friend after one too many drinks yelled at a girl on the street that she needs to "eat something". Her friend, coming to this poor girl's defense then yelled back, "Just because she's Indian, doesn't make her fat like you." That's racist. She then followed her statement with, "And your dress looks like it's from Marshalls!" Marshalls has some nice stuff. My friend then turned around, stuck her middle finger in the air, and yelled "Target, motherf**ker!" and proceeded to bump into a man walking in front of her right as she finished yelling. IT was amazing.

I guess since the UESB's produced such a moment, as the one that I described above, I should go easy on them.

Okay Upper East Side Bars, I forgive you. I will probably frequent your beer-stenched walls sometime in the near future.

You think you've seen it all...

2009-08-20T16:37:00.003-04:00

(photo courtesy of Eyeteeth blog)
http://eyeteeth.blogspot.com/2009/06/boba-fett-accordionist.html

I am privileged to work in a very illuminating and exciting part of town which allows me access to the zainiest of characters on both my lunch breaks and after-work romps. Especially in the summer, New York becomes a haven for all sorts of loonies, weirdos and deviants. I like to call them friends.

Yesterday, on a particularly hot and sticky August day, walking slowly and lethargically from work I encountered this guy. This perfectly strange sight that only received a few passing glances. It was a man dressed in shorts and a tee wearing a Boba Fett helmet and playing the accordion. Boba Fett as in Star Wars (for those who are not in the know that Star Wars is one of the greatest movies of all time).

I was both giddy and alarmed to see this. Giddy because only in New York could this guy be part of the natural surroundings of your walk home. Alarmed because it was REALLY hot! It must have been 1,000 degrees in that helmet.

Anyway, since the sighting, I've talked to a few people and apparently others have noticed this guy - as can be seen by the blog from which I took this picture from. Also I guess he was interviewed for Time Out New York.

Rock on Boba.

I was going to eat that!

2009-08-19T15:26:00.003-04:00

Someone stole my sandwich. Someone in the office stole my lunch today. How bizarre! Every once in a while a friend of mine or colleague complains that this happens to them, but I could never believe that someone who is either making the same amount of money as me or more would want to steal my food. Why not make your own sandwich? If you feel jealous of my fixins' why not order the same thing at the deli ACROSS THE STREET? And besides all this, why would you want to eat something that was not made by you. You don't know me from Joe! What if I like to sprinkle my Turkey with dirt? Or add a nice thick layer of spit between the lettuce and tomato? You just don't know! How creepy and violating. Today was also the first day of my save-more-money regime and now it is ruined. Just because, I hope my sandwich was extremely unsatisfying (even though I KNOW that it was actually delicious).

I was on a hiatus...a long one...

2009-08-18T17:58:00.002-04:00

It has been a long, long while my nonexistant internet friends. But I am back! In an effort to keep writing and clear the cob webs of my mind, I have resolved to start blogging again. My earlier attempt at keeping focused strictly on my job failed. There is too much floating around in my brain that does not fit under those parameters and I need the space to let it loose. So, let's start again on this beautiful and mysterious journey that is the blogosphere - I promise to be a much more attentive host.

A Question of Etiquette

2008-08-26T17:25:00.000-04:00

Ordinarily I am a very friendly person who likes to see people happy. I would gladly do something that might not be very convenient for myself to see a smile on a child's face. I've been known to help feeble old ladies cross the street when they are too scared of the mean New York crosswalk.

Of course, sometimes my patience and sense of samaritan duty is questioned --

Office celebratory occasions.

I'm no Oscar the Grouch. I love a good reason to kick back a glass of "vino" mid-afternoon and substitute Factiva searches for a piece of Buttercup cake. However, when this celebratory brouhaha is also tied to a gift to a person I don't really know, that's when I get a little peeved.

Sure I've seen you in the hallway Cubicle Cathy, but do I really need to feel obligated to spend money on your engagement? You will probably never know that I contributed, and I probably will be too busy to enjoy your surprise fete.

The only reason at all to help out in the gift is to save face in front of the co-worker who is arranging the whole thing. With all the "corporate team" brain-wash that floats around most offices these days, it's hard to look at someone's face and say "Sorry, I rather spend these 10 bucks on Chinese take-out tonight".

I guess I'm wondering if there is a more polite way to say "no".

Stand Up or Bow Down?

2008-07-24T11:29:00.000-04:00

image courtesy of Brian Bramer

Starting from the bottom on the rungs of the corporate ladder it is very easy to fall into a habit of letting "bygones be bygones" and eating a plate full of "humble pie" when it comes to managers.

Rather than defend your pride, and scream "No I did NOT triple check the website for updates" if you are like me, the initial reaction is to apologize and say "Oh, sure, let me just check one more time."

This type of behaviour becomes very taxing on the human psyche, especially if you in turn have no one's "balls to bust".

I would like to introduce to the workplace the "corporate punching bag." Take your stress out in the form of healthy physical exercise rather than picking on me, Boss Lady!"

In which I come back from Paradise to Reality...

2008-06-19T14:48:00.000-04:00

Vacation.

What.A.Tease.

Just when you start feeling the groove of making your own decisions that do not involve Microsoft Outlook or the crackberry...it is time to go home again.

Just when beautiful views and a cool breeze start substituting a quick cup of coffee as a wake up call...it is time to go home again.

Just when the money starts running out of your pocket because you've been taking cabs instead of taking public transportation like you swore you would...it is time to go home again.

Why reading Gawker is much more helpful for office water-cooler talk than reading/watching standard news

2008-05-29T16:06:00.000-04:00

I bet you feel real educated when you turn your computer on in the morning and zip straight to the New York Times homepage. Or perhaps, you're more of a Wall Street Journal on the train to work type.

I will proudly admit that my first source for the news every morning is Gawker.

Gawker provides me with little nuggets of information which I can select to read or not, and if I do find something interesting I then go to the original source, or use the various hard news outlets for supplementary material.

Way before I noticed that Sharon Stone is grimacing on the cover of Financial Times for making highly inappropriate remarks about China's karma, I read about it on Gawker.

Of course the assumption is that just because I am in PR that means I read Gawker. The true payoff however is in the fact that the media industry blog also offers you snarky sarcastic opinions. How else can you take an educated tone when seeing your manager in the kitchenette? You might know the facts, but have no idea whether the public is in favor or against said actions and happenings. Gawker offers a litmus test of societal feelings on a topic, and facts are never interesting unless they provide insight.

If you lack opinion and your own view of the world, Gawker really is the next best thing!

ManhattanHenge

2008-05-28T15:59:00.000-04:00

Finally! A reason to rejoice about midtown Manhattan!

If you are like me, the idea of getting stuck in midtown after work is an experience equal to that of having your soul slowly sucked out of your body by a large vacuum in the shape of middle-aged man in a suit shaking his fist in the air. Is that just me?

Finding an activity in this part of town that does not reek of failed corporate expectations and wallowing self-pity is near impossible on most days.

But not between today 5.28.08 and Friday 5.30.08 --- It's ManhattanHenge!!!

According to Wikipedia (thanks Wikipedia) ManhattanHenge is a semi-annual occurrence in which the setting sun aligns with the east-west streets of Manhattan's main street grid. So apparently 14th, 34th, 42nd and 57th streets are the spot to be and the farther east the better. The sun sets close to 8 PM.

I'll be there tomorrow in my druid robe and diadem.

Rain, rain, go away...

2008-05-27T15:42:00.000-04:00

I really hate when it rains in the morning and its that nasty grey depressing color outside, and its just chilly enough where you can't go to work without at least a trench. Then around noon, global warming rears its sweaty head and it is impossible to go to lunch wearing the layers you piled on to be comfortable on the commute and in the ice bucket that is your office. Just as you imagine the post-5 PM strip it starts raining again and you are right where you started...trudging back to the subway in your rubber galoshes.

Memorial Day

2008-05-23T15:51:00.000-04:00

pic courtesy of metro.co.uk

It is Friday before Memorial Day weekend. For most people this means willing your way through the work day and then hopping on the jitney, or a bus, or another vehicle of sorts in hopes of playing in the sunshine.

My plans include a sweaty concrete new york city BBQ and perhaps a ferry ride to a New Jersey beach. Note to self...plan ahead next year!

But really what I should be working on is rest. Because starting next week I am beating my addiction of hitting snooze 5 whopping times before I need to get up (thus causing me to skip breakfast in the morning, substituting reading Gawker for a delicious bagel) and I will be the most happy little buzzing busy bee this office has ever seen!!!

Right after this weekend, I swear!

Life in a Cubicle

2008-05-22T16:00:00.000-04:00

This is my first cubicle. It is both limiting and liberating.

Limiting because I cannot see two feet above my head when I am sitting. Liberating because no one can see me either.

I'm flashing the cubicle wall and my neighbor doesn't even know!

Presenting entry #1

2008-04-17T10:34:00.001-04:00

So here it is...

Upon much pressure from friends, I an ex-blog-hater am now ready to take the next step and enter fully into bloggerdom.

Baby steps.

So, faithful reader (if you're even out there) what should you expect from this little canvass of internet space?

The idea behind this blog centers around trying to figure out my way through the tangles that come up in the life of a 20-something young professional aspiring to kick some butt in the corporate world while still maintaining slightly hippy ideals. I am a wannabe hipster who can't help but get a little turned on by the idea that one day I will enjoy a corporate office.

Read and discuss!

Till my next entry...