Slice of Pink

Bicycle Round Up XII

+ Best City Bikes & Easy Rides 2010 {thanks Nicole!}

+ A vintage tandem on State Street

+ This vintage bicycle dress is so cute

+ New Yorkers! The Museum of Art and Design has a bicycle exhibition, Bespoke: The Handbuilt Bicycle

+ Green gifts and awards made from recycled bike parts {thanks Nicole!}

Last Call for Coffee Lovers

Last chance to tell me how you add flavor to your life (and to your coffee) for a chance to win $100 from Coffeemate!

Revisiting 05.30.07

Three years ago today, I visited the then-unknown-to-me town of Davis, California and decided that I very much would like to go to law school in such a quaint, lovely little place.

Opposites Attract

Will is the type of person who has one pencil and one pen, both of which are kept in particular spots. He keeps the same instruments for years. Years! He actually purchases replacement lead and erasers for his sole mechanical pencil.

I, on the other hand, have dozens and dozens of pens and pencils, and yet the one I really want to use is nowhere to be found.

Cheeky and Cheap

I'm definitely not a Mad Housewife, being neither mad nor a housewife, but I adore the label on this bottle--and the wine inside is pretty fantastic, too. The label on the back instructs you to just enjoy a glass of wine because the "dishes can wait." Words to live by, friends.

Oh! And at under $10, it's a real steal.

#17: Make Fleur de Sel Caramels

A couple of weeks ago, Holly posted instructions for making caramels for someone you like. Since two people I like had recent birthdays and since making fleur de sel caramels is one of my 31 Before 31 activities, I took myself down to Target to buy heavy cream and a candy thermometer.

Except Target did not have a candy thermometer. So I took myself to Michael's only to discover that candy thermometers are, like, twenty bucks. And so I almost decided to scrap the entire project, unwilling to pay twenty bucks for a thermometer I would likely use only once ever in my lifetime, except that I completely adore my friends and very much wanted to make them the caramels to celebrate their special days. And, also, an employee gave me a forty percent off coupon.

And then I went home to make caramels.

Except, once I arrived home, I realized that I didn't have an 8x8 baking pan. I have two 8-inch round pans and a 9x13 pan and an 8x12 pan and several muffin tins, but zero 8x8 pans. So I walked myself over to the grocery store to buy a set of disposable pans in the correct dimensions.

And then I made the caramels.

And they were fabulous.

I cannot explain to you why I can barely cook an egg, why the simplest of recipes elude me, why all things domestic are best left to somebody else, yet the caramels came out perfectly soft and chewy and delicious. I think it was because, heeding Holly's warning that an excellent sense of timing is required, I watched that candy thermometer like a hawk until it reached precisely the correct temperature. I dramatically reported every degree increase to Will (244 degrees! 245 degrees! 246 degrees! We are almost there! Get ready! Where did I put the baking pan? OMG! 247 degrees! They are on the verge of being ruuiiiined! Help! 248 degrees!).

I'd even venture to say that they were easy, but I don't want to upset the candy Gods, especially considering that I am SO making another batch. In fact, I am so impressed with the fact that I actually made candy and that it actually worked out, that EVERYONE is getting birthday caramels from here on out.

Plus, I gotta get my $12 worth out of that candy thermometer.

Signs

Here's a little collection of signs from our recent visit to the Ferry Building in San Francisco.

Before I was a vegetarian, I loved salami, so I am intrigued as to what exactly a "salumi cone" is. According to the sign, it is world famous, so one of you out there should be able to fill us in!

{Update: the lovely Janet informs us, in the comments, that a salumi cone is just that--a cone of meat! Sounds delicious!}

Hearts, Revisited

Remember when we knit hearts to celebrate Sarah's birthday? Her very lovely birthday affair was featured on the Outdoor Knits blog!

Bicycle Round Up XI

+ I am IN LOVE with this print by Blanca Gomez {thanks Sarah!}

+ Ride Slowly, Don't Sweat (and enjoy the scenery!)

+ An incredibly adorable kitties in a bike basket print

+ Bike rush hour in the Netherlands

+ A pretty bicyclist on the street in Soho...and in the West Village...and another in Soho

Revisiting 05.23.09

One year ago today, I was hula hooping in Central Park.

Merci Beaucoup

This is just to say thank you to the person who paid the bills, cooked the meals, sat long hours in coffee shops, proofread my papers for the tiniest of errors, made me laugh, convinced me that I was doing a great job (even when I was watching old Seinfeld episodes), forced me to study when it mattered and to go the movies when it didn't, explained boring business association concepts, kept me sane, listened to my many complaints and then persuaded me to just let it go already, made me take my vitamins and eat my spinach, bought me a membership to the Santa Barbara Museum of Art to celebrate, and, generally, made it all worthwhile. Made the whole dang shebang worthwhile.

William Wallace, you are the real deal.

The Swap

Last month, the ladies in Will's office planned a swap. Everyone was instructed to bring five items that they no longer wanted, but that were still in good condition. They set the collected items out on a big conference table. Everybody got five Post-it notes on which to write his or her name and then "shopped" around the table, sticking their five Post-its on items they hoped to take home. Items with more than one Post-it note attached were subject to a drawing from a hat.

I sent Will with ten items, in my effort to pare down our belongings a bit, with instructions not to bring anything new home. New things equal more boxes to pack when we move. Of course, this was not a problem for Will who, when I first met him, could practically fit everything he owned in the trunk of his car. He's a minimalist.

On the day of the swap, I stopped by just to see how it was going--it seemed like such a cute idea, after all--and before I knew it I had five Post-its with my name on them.

I ended up with: a clock, a rug, a deck of cards, a garlic smasher (shaped like a mushroom), a candle, and a vintage Christmas tablecloth. I did not get the snow-cone machine, although if I had an extra post-it, I so would have gone for it.

Party on My Head

A graduation hairstyle is a complicated matter, mainly because it must work with a mortar board and, let's be real, a mortar board is not exactly the most fashionable of head attire.

I originally planned to wear my hair straight and slightly flipped out in a sort of retro 60s 'do, which I thought would look cute with the silly graduation hat, but I failed to blow-dry my hair and it dried naturally with an awkward kink down the back. And so I curled it, which only made matters worse because the hat effectively smashed down the top but poufed out the sides into something closely resembling Bozo the Clown.

And so I called in my sister. I could tell by the look on her face that this was a disaster, a real emergency hair situation. I hopefully suggested a side ponytail. Here's the thing: I have been growing out my hair for months for one reason, to be able to do a side ponytail, one something like the hairstyle worn by Jen at my cousin Katie's wedding.

So my sister got to work with hair pins and a couple of clips and a whole bottle of hairspray and a big flower from the bow department at Papyrus and voila!

Shannon describes the style as "a party on your head!"

I'm not sure if I can even describe how to do it, but I'll try. First of all, do not use a rubber band, particularly if your hair is relatively short. My first instinct was to pull all my hair over to the side and tie it in a elastic band, an effort that made it look more like this. So, maybe this shouldn't be referred to as a side ponytail at all, although I'm not sure what else one would call it. Except a party on your head, but one that is classy. This style is much more a wine and cheese soiree on your head than it is a college kegger on your head.

So, to create a classy party on your head, start low on one side of your head and loosely twist the hair over to the other side, using bobby pins to secure it in place as you go. Then, from the front, on the ponytail side, use a couple of pins to secure back a few loose strands. Add a flower, if that's your thing (it's my thing).

It's actually pretty simple and stayed put the entire evening. I might even be able to recreate it, if I had someplace fancy to go. I'm not sure a party on your head is appropriate for a trip to Target.

A thousand thanks to my sister for being my personal stylist.

Slice of Pink, J.D.

Bicycle Round Up X

+ Santa Barbara Tweed Ride

+ Bike by the Sea. Yes, I think I will!

+ Recycled bike gear bottle openers

+ An interview with Joanna Goddard, too-cute biking mama-to-be

+ Bike storage solutions at Apartment Therapy {thanks Nicole!}

The Final Final

I took my final final this morning, the last test of my law school career. It was just a measly two hour jaunt, nothing like some of the ridiculous exams I've taken in the past few years, and the whole thing was over by 11 AM at which time I took myself downtown for a beer. And some fries. And a giant slice of pizza.

And then I rode my bike home and took a well-deserved nap. Like, a three-year-in-the-making nap. Don't get me wrong, I've had plenty of naps in the last three years, but this was the first nap I've taken where there wasn't something to do when I woke up. No pages to read. Nothing to write. No outlines to make (this is where I start to dramatize the situation since I never actually made outlines, but you know what I mean).

This was a nap without an alarm clock and, let me tell you, it was good.

The Girls Are (Almost) Back in Town

The countdown is on until our four favorite Manhattanites are back on the big screen! In the meantime, I'm talking SATC over at my review blog and I want to know: which SATC gal are you?

On Retirement Cruises

A conversation between Will and me while we are sitting on the couch, browsing the Internet on our respective laptops:

Me: What are you looking at?

Will: Your retirement account.

Me (leaning over to take a peek): Oh, cool! I am totally using that money to take a nice cruise through the Greek Isles.

Will: Yeah. You can take your sister.

Me: You don't want to go?

Will: No, thanks. I don't want to be a party to you blowing your nest egg on shrimp cocktail and watered-down adult beverages.

Come on. Doesn't my husband know me at all? I mean, I would never blow all my money on shrimp cocktail, which I totally despise, and you can't water down wine. Sheesh.

Bicycle Round Up IX

+ A cute bicycle doormat

+ Mia + Johnny’s Vintage Outdoor Wedding

+ LOVE this Matte Stephens print of a fox on a bicycle

+ 1950s Bicycle Safety Video

Scenes from the Backseat

My cousin, Andrew, and I were riding in the backseat of my grandma's car on the way to dinner at a Chinese restaurant. We were responsible for the directions, but Andrew had left the directions at home and we only sorta knew where we were going.

My dad was driving and getting increasingly agitated by our less-than-stellar backseat navigating. He inquired about the next street we needed to turn on, which we sorta knew the name of, and Andrew matter-of-factly pointed out that we had either "already passed it or it was just right up ahead."

Take Big Bites

Good Advice:

"To enjoy the flavor of life, take big bites."

To read more about taking big bites out of life and for a chance to win $100 from the nice folks at Coffee-mate, visit my review blog today!

The Marshmallow Test

Have you seen The Marshmallow Test?

I watched the adorable video some time ago, but today, on my long drive to Santa Barbara, I learned some interesting stuff about the test--and what it means--from the awesome Radiolab team.

Watch the video, then listen to Mischel’s Marshmallows!