Tag Archives: H&M

My Five Favorite Things (Spoiler: There IS a cheese listed here.)

Posted on January 17, 2014 | 13 comments

Today’s post is brought to you by MamaKat: Name your five current favorite things.

This task seems easy enough. Except it says current … so I can’t pick Donny Osmond or leg warmers or anything like that. (Both still totally awesome, by the way.) And actually, since I’m limited to only five things, I think I’m going to impose a few more rules on myself.

I can’t list any people. People can’t be favorite things. That’s just demeaning. (Plus I might do something tragic like list Johnny Depp before my kids or something.)
I can only list one food. (Otherwise, duh, this list would just be five different foods.)
I can’t let this post sound like a sponsored advertisement by extolling the virtues of my favorite hair product or anything like that. (Yawn.)

So, with those extra rules now in place, I give you …

My five current favorite things

1. Mt. Tam Cheese

There are no words to describe the amazing delicacy that is Mt. Tam. Screw that. Here are the words: It’s made by the cheese WIZARDS at Cowgirl Creamery. It’s their signature cheese and, if you must know, also mine. (Yes, I have a signature cheese. What of it?) It’s an award-winning, decadent, buttery, triple-cream cheese that is said to have “a mellow, earthy flavor reminiscent of white mushrooms.” I got a full wheel of it for Christmas and (truth?) I ate the entire thing by myself in two sittings. If you reach toward my plate when I’m eating it, I make no apologies for what could happen to you or your grabby, little fingers.

2. H&M Shirt … AND … 3. Skinny Mirror

Is it confusing that I’ve combined numbers 2 and 3. What am I saying? You guys are geniuses. You’ll keep up, right?

I bought that shirt on a trip to New York at the H&M Store on 5th Avenue. I walked right past Saks, Prada, and Salvatore Ferragama and strolled my frugal ass into the H&M Store. I love that place. Because I can usually get six great things for less than three digits in under an hour. (God, I hate shopping.) It’s colorful (I’m often accused of wearing too much black), feminine (always a good thing when I want to prove I’m a girl), and goes in at exactly the right place on my waistline. And if I had to do it all over again, I would buy five of them. Seriously, it takes ten pounds off me.

And speaking of taking pounds off … I want a skinny mirror. But not just any skinny mirror. I want the one that hangs in the girls’ bathroom on the first floor of Vivien’s school building. (And now that I’m posting it here publicly, there go my chances of stealing it off the wall. Geez, I am such an IDIOT!) Over the years, I’ve taken a few friends to gaze into its ~~fallacious~~ … ~~fictional~~ … flattering reflection. And it’s never disappointed. Honestly, it’s probably best that I don’t have this magical tool all to myself. For I might spend the rest of my days staring at a distorted image of my own hips. Just call me Narcissus.

4. Modern Family

If you’ve seen the show, you can stop reading. Because you get it. Modern Family is funny. It makes me laugh. And, honestly, I don’t laugh a lot. I’m a hard person to make laugh out loud. So I love it when I find the rare show that can accomplish that. Over my lifetime, there really haven’t been very many … 30 Rock, Frasier, Friends, Newsradio, Seinfeld, Cheers, Taxi and Arrested Development. That’s about it. So thanks, Dunphys and Pritchetts. And please, keep it coming.

5. Writing Prompts That Ask for Lists

Number 5 is sort of my Being John Malkovich moment in this blog post. It’s the self-aware part where I actually list “writing lists” as an item on my 5 Favorite Things list. Does that make sense? Well, it’s true. Nothing makes for an easier entry. So thanks, MamaKat, for yet another opportunity to list out a few mundane things about myself and then have the nerve to call it “writing.”

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What are some of YOUR favorite things right now?

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Tagged being john malkovich, cowgirl creamery, H&M, mamakat, mamakatslosinit, Modern Family, mt. tam cheese, skinny mirrors, TV that makes me laugh, writing prompt

NYC, Philadelphia & Now Back Home to New Orleans

Posted on July 3, 2013 | 7 comments

And so ends the last day of my family trip. We’ve traveled thousands of miles, walked hundreds of blocks and spent I-don’t-even-want-to-think-about-its of dollars. We’ve been to several cities, eaten an international smorgasbord of foods and witnessed all kinds of entertainment. Along the way, we picked up my son and bid farewell to my brother. We visited with out-of-town friends while in their hometowns and hometown friends while out-of-town. We’ve ridden in taxis, subways, trains, rickshaws and, even as I type, airplanes. All in all, it’s been a great family adventure.

But a travel day is a travel day. And we all know that not much happens on that day. In truth, I didn’t even include our travel day in the beginning of the trip. Which was pretty damned lazy of me considering we did actually do a thing or two that day. But I was tired and again it was a travel day. Like today.

We didn’t do a whole lot today outside of packing, some last minute shopping near the hotel (I love H&M and we don’t have one … stupid hometown) and lunching. We wound up eating at a place called Chocolate by the Bald Man, based purely on its comical name. I didn’t even realize it was a full-scale eatery until we walked in. The people there were very nice. And I don’t like writing bad things about nice people. So, I’ll just say that my turkey sandwich served on a rosemary breakfast waffle was delicious and we’ll leave it at that. Okay?

Then, we headed out to the Philadelphia airport. No real problems except the delay caused by my carry-on which was pulled from the line. I was even interviewed about my suspicious bag. And, after a thorough investigation, we determined it was the homemade candles I’d purchased at Reading Terminal Market that were causing all the ruckus. My Fresh Baked Bread and Victorian Rose scented candles. So, if you take nothing away from reading this blog today, remember scented candles = you fitting the profile. (I wonder how many terrorists slipped by me while they were sniffing my candles.)

Anyway … I had two flights today. One from Philadelphia to Atlanta and another from Atlanta to New Orleans (aka home). Other than some turbulence that prevented the airline from providing beverage service, neither was too eventful. Always a good thing. So I found myself with time to work the in-flight crossword puzzle, attempt and fail a few math puzzles (stupid math) and thumb through the SkyMall magazine. (BTW … Best. Catalog. Ever.) And guess what, you guys? I think I’ve already got my Christmas list together for 2013. Let’s take a look.

(1) Pet anxiety reducer – Because let’s face it. We all know that Milo can be a real asshole sometimes. I’ve already tried chewy valium/liver treats as well as a liquid sedative when he’s forced to travel. All to no avail. But perhaps this snappy vest will do the trick.

(2) Large super skate sail – Because I care about the environment. And saving the Earth’s natural gas resources. Plus how cool would I look going to the grocery on this thing?

(3) Feline potty training system – Because, executed correctly, it might get me on Ellen.

(4) Portable inflatable movie screen – Because ….hello??? Party at my house!

(5) Head massager – Because it will make me the center of attention at the mall, the post office, PTA meetings … pretty much anywhere I go!

(6) Kitty washroom – Because I get to incorporate cat poo directly into my home décor. And I’ve been trying to think of a way to do that for years!

(7) Wide mock rock – Because … oh, wait. I already have one. (Bet you guys think I’m kidding.)

(8) Giraffe toilet paper holder – Because my current, ordinary holder only holds a single roll. What an antiquated piece of crap.

(9) Custom Pet Portrait Canvas – Because I can think of no better way to humiliate Milo for all of eternity. All you have to do is upload a picture and specify gender. And you guys know we’d totally say he was a girl. There’s just nothing like sticking it to a cat.

(10) Bigfoot, Garden Yeti statue, large – Because, at $2250, I really don’t know how I’ve lived without one for this long.

So there. You guys have the list. And now you should probably talk amongst yourselves to make sure I don’t get any duplicates. Plus I realize some of the items are pricier than others so I completely understand if some of you want to go in together for the bigger things.

I can hardly wait ‘til Christmas morning!

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Oh, yeah. And the trip was fantastic. All of it. Except for the bad stuff that wasn’t fantastic. Thanks for following along with my daily journal. FYI, whenever I do a post series, I like to include one at the end listing all of the links within it. Just in case I ever want to use the series collectively. That’s what this post is all about, Charlie Brown.