TED Tuesdays: What Stories Look Like

Evidently we are supposed to judge books by their covers.

Chip Kidd provides a hilarious and interesting insider's-look into the world of book design.

Life List: Record Every Book I Read.

I've started keeping a book journal. The goal on my Life List is to record every book I read, with a quote. When I was abroad in Scotland in college I read a lot, and kept quotes from those books in a journal. I like looking back at it, remembering what books I was interested in then (strictly classics) and what passages spoke to me (quotes about heartbreak and healing). 

For my new book journal a purchased a Moleskine Book Journal (evidently there are enough geeks like me out there to warrant something like this to be mass produced). I have recorded the two books I recently finished, Louis de Bernieres' Birds Without Wings and Chris Cleave's Gold. I recommend both. I'm currently reading Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl.

Several friends from Camp Mighty suggested keeping track of my reading on Goodreads. Because I can't pass up the opportunity to buy a new notebook, I've decided to keep a handwritten book journal and also start cateloguing on the website. Goodreads is a great place to find book recommendations, and see what your friends are currently reading.

So, what are you reading?

Interesting Links:
- My Moleskine Book Journal. Be sure to check out the other products in Moleskine's Passions line. There is something for everyone, even winos.
- Maybe you are more interested in peeking at someone else's book journal. Check out Book Lust, which provides recommendations by mood, occassion, and personality. 
- Or how about a journal made out of a book? I spy a Christmas gift. 
- Become my friend on Goodreads

A Red Red Weekend

I had a very red weekend. Red seemed to be everywhere, being beautiful, tasty, and whimsical.

We went to the Union Square Farmers' Market on Saturday, or should I say the Union Square Tomato Market (Ha! Nice one!). Every stand was brimming with tomatoes in every shape and color. We scooped a bunch of juicy plum (pictured above) and San Marzano tomatoes.

Being that it was the height of the tomato season, and we weren't hungover, we decided to tackle the Scarpetta Spaghetti recipe on Saturday. This dish requires a few helpers (lots of peeling and crushing) so we had a bit of a spaghetti-making party. I know being invited to a dinner party and being forced to peel tomatoes isn't the ideal evening for any New Yorker, but this sauce is so damn good everyone was happy to pitch in, plus there was booze. You have to try it! Get your localvoring ass to the nearest farmers' market, pick up some lovely tomatoes, call some friends, get them drunk, and get cooking! Here is the recipe.

On Sunday, Matt and I headed towards the Hudson for a little picnic. One of the piers that has been turned into a park was sporting some new, Mario Brothers-inspired sculptures (pictured above). Yayoi Kusama created the installation, called Guidepost to the New Space. I was enjoying the piece until I saw the signs that warned not to "climb, sit, or play on them." Hmmm...interesting putting them in a place where people go to climb, sit, AND play. Come on Yoyoi! What are you new!?

So what color was your weekend?

Ted Tuesdays: Optimistic Young Bastards

As I'm very new to the institution of marriage, I've been doing some research on how to make our new union strong and lasting. One of my favorite resources is TED. These dudes know an H of a lot more than I do about everything.

In this week's featured TED video, relationship expert, Jenna McCarthy, provides some deep and insightful ideas for a good marriage, helpful for an optimistic young bastards like me.

I'm Back and I'm Married!

Hi! Man, I've been MIA for a long time. My absence can be 100% attributed to the fact that I've spent the past year planning a wedding. It was certainly a labor of love, but Matt and I were both unpleasantly surprised by how much time and energy wedding planning takes.

So now that the wedding is over, I'm very excited to be back. I can't wait to tell you all about the wedding, progress on my Life List, and my Year of Inspiration (more details on that to follow).