This Week

Simple things that made me love this week...

Trader Joe's Lemon & Triple Ginger Snap Ice Cream. Magic in a carton.

Nickolaus joined Pinterest! Best of all, he has an entire pinboard dedicated to his dream bathroom.

I bought a book at Barnes and Nobel and my receipt recommended other books I should read.

 The Anatomy of a Cupcake! 

I wasn't so much a fan of Shit Girls Say, but White Girls Say to Indian Girls, White Girls Say to Brown Girls, and Indian Girls Say definitely made me giggle.

I'm on Pinterest!

My favorite pins this week:

DIY bud vase from soda bottles

Yellow submarine tea infuser

Lettuce Turnip the Beet 

Regenerate green onions

Savory oatmeal

Male Models

Today is a big day. Three years ago on January 11, my life changed. At the time it was for the worse, but now I choose to believe it's for the better. I'm a stronger person, not only for myself, but for those around me.

I spent my last couple of anniversaries trying to distract myself and crying a lot. This year, it's pretty much a normal day.

Except I wrote. And I wrote with intention. And that was how I reclaimed this day.

This morning I posted the first piece on MasculinityU, an initiative geared towards engaging young men in redefining masculinity and encouraging them to take an equal role in ending gender based violence. You might wonder what I, as a woman, am doing writing for MasculinityU, and when founders Sacchi and Marc first asked me to write for them I had the same thought. But I figured out how to contribute in a meaningful way with my new column, Male Models. Every week I'll be spotlighting a lovely gentleman who is helping to end gender based violence in his own way. 

I'm really excited about it! You can follow along here every week.

Today was such a fantastic adventurous day!

It started off with some great conversation with my brother as we both caught a train into the city. We split off at Penn Station so he could catch a bus back to U Penn and I could go audition for a production of The Vagina Monologues.

I got there a bit early so I wandered around the Upper West Side searching for a bite to eat. Even better - I found a flea market on Columbus and 76th! I found so many cute antiques and such and it was absolutely delightful. I didn't buy anything, but the flea market is there every Sunday, and I'm sure I'll be stopping back after some upcoming rehearsals. The most delicious smelling old books, fantastic wooden holder thingies, colorful old brooches... I was in heaven! While I managed to keep my wallet in my bag for the most part, I did get some delicious spanakopita and a pumpkin chocolate chip cookie - sugar and butter free, and absolutely tasty! I definitely hope that woman is regular vendor there because I want to learn all about the magic tricks she uses to bake these cookies.

The auditions themselves were so wonderful! This will be my seventh year involved with V-Day, the organization behind The Vagina Monologues that focuses on ending violence against women and girls. This year I'll be involved with the production by the Fourth Unitarian Universalist Society. What a wonderful group of women! I'm so excited to have the opportunity to be part of this community and this experience.

After the auditions and a sharing circle (that touchy-feely stuff is one of my favorite things about being involved with The Vagina Monologues!) I went back to the flea market and I bought the cutest red sweater skirt for $2. Such an awesome find!

I happily trotted back to the C train...but wait, the fun doesn't stop there! I got myself a strawberry beet smoothie for the train ride back home. AND THEN, I spent the train ride listening to the best pod cast ever.

That's right! The lovelies at Stuff Mom Never Told You (Whaaaaat? You've never heard of SMNTY? Where have you been? What are you doing for entertainment? You need to go download their podcast as soon as possible. You will thank me. I promise.) did an episode on the history of thong underwear. Fascinating stuff.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the makings of a perfect Sunday. Siblings, flea markets, delicious healthy cookies, thrifted clothes, and the history of wedgie-inducing underpants. Love!