Happy Mashed Potato Day!

To celebrate our first Thanksgiving as a married couple, we were able to watch the famous Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade right from our balcony. It was quite the sight and we were thrilled to have such awesome seats without fighting the crowds!

Seeing such a famous and impressive parade from the perfect bird's-eye-view spot was truly one of those "you may never get to do this again!" New York experiences. We hope that we get the same thrill next year, but who knows if Mayor Bloomberg's new pedestrian malls will stay in place so that the parade can't go down Broadway again? Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Realistic Determent

I saw this sign posted in the window of a big commercial van yesterday:

I had to laugh because

1. It's so true and

2. Is that a threat??

Only in New York...

Craving Crafting

As I've mentioned here before, one of the hardest things about living and crafting in Manhattan is that you can't just go into a big box store and find what you need. You have to seek out a specialty store for just about everything. Specialty stores are fabulous and full of gorgeous eye candy, but often the prices make shopping for my everyday crafting needs inaccessible.

(Source )

There has long been a Michael's in Queens that is reachable by subway, but the selection there is very poor and the shelves are often half empty, which is disappointing after a 30 minute subway ride to get there.

Good news, though, my Manhattan friends! A new Michael's has just opened on the Upper West Side in Manhattan!!

The store is much larger than the one in Queens and certainly closer to Midtown, especially with cruddy weekend subway service. It's clean, brightly lit, spacious, and full of fabulous crafty goodness! I can't say the high-school-aged staff is particularly helpful or that the selection rivals suburban Michael's stores, but it certainly is a welcome Manhattan addition to me.

New York purists may say that makes me a traitor, but c'est la vie. I certainly don't wish the specialty stores gone by any stretch. They have their purpose and are a wonderful strength of the city. But I don't mind them sharing the city with Michael's, either ;)

Weird Ass Audition Notices: Volume I

From time to time, we all see the strange audition notice. "Seeking women 25-35 with bald patches" or "Looking for men with partial erectile dysfunction." Yeah, they're out there. So when an audition notice actually makes me stop in my tracks and think oh, man, I have to share this with my friends and blog readers, you know it's gotta be weird.

I occasionally scour good old Craigslist looking for auditions, despite the fact that there are a lot of scams on there and people looking to waste gullible actors' time. Sometimes there are actually legitimate auditions or background calls on there, though, so I look when I have the time. Today, though, I came across this audition notice that actually made me squirm in my seat:

Casting call for two female leads. Color 16mm thesis film

Asking for 18-25 yr old females to act in a Pratt student’s senior thesis film.
The film will contain on screen sexual intercourse and the actress must be willing to perform sexual acts on camera with male actors. 

The shoot will consist of two weekends in February. Shot on color negative 16mm (sync sound)
Compensation: non-paid, copy for reel, on set food and transportation to Brooklyn will be provided. 

Actors must be comfortable improvising, as this experimental narrative will be driven by intuition and actors cannot rely on script. It’s a creative nonfiction piece about two 21 yr old males writing science fiction stories and their two muses. The film will be about the creative process and show how they obtain the ideas in their stories as well as fever dreams of their stories coming to life. The film will contain new approaches to filmmaking and try to define a new space in the world of narrative. This will be a rewarding experience with unlimited creative potential. Think of it as a collaborative making of a 'Pink' science fiction film. 

No experience necessary, disease free mandatory.
This film will be submitted to festivals.
If you are interested please send a headshot and resume 


I feel dirty just reading that. Sure, I'll have sex on camera for no pay because it's *creative* and I'll get festival exposure! Umm...no, thanks.

We Promise: No Lost Underwear!

First off, let me apologize profusely for my extended blog absence. I have been a very bad blogger. Well, that's not exactly accurate. I have actually been a very good blogger as Miss-turned-Mrs. Star over at Weddingbee. Blogging 3-4 times a week for a site with such a large readership has been an amazing experience, but it's also a lot of pressure and very time-consuming. Hence, my big, gaping absence way over here at my modest little New York blog :)

We're married now, though (hooray!) and the wedding planning void is begging to be filled. I have time to get back to exploring this amazing city that I am so lucky to live in, and to look for funny, interesting, or random things in shop windows or stores that don't sell big, white dresses.

On my way home from an interview on the Upper East Side the other night, I couldn't help but giggle when I saw this cleaner's sign outside:

I've gotta be honest, the chuckle it gave me would be enough to get me in there if I lived in the neighborhood and needed some washing done! I'm all for advertisement that brightens my day.

I promise to stop neglecting my New York City blog from here on out, so stick with me, ladies and gents. I haven't shown you our new digs yet (yes, we are crazy and decided to move a month before the wedding!), and I'm getting up the nerve to blog about why we left our old place.

For now, I'll sign off, as one recent bride who really does love New York: