30 Day Song Challenge – Day One: Best Song to Choreograph Your Chippendale Audition To:
So Many Men, So Little Time By Miquel Brown (1983)
Songs »So Many Men, So Little Time
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Spend a Couple Minutes »Make Your Own 30 Day Song Challenge
With Your Own Categories!
Dear friend Ashleigh, of The Awesome Brothers has been posting her very own 30 Day Song Challenge which includes such gems as:
“The song that pretty much sums up the magic of courtship (we ate cereal): Iesha by Another Bad Creation”
” The liveliest TV performance ever: Major Tom by Peter Schilling”
and
“The best song to play at a roller skating rink during the couples skate: I Wanna Be Your Man by Zapp and Roger“
I am stealing the idea and will feature a song for every day in May.
See, the challenge is to make up your own categories! Hope you all will join in on the challenge and post your own song picks in the comments. (Steve Olson, if you’re reading this – I assume you’d be awesome at it).
PS. The image provided is one of the first large scale photos to come up on a “music challenge” google image search.
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Posted on May 1, 2011
Recipes »Gai Pad Krapow
from Serious Eats
This excellent and affordable recipe for Gai Pad Krapow, also known as Thai Basil Chicken is totally superb!
The rice, the fish sauce, the basil and the fried egg combines to create a very complex but well balanced dish.
No one would believe how easily it all comes together. This is one I’ll bookmark to make over and over in the future.
Thanks again, Serious Eats.
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Posted on April 30, 2011
Style Icons: Female »Joni Mitchell
Folk Super Star
It’s taken a while for me to have my Joni Mitchell “moment”. Van was just days old and California was the first song we listened to together, awwww.
While the waify talent recently took some flack for shit talking Bob Dylan and Madonna (neither of whom have never said a bad word about anyone I am sure) her long haired, huge smiling, easy summer breeze style is as refreshing as her older age words are vitriolic.
Plus, one has to respect the admiration her music earned among rock and roll’s male dominated royalty without ever changing herself to fit conventions. Everyone from Prince to Madonna, Led Zeppelin to Morrissey, Bjork to Sonic Youth site her as inspiration.
And if I could guarantee it wouldn’t freak out my baby (I’ve read that drastic hair style changes can be alarming) I’d cut me some Joni Mitchell bangs.
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Posted on April 29, 2011
Desserts »Birthday Cake Truffles
at Momofuku Milk, 251 E 13th st
On one hand, there’s a very alarming Times article about the dangers of sugar but on the other, Momofuku Milk is now offering Birthday Cake Truffles!
And Birthday Cake is one of my favorite things on the planet. When it was knocked out of the Jezebel Cake vs. Pie Tournament I was much more upset than was reasonable.
One great thing about getting older is that our peers are now in charge of things. Whether it’s media or food, most everything is made in new and inventive ways, usually reflecting what we loved growing up. Momofuku pastry chef Christina Tosi is a perfect example.
I am willing to bet she also had sleep overs that involved a shared messy bowl of raw cake batter (or were my friends and I particularly indulgent?). Well, at least I assume she got to lick the spoon in the kitchen.
These truffles are a delicious way to relive those days and economical compared to the pricey but awesome whole cakes on offer.
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Posted on April 29, 2011
Style Icons: Male »Philip Treacy
Milliner Extraordinaire
With rumors circling that he is commissioned to create Kate Middleton’s wedding head piece and an upcoming Met Retrospective of his long time collaborator, Alexander McQueen, it’s just a Philip Treacy kind of year.
Taking a look through Treacy’s career, anyone could get excited about millinery arts. I am particularly hat crazy with the changing of the season and subsequent changing of head gear.
So long wool turban and floppy brimmed tweed – hello bright wide brimmed sun hats. What I wouldn’t do for some outrageous Treacy creation. His work is inventive, imaginative, daring and humorous.
The sadly departed Isabella Blow discovered the deisgner (as well as McQueen) and often donned his wildest hats including the famous feathered “Blow” head piece.
Other famous fans include Lady Gaga. SJP, Naomi Campbell and of course the soon to be British Princess.
His headpiece and her dress are the only reason I am excited to see the wedding tomorrow (though not enough to wake up at 4am).
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Posted on April 28, 2011
Restaurants »La Baguette
2417 West Colorado Avenue, Colorado Springs, CO
About twice a year I get an tremendous craving for the fondue at La Baguette in my hometown of Colorado Springs. Having it was my one request during my recent visit and it lived up to all my fond memories. It has a different consistency than most fondues – less thick and appetizingly chunkier. I have no idea what type of cheese they use, but if I knew, I’d attempt to make it myself so I wouldn’t have to travel across the country to enjoy it (not that I don’t love visiting home!).
The cafe itself is nestled in Old Colorado City, an arty, old timey part of town that has barely changed since I left. Magic Town, a gallery featuring the pewter drunk hobo art of Michael Garman is still across the street from Simpich, the local puppetry and I have no doubt that my name is still carved into the benches at Bancroft Park by a former skateboarding boyfriend. It’s a lovely, historic part of town and worth a visit if you happen to be in the area. And of course, be sure to make La Baguette your lunch spot. And no worries, if fondue is not you cup of tea, there are sandwiches on homemade breads and amazing pastries.
Many people think that you have to live in a big city to find unique culinary experiences like this but in the middle of Colorado we grew up with both La Baguette and fellow Colorado French gem, La Creperie (which I’d like to have on my next visit home). What luck!
What local eateries do you adore from your own home town? Leave your dining tips as a comment!
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Posted on April 28, 2011
TV Shows »The Borgias
on Showtime
While in Colorado I caught up with my premium channels and discovered that I liked some things I expected to like (Game of Thrones – more on that soon), hated other things I expected to like (Mildred Pierce – why are you so painfully, obnoxiously boring and ham-fisted?) but I was most surprised by how much I enjoyed the bloody soap opera that is The Borgias. Although, ever since a short stay in Rome in my college years, I have had an interest for Italian history so I shouldn’t have been so surprised. It’s so juicy and tawdry and fascinating and The Borgias gets all that drama just right.
The cast is perfection. Even though Jeremy Irons bears no physical resemblance to Pope Alexander the Third, his portrayal of the corrupt Patriarch who manages to think himself virtuos and wise by making others do his dirty work is a joy to watch. Without him lending his gravitas and subtle humor, the tone of the show wouldn’t settle right. But he is not even the best character!
I have to admit I have a huge crush on the Cardinal son, Cesare (who my mom pointed out has a passing resemblance to Jim if he were dark) and his right hand assassin, my favorite character is portrayed by Sean Harris – who some of you might recognize as a very, very bad police man in the Red Riding Trilogy. Looking every bit like a nightmare and quite a lot like Vincent Van Gogh, Harris has found the role of a lifetime, custom suited to his creepy gaze.
Lucrezia is played with charm and a mischievous streak by the adorably named Holliday Grainger. It’s nice to see former Mrs Val Kilmer Joanne Whalley who I think I last saw in The Singing Detective as the mother and new comer Lotte Verbeek is appropriately lovely to look at as Giulia “the Beautiful” Farnese. Even less central characters are a thrill to see like Derek Jacobi (I, Claudius), Nicholas Rowe (The Young Sherlock Holmes – which I loooved as a kid), Gina McKee (from Mike Leigh movies and Soames’ suffering wife in Forsyte Saga) and Stephen Berkoff (the bad guy from Beverly Hills Cop and a former Brix Pick hunk). The other son? Eh – I just can’t get over his bad hair I guess.
While the show may not be completely historically accurate, much of the intrigue, scandal, plots, murders, affairs, assassinations, and conspiracies did happen; making the poster’s claim “The Original Crime Family” not only a desperate attempt to grab former viewers of The Sopranos but true as well. And really, there is no need for The Borgias to be desperate, even if it gets a slightly slow start, anyone with a penchant for this kind of thing will become an instant fan. I can’t wait to see what wickedness comes next – and even went ahead and ordered Showtime to find out.
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Posted on April 27, 2011
Personal »Happy Easter!!
And excuse our absence. We are on vacation!!
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Posted on April 24, 2011
Web Sites »Youthquakers
Vogue Magazine 1965-1975
Love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love Youthquakers!!
These wonderful people have posted large scans of British and American Vogues from 1965-1975. A Golden Era, if you ask me, before Jennifer Aniston took every third cover. If I had the time, resources, and energy, I wish I had provided a site so complete and excellent on the subject – lucky for us all, someone else has done a bang up job.
Not only are there tons upon tons of amazing photos from Bailey, Newton, and Avedon of Anjelica Huston, Lauren Bacall, and Twiggy to name just a few – but it’s also very easy to search by subject, photographer, or date.
This is really quite a feat and very time consuming no doubt, so much, much thanks to the people behind this. I’ve only skimmed a few issues and am already fawning and excited. A must visit for fashion, photography and vintage lovers.
Several of my favorite images are below and after the jump, but give yourself a nice afternoon to really peruse this fantastic resource.
Click here for the rest of Youthquakers