Just Peachy

I spent a nice, long weekend in Atlanta with my pals Samantha and Jonathan, a fun married couple.  We went to Paper Source, Yeah! Burger, CB2, Lotta Frutta, Youngblood Gallery, Highland Row Antiques, The Beehive, Richard's Variety Store, and IKEA. 

I had a blast.  Here are some pictures.  :)

I want two of these stools.  Bad.

Cool succulents at CB2.

Random antique-y goodness.

The Beehive is really neat.  It's like an in-person Etsy.  That's how Samantha described it--spot-on.

You know I always have my eyes peeled for specs.

Here Samantha is chilling with her imaginary wine in a 67-cent glass.

We had an excellent time together.  Thanks again, Samantha and Jonathan!

I Can See Clearly...

Hey blog friends!  Thanks for bearing with me through the last couple of no-update weeks.  I had a few bumps (and ice) in the road, but I'm back.  And I brought specs-y with me.  (Sorry.)

The second collection from Warby Parker is now available!  These new frames just cause optical lust in many ways.  WP has also added a little feature where each frame's page tells you which face shape that style will work best on.  The prices have not gone up (about $95 for each pair), and they still donate a pair for every pair purchased. 

I'm going to keep rocking my Coltons most days of the week and spice it up with Thompson from time to time.  Has anyone else tried out Warby Parker? 

The Magicians

The Magicians by Lev Grossman has been on my must-read list for about a year now.  When I moved to Nashville, it was one of the first catalog searches I did at the public library; much to my dismay, of the dozen or so copies they had across the various branches, all were gone.  They were also on hold.  All of them.  For a long time. 

This was a bittersweet recognition that people here actually read.  No offense to anyone from my hometown, but there was usually not a line on a book, unless it was the latest Harry Potter.  Hmm....speaking of which...

This book was a blatant rip-off of C.S. Lewis and J.K. Rowling.  I'm surprised he didn't sign his name as L.V. Grossman.  There's nothing new here.  Nothing.  Almost every aspect was apparently 'borrowed' from a highly known book or movie.  I am getting a bit ahead of myself, though.

This is the 400-page story of Quentin Coldwater, a bright high school student who is getting ready to apply to colleges.  His life takes a wild turn when he is accepted into the magic school called Brakebills.  It's a thousand wonders he was not a neglected orphan as well. 

As I mentioned, there's not really anything new here, but there was a bit of magic--at least for me.  It's a definite page-turner, but for this reader, it was more about getting down to when the real story was going to start.  Around page 357 or so, I realized that Grossman was running out of time.  I never got particularly attached to Quentin because he doesn't really seem to have many unique or redeeming qualities.  Maybe this was the magic?  I kept reading, despite myself.  It was a decent book, but it was mostly like Hogwarts with some f-bombs and alcohol thrown in for good measure.

Notable excerpt:

"...perfection is a nervy business, because the moment you spot the tiniest flaw it's ruined."

...still here

Hi all.  I'm still around.  Work has been insane in the membrane.  I've been putting in tons of overtime.  Please bear with me.  I have some ideas for some new lust lists, more food coming soon, and a new book review.

How have you been doing?  (Don't be shy.  I love a comment.)

Everything Matters!

Well, well.  This book is not like anything I've read in quite some time.  As you can glean from the flap, the world is ending relatively soon, and only young Junior Thibodeau knows it.  You can imagine how this might affect any person, much less a child, and it's an interesting predicament to ponder. 

Extremely bright but often misunderstood, Junior seems to grow up with most everyone else at arm's length.  To further complicate the sitch, his silent, absentee father works non-stop, and his mother has drunk herself inert.  Then (cue the predictability factor) he meets Amy, a fellow smartie/similarly troubled youth.

Everything Matters! by Ron Currie, Jr. is not a book I'll read again too soon.  It does have a few poignant (and sometimes funny) moments, but overall it didn't speak to me.  Although Junior is privy to the when and how of the apocalypse, he doesn't seem to do much with it.  For my time, I'd just as soon spend the hours I read this book on watching back episodes of Lost. 

Choice quote from this book, by Junior:

So instead of venting my anger, which is really just hurt dressed up for a night on the town, I ask if anyone needs a drink.

Lust List: CB2 Spring 2011

What is it about the impending spring that makes one want fresh linens and a house?  I'm not sure, but these catalog people certainly know.  Because they milk it.

I posted about CB2 before, but 'tis a new season with some fresh products that inspire lust in this heart.

What can I say?  I love a task lamp.  I wish this one came in other colors--namely, a really dark gray.

Are you sensing a theme?  As with anything, you get the good staples, you will go far.  This shower curtain would be really cool in a bathroom with charcoal gray paint on the walls.  You could go with ice blue towels.  Not bad, huh?

These glasses are so simple.  I could see one holding ice water, a cocktail, a pound of paper clips, or a toothbrush.  Not at the same time, hopefully.

Doesn't this sconce have that mid-century flair that's so nifty? 

I would like this whole tableau, please.  Yes, I just said tableau on my blog.  The light fixture is a major enhancement here, and those chairs make such a cool contrast againt the boxy table.

I couldn't quite get the pictures to cooperate with me this time around, but if you like any of what you see, please click on the links.  You'll be directed to the product page, where you can see enlarged images.  Tah dah.  :) 

Lust List: West Elm Spring 2011

This is how my Lust List idea started--a new West Elm catalog.  Guess what.  I got another yesterday, and I'm loving the new direction this company is taking.  It's very Americana with a twist.  Very Etsy (literally).  Very clean and fresh.  So I had to kick off a new season of the Lust.

How could I not?  Look at this.  It's almost enough to make me want to break my first-quarter-no-shopping resolution.

This is like my favorite sheets, but it's in a friggin' duvet.  What?!

You have to appreciate a simple task lamp.

Here's an awesome metal-framed mirror.  I would like to take this, turn it on the horizontal, and hang it over my couch.

Typically I shy away from red.  But this black/white/red rug is calling my name. 

Oh, wow.  This industrial metal bath cabinet blew my mind.

Ok.  I know, with the stripes, but I love them.  They make this cool shower curtain in the same gray color as the duvet.  There's a good chance I'll own it before the year is up. 

To make the resolution-keeping that much harder, I got a coupon from West Elm in my inbox today.  *sigh*  I'm trying to stay strong.