I'll Be Dancing Today!

I'm not dancing just yet... it's too early... perhaps after my coffee al fresco on this beautiful New York morning... I know it's National Dance Day and I love to dance and I have something to dance about today...
The wonderful blog "Writing Without Periods" has interviewed me today as the "Sensational Woman Saturday"!
OK dancing...
When I was a kid, my dream was to be a dancer on the popular TV show at that time "Hullabaloo"...

I wanted to be that 'Go-Go Girl'...

Today, I'm addicted to watching the Fox TV show "So You Think You Can Dance"...

My 12 and 14 year old boys love to dance too!

Enjoy your weekend and express yourself through dance.

Dance Day!

Tommorrow, Saturday, is a special day... on a national level it's the first ever "National Dance Day" and on a personal level it's my special day to be interviewed as a featured blogger for "Sensational Woman Saturday", on a sensational blog called "Writing Without Periods!".... I hope you'll check out the interview and her blog about life after 40!... of which there is plenty!

Now, about National Dance Day (NDD)... this is an event created by So You Think You Can Dance co-creator Nigel Lythgoe and made official by Congress, to encourage the nation to get healthy through dance!  I love dance, and I love the show because it's a way to see serious dance (modern is my favorite) for FREE!  On NDD most events are happening on the 'left coast'... with a few exceptions, one being The Mall in Washington D.C. , but I say, 'JUST DANCE'... you can even upload your own dance video with instructions from the link above.  Also check out Dizzy Feet for the official dance of the day.

I thought I would start the weekend with a warm up tonight by attending the Huntington Summer Arts Festival at Hecksher Park in Huntington, NY... where Latin guitarist Raul Midon will play his flamenco and jazz-infused music... and I with my own dizzy feet will be 'swagging out' to the beat !  You can picnic there too...

Sleeping in Luxe

I bought these fabulous sheets awhile ago when my husband commented about how we needed some new ones... if HE said it, they must have been pretty bad, and they were old and frayed... in their day they were good quality, and now super soft, but so dingy looking.
Well my husband opened the door on that one...
One day while browsing the Gilt website I found and purchased these colorful Fazzini, Antigua sheets in Lime Green, big risk right?, but worth it... the colors are spectacular, they're super soft italian cotton, and they have a wonderful fragrance... a bonus!  I paired the sheets with a white comforter I had from Pottery Barn, I bought extra matching green pillow cases at Bed Bath & Beyond and a beautiful accent pillow from them too... surprised I could match it with such distinct saturated colors!

'Gilt' has the sheets and duvet on sale again until midnight tomorrow...

They come in blue and lavender too

Anthology at Bed Bath & Beyond

Trust me this pillow looks amazing with the sheets... so now the bedroom, which is all off white has this beautiful punch of color!

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Some Mens Dream

Some men dream about women, some about cars, and some both... mine is the former, and of course, he only dreams about me...
Anyway, if your hubby is a car lover, and he has the HOT car already... and you want to get him a gift of driving accessories... check out this website, Car Guy Gear... they have great stuff, including these very stylish Piloti driving shoe...

... and some are on sale for about $60, down from $90

Neon sign... stylish, large and impressive...isn't that what they all want!

$469

Happy 'Gifting'!

The Last Hurrah!

Summer keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping into...

With the days getting shorter and the TV playing ADs for back to school, I'm getting nervous that SUMMER will escape me without enough heavenly mojitos, pool parties, late afternoon beach jaunts, outdoor music concerts... 


Here are some things that say summer...

Freeze the scooped out orange and slice off a bit of the bottom for a refreshing bowl with scoop of ice cream, you can also add fruit and drizzle a balsamic and sugar reduction on top!

 Great idea from MSN today... your ice will last longer

Orange is my favorite summer color... great next to a tan... and flattering to most skin types...

Cynthia Rowley for Roxy, was $115 now $56.99

Loving this summer color...

Urban Outfitters, Paul & Joe Summer Nail Enamel, $14

I'm going to start planning a summer party today... hope you savor every minute of your summer too!

Hot & Frozen Delights

Yesterday afternoon we waited out a nasty rain squall, standing in the MIDDLE of my kitchen fearing a 70 foot tree would land on my house, before heading over to my girlfriends' poolside barbecue with 8 other families.  I made a dish of delicious medium hot buffalo wings with a sauce I picked up at Fairway last week... "Wing-Time", it comes in mild, medium and hot.  The blue cheese-yogurt dipping sauce was a recipe from Bobby Flay...

We were so late for the party due to the storm that I didn't get a photo of my wings which were juicy from grilling with a little olive oil, kosher salt and pepper,  then coated with the spicy orange buffalo sauce...

Speaking of yogurt in the sauce... someone brought delicious frozen yogurt from the South Korean originated chain, Red Mango...

100 calories for half a cup without toppings

Tanger Outlet, one of two locations nearby

I really liked the 'Tangomonium' flavor, which was invented by the company's President and CEO Daniel Kim.  The yogurt is not too sweet and a little sour... unlike Pinkberry, which is a little too sour for my taste... are you a Red Mango or Pinkberry fan... the lines have been drawn!

You'll have to go into NYC for Pinkberry... please share your preference in the yogurt wars!

Visiting Day Dread

Don't get me wrong, I can't wait to see my 12 year old son tomorrow on camp 'Visiting Day', but the thought of a sea of people clawing and running to be the first to their child, and for a spot in the shade to picnic in 97 degree heat and high humidity just makes me feel dread!  There's even a heat warning from the camp not to bring grandparents... because it's going to be too damn hot!!!

                                               photo from 'No Caption Needed'

 I've been feeling this dread all week, I can't shake it... maybe because it's our 5th year... and just maybe because I just saw my son last week ALL week (my husband works at camp for a week every summer)...
We all wanted to play tennis together, but it's too HOT, we want to swim together but we'll be directly in the sun so that will be good for about a half hour, and we'll see inside his bunk and the bunks will be stifling HOT and it's a boys bunk so it will be smelly too!
Please help... I'm usually so positive... here I go... maybe we'll run for the theater which is air conditioned, or Arts and Crafts which has an outdoor shaded porch with tables... maybe we'll go visit the nurses in the infirmary where my husband worked, it's air conditioned there too...
... maybe we'll have the best time ever!!!

Have a great weekend... I'm sure I will too... and I'll tell you all about it next week.

Shopping With My Son

My 14 year old son and I 'palled around' last night, running errands to prepare and pack for his 2 week stint at a Music Camp starting this weekend...  some of our errands brought us to the mall, looking for a pair of shoes (sneakers not allowed) for him when he preforms with the other musicians.  We strolled into Aldo, a footwear store with both feet into cutting edge trends at affordable prices.
We liked these canvas shoes, and my son has his own distinct style...  sort of layed-back musician, tennis player, California surfer (because of his long blonde hair) look.  I wish he would wear one of the great looking fedoras being shown everywhere this season, but he doesn't like hats...

The shoes also come in other great colors in leather and canvas (not all colors are on sale) including a beautiful grey...

Releford Loafer, online and in store sale, $34.98

While looking around the store I found this great summer belt I needed for a top in green and tan khaki that I purchased early in the season and haven't worn... now I will...

Belt, in store, $20, online, $14.98

We had a great time shopping, he's great company, of course when he was done with shopping, I could have gone on and on... so we compromised and then we had a bite to eat at his favorite...  Chipotle.

Pool Pooch (NOT)!

I feel bad for my labradoodle, Jez... he's afraid to swim in our pool, it's like this push/pull thing, a love/hate with the pool.  He looks like he's tortured by it because he runs around the pool (and it's hot hot hot this summer) following the kids and barking at almost every splash... he wants to go in so much but he can't do it even when we throw a ball (passionate about balls) in the water!
I don't get it, he's a Lab... ra... Doodle!!!  Labs and Poodles are supposed to like the water!  We've never taken him to a beach, but somehow I think he would be fine there.
Once a couple of years ago (he'll be 4 in November), we got him in, not easily, he's 58 pounds ok,... and I didn't handle it very well, instead of letting him figure it out, I was nervous and pushed him quickly to the steps... maybe I scared him more... I don't think so, because he was afraid then too.

Jez at my brothers pool

Watching and wanting to be part of the action!

Ahhh... poor guy

I know we should probably call a trainer and find out what to do because it's torture for me too.

I've read conflicting things...

What do you think?  Love to hear your ideas!

Dinner in the Hudson Valley

Philmont, NY... and restaurant Local 111, our dinner destination last week while vacationing in the upper Hudson Valley, a beautiful half hour drive of rich green (despite the heat) rolling hills, deer spotting everywhere this year, and plentiful farms with bounties of produce ending up on our dinner plate... farm-to-table restaurants, a term now used in the local sustainable food movement which means back to basics, staying local and fresh.
I like it for all the PC reasons but also because it tastes so good and the foods is packed with flavor!
Local 111 was built into an old service station with big windows open to Main Street...

                                     photo from Local 111 website

Yummy cocktails made with Soju

Mmmmm... local cheeses, berries and honey

Pork chop with baby carrots and zucchini bread

The food was delicious, and it made me want to visit each of the local farms where all these fresh ingredients came from... farm-to-plate-to-my palate, thank you all!

Away from the Daily Grind

My vacation week was was a great recharge...
Learning how to unwind takes some practice...  this being our fourth summer doing so for a week in the foothills of the Catskills and Berkshires... I'm getting good at doing just about nothing, although a Zen Buddist wouldn't agree it's nothing, but it's all relative.   I power walk in the early morning to avoid the intense heat of late, eat breakfast, some days make some art, eat lunch, walk or take a drive, socialize, swim in the lake (a real treat), eat dinner, more socializing, walk, eat ice cream, walk and sleep...
One of our 'drive and then eat jaunts' took us to Millerton, NY, a great little town where we've been before, and into the Irving Farm Coffee House where you can eat lunch and savor delicious coffee which is roasted nearby at their farm in Millerton.
We bought some of their roasted beans to take home... I LOVE the packaging too!

  I love the packaging so much I had to photograph it again down the street...

I ate a curried chicken salad sandwich on toasted multigrain bread ... DELICIOUS!

There are so many little towns to explore in this region of rolling green hills including a new spot for us, where we had dinner one night... in Philmont... but that's for tomorrow's blog... stay tuned...

Out of Bars!

I'm on vacation this week in a beautiful and rural part of upstate New York...my plan to blog from here has been foiled two fold... Couldn't locate a 'Camera Kit' from Apple for the iPad to upload photos because Apple can't keep up with the demand on this wonderful new product including all accessories. Maybe I could have purchased one online a few weeks before leaving, but I thought I would find one at the Apple store... Silly me!
Truly the biggest obstacle to communicating with the outside world is, NO BARS!... No Verizon bars, no AT&T bars...except for one little spot about the size of my butt (sorry, my kids say that), butt really and truly... It's where I'm sitting right now sharing a litle patch of grass with some ants, and the signal is iffy at best.
Yesterday I must have tried to text or call my 14 year old son all day and into the evening... It's his first day at a tennis camp for the week, but NOT, because he also has spotty service... And we kept missing each other with broken messages!
Oh no, it's showering so I'll come back to my spot with the ants in a few minutes...
I'm enjoying the deer, the corn, the lake, and even the occasional ant... so if you're checking into the blog this week and the posting date hasn't changed in a few days I apologize now, and will be back home next week.
Maybe having 'no bars' is the antidote to a busy lifestyle... Maybe I should appreciate and consider this a gift!
p.s. I'm enjoying time with my husband most of all.

It's a Wrap!

That's what they say in 'show biz' and that's what they said to me yesterday at Emily Sky Fashions in Commack, NY, when I said what's that?...in the pretty pouch...

these two photos are from my garden this morning

I bought navy to wear with my black, $39

... "it's a wrap", a 'Chilly Jilly' wrap... and more...

it's not only a wrap but a sarong, a scarf...

... and they come in these pretty silk pouches so you can just toss in in your purse...

Take it to a restaurant, an air conditioned restaurant, take it to the theater, an air conditioned theater, take it to the beach, an a  i  r... no sorry, but you know what I mean.

If you're traveling this summer it's great and it makes a beautiful gift!

I'll be traveling next week and I hope to be blogging from my husbands iPad, but if there's a problem I will be back on the 19th... have a great week!

Heat & Runny Eyes

Would you tell a friend or even a stranger if their eyes looked like this?!

I would and I think most women would, but I can remember many a time returning home, or in the ladies room mirror finding out I looked something like this... and no one said anything!

In the heat of summer when my eyeliner pencil gets soft it's more likely I will end up with raccoon eyes... that's why I wanted to tell you about 'Stila's Smudge Stick Waterproof eyeliners. New York Magazines' blog, The Cut, says they are richly pigmented and glide on easily...

'Stila' from Sephora online or in the store, $20

... I'm one who wears waterproof mascara all year because of watery eyes from allergies, so this is a WINNER for me!

Love to hear your opinion... 'To tell or not to tell?'.

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Coke vs. Pepsi

I'm not a soda drinker, but once in a while, say,... on 100 degree days like we've been having this week in NY, I enjoy a cold glass of.................... COKE, sorry PEPSI fans, too sweet (with an after taste too).

My son loves it like his Mom

Of course, we know sugar doesn't really quench ones taste, so for that I stick to water and I do like a good cold beer also, especially with say a 'lobster roll' like the fabulous one I had this July 4th in Mattituck at Love Lane Kitchen!

Menu board at Love Lane Kitchen

July 4th flower arrangement at our table

Are you a COKE or PEPSI fan?

Mexican via Long Island

It was Saturday night the Saturday night before the 4th of July... yes, that makes it Saturday, July 3rd... when we went wandering around an all too familiar Huntington, Long Island, just a hop from our home.
We were spending special time with our 14 year old son (while his brother's in camp) before going our separate ways on Sunday for an all adult 4th which we were to spend with friends while he was having a sleepover with his cousins.
We love Mexican food, but it's very hard to find the good stuff this far north of the border!  It's been a few years since we had supped at Oaxaca Mexican Food Treasure, a casual restaurant with very friendly service and authentic food that really hit the spot, a guilty pleasure, what I mean by that is that when the check comes we ( maybe just me) felt guilty not paying more!
The first great thing I had was gazpacho, cool and refreshing (low cal)...  and oh so fragrant, with bits of apple, peach and jicama in a thick cilantro lime infused tomato base! The Mexico City Tacos, Oaxaca Mole, and Chile Rellenos were fantastic and of course Flan for dessert which we all split.

They're proud and friendly

Oaxaca Mole

Mexico City Tacos

Chile Relleno and Burrito Combo

Hope you had a great weekend!

A Different Bagel

I know it's the 4th of July this weekend and I probably should be blogging about something red, white, and blue... maybe something with strawberries... but I can't contain my excitement about a NEW (for me) kind of bagel I've never heard of before this morning...

A Montreal-style BAGEL...

                                                                photo by Wikepedia

Even after having lived on the West Coast for many years, and now back to New York for many more years, my view of life is a New York point of view, and I've nearly forgotten how culinarily obsessed people are, in a GOOD way, on the West Coast!  So here's my long-winded point... there is so much good food everywhere out there from small producers!
I came to a wonderful food blog, The Cookbook Chronicles, and saw this post about the 'Portland Farmer's Market' with these photos...

My mouth watered at the 'Porchetta Sandwich' created by Tastebud

... I had to find out what a Montreal-style Bagel was... Wikipedia gives a history and says,  "it's a distinctive variety, handmade and wood-fired.  In contrast to the New York- style bagel, it's smaller, sweeter and denser with a large hole."

There is life outside of New York and I want to taste it NOW!!!

Roses are red

Violets are blue

I love New York

and Portland now too!

I hope you have a happy July 4th filled with laughter, good company and good eats!