I live in a freezer

It was in the low teens today. And yesterday. Every time I went outside, I thought to myself, "Oh, I can't wait to get back in my room where it's warm!" Well. Yes, it is warmer than outside, but not nearly warm enough. I'm not one of those people who needs to have my room feel like a tropical rainforest but I don't appreciate having to wear a long sleeve tee + 2 sweatshirts and leggings + sweats. I think if I put on any more clothes I wouldn't be able to move. The odd thing is that my heat is on...maybe it's just down really low? I have a sneaking suspicion that it is mainly the windows, though-I can feel a constant draft through them. Anyway, I sent NYU a work request and hopefully they'll fix it tomorrow...cause I'm turning into a popsicle!
In other news...I'm still working and going to class...exciting, huh. I'm learning a lot at work and will be closing on my own soon-eek! Not really excited for that. I think nervous/dreading it would be the words I'm looking for. Oh well.
I keep reminding myself that this job is going to enable me to have a social life, for which I am too tired/busy for at the moment. Hopefully soon I'll readjust to the intense scheduling that is my life here. Then I can afford yummy dinners and fun shows and movies and shopping! I am going to go ahead and buy a new winter coat since the one I've been lusting after since last year has gone on sale...I'll show you once I get it :)
Oh and P.S. My friend Danni is coming to visit Monday! I'm trying to get all my work done ahead of time so I don't have to do it while she's here...can't wait. We have soooo much fun together!
xoxoxo

I do enjoy cooking...

and so I would love to with the Magic Bullet To Go! The wonderful Marcy is giving five away on her oh-so-great blog, Stretching a Buck. You should head over there ASAP and check it out...you'll get great deals all the time :)

Loooong day

Today was my first day at Papyrus! Woo! All went well-tons of forms, training, trial and error. So I'm absolutely exhausted. Classes then 5 1/2 hours of work? I don't know how people (like my manager) do full time school and a full time job. Good for them-I don't think I could. I think this job will be good, although at the moment I'm concerned with remembering everything. Having never worked in retail, the entire concept of marketing, the customers, even cash registers! is new to me. However, working at a camp my job was to make people happy...so I'm just gonna draw on that and hope that I can pick everything up and remember it!
My RA had a cocoa, cookies, and paper snowflake "party" this evening...cute. I love hot cocoa but never buy it, so I totally hit that up :)
Oh, and the quest for the shoes? Not the cheapest, but I love them. They're soooo cute and after standing all afternoon and walking to and from class, my feet feel fine-these Aldo Manni flats are great! The only prblem is now I want them in pink, too! :)

I promise not to do this too often

but for a $100 amazon.com gift card-I can't resist. Mr. Rebates is offering one up for a Fantabulously Frugal reader...head on over to Lisa's site! Not only do you get to enter a wonderful giveaway, but will quickly become addicted to her fab blog :)

the Strand must love me

I did a lot of reading the first few days I was here. And I mean a lot. I forgot my computer cord (which I have never done before and believe me, will never do again) so that was out. Thank goodness for my blackberry, otherwise...I would have had to break my internet addiction?
Anyway, every day or so I went to the Strand Bookstore and bought a couple of books of their $1 racks outside the store. These were, of course, mainly extremely trashy chick lit. Not the good kind where you learn something, but pure novel-candy. Hence fun, but I wouldn't particularly recommend any of them...

 

As Sure as the Sun by Anna McPartlin

• this one I actually bought before I left to have something to read on the flight (which thankfully I was able to sleep through instead. Woo!) so it isn't quite relegated to the $1 group...although it was on clearance at Borders for not much more.
• It was certainly interesting, and worth a read...but I'm glad I didn't pay full price for it.

Social Lives by Wendy Walker

• the epitome of the crappy books I bought. Not that it was badly written or anything...just a somewhat typical shallow story line, although at least it was a bit more realistic in the marriages.

Royal Flush by Rhys Bowen

• this was a fun one. It's about a poor royal (although only very distantly eligible for the crown) who has a tendency for running into danger/mysteries and then solving them. Cute, but predictable.

The Manny by Holly Peterson

• OK, maybe this is the epitome...talk about stereotypes. Bored/underloved wealthy mom meets manny...you can take it from there. Fun read even if I did see it all coming.

The Triumph of Katie Byrne by Barbara Taylor Bradford

• stood out a bit from the rest. It's the story of a girl whose two best friends are brutally attacked...great intro, right? They all wanted to be actresses, and this is about her attempt to solve the attack and recover from her trauma regarding it...while becoming an actress. Weird...and I don't really feel the need to own it...but pretty good storyline.

I also read a couple of my roommate's books...she was nice enough to not mind me borrowing them.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

• I really liked this one. It's a mystery, which isn't usually my choice, but this one is great. The character development, the intelligence of the content and the writing...great. Definitely recommended reading.
• I can't wait to read the other two.

True Blood: Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

• I am not a fan of this vampire trend. I hate the Twilight series. I don't judge people for reading them, but I think the writing is awful and certainly is not redeemed by the plot with its ridiculously pro-abstinence, pro-damsel-in-distress, anti-feminist tones.
• However, this book was better. I still didn't love it-I think the damsel-in-distress syndrome is unavoidable in any novel where the male character is inherently stronger/immortal and the female love interest is "fragile human". For it to be realistic (in the world created there) that's they way it's gonna work. Still, the characters in this were interesting and the culture created was pretty interesting. I'd read more in the series, as long as it continues to develop and doesn't repeat the same storylines.

I also read one more book before I left Ann Arbor...

Push by Sapphire

• Wow. So much very, very disturbing content. But such a good book. Read it.
• I need to see Precious. Now that I've read the book it's based on, I think I can do so.

Currently, I'm reading textbooks. And article/book excerpts. Can you tell classes have begun?

I have a job!

And I'm gonna be makin' the monies :)

I spent the last week interviewing (and freaking out pre- and post-interview) for a job at Papyrus. In case you don't know the store, it sells a beautiful range of greeting cards as well as trinkets, style books, and wrapping supplies, and also does custom printing orders. I love this store far too much-I'd better not take advantage of the employee discount too often. Anyway, the job is for a "keyholder" position, which means I'll be closing, opening, etc. Kind of scary, actually, for someone who has never worked retail. Responsibility-eek!

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This is also a huge relief as the start of school has been draining my bank account like whoa. Textbooks of course are crazy expensive, plus moving back NYC means I have to restock on the basics-and boy are they expensive. I'd forgotten things like laundry detergent are at least twice as expensive as in MI.
Plus, now I get to go shopping! The uniform is black and white and my only black shoes are sneakers and high-heeled boots. Not really ok for a job/standing all day. So I really need some comfy black flats...woot shopping trip tomorrow! I haven't gone since I got back to the city...crazy I know. And now I have a very legitimate reason. :)

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I really need to learn about food photography

So far this year I've made:
pumpkin pies

• no pictures, but I took one to a party and it was well-received, as was the one Mom and the bro ate
• recipe from the can of pumpkin and pre-made crusts. It was New Year's Day...no way was I making crusts from scratch.
  

sun-dried tomato, asiago, and parmesan risotto

• also no pics, also well-received by myself, Mom and the bro
• recipe loosely based on this mushroom risotto

crème brûlée french toast with "mimosas"

• OMG so delicious, but sooo sweet. I haven't been able to eat a dessert since.
• based on this recipe, although Mom refused to buy Grand Marnier for one brunch, so I substituted more vanilla and a few drops of orange extract

• for the "mimosas" we used orange juice (duh) and sparkling water...we all needed to be driving afterward...so yeah, no champagne.

chocolate chip-heath cookies

• Some of my friends from Ann Arbor Civic Theatre and I often get together for movie nights when I'm back in A2, and I have become the official baker. I don't think they'd let me in if I came without baked goods...so I threw these together in about 10 minutes. Literally. 
• Again, based on a recipe, but we didn't have nearly enough chocolate chips (which is strange, cause I feel like I'm always buying them...) so I added in some heath chips as well. I also like to change a little vanilla for almond extract because I just love the flavor.
  

Hey, guess what?

I'm in NYC! Soooo happy to be back :)

So far I've read

Modoc: The True Story of the Greatest Elephant That Ever Lived by Ralph Helfer

• good story
• poor writing-the author sounds like he is just trying too hard. As my mom said, it's like he went through after he wrote the first draft and thought "now, what adjective-or 3-can I put here?" in front of EVERY noun. But the story is worth it.
  

The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler (again)

• I really like this book. Not sure why-I think it's a combination of my love for Jane Austen and the fact that it's a great easy read for curling up on the couch, fighting for space with a cuddly Cavalier and a sometimes-cuddly-otherwise-grumpy cat.
• I have no desire to see this movie.
  

Yes, I re-read books all the time because
a) I'm accidentally a speed reader. No really, I wish I could read more slowly but I can't. So I reread to get the details I missed the first time. I've read the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe series at least 5 times, no joke.
b) I get bored and can't possibly buy enough books to only read things once. I wouldn't have money to eat. And then I'd be grumpy all the time, and believe me, you don't want that.

P.S. I'm searching for a pair of tall cognac boots...flat-low heel, as my Aldo ones from last year are irreparable. :( Any ideas, please let me know!

Yet another attempt...

at blogging. I've lost track of what blog number I'm on...3? 4? But every time I lose interest or enthusiasm or just time. My last attempt was chronicling my semester abroad in Berlin. I made it to fall break (which is a long time, considering the past ones) and then kind of gave up. So this one...I'm not setting taxing demands.
I'll try to update three times a week.
I'm warning you right now, most of what is on here will be (uninspired) pictures of stuff I've baked, which I'm told is delicious but I'm more of a savory person myself. Or of books I'm reading-I read all the time but never keep track of what I've read. I figured what better time to start marking it down. Or of things I want to buy but won't because I go to NYU and therefore shouldn't spend money on anything other than that ridiculously overpriced school. Although every once in a while I do break down and shop. Because I love it and I love pretty shiny new things.
I may also post about music but to be honest I tend to obsess over a certain album/artist for months before listening to anything new. Like Joshua Radin, hence the name of the blog. "Brand New Day" is from his second full album, Simple Times, and is something I'm trying to remind myself of-each day is its own. (And he's brilliant and you should all buy all his music and listen to it all the time...that's what I do)