dirty musical secrets

Your TGIM thought of the day is brought to you by our dirty musical secrets.  Why?  Because when I admit something about how dorky I am, it tends to make other people feel better (i.e. possessing less relative dorkiness).  And if you share something embarrassing with me, then I can have a good laugh on a Monday.  Sweet deal!

So.  Let’s get down to our dirty musical secrets.

Mine:  Okay.  Um…I liked New Kids on the Block.  As if that’s not mortifying enough, I liked them when I was too old to like them.  I was sixteen and all the other NKOTB fans were like eleven.  But that did not stop me.  I even had their door poster.  And this was my boy:

Yours =  ?

crossing the line

Remember the early days of Grey’s Anatomy when Derek kept being dreamy in elevators?  Like this scene from “The First Cut Is the Deepest” in Season 1:

Meredith:  I’m not going out with you.

Derek:  Did I ask you to go out with me?  Do you want to go out with me?

Meredith:  I’m not dating you.  And I’m definitely not sleeping with you again.  You’re my boss.

Derek:  I’m your boss’s boss.

Meredith:  You’re my teacher.  And my teacher’s teacher.  And you’re my teacher.

Derek:  I’m your sister, I’m your daughter…

Meredith:  You’re sexually harassing me.

Derek:  I’m riding an elevator.

Meredith:  Look, I’m drawing a line.  The line is drawn.  There’s a big line.

Derek:  So, this line.  Is it imaginary, or do I need to get you a marker?

There’s nothing like a good throwback moment.

fun & games

Fun times – some early reviews are out for Take Me There!  Here’s one from And Another Book Read.

I played a wild game of Uno with my friend Anton the other day.  It was a rager.  This one game went on for like three hours and five deck reshuffles.  Did you know there are like a zillion versions of Uno now, including the Muppet Show and Elvis?  Wild.

And speaking of old-school games, SP gave me a gorgeous backgammon set for Easter.  It didn’t exactly fit in my basket.  It’s the kind of backgammon set that sits on its own table, if you live in a house.  And I gave him this fuzzy bunny bag (with removable ears you can wear!) containing many tasty treats, as seen here by an ominously shaded photo by my friend Gerard:

Oh, and March 22 was World Pillow Fight Day.

cupcakes of wonder

Here I am at Cupcake Cafe, the adorable cupcake place inside of Books of Wonder.  In case you haven’t heard, Books of Wonder is the oldest and largest independent children’s bookstore in NYC.  The genius behind the bookstore is friendly neighbor Peter Glassman, often seen chilling with his customers.

Dude!  Color-coordinated cupcake clothing again!  See how my shirt matches the flower’s leaves?  Yeah, it’s all about the details.  So here’s a detailed pic of Cupcake Cafe’s fancy flowers:

anatomy of a cupcake

So of course I couldn’t wait to get to Crumbs for a special Easter cupcake.  I wanted one with pink icing and a bunny on it.  And guess what?  That’s exactly what I found!  Plus, I got to share the experience with a very special visitor.

Here’s Daria Snadowsky, author of the ravely reviewed Anatomy of a Boyfriend.  Daria is all about the red velvet cake, so she got Crumbs’ famous red velvet cupcake.  Bonus:  We’re totally wearing color-coordinated cupcake clothing.  Unplanned!

These are our cupcakes, up close and personal style:

And yes, they tasted as good as they look.

spring things

For those of you who celebrate the vernal equinox like I do, the party’s not over yet!  I even busted out the noisemakers this year, I’m so freaking excited.  Not that it was the excruciating winter the Farmers’ Almanac predicted here in NYC.  But you know.  Any excuse to be weird.

Here’s what’s going on.

1.  Sorry to bust out with bad news on such an auspicious occasion, but the price of stamps is going up again.  Didn’t they just go up?  Yes, they did.  But they’re not done.  Because on May 12, stamps will cost 42 cents (and then 43 cents soon afterward).  But if you buy Forever Stamps before May 12, you do not have to bother with annoying 1-cent additions.  I declined to purchase more stamps today because the only available design was this boring bell deal with tired colors.  As a philatelist, I find this offensive.  I’m waiting to see what else they can offer me.

2.  While I was having lunch with my editor yesterday (sweet restaurant choice, Anne!), Jane Krakowski was sitting at the bar, waiting for her takeout.  She’s one of those celebs who always looks fabulous, even when she’s just out doing errands in the neighborhood.  But I have this problem with not looking at the people around me enough because I’m too busy looking in people’s windows and drooling over things like expensive bookshelves and space, so I usually miss out on the fun.  Like when Chris Noth was sitting next to me at Zen Palate or when Matt Damon was sitting behind me in Chumley’s.  Who knows what else I’m missing?  One of my husbands could walk right by me and I wouldn’t even know it.  Lesson learned:  Take it all in.

3.  There’s some exciting Barnes & Noble news regarding the release of When It Happens in paperback and Take Me There, both in May.  But I can’t officially share it yet, so I’m just being annoying.

4.  I’m starting the revision of book three, which will hopefully be released next year.  I’m stoked.

5.  Much cupcake eating has been taking place recently, which I’m documenting for you.  Photos coming soon!

spring haiku

Waiting for so long

and now you’re finally here

vernal equinox

south beach art deco rules

My weekend South Beach vacay was awesome.  Not only because it was in the 80’s and sunny every day (the high temp on Sunday was 91 degrees – a new record), but we stayed in the surreal art deco district and that totally rocked.  There are lots of restored buildings with sweet neon lights and cool shapes and they all have signs with hot fonts.  The best detail involved cut-out circles and palm trees:

Our hotel was such a rock star that it was just called The Hotel.  This is the rooftop pool where I spent too much time in the sun:

Of course it’s fun to see art deco during the day, but I way prefer looking at night, with all of the colors and lights ablaze:

The view along Ocean Drive:

Where else can you see architecture like this:

Even the lifeguard stands are cute:

Like Mr. Bauer sitting on the rooftop pool lounge chair next to me Friday afternoon said, “This is the life!”  Life would have been even better if his first name was Jack, but I loved it there.  Copy that.

living your dreams

If you only had one day left to live, what’s the most important thing you would want other people to know?

This is Dr. Randy Pausch. He’s telling us how living your life by following your heart is the only way to live. And he’s someone we should all listen to.

parental advisory sticker for sesame street

How insane is it that the DVDs of Seasons 1 & 2 of Sesame Street come with this warning:  “These early Sesame Street episodes are intended for grown-ups, and may not suit the needs of today’s pre-school child.”  Here’s why.

Seriously?  You mean those weird talking letters aren’t real?