Do Dilly Dally!

Are there any French People in France?

admin — Fri, 10 May 2013 13:19:29 +0000

Mon dieu! There couldn’t possibly be because they are all in NYC shaming me with their perfectly beautiful walking shoes, pressed jeans and their “my hair looks good in any weather” coif. Surprisingly you can find them sipping cappuccino and nibbling on scones at Starbucks, I expect more from them really but one does get desperate for a pick me up with all the walking.

Today it is finally warm…thank you Mother Nature. It might get near 80 after a rainy and much cooler day yesterday. So I put on my whiter-than-white Superga sneakers and hit the streets. If I was naked I wouldn’t have gotten more stares…I guess white is not the best color for touching these well worn streets…

Not a French tourist

New Yorkers on Sun

admin — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 21:21:18 +0000

The last six months, starting with Hurricane Sandy, have been nothing but dark and dank freezing temperatures. Then in one 24 hour period, the temps are 20+ degrees higher and it’s in the 70′s. Can we please experience a little transition period for godssakes?? I had to quickly dust off my flip flops and head straight to the nail shop for an emergency pedicure. But the biggest thing the warmth brought was the unbelievable mood shift taking place amongst my fellow city folk. The rollerblades are out, the smiles are on and the tourists eating at the Times Square Applebee’s aren’t making me angry.

Parked in the slot usually saved for the weekly Carnival cruise ship was this small wonder of a yacht, the Eclipse. Turns out, this skyscraper on the ocean (and largest yacht in the world) belongs to Roman Abramovich, billionaire boyfriend to Russian socialite and “art dealer” Dasha Zhukova. She’s quite pregnant now and rumor has it they want the child born on US soil, or water that is. Whatever, I’m just freaking out how it’s NOT dwarfed by the aircraft carrier to the left!

Bahamas, baby

admin — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 17:21:23 +0000

I’m glad I spent the last year and untold amounts of money on facial serums and brightening creams only to undo everything in three days basking in the sun, playing tennis and swimming in the bluest ocean ever…but it was worth it.

A happy Easter it was.

Riding old school style, somewhere a prom is missing their limo.

Island hipsters

Sprang

admin — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 12:22:58 +0000

East Coast vs.West Coast Spring showdown.

We were in LA for a few days last week and Spring is definitely sprouting ahead there. When we returned to NYC we were welcomed by a light snow dusting, but with slightly warmer temps and sunnier days it’s only a matter of time before I start folding up the winter sweaters. It’s been a long winter….starting with Hurricane Sandy. Come on Mother Nature, bring on Spring!

West Coast

East Coast

This I know, a travel log

admin — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 12:35:47 +0000

1. It’s impossible to dance a proper Samba in sneakers.
2. In Manhattan, the only drivers worse than NY’ers are from New Jersey.
3. Bringing a dog to China is not a great idea, bringing one back is.
4. Everything fun thing you ever did in your 20′s and 30′s eventually ends up in belly fat or clinging to your thighs.
5. Every country has their own favorite alcohol that they swear is good for you and “cleans” you out. I must be very clean.
6. There are still very long stretches in Indiana, Kansas and Ohio where there isn’t a drinkable cup of coffee to be had.
7. When I passed Matt Lauer in East Hampton the other day I had a strange urge to punch him in the gut.

Maybe this had something to do with it…

When pigs fly

admin — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 15:01:36 +0000

I just can’t let this story go.

I know I’m not “musing mandarin” anymore and we’ve certainly got our own issues I should be focusing on, the festering sequestering, prying the 20 ounce sodas from NY’ers chubby fingers, is Lindsey Lohan actually going to do jail time at last…

Let me get this straight. Somewhere b’twixt 1,000 and 3,000 dead pigs were found floating in the Shanghai river, which is used as a water source for the area. Many times I rode my bike along this river. It’s a pleasant ride, less traffic and a cooler place to be on a hot day. Anyway, they now know the pigs were illegally dumped because they were very sick with a virus, a virus that is becoming a big problem for pig livestock in China. Many of the pigs had organs taken out already. Local officials though have deemed the water supply safe. Okay,
A. The water wasn’t safe to begin with, factories have been dumping toxic waste in it for years.
B. I’m no doctor, but I’m quite certain that 2,000 sick pigs with gaping holes makes the water a bacterial nightmare.

The article discusses that there is a problem with sick meat getting to the market. What’s so strange to me is that they did take organs from many of the pigs but threw out the rest. Wouldn’t the organs be the most dangerous to eat??? If you’re going to do that then why not just pickle up the feet too? Dry up the ears and sell them to Costco as dog treats?

I just made myself sick. If you want to be sick too, here’s the article in full.
Poor Piggies

On a fun note, we don’t have any furniture and have not done any painting, wall papering or anything else to the Water Mill house but we DO have an Italian, 1950′s bar, priorities intact.

What in wild kingdom hell?

admin — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 03:22:44 +0000

I’m hiking through the woods in Water Mill and I come across these “foot” prints. What in the world made these, a monkey? Was a baby hiking through here? I did see something walking through the woods that I thought was a lost chihuahua but at closer view it was definitely some other small beast I haven’t experienced, like a chipigahua.

Catching a glimpse

Frying pan to freezer

admin — Sat, 16 Feb 2013 19:27:19 +0000

After sweating it out in Rio with temperatures at 100 degrees and sauna-like humidity, it’s nice to have a little snow again to dry up my skin and make me crave hot chocolate and potato chips.

At the Water Mill house

Dog #1

Dog #2

Dog #3

Dog #4….Ooops, I mean deer

Nuts for Brazil

admin — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 17:41:28 +0000

When you dilly dally in Brazil be prepared to sweat. I mean, it’s steamy hot which may explain why the bikinis are so small and the food is so delicious it may explain why the butts are so big…namely mine.

The trip started in Sao Paolo where Ken had work to do and I had shopping to do. The local designers have incredible shops filled with unique designs from Carlos Miele, Antonio Bernardo, Huis Clos, Rosa Cha and of course the famous Havaianas, which come in every color, shape and form. After Ken’s work was done we headed out to our friend’s place at the beach near Paraty to relax on the beach, swim, hike and get our heads together before getting on the boat to Rio where all hell breaks loose for Carnivale. And in the meantime I’ve discovered my undying love for cachaca.

A few pieces from the Pinacoteca Museum in Sao Paolo

On the way to beaches of Paraty

The “road” to Rio

A hike at the mountain at Copacabana Beach

Carnivale…can’t be explained or captured on film, you just have to experience it, but here goes.

10 feels like 1

admin — Sat, 26 Jan 2013 20:43:43 +0000

That’s what the weather said. You know what 1 degree feels like? Cold, hard, bitter tears of pain. Your face will crack off. Your pinkie toe might not make it home. Permanently matted hair from pulling your wool cap down to your nose. Suicidal thoughts deepen when your dog has the runs and you have to take her out three times in the middle of the night. For the first time ever you wished you owned a pair of UGG boots. Florida actually sounds like a fun place to go. Shall I continue?

Beautiful snow-covered Water Mill

Arrow and Trudie on the opposite coast also enjoying the snow