Let's Talk About...

I'm back!

2011-12-31T15:32:00.008-06:00

I took a little vacation from the blog writing, but I plan to do more like I used to. (Meaning, probably one blog per month...! Ha.)

Since my year was very eventful, I'm going to try and write one good, bad or fabulously ugly memorable moment from each month of the year. (Riveting!) I want to try this out, and I am challenging my readers to do the same. Maybe in your head, on your own blog, or maybe just to remember some fun stories with friends wherever you may be celebrating the new year this evening.

January:
I had three cavities filled. What a way to start the year! Ow.

February:
Other than the worse blizzard I've ever seen...
Ricky moved in with me! He moved here two weeks after the blizzard, on an unusually warm 50 degree day. I think he brought a little bit of Florida with him.

March:
I took a fun vacation with my friend Kristin in the end of March. We soaked up some sun and beach. It was a nice break to the ever-lasting winter.

April:
Coming back from the vacation, I got sick. And if I remember correctly, this was the start of my two month long relationship with said sickness. Whatever it was, it wouldn't quit. Being on-again/off-again, however, it gave me time to begin my failed attempt at going on dates with people I met from OK Cupid. I definitely met some interesting guys, but wow. I can safely say "I know why you're still single" to each and every one. Sorry guys! (:

Another more serious issue I faced in April was that my grandfather was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer. He had an overwhelmingly positive attitude.

May:
I went to visit my grandparents in New Jersey. My grandfather was in good spirits, and so was my grandmother. I've never met two people so loving and caring and positive, no matter what the world hands them. I also got to visit with my uncle and cousins, whom I rarely get to see. I visited New York City for a day. I spent half of it wandering around SoHo, and the other half wandering around Brooklyn. I made it my goal to move there within five years.

June:
Well, this is where my year flip-flopped. I got laid off on June 16th. I walked into my otherwise normal job at the studio and was greeted with "I have to lay you off." After I shut my dropped jaw, I went home to reflect on what had just happened. I was never so scared of failure in my life as I was that day. I felt like my routine was gone, therefore my life was over.

A week later, I had two interviews lined up, a new freelance project to work on and two new freelance clients contacting me. This isn't so bad.

July:
Summer in full swing, I started to actually enjoy myself. I've never had time off to myself since before I began working. The "break" was starting to feel really nice. I joined free yoga class which met three days a week, and went to every festival I could. I also visited the lake almost every day and enjoyed the beautiful hot summer weather.

August:
What's this? A coupon for Zumba I never used that's about to expire? Sign me up! I did Zumba classes as much as I could, which was about four times per week, along with the yoga. I had another interview. I tried Native Foods Cafe for the first time. By now, unemployment didn't really bother me at all.

September:
I got more freelance, and decided to start up my gym membership again. I went to Indiana to see my brother preform in his marching band. Also, he came to visit me here in Chicago and we went on a segway tour. It was so fun.

October:
The big news: Grandpa beat his cancer. He's 83, and he beat stage 4 lung cancer. It's bound to return in the future, that's what the doctors say. But in the mean time, as long as he keeps his positive attitude and routine chemo treatments, he can stay healthy. He is definitely an inspiration to me.

The first part of the month was spent at my neighbors house every day, feeding her 11 cats while she was on vacation. While I was happy to help out, I quickly learned I am allergic to that many cats all at once! In the end of the month, I flew to Florida with my dad for my cousin's wedding. We had a nice time together. He told me stories of his childhood and what his mother was like. I never really get to spend time alone with dad much anymore, so I really appreciated the trip.

November:
More and more freelance, and, I turned 29! By this point I was optimistic about the future and very happy with my current unemployed status. Being unemployed doesn't mean being sad, upset, alone, broke and in despair like I thought it would.

December:
Well here we are. In the second half of the month I was lucky enough to randomly meet someone who worked for an ad agency I've always had my eye on. A week later, I had an interview. A day after that, I started freelancing for them. On my last day of freelance before the holiday break, I was asked to come back again "next year". So that's what I'll be doing next week. Is it the end of my search for regular full time work? We'll see. At least now I know it's not the end of the world if it doesn't work out that way.

Here's to a wonderful 2012 for everyone!

Vegetable Garden

2011-09-22T18:36:00.009-05:00

Though he'll be the first to proudly proclaim his New Yorker status to anyone who so much as mentions the East coast, for as long as I can remember my father has had a rural vegetable garden in our back yard. Once in a while I'll break out my status as a native New Yorker as well, but in actuality, as much as my parents don't want to admit it, I'm more used to Midwestern soil, as my parents had to relocate our small family to Ohio when I was just a baby. If I recall the story correctly, however, my father has always had a green thumb. His first attempt was an avocado plant started from a simple avocado pit in a glass of water, held up by toothpicks. This plant relocated with our family, not just from New York when I was a baby, but to Indiana when we had to move again when I was thirteen.

Every summer I see the garden go from a small patch of fenced-in dirt to a thriving jungle of home grown goodies, overflowing with endless tomatoes, green peppers, banana peppers, scallions and zucchini the size of baseball bats. Though I really can't stand raw tomatoes, I would still help dad pick the reddest ones, willingly getting my fingers dirty, yet dodging any visible earthworms.

Late August and September rolls around and the summer comes to a close. Now is the time to harvest the hidden gems of the garden: the potatoes. Buried underground beneath their green leafy plants, Dad anxiously digs up the earth to see if the potato crop is "good" this year. (This year, not so "good"... about 30 pounds as opposed to the usual 70+.)

One more crop thrives this time of year, bright yellow spaghetti squash. The vines of this plant are out of control, vibrantly growing well beyond the garden's fence, nearly into the neighbor's yard. This hefty squash isn't exactly a power house of nutrients, rather a quiet amount of Vitamins A and C and folic acid. Anyway, it's just plain fun to prepare. And so I'm brought to the original reason for my posting: to share my recent spaghetti squash recipe with my father who asked me for it on Facebook 15 minutes ago.

I regret not taking more pictures while cooking this bold yellow squash. But it's so easy, you won't even need pictures for guidance.

-Preheat your oven to 350
-Cut the squash in half, length-wise
-Place the squash, cut side down, in a baking dish.
-Fill the baking dish with about a half inch of water.
-Bake the squash for about 40 minutes, or until tender when poked with a fork

Now is the fun part. If you have kids, they should really love this. Let it cool a bit, and use oven mits or tongs. Take the squash out of the baking dish or flip it over. Now just simply take a fork and scrape all the insides out. It should easily come out in strings that resemble angel hair pasta.

Now what? The squash has a mild flavor, so you can get inventive here. Spaghetti squash, like most winter squashes, can go either savory or sweet. So for the last four or so days, I've been eating this stuff for breakfast. (Also, the seeds roast up quite nicely!)

If you're tired of oatmeal, replace your oatmeal with spaghetti squash! Here's how to dress it up:

Add a bit of butter or margarine, a dash of brown sugar and a pinch of cinnamon. Throw in some raisins and chopped apples. Now just microwave it for about a minute, then stir it all up.

You can also use spaghetti squash as a substitute for... you guessed it, spaghetti! Try adding some marinara and basil and garlic for an interesting twist on a classic dish.

If you're not feeling so inventive, this squash works well as a side dish, simply with a little butter and salt.

Though my potted plants and roof top basil can't compare to the lush garden my father grows every year, it still comforts me to have a little bit of home here in the city. If you have any recipes for spaghetti squash, share them with me! If they're on a blog I can link to them for you. Just leave a comment with all the info.

The Year is Ending

2011-09-01T08:41:00.006-05:00

I sat alone on the sand by the lake early Tuesday morning. The air was just cool enough that I didn't want to lay there in a swim suit. Thin wispy clouds filled the sky. An angelic, almost rainbow-hued halo encircled the rising sun. The sand was cool and water even cooler. The skyline seemed a bit hazy because the sun wasn't high enough in the sky to illuminate it.

Shorter days. The year is ending.

I began September by squishing a giant centipede about to crawl into my room right after I woke up and got out of bed. (I know, I know, I'm a bad vegetarian.)

Twenty-nine is right around the corner. There is a very good chance I will still be jobless when I throw my "29 forever" party. I always envisioned greeting my last year before 30 with success and hope for the future. But wait-- who said success equals a full time job? I've done some pretty awesome freelance gigs I wouldn't have had any time for if I had a 9-5. Imagine all the new people I've met because of that. And as far as hope for the future, well that's been the theme of my unemployment.

Beach days are coming to an end. Neighbors are walking their new puppies outside. New couples are holding hands. I guess it's more fun to cuddle when it's cold out.

I'll be facing winter by myself, doing something I haven't done lately: wondering what will happen next.

Ouch!

2011-08-12T11:26:00.004-05:00

(!!!) I found this on my leg this morning. No idea how/when it happened. Now, I am asking you to fill in the blank!

Lauren's bruise is shaped like ______________.

Thinking

2011-07-31T09:50:00.007-05:00

Preface: This blog isn't planned, it's just me rambling. It might not be perfect as far as tone, grammar, flow, etc. Haven't done this in a while. Let me know what you think.

This summer has gone by so fast. I say that every year, but more so now that I've "grown up" and moved to Chicago. This summer is different than any other, however. I am unemployed and have literally too much time on my hands.

I'm a thinker. I've mentioned before I think too much, it's why I'm vegetarian.

With all this time to think, I've begun to reflect on myself as a human. Am I doing what I should be? Do I act how I should act? Even in this time of being financially challenged, sans-regular job, I'm pretty happy with my life. It's actually fun having nothing to do on a random Tuesday and being able to flop on the beach for as long as I want. (I'm sure my skin will thank me ten years from now for that.)

Recently someone pointed out that I can be a little self absorbed. I'm usually the first one to admit I'm selfish, but it sort of hurts hearing it from someone else. But all this time to think made me realize that yes, I can be self absorbed to the point of it being a little obnoxious once in a while! (Guess I needed to hear it!) There's a fine line between being confident and being self absorbed. But aren't we all out there trying to survive for ourselves? Isn't that what life is all about when you're twenty-something and single and trying to live in a big city?

I've always been "the nice one." Well the nice one gets walked all over. When I try to be assertive to friends, men, family, then I'm labeled as the one with the self-centered attitude, (or a word that rhymes with witch...) and no one seems to care about my opinion anymore. But if I just sit there and take it and be nice, then people walk all over me. I can't find that awesome balance. For some reason I'm having a really hard time being that person who's kind, yet gets the respect I know I deserve.

I've had time to think about relationships, too. Man, I suck at dating! I really do.

How does one stop thinking? People have told me to take up meditation. I've tried. I know they say the strands of thoughts are supposed to dissipate, but I can't seem to get there. Meditating to me right now seems counter productive!

One thing is for sure. I'm good at what I do and I deserve a good job. (Which will happen soon I hope!) I also deserve to be surrounded with good friends and people who respect me and my time.

Easy Pasta Salad

2011-06-28T22:35:00.008-05:00

I once bought a box of pasta salad. Pasta, seasoning packet, three easy steps explained on the back. I ended up adding so many of my own ingredients I wondered why I ever thought to buy a box of pasta salad in the first place. What's so hard? Pasta. Easy! Other stuff. Easy! And fun. Today I tried it out on my own, as you can see in the photo above. Here's all you need:

Pasta (Rotini is my favorite for pasta salad. Any variety will work!)
Olive oil
Vinegar (Balsamic, flavored balsamic, apple cider, whatever you like.)
If you don't have/don't like olive oil and vinegar, just use bottled Italian dressing
Seasoning (think of stuff like garlic powder, black pepper, crushed red pepper, parsley flakes, etc.)
Veggies (Anything you can think of! Broccoli, carrots, radish, snap peas, red pepper, tomatoes, onion, cauliflower, chickpeas...)

Cook and drain the pasta. I used about one and a half to two cups uncooked. Add two or three tablespoons of dressing or olive oil/vinegar mix. This is all to your taste, so more or less. Add in your spices. I used ground black pepper, garlic powder and McCormick's Perfect Pinch seasoning in roasted garlic and bell pepper. Add your veggies. I used snap peas, radish and onion. (To tone down the onion flavor, I quickly sauteed them for a few minutes until slightly soft.) Just add it all together in a bowl and stir it up! Put it in the fridge for a few hours until it gets cold. try adding chunks of feta or mozzarella cheese before serving for an added flavor. There you have it, the perfect summer pasta salad!

Just ice water, please.

2011-06-17T08:13:00.003-05:00

After I picked up my jaw off the floor, I abruptly left the place I'd felt so comfortable for ten months. I worked my way outside to my freshly parked car, got in, wiped the single tear from my quivering face and drove back home. My lack of hysterical tears was pure example I was in shock.

Did that...really...just happen?

So many friends and acquaintances through recent years received the same news I did today, but I never thought it would happen to me. I never thought I would get laid off.

THE ECONOMY. It seems I've fallen into the wrath of those two infectious words. Sure, I had a little saved up, but nothing to prepare myself for this. How does one even prepare?

I do pride myself on being so frugal...

Questions...questions I've previously thought about, but never seriously considered, flood my head. The largest issue being my car. Should I sell? I really don't need it. How does one even sell a car?

Aside from applying for jobs like it's my job, I kick into survival mode. Thank goodness Aldi is down the street. I'll return that adorable shirt I splurged on a few weekends ago and didn't wear yet. I'll call my doctor and ask for sample packs of my prescriptions. Maybe I can start to sell some of my hand-made jewelry. I think I saw a "now hiring" sign in the door of my favorite boutique...

Life doesn't slap me in face too often, but when it does, it leaves a mark. In a time like this where comfort zones don't exist, I just have to close my eyes and take the plunge.

If you know of anyone looking to hire creative full time or freelance, please let me know. (Retouching, image editing, color correcting, graphic design, print design, production design) My email is on my website: www.laurenkleiman.com

B.R.A.T diet

2011-05-11T15:34:00.000-05:00

We've all had those days when our stomach gets upset. Here's a remedy for turbulent tummies my mom taught me.
Just remember B.R.A.T:
Bananas
Rice
Applesauce
Toast

Very simple foods. Depending on what kind of bread you use for toast, its all vegan, too. The toast should be dry. You can add a small touch of salt and/or seasoning to the rice so it's not so boring.

(For those of us like me who stick to their health nut status while sick, try no-sugar added applesauce, wheat toast, and brown rice.)

Feel better!

Crispy Kale (or Kale Chips)

2011-04-06T10:06:00.010-05:00

Hello everyone, after a short hiatus I am back. I have a few easy recipes lined up to share. Quite honestly I just wasn't feeling the blog lately, I felt like the only post that ever got any attention was how to remove your no-chip manicure! (Which is cool, share that with your friends!)

Anyway, here's a YUMMY and easy recipe. Kids even love this, and can help make it.

Some call it crispy kale, some call it kale chips. If you want a new way to eat nutritious greens, give this recipe a try. It's a flavor all in its own.

What you'll need:
kale
olive oil (about 1 tablespoon)
large bowl to hold raw kale
sea salt
baking sheet

1) Pre-heat your oven to 375. (My oven gets very hot so I set it lower. It has taken me a while to perfect the temperature for these, I think it all depends on how your oven acts. If you see that after the second round of baking the kale is still soggy, increase the temp a little.)

2) Get a bunch (unit of measurement- bunch!) of kale. Cut out the thick center stem so you're just left with the tender leaves. (It seems like a lot, but keep in mind, kale shrinks as it cooks.)

3) Wash and THOROUGHLY dry the leaves. It's VERY important to make sure the leaves are completely dry, otherwise this will turn out soggy. Try using a salad spinner, then lay the leaves out and pat dry with a towel.

4) Rip the kale into pieces. Use your judgement here, I like to make larger pieces since they shrink. If your pieces are too small they'll just burn up.

5) Place the kale in a large bowl. Take about one tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle it over the kale. Now just mix the kale and olive oil, until the kale is nice and lightly coated. It doesn't sound like a lot of oil, but it will spread out evenly if you mix it well enough. I just use my hands!

6) Evenly spread the leaves out on a baking sheet. They probably won't stick since they're coated in olive oil so you shouldn't have to worry about using non-stick spray on your baking sheet. (Don't put the salt on them yet, this will make it soggy!)

7) Put the kale in the oven for about 8 minutes. Take it out, flip and rearrange the leaves, then put it in the oven for about 7 more minutes.

8) Check your leaves again. If they aren't crispy enough, rearrange them again and put them back in for 3 minutes or so. (If you see there's no crispyness happening, this is where you would slightly increase your oven temp.) Keep an eye on them, you don't want them to burn. Continue this step until they've reached the desired amount of crispiness!

9) Now you can add some sea salt. It's a nice addition to the crunch. Serve immediately! Enjoy.

Dealing with UPS

2011-02-09T11:16:00.006-06:00

I've learned lately by experience that having packages delivered via UPS can be a headache, so I wanted to formulate and share a list of things I've learned to help make the process smoother. If you have any tips, or are a representative of UPS, please let me know of any other tips I can add, or if any of my information is inaccurate.

- When you order something that will be delivered via UPS, you will receive a tracking number. Enter it on the UPS website for detailed and up-to-date information for the whereabouts of your package.

- UPS will only deliver during work hours. If you have a 9-5 job, enter your work address for the shipping address before you complete your order.

- There's a chance they'll be absent-minded and leave the package outside your door, even if you live on a busy city street. Write a big ol' note on your door that says "DEAR UPS, USPS, FEDEX, ETC.: PLEASE *DO NOT* LEAVE PACKAGES OUTSIDE." It works.

- If you get the first yellow sticky note they leave in your absence, call this number and request that your package be held at your nearest UPS Customer Center so you can go pick it up within 5 business days. 1-800-742-5877

- Depending on the shipper/sender, if you're not around when they leave that third sticky note (even if it blows away in the blizzard of the century and you don't know about it) they will return your package to the sender and you won't be able to turn it around and you'll get a refund and just have to do it all over again. (That's why I mentioned the tip before this one)

- Follow UPS on Twitter. DO IT. Just like Comcast, it's a sure way to get good customer service. I had a question, the rep asked me to DM him my phone #, I did, and within 5 minutes HE called ME and we figured things out.
Make sure you follow Evan: @EvanAtUPS

- Finally, be nice to the people at your UPS Customer Center. If it's cold out, so is their warehouse. If it's sweltering, so is their warehouse. They are faced with every kinda crazy person wondering where the hell their package is and why can't they have it RIGHT NOW. You'd be pissy, too, if you had to deal with bad attitudes all day. Take your photo ID, fill out the paper work, and just wait. It won't take long. And if you have a question and ask nicely, it will be answered.

Acceptance

2011-01-31T10:20:00.002-06:00

About two months ago I received an email from someone I've never met. She randomly found my portfolio website and was complementing me on my work. I was flattered and wrote a thank-you email.

Last night I received an email from that same person who complemented me. The email shocked me. Turns out, the email was not intended for me, she accidentally typed my address instead of her friend's who is also named Lauren. It shocked me because it contained several photos of a man's head Photoshopped onto a woman's body, along with a message that said something like this: (I didn't want to directly copy and paste the email to protect her privacy, but this is pretty close)

I can't believe your brother is a cross dresser! Print these photos I made and put them in your closet, he'll find them and get the clue that you don't want him borrowing your clothes anymore.

The email was MUCH longer than that. And there were about 20 photos attached.

Again, I have no idea who this person is. But I felt I had to stand up and say something. I felt terrible for this man who was about to be attacked in such an elementary, cowardly approach. Here's a summary of what I wrote:

I know you wrote me an email once complementing me on my portfolio website and I thank you for that.

If all this stuff you're writing about this man is true, you're a very cruel person and need to mind your own business.

Who are you to say how someone can live their life? If this is a joke you're playing on someone, you should probably rethink it. I'm a gay rights advocate and I do not find humor in any of this, whatever it's about.

She wrote back and apologized for the confusion, then went on to tell me how she is trying to "bring out the truth" and by doing this she doesn't want to cause him any unnecessary stress (!!!) Then she wrote, "when he's ready to come out to us he will."

Exactly.

I wrote back to her... when he is ready to come out, he will. Talk to him like a rational human being if you're that concerned. I told her that from an unbiased, outsider stand point, this whole situation sounds so cruel and hurtful and cowardly. I asked her to reconsider her actions. I didn't want to give up, even for this stranger, wherever he is in the world. This poor man.

Then finally I saw what I wanted to see. She asked for my forgiveness for her ignorance and said she is throwing out all the photos and will not go through with this course of action. Perhaps she was lying to shut me up, who knows. But there's still that chance she was being sincere and spared this man embarrassment and hurt from his own friends and family.

As allies of the gay community, we need to do this. We need to stand up for each other as humans. Even if its something as small as this, just one person... it all helps. If you're ever faced with a situation where you have the chance to stand up for someone and help, I hope you take it.

Teeth.

2011-01-03T12:35:00.003-06:00

I have terrible teeth. Weak enamel. Tons of fillings. I think its hereditary. Mom and dad have bad teeth. My brother had braces. I brush and floss and of course eat healthy! Yes, I love candy... but come on. I don't drink soda, coffee... It's so frustrating when almost every time I visit the dentist I have to get another cavity filled. Got news this morning that I have 3 waiting for fillings. What a way to start the new year! Anyway, I wanted to post this so you all can see my xray. I think xrays are soooo cool. How often do we get to see INSIDE our bodies?? I'm actually looking forward to my next spinal xray, just so I can stare at it for hours and see myself from a different perspective.

Well here it is, click the photo to view it larger! Happy new year!

Don't save your public parking spot.

2010-12-09T13:35:00.004-06:00

Dear Chicago residents with cars,

Whatever middle-of-nowhere place you came from, you now live in a city. With public streets. Saving your shoveled snow-free spot with lawn chairs is the same as throwing a public hissy fit. These are public streets and your name isn't painted anywhere. Find another spot and get the hell over it.

Sincerely,

Lauren

Order your Chair-Free Chicago signs here.

...Parties

2010-11-03T21:34:00.003-05:00

No, I'm not talking about dressing up and wearing heels and seeing your friends. I'm talking about political parties. Before you click the "X" button to close this window hear me out. *

It doesn't matter if you're republican or democrat or independent or green or whatever the hell the new party is.

Throw another cigarette on the ground. Scream at your child once more. Slam the door in someone else's face. Call someone who is different than you another hurtful name. Spit on the sidewalk one more time. Ignore the old woman crossing the street in the rain. Walk right past someone who's dropped something.

Whatever happened to civility in America? Politeness? Manners? Acceptance? Tolerance? Why do people fight hate with hate, and why does that translate into politics?
You were bullied as a child and now as an adult you have to bully others and be proud of it? You were hurt once and now you mend your pain by hurting someone else? Give me a break!

You all know I'm "liberal." I put it in quotations because the thought of labeling myself and associating myself with any sort of political party today makes me sick. So much back and forth, "I'm better than you" or "I'm right and you're wrong" or "I hate this group of people because they are different than me and that hate is ok because my political party tells me so."

Enough! Whatever happened to respect?

Take a step back and think before you speak. I need to take that advice as much as the next guy. Think for yourself. Political parties aren't about hatred. Let's all have some respect for one another and (in a perfect world) realize this as a country.

*If I offend anyone in this blog post, leave a comment and tell me why.

It Gets Better.

2010-10-11T11:35:00.004-05:00

I may not be gay but I'm definitely an ally. If you ever need to talk, I'm here. Just email me, even if you want to be anonymous, I'll listen.

...No-Chip Manicure Removal!

2010-08-23T12:14:00.017-05:00

Three weeks ago I received my first no-chip manicure. (Refer to the blog post here.) My nails have been naturally growing out, creating a half moon shape between my cuticle and the no-chip polish. It was time to remove the manicure this weekend. After reading numerous online tutorials and speaking with the No-Chip Boutique, I decided to remove it myself. Not an impossible task, just more involved than normal nail polish removal.

Note: Don't peel it, don't peel it, don't peel it! Use this removal process. The gel polish is NOT normal nail polish. There's a reason why it sticks to your nails for two weeks. Don't peel it, even if its lifting in the corners. If you peel it, you will take layers of your nail with it, which obviously is damaging to your nails!

Supplies:
100% Acetone (Find it at your local drug store/Target/Walmart, etc.)
Cotton pads or cotton balls
Foil, cut into strips about 1-2 inches wide
Metal cuticle pusher or orange wood stick
Nail buffer or very dull nail file
Nail/cuticle oil (can also use olive oil or baby oil)
Cuticle cream or body butter

1) Prep your manicure for removal.
Your no-chip manicure still has a shiny clear coat. Remove this by using a nail buffer or very dull nail file. Buff it away until the color is dull.

2) Lay out your supplies.
Since we're dealing with 100% acetone and will soon not have the mobility of all our fingers, I like to lay out all my supplies. Use one cotton ball per finger, or cut up cotton pads to fit. Cut up foil in strips. I recommend covering the surface where you're working to protect it against accidental acetone spills or drips.

3) Begin removal.
Apply acetone to the cotton pad and lay it over your finger. Wrap the foil around it. I secured mine with tape, but its not really necessary. I also preferred to remove the polish one hand at a time, so I had a free hand to work with. Once all the foil is applied (as I like to call it, "Robot Fingers," keep it on for 15 minutes.

4) Remove foil and cotton pads.
This is what it looks like when I first removed the robot finger.

Now its time to scrape it away. GENTLY take your scraper or orange wood stick and lift up the polish. Some of it may lift, some might need light scraping. The object is to remove the polish without damaging your nail. The acetone should have loosened it up enough that you can do this without much effort. If it's too hard to remove, put some more acetone on a pad and hold it to your nail for a few seconds.

5) Buff away rough spots.
Wash your hands with soap and water and dry them. I noticed once all the polish was removed there were still rough spots on my nail, which I think was just leftover base coat from the manicure. I used my nail buffer again to remove it.

6). Moisturize.
Acetone can be drying. It is important to moisturize your nails and cuticles once the removal process is complete. I like to use nail oil and cuticle cream. If you don't have these, use body butter, olive oil or baby oil.

These are what my nails look like today, just one day after the removal process. Normal! And very long! The no-chip polish protected my nails from breaking, so three weeks of growth really shows.

*Observations after receiving/removing multiple manicures:
I'm still happy with this kind of manicure, and I still remove it just how I represented in this blog. I'd say I get one once a month, or once every other month. Polish usually stays on for two weeks, plus or minus a few days. As far as how nails appear after the removal process, I think it really depends on your nails! Mine aren't dry to begin with. Acetone *is* drying. But the day after removal, my nails are normal again. However, my nails are naturally tough, they rarely break, and they grow like weeds. How your nails appear after removal all depends on how you've treated them in the past (if you've worn false nails), how often you get/remove the no-chip manicure and how well you take care of them on a day-to-day basis.

...PAWS Chicago

2010-08-23T10:51:00.003-05:00

Yellow balloons and cold noses lined North Damen Ave. on Sunday. PAWS Chicago's premier adoption event, Angels With Tails, was hosted on Aug. 22 this year for the first time in Bucktown on Damen Ave. from Webster to Milwaukee/North.

I'm a dog and cat lover but since I work full time and I'm out of the house so often, it just wouldn't be fair to a furry companion to live with me. To get my fuzzy fix, I attend local events like this one, and in mid-September I'm going to an orientation to become a volunteer at PAWS!

Friendly PAWS volunteers greeted me up and down Damen Ave., showing me adorable pets waiting for a place to call home, wearing yellow bandannas that read, "Adopt me!" A few store fronts invited people inside to see a variety of cats, and even a floppy-eared grey bunny.

I simply fell in love when a volunteer plopped a hefty twenty pound wrinkly grey mastiff puppy in my arms. Suddenly all my stress melted away! Animals really provide the best therapy of all-unconditional love and affection.

Just because the event is over doesn't mean the animals are all gone! If you're looking to add a dog or cat to your family, check out PAWS Chicago and consider adopting!

...Symbolism

2010-08-16T10:30:00.010-05:00

Sometimes I just need some roof time.

I sit on my roof and hear the city and see the city and just take it all in. It's my time to think and reflect.

About two months ago we were on the roof as we usually were on a nice summer evening. Later on I realized I lost an earring. I tried to look for it on the roof but it was nearly impossible, the earring was so tiny and the roof was kind of dirty because it had rained in the middle of the night.

The earring was pretty much lost. He kept asking if I found it but I never did. It was ok.

Last night I came home from a visit to my parent's house. A closing to two of the most difficult weeks of this year for me. I felt lonely. I went on the roof with a box of tissues and my folding chair and my thoughts.

I got up to walk around and something shiny caught my eye. It was my earring.

There it was, still recognizable among the dirt and brick crumbles that had fallen from the severe storms and winds. But it wasn't the same, it was all bent up in a little ball.

I knew it wouldn't work but I took it in anyway and tried to fix it.

And it just fell apart.

...No-Chip Manicure!

2010-08-10T12:31:00.013-05:00

----> Click here for a step-by-step guide (with photos) on how to remove your no-chip manicure <----

I recently purchased a coupon from LivingSocial.com

LivingSocial offers one fantastic deal every day with discounts of up to 90% at local restaurants, bars, spas, theaters, and more.

The deal was $28 for a no-chip manicure and 50 minute pedicure. GREAT deal, even for a normal mani/pedi. (Regular price is $32 for the no-chip manicure only.)

I got them done at the No Chip Nail Boutique on Western and Montrose.

No-chip polish is different. It is gel based and stays on your finger nails for at least two weeks. After one coat is applied, you put your hand inside a UV light dryer (no air, just light) and the polish hardens. A second coat is applied and the same process is repeated. The manicure takes longer than a normal one, because the polish is so thick and it is applied with a thin paint brush.

I've had mine on for a week and a half. The polish still looks new. It's even still shiny. The only thing I'm noticing is the little space between the polish and my cuticle. It's my new nail growth. (My nails grow very fast.) Still, it's not entirely noticeable yet.

As far as removal, well that is a little complicated. EDIT: View my step-by-step removal guide, with photos! Click here!

Here's a few photos, naked nails, right after I got the manicure, then what they look like now. I'll update the blog when I have the polish taken off. (Click to enlarge photos.)

...Tomaotes

2010-07-22T09:29:00.006-05:00

Never in my life have I liked tomatoes.

For as long as I can remember my father grew them in his garden. They were always the most flourishing harvest. He had so many tomatoes he had to give them away. I remember the smell when I helped him pick them. Horrible smell. Most would love the smell of a warm, vine-ripe tomato. Though it is a horrible smell to me it reminds me of the fun times dad and I had in the garden. Bittersweet, I guess.

Sure, I love tomato sauce and salsa, they don't taste like raw tomatoes. But even when I make my own salsa I use canned tomatoes so they taste less like tomatoes. Haha, such a battle of flavors I must try and mediate!

I even make it a point to try a raw tomato every once in a while to see if my tastes have changed.

What kind of foods make you cringe that most people love to eat?

Photo was found on Flickr, under the Creative Commons license. Thanks to "visualdensity".

...In a slump.

2010-07-16T09:45:00.007-05:00

I found a roommate, she's amazing. I'm sorry she will only be with me for 6 months but these next 6 months are going to be fun!

I'm still on the lookout for that perfect place for me to work. It's very frustrating to run into brick walls for an entire year of your life. I've considered things that I shouldn't consider, such as going back to retail or going back to school. I can't afford to live like that.

Unlike a lot of people I know, I'm not married. Or independently wealthy.

I've considered 100% freelance, but I need decent health insurance. My back. It's an issue.

My back...it feels like it's taking over my life, though it's not and it could be so much worse. I don't need surgery...yet. I predict I will have it at some point in my life. Apparently its getting worse in my adult years. This is not what they told me would happen when I was 13. "Wear this brace for a year and it will stop curving while you stop growing. It will stay the same. It might change a little as your body changes but it won't be a problem."

Well guess what, doctor I went to at the age of 13...(and again at 24) It's worse. It was worse when I went back to see you when I was 24, and again, its worse now. Sure, I probably should have paid attention to it in college, but it didn't bother me then, so why should I have bothered with it? Its just something I've lived with, like an annoying roommate you want to get rid of but you can't afford to pay rent all by yourself so you just deal with it.

I mean, what could I have done? I started working out, I always eat right. Some even call me a health nut. I'm afraid of gaining weight for fear it will make my back worse. Which it will. I feel tension after I pig out on a huge meal. I wonder what it would be like if I were 40 pounds heavier. Awful, for a lot more reasons than just that I imagine.

But I digress. My life lately is like this... a mosquito buzzing in your ear that you can't seem to shoo away, then it bites you 8 times on your foot then buzzes in your ear again. Enough already!

I feel like I've been in a transitional period since I graduated college. It's been five years now. When will I get my big break? When will the brick walls crumble and reveal something that I can be somewhat satisfied with on a daily basis?

Tell me, people in your 30s...does it ever get better?

...Changing Yourself

2010-06-10T12:14:00.005-05:00

**If you have info on any woman's shelters in Chicago where I can donate my clothes, please leave a comment! Thanks!**

I'm cleaning out my closets. You should see all the clothes I'm going to give away. I want to find a woman's shelter to give them to, I feel like the clothes are still in good condition and can get good wear. I have a lot of dresses and skirts that don't even fit me anymore, not sure why I even moved them out here. They are clothes from what I call "pre-body change days". I quickly gained weight when I began working full time. I lost it relatively quickly, too. Not that I lost a lot of weight, but after I did, my body changed and weight that remained shifted, and during that time I sort of had to replenish a lot of my clothes because everything was too big. But I held onto a few pieces, I think because I just loved them so much. Like this really cute BCBG dress I bought at the outlet in Michigan city. It's four sizes too big.

In a way, trying on all those big clothes yesterday was encouraging for me to stay thin, not that I wasn't thin before, but I know I wasn't happy with myself. Not that thin=happy, but I just didn't look like myself anymore. Plus, added weight would be a really bad thing for my scoliosis to handle. Anyway, I remember a hot and humid evening the first summer I was working full time. I was sitting at my computer, and I had this full length mirror by me. I saw myself and I was like wow, this isn't me. What happened. I gained weight during my first job I think because I started going out to lunch (I never did that before, really) and stopped walking around like I did at Purdue all the time. At that moment I decided I was going to change.

I added back into my life what I was missing, the walking. I walked to the end and back of my apartment complex every night. It was only about a mile and a half. Sometimes on the weekends I did it twice in one day. Then I started eating really well. I never went out to lunch. I ate a LOT of raw produce. I parked my car far away. I'd get up and walk around and stretch every hour at work. I didn't diet, I just changed habits. Then I remember about 2 months down the road someone at work asked if I lost weight. My reply was simply, "I don't even know!" But hearing that felt good. Also it was a kick in the butt, like, "what, you noticed I had weight to loser?" Haha. I weighed myself the next time I visited my parents house, I don't own a scale. I lost 10 pounds since the last time I weighed myself, whenever that was. I was shocked. I started to realize it about a month later when I put on pants that were too tight last season and now they were too big. It was a good feeling. Shortly after all this fun stuff was happening to me, I joined a gym and started belly dancing.

I didn't just feel that I looked better, I felt that I slept better, was more alert, my mind was clear, I had more fun. Until all this started happening, I didn't even realize in the first place that I was in this mindless, activity-less slump. It wasn't about the weight, it was about my life style choices!

I just knew something wasn't healthy anymore with me, so I changed. An outcome of that just happened to be weight loss. I think if some people see it like that, losing weight would be so much easier. Don't diet, just take a step back and see how you're treating your most prized possession- your own body!

Guacomole!

2010-05-23T16:26:00.005-05:00

I've been wanting to post my guac recipe for a while. It's so easy. It's so tasty I forgot to take a picture of the final product! Haha. Here's what you'll want/need:

(*Note, like all my recipes I post here, measurements are up to you, so are ingredients, add/remove/substitute as you like! That's the beauty of easy recipes.)

avocado
fresh lime/lemon
cilantro
sea salt
garlic (powder, freshly crushed, or from a jar)
chili powder
onion powder
fresh onion
jalopeno pepper
blender/food processor (I'm using my handy Cuisinart Mini Chopper!)
(*Another note: I HATE tomatoes, so none of the stuff I cook, besides salsa, has tomatoes! You might want to dice some up and add them in the end so they don't get blended by the chopper.)

Ingredients go into the processor as you like. It's so freakin' easy! Make sure though, to have some sort of lime or lemon juice. It will help preserve the color so it won't turn brown. Enjoy!

...Maybe

2010-05-20T08:54:00.002-05:00

I've been VERY busy lately. Stay tuned for more. Hopefully I can share some good news soon! In the meantime, check this out for some fashion and do-gooder inspiration!

Uniform Project Picture Book from The Uniform Project on Vimeo.

Read about the Uniform Project here: http://www.theuniformproject.com/home/about.html

...Unique and Useless Talents!

2010-04-30T15:40:00.005-05:00

This is inspired by a thread started on Yelp Talk Chicago. Here are some of my unique and useless talents! What are some of yours? Ever wonder if you can put them to good use someday?

- I'm right handed, but I can only write backwards with my left hand.

- I worked in the lingerie department of JCPenney and Kohl's for quite some time in high school. I can tell, pretty accurately, a woman's bra size just by looking at her.

- I can crack an egg with one hand and not spill goop everywhere.

- It's like I have an accent/sound library in my brain, I can imitate anything.

- This "talent" is useful- crazy bionic hearing. (My ears ARE rather large..)

- Slowly read to me a long list of numbers. I can remember them all and say them back to you. Then I can say them all to you backwards. (But I can't do simple math to save my life!)

I'll add more as I think of them!

...My Blog in the Chicago Pipeline!

2010-04-20T16:20:00.003-05:00

I'm a frequent reader and commenter on Streets of Wicker, a blog maintained by the publisher of the Chicago Pipeline, a weekly e-newsletter about Wicker Park and Bucktown. I was recently asked to write a short article for the Pipeline about MY most recent blog post, where I shared photos and video of the TV show filming in Wicker Park.

Sign up for the Chicago Pipeline weekly e-newsletter by emailing streetsofwicker@hotmail.com

View my article on the Pipeline here (scroll down, you'll see my photo!): http://tinyurl.com/2uwu7m5 or read it below!

Lights, Camera, Action!
Tales from a 'hood that oughta be in pictures (and is!)

I’m a wimp when it comes to dramatic or violent TV shows, but somehow hearing a director yell, “HOSTAGES COMIN’ OUT!” and seeing a grip strategically sprinkle broken glass on the hood of a car takes away most of my fear. Funny how I get so pulled into something that I probably wont be interested in watching. But that’s the appeal of this neighborhood. There is something for everyone to relate to, no matter how big or small. It is the reason why Wicker Park is such an attractive area for TV shows, commercials, even movies to be filmed.

In the end of March I took my routine weekend walk down Damen toward The Intersection. Only this time I wasn’t only after my cafe au lait from Goddess and the Grocer. I was ready to stand in the breezy, forty degree weather for a couple hours to catch a behind-the-scenes glimpse of a TV show’s pilot episode being filmed. Crewmen, actors and extras filled Damen, Milwaukee and North Avenue. As local residents and families walked by, men in police and SWAT team costumes leaned against the brick walls of the Wicker Park Tavern as they waited for their next cue, drinking coffee, chatting and holding giant (giant!) guns.

I have come to realize, in my short year and a half of living in Chicago, that this isn’t all unusual for my neighborhood. Sure, Hollywood is glitzy and exciting, but WP is real. And judging by the number of fanny packs I see on any given weekend, the recognizable scenery probably gives a little boost to tourism, too. If you’re trying to spot the record store from High Fidelity, or looking for the former Real World Chicago house, one thing is for sure: you’re going to see regular people walking around the vast array of boutiques, restaurants, lounges and bars, all built among eye catching historical and modern architecture. Film makers want to create a connection for their viewers. That comes naturally with a spot textured with such culture and variety.

Spend a few hours sitting in a trendy restaurant’s outdoor patio, snap a photo of the scenery you saw in that movie you watched last night and just watch the world go by. Pretty soon you’ll forget you’re in a movie backdrop and realize you’re in one of Chicago’s liveliest and most attractive neighborhoods!

...ACTION!

2010-04-06T15:09:00.006-05:00

Funny how fascinated I am with the filming of a TV show I'll never watch because it's way too violent.

My neighborhood is so cool that CBS wanted to use it as the backdrop for a bank robbery scene being filmed for the pilot episode of the upcoming TV drama, "The Line". I am easily amused and never saw anything being filmed before up close and in front of my face, so I stood outside on a breezy, 40-degree, overcast Chicago Sunday and took photos and video.

Feel free to leave a comment on here or You Tube! All photos are posted to my Facebook page if you want to see more.

My YouTube channel
My Facebook page

...Nerds. Explained in Ven Diagram Format

2010-03-26T15:37:00.003-05:00

The difference between nerd, dweeb, geek and dork, via GreatWhiteShark.com

...Short Dance Bio

2010-03-22T10:07:00.007-05:00

I was recently asked to write a short bio about myself. I decided to share it here, since a lot of people ask me how I got started belly dancing. It will soon be online at the Baladina website.

As soon as she could hold a crayon, there was no question Lauren would take the creative path through life. Born in Brooklyn, New York and growing up in Columbus, Ohio, she drew her way through school, excelling in art and creative writing. Before Lauren began high school, her family moved again to South Bend, Indiana. She was involved in an exceptional graphic design program at her new school. Her career path was clear. Immediately after graduating from Purdue University in 2005 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Visual Communications Design, she worked as a graphic designer close to her parent's home.

Inspired by seeing a short belly dance performance at a local summer art fair, Lauren had to try it. She began taking lessons from Ruby Jazayre, "Queen of Beledi" in June 2008. Never taking any formal dance classes before, she was very apprehensive and almost didn't show up to her first class! Hooked on Middle Eastern dance after just an hour-long lesson, she made it a weekly hobby. Lauren moved to Chicago in November 2008, and wanted to continue dancing. Ruby recommended Erika Ochoa of Pineapple Dance Studio in Forest Park, which happened to be a few minutes away from Lauren's new job. After attending an open house to get acquainted with the studio, she was hooked once again!

Though her family is scattered throughout the East coast and now, the Midwest, Lauren is very thankful to have a loving, supporting family and wouldn't be where she is today if not for them. They taught her that no dream is to big and life is what you make it, so make it good! Twelve years her junior, Lauren has an amazing little brother that keeps her young at heart, and up to date with the latest tech gadgets!

In her spare time, Lauren enjoys retouching photos, making beaded jewelry, writing in her blog, inventing vegetarian recipes, exploring Chicago's neighborhoods, and of course, belly dancing! Lauren tries to perform in haflas whenever she can-- not to entertain, but to bring joy to her heart and a smile to her face.

...Protein

2010-03-15T11:54:00.003-05:00

I found this article today and thought it explained proteins very well, and since a lot of people ask me about my protein (and ask other vegetarians about their protein) I thought I'd share.

We can get complete protein without consuming animals. Also notice, all the suggested combinations of proteins for vegetarians mentioned in the article happen to be vegan as well.

Taken from today.msnbc.com, an excerpt from an article by Madelyn Fernstrom of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center:

What is protein? 
Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. Think of a train as a protein and the cars as amino acids. The combination of amino acids determines the type of protein. There are two types of protein: animal and plant. However, there are about 20 amino acids, divided between essential amino acids and non-essential ones. Essential means the body cannot make them and must obtain them from a food source. Your body can break down essential amino acids into non-essential ones.

How many amino acids do you need? 
Your body needs all the amino acids. Depending on amino acid composition, proteins are either “complete” or “incomplete.” This is the real difference between the vegetable and animal protein sources. Animal protein has the complete profile of all the amino acids. Beef, chicken, veal, lamb, port, fish, eggs, are all complete proteins. Eggs are the most ideal protein — and the standard to which others are measured regarding “usability” by the body.
Vegetable proteins are typically “incomplete,” meaning there are either missing amino acids or too few of them to maintain the body’s total needs. Vegetable proteins come from nuts, seeds, and legumes. Vegetable proteins need to be combined, but not necessarily eaten together, to make sure all amino acid needs are met. Vegetarians must use “complementary” vegetable proteins together to make a single complete protein source. For example, they need to eat beans with rice, a rice cake with peanut butter, or hummus, which is made with chick peas and sesame paste. Soy is a great low fat source of protein. Most protein bars use soy protein, casein or whey as their base. All are complete proteins. The same is true for protein powders.

Click here to read the whole article.

...Lurking Sodium

2010-03-09T14:40:00.003-06:00

Today at the store while getting ingredients to make my dad some salsa and guacamole for when he visits me in Chicago this weekend, I was looking for some canned, diced tomatoes.

What's this? A can of diced tomatoes that says, "No salt added"?

Wait. That means plain ol' diced tomatoes in a can have salt? I looked at the back of the can. 200 MG of sodium in one small can of diced tomatoes.

Maybe it's just this brand? I start frantically turning around every single can on the shelf. 200 MG sodium was the LEAST amount I found. Needless to say, I bought the "No salt added" kind.

I want canned instead of fresh tomatoes because I can't stand the smell and taste of fresh tomatoes, makes me want to barf. Sad but true, for a vegetarian like myself, isn't it? Canned tomatoes don't really taste as tomato-y as fresh, know what I mean? (Maybe it's because of the salt they add??)

The first time I even bought a can of tomatoes was about a month ago when I thought it would be fun to try and make my own salsa. (It IS fun, and easy!) From now on I'll look for no salt added, and you should too. It's completely unnecessary; obviously, since they make a variety without added salt.

Tell me what other unexpected things you've found that contain salt! I'll post my salsa recipe soon!

...A Look Back

2010-02-26T09:10:00.003-06:00

Today I decided to delete all info from my MySpace profile! (Does anyone even use that anymore?) I had one blog entry on there, but I want to paste it here. I might have done this already back in January '08, but I don't remember so I'm going to put it here again.

I am writing this on Thursday evening, January 10th, 2008.

My puppy, my friend, my little girl, my "Fuzzy Sugar Lips", my doggie, my Windy....

August 13, 1996 - January 11, 2008

I love her and I will never forget how perfect she is, how much love she gave, how much fun we had, how much joy she brought, what a personality she expressed, what feelings and loyalty she constantly showed us.

She loved her treats. She would "help" me bring in my clothes when it was time to do laundry on the weekends. She greeted us when we walked in the door even if we were gone for a minute. She stood next to me when I cried, she wagged her tail when we laughed. She helped open presents. She ate apples right off the core. She guarded Tyler from falling down the stairs when he was a baby. She never bit, snapped, growled or hurt a thing. Ever. She ate turkey basters when she was a puppy. She moaned every time she laid down in her recent years. She loved when I gave her "ear rubs".

The fur on her lips turned white with age and we called her sugar lips.

She would sit on the bath rug next to me when I got ready for work. She would munch on the snow outside while she waited for us to let her in. She was afraid of tennis balls. She had this way of talking to us right before we gave her a treat, and her mouth would curl up as she let out a friendly growl, then it grew into happy barks. She wouldn't even think of eating food we had on our coffee table when we had people over. She loved rides in the car, even when I just took her around the neighborhood. Just to see her stick her face out the window was priceless. She never jumped on people. She would sit in the same spot by the living room chair before we left to go somewhere as if she was guarding the house for us. If we sat on the couch and patted our lap, she would plop her head in it.

She hates rain. Even if she had to go out so bad, she would stay put until the rain stopped. It is raining right now and tomorrow she will be gone. Eleven years of nothing but the best friend any family could ask for. We did not own her. She was not "our dog". She was a member of our family. And she will never be forgotten.

...If You Can Dish It, You Should Take It!

2010-02-11T10:18:00.002-06:00

Answer me this.

Why is it that when I say, "I'm in the mood to eat [insert vegetarian food here]", people sometimes react by saying, "Gross I cant believe you eat that crap," but then someone else says to me, "I'm in the mood to eat [insert meat here]" if I were to give them the same reaction they gave me, then why would I suddenly be labeled as a preachy vegetarian who looks down upon people for eating meat? (And if you know me you know I don't feel that way.)

If its ok for people to openly express disgust and turn their nose up at what I eat, why am I not allowed to do the same to them? If you can dish it, you better be able to take it!

...Pantyhose, a Memoir

2010-02-05T15:17:00.006-06:00

Another memoir from my retail days.

I worked at JCPenney in high school, in the women's accessories and purse department for about 6 months. On a hot summer day I wore a tea length dress to work. (Mid-calf length.) We had to dress nice, no jeans, no sneakers, which worked for me, I didn't mind.

I stood at my register, mindlessly ringing up customer's purchases. A manager came to my station to clear something for me, a return I guess, my memory fails me at the moment... It was a Saturday. There were people everywhere.

"Thanks for helping me out!"

"No problem." The [female] manager starts to walk away. "Oh, you are required to wear pantyhose when you wear a dress to work."

"...I am? Why?" I think of the 90 degree humid weather outside.

"It's the dress code, it's in the handbook, you have to."

She walked away. I never wore pantyhose with dresses. In my mind, even at a young age, pantyhose have always been the definition of old fashioned fashion rules. I really saw no point. To me, at that age, I thought the only women who should wear were those who need the tight support pantyhose to help their circulation. The ones they sell at Walgreens, that stick out the bottom of the cardboard so you can feel how supportive they are.

I'm all for colorful tights to wear as a part of an outfit. I just bought some adorable Betsey Johnson tights printed with colorful cartoon strips. Sheer, nude colored pantyhose are just not necessary anymore in this day and age.

Who likes the swishy noise they make when your thighs rub together as you walk? Unless you're rail thin, this happens to you, admit it.

I mean, did my manager think I wasn't wearing any underwear beneath my dress? What exactly were pantyhose going to do to improve the way I looked? My legs were smooth, I'm thin, my dress suited my figure. If I had them on, they probably wouldn't match my skin tone and be completely obvious. Pantyhose are supposed to be unseen and invisible. So...why wear them at all?

We also weren't allowed to wear open-toed shoes, according to OSHA regulations. Luckily I did not run the risk of having them web my toes together in a pair of strappy sandals.

I guess that rule was in place in case something fell on us. Then I began to wonder if something fell on me, while I was wearing a dress and sheer nude pantyhose, would they prevent me from getting a gash on my leg from whatever fell on me? I guess a buckle on a purse could give me a good scrape. Or maybe a large paper cut from one of the price tags. If in fact that happened, my pantyhose would have been ripped.

Have you ever seen a woman with a rip in her pantyhose or tights? Instantly makes her look like she woke up in a trailer park that morning. Would I still be required to wear them if something that fell on me made them rip and I still had four hours of my shift left? Or, since the department in which I worked sold pantyhose, would they require me to buy a new pair?

Would I get to use my employee discount?

...A Weekend DIY Project

2010-01-25T11:47:00.004-06:00

Just thought I'd share the project I've been working on recently! I wanted new curtains for my bedroom. The window is so large, and the ceilings are so high, I didn't want anything with a loud pattern because the room would just scream "CURTAINS!!" So I bought plain, tan colored tab-top curtains and decided to have a little fun.

I headed down south to the artsy neighborhood Pilsen and discovered the Textile Discount Outlet! It's now one of my favorite places to go and just ponder. Right off the Damen 50 bus route in Pilsen, there are so many square feet of this 3-floor warehouse covered in fabric, decorative trims, buttons and notions, I could spend all day there!

Here are some photos. I bought fringe, beaded trim, and some decorative trim to cover all the rough edges. I simply pinned them to the curtains and began to sew. By hand. I would love to invest in a machine someday, but for now, I just don't sew enough large projects to need one. But I'm sure this would have gone by SO much more quickly if I had one!

I sewed the fringe and beaded trim first, then I sewed the decorative trim on top of it.

...Happy 2010

2010-01-05T11:49:00.003-06:00

So, what will you call it? Two Thousand Ten? Twenty Ten? Two Zero One Zero? I haven't decided yet.

Just wanted to say happy new year to you all! I've got my hummus and guacomole recipes ready to blog about, complete with photos of course. Stay tuned!

...Lauren's No-Bake Holiday Balls (Can be made vegan!)

2009-12-21T10:08:00.010-06:00

First of all, if you haven't already, go look at the Schweddy sketch from Saturday Night Live. It is a holiday classic that inspired the recipe you are about to read.
Click here to watch.

Now, the recipe. This is the kind of recipe you can switch out ingredients for whatever you like, add a little, take a little away. It's one of those recipes where measurements should just be a guide. The real measurements are what tastes good to you!

1 cup peanut butter
(Almond butter would be good as well.)

1 cup honey
(Agave nectar will work I think. You might want to use less to make it less sweet.)

1 and 1/8 cup non fat dry milk
(I used oatmeal---Put it in the food processor on the "grind" setting and make a powder. Add sugar to make it a little sweet. It works just the same!)

1 cup oatmeal
(I used less since I already had some oatmeal taste from the dry milk substitute above.)

1/2 cup chocolate chips
(Carob chips would be a yummy vegan alternative! Raisins would be good, too.)

dash of extract (vanilla, almond...)

1/4 cups sugar

1 tablespoon cinnamon

dash of nutmeg

Mix sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl and set aside.
In another larger bowl, beat remaining ingredients until well blended.
Roll into balls, whatever size you like, then roll them in the sugar blend.
Set on a plate or baking sheet, whatever will fit in the fridge. Chill for an hour or two then enjoy! That's it!

...Happy Holidays!

2009-12-18T16:47:00.004-06:00

Postage is expensive, and I have a lot of people with whom I'd like to share a holiday card! This year I decided to save on postage (and paper waste!) and design my own e-card!

For those of you who did not receive the e-card I designed, here it is. (Click to view larger.)

...a Variety of Velcro

2009-12-15T10:28:00.005-06:00

"Lauren to your register! Lauren to your register!" I announced over the speaker at Michael's Arts & Crafts one night. It was ten minutes until nine, closing time, on a Tuesday evening. No one was in the store.

The phone at my cash register rings. It's Kathy, the other cashier working with me that night.
"Why..hahaha...did you just page yourself to your...haha...register??" She was giggling and speaking at the same time. "You dork!"

"I just wanted to lighten the mood!" I replied. Just then, a woman burst into the store with a frantic look upon her face. A man walked in behind her, almost scared of what she might do next. I was prepared. This was the customer who's face read, "Shit! I forgot about this stupid craft project for my son's school that is due tomorrow!"

"WHERE IS THE VELCRO??" She demanded. I directed her to the opposite corner of the store in the back, where the small sewing section was located. She ran off. The man stayed near the registers in the front, pretending to be interested in the faux flowers located a few feet away. Moments later she rushed back up to the front of the store, empty-handed.

"I can't believe this!" She looked right at me. "You have a smaller selection of Velcro than Wal-Mart does! This is insane! You are a craft store!" The man she is with looks frightened.

"Yes, we are a craft store...not a sewing store. But we have a small selection of notions in the back corner, and that is all I can give you." I grin on the inside. She is personally angry with me because I cannot provide her with Velcro to fit her needs.

"I can't believe this!!" She exclaims as if she is reacting to seeing her car getting stolen. She leaves the store. The man follows, but before he goes out the door, he turns to look at me and says, "...Sorry...yeah...she's...." I smile and say, "Good luck and good night." He grins and leaves.

Kathy comes up to my register. "Can we call it a night?"

"Definitely."

...Old People in Grocery Stores

2009-12-01T11:34:00.004-06:00

"This yogurt, it helps my husband? He eats da grease!"

A hunched old woman with some sort of Russian accent approaches me while I carefully decide what flavors of Lite n' Fit I want to buy for just 39 cents each. Wearing a long grey dress and a draping black coat spotted with cat hair, the old woman standing just under five feet tall uses both hands to hold up a green six-pack of Activia for me to see.

"He is the fat!" She points at his belly. "He eats entire package? It helps with da acid?"

"No," I reply. "Tell him to eat one every night after dinner. He will feel better after that."

It wasn't entirely true, but I wasn't about to explain Prilosec OTC to this woman who was ready to feed her husband six cups of yogurt when they got home. I see her husband a few feet behind her. A large man with a grey beard wearing overalls and brown work boots. He picks up a tub of sour cream and studies the package like he's never seen it before.

"Oh," she looks down at the Activia. "Ok I buy this!" She walks away and begins to loudly state something to her husband, in her language. I can tell she wears the pants in the family. As his wife hurries over to the discounted grocery shelf, the old man puts the yogurt in their cart a with a look on his face as if he is saying, "Why can't I just take a Prilosec?"

-----------
Do old people ever approach you in grocery stores? I have plenty more stories where this one comes from. Let me know if you want to hear more.

...No Texting While Driving!

2009-11-19T10:44:00.005-06:00

You all know I very strongly advise against texting while driving.

Well, now I also strongly advise against this:

(Click image to view larger!)

...27 Years

2009-11-14T21:42:00.003-06:00

Last year, all I wanted for my 26th birthday was to be in Chicago. And I got it--two days after I turned 26, in the first blizzard of the season, my three good friends and I headed out to Chicago with all my stuff. (I am still so thankful for them helping me!) All I wanted this year was to STILL be in Chicago, and be happy with my life. For the most part, that is true.

I'm thankful that I got this far, in a job that is much less than desirable. I'm working on getting out. I've built up a lot of free lance contacts. Had a few job interviews. We'll see what happens...

Other than that, I'm very happy with my life! I never expected a giant sonic boom of a life change when I moved here, all I wanted was to be happy. And the honking horns and hustle and bustle of people walking by outside are reminding me of how much I love (and need) the city in my life.

Also, it helps that it is unseasonably warm outside! At 10 'til 10pm on Saturday, November 14th, it is currently 56 degrees! I think we reached 64 today. Wow. Tomorrow, on my actual birthday, it should be just a touch cooler than today. Usually my birthday marks the first snow, this year it is the warmest it has ever been! Like I said earlier, when I moved here last year two days after my birthday, it was the first blizzard of the season!

So that is really all the reflecting I'd like to do at this point. Sure I can dwell on how much my job doesn't suit me, but I'd rather focus on the positive for now. Amazing friends, an awesome roommate, a wonderful boyfriend, and as always, a loving and supporting family.

Happy birthday to me!

...Mexican "Pizza"

2009-10-29T11:16:00.011-05:00

Here's a photo recipe for you! Easy and fun, the Mexican pizza is a quick meal for all ages. Be creative and add your own ingredients.

What I used:
whole wheat tortilla
tempeh
vegetarian refried beans
red onion
sour cream
LaPreferida nacho cheese
salsa
chili powder

I began by slicing the tempeh into thin strips and frying it. Before I put it in the oil, I sprinkled on chili powder.

Spray your griddle with Pam. Spread beans on the tortilla and lay it down on the griddle. Keep it on low heat.

Add the cheese and toppings. I tried the La Preferida nacho cheese and wasn't so happy with it. I'd rather have used shredded cheese. It's up to you! (Also, layer order is up to you!)

Add on the tempeh. (Or, if you are a meat eater, grilled chicken or steak or shrimp!) Then cover it in salsa. To keep all layers warm, I put a pot cover over the entire thing on the griddle for a few minutes.

There's no science to figuring out when to take it off the stove. When you feel its hot enough, it is done! Then add sour cream, cut with a pizza cutter and enjoy!

...My Yellow Raincoat

2009-10-09T08:42:00.006-05:00

Wow 2 blog posts, one right after the other, I'm on a roll. Actually the only purpose of this is to show off my bright shiny yellow raincoat.

Some of you loyal listeners may recall my post from April about a questionable homeless man on the train inquiring about my jacket: Read here.

As crappy as the photo is (thanks, PhotoBooth) it still shows off the coat's shiny cuteness.

Found at NY&Company last April on the clearance rack for $30. In this photo, it is paired with my green scarf from Ann Taylor Loft, also purchased on the clearance rack, for $4.99. (And the soy latte, which cost just a bit less than the scarf...!)

...Just Because You're a Celebrity...

2009-10-08T12:12:00.005-05:00

...doesn't give you the automatic title of Creative Director. However, Lindsey Lohan thought so when she became "Creative Director" for her Ungaro collection (Spring 2010) with designer Estrella Archs.

I was watching the most recent Mod TV podcast a few minutes ago. It featured the shimmering, pasty-clad, vibrantly colored collection, along with random bits of commentary from Lohan. She certainly was not amused by the reporters questions, and during her commentary I wondered how she was standing on her own two feet. See the following screen caps from her interview, for example:(Click on image to view larger.)
Poor Miss Archs looks embarrassed!

Simply dreadful. I know everyone involved in fashion week runs on no sleep. But that is no excuse to look atrocious while presenting your collection!

Here's an idea of what the collection looked like:
See photos of the entire collection on the Oct. 4th Mod TV podcast, and check out some at the Huffington Post.

...MOBY

2009-10-01T09:44:00.011-05:00

-----------> p h o t o s <------------

Have any of you ever had one artist in particular that has touched your life in ways you cant explain? Plain and simple, Moby is that artist for me. I began to listen to his music in high school and for the first time in my life I was moved by songs. I kept following his music through college and it got me through some hard times. I'm not the typical kind of person who is into a bunch of music, and knows artists in and out. But I am that way with one artist and that is Moby. And for the first time last night, I got to see him perform live.

September 30, 2009. Chicago. The Vic. Then, afterward, he did a DJ set at Smart Bar. Wow. Just, wow. I got to the venue early so that I could have a front row spot. It was the most amazing experience. I cried when he came out on stage. Not to mention I'm going through a very hard, stressful time right now...it couldn't have happened at a better time.

He played all my favorites of course. Then on to Smart Bar for his DJ set..! This was more personal, because it was a small club and all that separated us was a 4 and a half foot tall DJ booth, which I did my best to stand on my toes and see him all night.

He took a short break. I followed him, along with a lot of other people actually. When he came back, he walked right in front of me. I touched him.

He was signing autographs as he was DJing at random moments. I borrowed someone's Sharpie and he signed my ticket....!!!!! I looked at him and he looked at me and for a moment we made eye contact. And all I could say was "I LOVE YOU". Pretty sure he couldn't tell what I said, it was so loud. (=

One of the most amazing times of my life. I will never forget this.

...Battle of the Brands!

2009-09-15T16:13:00.004-05:00

This is for the fashionistas out there! ShopItToMe.com is introducing a new kind of bracket I can actually get into. To hell with basketball, these brackets are all about style!

Presenting Shop It To Me Battle of the Brands! Each week for 5 weeks, pairs of Shop It To Me brands will go head to head. Your votes will determine the last brand standing.

Vote on your favorite brands and you could win Marc by Marc Jacobs accessories! We’re giving away a MBMJ wristlet, umbrella, and key fobs. On each Friday of the contest, we’ll conduct a random drawing from that week’s commenters and give away another accessory. So come back each week for 5 chances to win!

If you aren't a member yet, click the Shop it to Me icon on the sidebar of my blog, sign up, start commenting, and maybe you can be a winner! (And even if you don't win, at least you'll be surfing the net in style!)

For those who are already members, just click here to check out the first Battle of the Brands!

...A Roller Coaster of a Day!

2009-09-14T14:43:00.003-05:00

I usually don't blog about my every day things unless they are particularly entertaining to me. Sunday, Sept. 13 was one of those times. Here is a list of what happened to me.

Wake up at 9, make coffee instead of tea
Clean both bathrooms
Cut up giant watermelon
Eat PB&J and coffee for breakfast
Try to do laundry (We have one washer/dryer set in the building, it was taken.)
Lounge around
Shower/get pretty
Attempt laundry again (FAIL)
Take the bus to the Renegade Craft Fair and walk around, was pretty cool! I saw my friend from high school who has a pretty successful jewelry business.
Come home to get my bag of returns at the store.
Look up how to get to said store on Google maps.
Walk out the door, lock bottom lock from inside first as usual.
-->Realize keys were still in apartment.
Make first call to landlord. "Help I'm an idiot and locked myself out, sorry! Oops! Bye!" Also called his house and left similar message.
Head out because hey, I might as well run the errand.
Arrive at store. Make return.
(Hour after I left) Call landlord again. Leave another voice mail. Call his house again. Leave another voice mail.
Wander around the area a bit. (North/Clyborn..around that new Whole Foods)
Call landlord again.
Try on jeans at American Eagle. (FAIL)
Call landlord again.
Call friend who lives in the area to see if he could look up locksmiths on Yelp for me. No answer. No one else was around. Call mom.
Mom texts me #s of locksmiths. (I asked her to spare me the "you need to be more responsible" talk.)
Back home on 72 North Ave. bus.
While on bus, I call numerous locksmiths. Only one answered. $90 first lock, $30 for additional.
*Silent cry on bus*
Walk from Damen/Milwaukee/North to my house. Call back locksmith. "Ok, I have no other choice."
Buzz neighbor to let me in front door.
Walk up to roof. Sit on roof 45 minutes waiting for locksmith.
Locksmith arrives, unlocks door in 30 seconds.
Saw off arm, give to locksmith.
*Silent cry in kitchen* (Ok so it wasn't silent..so what.)
In effort to feel better, I head to gym. (Keys in hand.)
Gym for an hour. This time I lift weights and really get out the aggression.
Drive from gym to Strack and Van Til, I have no fruit in the house besides the watermelon. I need fruit.
Purchase three reusable canvas bags full of fruit and one single serve teeny tiny bucket of ice cream.
Oh, and the Morning Star products are 3 for $8! Unheard of! Stock up on meat free indulgences..
Attempt laundry again. Finally, I have underwear.
Watch MTV Video Music Awards while eating fruit.
Put away laundry.
Update Facebook status.
Blog about my roller coaster day.
Bed!

(If any of you know of a locksmith in Chicago that doesn't cost that much..um...please...let me know!)

...My Online Portfolio

2009-09-08T09:42:00.002-05:00

Here it is, everyone. Spread it like the plague, and help me expand my career!

LaurenKleiman.com

...Junk Food!

2009-09-02T11:04:00.004-05:00

This post is specifically for Will and Denny over at the new Gays of Your Life podcast here in Chicago.

They gave me a shout out on Episode 6, and mentioned my blog, and how I like the healthy food. Which is true, and my last 2 posts have been about that. HOWEVER! I love to splurge on the junk food once in a while. And I'd like to show these boys some proof of that. Here is a photo of the big sloppy meal at In n' Out my friend and I shared when I was in LA in May '09. (They made me a burger-less burger..!)

And...proof I ate it...

I can't resist a French fry! Just looking at that picture makes me want some right now..and it's not even noon yet.

So go check out their new podcast, it is simply adorable.

...not too healthy "healthy food"

2009-08-18T15:22:00.003-05:00

I recently recorded an episode of Meat Free Radio, where we spoke about the high fat content of sandwiches that people would otherwise think are healthy. It got me to thinking about the things I sometimes buy for lunch. For the most part, I pack my lunch at home and bring it to work. But sometimes I don't have time to do that, or I just want something different, so I'll go eat somewhere.

Our conversation on the podcast made me wonder about the fat content of some of the things I order for/with lunch. I was unpleasantly surprised, so I decided to share the most shocking results with you.

I found all of this nutrition information by going to each restaurant's website and searching for the nutrition information.

Quizno's Veggie Sub
(small size, whole wheat bun, cheese, lettuce, mushrooms, onions, banana peppers, guac)
18 grams of fat

Dunkin' Donuts Reduced Fat Blueberry muffin:
10 grams of fat

Panera Reduced Fat Blueberry muffin:
10 grams of fat

Panera Mango Smoothie
10 grams of fat (!!!!)

Chipotle
Vegetarian Burrito Bol
(rice, beans, sauteed fajita veggies, guac, cheese)
28 grams of fat (cheese and guac add the most fat of course, so at least its somewhat "naturally occuring" fat)

Qdoba Naked Taco Salad
Grilled Veggies, Cheese, guac, corn salsa, lettuce
same as Chipotle

What foods do you eat that are probably high in fat but are supposed to be somewhat healthy?

...My Veggieversary!

2009-08-16T20:05:00.004-05:00

August marks the two year anniversary for me being vegetarian. Its been a great two years and I don't plan on reverting any time soon! Hail vegetables!

...a weekend at "home"

2009-08-04T11:34:00.005-05:00

Most, if not all of the people I know in Chicago are not from here, and their family doesn't live here. When I go back to South Bend, Indiana, to visit my family though, I don't say, "I'm going home this weekend," because my home is now Chicago. I never really considered South Bend my home, either. I think though I was born in NY, I consider Ohio my home because it is where I grew up. I always thought of South Bend as a vehicle to get me where I am today. I never wanted to be there, but I am thankful it has brought me to Purdue, (I wanted to stay in-state for various reasons) and now that education and general knowledge of the working world brought me to Chicago. And I'd like to think Chicago is pretty permanent, for a few years anyway.

What do you think? Leave a comment.

(And hello to all my lurkers out there. Ryan, this means you.)

And here is the family cat, Misty. And a clever LOL caption.

...Test

2009-07-30T10:58:00.003-05:00

This is a test for a logo I designed. How does it look on your screen? Pixelated, grainy, JPG-fragmented...Just plain ugly?
Click each to view full size.
Comment!

...Global Visitors

2009-07-27T12:42:00.005-05:00

I was just checking out my Google Analytics for this blog, and I noticed I had quite a few visitors from other countries.

(click image to view larger)

So, welcome everyone to my blog, I'm very glad you are reading! Drop me a comment if you are from another country. Maybe even in your language! Tell me who you are!

...New Haircut!

2009-07-24T10:06:00.002-05:00

Haven't dyed it pink yet, but I chopped a lot off. Just thought I'd share! This is a photo I took using iMac's Photobooth program. Not the best, but you get the idea. Accompanied by a tall non-fat cafe misto. (And yes, I took napkins to use a oil-blotters!)

...Updates!

2009-07-22T14:41:00.002-05:00

If you are reading this through Google reader (or maybe some other RSS feed reader, I'm not sure how the others look) click here right now and go to my actual blog site! Check out the renovations and new banner!

Banners are going to change more often, so if I put up a new banner with a post I will note it at the beginning of the post! All banners are designed by me. If you want help designing a simple banner for your blog, feel free to drop me an email!

The current banner features an edited photo I shot in LA. Let me know what you think of the new, simple layout. I even edited the HTML a little bit, ALL BY MYSELF! *gasp*

...Upgrades!

2009-07-14T10:49:00.008-05:00

I recently bought an iMac! It was SUCH an upgrade from what I was using at home--a 12" iBook G4, purchased my junior year of college at Purdue, making it over six years old. Still just barely works.

Now I have a 24" iMac! Here are some photos of the old and the new...

Also with the iMac (which I purchased with the education discount thanks to my best friend Jackie who is a kindergarten teacher!) I got an iPod Touch. Apple has a promotion going on where you can get a couple different rebates with the purchase of an iMac, including a full rebate for the 8 gig iPod Touch. So that is what I got! The other (and only) iPod I had was the first generation iPod Nano, only 2 gig! I won that at my previous company's Christmas party a few years ago. I enjoy not paying for iPods!

The new computer required a new workspace, mainly so I could get it away from the window to prevent glare on the monitor. So I rearranged my room and redecorated it, too!

Give me ideas of what apps to download! I also need suggestions for where to buy a Wacom tablet at a discounted price. And for the near future, maybe some suggestions would be nice for a monitor color calibration system. Leave suggestions in the comments!

...Summer Skin

2009-07-07T15:33:00.004-05:00

A quick tip for those of us with shiny complexions:

Don't spend money on those little blue oil absorbing sheets anymore! The next time you're at a restaurant that gives out brown paper napkins, take a stack of them with you. (Cut in quarters if you want to make them portable, and hold together with a binder clip!) Instant oil absorber sheet, for free! In my oily Italian skin opinion, they work much better than the blue blotting sheets.

--> Did you also know that the blue sheets contain mineral oil? Why would you want to add oil to your face if you're trying to eliminate it? Starbucks napkins are made from 100% recycled fibers using a bleach free process. You can find that printed right on the napkins.

Give it a try and let me know how you like this alternative!

...Pride48.com

2009-06-26T16:46:00.004-05:00

Most of my readers are well aware of Pride48.com, but I just wanted to remind all of you, and alert any new readers of this event.

Beginning tonight (Friday, June 26) at 7pm Eastern/6pm Central, visit Pride48.com and listen LIVE to podcasts of the GLBT community. Show your support and participate in the live chat rooms accompanying the broadcast!

Follow @Pride48 for updates on the live shows!

I would like to wish the city of Chicago a very happy pride weekend. I feel honored to be a part of such an open, liberal and accepting city!

...ShopItToMe.com

2009-06-18T11:11:00.004-05:00

I wrote this post because I was asked to be a guest blogger for ShopItToMe.com! You can view this post on their website by clicking here.

Shop It To Me has also featured this blog on their "Featured Trensetters" page!

If you aren't signed up with Shop It To Me, drop me a comment and I will send you an invite. If you're wondering what this is, here's an excerpt from their website:

What is Shop It To Me?
You can think of Shop It To Me as your free personal online shopper. Select your favorite apparel brands (such as Theory, Prada, Armani, Ella Moss, Juicy Couture, Seven Jeans, DKNY, or BCBG) and sizes. We'll scour the websites of leading retailers like Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdales, Banana Republic, Gap, Zappos and Bluefly and send you a Salemail™ - a daily or weekly email summary of which new items go on sale in your size.

Now, on with the post!

In the current trend of layer upon layer of drapey clothes and wedged, million-strap-strong shoes, accessorizing is so important to add the finishing touch to any outfit, no matter the occasion. Stack on the bracelets. Show off of your gold toe ring. But how does your necklace accent your neckline? Here are some basics to keep in mind:

Crew:
We've all had those t-shirt and jeans days, where we throw on our favorite plain crew neck. Ditch the plain Jane look and dress it up with long layered necklaces. Try something beaded so you can add little touches of color that accent the shirt.
For a lower crew neck (not as high as a crew, but not as deep as a scoop) try a dangly choker necklace.

Collared Button-Up:
If you are wearing a button up, collared shirt, consider wearing a couple shorter layered necklaces either under the shirt with the first button undone for a work look. Or, for an after-work look, try longer layered necklaces over the shirt with another open button and a camisole underneath.

V-Neck:
Choose a necklace that sits right above the V. Try a Y-shaped necklace that sits closer to the neck, or something with a bold pendant. If the V-neck is very deep, choose a longer necklace that follows the neckline. Remember that a necklace is an accent to your garment, not an invitation to your cleavage!

Scoop:
Try a larger necklace that fills up some of your declote. Make sure your top doesn't compete with the jewelry. Choose something less bold for a patterned shirt, and something bigger and more detailed for a solid.

Here are a few necklines in which I don't think necklaces work. In these cases, choose dangly earrings instead!
- Halter
- High cowl neck, or draped neck (Let the collar/drape make the statement!)
- One-shoulder tops (If you want something extra, try an upper arm cuff on the arm with the bare shoulder.)

...Space Monkeys?!

2009-06-10T11:08:00.006-05:00

I usually refrain from sharing links on the internet but this one is worth everyone's while.

**Note! I do not condone animal testing. I just think this is peculiar and strange and everyone should see these photos just for the pure fact of how bizarre they look.

National Geographic shared photos of the first chimps sent into space, which happened fifty years ago on May 28th.

Three chimpanzees named Duane, Jim, and Chu sit strapped into spacecraft cradles at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, in January 1961.

The chimps were among 75 trainees slated to ride into space before humans, to help researchers test the physiological and neurological stresses of space flight.

...My Trip to LA!

2009-05-29T15:35:00.015-05:00

Finally, I bring you a log of my trip to LA! I went there from May 14th-May 19th and stayed with my long time friend Eric.

There are LOADS of photos on my Flickr site. Click on the "All Sizes" icon on any of those to see a super-sized view! Here's the breakdown:

Thursday 5/14
Arrive at 10am Pacific time.
My flight left Chicago at 6am Central time, which means I got up at 3:30am central to catch the cab at 4am. I was tired!

Eat at Pei Wei.
I was starving, and tired. Apparently this place is a chain, but it was yummy! And tofu everywhere.

Walk around Pasadena & Old Town
Eric lives in Pasadena, so he showed me around. Beautiful mountains everywhere. Old Town is a little area with shopping and restaurants, a nice place to walk around.

Nap
Yea, by about 5pm Pacific, I was DEAD tired.

Mediterranean food!
Perfect to have after a good nap, and a nice way to round out my first introductory day.

Friday 5/15
Visit Gnomon School of Visual Effects
This is where Eric works! It was really nice inside. I got a photo editing instructional DVD, thanks to sir Eric. (Thanks a BUNCH to sir Eric for that, actually!) Afterward, he took me to their occasional coffee stop next door at....Gold's Gym. Wow. I never wanted to leave a place so quickly in my life. haha!

Hollywood, star walk, autographs in cement..
Since we were in Hollywood already, we made this the Tour Hollywood Day. And everyone is right...its not all that glamorous. Its sort of run down. Sad almost. I was expecting Vegas, but I got Branson, Missouri. I got to see a lot of rummage stores, adult themed stores, multiple places that said "XXX NUDE!", and lots of magenta colored hair, as I mentioned in my previous blog post.

Farmer's market
There was a nice farmer's market in Hollywood with lots of places to shop, not just for fruit! It was a beautiful, hot sunny day. I enjoyed this area a lot. I also tried my first blood orange. YUM.

In & Out
Yes, I ate here. I had to. You all know I love a french fry. I also heard that on their "secret menu" they had "grilled cheese" which was really a burger without the burger. This thing had tons of fatty cheese and I think thousand island dressing? Well it also had lettuce, which made it healthy, right?? Of course it was followed by a massive amount of french fries. But I had water, I skipped the soda. Figured I'd give my body a "little" break!

Griffith Observatory/Planetarium
At dusk we headed back out to the Hollywood hills to go see the Griffith observatory. Its very high up and has a 360 degree view of all of Hollywood. Its amazing, you could see everything. It had a cool space museum inside, and a reallllly nice planetarium presentation that made us feel about as small as ants.

Saturday 5/16
Brunch w/Brian and Frank of the That's What She Said podcast
I was excited to meet the cast of the TWSS podcast! Christian wasn't able to attend, but I met up with Brian and Frank in Hollywood for some yummy food. They are really nice guys, to say the least.

Santa Monica beach & boardwalk, 3rd Street Promenade, Pinkberry
After lunch, we drove out to Santa Monica. I got to see the Pacific Ocean, finally! There was a touristy boardwalk. There was also a nice shopping/walking area called the Third Street Promenade. That is where I enjoyed my very first Pinkberry!

Sushi
So tired from all the stuff during the day, we laid low at night and had some vegetarian sushi at a little place in Pasadena.

Sunday 5/17
Burbank
Burbank is a nice little city. Very very clean. We walked around, saw the Cartoon Network building and had lunch. And sangria!

Malibu
We headed out to Malibu on the Pacific Coast Highway. It was so beautiful. I saw so many mansions in the hills and ocean, ocean, ocean! We stopped at a little area in Malibu where I've heard we might see some famous people..but no luck. But we did see some amazing views, once again.
On the way back to the Pasadena/LA area, driving along the PCH, I was looking out the window and saw dolphins jumping in the water!! I've never seen one before in the wild. This was reallllly exciting for me! I just wish I could have snapped a photo in time!
We parked the car and stopped for a little beach break. Too bad there wasn't any really good beach day, it was always overcast and a bit chilly down by the shore.

Rodeo Drive, paparazzi
We drove down Rodeo. And we didn't get out! We were sweaty and gross from being outside all day. I don't think they would have let us walk around like that, haha! We saw an Audi R8, which costs around $110,000...eh, no biggie, right?
As we were just about to turn onto Rodeo, I spotted a group of paparazzi crowded around *someone* at a restaurant. There were so many paparazzi, I couldn't see who the famous person was!

Pizza
So exhausted from walking so much and being such tourists, we ordered a pizza and watched Ren & Stimpy on DVD. I went to bed early!

Monday 5/18
Little Tokyo, China Town
Walked around Little Tokyo and China town. I bought rice crackers, Eric bought an action figure robot thing, go figure. Again I ate Pinkberry. (It doesn't get old) It was a cute area in downtown LA, but not everything was open because it was a Monday.

Huntington Gardens in Pasadena
In Pasadena there's about 200 reserved acres of gardens and museums and a library. There was so much at Huntington, one could really spend all day here. Being the designers we are, we really wanted to see the oldest bible on record in the museum, from the 1400s. Its one of the fist printed books in existence today!
We also walked through the gardens. My favorite was the cactus area! It was a nice way to spend a sunny day and see some pretty vegetation that is native to California. (And some awesome olllddd books!)

Vegetarian Thai Food on Melrose
For dinner I really wanted to eat at the all-vegetarian/vegan Thai place on Melrose. It was SO good. I even took my leftovers on the plane with me the next day.
This place is in the same area where Lauren Conrad works at People's Revolution. (MTV's The Hills! hehe)...and yes, I made Eric drive around the block after dinner just so I could snap this photo! What can I say, I'm an obsessed fan!

Sunday 5/19
My last day here.
I had to leave for the airport at 1, so in the morning I helped Eric grocery shop. The poor boy goes out to eat practically every meal. He wanted to know "stuff to buy that I can like, make myself, maybe?"

We walked around Old Town a little bit before I left. It was bright and sunny as usual! Afterward we had lunch at Panera, then it was off to LAX.

I had a fun time. But unlike Northern California, I just can't see myself living there. Its very spread out. Unless you're in the really rich areas, LA is kind of...dare I say dirty? The outskirts like Burbank and Pasadena are nice though. I'd like to go back and see Orange County and San Diego.

Don't forget to check out all the photos, in their full-size glory at my Flickr site!

...I'm "Dying" to Try This

2009-05-26T11:52:00.006-05:00

If you know me in person, you know I have short hair, which requires a cut every month. I usually get bored with my current style, so its pretty much always changing. I've been wanting to experiment with a brightly colored high light for the longest time, I've just never been able to justify spending 70 extra dollars every month to maintain it. I might just have to bite the bullet and try it out. I've wanted candy apple red, but my recent trip to Los Angeles as proved my color choice is wrong, because almost everywhere I turned in Hollywood I saw...

So yes, the upcoming color seems to be magenta. Though what I what I saw wasn't just high lights, it was over all magenta color. I'm not that brave, but definitely willing to try the high lights. I will post a photo, stay tuned!

Have you seen any crazy hair color in your neck of the woods? If you live in Southern California and have also noticed this trend, do tell!

...I'm Still Here!

2009-05-22T10:56:00.005-05:00

Yikes, its been a whole month since I've last written. I just wanted to let you all know I am still here! I've had a lot of nice things going on for me in the month of May. I just got back from a long vacation in Los Angeles, which I will write about very soon, and I have a lot of photos to post as well.

Other than that I've been doing my freelance and job searching! I will soon have a portfolio site online. My lack of web design skills is sort of a set back..luckily I have a very talented friend who is going to help out.

Here's a retouch I've done recently that I like quite a bit, click the photo for a super sized view. You can find more retouches here.

Its Memorial Day weekend! I finally get to see my best friend's new baby, who will only be six days old when I see her! I'm sure I will post a photo of her as well.

Stay tuned, I know you're all just dying to read another post!

...My Subway Encounter

2009-04-20T10:21:00.005-05:00

Last night, as I was going home on the blue line from the This American Life Live at the Chicago Theater, I was asked by someone for change so he could transfer trains. I replied honestly this time, "I have no cash on me, sorry."

It was raining, I was wearing my fabulous yellow raincoat. (I can't find a picture of it, or even a link. I got it on clearance.)

Moments after he asked me for change, he said, "I like your coat."

"Thank you," I reply.

"What is it?" he asks.

"...I'm sorry?" I didn't know what he meant..I realize split seconds later he means, "Who is it?" as in, "Who designed it?" Which is odd to me, b/c didn't he just ask me for spare change earlier?

"..You know, like, is it designer?" he snaps back at me.

You know how you can have an entire inner dialog in about 2 seconds? Here's mine:
This guy just asked me for change. Is he homeless? Then he says he likes my coat. And he asks if its designer. Is he going to steal my coat? Maybe he's a student and is really without any change for a transfer? How can one's voice go from sounding like they are homeless needing change to sounding like they are a gay student at the fashion institute? God I hope he doesn't try to steal my coat.

"...Oh its not designer," I reply. "Its just from NY & Co."

Why did I even say where it is from? If he is homeless and wanting to steal my coat, it doesn't matter if its designer or not. But I said its not designer in hopes it would be of less value to him, making him want to steal it less.

He shoots me a look as if I just walked out of WalMart with a bag full of clothes I'm going to wear during NY Fashion Week because I think they look good.
"That IS designer!! New York and Company is like, the BIGGEST producer of women's apparel...like the biggest in THE WORLD!" he informs me.

He then rolls his eyes, gives one of those scoff sounds from the back of his throat and turns to look out the window. (We were under ground at this point.)

Someone please tell me why this homeless fashionista is judging me because I don't think NY&Co. is a designer label. For your information, I got it on clearance for like 80% off the original price. Which at NY&Co, is pretty much the same cost as a transfer.

...A Quick Bit of Trivia About My Apartment

2009-04-02T14:51:00.003-05:00

Last week I went on a crazy internet rampage trying to figure out how old my apartment/flat is. I found lots of cool stuff along the way, but eventually came upon this bit of info that says the building is 90 years old. (Really it says 86, but the date @ the top of the page says 2005.)

How cool is that, a 90 year old house. (Its an apartment but I call it my house.) Anyway, earlier this week I was speaking to my landlord about the property and he said its even older than that, saying it was built in 1913, making it 96! So if I stay here for 3 years, get ready because I'm throwing the most fun birthday party ever, not only to celebrate my house's 100th, but to celebrate my 30th! (Gulp...)

On top of it all, he told me that the store downstairs used to be a deli. In the basement--get this--there was a smokehouse AND a butcher shop. The owner of the store lived on the first floor and had tennants on the other two floors.

There's your trivia of the week!

...Butternut Squash

2009-03-24T20:07:00.003-05:00

Its been a while since I've blogged about food! This is the perfect opportunity since I've never cooked a butternut squash before. I've heard so many vegetarians talk about how yummy they are, including my online/podcasting friend and vegan, Luciana!

The Joy of Cooking says to cut it in half, brush with butter and brown sugar and cinnamon, put it in a baking dish at 375 for 40 minutes. I did this, but I also added nutmeg. I also cut it up into pieces. I don't know why, but I just felt the need to cut it up into pieces! What I should have done was peel it first. I ended up eating around the skin since it was a bit hard to chew. It was messy since I covered it in butter. But yummy nonetheless!

For the main part of the dinner I made crispy parmesan tofu squares, and rice pilaf with asparagus on the side.

The tofu is simple:
Cut tofu into squares (and make sure all moisture is out of course.)
Put just enough olive oil in a pan to make sure the bottom is coated. Heat it up.
Sprinkle the cut squares with garlic, black pepper...any other spices that suit your fancy.
Just before the tofu is done frying/cooking, sprinkle it with parmesan cheese. Just enough to make the cheese crispy. And you're done!

The rice was REALLY easy:
Open box of Zataran's. Follow cooking instructions.
Just before its done, cut up and incorporate the asparagus your roommate steamed yesterday.
Done! (=

Make anything good lately? Let me know!

...My Apartment (+photos!)

2009-03-08T13:19:00.006-05:00

Finally, I present to you, the eager viewer, photos of my beautiful Chicago apartment!

Third floor.

Living room

Couch

Looking into the living room from the dining room. That's the mirror my grandmother gave me.

Another dining room shot. Don't have a table in there yet, so its definitely a dance floor.

Bathroom (Vintage claw foot tub and CTA map shower curtain!)

My room. Not as many purses on the wall as the last apartment. Just enough to add a decorative touch.

My bedroom again (the door leads out to the living room)

More bedroom. (its pretty big!)

The kitchen is a kitchen. Pretty sure it was last renovated in the 80s!

...Photo Editing

2009-03-02T09:37:00.004-06:00

Finally, I have begun to do some freelance work. I'm retouching photos.

I remember back in high school, my amazing graphic design teacher, Thom Andreae, took us to a large ad agency here in Chicago called FCB. It was a fun field trip. We took the train out there, he encouraged us to take photos of bums and garbage. It was our small AP Studio Design class of about 8 dedicated, artistic students. This was the trip that made me fall in love with Chicago. And it opened my eyes to a rare position in the design world: the full time photo retoucher.

For a brief moment, we met with a photo retoucher and saw her portfolio of ragged befores and crisp, clean afters. I was so excited. I never messed with retouching, but I did enough Photoshop work in class that this peaked my interests. I never really did anything more with it, though. In college, when everything turned digital, I started to retouch my photos. I did a lot more after college, when I started to get to know the software even better and when I got my digital camera. (Thanks, Eric.)

Just very recently I began to retouch some photos for John Baker, an increasingly popular photographer for models and actors in New York City. The few photos I retouched for fun turned out to be really nice, and his clients were pleased. So was his business partner. I decided to try and do this for some extra money on the side. I signed up with Model Mayhem last week. I already have three jobs. Its really taking off, I'm very excited.

If you'd like to see what I've been working on, I'm posting my befores and afters to my new Flickr site. I'm always trying to boost my portfolio with different types of shots, so if you need anything done (or if you want anything done just for fun) leave a comment and let me know, I'm glad to do small jobs for TFP as they say, ("Trade For Portfolio").

(Click photo for super-sized view!)

...When I Hit a CTA Bus

2009-02-23T11:05:00.005-06:00

I've been slacking on the blog. Its turning into more of a once a month, or "whenever I feel like it" type of blog! This is exactly why I don't podcast, I'd never do it!

I've been keeping quite busy here in Chicago, which is why I don't blog a lot. I have a lot to blog about, but lots of other fun stuff I put before the blog.

Let's talk about how I hit a CTA bus with my car. Yes its true ladies and gentlemen, five days before my three month "anniversary" here in Chicago, I hit a CTA bus with my car on the way to work. Let's review. See the map below.

I was traveling South on Damen Ave., like I do every day to get to I290 West, to hoist it to the suburb where I work. The giant red dot is where it all happened. If you notice on the map, that intersection consists of not two, but three converging streets, a bus stop on both sides of the street, and an el. (train) stop above Milwaukee Ave.

Its a busy area, especially at 8am on a Thursday.

The Route 50 Damen bus heading South stops in this intersection, right next to the entrance to the train. I always have to go around this bus. There's a little spot on the street for the bus to pull into to get away from the flow of traffic, but its always so crowded with people, bikes, temporarily parked cars, etc. that the bus doesn't have much space to pull into this little spot.

See the other map below. The blue rectangle is the bus. The orange rectangle is my car. The lines represent the impact.

Pretty much, I underestimated the amount of space I had to go around the bus, and I side swiped it.

As a safety feature, my rear view mirrors fold in so they don't just come off, but I really must have hit it at the right angle because the entire outer covering of the mirror came off, exposing all the wires. I have a giant dent on the front fender. (This is all passenger side.). I have a scrape going from the passenger front door to the passenger rear door, damage to both wheel wells. I really did it!

The bus is unharmed of course, but I always know the bus I hit because there's a giant dark grey mark on the rear corner where I hit it. Haha.

I'm ok. I'm seriously mad at myself for doing it. Seriously embarrassed, too! There were 75 people on this bus that all had to get off and wait for the next one, because we had to wait for the police to come and make the report. Oy! That, plus all the people driving, all the people walking around, and all the people on the el. platform above us...wow, I chose such a great spot to do this. But--the best part, this isn't a small town, no one really cared or gawked. Even the people who had to wait for the next bus didn't really care. I got some bad looks, but hey I can deal. I will probably never come across 90% of these people ever again.

There you have it, I hit a bus. Its funny to me now. Well the $250 deductible I have to pay my insurance to have it fixed isn't so funny..but come on...Lauren hit a bus in her little Mazda 3...story of my life, I tell you!!

...Me!!

2009-02-05T21:46:00.002-06:00

Don't worry, this blog isn't turning into podcast plugs and mainstream internet fads of the moment, but I did this stupid "25 Things You Never Knew About Me" thing on Facebook, and it caught on like wildfire. So many of the people on my friend list did it, too, and I've actually learned a lot, especially from those friends who've grown distant or friends I never really knew closely.

I am going to do it again, but post it here! A lot of podcasters and listeners read my blog (I know you're out there, lurking!) So maybe you can learn a bit of useless information about me.

And keep an eye out in your podcasts, I'm ordering a headset tomorrow. That Meat Free Radio I was on sounded tragic (my part did I mean, the other guys sounded great!) and I'd like to get on one of Archer's group shows.

1.) I'm a very irritable person. The smallest thing can set me off. If you read my Twitters, you probably can tell a few of the things that set me off. Loud crunching, and people who snort and clear their throat....

2.) I'm a really shy person at first, but once we talk for a bit I start to open up. I get nervies!

3.) I've been belly dancing on and off for the past 8 months or so. It was only $5 a class in Indiana, but its $13 per class here in Chicago. But I love it so much, price doesn't matter to me.

4.) My nose is always cold, even when its hot out. I say its like the polar ice caps. I think its really big.

5.) Every time I get a hair cut, I try to get something different. I think my hair is a big part of who I am!

6.) In high school I used to take a really really fine paint brush and paint little tiny pictures on my ring finger nail according to the time of year or what holiday was coming up. I used acrylic paint and covered it with topcoat.

7.) Since being vegetarian, the only meat I have craved once in a blue moon is corned beef and hot dogs. (I haven't caved!)

8.) I think people should mind their own business, but its so hypocritical for me to say that because I always want to know what's going on in people's lives!

9.) I have serious trust issues when it comes to boyfriends and relationships because I've had such bad luck in the past.

10.) I can't watch movies with violence. If there's a gun or a fighting scene or a knife, I can't watch it. It makes me sick. I don't think people need to surround themselves with such negative things.

11.) My favorite holiday is Valentine's Day, always has been. I think its because my dad has always spoiled me on that day with chocolate and cutsie Valentine's Day things. He knows how much I love all the pink and red and candy and girly stuff. It means so much to me. I've kept all the Valentine's Day cards he's given me.

12.) I can't believe I turn 27 this year and I'm still single and child-less, even though in my childhood I often daydreamed about being married when I was 32.

13.) I've had 3 serious boyfriends in the past who I thought I was going to marry someday. I'm still friends with all of them.

14.) I can't stand when people snore, or even breathe heavy. I can sleep through the loudest most severe thunderstorm, and I love the sound of traffic when I fall asleep, yet I instantly wake up when I hear someone breathing heavy in their sleep.

15.) I wanted to live in Chicago SO long. But the first 3 nights I was finally here and in this fabulous apartment, I hated it and wanted to leave. I don't know where I wanted to go, but I didn't want to be here. I called it post-partum depression, Chicago style.

16.) I still think I will live in New York again someday. Chicago seems small to me, even though its the third largest city in the US.

17.) I don't really like going to the movies (the loud crunching thing...) also because I always fall asleep for at least 10 minutes during every movie. I feel like I don't get my money's worth! Haha

18.) Moving to Chicago, I learned a lot about myself. The biggest--I'm a control freak. And I flip out when I don't have control over a situation. And I am way too uptight about the way my kitchen cabinets are organized.

19.) I miss working in the garden with my dad. As much as I hate dirt, I loved planting things with him, then digging them up when they were ready to be harvested. We used to dig up potatoes and throw them against the tree to see if they were rocks or potatoes.
I once picked up a shiny worm, not knowing what it was. My dad asked me why I was holding a worm. I flipped out and threw it as far as I could!

20.) The one and only thing I'd change about my appearance is my teeth. I've always hated my teeth.

21.) I'm not scared of whether or not I will be a good mother after I have a child. I'm scared of gaining weight and getting stretch marks.

22.) The day before 9/11/2001 I was thinking about how nothing really devastating had been in the news lately and I thought something really bad was going to happen soon.

23.) I think I enjoy photo retouching so much because I'm such a control freak. I can make people look the way I think they should look. That's bad, isn't it??

24.) I was fired from JCPenney when I was 17. I was letting my friends use my employee discount. (Rebel!) To this date, I think that is the worst thing I've ever done.

25.) Though we aren't geographically close, my little brother is my life. I treat him like my own son. I would do anything for him, and I think he knows that. He's an amazing little thing. I can't believe how he's grown. Its really interesting to see something develop from a little 7 pound crying baby who doesn't know his face from his butt to a 14 year old intelligent young man who wants to be a structural engineer someday. Truly amazing.

...Meat Free Radio #12

2009-02-02T23:14:00.003-06:00

Hey everyone! I was on another episode of Meat Free Radio. I even made the show art!

Take a listen and leave a comment for the show.

...How Forest Park Made Me Famous!

2009-01-07T12:05:00.006-06:00

This past weekend, January third and fourth, Pineapple Dance Studio in Forest Park, IL (the West suburb where I happen to work) had free dance classes. On Saturday I attended the belly dancing class led by Erika Ochoa. I also took my roommate, Margo. They told our class the local paper wanted to take photos...and they chose quite a good one, in my opinion! (Click photo to view larger.)

(I'm in all black with the blue and gold hip scarf.)

Don't forget to check out the original news story so you can see my photo nice and big...uhh I mean...so you can read the whole article! I start the actual classes tonight. Yay!

(Autographs available upon request for a small fee.)

...Why the RedEye Thinks I Am an Alcoholic

2009-01-06T15:52:00.004-06:00

(The blogging is back after a much needed break of the internets. I hope you all missed me.)

Last night I got a message through Facebook from someone I do not know. Here is what it said. (Names omitted to protect...something...)

Hi Lauren,

My name is Name Lastname, and I'm a reporter for RedEye, the tabloid edition of the Chicago Tribune.

I'm working on a story about female drinking habits, and I noticed on your profile you mentioned you are a "professional drinker."

I was hoping to chat with you for my story. What's the best way to contact you?

Thanks,
Name Lastname
Reporter
RedEye
The Chicago Tribune
nlastname@tribune.com

Yikes. Ok first of all, it didn't say "professional drinker," it said, "professional martini drinker." Secondly, it was surrounded by the other little things in my "About Me" box which are mostly silly sounding and exaggerated.

Now I know first hand how all those celebs feel when they get an embarrassing drunkie photo from their Facebook profile released to the universe. Its completely not a representation of who I am, but I guess to a stranger looking for a good gossip story, it sure was.

I took out that line, for fear that other people in the Chicago Facebook network will think I am an alcoholic. I am sorry strangers, I'm just not the person you thought I was.

Don't think I left a letter like that go without a response! Here is how I replied:

Name,
Wow, well most of my friends know that I enjoy a martini when out to dinner or at a bar with friends, but they also know that "professional martini drinker" on my profile is meant as a joke. I'd rather not be a feature in a magazine simply because I socially drink martinis.

If you want to do a spot on 20-something professional graphic designers who just moved to the city because they managed to land a great job in a poor economic time such as the present, give me a call.

Thanks,
Lauren

Hmph! I stand corrected. I wonder who this reporter got for the story instead of me. They say you're famous once you've hit the tabloids! Autographs available upon request.

...Actin' Goofy with the Little Bro

2008-12-10T22:15:00.002-06:00

My brother, Tyler, and I are 12 years apart. He will be 14 on December 25th this year!

We have a different relationship than most brother/sister teams. But we still like to act goofy. We pick on each other, get on each others nerves of course. But, especially when he was very little, I act a little..no, a lot... maternal towards him. Though I was 12 when he was born, and my parents are amazing, I sure got lots of experience raising a kid. My parents are good teachers!

He brings out the kid in me, which isn't a hard thing to do. Here's a little video we made the day after Thanksgiving.

...Omar, Ramble Red, and My Lost Phone

2008-12-06T17:32:00.006-06:00

I've been in Chicago for about 3 weeks now and I still love it--nothing's changed there! I will gladly accept wind in exchange for lake effect snow!

On Thursday night I had the pleasure of meeting Omar from The Other O Show podcast!

I was very happy to meet him. Omar's show was one of the first podcasts I ever listened to. He's a great guy, you have to listen to his show if you don't already! He just moved here, so he's bringing his Southern Latin flava to the Windy City! I also met up with Tom the Ramble Redhead! He's always a fun guy to be with. And I give him props for eating food he's not really used to!

We all had dinner at the Chicago Diner, sometimes referred to as the Veggie Diner, because its all vegetarian/vegan food! I loved it. I had gyros, made with seitan.

After dinner we went to Sidetrack for a beverage. Thursday night is their "Laugh Track" night, where they play comedy skits on all the TVs. Very low key night, but it was fun to just relax a bit and have a laugh with my two guys. (=

Originally, I took the bus on the way there. The 73 Armitage bus to the 8 Halsted bus. I got there just fine, though I was nervous I'd get on the wrong one! But it was about 11 when we were ready to go home for the night, so I decided to take a cab. This is where the HOT MESS begins. I find a cab no problem, get in, tell the (young) guy, "Armitage and Leavitt." He gives me a look like I'm from another planet, then gets out his book...I don't know what was in the book..I'm assuming maps? Then he eventually says, "Ok...I take Halsted to Armitage." Yes, this is correct, so off we go. Armitage does this weird thing around the river...it doesn't really connect. You have to get on Cortland and do this weird jabberwocky maneuver...we definitely got lost. He made all these U-turns...and of course I had no idea where I was. He said he'd stop the meter at just $8, and it was his FIRST WEEK ON THE JOB...great. He couldn't have been more than 18, either. Very nice though. And actually genuinely lost. I had my phone out during the ride, right around the time he made his first U-turn...then I started to dig for my map, to try and help out...well I guess I just didn't put my phone back in my bag because when I FINALLY got home I couldn't find it anywhere. And of course I didn't catch the cab company.

So my phone is in a cab somewhere in Chicago! I suspended the service on it. Now I'm using an old phone I had in college, so I still have my number, but none of my contacts. Email, IM, Skype, send a Facebook message to me with your numbers!! I'm going to get a new one soon, but it will be the same number still. Ah! What a cray-cray ending to a fun night!

...Puttin' a Ring on Thanksgiving

2008-12-01T21:35:00.010-06:00

My Thanksgiving was spent at my parent's house in South Bend, Indiana with my mom, dad, and little brother. My mom and I cooked all day. SO much cooking for just 4 little people, and I don't even eat turkey! (Still vegetarian!)

My dad intensely made sure the turkey was turning out nicely. (While my mom does something behind him which looks like she's trying to throw a glass at his head?)

We had music on for most of the day, and heard the "Womanizer" song by Britney Spears. My mom doesn't like it much, she thinks they technically enhanced her voice so much and they are just trying to make her sound like an older Miley Cyrus.

Then we heard the Beyonce song, "Single Ladies". We really like this one. So much that we have to do the dance!

More cooking...more cooking...almost time for dinner. I walked into the dining room to find my almost-14-year-old brother attacking a bottle of wine, and I decided it was time for a lesson on opening it rather than smashing it.

The food is brought to the table. And so is more. And more. And more. Good gawd, why did we cook this much stuff???

Well I was definitely happy. Even a meat eater could have eaten at this meal and skipped the turkey! Very yummy indeed. And hooray for leftovers! And it wouldn't be dinner without some sort of spill. Though minor, this one is funny. Mashed potatoes on dad's watch.

That's all for now...stay tuned for a short video of me and my little brother the day after Thanksgiving, acting goofy of course!

...My first week in Chicago!

2008-11-21T19:50:00.010-06:00

Though my friend Margo and I don't yet have an apartment to call our own (I'm staying with her and her roommates for the time being) I still say that I live here in this beautiful city of Chicago! I mean, after all...I DO work here now!

Ok, well I work in Forest Park. Which brings me to my first topic: I290. This is the road I take out to the small west burb we all know and love- Forest Park. I get off 290W every morning at the Harlem St. exit. Its right by the Ferrara Pan candy factory!! The drive to work is only about 15 miles, the same distance as it was from my South Bend apartment to Tire Rack. However, it does not take me 15 minutes to get there of course! It takes about 30-40. Traffic! Never had to deal with it before. I don't mind-yet. I like how I can see the skyline in my rearview mirror on the way there, then see it all lit up in the dark on my way home. I could take the Blue Line, but the last stop is like 2 miles from where I need to be. Have you ever walked 2 miles in 6 degree weather? Yeah. Not going to happen!

The next topic: People here are NICE. I took a walk Monday night and came across a bunch of little independently owned designer furniture shops and clothing stores, all of which were closed. I guess those close early, because it was only about 6:30. But I walked by this studio that was all lit up inside, and there was a ton of artsy fun looking type things in the window. Then I saw a man inside, and he waved me in. I went inside and we talked for a while about how I just moved here and I'm trying to really figure out what I want to do with my career. He told me that I am welcome in the studio whenever I want, and if I ever need to ask questions or just get some inspriation I can stop by! How freakin nice! To a perfect stranger! I think I want to go back next week and talk to him some more about the creative process. That would be a very nice enlightening thing for me to do. Anyway, here's an example of his work, and his website:
Tony Fitzpatrick

After I had that delightful experience, I got some falafel at a Mediterranian spot called Babylon! Best falafel ever. Even better than Cafe Hookah at Purdue...! Here's where you can find it...Oh and did I mention the falafel pita was....THREE DOLLARS AND FORTY CENTS??!?! $3.40..thats IT!

My workday is very easy, it definitely starts at 8:30 and ends at 5. No over time. And its a very laid back atmosphere. Also a lot smaller than what I am used to which is a nice change. Jeans, internet if we want it (and no one frowning upon it), little breaks here and there to chit chat, music playing...its very nice and easy and I hope to learn some new things there. My first week was all production work, but I will get a bit more creative next week.

Margo and I went down to Milwaukee and Damen last night for some good eats. We went to a tapas place called People. Again with the niceness..our waiter was also vegetarian and he took the time to sit down and explain the veggie choices on the menu. He also took the time to actually write down his favorite veggie places around the city and what streets they were on. So freakin nice! And the tapas was A-MAZ-ING! I'm going back. Soon!
(Photos taken from People Chicago's website.)

So here I sit, on Friday already! Its freakin cold outside! I am going home to South Bend this weekend to pack up a bit of my apartment. I can't believe how fast this year has gone. I said something cheesy the other day but its so true. I don't really ever ask for stuff for Christmas, and this year is no different. But really this year, I don't want anything. All I wanted all year was to be in Chicago, and now I am here. I have what I want and for a change I am happy. That, to me, is enough of a present.

...My Amazon Wishlist

2008-11-18T19:08:00.004-06:00

Ok, I drank the Kool-Aid! Here it is:
LaLaLauren's Amazon Wishlist

Its fun to just list all the stuff my greedy little self wants. But that seems to be what everyone else is doing, so why not!

This totally isn't an invitation for you all to buy me things! Really!! I think these are fun and help you get to know someone a little better, too. So take it as a LaLaLearning experience!

Do you have an Amazon Wishlist?? Post the link in the comments!

...November 15!

2008-11-10T20:29:00.007-06:00

Saturday November 15 is a special day.

First of all, it is my 26th birthday. That's right kiddies, I'm officially entering the "late to mid 20s" category! Ah! Make out your cards, letters and pressies to Lauren Kleiman, Chicago Illinois...hehe just kidding (=
(That's me!)

I also found out that it is a national protest day! Protest for gay rights! Here's a great website to get you started if you want to join in on the protests, brought on by the passing of Prop. 8 in California. There's a list of all protesting places by state on the site.
Join The Impact!

Let me know if you protest!

...Barack Obama's Flickr!

2008-11-09T19:58:00.003-06:00

Hey look! Here are photos from behind the scenes when the new first family was awaiting the election results! Very very cool!

Barack Obama's Flickr

...Prop. 8 in California

2008-11-03T20:19:00.007-06:00

If you live in California, I STRONGLY URGE YOU to vote NO on Prop. 8!!! Lets keep this country moving forward and let people have their rights as humans to love who they want to love, and not selfishly take them away!

...How I am FINALLY Heading to Chicago!

2008-11-01T15:15:00.003-05:00

Most of you know how I've been looking for a new job all year. And most of you also know how I've pretty much wanted to get the hell out of here for well over a year! Well it is finally going to happen, because I got a job!! In Chicago!!!!

Its a small company with a small in-house design group, so sort of like the set up I'm in now. Its in Forest Park, which is 10 miles west of the loop, and about a 15-20 minute drive from where I will be living in Wicker Park/Bucktown. I'm going to find an apartment pretty soon with my good friend from college, Margo. In the meantime, I will be living with Margo in her current place with a couple roommates. You can see the skyline from their apartment!

I remember a couple years ago when I first visited Wicker Park. I was at an art show with a few friends, and afterwards we walked around a little. I fell in love. I told my friends, "I love it here, I'm going to live here someday." And now its going to actually happen!

For the first time in a long time, I am happy and proud of myself. It will be rough at first, but what life change is actually easy? I'm looking forward to the challenge and I'm more than ready for it!

...My YouTube Channel!

2008-10-23T17:02:00.002-05:00

My YouTube Channel

I decided to start a You Tube channel because I have a few videos now of my friends I wanted to share, plus I have my Obama videos from when he came to South Bend in March. So go take a look and leave a comment or subscribe if you want! I plan on making videos of me driving in the snow (It is an art I have perfected!) and probably a few others here and there. I've taught myself iMovie and I think it is pretty fun! Go check her out!

...Difficult Decisions

2008-10-18T21:18:00.002-05:00

It is never easy to have to let someone go. And when you're in the process of letting that person go, and you see the hurt look on their face, it crushes you inside to know you're hurting their feelings. But sometimes it is necessary to part ways. Though it may not feel right at the moment, though it may seem like you will never get over it, you will. You will see where I am coming from and hopefully put yourself in my shoes. It sounds cliche, but I strongly believe in saying, "what is meant to be will be." And if this was meant to be, we will meet again in the future. But right now I need to just fly solo. I'm sorry.

...Vegetarian Food Porn!

2008-10-10T17:55:00.004-05:00

It's becoming such a common phrase I have no problem with the title of my blog! So there! Neither should you! Ok that said, here they are- vegetarian grilled burritos!

Consists of Fantastic Wold Foods vegetarian taco filling, sauteed baby portabello mushrooms and red onions, cilantro, and of course cheese! On the first photo you can also see my side of home made guacomole and sour cream. (Stay tuned for a photographic instructional guacomole blog coming soon!)

I wasn't sure how to grill the burritos, so I just put the tortilla in a hot pan, built the burrito fillings on top, then folded the tortillas over and held them there. Then I flipped them over a little. Surprisingly, this did not effect the insides of the burrito. It made a nice little grilled pocket of vegetarian goodness.

I encourage you to try out a vegetarian substitute for your meat, at least if its just once! Not so bad. this tasted just like taco meat, only less animal-like. (I don't really enjoy the texture of ground beef.) Let me know what you try, and if you like it!

...ahh-lasss-kuh

2008-10-05T17:14:00.003-05:00

Ok, so I'm getting a little more political than I had originally intended with this blog! But for those of you who watched the vice-presidential debates last week, I would like you all to see this little clip:

That is all!

...A Tiny Bit of Politics

2008-09-24T19:12:00.004-05:00

I never write about politics, but I feel its necessary lately, so here it goes!

I'm sure you all know who I am voting for! I associate mostly with democrats, and people who support Obama. But the United States as a whole, regardless of what "side" we are on, seems to have something in common lately. We all want America to change in one way or another. Whether its to lower gas prices, create some sort of health care plan which pleases everyone, to end the war, to find new sources of energy, equal rights, or even to just generally boost the morale of this country as a whole.

I think a lot of voters, though, feel that once a new president is elected, the US will automatically begin to transform. Once we get a new president, the US will breathe a cleansing sigh of relief.

Wrong.

I want everyone to remember, especially the young voters out there, that change will come only if the people of the US start to act. One man will not make the US change. Yes, he will lead us to change, he will encourage us. He is the start. But until each of us need to do our part if we want change. Actually do something.

Please do not expect one man to change the entire US for the better. Don't be a lazy American. If you want Obama to be the president, and you really are passionate about it, help him. You probably won't ever meet the man in person, but do your part as a citizen of this country and help make the change. Make him see that we're in this together.

Every little bit counts. What are you doing to make the change?

...Carrots!

2008-09-08T20:06:00.003-05:00

*Pet Peeve of the Week*
When I see plastic bottles in the trash can and there is a recycling bin right down the hall.

I've been working soooo much lately. Its taking a toll on my body, physically and mentally. Its not a lot, but I gained a pound within the last 2 or so weeks. Blah. Its a combo of going out to eat so much and not getting a chance to work out like I normally do because of work. And its going to get cold outside soon, which puts me in a less-than-desirable mood anyway!

In August, I celebrated one year of being vegetarian! And it happened to be timed so nicely that I was also asked to be a guest host on Meat Free Radio, as you can see in the previous blog post. I mentioned I would share a recipe for sauteed carrots, which I am finally getting around to. Its so easy.

Growing up, my mom used to make cooked carrots with dinner. She would simply buy the "baby" carrots and microwave them with brown sugar. And there you have it, "cooked carrots". Mushy and orangy-brown. Ick. I never really liked carrots. And every time I ate them, I got this carrot essence sort of sensation for the rest of the day in the back of my throat. I'm weird, yes we know that already! But in this recipe, I found a way to sort of tone down the carrot flavor before they are cooked.

Here's what you do:
Take carrots, baby or not...slice them up to a desired shape. I like to take normal sized carrots and slice them into little rounds.

Fill a mixing bowl with water, and dump the carrot slices in there for about 10 minutes. Mix them around every couple minutes.
This is the same process one should do before they cook potatoes, to loosen up the starches. Or you can do this to "sweat" onions to make the flavor not as intense. It actually helped that carrot essence thing I was talking about. I had none of that.

When they're done soaking, drain them and mix in some olive oil. here is where you get creative. Add spices such as rosemary or basil. Add garlic, onions, parsley. Whatever you want to be creative with. I like to add olive oil, parsley, garlic and a little lemon juice.

Once you have all your ingredients mixed into the carrots, move them to a frying pan on the stove at about medium heat.

Now just sautee. Mix them around a lot, flip them over, make sure they don't stay in one spot. After about 10 minutes or so, they look like this!

There's really no science to this, just cook them to your liking, and season them the same way. I cooked mine until some of the slices had a little bit of brown around the edges. Olive oil helps with that effect, too. Its also fun to sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top when they just come out of the pan!

Let me know if you try this, I'm interested to see what you come up with!

...Meat Free Radio and My Guest Appearance!

2008-08-28T05:23:00.004-05:00

I was on a podcast, and it has been posted to iTunes already! There's a fairly new podcast out called Meat Free Radio, and they asked me to be a guest host*! Its a show about being vegetarian, but I encourage all to listen. Its not preachy by any means, and you might just learn something!

You all can listen to the show on the website, but I also encourage you to subscribe through iTunes.

Let me know what you think if you listen! Also, feel free to leave a comment on the Meat Free Radio web page and let them know you're listening.

*One of the usual hosts, Mikey Pod, was gone, so I took his spot. The other regular hosts are Tim Corrimal and Eric the Southern Boy.

...a Play the Locals Should Go See

2008-08-09T09:41:00.002-05:00

Just a quick note to let you know about a play in Cassopolis, Michigan you might want to go see. My coworker, Ryan Skinner, is one of the lead roles in the play "Pajama Game". Tickets are $12 a person. (Don't forget your cash like I did and drag your date to a scary gas station in the middle of no where during intermission to try and take some cash out...That one was definitely Klassy with a K!!) Anyway, its a really cute musical and you can take the kids to it. Ryan has a great voice! Who knew so much talent was sitting two cubicles away from me.

Here's the info:
Runs through Sunday, August 17th

Time: 8:00p.m. Sunday matinees 4:00p.m.

Location: Ross Beatty High School 22721 Diamond Cove Rd. Cassopolis, MI

Phone: 269-445-2511

Child Price: $8.00 (12 and under)

Adult Price: $12.00 ($8.00 Seniors)

Its easy to get there, just go North on SR23 (in Indiana) until it turns into M62. Follow M62 all the way into Cassopolis, then turn right onto Diamond Cove Road.

Leave a comment and let me know if you went to see it!

...Goings On

2008-07-30T19:48:00.005-05:00

Ummm...hi. Where have I been all month?! Well, I'm trying to find a new job as most of you know. It isn't easy. I had a bite...a very positive bite at that. Then it fell through because I wasn't local. It was in New York. I've emailed with a graphic design job placement agency out of Chicago about numerous jobs I'm interested in and qualified for, yet none of them have contacted me other than to say, "Sorry, locals only." This all happens even though I pretty much begin my cover letters with, "I will gladly financially relocate myself." I've spoken to a number of people about this, my college advisor, the head of the Liberal Arts department at Purdue, job agents, and even the job that turned me down in NY. They all think I'm having such a hard time because I'm in Middleofnowhere, Indiana, and I just need to pick up and move, then find something.

Allow me to pour my heart out to all who will read-- I need the city. I need culture and diversity. For goodness sakes, I need a decent vegetarian restaurant! I want to meet people. I realized that I'm so comfortable here, I don't fear anything. I don't like that! I need a good fear, you know? Fear not knowing what is a mile down the road from my apartment. Fear that I got on the wrong bus. Fear that I might get a little lost on the way home, however find a new area to discover. I haven't felt stuff like that since college. I was happiest in college, for a lot of reasons, but mostly because something new and exciting faced me at every turn! There was always something new. I would get lost and discover something else. I'd accidentally get on the wrong bus and go an hour out of my way, but I'd see a new part of town in the mean time. I need stuff like that, a challenge, if you will. I'm too settled here. It's too easy.

There it is, my state of mind. Confused and lost, pretty much. So I ask all of you, if you know of anything print design related in Chicago, or anywhere for that matter, please let me know!! I appreciate any help I can get.

I'm going to help out Indiana Equality with some banner-type graphics for their website (Me! Doing web stuff! Gasp!!!) And possibly a new logo, too! Cross your fingers for that one, that would be amazing. They are starting up a branch in South Bend, so if any of you local people are interested, please let me know and I will forward you information. Get involved!

...a [Short] Walmart Conversation

2008-06-30T19:02:00.005-05:00

Short and sweet today, my poodles. Let me know if you like this type of thing, and I'll sprinkle them into the blog mix!

The Most Romantic Conversation I've heard in Walmart:
20-something scuzzy looking woman to a skinny 20-something ghetto looking white boy, shampoo aisle:
"So are we gona have another baby? Cuz I need to know."

This is the same trip to Walmart which I found an empty pregnancy test box in one of the plastic Rubbermaid containers. (If you can't afford the pregnancy test, you shouldn't be having babies.)

What's the most romantic conversation YOU'VE heard?

...Unfit Parents

2008-06-26T20:42:00.005-05:00

No Pet Peeve of the Week this time because this whole entry is pretty much a pet peeve!

It's been too long again. I need to stop beginning every blog with that sentence. So I am going to write way more often, and go back to once a week like I originally planned! Now I am going to talk about something we all know and love, the unfit parent; one incident in particular...

The other day I was driving down a road, there were a few other cars around. (It is rare for a road to be "busy" in this boring area in which I live.) I was behind an older rusty car, with 2 people in the front and a kid in the back. I noticed because these people were moving about as if they didn't have their seat belts on, which makes me nervous. I guess its the mother instinct I was born with! I also noticed they had bags and cups, so I guess they were eating fast food. Then flying out of the passenger side window, came a little cup which probably held a sauce of some sort, the little ones you get with barbeque sauce or something.

::Deep Breath::

If you didn't already know, I've become quite the environmentalist, and a big part of why I rarely eat fast food is because of how wasteful it is. So when I saw this little sauce cup flung out the window, it just made me mad.

Then I noticed (while paying attention to the road of course!) the person in the passenger seat hand the kid in the back a cup. And I saw him make a hand motion to the kid. Then the kid threw the cup lid out the window. Another hand motion from the passenger seat. The cup flew out the window.

::Currently becoming enraged:::

I honked my horn at them. (Side note...in this small town of mine, its also rare to hear a honking horn. Being the city girl at heart that I am, I use mine frequently and it actually gets results.) Not only am I pissed that they are flinging crap out the window...FOR FUN...but I'm mad because the cup almost hit my windshield. While minor, it is uncalled for. Had I not been paying attention to these idiots, the cup probably would have distracted me and made me swerve or something. The kid in the back turned around after I honked. The family actually mellowed after that. I have quite a few words for these people, but I shall refrain in attempts to keep my blog PG like I originally planned. I guess it could have been worse, they could have been driving an SUV.

So people, I'm not telling you all to stop eating fast food, I'm not even telling you to wear your seat belt (though you should!) but please...if you want to do something fun while driving, play I Spy or something, don't throw shit out the window. Those little cups are plastic, you know, take them home and recycle them. Then take the [hopefully paper] bag from the food and recycle that, too. Every little bit counts!

...Fabulous Las Vegas!

2008-06-11T19:53:00.008-05:00

Pet Peeve of the Week:
Snoring people who can't keep their elbows to themselves on a red-eye flight.
_________________

It's been a while, hasn't it! I didn't write a blog when I was in Vegas, obviously, and I needed about a full week to recover. So here's a Vegas briefing, in case I haven't talked to you about it yet.

My Vegas Photos

There's the link for my Vegas photos! As many of you know, I was in sunny Las Vegas from May 23rd to June first because my best friend from college, Ashley, was getting married! Ashley and I met because we were randomly placed together to be roommates in our dorm freshman year. It was a perfect match, we instantly clicked. We joined the same sorority sophomore year and haven't been able to shake each other since. It was amazing. I really needed a vacation. I traveled with my good friend, Amber, who I haven't seen since we graduated college three years ago! We were in the same sorority together, then we lived in the same apartment. But when we saw each other in the air port it was as if no time had past. That's the sign of a great friendship. And the same was for Ashley (the bride!). When Amber and I saw her, we were back to our giggly, dirty joke telling, crazy selves!! It was so fun. Here's a picture of Amber, me, and Ashley the first night before we headed off to Cyote Ugly in the New York, New York hotel!

I have this one in a frame in my living room (= I believe we are all sitting on Ashley's lap. Here's one of us at Cyote Ugly, lookin all happy:

I wish we all lived in the same spot again! Anyway, Amber and I stayed at Excalibur, a giant castle, fit for the princesses we are. When we checked in, the lady said, "Ok, so I've got you in a room with two non-smoking queens." Haha....I knew then it would be an awesome trip filled with many inside jokes. (She meant, a non-smoking room with 2 queen beds..wonder what she had on her mind! hehe)

So we got there Wednesday night. Then Thursday after the ladies in the bridal party went to get their nails done, I met up with Amber and we walked around a lot outside and were definite tourists. I kept my camera out and snapped photos whenever I could, which you can see on my Flickr site as mentioned above. Thursday night was the rehearsal dinner at Bucca di Beppo. I got to see Ashley's parents and grandparents, who I've grown to love like my own. I also got to meet Andy's family (her husband) which included his fabulous sister, and cute little brother. There couldn't be a more perfect match between the two of them! Amber and I also got to meet everyone in the wedding party, which was a mix of people from Ashley's home town of Evansville, Indiana, and where she went to grad school in Maryland. Everyone became friends, it was amazing how we all clicked! I got to meet two great boys who I spent a lot of time with that week, Justin and Mark. Justin is Ashley's friend from home, but they both live in Florida now. I'm going to have to take a trip there soon (= Here they are in front of the beautiful Bellagio where we all gathered after the rehearsal dinner to watch the lit-up fountain show.

Part of the group went over to the Paris hotel for some beverages after the fountain show. Here's a snap of all of us..

More photos of that night on the Flickr of course. Friday was the wedding! The ladies of the wedding party met up for breakfast and shared stories and gossiped, like we do best. Amber and I walked around outside for a few, then split up because went back to our hotel to meet up with Ashley and the rest of the girls getting their hair done for the wedding. I envied everyone's updos! The rest of the afternoon was wedding related. We headed over to the Secret Gardens where the wedding was held and began to get dressed and shared some emotional moments! The wedding was beautiful and you couldn't have asked for better weather. More photos will be added after they appear on the professional photography site. I don't have pictures of the ceremony because I was in the wedding. Here's a pic of Ashley and me before it started:

She looked so beautiful! The ceremony went very smoothly and everything looked great. Here's a pic of Ashley and her new husband, Andy, dancing (they took lessons!!):

It was a Navy wedding! So they did that cool sword arch thing which I hope to get some photos of soon. It was all so elegant!

Saturday we all met by the pool and chilled for a while, then walked through Cesar's Palace and looked at a bunch of stores we couldn't afford. (hehe) You know, CHER was at Caesar's Palace...we kept trying to find her at a slot machine but no luck. I think she ran out of nickels. Bette Midler was there, too, they might have gone off to the pool or something. (: Saturday night, Amber, Justin, Mark and I went to a nice seafood restaurant in Mandalay Bay. We were TIRED. Then later on that night after we said our goodbyes to everyone, Amber and I headed to the airport to catch our red-eye flight. A word of advice...after a giant trip, DON'T TAKE THE RED EYE...you won't get any sleep, especially if you are in the middle seat and the man next to you is snoring so loud they can hear him at Midway. It took my feet 2 days to get back to normal, they were so swollen from all the walking and drinking and eating of bad-for-you food! Hehe, sign of an excellent time. Now I miss all my new friends!!

Now it is time to really focus on getting a new job and moving out of here. I am setting my sights on Chicago, so if any of you think you have even a remote connection to someone design-related in that area, please let me know. This year is already half over, its time to make some changes.

A funny side note...My dad and I went to eat Chinese for dinner last night, and my fortune said "All your present plants will succeed." Plants! haha, best Engrish typo ever. Its a sign, right!

Don't forget to check out the photos. Have you ever been to Vegas? Leave a comment, let me know. If you haven't been, you really should take a trip there!

...Finding a Swim Suit

2008-05-26T13:53:00.004-05:00

Hey ladies, this one is for you.

I'm off to Vegas this week! My best friend from college is getting married to her Navy boy, finally! I'm so flippin' excited, eager, happy for her, ready to go, ready for fun! But I bet you ladies know the hardest part of going on a fabulous trip someplace warm with pools all over the place. It's not finding space in your suitcase for those 7 pairs of shoes and bags to match for the 4 days you'll be spending there. It's not all the mani/pedi/waxing/tanning you have to do before you leave in preparation. No no, its finding a swim suit.

This is a touchy issue for us ladies. You boys have it easy. You simply wear shorts, essentially. But we women have to wear pretty much our undies. But swim suits are less supportive, more colorful, and quite complicated with all their strings and elastic and criss-cross halter tops. Let's face it, bikinis are made for stick figures with no boobs and no junk in the trunk. At least, this is my personal discovery anyway. Every woman you talk to about this will have something different to gripe about when it comes to the swim suit, because we are all different. So why are all these swim suits so much the same?

The selection of swim suits in Northern Indiana isn't exactly what you would call diverse, but still, there's lots of people here who love to take vacations and want to be prepared for those vacations, so why isn't there more of a variety out here?? That's a little specific to areas like the Midwest. But I've been to Miami, I've been to beaches other places, and the beach-side shops don't offer much more, really. You can order from Victoria's Secret catalog according to your bra size, but then again, most of their suits have padding and ties and they really don't compare to a simple bra when all is said and done. Then you lose like 6 bucks on shipping. (Can you tell I've been there before?)

I've been wearing the same suit for 2 summers now. I found it at Target of all places. But come on, its a Target swim suit, 2 years is pushing it. I wanted a new one this year, especially since I'm going to Vegas! So the search began. Four months ago. I went to every single store here that sold suits. I ordered off the internet and returned and lost money on shipping. I cried. I ranted, much like I am now, only with more curse words and personal attacks on the department stores! If you know me personally, you probably know why it is so difficult for me to find a suit that I don't fall out of, however, I'm not about to advertise that on the internet for the world to read! But come on, why does this have to be so hard???

I was ready to just say, ok, I will just wear the Target suit and hope it doesn't fall apart as I swim up to the pool-side mini bar to get my daquari. But I gave one more store a second chance. I went to TJ Maxx. Then it happened. After my third time in the fitting room, I found one that semi fit! I literally had to take in sizes 6-14 to see which was right for me. I ended up with a size 12. Ok ladies, I'm a pants size 4. Among all this swim suit shopping I found out that swim suit sizes are for some reason very different than normal clothing sizes. So don't let the tag get you down! If it looks good in the mirror, buy it. That is just what I did. I got 2 different ones, too. And the thing I love about TJ Maxx...they were only $20 a piece. Oh yes oh yes.

The brand is called Jantzen. The plain dark blue tag said 88 bucks for the 2 piece. Damn! I think I really lucked out. Find Jantzen swimsuits here! If you are around a TJ Maxx or Marshall's, I suggest you go check it out. Or, if money isn't an issue, check out the store finder on their website. Chances are though, what fits for me won't fit for you. But I'd like to know if any of you ladies have found a brand that works for you. Share it with us all, enlighten us if you will! Leave a comment, or email me if you'd rather not share it with everyone. Anything to make this process easier is greatly appreciated, am I right!?

...Paula Deen, ya'll!!

2008-05-20T17:51:00.011-05:00

I normally don't like Paula. She is sort of obnoxious and quite frankly her false eyelashes make me cringe a little. But I've been sick and a couch potato lately, and she was all that on was on TV Sunday afternoon, so I tuned in. She made this yummy looking lemon cream sauce, and even though I am sick (with a head cold) it made me want it! Ok, so I sort of like Paula now.

I looked for the recipe online and I can't find it! But I enjoyed it so much, I decided to blog about it. It is a very easy thing to make, and you don't have to make a lot of it, you can just make enough for you. Its very easy to eyeball, which is what I did. I don't ever really measure unless I'm baking.

Basic ingredients:
fresh parsley, chopped (shown IN the chopper!)
some onion and fresh garlic, also chopped (not shown)
milk (not shown)
sour cream
margarine (not shown)
lemon, zest and juice
parmesan cheese (fresh cheese would be better!)
pasta of your choice (Paula used linguini, I like rotini, whole grain of course)
First, chop your onions and garlic. Put some margarine in your frying pan, and get them nice and brown. My onions and garlic look a little green because I chopped them in my Cuisinart Mini Prep Plus Processor after I chopped the parsely, and didn't clean it out. hehe (= If you don't own one of those choppers, GO GET ONE NOW. Your heat should be medium to low, you don't want to burn the garlic. I have the pasta boiling on the back burner while I'm doing all this. Don't forget about it!
Once it is brown, add your dollop of Daisy. Yep, now it is time for the sour cream. Paula used A LOT. I just scooped it out and mixed it in until it seemed creamy enough. Then I added a splash of milk. Turn your heat up a little, but keep stirring it. Now you can add your parsley (shown below), lemon juice and zest. This is where you need to taste and eyeball. After that is stirred in, add your parmesan. Again, I have no recipe, so just taste and stir and eyeball. This is the beautiful part of cooking, because now it becomes not just something to eat, but something you actually made and cared about. It's like artwork. Just be creative.
When your sauce has reached your desired consistency, taste, and lemony-ness, you can take your [cooked] pasta and just plop it into the sauce pan and mix it all together. My sauce wasn't as creamy as Paula's. (I don't see how that woman isn't 500 pounds by now!) I think I also added more cheese than she did. (I LOVE cheese...) Here is what my finished product looked like:
I think the photo is a little grey..I tried getting some natural light. But it was a nice off white and parsley-colored yumminess. If you are serving this for others, add a sprig of parsley and a twist of lemon.

So there you have it! I think it took me 15 minutes to make a portion just for myself. Very good and very easy. Perfect if you don't really cook a lot. Just keep in mind that garlic can burn if the heat is up too high, and milk/cream can scorch for the same reason. Have fun with it, ya'll!!

...Indiana Wildlife

2008-05-10T22:48:00.009-05:00

Pet Peeve of the Week
When I see someone throw something in the trash can that could very well be recycled by walking a few more feet down the hallway.
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OK, well, Indiana and wildlife doesn't really go together as you can imagine. Most of you know of my disapproval of living in this area, but until I can get out of here (which I hope is sooo soon), I'm going to try and find little things that make me smile and amplify them a bit. So here you have it, a blog about geese.

A lot of people here do not like the geese. Around April or May, the geese come back from where ever they were during the winter. I'd like to think that someday when I'm retired, if I live in an area that has winter, I would just leave when it gets cold then return when it gets nice again! These little guys know how to live the good life, don't they?

I don't specifically know what kind of geese they are. Canadian, aye? Whatever they are, they're about 2 feet tall and they have this really loud honk (which I can imitate as you might have guessed!), and they have these cute black webbed feet that make a flop noise when they walk. They roam around my apartment complex as if they own the place! Management tells us not to feed them so they don't make a "mess", but they're wild animals after all, they're going to make a mess whether management likes it or not!

Now to the photos! There are lots of geese laying eggs everywhere. They just pick a spot and nest there for a couple months. One of them has a nest on top of a small hill, near a young skinny tree, very close to the entrance of the complex. One day last week I noticed this goose actually standing up over the nest. Stretching her legs, maybe? So I decided to go photograph her. They usually hiss when you get near. This one definitely hissed at me multiple times.

But I've never seen a goose standing up over her nest, so I wanted to try and get a little closer.
Annndd....a little closer...more hissing...
This is the closest I got. I was about 3 feet away, and she started to step around the nest a bit. I stayed where I was and just zoomed in as far as I could. I would feel AWFUL (to say the least) if I found out that this goose abandoned her nest just to try and bite me because she felt threatened!

So here is the closest I got with my zoom lens, and I had my settings to take photos at 150dpi, so it looks really cool I think!
Those eggs were so big!
So hopefully there will be baby geese wandering around outside my apartment! Her nesting area is really only across the parking lot, so it's really close to my place. Stay tuned for baby geese photos!

What kind of "wildlife" do you all have in your area? Leave a comment and let me know! Oh and remember I'm a vegetarian, so if you enjoy hunting your wildlife...refrain from sharing please! (:

...a Bunch of Things

2008-05-07T19:24:00.010-05:00

Well everyone, my mind has been scattered lately, so this blog will follow that. I usually have been posting on Sundays, but it just escaped me this week, so you get your post on a Wednesday night!
Before I begin with my planned stuff to write about...I'm watching America's Next Top Model and I just have to say Nigel Barker is delicious! Don't you agree?

I've been thinking that for each of my blogs I am going to do a "Pet Peeve of the Week" since I have so many of them! I will provide no explanation, we all know pet peeves are annoying, the last thing you guys need is to hear more complaining from me! haha. Here it goes, imagine some theme music or something:
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PET PEEVE OF THE WEEK:
People who chew [anything] with their mouth open.

Saturday was an eventful day for me. I voted for the first time in my life. (Indiana primary, we could vote early.) You all probably know, but I voted for OBAMA! Unfortunately, he did not win Indiana. But the outlook for him winning the candidacy is looking quite nice. Ok enough politics. Before I voted on Saturday, I went to the local farmer's market with my parents. I have actually never been to one of these! What was I thinking! I really wanted to start going so I could buy eggs which weren't mass-harvested. Let's just say I ran across a PETA video again in the past few weeks and since then I refuse to buy mass-produced eggs. I'd rather my breakfast comes from happy chickens who are just there to walk around and lay eggs all day. (That's what I would like to think, anyway.)

At the farmers market there was a mushroom booth with these lovely portobellos a big as my face. They also had a bunch of exotic looking mushrooms I have never seen before. So I got brave and purchased 3 varieties, I have no idea what they are called, my mom has their label cards I think.

Those big, halfway normal looking ones towards the bottom of the photo have such a delightful smell, its as if they don't even need any seasoning. I sliced them up and put them on a hummus sandwich for lunch today. They are so good! The mass of crazy looking ones got chopped up and put in some tomato sauce, they are very firm and have a tofu-like texture when cooked, so it made almost like a meat sauce.

Now, those white ones, those are just fun to look at...They didn't have much of a taste. I sauteed them in a tiny bit of margarine and garlic and just tossed it with some angel hair pasta. Definitely more fun to look at than eat.

After the farmers market and voting, and making that pasta with the mushrooms, I met with a personal trainer for the first time ever. (Lots of firsts this weekend!) I've been a member of the gym for about a year now and I'm happy with my body, except for that one problem area. Come on ladies, you know where I'm talking about. The butt and the back of the thighs. Ah cellulite, you face me with a challenge during swim suit season. The trainer showed me lots of things I can do with one of those big pilates balls. Then she showed me stuff to do on the machines in the gym. Oh man I hurt on Sunday!! But I bought one of these anyway, and I love it!
I just need you all to do me a favor. If I come anywhere close to looking like this woman on the box, MAKE ME STOP! That's just scary!!
I had a Kohl's coupon for $10 off any purchase that expired on Saturday, so after I scraped myself off the floor and cleaned up a bit after the trainer, I hoisted it to Kohl's. I had every intention of getting a new shower curtain so I could start to redo my bathroom, but I didn't see any that I liked, so naturally I went to the shoe department. And I got these! Aren't they adorable! And we all LOVE a coupon.

On Sunday, I went to my parent's house to do laundry, which is usually my Sunday routine, because hey, laundry is free there, hello! My dad was planting some trees. My little brother was digging the holes, so I helped out a little too. Yard work is a rarity for me, everyone. You all know what a princess I am. I mean, look at those shoes, how can one do yard work in shoes like that? (=
Ok so I wasn't wearing THOSE shoes of course! Anyway, here is one of the little trees we planted.
It's the little one on the left, not the evergreens. They also planted the bush on the other side of the trees. As you can partially see in the photo, their neighbors have, um, a quite "decorated" yard and about 100 children, so I think my parents are trying to create a little privacy!

That is about all! Just a little update, I've created a new AIM screen name: LaLaLaurenRose82, so update that on your buddy lists. I'm going to stop using the other one. And if you've never IMed me before, what are you waiting on? Send me a little message. Or leave me a little comment. Let me know how you're all doing!