Back to Work

Wow it's been a busy bunch of days. Let me catch you up. Last week I got the news that I have a new job. Yay! That set off a whole chain of events on Thursday and Friday, from peeing in a cup to shopping again. I'll skip the details on the former (you're welcome) and expand on the latter. When you are looking for a job - especially when you are of a certain age - they tell you to network. In fact "they" tell you that only 10-15% of jobs are filled from internet/resume applications. The remainder are through personal connections. That's LIVE people, folks. With this information in hand, I began telling everyone I knew, from my cousins to my hair cutter, that I was looking for a job. Everyone promised to mention me to someone they knew but no one managed to convince me I would ever hear from that person.

I started to get nervous, as my mortgage payments inched closer to exceeding my bank balance, and decided to call a realtor to put my condo on the market. I chose her at random from the internet and we made an appointment for her to see the place. When she arrived we chatted for a few minutes and then I began the tour. Afterwards she sat down and blurted out "I'm not going to sell your place - I need to find you a job!" I was flabbergasted. She said "It's so obvious you love it here and that's my job as a realtor - to put {or keep} people in the house they want to live in." To make this long story a little less long - well, she gave me the name and email address of a friend of hers, after a few misfires I got an interview and ultimately they offered me the job!

Crazy, coincidental, unbelievable. ME! The person who is so solitary I prefer to go to the movies alone - I got a job through networking! So last week was spent filling out forms, getting drug tested (oh really!) and preparing a truly personal and heartfelt thank you gift for my new favorite realtor (thus the shopping). So I have another 2 weeks to tie up loose ends, finally tackle some projects around here, get some new clothes and get back to work.

HiHo Redux

I know I've posted about HiHo Home Market before but I am a little obsessed with that place! I took a ride up there again today. Look at the pretty window boxes! So cute. The shop owner has such a wonderful eye for display. SUCH a wonderful eye, as a matter of fact that - I finally realized - I love her store more than I like her product. Every little corner is evidence of a special kind of devotion, each diverse item so lovingly placed. I think if she ran a butcher shop I would want to hang out there! I visit often, not necessarily to shop but to enjoy the atmosphere. I do try to buy something each time I visit, to support her efforts and small business owners in general. Don't get me wrong, her mix of merchandise - foods, spa products, new and old jewelry, vintage and reproduction furniture, books and stationery - certainly makes it easy enough to find a little sump-in' to love. Yet I likely wouldn't be compelled to buy the same item if I saw it in a department store. Wait a minute - did I just have an Arsenio moment? Did I just find something to make me go "Hmmm?" Do you think maybe THAT'S one of the keys to success in the oh-so-hard-to-compete-in world of retail? Perhaps being true to one's heart is as important as having a national presence. Maybe offering merchandise that one believes in is as important as carrying every hot new thing. Is it possible that an owner, like Heidi, is as important - or more important - than an army of buyers, crunching numbers and not caring about the product?

I imagine her each morning cheerfully greeting the postman, accepting this day's new treasure. Carefully peeling tape off the carton, like a child pulling the ribbon from a birthday gift, she gingerly pokes her hand inside, searching for the little gem through the packing. Excitement builds as it emerges. She lovingly unwraps the surprise, turning it over and over, as it coyly reveals itself, a little at a time. She holds it, gazes at it, wonders just where it wants to live. She has an idea - maybe in the front corner, with it's sunny yellow siblings. Or rather, nestled amongst its aged brethren in the cozy back nook. So many possibilities but, in the end, only one right answer.

I guess I should reveal right here and now that I am so inspired, I am seriously considering that this is the right time to open my own shop. Cause or effect? Probably a little of both. I've had the thought many, many - many - times over the years. Originally I wanted to have a gallery-shop offering handcrafted, artisan goods. While I would love that I know the immense investment and risk of that kind of venture was, for me, self-defeating. I have another idea now and am in the process of coming up with the ole elevator pitch. In fact I am using the blog format to develop images, ideas, plans etc. I will post about it when I get closer (shhhh...please don't tell the unemployment police!).

 Everybody have a great Memorial Day - but please take a few moments to honor, in some way, the brave men and women who have given so much for all of us!

Bright Spots

Gosh what a dreary day it has been! I can't remember one this relentlessly gray in a long while. But of course there are always bright spots to be found. How about working from Starbucks with an iced caramel macchiato alongside? It sure beats the office kitchen, a cup full of the burnt end of the pot with skim milk and a packet of Equal.

A quick run to the bank in this wet mess of a day. I think I'll stay off the highway. Not so familiar with this road. Reward! How great is this? Can you see that the trim is a dark grass green and the awnings - the AWNINGS! - are chartreuse? I may not paint my house these colors but I'm sure glad someone did!

Back home...more work to do...seems like that calls for a yummy cupcake from Moxie by way of Gardiner's Village Market and Bakery! Which do you crave? Red velvet with a dollop of chocolate ganache in the middle, topped with a rich cream cheese frosting and a dark chocolate heart (Hmmm bad omen? The heart broke on the way home.) Classic vanilla cake with a pretty pink buttercream and pearl dragees. Chocolate cupcake with a tart cherry filling, whipped butter frosting, chocolate shavings and a chocolate covered cherry crown.

Inspired

I was caught in another of those frustrating click and browse loops the other day when I found these pictures hiding on my hard drive. I wanted to share these inspiring works of art. Retail store windows, works of art? Well yes, kind of. Bergdorf's Christmas windows are everything you'd expect from a high end, obscenely materialistic, style-forward NYC establishment. A little garish. A bit overwhelming. A spectacle. Read the PR release that accompanies each year's offering and you almost have to laugh at the convoluted narrative that serves as the artist's statement. However to use a tired old phrase: the proof is in the pudding.

One may be skeptical of the oh so cerebral collective inspiration proffered by the windows' team of designers but the finished products do come through! Each vignette presents a richly appointed and fantastical environment, usually inhabited by a spectacular fashion centerpiece, lusciously extravagant materials and a serious amount of highly detailed often handmade props. The couture of choice provides the jumping off point for the main color or material story. From there it's definitely designer gone wild! Handmade paper props - fancifully scaled reptiles, majestically maned lions, delicately feathered birds, all made of intricately formed papers - have been a repeating motif. Jewel-like materials, with reflective, faceted, beveled or pearlized finishes are used as the armor on a crocodile. Lush braided wool, bullion fringe and silky rope are twisted and knotted into a stallion's grand tack.

But my favorite over the years has been the gorgeous gingerbread window. A charming winter white dress with contrasting undercut detailing adorns a seated figure. She is surrounded by a baker's dream: every manner of white-frosted gingerbread-colored confection populates her world. There is a table covered in lace and laden with treats. A large glass breakfront, sporting a gingerbread version of Moroccan pearl inlay, is full of cakes large and small, on stands and plates. The foreground features a stunning Victorian-style gingerbread dollhouse. Another model, the wallcovering and additional furniture carry the theme while offering a bit of contrast with more of the spicy tan color. I love this display. If you are in the area between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day make sure to stop by and see this New York treasure. Leave enough time to browse the killer jewelry department as well! (Bergdorf Goodman, 57th Street and Fifth Avenue).

Two Lovely Places

I have 2 new favorite spots to visit when I've time to spend roaming around "the County". They are each quite different from the other but - don't be a hater - each has its own unique pleasures. Hi Ho Home Market, in Gardiner NY, is a really charming shop in a picture book setting, with a personal touch that cannot be duplicated. The product mix of vintage and new, precious and practical, surely reflects its owners sensibility. I've gotten to know Heidi just a bit by following Hi Ho's Facebook postings and her "all-in" approach is what attracts me to this gem of a shop. Check it out at http://www.facebook.com/HiHoHome.

Jasmine Imports is a whole other story. Converted by the owner from import-export warehouse to retail shop in 2008, Jasmine stocks all the hot and trendy merch you'll ever need. From scarves and purses to bath salts, baby gifts to glitter balls, hand made jewelry to concrete garden ornaments there is nothing subtle here! But many of the items are so pretty and fun that one can easily be seduced. And (in this one little way) like HiHo, this shop's owner is it's heart and soul. If you are taking the slow way down to the city any day of the week, stop in and take a look (route 17S in Southfields, NY opposite another Orange County treasure The Red Apple Rest).

I Should Have Just Stayed Home

Grrrrr - how can one day be so irritating! I should have realized, when I made my coffee this morning and poured the grounds out of the maker BEFORE I hit the brew switch, that it was a good day to stay home. But I didn't. Instead I traipsed up and down the stairs, back and forth to the car four times before I had everything I needed. Then I got my "usual" at the bagel shop: flat everything with vegetable cream cheese. Only the gal helping me, after spending 30 seconds pre-occupied over not being able to get her glove on, made me plain cream cheese on a regular everything (and I didn't check until I was on my way). And it didn't get any better - later I went on to the supermarket where: I left all my reuseable bags in the car; my coupon for $3.50 off was expired even though I only got it last week and the self-checkout scanner did not pick up half my items. Fun time passing that 25 lb box of logs over and in front of the scanner again and again and again! Like I said - GRRRRR!

Weekend With Ma

So it's Saturday. Really just the beginning of the weekend to most but I fell like it's done for I had Mom over for a couple of nights, having picked her up after work on Thursday. We stopped on the way North for a quick bite and arrived in time for a nice cup of coffee, the late news and off to bed. I made our favorite, Eggs Benedict, for breakfast on Friday, then we spent the afternoon browsing at Adams Fairacre Farms which we both always enjoy. We had dinner at Cosimo's Newburgh - I love, love, love their flatbread with truffle oil, caramelized onions and 2 kinds of cheese - and spent some nice, quiet time together. Back to Queens this morning and now....ugh housecleaning, laundry, bill-paying...how long until Monday??