saving it for later

I’m not entirely sure what this is, but I can’t stop playing with it. Check it out peeps! My friend Mo suggests getting stoned prior to engaging.

Well, 2008 has certainly been an interesting year. Instead of the traditional High/Low, I’ve decided to simply post my calendar….my old school pen and paper calendar that I got at Kmart on sale. In this day of Google Calendar, iPhones, and blackberries I STILL use a regular old calendar…just like there is no true replacement for mac and cheese, there is still no digital replacement for that feeling of satisfaction when you manually cross off a task that’s been on your agenda.

So if we take a look at the calendar:

January: Slow, because I was on vacation for half of it, and didn’t get the calendar tll towards the end. Hence, it is empty.

February: Started off spectacularly, with a great birthday party at HUGS. Drinks were had, love connections were made, and I danced like a fool. It was fantastic.

March: Was slower, getting into the groove of things. I spent most of March working on my portfolio and went on a fantastic ski trip to Stowe in Vermont!

April: Obviously much busier. Portfolio was in final stages, started meeting with people to figure what to do with myself.

May: I’m not sure why I split May in half?

June: BUSY. Finished up at Futurebrand, looking for next gig.

July: Went corporate. Beached with my friends in Connecticut and in the Hamptons.

August: As friends returned from summer trips and others starting school, social life in the city picked up a bit.

September: While empty, was probably the most exciting month of the entire year. By this time, I figured out corporate was not for me, I went to London

October: Also empty. But I dressed up like an Oompa Loompa for Halloween and it was fun! I’m noticing a trend here…empty calendar = good month?

November: Amazing! Also a bit empty….but I was too busy living life instead of planning for it.

December: Not so bad, but stayed in NYC for the holidays for first time ever (not making THAT mistake again, I assure you). I’ve finished the year off on better terms but…the year is not over yet, and the best is yet to come.

Earlier this week, I tried to incorporate my old Facebook posts and notes into WordPress. Clearly, that did NOT happen. I downloaded several PlugIns in hopes that I could somehow transfer the posts easily. I tried creating an RSS feed. Nope and nope. I can, however, transfer my WordPress posts into Facebook. Which is fine, if you like templated crap. I want to customize my page, I want it to give my website it’s own unique look and feel. I don’t want the same Facebook page everyone else has. Isn’t customization part of the whole ‘creating my own identity’ idea? And yes, I know there are PlugIns that transfer my status updates and all that jazz, but what if I don;t want everyone knowing EVERYTHING. WAH WAH WAH.

I’ve had the “Facebook is going to take” over conversation with colleagues and friends, but it wasn’t until this moment I realized just how frustrating the takeover will be.

There are some MAJOR issues here. Facebook is building up to be a freakin huge monopoly. Going to every website online social site is annoying. I never check Twitter. I hardly go to Plannersphere. And why can’t I just compile all my pics under ONE site. If Facebook is going to take over, it needs to let me use every other site I use in a fluid manner. And until it does, I won’t be happy.

Dumping the blame on all these issues onto Facebook isn’t really fair. Clearly the concept of Open Source Platforms is much much bigger than that. But it just feels good to blame someone when you can’t get your way.

They kinda feel the same way:

http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/05/26/facebook-to-open-source-facebook-platform/

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/how_open_is_facebook_really.php

I’ve been on a brief hiatus the past week or so. I had a unique opportunity to visit my friend Mo in London. This was a HUGE deal for me since:

1. Mo is the most amazing person in the world
2. I’ve never been to London, or the UK, for that matter
3. NYC was seriously cramping my style

What can I say? IT WAS FANTASTIC. I did the usual touristy stuff, but there were some really excceptional places, people, and events. Some of the highlights inlcluded:

The Crown Jewels at the Tower of London - I didn’t expect much because I’m not usually the ‘bling bling’ kind of girl (or as Lauren/Catherine Tate would say “Bing bing”). I admit though, once I saw the shiny gleam of diamonds and gemstones,  I couldn’t get enough. These were the most beautiful jewels I have seen in my life. The only thing stopping me from trying the jeweled tiara on and prancing around like a princess was the glass box and 5 million security guards.  *sigh*

National Portrait Gallery: Probably one of the best museums I’ve ever been to, if not the BEST. The main selling points are that it’s free and boasts one of the most impressive collections in the world. The biggest reason worth going is that it’s a museum that you actually WANT to go. Located in the  center of Trafalgur Square, it’s close to all the major sights (Westminster, Covent Garden) and surrounded by beautiful sculptures (those famous lions). What made this museum better than the MET or Whitney is the learning center by the cafe downstairs. You can search for art pieces by artists name or piece name, even just part of their name., What’s even cooler, let’s say you don’t know what you want to see, just that you want to see famous things because you’re a tourist and that’s what tourits do. So you can select ‘Themed Tours” and the computer will give you a selection of tours pre-made for you (ready-made seems to be a very British thing).  They had a great variety from “Greatest Hits” to  “Drinking and Debauchery”. Some others tours were “Michaelnagelo Top 10″ “Impressionists Inspirations” and “Love and Romance” “Creepy Crwalies for Kids”. You could click on each painting to enlarge the image on screen and read more. OR, you could also print out the entire tour (usually 5-10 paintings) and the printers would print (for free!) thumbnails of the paintings and highlight a map for you indicating which room the painting was in. AWESOME. Such a great way to use technology in the arts. It truly encouraged visitors who are pressed for time to actually see what great pieces are on view.

Sunday Roast: Sunday Roast: Overall, the food wasn’t spectacular, but Sunday Roast was worth waiting for. Mo and I visited his friend Yasmin (sweetest girl ever) who lived in Crystal Palace. It was there that we had this traditional meal that only takes place, obviously, on Sunday.   Even though I’d had tea and cake that very morning I still ate most of my meal because it was THAT good. It consisted of Yorshire Pudding (pronounced York-Sheer), cinammon broccoli and carrots, sirloin beef in a sort if gravy, and roasted potatoes. I didn’t have high expectations, but this was delicious. Yum!

On the last day of my trip Mo and I went down to Paddington Station to see my favorite bear. It was cool to see my furry friend, with his tag and suitcase. This trip certainly rejuventaed me in a way that was very much needed. I feel much more focused and inspired. And if P-bear can travel from Peru to London and make do, I can do anything too.

I have the best friends in the world. Thank you, Mo.

I really wish I knew more about coding. The design part I generally get but it’s difficult to get it all down just.right.so. For tonight, I’m fine with what I have here. Simple. That will be a later post!

Goodnight dear friends.