Zoo Animal Escapees.

In response to the big media fuss made over the Bronx Zoo's escaped cobra, the Gothamist has created a list of pre-approved animals that can escape the zoo for a few days.

 The red panda tops their list.

Smokey, the purring cat.

Smokey, the purring cat, may have the loudest purr in the world, but I am pretty sure my cat Sweet Pea could take her in a contest of nocturnal yowling, meowing, and overall audible annoyance.

Living Walls.

Holy crap.  I love love LOVE this wall.  I would love to do one of these indoors.

10 Types of People I Don't Like.

Inspired by Becky Lang's list on The Tangential here are a few types of people I could do without.
1. People who eat with their mouths open.  It's bad manners and it drives me nuts.
2. The s l o o o o w talker.  Comeonspititout. 
3. The faux eater / drinker.  They constantly talk about how hungry they are but as you look at their full plate they have taken maybe two bites.  Pushing the food around on your plate is not the same as putting it in your mouth.  Same thing applies to those special individuals that can magically make 1 drink last for 4 hours.  Seriously?
4. The walk-n-stop.  This applies to malls, sidewalks, grocery stores, paths, moving walkways, etc.  If you need to stop for any reason - whether to dig in your purse, or send a text message, or take a picture, or stare at the sky or whatever - move the eff out of the way.  Treat walking like the left lane of the highway. 
5. People who talk about moving (constantly).  Great, you hate Minneapolis or wherever.  Shut the eff up and move already. 
6. Yoga freaks.  Seriously, I don't care.  CorePower Yoga does not give you spiritual enlightenment or make you a better person.
7. The stoplight breaker. The light is green.  This means you slow down so as to purposefully not make it (thus preventing me from making it).
8. People who repeat themselves.  Really?  We've been talking for 10 minutes and all I've heard you say is: You like my top.  You think I have lost weight.  You love me. None of these things are likely true. Congratulations - you are officially a compliment iPod on repeat.
9. Jesus freaks.
10. Stupid people.

Target Field - Good Eats

With a mere 10 days to go before the MN Twins home opener (yes, I am going, thankyouverymuch), the Twins go and do something awesome.  The Twins and the concession/food folks just announced a bunch of additional tasty local food options.  I can't wait to eat (spill) the following items really soon:
- Turkey to Go - A mouth-watering taste of the Minnesota State Fair since 1959, the Giant Juicy Turkey Sandwich.
- Walk A Taco - El Burrito Mercado, a local Mexican favorite in St. Paul's "District del Sol" for more than 30 years, lends this concept - a tortilla-based cone, stuffed with authentic taco ingredients.
- Minneapple Pie - What better to have with baseball than apple pie? Armed with a century-old family recipe, the Atsidakos family developed this individual apple pie in the 1960s at Peter's Grill in Minneapolis and now serves it in the family-run Cottage Grill in Rogers, Minn. It's featured at the State Fair and will now be supplied to Sportservice to serve at Target Field.

And  for those gluten-free individuals out there (my sister.  my dog), they have also compiled a list of wonderful gluten-free ballpark food options:

Gluten-Free Options

• Angie's Kettle Corn - Sold on Target Plaza and vended in the stands
• Farmers market - Section 141
  • Whole fruit
  • Carrots with Ranch dipping sauce
  • Gluten Free Nut snacks
• Veggie Kabobs - Section 133
• Shrimp Skewers - Section 133
• Turkey Leg - Sections 133,311
• Pork Chop on a stick - Section 133
• Fruichi Smoothies - Vended in the stands
• Talenti Gelato - Sections 141, 302
• Red bridge Beer - Sections 116, 124, 325
• Bunless Grilled chicken - available throughout Target Field
• Bunless Hot Dogs - available throughout Target Field
  • Twins Big Dog
  • The Original Twins Dog
  • The Dinger Dog
  • The Dugout Dog - Vended in the stands
• Rachel's Kettle Chips
• Nachos and Cheese
• Cracker Jack
• Land O Lakes soft serve ice cream
• Push Up Fruit Bars
• Premium Bars

Dolce Vita for Target.

In the past, I have been a big fan of Target's Go International design partnerships.  Proenza Schouler - Awesome.  Jovovich-Hawk. . . so-so.  Right now, Target has a special line of shoes designed by Dolce Vita.  Yesterday, while waiting for a prescription, I had a chance to check them out.

Overall I was underwhelmed as usual - something about the plasticized faux leather is a real no-go for me.  With the exception of  the gold cork platforms above, I think I'll take a pass on the entire collection.  $29.99 is a great price for shoes, but for some reason I just couldn't pull the trigger. 

Sleep No More.

Despite the $75 price tag, Sleep No More looks amazing. 

Boston Moonrise.

This picture of the March 19th moonrise in Boston is pretty ridiculous. It looks fake, but isn't.

Etsy love: Llama stuff.

My love (obsession) of Etsy is no secret.  I can easily spend hours browsing for things I never knew I wanted nor needed.  The different search option results and the abundance of new listings and weird crazy stuff never ceases to amaze me.  Today, I typed in the search term "llama."  There are 1,559 llama-related items on Etsy.  Here is small sampling of some favorites.

Llama Fine Art Print

Fake Grass Llama Figurine

 Llama Hoodie Sweatshirt

Llama Jewelry (why the heck not?!)

Llama Giclee Print

Pandas after the Earthquake.

My husband forwarded an email to me yesterday with the following content:

The earthquake was right in the area where giant pandas live.  Most pandas in this area were rescued, particular attention was given to the babies, all the pandas were scared. The photos were taken right after earthquake and during rescue effort care. All the pandas were released back into the wild and it was noted that all of the bears stayed together.

Red Pandas: I want one.

In the words of Cute Overload, "Why can't we all have red pandas as pets?"

Oh weird. It's snowing (again).

We're nearing the end of March, and Mother Nature is handing us one last eff you.  It's snowing (hard).  When all is said and done, we're supposed to get around 7".  I have mixed feelings about this: I am OVER winter, and ready for 85 and sunny.  On the other hand, this will make the Afton Alps $5 lift ticket days this weekend a possibility. 

New Year's Resolution: Update

New Year's resolutions in general are all sorts of garbage.  People aim high and maybe make it to February.  You know the type: I will work-out everyday.  I will lose 30 lbs.  I will get married.  I will not eat sweets.  I used to think in these terms when it came to resolutions.  I would set my sights high.  Then I would slip up and inevitably thrown in the towel on the whole venture.  A couple years ago I decided to give myself more reasonable goals. Since doing so, I have been batting 1.000.  Here they are:

2009
GOAL: Learn how to open a bottle of champagne all by myself.   
STATUS: Accomplished - no problemo.  Added bonus - We filled our champagne cork jar (giant jar).

2010
GOAL: Learn how to use eyeliner, especially liquid eyeliner, without looking like a child or a whore or a child whore.
STATUS: Accomplished.  This one was slow going for a while.  Finally, thanks to Kat Von D's Tattoo Liner, I can line like a pro and look only slightly whorish.

2011
GOAL: Read more - Specifically read at least 1 book per week.
STATUS: So far, so good.  I am averaging about 1 1/2 books per week.  On Sunday, I finished The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (Great book.  Great trilogy).  Last night, I finished Jenny McCarthy's Love, Lust & Faking It: The Naked Truth about Sex, Lies & true Romance, which I think may have been the worst book I've read so far this year.

Dog Therapy

Yale Law School is offering sessions with a therapy dog to combat stress.  Students can check out a “therapy dog” named Monty for a 30 minute therapy session from the school's library.  No word yet what kind of dog Monty is - though word has it that he is hypoallergenic.  I wish they had therapy dogs to check out from the library when I was in school.

March showers bring. . .

Puddles.  Lots of puddles.  It is raining rather hard in the Minnie Apple today.  It's gloomy and overcast.  The weather is good for sleeping, reading, and having a fire.  It's not so great for going to work or getting anything done. 

Ping-Pong in the Park.

This is really cool.  It's also really sad that the general expectation is that the table will immediately be tagged, destroyed or stolen.

Ping-pong in Tompkins Square Park.

Taxi Llama.

I want this Jason Ratliff print.  Real bad. 

Pets in the Bedroom

Apartment Therapy just did a photo round-up called Pets in the Bedroom.  I have to say it is a brilliant compilation.  I always seem to like interior design shots more when they have an animal in them.  Here are some favorites.

Cool green stuff on Etsy.

Glass Moss Cluster Ring

Green Path to Something Magical Photography Print

Mint Green Leather Cord Bangles

Dutch Map Shirt

Lemongrass Chunky Crochet Cowl

Pretty Birdie's Bamboo & Organic Cotton Dress

Happy St. Patrick's Day.

Every year Chicago celebrates St. Patrick's Day by dying the Chicago River green. This blows my mind. How can something so stunningly bright be environmentally friendly? Who knows? Anywho - it looks super cool. Here is a great video about how they do it, as well as some stunningly bright images.