Night and Day in the Hood

In one month's time I will no longer have the luxury of living a block from Columbus Circle. No more quotidian trips to Whole Foods (sometimes I don't even buy anything, just find myself in need of a little browse-thru to make sure everything's in check) and no more Saturday nights at the opera...God, the trials of being a college graduate. But who am I kidding? In the 3 1/2 years that I've lived next to Lincoln Center I've never seen a performance, and honestly, it's about time I distance myself from that organic food oasis. I believe my university's motto is, "Fordham is my school, New York is my campus", which, for me, translates to, "Fordham is my school, Whole Foods is my campus". It's shameful, I know.

I look forward to my new neighborhood, which will most likely be in Harlem or Brooklyn, but for now, Columbus Circle will do just fine.

Sweat in Style

It's not quite cold enough to discourage me from running, however, come December it's going to take more than an adrenalin rush to get me outside. With this in mind, I decided to get back into Bikram yoga. Well, actually, Sunday prompted this change as Central Park was closed to all but New York Marathon runners. I thought I could weasel my way in but just a block from the park I was faced with a flash mob, barricades and police officers:

So, I took my business up to Bikram Yoga NYC on 72nd and sweated away all the toxins of Halloween weekend. The uniform 90 minute class consists of two sets of 26 poses in a room heated to 105 F with 40% humidity. During this time you sweat profusely, usually losing 1-3 pounds of water. It's hot, it's exhilarating but above all it's good for the mind and great for the bod. It does, however, require an entirely different wardrobe than running. Function is key, but aesthetic is also important; when you look good you feel good and when you feel good you kick ass. If you're going to sweat, you may as well do it in style. Below I've included a selection of my favorite items for both Bikram and cold weather running.

Bikram:

Lululemon (Top L)       Prana (Top R)       Nux (Bottom L)       SPACECAT (Bottom R)

Under Armour (Top L)       O'Neill (Top R)       Nux (Bottom L)       Onzie (Bottom R)

Running:

Icebreaker (Top L)       Sugoi (Top R)       Patagonia (Bottom L)       Smartwool (Bottom R)

                                Oiselle                                                                                             Zella                                  

                        Nike                                                                          Columbia (literally the best)

Running? Check. Bikram? Check. Wrestling? Eh, Zealand says it's overrated...

Fall in Central Park

Ten consecutive days of 6.5 mile runs through Central Park, roughly 17 million pictures and here are the fruits of my labor:

p.s. Zealand says hi.

Master of the Light Man

Rather than catch every week's episode of my favorite TV shows, I prefer to wait until the seasons come out on Netflix. There's just something so right about a nice binge-watching session. I've been trying to stay away lately, as I'm working on my thesis, but the fifth season of Parks and Rec just hit the metaphorical shelves of Netflix and I can't stop. Those of you who follow the show, I know you understand. Those of you who don't follow it, start and that feeling of "there's something missing"will subside. The topic of this blog post has nothing to do with Parks and Rec, aside from the fact that I'm writing it in between episodes. I lied, film is creative expression and so is photography, and there's my transition.

Creating a space and capturing it are both art forms. I'm confident enough in my creativity to say that I can successfully do both, however, I seem to be the best at occupying space, so I'll leave the rest to the professionals. I'm unsure as to whom created these rooms (or who the lucky homeowners are), but Jordi Canosa, a photographer from Barcelona, has perfectly captured the tastefulness of the following residences. What I admire most about these photographs is the light composition; most of the rooms have a sort of calm and welcoming glow that translates to happiness in the viewer (at least that's how I feel). I guess it's always sunny on the Iberian Peninsula...

But where's the Round Table?

Bike in the castle, nice touch.

That green!

I'd be fine with living in just that entryway. 

Meow.

Blue and white is always right.

Love the beams!

There's nothing like a good looking bookshelf, really though.

I like the chartreuse juice, but I can't figure out what kind it is...

Seriously, love all the beams!

And to think that this is someone's backyard, rough life,  just saying.

I would give anything to take a nap on that couch.

Wood is good.

Moroccan flare is always welcome.

Great door frame but it would seriously hurt to smoke your head on one of those corners...

It even has a treehouse!

And this is just perfection manifest in an Andorran mountain cabin and I want it for my own.


(All photos via here)

 I took a couple breaks while putting this together and finished Parks and Rec...so now I'll return to Always Sunny and hopefully find inspiration for a few more witty titles.

Fatboy

I'd always wanted one growing up, and now that I'm 22 years old, I've finally found the perfect bean bag. The original Fatboy bean bag was created by Finnish designer, Jukka Setälä, in 1998. Setälä's design is known for its comfort, style and easy to clean fabric. The Fatboy line now extends farther than "the original", and includes pillows, hammocks, rugs, pet beds and a variety of accessories.

"With its generous size and energizing comfort, it is always there to maximize whatever pleasure you choose." Twist my arm!

Chairs, I scoff at you. I don't want to sit, goddammit, I want to lounge! Fatboy for life.

And when I thought it couldn't get any better, boom, Marimekko.

Shout out to my fatboy, Zealand, back in Alaska. Now that's a dog worthy of a Doggielounge: