My pitas page

compass
c and i are going here tonight to celebrate on this made-up lovey holiday. but really, it's hard to knock valentine's day when one gets a yummy meal out of it, in addition to hanging out with a nice guy. right? right!

daredevil
went to a "sneak preview" screening last night, which only about 2 dozen people attended. i felt like daddy warbucks in his private movie theater...except for the couple who brought their four year old daughter to the 9 pm show. (what is UP with that?) anyhoo, the movie was quite entertaining. the story was much darker than spiderman, which i liked, and ben affleck is not too shabby-looking in a red leather costume. and colin farrell was born to play his totally fucked-up character, which was fun to watch. my only real problem with it, which i also had with spiderman, is that i felt like not a whole lot *happens*, despite the fact that there is stuff going on every minute. i just was not satisfied at the end, which by the way was so obviously set up for the sequel. i hate it when movies do that; it's a bit arrogant for my taste.

gwyneth dumps chris
why anyone would ever dump the lead singer of coldplay is beyond me. but, happily, chris martin and gwyneth are no longer a couple. ladies, start your engines. let's see if a lass who deserves him can be found.

new fave band
they are fun to rock out to and also nap to. i know this from personal experience.

strike!
what i'll be doing friday night.

carson daly is kinda funny
yesterday, claiming doctor appointments, c and i ditched work early to attend a taping of "last call with carson daly," specifically to see this band the d4 who were his musical guests. the show will be broadcast valentine's day at 1:30 AM (technically on 2-15, but whatever), so set your vcr's/tivo now. it was kinda fun once we actually got to sit down and watch the semi-inept and oh-so-young production kids run around in a tizzy. even carson said "no wonder we're on at 1:30 in the morning". guests were barry zito (cute baseball player), ashanti (who sang a capella right then and there and damn was she good), and some comedian guy who was funny in that forced comedian kind of way. and the d4--they played mercury last night so some of you probably know this--are a fun dance-around-to-dumb-rock-n-roll kind of band. i enjoyed. however, all the kids that the producers threw at the front to dance around during the performance sucked! they were obviously there to see ashanti and so they just stood and stared like a bunch of wooden indians while the d4 played. c and i (seated in the back, probably cause we were too damn old to be in the show's demographic) were bopping around in our allotted space. it was a shame. on the way out after the taping, the bassist was standing in the hallway and i broke my cardinal rule of acknowledging that "famous" people exist because he was just so young and innocent-looking, as if overwhelmed by this crazy rock lifestyle they've gotten into. i told him to have a good show that night, and he gave a tiny shy smile and said thanks. so i am a fan of the nice d4 boys...though that's probably not the reputation they're looking for.

ali g in da house

the secret revealed!
ok, it's not that exciting. a couple of weeks ago i met an editor for NME, the best brit rock mag out there. and being brave/naive, i asked him how i could try to be a freelancer for them. so he said to send a sample concert review to him and he'd check it out. so today i e-mailed him my less-than-250 words review of the david gray show. and now i sit, in a panic, wondering what i have done. i mean, me? write for nme? c'mon, let's get real. but the piece was edited by rock-expert boyfriend (and then re-edited by me, the actual writer) so i have to think there is a slim shot at them hooking me up with live show review jobs. it's not like i've never done this before...i just have never done it for real. much excitement.

reason #2 to like this weekend
am going saturday night to BAM to finally reap my birthday gift from c--a show of "twelfth night." very excited indeed! this will be followed by pop-in on friend jp's upper east side birthday party, and hopefully THAT will be followed by a lot of sleepin' and relaxin' on sunday.

ice yachting
great story from the times about the long-standing grudge match between two teams of ice yachters.

ikea
snazzily designed "unboring" website is fun for the eyes. and there's a new community section for DIY tips.

tie me up, tie me down
sarah from "joe millionaire" seems to have quite the wild side to her, judging from the small pictures shown here on the post's website. i wonder, what really DID happen in the woods between her and joe?

nightmare author, anyone?
the next time any of my authors give me attitude or make me mad, i will stop and thank my stars that i don't have to take this gentleman around to interviews.

david gray
he's reason #1 i can't wait for the weekend to be upon us. am checking out mr. gray live in madison square garden--my first garden concert! and am writing a "sample review" of it for my super-secret attempt to lead the rock journalist lifestyle i dreamed about at age 14 (and then ages 15-20, basically, with intermittant thoughts about it in the years since). wish me luck.

joe millionaire
i know it's degrading and terrible, but this show is also so hilarious i can't stop watching. mondays at 9 pm on fox, of all places, is my new must-see-tv. if you want more info than you ever thought you needed about joe and his ladies, check out the official site.

airlines to weigh passengers

the pink pony
heading here tonight for dinner with a.m.--looking forward to my first time at this place that i really only know of through that great moby-with-aliens video. i think that officially makes me a poser, but whatever. and then it will be to home to watch our fearless leader dubya talk about why we really, really, really (really) need to go to war with iraq.

christo gets thumbs up
his "golden gates in central park" project will be on display in february 2005.

wifely duty
during a breakfast think tank meeting (yeah in nyc--and at the W hotel no less) i read this piece about women and sex and marriage in this month's atlantic monthly. quite thought-provoking.

my friend bob
bob is a space heater. now i am warm despite the fact that there is no actual heat in my office but there is plenty of a/c.

good shopping weekend
among other things, bought drapes much like this for the bedroom, only in the palest of pale blue. at $18 per panel, p-barn was my friend yesterday. now i just have to hem them so they'll fit in the bedroom window. also done this weekend: ate noodles and saw "chicago" saturday night with hp (two thumbs up to both activities), watched golden globes and was horrified by outfits of at least two famous women, and thoroughly enjoyed last night's installment of "joe millionaire." it's addictive. tonight's book party on the les at swim--which you should go to even of not explicitly invited--may or may not be visitable due to family obligations. but i will be there in spirit.

wtc design comments
go here to check out the proposed plans for the WTC site, and for a way to comment on which ones you like (or hate) and why. it's quite fun to put in one's two cents, and very important for nyc residents to do so. after all, this is our city, it was "our" tragic event, and we all should have a say in what happens with that space. i personally proposed a combination of two of the designs. doubt that will actually happen, but may as well try.

drudge report
two things on this page annoy me. the finding of chemical-capable warheads in iraq is one. and the other is the news that david frum's george bush book will be #2 on the new york times bestseller list next week. we are publishing the opposite of frum's book right now (someone who is anti-bush--yes, these people do exist) and it would be so nice to at least see them neck and neck. but i suppose in times of almost-war, the public will back the prez. or perhaps it's because the anti-bush author will not do all the national media that we could get for him. it's hard to say...

random house shake-up
anne godoff, the woman and legend heading up little random's trade publishing division, has resigned after her job was eliminated. one has to love kirkpatrick's prose--she was fired, people. the greater tragedy in all this (in my humble opinion) is that the random house imprint started so long ago by bennett cerf is being folded into ballantine. perhaps i am maudlin and sentimental, but it seems to me that corporate conglomeration is smooshing the soul of publishing and literature into a cost-propelled pulp. i mean, i like bestsellers as much as the next person, but the bottom line isn't always the most important thing in life. yes, i just said that out loud. oprah, where are you?

NYC beef
this story about burgers is new york is fab, though the glaring omission of island burgers and shakes is a shame. my faves, since i know you care, are any and all of these, really: the "raoul" burger from island burger, a regular old cheeseburger at mchale's, or the $29 burger at db bistro moderne (stuffing it with short rib meat = genius).

plastics
finally, the city of ny will resume recycling plastic this july, with glass recycling theoretically resuming in july 2004. this make me very happy--there is nothing worse than throwing out stuff that you know could be reused for the better of the planet and whatnot. sadly, this gives me one less reason to dislike bloomberg, but i am optimistic that he will soon fill that void.

freezing to death
this news story is about freezing to death in moscow. but there could be cases of folks freezing to death today, in new york city, as there is no heat in my office building at all. as i type i wear three layers of clothes, a scarf, winter coat, and gloves. and i am still cold cause the high temp today is only going to be 38. and the rest of the week the high will be around 30. so let's just say i'll be working from home this week should the situation not improve. (and belated props to the rivington kids for surviving without heat in their home for as long as they did. it's not fun.)

stockbridge, massachusetts
far be it from me to prefer the country to the city, but if i had to pick a small town to live in, stockbridge would be at the top of the list. its new england quaintness is just the tip of the iceberg--an iceberg that contains good food, museums, arts festivals, and gorgeously fresh air.

paris in january
someday, i will go to paris in january strictly to shop the sales. what might make an even better trip: london for the once annual harrod's sale, and then on to gay paree. ah, to have unlimited time and money!

turkish delight
as a young tyke who loved "the lion, the witch and the wardrobe," i was completely stymied over turkish delight, the candy that the kids in the book cannot get enough of. and i never satisfactorily found out what it was. now here is this website, which even thoughtfully offers a gift pack of the candy with a copy of c.s. lewis's classic tale.

cashmere
i am wearing my first-ever cashmere sweater today for the first-ever time. it's so soft and comfy i think i could live in it. a dangerous thing to experience. but how much do people know about the cashmere-producing goat? thank goodness someone had the wit about them to come up with the "cashmirror", the monthly online magazine about these goats. you can't make these things up, folks.

v. bad author

travis's dispatches always make me smile

barrymore marrying stroke
interesting. though of all the strokes, fab does seem the most normal.

how negative!
looking at my last couple of entries--how bitter and mean i sound! here's some office yoga to help me (and maybe you) chill the heck out.

bush is an idiot
and that goes for his advisors, too. who gives a tax cut like this in a time when the economy is hurting and we will be fighting at *least* one war this year? where is the money going to come from for this and other grand governmental plans, like forming that pesky homeland security administration? and regular people will not use that $1000 to invest--they will either spend it immediately or sock it away in their savings accounts, neither of which help the economy in the long-run. i swear to god it hurts sometimes how much i dislike this so-called leader of our fair nation.

nyc condo and co-op fees
i never thought i'd say this but i am so glad i rent and do not own in this city. thanks to darling mayor bloomberg, some co-op and condo owners are seeing increases of up to $800 A MONTH in monthly fees. granted, some of these people are super-rich, but a lot of them are old folks who live where they've always lived, or regular people who managed to actually save enough money to buy an apartment and don't really have a big ol' budget for housing (since buying is supposed to save money over renting and all). it's just nuts. down with bloomberg!

gangs of new york
so, finally saw this yesterday since chicago was sold out (damn the ziegfeld theater!). it was not as bad as i thought it would be given that everyone i know--almost--hates it. but neither was it as good as it could have been. several times the movie could have ended, and many of the heartfelt, quieter scenes could have been cut. on the up side, i thought daniel day lewis was great. i forgot a few times that it was daniel day lewis, which is pretty much the highest a famous actor can hope for in practicing his craft. and the costumes and most of the sets (not all) were very cool. but leo and cameron--sigh. scorsese could have gotten two better people for those roles, and perhaps the writer could have thought about the girl character for more than, you know, five minutes.

manhattan
watched this last night, courtesy of darling netflix. i'd never seen it before, and it is just full of gorgeous shots of the city. happily i am not the only big nerd out there who thinks new york city is one of the most beautiful places on earth, even the skeevy parts. disturbing though, to watch mr. allen play a writer who loves a 17-year-old girl. a bit TOO autobiographical...

in less than 2 months...
i will be tanning here. i am starting to get way excited about this little trip. (not that i wasn't excited initially, it's just that now the holidays are done and i can concentrate on getting excited.)

New Year's Eve
what better way to celebrate the new year, with parents in town, than to watch the "twilight zone" marathon on the sci fi channel? yes, there could be other good ways to celebrate, too, but this is the one i practiced this year. yay 2003.

christo's art
i never really "got" what his art was all about--i mean, what's so artsy about putting big umbrellas on hills?--until i saw a photo and design exhibit of his stuff in d.c. a few months back. now i think i could be a convert, if one can undergo a conversion without actually seeing the stuff in person. i think this plan to erect golden gates of fabric in central park is lovely--can you imagine how other-worldly a regular winter stroll would become? like you were in a magic kingdom or a fairy land. a nice change of pace, in other words.

why my boyfriend rocks
merry christmas to one and all!