February Photo a Day challenge: My view today

Posted on February 1, 2012 by carlieblissirwin

So I’ve decided to mix it up a little this month (buckle your seatbelts!) and participate in fat mum slim’s daily photo challenge:

Basically, I’ll be posting a photo every day in February using this list as inspiration. Oh what fun! And don’t worry, I’ll also try to keep up with normal posts too, in case you’re the type who doesn’t enjoy looking at photos. (Does that type of person actually exist? If so, I bet they’re also the type of person who still hasn’t joined Facebook.)

Today’s photo is supposed to be “your view today.” So here it is!

Happy Flip-Your-Calendar-to-a-New-Month Day, by the way! It’s February! And as you may know, changing my calendar to a new month is always a thrill for me.

This is the calendar I have hanging next to my desk at work. I think it features work by different artists each month (I don’t really know, I got it for free).

This month appears to be a cool image of Tina Fey. Who I happen to love! I have no problem with facing her skeptical stare for the next 28 days. If that image of her could talk, I imagine it would be saying, “Really? You really felt the need for another Starbucks chocolate chip cookie? If you can twist logic enough to convince yourself that you deserve all those unnecessary calories, I bet you’ve also convinced yourself that watching the Real Housewives is purely an educational experience and an excellent way to learn about other cultures! I mean, really.”

Or something like that.

A pair of Paris stories

Posted on January 31, 2012 by carlieblissirwin

Over the course of the past few days, I finished reading The Paris Wife and finally got to see Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris (thanks to my friend Liz and her very well-timed Netflix arrival!).

Since both of these stories are about the expatriate writers and artists in 1920s Paris (Hemingway, Pound, Stein, The Fitzgeralds, etc.), I feel like I’ve been immersed in that period with those people and it’s been a grand time, old sport!

Just as I suspected, I loved Midnight in Paris. Love, love, love, love. LOVE! (Please let me know if you require more emphasis in order to truly understand how much I liked this movie.) It was fun and beautiful and I felt like I could relate to the perception that the “golden age” is always in the past and how it feels like previous eras are always better than the present. I used to wish I had lived in the 1960s until I came to the conclusion that I’m probably too uptight to have participated in any of the fun stuff of that era anyway. (wah-wah)

I liked The Paris Wife too, but not enough to warrant any annoyingly repetitive exclamations of love. It was really interesting, but I didn’t like the narrator (Ernest Hemingway’s first wife) all that much – she didn’t seem like the type of woman Ernest would actually have fallen in love with. And even though it’s based on a true story, a lot of it just didn’t seem believable. Maybe because I couldn’t relate to their artistic, jet-setting lifestyle. Has anyone else read it and felt the same way? I will say that I really loved the ending and would still recommend reading it.

But here’s the thing – now I really want to go back to Paris. LIKE RIGHT NOW. And that’s probably not going to happen. I also would really love a chocolate croissant, which is a bit more feasible.

Ahh, c’est la vie…

Images from here and here.

It’s Friday. My brain is tired.

Posted on January 27, 2012 by carlieblissirwin

So now you get two random thoughts.

1. In a perfect world, the job title of Puppy Hugger would exist. You would get paid for hugging puppies. Because puppies need hugs. And somebody’s got to do it.

2. I feel like we could all use more excuses to “shimmy” in life. These days, there seems to be a severe lack of shimmying going on. I’m going to a birthday party this weekend. Perhaps I will shimmy there.*

*This is not a promise.

And to to distract you from realizing what a lame post this was, here are two adorable tiny pigs I found on Pinterest!

Okay, after getting a better look at that first one, I’m pretty sure it’s fake… and now it’s creeping me out a little.

Top two images from here and here.

Well done, Thursday

Posted on January 26, 2012 by carlieblissirwin

To steal a Facebook status update from one of my co-workers:

“Yellowcard is playing in my office. And we got free cookies and beer.”

So basically I stopped working at 3 pm this afternoon. AND I’m getting a much-needed haircut tonight. AND the salon where I get my hair cut is across the street from my favorite store. AND they are having an awesome sale right now.

So today is a good day.

Who is Yellowcard, you ask? You might recognize this:

Yes?

Must-see movies

Posted on January 25, 2012 by carlieblissirwin

I used to think of myself as somewhat of a movie buff.

When the Academy Award nominations came out, I most likely would have seen the majority of the Best Picture nominees, with the exception of the scary ones. (For example, I have NOT seen 1991 winner The Silence of the Lambs. And you can’t make me!)

But that was back in the good ol’ days when a three-hour block of time in which I had nothing better to do was a frequent occurrence, the dollar amount of a movie ticket was still in the single digits, and I could be careless with money anyway because my parents were paying for everything.

Let me tell you something – times have changed!

Here. I’ll name every single movie I saw in the theater in 2011: The Help. We Bought a Zoo.

And THAT’S IT!!

Pathetic.

Now that the 2012 Best Picture nominees have been announced and I’ve only seen 10% of them (although considering my track record, one out of ten is pretty good!), it’s becoming clear that I have some major catching up to do. And while I want to see all of the nominees (except War Horse – I’d rather watch a psychopathic cannibalistic serial killer than an poor helpless animal experiencing any kind of trauma), there are two that I absolutely MUST see:

The Artist

Midnight in Paris

I can already tell just by looking at these stills that I’ll love both movies.

Get me to a theater!

All images via

Chicago neighborhood adventures: Andersonville edition

Posted on January 24, 2012 by carlieblissirwin

Last weekend, Megan and I continued our series of Chicago neighborhood adventures by visiting our friend (and fellow squirrel) Renee in Andersonville. (See our Lincoln Square adventure here!)

Thanks to what seemed like two feet of freshly fallen snow (it wasn’t really that much) and Ugg boots that were determined to prove that they were, in fact, NOT WATERPROOF, our activities mostly included eating brunch at Hamburger Mary’s, walking up Clark Street, walking back down Clark Street, and sloshing back to Renee’s to get our feet dry and drink wine. Despite that lackluster description, good times were had by all!

In case you’re not from around these parts, Andersonville is a neighborhood north of the Loop that has a major Swedish influence. Now that you know that, I bet the photo of the Swedish American Museum above is starting to make a little more sense, ehhh?

We actually stopped in the museum for a second, but turned around as soon as we noticed that admission wasn’t free. We’re still in a recession here, people. Also, our boots were making squishy/sloshing sounds and we were leaving a trail of puddles behind us. My apologies to the museum janitor/intern who had to mop that up.

Really, the best part of the day (besides the fantastic company) was our brunch at Hamburger Mary’s. Once we heard that a FREE mimosa comes with every entree, the decision of where to eat was pretty much made for us.

But that wasn’t the only cool thing about that place. They also have good food, funky/retro decor, and bring the check to the table nestled in a high-heeled shoe. Why? One can’t be sure. But now the photo above of the shoe on the table is also starting to make sense, ehhh?

Other highlights of our Andersonville adventure include checking out Renee’s cute condo (and even cuter dogs!), Megan valiantly saving me from being plowed down by an SUV exiting a grocery store parking lot, and experiencing a crucial tipping point in my life that has led me to finally swear off Uggs. Major breakthrough!! (And I want these as replacements).

Winter trees

Posted on January 23, 2012 by carlieblissirwin

Personally, I prefer the seasons of the year when the trees actually have leaves. But while walking to meet my friend Laura for coffee yesterday, I noticed that there’s something to be appreciated about gnarled, naked winter tree limbs highlighted by fresh snow. Against the gray glow of the sky, the branches almost look like a thriving network of human veins.

Gross.

But cool.

Caution: I’m taking caution

Posted on January 20, 2012 by carlieblissirwin

These signs are all over the city right now:

Can someone please explain to me exactly how to be cautious in this situation?

Should I suspiciously eye the top of the skyscraper as I walk by?

Should I run past in a quick zigzag motion?

Should I flatten myself against the side of the building and carefully inch my way across?

Should I find something large and heavy to carry over my head? Wear a helmet? Surround myself in a protective shield of ice-melting fire?

Whichever option I choose, I think it’s clear that if you come across me taking caution against falling ice, you yourself should also be cautious – of me.

Image via

Sarah Pinto planner

Posted on January 19, 2012 by carlieblissirwin

Remember when I was agonizing over which planner I should buy for 2012? Well, I didn’t end up getting any of those.

Because I found an EVEN BETTER one!

I’m a sucker for stripes and anything that looks remotely nautical, so when I saw this Sarah Pinto planner online, it was all over.

I got it in the mail yesterday and spent a good 45 minutes last night writing in all of my events/appointments for 2012. As I’m a hyper-organized person, it was probably (no, definitely) the most exciting 45 minutes of my day.

I’m feeling very confident in my choice, and the best part is that Sarah Pinto donates all of her proceeds to a children’s hospital in California, so my money went to a good cause.

Another bonus? All of these super cute postcards came with it! Score!

Trader Joe’s pumpkin butter

Posted on January 18, 2012 by carlieblissirwin

May I introduce you to my new favorite breakfast: Trader Joe’s pumpkin butter on toast! (Toast not pictured.)

As of two weeks ago, I had never even heard of pumpkin butter. But as soon as my eyes locked on this jar as it beckoned to me from the shelf at Trader Joe’s, I knew I must have it. My lust for pumpkin was once again too powerful to overcome. And thank God because this stuff is delicious! I’m pretty sure I can no longer ~~eat breakfast~~ live without it.

P.S. This post is in no way sponsored by Trader Joe’s. I’m not that big of a deal… yet.