steel city lovin'

christine, jimmy, and i headed west for a few days to catch up with friends and take in some sights in the steel city. we got cupcakes at dozen with ty jack, hit up bagel factory and avalon exchange, met up with my very pregnant aunt (new cousin in less than a month!), visited with my other aunt and crazy cousins (my seven year old cousin christine told me she wants a boy who is "cute, rich, and pays for things." when i attempted to launch into a speech about how it's better to be an independent woman, paying for your own things, she quickly dismissed me and told me i can be her maid. cooooolllll.), played card games at eric's house, somehow made it through all seven floors of the andy warhol museum (which is awesome but, come on- seven floors?!? exhausting.), ate delicious asian fusion cuisine, went to some funky gallery opening dance party that was full of weird social encounters and me accidentally kicking a giant ball at people's faces, checked out the monongahela incline, got great views of the city, went to secret river spots with eric's roomie juan, scoured the racks at a very nice goodwill, breezed through my mom's old neighborhood, and went home with a cooler full of chipped ham and lemon blend. i really love pittsburgh- so many cute neighborhoods and little shop-lined streets. fingers crossed i make it out there one more time before leaving the country.

ye olde larp fest

the gang packed up and headed to anna's cabin for a weekend of 'larping' (larping- for those who are not familiar with the term- is short for live action role playing. you dress up, adopt a character for the weekend, then fight in the woods. our larping wasn't so much fighting as dressing up and dancing to the lord of the rings soundtrack.) the theme of the larp was 'fantasy characters from books and movies'. with friends going as pirate wenches and link from zelda, i was really stuck on what i should be. then i remembered that i happen to own a blue unitard. and blue paint. so i decided to dress as an avatar for the first night. i thought i was looking pretty cool- i had painted my hands, toes, face, even my friggin ears- but no one knew what i was. thought i was a smurf. meh. win some, lose some. plus, i got to break out my bodysuit which is a rarity. the weekend was pretty much spent eating (mr. elias made mesquite grilled chicken!) and sleeping and saying 'ye' and 'thine' and dancing around in the woods. no complaints here. i also came back with a thousand times fewer bug bites than our last visit up there. and me and liz and mr. elias got some good bonding time- tim is a crazy dude. hope all your weekends were equally costumed and glorious!

oh dear

dear philadelphia,

who decides where to put the bike lanes? you know- who's the guy who says "this street and this side of this street" etc? because i'd like to sock him a good one. has he ever even seen the streets he's setting up bike lanes on? it's like he purposely chose to mark lanes on the bumpiest, most pot-hole-ridden, 10,000 manholes everywhere streets. do you know what that's like to ride over? your butt begins to hate you and your tires deflate. this is especially infuriating considering that the other side of the street always seems to be smooth and even, with 0% obstacles. the bike lane assigner guy, is a douchebag.

love,
caitlin

ps- thank god for curtis at via bicycle who can fix philly street-induced flat tires. (and do it for a relatively cheap price!)

dear apartment,

our body count is up to seven now. two downstairs; five in christine's bed. where are you keeping all of these mice? i know you had it rough before and your previous owners did not treat you the way you ought to be treated. but we've been good to you- vacuuming you and scrubbing down the cabinets. we never leave food scattered on your countertops or things fermenting and turning into small fuzzy green monsters in the fridge. so please- cut us some slack. evict the mice. it's getting ridiculous.

love,
caitlin

phorgotten philly phavorites

is it getting to be too much? maybe?

things i totally missed but are still awesome in the city'o'bro'love!

• Eastern State Penitentiary - opened in October of 1829, the penitentiary was in operation for 142 years until it closed in April of 1971. It was designed with the Quaker idea of penitence and those kept there were confined to small, solitary cells with no human contact. Drove a lot of people crazy. Later on, that principle was cast aside and the prison became overcrowded. This is seriously a cool, creepy-ass historic spot that is well worth the admission few. It's a walking audio tour that takes you through the somewhat dilapidated prison. And I swear, even if it's 90 degrees outside, you'll still leave with goosebumps.
• Naked Chocolate- local choco company! full of chocolate! chocolate chocolate chocolate! no seriously- tons of chocolate. drinking chocolate, exotic truffles- the works. several locations in and around center city including one right around the corner from buffalo exchange.
• Center City Soft Pretzel Company - here's the deal: they open at midnight. you go at midnight. you get in line at a teeny tiny counter at the practically camoflauged spot, you slam your 35 cents down on the counter and you recieve your hot-from-the-oven, perfectly-salted, crunchy, yet chewy soft pretzel. you select your dipping sauces. you sit on the curb and consider changing your entire evening routinue to make midnight pretzel runs a feasible option. (ps- tuesday is pretzel bike ride night- the bikers all start at the art museum and bike to south philly for their soft pretzels. lots of smelly punk bikers but still cool to see such a huge herd of two-wheeled nerds.) (also: this jawn is right near the italian market/pats&genos.)

new favorites

picked up these glasses at the boardwalk dollar store last night. and i think i'm in love with them. they have built in eye-makeup and skeptical eyebrows. i'm going to wear them everyday, forever and ever, amen.

oh papa. what a guy. i am continually in awe of how great this dude is. growing up, my brother and i always thought he just had this crazy knowledge of everything. whatever our problems were, he just always seemed to know exactly what to do. we later learned that the reason he had all of this specific knowledge wasn't because he had taken a crash course in 'knowing-everything-101', but because he believes that anyone has the ability to solve their own problems. if the dryer broke, he would read books about how dryers worked and try to figure out what happened and how to fix it. if a new programing software was developed, he was the first one to tear through the manual, learning everything possible about the new equipment. he realizes how much power is in knowledge and takes things into his own hands- he isn't one to complain, he's a man of action. there are so many important things i've learned from my dad. i feel incredibly lucky to have such a good, strong male role model in my life- one who treats everyone around him with love and respect and takes pride in his work. happy father's day big guy- you're setting the bar pretty high for dudes in my life.

Philly Phavorites: Part III

shopping is very difficult to do when you have no money, so this is actually going to be the shortest post ever. if you're a good window shopper (ie someone who can window shop without becoming extremely depressed about how many cool things you'll never be able to afford) there's an abundance of cute boutiques and shopping streets to browse. i recommend old city, particularly the market and 3rd/market and 4th area- there's some cute vintage spots and tons of awesome (albeit overpriced) boutiques. they also have a nice record store and a lot of cute coffee places. if you're looking to hit up some major chain stores, the walnut/chestnut area is your deal. lush, h&m, express, urban outfitters- it's pretty much all present. the following are a list of stores that, when i do decide to spend money on things other than food, are places i frequent:

phavorite philly shopping spots:

1. Philly Aids Thrift
   why it's baller: this is essentially a two-story junk shop. everything is super cramped which is ideal for those who like the hunting/gathering aspect of thrifting. it's fairly cheap and the selection, though sometimes miss, often produces a hit somewhere along the line. they have a ton of old national geographics and the back of the second floor is their 'vintage' area. there's also boxes of free stuff outside- always interesting to go through...
   neighborhood: south philly (right off of south street)
   cost on a scale of rags to riches: your beat up adidas sneakers from middle school.
2. Buffalo Exchange
   why it's baller: do you guys have these? i'm not sure if it's exclusive to philly but it's still worth checking out. it's a consignment shop, and though it can get a bit pricey ($20 for a dress?!? who am i- captain moneypants?), the selection is well-chosen and there are those hidden gems that make it all worthwhile.
   neighborhood: center city (near rittenhouse, di bruno brothers, and naked chocolate!)
   cost on a scale of plastic to plantinum: a nice sturdy, wood. generally in the $7-30 range depending on what you're looking at . . .
3. Antiquarian's Delight
   why it's baller: it's literally a fest for the eyes. you could spend hours in this neat hidden away building off of south street, checking out merch from a wide variety of vendors. along with antique furniture and paintings, they also have a plethora of cute vintage clothes, purses, hats, and jewelry to admire. the one woman even sells vintage glasses frames that can be fitted with your prescription at a local optometrists! it's a little on the pricey side, but worth browsing. wonderful eye candy.
   neighborhood: south philly (right off of south street)
   cost on a scale of cinderella to cruella de ville: wayyy more cruella. there's the occasional sale but expect to drop close to $15 on that brooch you're eying up.
4. Anthropologie
   why it's baller: i know, i know. i said this would be a list of places for the empty-pocketed folks out there. and i know you all have anthropologies where you come from. but seriously, this one is beautiful. i could spend hours in there. it's in a gorgeous old building across the street from rittenhouse and has four floor of immaculately decorating, swoon-worthy anthro goodness. the clearance section is decent (though i still do not count a $70 dress as a 'steal') but it's really just great for looking around and getting inspiration. the picture at the top is from a visit to anthropologie earlier this year- a giant ostrich made out of old national geographics. visiting anthropology is like going to an art museum. and gawking is totally free.
   neighborhood: center city
   cost on a scale of- no seriously. you guys know how expensive that place is. you have to be a serious millionaire to shop there.
5. South Street
   why it's baller: though it is one of the more 'tourist-y' spots in town, south street is lined with shops- mostly trashy stripper clothes and plastic jewelry but there are a few golden nuggets in there. repo records is cute and has a decent selection of new and used vinyl. right next store is retrospect, featuring an awesome selection of vintage clothes, shoes, and housewares. it's moderately priced ($10-20 for a dress) and pretty much always has some sale stuff. you'll probably have to go to condom kingdom just because of the ridiculous name- and don't worry, the store definitely lives up to it. i'm not going to describe all the crazy stuff they have in there but if you're like me and have the sense of humor of a twelve-year old boy, then you'll enjoy stopping by. phileo yogurt is always a stop for my friends and i on the street- it's a do-it-yo'self yogurt place, where you serve out your own frozen yogurt and heap on the toppings from blackberries to cookie dough. just don't go overboard- you pay by the ounce. (apparently gummy bears are pretty heavy because i always end up spending a fortune . . . ) oh! and the magic garden is also on south street- super cool walk through art space covered in mirrors and mosaics. the small admission fee is well worth it from what i've heard.
   neighborhood: south philly
   cost on a scale of tramp to lady: fran from the nanny. not exactly the queen of england, but she's no lo-class broad. expect to pay a moderate rate for things on the famous shopping street.
6. Spool and Loop
   why it's baller: should you choose to go down west south street (the less popular direction), you'll stumble upon spool and loop- sisters shops selling high-end fabric and yarn (respectively.) and while it's not priced for the paupers, it is fun to browse through and day dream about how much better your life would be with a yard of bright blue wood grain cotton.
   neighborhood: south philly
   cost on a scale of pleather to suede: velvet.

so that's it! my philly phavorites more or less! i'm sure i'm forgetting some and i'll come running back with an extra post next week. but for now, that's all folks. so hop in yer cars or catch a train and come to philly! the subway is easy to use (only two lines!) and it's easily walkable. gimme a call if you decide to hit up south philly and i'll probably meet up with you and talk your ear off about things i love in philly. now doesn't that sound nice? eh?