Think of this as a public service announcement. For those of you that live between the Battery and 59th street, you can now shop the Union Square Greenmarket and have your goods delivered to your door. I mean, how many times have you decided not to buy something (watermelon, anyone?) simply because you can't deal with lugging it home? Hello From Earth to Kitchen, a fleet of cute bright green delivery bikes that bring your produce home expediently and (bonus!) without any carbon emissions. Which means that you get to be lazy whilst also supporting farmers and helping to save the earth. How good is that? How jealous am I, whose Manhattan days are long over?

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This one is going to be brief, as I am exhausted and still have a house full of dirty dishes, toys and unwatered plants to contend with before I lay my head down. But I wrote you all because the one thing that is keeping me going right about now is the new record by the Chemical Brothers-- a band that I must admit I havce not listened to in, oh, at least five years if not more.

But I have undoubtedly been missing out, because this record, called Further, is great both in it's ability to keep me awake (it is dance music after all) and in the breadth of the samples and the way the songs are put together.

for links and more info, click below:

Talk about a moment we have all been waiting for... When my favorite super local spot silent h closed down this winter, I was devistated. Until I heard that the same chef was going to open up a different spot with a new partner. Would the change be better or worse? Would I be furious with the new for supplanting the old, like I usually am?

And then I heard that they would be serving breakfast, as well as lunch and dinner. My hopes began to rise. This past Friday, I got to taste what aforementioned breakfast will be like when they open on Monday (21 June), and I began to rejoice. Simple, clean, delicous food. Best fresh squeezed OJ ever. Plenty of avocado in the avocado/cheese omlette. Bacon perfectly cooked (sorry all my veg pals, but I love that stuff!) I forgot to order a scone but I have high hopes. Plus the place looks great. Which is a huge bonus not to be underestimated.

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Hard to believe that I am actually writing about this in public (what has become of my life of world travel and cutting edge adventures?) but the dreaded potty training period has come crashing into my life and I am rolling with the punches, as I find most of my parenting experiences require.

I knew it was time to buy the potty, but I refused to bow down to Elmo or Dora or even to Hello Kitty (who I secretly love.) Instead, I went onto diapers.com to pick up one of the simple white numbers by baby bjorn. But then, something drove me to scroll down through the over 100 options in the "potties" section and lo, buried on the fourth page, is the above pictured, dare I say attractive, little training toilet by Hoppop. I gasped, and then ordered one up right away.

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For some serendipitous reason that I cannot hope to understand, I opened a mass e mail that I got from a local artist who's mailing list I am on. It was about a craft fair called Maker's Market, but this one was located in the Socrates Sculpture Park in Queens (where I have always wanted to go) and was curated by Alan Wanzenberb Architect/Design, The Noguchi Museum and R 20th Century as well as, evidently, the Sculpture Park itself. And since we were around, I packed up the little family and headed over the Pulaski Bridge into Long Island City to check it out.

Our efforts were rewarded, not only by a lovely breeze on a hot-ass summer afternoon, but by some really great design and some beautiful objects hand in hand with the opportunity to speak with the people who make them. And while we are desperately trying to get rid of some of our excess stuff and clear some space in our home, we couldn't manage to leave empty handed. Here are the two things I bought:

Hallelujah! A plastic placemat suitable both for a toddler's eating habits and a design conscious parent's eyes. In a campaign against brightly and randomly colored kids paraphernalia, this mat gets high marks. Hilariously, it is actually designed (by Jen Curry) for cats. Go figure.

And for us adults, a beautiful cutting board made of cork, which is evidently naturally anti-microbial. The designer, Daniel Michalik, makes all sorts of larger pieces (bowls, chairs, tables) but this little board makes a great addition to any kitchen and is one of those genius gifts (at $30) for someone who appreciates good looking stuff and has almost everything already.

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My friend Blake Rayne, in case there was any doubt, is a genius. You have only to set foot into Miguel Abreu's gallery on the lower east side and drink in the incredible, elegant canvasses which, true to his artistic bent, move painting in a new and thought provoking direction.

I am no expert, and you'd do better to read what the art grownups have to say if you want to hear about his place in the pantheon, and how his philosophies merge or conflict with the general status quo. Or at least, read the press release. All I know is that the moment I entered the room I was swept away by the combination of stark sophistication and unbridled use of color (see below) that represent just the tip of the massive iceberg that is the morass of questions and issues about art, painting and the artist's role that Blake Rayne is valliantly trying to resolve. Or at least address.

click below for more images, etc:

I have NO IDEA what has taken me so long to write about my absolute most favorite beauty products in the whole world... Maybe I'm holding this line close to my heart like a precious secret that I don't want to let out of the bag.

But I should get over myself, because there is plenty of the  wondrous red flower products to go around. And the world would be a much better place if everybody partook in a few of their signature ritualistic beauty practices. Nothing like a good steam, scrub, massage and exfoliation to wipe away whatever petty political differences we might all have, right?

At this moment, I am thinking about the iclandic moonflower lotion, as I have almost run out of the bottle I am currently using and must get to the store to pick up a replacement ASAP. But the scrubs, cleansers, scents, teas... hell, pretty much everything in the place... are also to die for. One genrally doesn't get out of the store without a couple of extra goodies. And one is never sorry that one splurged, either.

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I have been eyeing this leather key cover for about a year now. Every time I go into the Brook Farm General Store in Williamsburg. It's right up my alley, as it is an extraordinary version of a very ordinary object. Plus it's only 5 bucks. And yet, after all of this time, I have not bought one.

Which is my bad. The next time I go into that store, which will most likely be this week, I am going to get myself one. Unless there's been a run on them and they are no longer available.

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This is why New York City is great. You can walk out of your door, hop on a subway and, 15 minutes later, experience a thought provoking and beautiful performance piece, in a public space, for free. Last week, in Bryant Park, the artist Kate Gilmore put up this arresting piece which brilliantly mirrors the activity in the park and the streets below. Titled Walk the Walk, it is comprised of 7 women, all in bright yellow dresses, walking and stomping and shimmying with purpose atop the 10 sq ft roof of a hollow yellow cube. Step inside the cube and you are treated to a sonic interpretation of a busy city street and, if you are my two year old, a chance to reach up and "feel the ladies walk."

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I have this friend who is married to this guy who has a blog. (called secret forts, which is well worth checking out, by the way) And while visiting this blog I read about a show of Mikael Kennedy's polaroid photographs currently on view at the Chelsea Hotel (suite 524) in NYC. And instead of my usual 'oh this looks cool too bad I can't make it' reaction, I packed up my kid and went to the west side to check it out.

I've never heard of Kennedy before, but after spending a bit of time with his images, I feel like I've found a kindred spirit. Not so much in the actual subject matter, but in the fact that this guy, much like me, has been carrying his SX-70 around with him everywhere shooting whatever he finds interesting at the moment. And the result is a series of beautiful compelling mysterious images that tell the story of a life, a voyage, of objects lost and and places that may have been forgotten were it not for their presence in this archive.

The show is simply hung, with the polaroids in plastic sleeves on the off-white walls of an otherwise empty and appropriately worn hotel suite. There is a table with an arrangement of exposed polaroids that didn't quite come out, most likely a result of Kennedy's tendency to buy outdated film, and an SX-70 camera, which one imagines was responsible for much of the imagry in the room. The presentation is slapdash and precious at the same time, a combination that very much fits the medium. And by the time we left, we felt like we had wandered through a secret and magical world.

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This weekend I took a trip up to the happy valley in what is known as western Massachusetts (though it's actually more like the middle of the state if you look at a map) and was lucky enough to catch the first Saturday of the Amherst Farmer's Market. It's still a bit early for the produce to be super varied, but spirits were high and people were out in force celebrating Earth Day 2010. There were booths about composting and rainwater collection, as well as the first bounty from this season's harvest.

It actually inspired me to enter the above photo in CafePress and  iVillage's "Why I want to save the Earth" photo contest. Not that I think this picture is all that, but this is a conversation that I very much want to be a part of. Those hippies up in that neck of the woods really have their fingers on the pulse of something that even my cynical urban self has to admit is vital to our survival on this planet. And now that I am a mother, I am even more invested in the future of our planet. The contest goes through the end of the month, so there is still time if any of you are inspired. Click here to learn more.

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If you live, or are planning to be anywhere near, Brooklyn, NY between now and May 23rd, run don't walk to see Elizabeth Streb's extraordinary company of dancers (they call themselves action engineers) perform their latest show, aptly titled Run Up Walls. And if you have kids, bring 'em. This show is a rare convergence of profound beauty, headscratching physical feats and pure, non-stop action, complete with film, sound and robotic effects that serve to bring everyone deeper into the world of extreme possibility that Streb creates.

The performers are the centerpiece, and they do, literally at one point, run up the walls. These are the people I want to be friends with when the sh*t hits the fan, because they will physically be able to tackle any kind of Terminator-like future the bad guys throw our way. There is a metal eyebeam that they play chicken with, jumping over and ducking under and running around it with expressions of pure joy-- as if they could not possibly be having more fun anywhere on earth. There are harnesses and a huge truss that rises up into the ether from which the dancers fly with arms outstretched. Our toddler was so captivated that she jumped out of her seat and stood, eyes transfixed, right at the corner of the stage for the entire second act.

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Who needs Baby Einstein when there are products that you can buy for your little ones that actually help their brains develop and have fun at the same time? Every once in a while the stars come together and a new toy comes into my sphere that is educational, fun, durable and nice to look at. This memory game from kidO represents one of these spectacular moments, making all of the searching through horrible blue plastic madness worthwhile.

Four double sided cards fit into a beautifully made wooden board. Hide all of the images (animals, letters and colors) with the red pegs and then find matching shapes and colors by uncovering them one by one. Even my very particular design-centric husband is on board with this one.

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Now there are plenty of things that could qualify for this particular title, and I am sure that I will be using similar headers for more than this particular post, but when I opened up this page on the Haus Interior website, I actually said those words out loud to myself. So there you have it.

Here they are, what you have always wanted. If you are like me, anyway. An old fashioned calling card that you can just pass over to that incredibly annoying person who has the nerve not only to answer his phone at the theater (I'm talking live theater here, too, not just the movies) but to blithely conduct an entire conversation as if he were watching a Barbie DVD at home with his kids (those "movies," by the way, are so horrible I wouldn't blame anyone for seeking interruption/relief from them)

OH MY GOD IT'S TRUE.

Polaroid film is making a comeback. Not that I don't love Fuji for stepping in with the Instax film and cameras, which I have used with reckless abandon (see here) but my first love will always be the SX-70 and I can now blow the dust off and start shooting with it again.

Thanks to the Impossible Project, a web based collective out of Vienna that specializes in all things Polaroid. They sell vintage prints, cameras and, most exciting of all, film that they have produced using old materials from the great Polaroid factories themselves. This film does not come cheap (a box of 8 images for $24.50), and I have no idea if it's all they say it is, but I have ordered a bunch and suggest you do too, as the quantities are limited, and who knows when this little window of happiness will close again.

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A friend e mailed me to ask for some suggestions of great places to eat in Paris as her parents are headed there for a celebratory vacation. Now I haven't been to Paris for any length of time since the 90's, but I asked my friend Susannah, who has just moved back from there, if she had any suggestions. Her e mail describing various places to eat in Paris is so spot on that I felt I had to share it.

If any of you are lucky enough to be heading over to Paris any time soon, here's some solid advice on how to keep your taste buds happy.

My favorite perfect lunch: Bar de La Croix Rouge at intersection of Rue de Grenelle (v good shopping) and Rue de Sevre in the 6th arr. The thing to order is the Saint Germain (grilled Poilane bread with most divine thinly sliced roast beef and delish salad) plus best tarte tatin in Paris (also v good chocolate fondant). U must have a glass of wine.

For macaroons, Laduree of course, also Pierre Hermes.

Have a Berthillon sorbet on Ile st Louis. (They sell is several places on rue Louis Phillipe or whatever...)

Have oysters anywhere. Am serious. If u want serious fish/oyster fancy place for dinner, the Dome is wonderful, Avenue Montparnasse.

Cafe Flor for a total chic Parisian scene (sit on covered outside and if eating lunch, somebody has to get the classic French baguette sandwich Jambon beurre, ham and butter, or saucisson sec)
For pleasant outdoor lunch on fabulous Place des Vosges, Ma Bourgogne. Get warm leek salad (poireaux)

For a fabulous relaxed dinner, L'Ami Jean.
Fancy chic crowd dinner: Voltaire on the Quai Voltaire
Way fancy/haute cuisine: Joel Robuchon (there's the Atelier where you sit at bar but probably better for her parents is his lovely restaurant in the 16th arr.) For lunch, no reservations but they should always aim for 12:30 or 12:45. The French all eat at 1pm on the dot, so all tables suddenly full.

In food-related dept., if they are there on a Sunday, they must go to the beautiful famous organic market on Boulevard Raspail between the rue de Sevre and Rue de Rennes. (9-1pm). It is ravishing.

So I'm finally opening about two weeks worth of old e mail, and I come upon a daily candy post about a tea cozy that is really cute. So I go to the site and lo, I discover perhaps the most beautiful collection of ordinary objects that I have ever seen. All for sale. And at reasonable prices.

Appropriately called ancient industries, even their homepage (see above) is beautiful. The site is streamlined and perfectly designed, with an emphasis on the objects, rather than a bunch of flashy web trickery. And oh, the objects that can be yours with a click of the mouse.

First off, for all of my fellow mothers out there that cringe at the various baby bottle related products one has to keep handy, HOW GREAT IS THIS BOTTLE CLEANER? I am ordering one the minute I finish this post. Old school in the best way possible. And when you are using a beautiful functional object, the task of cleaning out those bottles (glass, I hope!) becomes far less odious.

click below for more:

I know, I know. It's pretty much March. Winter is over. The stores are filled with cotton sheaths and sandals, and people are starting to think about summer beach rentals. But I'm looking out my window at a snow covered tundra (20.9 inches fell in Central Park this week!) and I felt it would be doing the world a disservice if I did not give a shout out to my Steger Mukluks, which I have been sporting for 7 years now and are still going strong as the warmest, most perfect amazing snowboots I have ever seen.

Made in Minnesota in the Northern Cree Indian style, these lightweight moosehide boots come with thick felt insoles and lining that basically keep your feet from ever knowing that it's cold outside. They come in a number of styles and colors, so even the picky NYC fashionista in us all can find something that works.

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Rye is a truly welcome addition to the dining scene in Williamsburg. The food is good enough for grownups to love, while the atmosphere is cool enough to keep you from feeling stodgy. Just what the doctor ordered.

In the interest of full disclosure, I did not take this picture. I just lifted it from their website for the purpose of illustrating this post. When I showed up at the restaurant the other night, exhausted and slightly miffed at the tardiness of my overworked husband, it was all I could do to manage to act like a somewhat civilized human being, mush less take photos. It's been a hectic couple of weeks, and to say that we were desperate need of a date night is an understatement. I'd heard this place was good and figured we should try something new to shake it up again.

The concept of a romantic date night was ruined as soon as we saw  our old neighborhood buddy Vihn Nguyen, the chef of the dearly departed  Silent H (sob!) waving at us from across the room. But we joined him and another chef friend at their table and began an eating orgy that far exceeded my expectations for the evening.

I think we tasted about half of the menu. The beet salad and the artichoke stew were delicious and took spectacular advantage of the natural flavors of their main ingredients. The meatloaf sandwich was killer, and is beyond worth it's weight in gold.

click below for the main course:

I am finally going through and getting rid of all of the piles in my office. And their name is legion, for they are many. One of the benefits of this massive undertaking is that I am actually taking a second look at all of the pages that I have ripped out of magazines for god knows what reason over the past few (or 7) years. And I am finding some pretty cool stuff. Which may not be brand new, but that doesn't make it any less worthy of sharing.

Like this play stove and washing machine made out of cardboard by the design collective Nume. Each can be yours for $38 here, should you be so inclined. The price cannot be beat, the design is cool and all of that blank white space really encourages your kids to get creative with the crayons.

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So this came out last October, which makes this little blog entry pretty far behind the ball, but I only just had a chance to check it out (welcome to my life!) and I think it remains as relevant now as it was a couple of months ago.

Good magazine is all about people who are actively doing things to help make the world a better place in all sorts of disciplines... education, design, politics and food, to name a few) It's goal is to create a community of like minded people all of whom, in their own ways, to save our planet from the certain disaster it is headed for if we just sit around and do nothing.

The Good 100 is their list of the 100 most important people and projects going on right now that we should all know about. If you go to the site, each icon (some are pictured above) corresponds to a particular item on the list. A simple click will tell you all about ilovemountains.org, which is helping to fight against mountaintop coal mining in Appalachia, or Emily Pilloton who designs impactful stuff like educational playgrounds in Uganda and North Carolina.

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I have known Lara Meyerratken for years and years and she has never stopped making music. Sometimes for herself, sometimes in other bands (like Ben Lee and Luna, for example) she has been tinkling away on the keyboards and singing her heart out for as long as I've been aware of her existence. And now, finally, she has her own full length CD which I stumbled upon when reading her blog one night (when I should have been sleeping.) The limited edition hand screen printed version (you can order it electronically, but why would I do that when there's actual artwork to be had?) arrived in my mailbox this weekend and it's been on high rotation ever since.

I'm terrible at describing music and have no idea why I think I can start now, but here goes... My husband says she reminds him of Suzanne Vega, which I kind of get in that the subjects of the songs are all intimate and very real, but the harmonies and the arrangements, while blissfully simple, are more lush than the Suzanne Vega that I remember. I'm thinking this music is not unrelated to the Brian Wilson aspects of the Beach Boys, but with a distinctly female and modern sensibility that is most evident when you buckle down and really listen to the lyrics. It's kind of sun-is-streaming-through-the-window-on-a-lazy-Sunday-afternoon kind of music.

And what could be better than that?

See below for links, etc:

My husband sent me this link a little while ago, partially, I think, as a joke-- though he knew it would appeal to a certain crazy paranoia I have about how much video surveillance there is of everything. But is it really crazy? Evidently, in a modern urban environment, a person is on camera 85% of the time they are out in public. Which to me is outrageous no matter how you slice it.

I am clearly not alone in my distaste for this fact. Enter the folks of iSee, a site that has plotted where the video cameras are out there (well, at least in Manhattan) and will help fellow kindred spirits to plot the route of least surveillance. All you have to do is click on the start and end points of your voyage and they will highlight the least videoed way to get there.

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My husband is the real chef in the family, with a gift for just picking up random ingredients from the store and then inventing some kind of delicious restaurant caliber meal off the top of his head. I'm not bad in the kitchen, but I do require step by step instructions, even if I do riff off of them every once in a while. Tonight, however, I managed to make a delicious meal (curried tilapia and collard greens) and I figured I'd share it with you all, not least of all because the recipe comes from a brilliant website called No Take Out, that is dedicated to promoting more home cooked, healthy, family style meals.

They've got lots of great recipes (a new one every day!) and a good percentage of them are vegetarian. The preparation is always simple and the results have never been less than delicious. Plus the most brilliant thing about them is that they give you step by step instructions to make the complete meal, from "walk in the door and put a kettle of water on to boil," to "here you have a few minutes, go set the table and put the bread on." Which is super helpful, as timing the various dishes is one of my weak spots when planning a meal. If you actually do what they say, you'll end up with a perfectly timed, healthy flavorful meal. They even make wine and dessert suggestions.

Which is never a bad thing.

recipe below:

So I have now joined the ranks of not-enough-to-do-with-our-time parents who make their own play dough at home with their kids. But I have to admit, it was really fun and took no more than 15 minutes from the time I thought it might be a good idea to seeing those 4 balls of color on the counter. Plus I know what I put in there, which makes me less nervous when the inevitable fistfulls go hurdling towards those litle mouths!

There are tons of recipes on line, but I picked this particular one because the blog entry started with the words "Finally I've found a playdough recipe that works!" I figured, why not just piggyback on her success, right?

Recipe is below. And in the interest of full disclosure, the above photograph was shot not by me, but by our junior chef!

Here is the piece in it's entirety... we are going to build a frame for it as well, but I'm not patient enough to wait for that to be done before I start showing this thing to the world. It took days to put up, as each image is affixed individually to the supporting board, but it is sooo worth it. I am really happy with the way it turned out.

What is it, you ask? I was commissioned by soulcycle, an indoor cycling studio (yep, spinning) to make a piece that celebrated the community of incredibly happy (and in-shape) people they have built up over the past three years. As they grow from a single sweaty room on the upper west side to a 5 studio empire, it is still the extended family vibe that takes center stage. So when you walk into the newest, biggest studio at 103 Warren Street in Tribeca, you are greeted by hundreds of smiling faces which is only the beginning of what will most likely be an incredibly positive, if exhausting, experience.

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I am sorry to have been so MIA lately but I have been finishing this HUGE installation of what we like to call polaroids (but are actually Fuji instax film photos) for the brand new flagship, opening tomorrow, indoor cycling studio called soulcycle.

I am so tired that I cannot even go into detail now, other than the fact that I am thrilled to have been able to orchestrate the piece and that it looks f*cking awesome.

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So with all good new things (2010! Woo hoo!) must come some sadness... My favorite neighborhood restaurant, Silent h, a brilliant delectable casual inventive take on traditional Vietnamese home cooking has closed it's doors for good. So local that we could pretend it was an extension of our living room, so mellow that the brilliant chef/owner, Vihn Nguyan, gave my daughter the run of the place, so wonderfully delicious that nary a week went by without a lunch and/or dinner there. Revered by the grownups in the local press (and by local, I mean the NY Times, among others).... and yet, the evil evil economic meltdown was too much for it, and a truly great eatery is no more.

All is not lost, however. Vihn is hard at work with a couple of partners on a new place that will open, like a phoenix, in the same, albeit renovated, space. The type of cuisine is a closely held secret, but one who's revelation  I am eagerly anticipating.

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Don't let the door hit you on the way out! Not that we all didn't have all sorts of wonderful moments during this stressful and eventful year, but man I must admit to being very excited for the better times that I am sure lie directly ahead in the form of a rosy 2010.

So here's to less stupidity, more peace and creativity, and above all more time to enjoy the people and incredible moments that make life on this earth worth all of the struggle (and the overcrowded subways...)

A highly qualified holiday wish for you all:

May your days be merry and bright (and prosperous and fulfilling and memorable and fun and enlightening) and may all your Christmases (and Hanukahs and Kwanzaas and Ramadan and whatever other holidays there are around years end) be white (and by white, I mean clean and clear and full of possibilities.)

Thanks for hanging out with me.

So I was trolling around the Soul Cycle website and I came across this gift guide on their blog. And it's great. Like it features the above beautiful object that is, believe it or not, a humidifier. Go figure! And then go check this list out. Stephen Mack, the brains behind the goods, is clearly far more than just a technology consultant.

Ok grandparents and other secret and not so secret admirers, let us all take a moment out and think about how cute our favorite little scorpio would look in this sweater. That is currently being sold at my favorite neighborhood kids' store, Sweet William. Probably the most brilliant curation of singular, often handmade (but NEVER hokey) and always tasteful clothing for kids from zero to six, this store is always a pleasure to check out. And I'm going to have to say that I wouldn't mind owning  just about every single thing in the place.

My daughter has a crush on Bronagh Staley, the wizard behind the cutain at this place, and who could blame her? This native of Ireland has brought a wonderous world of beautiful things to Williamsburg and doesn't seem to mind near daily visits (and shop redecoration) by the various children of the neighborhood. Future shoppers in training, I suppose.

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My friend Ria Browne, who was most recently the business mind behind the timeless and damned near perfect fashion line Mayle, has decided to pour her eye for design into a flower delivery service that carries only potted plants and flowers, as they last longer and are far more environmentally friendly. Called Tiny Park Flowers, this little company has exploded and she is now most likely going to continue the fun throughout the year. Oh happy day for us NYC dwellers!

Prices start at a very reasonable $25 and she's got orchids, paperwhites, amaryllis and all sorts of other seasonal flora-- she'll also take requests, as long as the plant in question is available. The arrangements are simple and beautiful-- the perfect thing for the person who already has the latest everything else. E mail her at ria@tinypark.net for more information or to place an order.

And click below to see a few more arrangements-- just to get your mouths watering!

Back in the good old days, when Domino magazine was still pumping out issues, I wrote a profile about Tessa Edick, co-founder of a brilliant company called Sauces 'n Love. She and her business partner Paolo Volpati-Kedra turned their love of Italian cooking and entertaining into 2 mouth watering lines of pasta sauces, one of which (sauces 'n love) lives in the fridge and the other (scarpetta) keeps in the cupboard. And best of all, they both seriously (and I am NOT exaggerating here) taste like you went out to your garden and picked the ingredients yourself before slaving for hours in the kitchen. I was SHOCKED the first time I tasted their tuscan vodka sauce. SHOCKED. Even my gourmet-calibre-chef husband likes this stuff.

And they have gift sets that you can buy for all of the people you really like but don't know what to get for the holidays. No pantry should be without, and I'm telling you, your friends will thank you when they get home late on a Sunday night after a flight that was delayed for 4 hours and they realize that they can have a sumptuous meal in minutes with minimal effort.

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For the next 20 hours or so, the very very talented shoe designer Eileen Shields is slashing the prices on whatever stock she has left in her online store. This includes these amazing show-stopping sandals she designed for Zero + Maria Cornejo. And many other, equally incredible styles. Seriously, you will not find a more beautifully made shoe anywhere. The construction and materials are out of this world, and best of all, you can actually walk in them!

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Why is it that I fall in love with every place I go in Portland, Oregon? I'm here visiting my uncle (weather: uncharacteristically sunny, but a frigid 23 degrees) and we popped over to this delicious sandwitch spot for a ruben slider and some chili. Billed as a Jewish delicatessen, but with an industrial-slash-farmhouse feel, the sandwiches (and the succotash, which was yesterday's soup of the day) at Kenny and Zuke's rock.

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So I've taken up spinning. Yep, indoor cycling on a stationary bike with my feet clipped into the pedals listening to Jay Z in the dark while some incredibly in shape and inspiring person urges me on (and 40ish of my fellow NYers) with the aid of a hands free mic.

The full story (as any of you who actually know me must be waiting to hear) is that I have been lucky enough to be commissioned by Soul Cycle, one of New York's premiere indoor cycling studios, to make a huge (like 18 feet by 6 feet) installation of Polaroids (actually Fuji brand instax images as Polaroid is out of business) for the new studio they are opening in Tribeca. Similar to the Hands piece I did a few years back (see photo above), it's going to be like a huge family portrait of the community they have built up over the past three years. You can read more about the piece, and the studio, here.

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Now this looks to be just a beta version, but Slate has come up with a lyrically beautiful way to follow the news while also helping us to understand how the f*ck all of these people, places and things are connected. It's called the News Dots Network, and it is a fantastic way to waste untold hours looking up all of the articles in major newsfeeds that mention both Obabma and, say, Congress.

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Ok after today I promise a few posts about things other than shopping will be interspersed betwixt and between this gift guide stuff. But for right now, here are a few flash drives for the gadget minded person who still cares about what her toys look like. If you have to transport data, I say you may as well do it in style. And these are the kind of things that people don't tend to buy for themselves...

This first drive, by Oooms, hails from the Netherlands (of course) and is a perfect marriage of old world craftmanship-- each stick is hand made from a unique piece of wood-- and technology with 1 G of memory. Check it out here, where it is currently on sale!

Completely different vibe, but no less excellent, these playful dolls are perfect for the collector of Japanese action figures or the hello kitty crew. Available at MOMA, they make a great little gift and are less heavy on the wallet.

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Now why I found these on a kids' website I could not tell you... these thumb wrestling masks are the kind of thing that could have come in handy on many a late night in my not too distant former life as a childless person with a social life. There is a cartain sensibility that appreciates the esthetic value of the mexican wrestling masks (and it aint all low brow, either-- check out the amazing designs of DFCasa, a Mexican studio that merits it's own future post for sure)

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So I ran into my friend Dara Caponigro the other day at Soul Cycle, the ultra hip spin (i.e. indoor cycling) studio on the upper east side of Manhattan. I was shooting for a large scale installation I've been working on (more on that later) and Dara was there to get her groove on in a class. A veteran shelter magazine editor (Elle Decor, Domino) Dara has perhaps the most elegant taste of anyone I have ever met. So I naturally asked her what she suggested I put in this little gift guide and, funnily enough, the first idea that popped into her head were these heart shaped cutting boards from a British company called Daylesford Organic.

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My friends Howard Goldkrand and Beth Coleman (of soundlab|cultural alchemy fame) have some of the best taste I ever ever encountered. Seriously. They make great art (see my first blog post) produce amazing events, have a super cool kid and give the best gifts ever.

Like this book they gave to my daughter, by artist Dallas Clayton, aptly titled An Awesome Book. All about the importance of dreaming, it is filled with whimsical and hilarious drawings of candy cane machines and rocket powered unicorns all meant to encourage little people to dream BIG. To be honest, I think I love it more than my kid does, which is great since I'm going to have to read it to her about a million times between now and when she is really reading on her own.

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We're still in the kitchen, but this time looking to keep things fresh in the fridge. How much do you want to bet that your family I-own-the-whole-Williams-Sonoma-catalogue chef doesn't have one of these babies in the icebox? This smooth cube of Korean white charcoal (it only LOOKS black!) acts as a natural air purifier by absorbing excess gasses.

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In a perfect world, you will somehow automatically be able to watch this short and great video about people having a good time with art by clicking here. I am placing my bets on perfection. Lets see if it works.

While we're on the topic of cooking, it just so happens that one of my favorite friends from high school (the talented furniture designer Adam Simha) is now designing a brilliant line of kitchen knives that are as pleasant to look at as they are a joy to actually use.

With brightly colored bicycle grips for handles and blades produced in Sheffield, England (a world capital in the knife trade) these old world/new school hybrids will make any serious cook smile.

Just read what the pros have to say, and check out the MKS website for store information or to buy one directly from the source!

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Let the Holiday Gift Guide begin! From now through the end of the season, I will bring you as many cool gift ideas as I can muster (which better be numerous as I haven't even started doing any shopping for my posse!)

Here's one for the kids:

Some families on this earth are lucky enough to have whole rooms devoted to the toys and entertainment of their children. Playrooms, I think these spaces are called. I wouldn't know, as I live in a typically space challenged apartment in New York City. Which is why, when considering a toy stove for my daughter, I had to also consider the fact that it was going to be living in our dining room and had to meet the design approval of my very very (dare I say overly?) discerning husband.

I found my answer in this beautifully crafted wooden stove by Camden Rose. Truth be told, I saw one at a friend's place and immediately had to know where she'd found it. She generously pointed me to palumba.com, which is your dream destination for old school and often hand crafted toys for your kids.

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Lets get one thing straight right off the bat. I have had a copy of this CD in my possession (and been listening to it on a near daily basis) for months. So while I am happy beyond words that my friend and some time collaborator, the extremely talented Xian Hawkins (of Sybarite) got a glowing review in the Paper Of Record (aka The New York Times) I am slightly annoyed that this entry might now feel a bit like I'm following the pack.

I am not, damn it! I have been a fan of Bell Horses since before they even had a name. So there. Though I must admit that when Jon Pareles refers to this music as a gorgeous disorientation, he's got a point. It lifts you up and carries you away to some other nearby spot-- almost like home, only warmer and with greener grass. Though you need not despair of getting completeley lost in a psychadelic soundscape. There is always a thread of a song, and a downright hummable one at that, to guide you through the complex swirling waves of music that make up these compositions.

Click below to hear it for yourself (and to read me rave on a bit more)

This is the holding page for my friend Brian Keith Jackson's website. It is the best holding page I have ever seen, hands down.

Brian is the author of several novels, including The Queen of Harlem, and god only knows how many magazine articles and sundry other writings such as a brilliant introduction to Kehinde Wiley's catalogue of recent paintings. He is also a great human being, and I am a huge fan of his work and of him. (is that grammatically correct?)

Still no link functionality on this thing, (plus the date and time are completely off (it's actually 10:30 pm on Nov 1) but I couldn't resist posting this photo of me (in the red sweatshirt) screaming my brains out cheering for the front running men in the 2009 NYC Marathon. And in this shot (taken by my husband, who I now owe all sorts of favors) we are cheering on Meb Keflizighi (white shirt, grey hat) who went on the win the marathon in 2 hours, 19 1/4 seconds. Incredible. I mean, what do I get done in 2 hours these days?

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So as it turns out, there is something horribly wrong with the linking functionality on this blog-- whenever you click on a link, you end up right back here at thisisauthentic.com. Not that I don't like the destination, but it kind of misses the whole point, you know what I mean? Anyway, we're working it out and hopefully will be back up and running in the next week or so. Thanks for your patience.

Oh happy day! The beautiful weather has brought the Van Leeuwen ice cream truck back to Bedford Avenue. This is, bar none, the best ice cream ever. For real. And it's parked right outside of my local subway stop. I have no idea what arduous tasks I completed in a past life to deserve such proximity to this deliciousness, but indulge I will. And frequently.

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These people make really nice clothes for kids. Beautifully constructed, simple and classic. Original without being annoying or overly cutesy. Plus the color palatte is mellow, unlike so many clothes for children-- especially girls-- these days. Worth every penny (which is saying something in this the land of H&M and Target...) Check them out here.

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Ummmm.... not sure why I didn't take any photos at this event, but behold the program above. This was a truly interesting look into some of the most  forward thinking work being done in education today, and about how we can all participate, which is the exciting part. It was brought to East 3rd Street by the Blue Man Group, who have founded their own school (think Reggio Emilia meets Neuroscience) to attempt to address what is lacking in current mainstream primary education.  If they keep this up and continue to inspire in this way, there is actually the possibility of a truly bright future for our kids. My favorite part of the whole thing was a video of a talk given by the classical music conductor Benjamin Zander on Music and Passion. Take a minute to check it out here. You won't be sorry.

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Ok, Ok I confess. I have fallen prey to the obento box craze that seems to be swelling amongst those of us who pack lunches, either for ourselves or our kids. Being a person who feels like I do the majority of my mothering on the fly, coming up with everything from meals to activities at the last possible second, the whole idea of preparing a lunch ahead of time is beyond traumatic. So to help ease the pain, I thought I'd go with something cute. Here are my two favorites.

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I am sitting here, at my computer, coming down with a cold/virus/oh-please-not-the-swine-flu, listening to TV On The Radio guitarist/vocalist Kyp Malone sing his heart out on his solo album, Rain Machine. Which I am loving. More stripped down than his day job project, but emerging equally (and excellently) from someplace far out in left field this is the kind of record to be listened to when everyone else is asleep. Not because it will drive them crazy, but because you actually want to pay attention to what is going on.

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Is it me? This is the second magazine in a row with which I have been regularly affiliated that has gone under. Still do not know what is happening with the website, but my guess is that it will go the way of dominomag.com and so many others. Run do not walk to the site to stockpile the great recipes, decorating ideas and fun products (even if many are way too $$ to ever consider for your 2 year old) And check out the home decor stories for some inspiration-- the more recent ones I wrote can be found here (for now!)

While I will not miss the $300 cashmere sweaters for toddlers, I will miss the photography, the style and the whole attitude of Cookie-world. It is never a bad thing to help to remind us that new motherhood does not equal a life sentence of wearing spit-up covered sweats.

I have spent the vast majority of my summers in a house on the same street as one of the significant locales in Colson Whitehead's latest novel, Sag Harbor. In fact, we played tag together as little kids and I'm sure he must have scooped me up dozens of ice cream cones from behind the counter during his summer gig at Big Olaf's in town. So I was more than a little curious to see what this semi-autobiographical novel was all about. And thankfully it does not disappoint. Because there is nothing worse than struggling through your friend's unreadable novel (or unbearable play or unlistenable concert) and then trying to figure out how to respond when he (or she) asks you how you liked it. We've all been there.

Whitehead (also author of The Intuitionist, John Henry Days and Apex Hides the Hurt, to name the major titles) is a beautiful writer, whose prose in this novel alternately takes your breath away or cracks you up. Which is particularly fitting for a boy-coming-of-age-in-the-80's story. His descriptions of the people and places that populated his adolescence are so true to the version of Sag Harbor that I remember as to almost confuse me into thinking that this story is the gospel truth, rather than a fictionalized version of one semi-imaginary kid's journey.

So to begin with, there is a compass and a live webcam. Which rocks. Next throw in the 13 speaker sound system, the laptop, the EQ panel and the radio receiver and I'm basically sold. But what makes this thing truly dope is the classic seat combined with the gold plated hubs, wheels and pedals. I mean, what is the point of all this technology without equal attention to style?