Taaaadaaa

A year's worth of love from tim san in stickerform!

S'all about me

In case you've forgotten (like I'd ever let that happen) March 26 is approaching and on that day I will be 25 YEARS OLD!!!! To celebrate my decent into old age I am posting the usual "I wonder what she'd like for her birthday" list. If you can't afford anything don't worry about it.

There's always next year.

1. An original coin of Queen Elizabeth 1. If you search ebay you can find some pretty good authentic Queen Elizabeth 1 coins (not to mention documents). For example this ( http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=002&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=120086930269&rd=1&rd=1 ) badass coin. True Lizzy didn't have much to do with Japan- but being a tough, smart woman is very geisha and thus very Kawaii. I adore anything to do with her.

2. A dinner at medieval times (http://www.medievaltimes.com/ ) Oh come on you totally saw this one coming. What is more cosplay / kawaii then dressing up and partying like it's 1443?

3. Speaking of dressing up a kimono would be lovely!

4. The fragrance Bryant Park from Bond Street

5. Anything antique with a cameo

That's it for now... if I think of anything else I'll be sure to post

Check out the armpit!

Proof I was at fashion week- me nervously clutching a lint roller behind a beautiful model!

"Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!"

One of my most favorite Japanese sayings is "Oni wa soto!Fuku wa uchi!", usually uttered around this time of year in Japan to keep the evil spirits away. It works well in English too- say "fuku" loud enough to anyone and it'll probably keep them away.


A few weeks ago I received a beautiful paper mache Daruma and Lucky cat from Tim san. But it seems maybe I didn't put them in the right position or say "fuku" enough because now my luck has changed and I can't find my digital camera to take a picture! Still I feel very fortunate to have received these special gifts in this, the year of the pig (probably not a favorite among the kosher).

My new Years Resolution

It took a while to think of a realistic resolution.
Without the time or $$$ for a trainer, chef and posh gym the whole lose 20lbs thing tomorrow isn't going to happen.
But according to what I've read recently my beloved coca cola may be the cause of my stubborn weight gain. In theory no coke for one year can lead to a loss of 12lbs!
No coke is also a fantasy- I'm addicted.
But I think I may be able to manage one can of coca cola a week. I had my one can last night. Delish.
Is it hard?
Oh god yes.
But when I fit into my clothing and my addiction weens it will be worth it.

I had a dream!

Part of preparing for fashion week is not having a day off (weekends included) since December. It wasn't so bad at first but it's starting to wear on me.... but then came MLK's birthday! All hail the king! In honor of this great man I intend to "have a dream" all day. Do not call. I will be sleeping. VERY VERY soundly.
HALAJULAH!

Gombergpalooza!

Go Fly A Kite

Gomberg Finances

Lame Blog, but no one ever said Gomberg's are cool

Insert "AA" joke here

HOLY FUCKING CRAP it's ANOTHER DAVE AND SOPHIA GOMBERG! And they're dorks!

Hippie Gomberg- you have to love:" On March 4, 2004, Gomberg was reported missing and presumed dead, after leaving his partner a suicide note stating that he had "lost his chutzpah."

Jazz for Jewsus

Vampire Gomberg

My brother Gomberg

All Hail Moses Gomberg!

Here he is- Mr. Radical Chemistry!!!!!
Nuns now live in the former home of this Jewish Genius
What could be more Kawaii then honoring your relatives? And in honor of my long lost ancestor Moses Gomberg (the founder of radical chemistry)I am posting some links to info on this badass man (Hello there is a fraternal organization called Gomberg house at MU where he studied!)
Enjoy!
Because Wikipedia is like the standard now
Ann Arbor honors Moses
It's like "Animal House", only with yamulkes

The End.

I broke up with my boyfriend- feeling both blue and resigned that I did the right thing

seiji no hi (the coming of age festival)

Seiji no hi is celebrated on the second Monday of January (it used to be celebrated always on January 15 until the year 1999). All young people who turn twenty years old in that year are celebrated as this is the age considered as the beginning of adulthood. It is a national holiday in Japan- even Ralph Lauren employees have the day off!

Aruba Pics

We ordered nachos with jalapenos and cheese and they brought us DORITOS! It would have been less insulting if they left them in the bag!
We went on a boat trip and saw a sunken Nazi warship

"Nana korobi yaoki" which translates roughly as "if you fall down seven times get up eight"

Happy New year!! It's 2007, and I'm at a loss for what to say. I just got back from Aruba (as you can see in the pics) and was treated to an unbelievable holiday surprize. Straight from Japan from Tim-San a brand new DARUMA! I've been wanting one almost as badly as I've been wanting a lucky cat. He also sent me badass warthog stickers (perhaps because it's the year of the pig) and some yummy mushroom and Hello Kitty candy.

I spent New Years with my bestfriend Rachel. We got drunk... I mean stinking drunk, watching "The History of Sex" on the History channel. Some vodka, cider, proseco and champagne later I was seriously regretting our choice of extra hot salsa and chips. Still a great time!

Kawaii Kwotes

A woman in East Hampton has been sent "ambergris, the storied substance created in the intestines of a sperm whale and spewed into the ocean. Also called “whale’s pearl” or “floating gold,” ambergris is a rare and often valuable ingredient in fine perfumes." However no one is sure if it IS ambergris since as Larry Penny, director of East Hampton’s natural resources department notes, they have no way of making a definite determination, because
“we don’t keep a certified whale-vomit expert on staff.”

This is nuts!

Far be it for me to complain about warm weather. Still when it's 60 degrees in December one has to wonder whether that's a good sign. Case in point: squirrels. Today I came to the realization that the city is STILL STRONG with squirrels despite the fact that they should be hibernating in their warm beds this time of year. I saw three very active squirrels between 86th st and 59th st... fat it's true.... but not sleeping or even sleepy. If the flippin squirrels are confused surely something must be up. I was able to ignore the trees that still have leaves, the total lack of snow- but poor confused squirrels? Some how that just seems cruel.

Uuuuck

A lot of what I've been doing- other than twisting my ankle from all the running- is eating the holiday presents my bosses got. Huge boxes of chocolates and cookies that none of these skinny ladies will touch... except me. Yes, I am aware it's "holiday not holi-month" (thank you weight watchers), yes I would prefer to fit in my fat pants, but when it's 6pm and a bag of gourmet dark chocolate pretzels is staring you in the face tell me how strong you are.

Fur Lord's Sake

Now I'm no PETA lovin paint thrower. I was raised wearing fur (yes I know- "Boooooo"), but I was also raised to love animals (has anyone not seen my crazed devotion to my cat?!) But this... THIS is just wrong. Yes, some dogs can't handle cold weather and need a coat but FUR ON FUR?! This is pretty sick people. Apparently it happened at a German dog show this past week. I guess this isn't to crazy considering the Germans also brought us Nazi's and Shaitza videos. Thank god the dogs don't have on little swastka arm bands!

Kurrent Kawaii Krap

There is a lot going on in the world of super badass kawaii right now even if I don't report on in as much as I should.

For starters there is Iyashi kyara , "characters that are not just cute but give people who see them a sense of relief and warmth". These are basically the SAN-X looking Japanime like Tare Panda who I used to be so obsessed with that my AOL image was him doing flips.

And then of course there is the RL Ricky bag which can go 20,000+ when you get crocodile involved. I don't actually want to spend a car down payment on a purse (unless I could do so without issue) so I'm instead setting my alarm clock early and heading down to the RL employee handbag sample sale. My goal: a ricky bag to call my own for a steal.

Last is flats- as in the shoe not the tire. Running around in high heels is very unkawaii. Would I wear geta? Good question- yes I would- but to Ralph, probably not.

Ralph and I

If you had told me I would end up in fashion I would have called you a liar. Especially after my Devil Meets Prada "ELLE" internship all those years ago. But here I am- I guess you can't fight loving clothes. It's day 3 of my getting into the RL Collection groove. It is really hard and everyone is super-humanly talented. I don't have a desk which is lame, but we're moving in 2 weeks for to prepare for the February fashion show so really does 2 more weeks of my life without a desk matter that much? What I have learned so far. I need flats. Heels simply will not do. I'm on my feet all day and 2 days of heels made my feet bleed. So this weekend I need to buy flats- lots of them. ooOOOps gotta go....

HAPPY DAY!

I got a job.
No lie.
As an admin for Ralph Lauren Women's Collection (Couture).
I am so excited I haven't been able to type or stop shaking all day.
I am going to be working so hard, but I am so happy.

Joining the circus is not just for kids

I love remembering being 14 and in the circus. It was one of the few times in my life I was cut and active. I loved have callused hands, being able to flip, having the foresight that being in the circus was a badass thing I could whip out in old age (oh you were on track? How nice. I was on the freakin trapeze!)
But cancer decided that I wasn't going to be in Cirque D'Solel.
Losing the circus was for me right up there with going bald.
And so, as the years passed and I developed a mediocre physical ability (never was able to flip as a high diver, can't go up a flight of stairs unwinded) I always reached back for a time I actually didn't suck and my body listened to me. Over the past few months I've tried to fix what's wrong with my life and move forward. I couldn't help but notice a sign on a local church for acrobatics. I walked by this thing 50,000 times before I ate crow and went in yesterday. I was excited and scared, but I figured if I'm taking illustration what harm can another useless class do? The dude heading the classes is named Rudy. His body aches with 50+ years of gymnastics and he's bald but nice and wise like Master Joo. He told me to show up today at 5:30 and see if I liked it.
So I showed up and took a "class" with 10-17 year olds. The scary part was getting along with them. Is it normal to be 24 and have 12 year olds think your awesome? I was scared because I never did trampoline but that was what we were doing. It was fun, and hard! Who knew? I told Rudy I wanted to get back into trapeze or rather, the "silks", which is a form of aerial I was never taught because my French trainer said I wasn't strong enough. Rudy said I could try going on the silks next week! Yea, right now my life IS random. But exciting!