{ life lately }

Mark and I just had the best weekend ever. We spent Friday night at Lanesplitter Pizza and the Missouri Lounge, eating pizza and drinking beer with Mark's grad school friends. We listened to a lot of Blackstreet and Ginuwine. I'm not entirely sure why both are so popular in the Bay Area, but I'm not complaining.

Saturday we took Penelope to the most amazing dog park ever! Point Isabel is 23 acres of amazingness. There is water for swimmers (although we don't let Penelope swim anymore), lots of open space for ball playing, hills to run up and down, dog level drinking fountains, a cafe, and a do-it-yourself dog wash! We spent hours walking the trails, playing with other people's dogs, and trying to keep Penelope out of the water. After that we grocery shopped, which is always so nice to do with a car, made chicken salad, and watched Starbuck. If you haven't seen this movie, just watch it. It's so funny and cute, you'll just love it.

Sunday Mark had to shoot some footage at a meat processing facility in Hayes Valley, so I went with him and explored the neighborhood while he worked. I walked around the sleepy commercial stretch and window shopped, then headed over to Patricia's Green Park for some Ritual Coffee. I sat in the park, sipped on my latte, and read a book. When he was finished, he picked me up and we drove up the coast to Sutro Baths. We explored the ruins, then headed up to Cliff House for lunch.

THEN, we went to the San Francisco Zoo! 

THEN, we came home and put our coffee table together.

THEN we watched Jurassic Park.

Sigh. If only every weekend could be like this.

{ paper girl sf }

Last weekend we had friends in town! Megan, Alex, and Tim came to stay with us from Thursday to Monday, and boy was it ever fun.

On Saturday we were minding our own business, eating some after breakfast ice cream from Bi-Rite Creamery in the Mission, when we heard "Free art! Free art!" called out down the street. A gaggle of friendly looking people rode by on their bikes and a bundle of papers was hurled towards us. Low and behold, it was free art!

Papergirl San Francisco is a community art project who enlists artists to submit their art and distributes it by bike, paperboy style, to lucky unsuspecting people in the streets of San Francisco. And that Saturday, we just so happened to be both lucky and unsuspecting.

So guys, get out there on those streets, eat some ice cream, and keep your heads up. You never know when some art will come soaring through the air.

{cuckoo for cuckoo clocks }

Cuckoo clocks have always drawn my attention, ever since I was a little girl. I remember sitting in my neighbor's living room, just hoping our visit would take long enough so I could witness the little bird pop his head out chirp the time. And when it happened, it felt like magic.

Nowadays, I'm pretty sure I'd find that bird incredibly annoying. I don't need that guy reminding me I should have gotten out of the bathtub 20 minutes ago, or that I'm running late for work and am probably about to miss my bus. Okay, I do need that, but I don't want it, know what I'm sayin'? Which is why these cuckoo-style clocks by Maiko Kuzunishi of DecoyLab are perfect! You get all the cuteness of a cuckoo clock, with none of the irritating squawking or chiming of the damn bird. If you're late, you can check the clock with your own procrastinating eyes.

She doesn't limit herself to just cuckoo clocks, either. She hand makes some really detailed whimsical wall clocks, and some adorable animal clocks. I love the little hedgehog below.

DecoyLab raffles off a different clock every month, so be sure to check out their giveaway page and enter to win! October's giveaway is for the clock shown in the third image above. This post is not sponsored in any way, so you better believe I entered. That clock will be mine. Muah ha ha ha.

Until next time, cuckoo ka-choo.

{ an ode to rattan }

Rattan, cane, bamboo, wicker - I love you silly. Hashtag obsessed.

Source: Style by Emily Henderson

Source: Christie Chase

Source: Mid Century Modern Interiors

But you know who's not obsessed? My husband. And you know who respectfully doesn't care? This girl. You see, I learned early on that while the dude is adorable, really super funny, ridiculously smart, has the cutest dance moves, and makes some killer guacamole, I can't quite trust him when it comes to picking out things for our home. Maybe I'm a bit of a control freak in this regard, but I just can't ever seem to compromise. He once fought me (fought me!) on displaying this really stupid 90s car phone on a shelf in our bedroom! It was not pretty.  I remember calling my mom and literally crying over it. Like actual real tears of frustration. I was so conflicted because while I do think compromising is super important in any relationship, that dumb phone was just too awful to let sit there any longer. And to be completely honest, I somehow let it become this symbol of how I felt like I was losing myself during that time in my life. And that, my friends, is a whole other sad story. Maybe I'll get to that someday...

Anyway, I had a really good Craigslist score where I came away with four vintage reproductions of Marcel Breuer's Cesca cane chairs (similar to the ones in the second image above) for $40! It was a huge debacle, touch and go for a while, but I finally got the guy to deliver them to our apartment. They were finally mine. When he returned my call four days after the day he had promised to deliver them in the first place I hung up and exclaimed, "Dreams do come true!" I'm serious about this stuff, guys.

{ being an introvert }

I feel like introverts have been getting some serious love these days, and it makes me really happy. I just read Buzzfeed's 27 Problems Only Introverts Will Understand, and am proud to say I relate to every single one.

Being an introvert is really difficult out there in the real world. As you know, I was recently on the job hunt and had four in-person interviews, and a handful of phone interviews. And each time I felt like I wasn't being true to myself. I felt like I was forcing myself to act as if I'm an extrovert. I'm confident in my abilities, but I have a hard time communicating that to someone I'm just meeting. The idea of having to "sell myself" in an interview is very uncomfortable to me. I felt like I was misrepresenting myself, which goes against everything a true introvert stands for. We have a strong need for everything to be genuine. To always be acting as true to ourselves as we can be. Sometimes, that feels like a recipe for failure to me.

 I feel like I've always struggled with this inner conflict. Maybe you feel the same. You're expected to have a big circle of friends, to ace that public speaking course, to act confident in things when you aren't the least bit so, to network at company events, and to socialize with other people other than your dog on weekends. And when you don't, you feel like there's something wrong with you.

When my husband and I first started dating, I started to feel this conflict to a larger degree than I ever had before. I realize now, it's because Mark is a classic extrovert. He loves meeting new people, having in depth conversations with whoever he's with, going to parties and making lots of friends. On Sundays he would start going over his plans for the upcoming week, and I would sit there in agony. So many friends to meet up with, so many social obligations, so many work functions. Ugh. Why can't we just take a walk, make some pizza, read books on the front porch, and drink tea? Why do we have to involve other people in our lives? What's wrong with me that I feel such anxiety when I hear the word "fun"? I must be depressed...

Before all this media hype, I was definitely confusing introversion with depression.  It sort of feels the same sometimes. I prefer to go days without any social engagements, and sometimes I find myself forcing a smile in public. I spend a lot of time in my head, and there are times when those thoughts aren't so pretty, which in turn makes me very moody, gloomy, and critical of myself. As an introvert, my work self, social self, family self, and friend self are not truly me. Some are closer to the true me than others, but I am never my true self unless I'm alone. And sometimes that is a scary thought. And, contrary to how it may seem, I do often feel lonely when I'm by myself. And the feeling of loneliness rarely goes away, even when I'm with a large group of people. What we introverts ultimately need is deep connection, and when we're not connecting, we're losing power. We're like mermaids who've been out of the ocean too long. It gets harder to breathe the longer we're away from home.

I'm being a bit dramatic here. I love my friends and family. I do really enjoy spending time with them. I sometimes even enjoy myself at parties. But when I don't, does that mean there's something wrong with me? Am I not normal? The answer is obviously no. No, I am not not normal. And to be completely honest, I've come to like being an introvert. I like the idea that my power comes from within. I can go out into that real world and share my power with others, but eventually I have to return to my safe place and recharge myself in peace. I like that I only appreciate things when they're genuine. If you prove that you care about me, I'll open up to you. If you don't, then you don't deserve to know what's going on in my head. That means the people I open up to are special and should consider themselves lucky. And I like my need for self discovery, self exploration, and self realization. I feel like I've learned more about myself these past two years than I have in my whole almost 30 years of living. It's a great feeling when you finally find these answers that help reveal the person you've been fighting to understand your whole life.

If you'd like to know your personality type, this is the test I used to determine mine. It's based on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, which is basically a questionnaire that helps determine how a person perceives the world and makes decisions. Leave a comment and let me know what you discover!

{ it's a matter of taste }

Sometimes differences in opinion, taste, and perception are so weird to me. Have you ever gotten a book recommendation from a friend, read the book, and thought "What the heck was that even about? How is that your favorite book?" I know I sure have. Have you ever made dinner for someone only to find out later that they don't like goat cheese? Or don't eat salmon? Or are not a "sweets person"? I tend to look at people like that as if they're a different species.

I don't really know where I was going with this one. I guess I wanted to just put it out there. I think a good rule of thumb is to only have a maximum of five foods you refuse to eat. I've determined my five here:

1) Jello
2) Marshmallows (By themselves, that is. Melted in a s'more is just fine by me)
3) Cow tongue
4) Sea urchin
5) Anything aspic related

Source:  I'll admit, this looks really pretty. I just wish it didn't wiggle then crumble in my mouth!

Everything else, you just have to either like or suffer through. The bright side is there's this wikiHow article that guides you through eating foods you don't like in just nine steps. It's a nine step program, folks. The first step is admitting you have a problem. Juuust kidding, it's Determining the Seriousness of your Situation. This is going to come in real handy the next time I'm presented with the dreaded chicken jello the Russians are always trying to make me eat! It's probably just some sort of social experiment that I'm failing miserably at.

On the book front, I think a lot of people confuse actually liking a book with just the simple fact that they've read the book. When you ask someone for a recommendation and the only book they've read in the last year was "The Five People You Meet in Heaven" by Mitch Albom, that's probably going to be the book they recommend to you. And if that's the case, I would delete them from your Facebook immediately. I know that's harsh, guys, but this is a harsh world. You don't want that Mitch Albom reading, non goat cheese eating, friend who always passes on yummy cupcakes. They just aren't going to enrich your life. #coldhardtroofs

So, tell me the five foods you refuse to eat. And tell me the worst book that's ever been recommended to you. I'm super curious!

{ unconventional love stories }

A few posts ago I waxed poetic about Gnomeo & Juliet, which really got me thinking about my all-time favorite love stories. What I love is a love that, at first glance, doesn't seem like it should be a love. A love where you might be all, him? ... and her? .... okaaaay... But then you kinda fall in love with them yourself. You just can't help it.

So, without further adieu, here are a few of my favorites:

Margot and Richie Tenenbaum
Adopted brother and sister. I know, ew, right? But really, its one of the most touching love stories I've ever seen. "I think we'll just have to be secretly in love with each other and leave it at that." In the little tent. While "Ruby Tuesday" plays in the background. Swoon.

Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester
The wealthy bachelor falling for the poor homely governess. Ladies, if Charlotte Bronte can teach us anything at all, it is this: find a rich guy who has a crazy wife that he keeps stashed away in the attic of his mansion and make him fall in love with you by being homely and plain. Got it? Now go get a fake nose and a little bonnet, and don't forget to pretend you have tons of morals!

Kitty Shcherbatskaya and Kostya Levin
Levin was horribly miscast in the recent film starring the girl-who-never-closes-her-mouth, aka Keira Knightley. Who would ever think Bill Weasley could pull of the socially awkward, gruff farm owner who is years older than Kitty? When I read, and reread, the book, I always pictured Jean Reno from The Professional as my Levin. Still, Kitty and Levin are the sweetest, purest love in that whole story.

Harold and Maude
She's old, he's young. He's depressed and cynical, she's full of life and cheerful. The video below is one of my favorite scenes from the movie.

UP
This isn't really an unconventional love story, but I feel like it's not common for me to be so moved by a "cartoon". I felt pleasantly tricked when I watched it because, honestly, I'm not one for cartoons. Not even these newfangled Pixar jobs. But, of course, I cried so hard watching this. Pretty much the entire time.

Edward Scissorhands
I'm sure I could overlook some freaky scissors for hands if I never had to step foot in another hair salon again in my life. Hell, if Johnny Depp had light sabers for hands I'd still date him. Too bad Winona Ryder is too much of a crazypants to hang onto that guy.

The Time Traveler's Wife
If you've read the book, you know what I'm talking about. If you watched the movie, you're probably like, huh? Read the book and just try not to cry when...well, I'm not going to spoil it for you. Let's just say a love that transcends space and time is a strong one indeed. Funny story, my dad asked my sister and I what kind of book it was and these were our replies: Me: A love story. Rachel: Science Fiction. Ha! We're just so different, my sister and me.

Little Women 
Even though we all know Jo doesn't love Laurie the way he loves her, she does love him in her own way. This is the unrequited kind of love, and I have a special place in my heart for those just the same. He ends up marrying her sister anyway, so who cares? Ooops. I forgot to say spoiler alert.

What are your favorite love stories? Tell me!