i forgot to tell you

Part of the reason my Mom ventured up to visit was because of the ballet. We have both been to ballets before but neither of us had seen the American Ballet Theatre (ABT). We were able to enjoy three smaller programs included in the ABT Premieres Repertory. The Brahms-Haydn Variations, choreographed by Twyla Tharp started the evening. Alexei Ratmansky's all-new production of Sergei Prokofiev's On the Dnieper followed. Last, but not least was a rendition of Jerome Robbins' first ballet, Fancy Free. The lively and upbeat performance was icing on the cake. We both agreed that it was delightful to see three very different varieties of ballet.

birthday bliss

I guess I can call this one "Mom's week(end)." Last Tuesday my Mom flew in to visit for a few days over my birthday. Bottom line... it was fantastic. After seeing her for less than a day between Christmas and now, this was a well needed visit. I had everything planned. Once she arrived at my apartment, which she hasn't seen in nearly a year, we walked around the corner to have high tea at Alice's Tea Cup. I have only been there for scones and breakfast, but never for lunch. We had petite chicken curry salad sandwiches, egg salad, scones and Casablanca tea. A meal fit for a queen!

After indulging in sweet treats we ran a few errands and then ventured over to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to see the current Picasso exhibit as well as "American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity. This was my favorite part of the whole trip. The best part was the bamboo exhibit on the roof of the Met (pictures below). We ended the night at Little Owl for dinner.

Wednesday, Mom and I slept in a bit and then I took her on a four mile walk through the park and the Upper East Side until we made it to Sarabeth's for brunch on Central Park South. We paused in the park for a snapshot.

After brunch, which was amazing, we decided to go shop along Fifth. Well, leave it to Mom to check out all the crowds and figure out what's going on. Turns out Christina Aguilera was doing a concert for CBS outside their studios. We stopped for a bit and listened to a couple songs, but we didn't stay long as it was about to pour down.

Thursday was my birthday. We enjoyed scones in bed from Alice's and then went to my favorite store in the neighborhood, Olive & Bette's to pick up a couple birthday goodies. Afterwards we headed down to Soho to play before our lunch reservations at Balthazar. Mom hadn't been before so she was in for a real treat!

The first time I ever traveled to New York was with a small group led by one of my favorite high school teachers. Ms. B's theatre tour in 2004 was phenomenal. From that trip forward I knew I would live in New York at some point. During that trip I turned 17. Six years later she is still bringing groups to New York to experience Broadway. I was unable to make it home for her retirement party last week, but seeing her in New York on my birthday was icing on the cake. The three of us enjoyed drinks at the W hotel and caught up. To Ms. B: Congratulations on retiring! You have impacted thousands of students lives and given encouragement to so many. You inspired me to step out of the box and go to Mizzou, reach out and move to New York, and above all, you've always told me to follow my dreams. Thank you.

Ms. B and I outside the W

Mom and I outside the W

Thursday evening Mom and I dined at Bobby Flay's Bar Americain. We enjoyed champagne cocktails, soft-shelled crab salad, perfectly cooked steak, as well as a glutenous piece of German chocolate cake with homemade caramel sauce. It was by far the best birthday cake I have ever had! Thanks Mom for such a wonderful birthday!

Before Mom had to leave on Friday afternoon we woke up bright and early to see Norah Jones and Sarah McLachlan perform in Central Park for the Good Morning America Summer Concert Series. Each played four songs and gave a great show. Mom and I are kind of hooked on Sarah McLachlan. She gave an awesome performance.

It is always fantastic to have visitors, especially when it's family. You made my birthday oh, so special Mom! Thanks for visiting and staying with me. And thank you to all my friends and family who made me feel so loved on my birthday! Thank you for all the phone calls, cards, and birthday wishes.

kansas city reunion

The weekend in Kansas City was perfect. I've posted a visual overview for you all. Enjoy!

Night one to the reunion. Julia, Lauren and I. Meeting back in Kansas City after a year apart made for a great reunion weekend. Saturday we spent the evening in the Power and Light district catching up and reminiscing while making new memories.

View from the bridge above the patio at Power and Light.

Julia and I

Our gift to Annie and Matt. We each contributed a photo to create their anniversary date, May 20, 2010. Congrats Annie and Matt!

The beautiful bride, Mrs. Annie Sidesinger.

For Phil. Lauren, Julia, Annie, me and Aimee -- the 2009 magazine design crew

"Our weakest link isn't weak." Night two to Annie.

Lauren and Sara. Both are designers and work with Annie.

A photo booth at the wedding is genius Annie! So much fun. I believe the DVD of all the pictures taken in that booth will make for many laughs for years to come.

Mr. Matthew Sidesinger. Classic.

Julia, me and Aimee. Wigs, hats and glasses, oh my!

the arts

Starting off the day with a few wake up calls from Jake while my alarm was buzzing for over twenty minutes I finally realized if I didn't get out of bed I was going to miss Sugarland's concert in Central Park. Thursday night I asked my new friend Jake, a recent graduate from Hendrix who moved to NY only 14 days ago, if he wanted to go to the GMA Summer Concert Series the next morning. His enthusiasm got me pumped up and excited to return to the beloved Friday mornings of music. This week was Sugarland, a popular country band from across the South. Going to the concert was like a blast back to college. If my friend Jordan and I were stressed or just needed to get off campus we would jump in the car, roll all the windows down, pump the volume and keep Sugarland's album Twice the Speed of Life on repeat while we sipped on frozen Coke's from Burger King. After Friday's early morning concert I have a few more good memories including Sugarland. Jake and I plan to go to a few more of GMA's concerts this summer.

Lead singer and guitarist of Sugarland.

After the concert Jake headed to work and I went home to pack for my trip to Kansas City and then by 11:00 a.m. I was seating in the theater awaiting Sex and the City 2 to begin. Don't worry, I know it is still early and everyone hasn't seen it so I won't give any spoilers, but I will say hands down Liza Minelli was hilarious and just might be my favorite part of the sequel.

I met a few friends atop the Metropolitan Museum of Art to enjoy a cocktail as well as view of the city. The new rooftop sculpture is fantastic. Doug and Mike Starn have created a Bamboo installation that will be a work-in-progress throughout the summer. The excerpt below is from metmuseum.org.

More about the Exhibition
Big Bambú is a growing and changing sculpture―a vast network of 5,000 interlocking 30- and 40-foot-long fresh-cut bamboo poles, lashed together with 50 miles of nylon rope. It will continue to be constructed throughout the duration of the exhibition. The first phase of the structure―measuring about 100 feet long, 50 feet wide, and 30 feet high―was completed by opening day, April 27. The artists and rock climbers are continuing to build up the eastern portion of the sculpture to an elevation of 50 feet. By summer, the western portion of the sculpture will be about 40 feet high. An internal footpath artery system grows along with the structure, facilitating its progress. The evolving state of the work is being documented by the artists in photographs and videos.

I arrived in Kansas City a little before 9 a.m. this morning and have already indulged myself with a Boulevard Wheat (with a lemon) from the local KC microbrewery, Boulevard Brewery.

Not a lot has happened in the past few days but there are many events coming up that are keeping my excitement levels high. Saturday morning I am leaving for Kansas City to reunite with a few wonderful friends/designers. Of our college design group Annie will be the second to get married. Her fiance, Matt, is a great guy and put up with a lot of gibber-jabber about design and more than likely still does!

I will be in Kansas City until Tuesday morning and then I'm back in the city for a while. I am looking forward to another summer in New York. Today was the first "hot" day we've had. It 90+ outside and very sunny.

I am looking forward to free concerts, movie nights outside in the middle of Central Park, fresh gelato and street fairs. Mom gave me a tip to check out the Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn next weekend (June 5-6). I checked out their Web site and it looks right up my alley. Vendors include some of my favorite bloggers and online artists, including Etsy. Check out the list of over 300 artists that will be there. My birthday is the week following so I'm hoping to find a new piece of art for my apartment or a few knickknacks.

Speaking of my birthday, my Mom has decided to come visit for a few days over my b-day. We already have a few things planned, including the American Ballet Theatre, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and dinner at Little Owl. Mom has been trying to get into Little Owl over the past two years and still hasn't been there, but third times the charm because I was able to snag us reservations the first night she gets in town. There is also a new exhibit at the MET: "American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity" that both of us will really enjoy. Below is an excerpt from the exhibit summary:

"...the first Costume Institute exhibition drawn from the newly established Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at the Met. It explores developing perceptions of the modern American woman from 1890 to 1940 and how they have affected the way American women are seen today. Focusing on archetypes of American femininity through dress, the exhibition reveals how the American woman initiated style revolutions that mirrored her social, political, and sexual emancipation. "Gibson Girls," "Bohemians," and "Screen Sirens," among others, helped lay the foundation for today's American woman."\

If you follow this blog regularly then you know that I am basically obsessed with Alice's Tea Cup, which I must say for the record... my Mom discovered the "scone gold-mine" first and I just happen to stop by as often as possible. Olive & Bette's and Anthropologie are sure to be stops for shopping along the way as well as lunch at Balthazar the day we're down in Soho. I haven't decided where to go to dinner for my birthday, which I need to figure out soon so I can make reservations, but I'm not sure yet. Heard of any new, fun places that I should try? All suggestions welcome!

queso in new york? finally.

White, yellow, spinach, no spinach, thick, thin. Call it cheese dip, queso, Velveta & Rotel, or blanco queso. Regardless of how you make it or what you call it, I finally had real cheese dip in New York. Mexican is my favorite cuisine and it has always included cheese dip. I understand that it is an American addition to the genre, but come on, who turns down melted cheese?

Not this native Arkansan.

This past weekend I dog sat Huey P. Long while a friend

was surprising her Mom at her college graduation.

Thursday, I met her to get a set of keys, go over Huey's schedule, etc. After taking the dog out, Brooke mentioned she had to go to DSW to look for a pair of shoes. I hadn't been to my old stomping grounds, the Lower East Side, in quite a while so I tagged along. After having little success in the shoe department, it was after 9 and we were both starving. She mentioned a place nearby that served cheese dip. I almost didn't believe her because I have NEVER seen queso on a menu in New York! Well, she was right, and it was awesome.

She led me to Tortilla Flats in the West Village where we indulged on Mexican beer and homemade cheese dip. Two thumbs up for sure and a promise that I will visit again.

Huey P. Long

After work on Friday I headed to Dumbo, a neighborhood in Brooklyn, to stay with Huey. I had to work quite a bit over the weekend but Hugh and I had time to take some pretty fun walks, especially on Sunday morning. The weather is so nice right now. It is almost unbelievable. Dumbo below the Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges and is right on the East River, which makes for incredible views. I'm contemplating moving when my lease ends in July. Maybe Dumbo is in my future? Who knows? Stay tuned.

Pictures below are views of the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan, architecture and sculptures around Dumbo, etc.

cover story published

I got home from work yesterday and at my door was a package from my old internship. I was so excited to see it because that meant that the May/June issue of Boston Common is printed! The last project I worked on was the cover story of Brooke Shields. Since I was working in the photo department I contacted people and companies who hold the rights to pictures and ads of Brooke Shields and asked to use copies for the story and/or purchase the rights to use the images.

I am attached to the design of the layout. Notice the background of the two spreads is a larger image of the intro spread.

Story by Tina Sutton

Photograph by Ruven Afanador/Corbis Outline