visit from an old friend

cali, one of my dearest (and oldest) friends from college, came for a little visit this week. hosting her was such a delight -- i can't believe it's been a YEAR since i last saw her! playtime with calvert was much-needed and greatly appreciated. we wasted no time at all and ate at one of my favorite restaurants (westville east) when she got into town on sunday and later followed it up with a tasty treat at sundaes & cones (a rousing game of window cherades may or may not have followed...).

we hit the beach on memorial day, which was out of this world. going to the beach in new york was a little difficult to wrap my mind around at first, but rockaway park was the jam. (i'm up for a repeat anytime this summer.) later that night we grabbed dinner at cafe habana -- this delicious quasi-secret on the corner of prince and elizabeth on the lower east side. it was there that we met up with some friends (old and new) and made our way to the xyz affair's last residency show at pianos. what. a. blast. seriously, i just love their new songs (get 'em for free on stereogum).

on tuesday, cali and i met up with some fellow athenians for thai at zabb city near my apartment. our ever-expanding group slid over to the redhead for some drinks, where we hooped (no pun intended) and hollered at the cleveland/orlando basketball game. wednesday night -- cali's last in le city -- we bit the bullet and got tickets to see fuerza bruta. UH-mazing. i don't even know where to begin ... think cirque du soleil meets wet techno dance party. get it? good.

well, i'm sad our time together was so short (four days is nothin' when you haven't seen each other in a year), but i had a phenomenal week. i'm glad i'm not the only one who appreciates a good night's rest, too ;) can't wait to see sweet calvert again in june!

10 things that make me terribly happy

1. breakfast any time of day
2. writing letters, nothing beats snail mail
3. reading design magazines at barnes & noble (r.i.p domino)
4. buying a new cd (call me old fashioned)
5. refrigerator magnet poetry
6. riding bikes in athens, ga with bridget and anna claire
7. visiting the artists & fleas market in brooklyn
8. drinking out of my mom's picasso (don quixote) coffee mug
9. the smell of honeysuckle on summer evenings in chapin, sc
10. hugs, particularly when the other person is much taller

dreams come true

you know how there are those bands you treasure so much and swear you'll see play live before you die? well, [sigh] grizzly bear is one of those bands for me. and guess what... i just got tickets to see them at the music hall of williamsburg. wham-o! thanks a million, craigslist.

i don't know what to do with myself right now. i can't wait to 1) get my paws on their new album, veckatimest (in tangible form, of course), and 2) see/hear their sweet selves in person. so, in the meantime, i'm going to be watching their new video for "two weeks" on repeat. it's somethin' special, alright.

and here we go magic's opening for them! i saw them back in january when they opened for department of eagles at bowery ballroom. their (well, luke temple's) new album is another one i've had on constant repeat for a while (see mixtape #3 below). gosh, this is going to be quite the show.

in other news, my long-lost friend/college roommate, cali, is coming into town this weekend. it hurts my heart to think that i haven't seen her since last summer!!! we will surely make up for lost time :) gosh, i don't know where to take her first! thompkins square park, followed by the german beer garden on ave. c? oh, the possibilities...

muskit to my ears

[sigh] it's been too long... time for another mixtape! i humbly submit to you some current katie favorites for your listening pleasure. as usual, they've been carefully arranged, so please be mindful of the track list ;)

mixtape #3

1. Empire of the Sun - "Standing on the Shore"
2. Phoenix - "1901"
3. Shugo Tokumaru - "Parachute"
4. Kuroma - "Alexander Martin"
5. The Tallest Man on Earth - "Pistol Dreams"
6. Here We Go Magic - "Fangela"
7. Blind Pilot - "Oviedo"
8. Alligators - "If You Want To"
9. St. Vincent - "Marry Me"
10. Iron & Wine - "Belated Promise Ring"
11. Au Revoir Simone - "All or Nothing"
12. Telekenisis - "Tokyo"
13. Passion Pit - "Moths Wings"
14. Mayer Hawthorne - "Maybe So, Maybe No"

the perfect party dress

my roommate lenora jane and i stopped by a sample sale at a loft in soho today for a designer named virgina craddock (the talent behind the fashion line revival). her spring 2009 line is the perfect combination between flirty (the occasional ruffle and flowered print) and modern-chic (form-fitting silhouettes with utilitarian zippers). after trying on several designs, each of us walked away with what we considered to be "the perfect party dress." the one i bought (below) is from revival's fall 2008 line. i didn't have a particular occasion in mind when i bought the dress, but i figured i might just have to make one up. can't wait to don my harlequin gem!

i tried to do handstands for you

prior to moving to nyc, i lived in athens, georgia for four or so years. two of my dear friends who still live in athens (ethan and jason) are stellar producers/directors. they created their own version of the raw, uncut, one-shot music video (as seen in vincent moon's take-away shows), which they have dubbed athens soundies. they've managed to mingle with some pretty great musicians along the way (dr. dog, punch brothers, etc).

i got a phone call about a month ago from the guys, telling me they were about to film a soundie with chairlift on the front porch of my old house in athens. i was sad, of course, that i couldn't be there to see it, but i knew they were going to capture once again (in a 4 minute clip, no less) what i love most about that town: its ability to inspire visitors and dwellers alike. take a gander at chairlift singing "bruises" beneath my tin roof... i don't think i could dream up anything sweeter.

parks & recreation

my friends and i were all super eager to take advantage of the sunshine, so we made the trek up to central park yesterday. we packed some snacks, blankets and magazines and hopped a train to claim a tiny 6' x 8' plot of grass on the great lawn. while winding through the park to get to the great lawn, we spotted one eliot spitzer (former ny governor) on an afternoon jog. oh, eliot...

we finally found a spot that was relatively uninhabited, just below the baseball fields. as the afternoon wore on, though, we found ourselves engulfed in a sea of like-minded new yorkers. there were frisbees, footballs and kites a-plenty, but my favorite sight was the blanket of people a few feet away from us. by the time all their friends had shown up, the group looked like the cast of hair with their headbands, tinted shades and fringed vests. hilarious hipsters. i'd be willing to guess they hailed not from broadway but williamsburg or the east village.


when we were nice and sun-kissed, we packed up our gear and headed back downtown. on our way out of the park, we spotted spitzer again! this time, sitting on a park bench reading. i felt like i was inside one of those "reading is cool" posters on your english teacher's wall in middle school. spitzer sightings aside, it was a lovely afternoon. i can't wait for more lazy spring/summer days in the city. six weeks until "summer fridays!"