Following Rabbits Blog

I'm a big fan of coconut. Coconut lotion, coconut candles, girl scout samoa cookies, coconut candy bars, coconut rum... ah, I digress. Anyway, I had coconut macaroons for the first time in high school french class and have loved 'em ever since. The best macaroons I've ever had were from a bakery in Blois, France in the Loire River Valley. (Stateside tarts and croissants are never the same once you've been to a french bakery.) The best macaroons (by far!) in nyc are from le pain quotidien. Once in a while I'll treat myself to one on the way to the train at Bryant Park after work. I've never made them myself and decided to give 'em a whirl. Here we go...

There are few ingredients needed, and the only thing I didn't have on hand was the coconut, which cost me about $3. If you decide to make them yourself, lemme give you some tips (read: learn from my mistakes). I used foil to line my cookie sheets-- but I put parchment paper on the recipe card for a reason. The bottoms of my macaroons browned quicker than the top and got a bit stuck to the foil. Parchment paper should fix both of these problems. Next, when you're spooning the batter onto the sheet, try to make them packed, tight spoonfuls. Mine were loose and the egg "melted" out around the macaroons, making mine a little less stuck together than they should be. Otherwise, have at it! Despite my little mistakes, they're delicious.

Thoughtful (and cheap!) homemade valentine idea: make the scoops of batter a little bigger (you'll probably have to extend the baking time a bit). Once they're cooled, dip them into chocolate (cover either one half of the cookie or the bottom with chocolate) and put them onto foil to set. Put each one into a paper cupcake baking cup-- I've seen them for valentine's day with hearts on them... or you can always find pink ones. Put several of them in a little box and tie a ribbon around it. (The container store has a ton of great paper boxes to choose from). Little individual treats for your valentine! <3

I've been feeling a little blah lately, and what better pick-me-up than a makeover on 5th ave?! I'm on a budget, like most fabulous new york city girls in their twenties, so that was taken into consideration. I went on Yelp and searched for a salon near my office that was moderately priced and had lots of good reviews. Ink for Hair on 5th ave and 48th street fit the bill. They don't require appointments, but I made one anyway. I went in and Jen gave me a super cute bob, exactly what I wanted! Shampoo, cut and blowout was $49, and I was in and out in 40 minutes. 

Next I went to Sephora, on the same corner of 5th ave. I made a list before New Year's of a ton of things I want to do in 2010, from serious goals to frivolity... this mission definitely fell into the latter category. I've got a thing for Sephora, and have wanted to go in for a makeover and buy a slew of products they recommend. I went in and played around with the makeup, asking questions to the staff about getting an even finish, hiding dark circles, and making my eyes pop. I walked out with HD Foundation (this looks flawless), a Sephora Cooling Cover Stick in vert (to correct dark circles), Kat Von D Lightning Sheer Lipgloss in Strutter (on sale!), Kat Von D True Romance eyeshadow palette in Beethoven (the girls convinced me that with my light skin and dark hair that bright eyeshadows are best), and a Kat Von D Saint rollerball perfume (love, love, love!). Did I mention I totally have a girl-crush on Kat Von D?! Anyway, a nice little hit on my bank account, but I walked out of there excited to get ready for work tomorrow. A haircut and a few cosmetics and I'm feeling much more cheery! Definitely can't always be the go-to solution for turning frowns to smiles, but once in a while it's really nice to do something special for yourself. 

My name is Alice and I'm a Lost fan ("Hi Alice!") heh, seriously though... I've been wrapped up in the series since the beginning, and was a bit worried about missing the series premiere without cable in my new place til next week (booo). I've heard good things about the weekly Lost parties at Professor Thom's in Union Square, however it appears they've been having plumbing issues lately and they weren't answering their phone yesterday. Ray found out they have Lost viewing parties at Studio Square in Astoria, which is conveniently within walking distance of my new place! We had been there in August for a reception in their upstairs event space (which is gorgeous!) and were really impressed with the place. The main floor is set up as a beer garden, with outdoor seating and a huge open indoor bar area. There's another smaller bar set off to the side where we ended up sitting. They had beer specials, including Dharma beer (?!) which we didn't try, but is interesting nonetheless.

I'm supposed to be getting my cable and internet installed on Tuesday, but I may end up heading down to Studio Square to watch it anyway. Plus it was nice to wander through Astoria a bit, which I intend to do a lot more often. Again, lemme know of any Astoria hot spots! 

I took today off to get settled in my new digs. I gotta say, I'm pretty overwhelmed. I'm the worst at adjusting to change, no matter how good of a change it is. Until I get settled and make this place homey, I'm going to be a little uncomfortable. However, waking up to this sight out my window was fantastic. I think I'll end up keeping my bed pushed against the window... a little nyc inspiration to rouse me out of bed in the morning. I definitely need to explore my new hood too. If anyone has any tips for places I should check out in astoria, lemme know!

We moved my stuff all day today... 3 trips in 2 cars. So thankful my dad, brother and cousin came down to help-- Ray and I never would have been able to do it alone. The reward was this view out my window, which was the obvious draw to this apartment in the first place. Made it all worth it! I cried saying goodbye to my lil apartment in Brooklyn... definitely going to be attached to that place forever. But I know once I'm settled into my new place I'm going to absolutely love it here!