hurricane sandy

Thanks for all your texts, thoughts, and well wishes since Hurricane Sandy rolled through earlier this week. We've been inundated with images and news reports of all the damage in New York and New Jersey. I'm almost ashamed to report how well we've fared in my little pocket of Brooklyn. We never lost power and were spared the flood waters (although they were about a block away from my apartment building). A lot of downtown Manhattan is still without power (including my office) and the subways are still shut down,  so I've been on a bit of an extended vacation. I've somehow managed to fit in some runs the past couple days and have surveyed lots of big trees down throughout Brooklyn, especially in Prospect Park. My heart goes out to those who are displaced or without power still or unable to get in or out of the city. Things seem to be getting back to normal a bit today, but I have a feeling the rebuilding will be slow. Stay safe, everyone!

{NASA/NOAA GOES Project via Atlantic Cities}

{Port Authority of NY&NJ twitter via Atlantic Cities}

Flood waters pouring into a PATH station.

{@andjelicaaa's instagram via Atlantic Cities}

Jane's Carousel in DUMBO (I was just there!). I haven't heard any reports on how it fared but hope it survived. 

Whether it was a good idea or not, we took a walk down to see the Gowanus Canal on Monday night. The flood waters here are all the way up to 2nd Avenue and 9th Street. Along the way, we also saw firefighters battling a warehouse fire in Gowanus. I'm in awe of all the city workers during this storm. Thanks for keeping us safe!

Kurt and I went on my rooftop Tuesday night and a good chunk of lower Manhattan is still in darkness. Stay safe over there!

The blog seems pretty trivial while all this mess is happening and so many of my fellow New Yorkers are in pain, so I'm taking a break for the week. I'll be back next week with some updates. In the meantime, consider making a donation to help the support efforts.

giveaway winner

Thanks to everyone who entered the giveaway in honor of my 400th post! And the winner is (drum roll, please)....

Commenter #1, Jack Forinash! 

He's the lucky recipient of the gorgeous Wintergreen Christmas Card from Rifle Paper Co. I better be seeing one of these in my mailbox come December! :)

Thanks to everyone who entered. Better luck next time to the rest of you! Have a great weekend!

late night concert

Earlier this week, Kurt, Erik, Silvia, and I went to a Damien Jurado concert after work. I had never listened to his music before and I was a little worried about the late showtime (I need my beauty sleep!), but Erik and Silvia both gave rave reviews of the music.

We began the evening with dinner at Oaxaca Taqueria in the East Village. I've been to both Brooklyn locations and was looking forward to trying one in Manhattan, especially since the restaurant is tucked at the end of this really cute alley. Extra Place is very atypical for the city and a nice pocket of calm. Oaxaca has great food and are byob, which I love. After dinner, we hit a bar on Avenue A because we still had a ton of time to kill. I can't even tell you what the bar was called but I do know they have a 2 for 1 happy hour. Avenue A at 2nd Street, check it out.

nyc touring

Last Saturday, Kurt's friend Nathaniel was in town from Ohio for about twenty four hours. He is a photographer on the side and wanted to get some shots of very NYC-centric locations. Luckily, the weather could not have been better and he was able to get tons of great sunlight!

final ode to bbp

Brooklyn Bridge Park had to be one of my favorite locations of the summer. Sadly, I didn't do a lot of lounging on the grass but I did bike and run through frequently. Most out of town visitors got a tour, and we all know I logged quite a few hours at Pier 6. There were some Auburn friends in town the other weekend visiting from Boston and Texas, so I was ecstatic that our weather cooperated (it was gorgeous!) and I was able to take them through the fun DUMBO experience.

west point, new york

A couple Saturdays ago, Kurt planned a trip up to West Point, NY to see an Army football game against Kent State. Christian, Will, and I joined him on the short bus ride upstate to the campus nestled on the banks of the Hudson River. All I read about on the blogosphere these days is pumpkin patches this and apple picking that, so it was good to get out the city on a fall weekend and see what all the fuss is about. Too bad the trees weren't quite ready to change colors for us just yet.

400 and a {giveaway}!

Before we get down to business, I want to announce that I got word I passed my Structures ARE! This is big news because I was very worried about this test and it stressed me out for a long time. Apparently you can miss lots of questions and still pass! :) Five down, two more to go! It's been a long year of studying and I cannot tell you how ready I am to be done and be a real architect.

4 / 0 / 0

In other news, this is my 400th post!! Doesn't that seem crazy?! I've had four hundred things to write about on the internet?! Thanks for sticking with me. In honor of the momentous occasion, I have a little present for one lucky reader...

skyline for your thursday

Last week, Kurt and I went to a happy hour at Resolution: 4 Architecture. We had a few drinks, made some new friends, and took in the amazing rooftop view of the city. Not bad for a Friday night.

p.s. Don't forget to get your tickets to the Party@TheCenter! It's only a week away! For more info, see the link on the sidebar >>>>>>

city modern house tour

Here in NYC, it's Archtober, the month where architecture and October collide. Open House New York was the first weekend of the month (last year we went to see the TWA Terminal) but I was lazy and didn't get around to any sites this year. However, I did volunteer to be a docent at a City Modern House Tour in Brooklyn (put on by Dwell and New York Magazines) the same weekend. I was stationed at the most homey, adorable townhouse in Boerum Hill. The architect is MADE and Dwell sort of has the rights to the first round of photos of the place, so we were only allowed to take phone images. Please excuse the blurry iPhone shots. This was before I upgraded to my fancy new 4...

Ground floor office/playroom/den. The house sits on a corner lot and has the miraculous opportunity for windows on two sides. Believe me, even on a rainy day, the extra light is amazing!

k+p got hitched, day two

The day of the Keely and Patrick's wedding was jam packed with activities. In the morning we were celebrating Jen, a new momma-to-be, and her bun in the oven at a lovely baby shower.

What a gorgeous group of architecture ladies! I loved Jen's dress! Maternity wear is looking good these days.

k+p got hitched, day one

A couple weekends ago, Kurt and I were lucky enough to head back down south to Birmingham, Alabama to see Keely and Patrick get married. It was a busy weekend packed with lots of activities, but I was so happy to see lots of old friends from architecture school. We were so lucky to stay with my dear friend Jessica who was the ultimate hostess. Not only did she take a half day off work to pick us up from the airport, but she and her boyfriend Eric proceeded to chauffeur us around all weekend. Thanks so much!

Kurt and I arrived on Friday and had plans to make a tour of all the new breweries that have been popping up in Birmingham recently. Our first stop was Cahaba Brewing Company. Each of us got a flight of the several beers they had on tap. They have an awesome Alabama-shaped tray for each flight. Absolutely perfect!

oh joy! book party

Jenn and I hopped over to the Columbus Circle west elm after work yesterday for the much anticipated Blog Inc. book party. I was so excited to meet Joy Deangdeelert Cho of the blog Oh Joy! and have her sign our copies of the new book. She was even more cute and lovely than I had imagined. (I don't know how these authors do it! I would be spent after signing 10 books!) Plus, her adorable husband and baby were running around the store mingling with guests. Too cute!

food these days

As I've alluded to before, I don't cook much. I manage to feed myself well enough, but rarely whip up elaborate meals, especially since cooking for one is kind of boring. So whenever I do get around to developing some culinary masterpiece, I feel it should be noted, photographed, and ultimately applauded. So here are the latest creations from my kitchen:

I'm not sure if I've mentioned it before, but I am a huge fan of the Pioneer Woman's Mexican Layer Dip (minus the black olives, of course, ick). I took it to a friend's house to watch football several weekends ago and it was a big hit. I always have the satisfaction of toting home an empty dish when bringing this to a party.

tiger showdown

It's been a couple weeks since my Auburn Tigers lost to LSU, so I think I've mourned long enough to recap the Tiger vs Tiger Showdown football party I threw for the occasion. I had such a fun time making the invitation for the game look like a vintage boxing poster. 

recent things, compliments of instagram

Sorry for the radio silence lately. It's been busy around these parts. When I wasn't running around town or travelling, I was trying to be a good student in preparation for my Structures exam. Of the five exams (out of seven) I've taken so far, this one definitely threw me for a loop. As you can see, Aubie was exhausted by all the studying as well. I finally worked up the nerve to take the test last Friday and it was tough! I treated myself to a beer lunch afterwards and started the waiting game. Cross your fingers I passed!