New temporary office space

Back in the Flatiron. The office move went pretty well. The former tenants were architects so the space is actually designed. Nice wood floors, wood and metal work stations, and decent lighting!

More Thanks photos

Early morning light at Newark
Post Turkey wii
Space age mall ceiling
Driving through Christmas lights display

Thanksgiving family photos

Back Home

Arrived back from St.Louis at midnight last night. Had a wonderful trip. Many photos to post later. Now it's off to work....

MoMa, Love, Paint, etc.

Ended up at the MoMa on Sunday. Haven't been there in months. Signed up to become members so we'll go more often, get discounts at the store (might be dangerous), and be able to see films there for free. The shows up now are great. The Seurat drawings were such a treat. Incredible to see what he could do with just tone, no lines! And his sketchbooks from the 1800s were amazing.

Inspired by the art, we came home and got out the paints. Made this portrait of Meisje. To get me into the holiday spirit, I painted this wrapping paper last night too. Now on to finding gifts! Or making them if I am really diligent.

I know Friday will be a big shopping day, but I was shocked to see a commercial on TV that Kohl's is opening at 4am. What? Who wants to shop at that hour? I guess if you pass out from that sleepy Turkey chemical at 5pm, you could sleep for 10 hours, wake up at 3am and get to Kohl's just in time...yeah right.

We will actually be waking up at 4am tomorrow in order to catch our morning flight to St.Louis out of Newark.

Since my office moved yesterday, I was basically given an extra day and a half of vacation. Enjoyed walking around Greenpoint in the afternoon (saw this funny waxing sign). Took some pictures of the office before leaving. I am going to miss all of the vintage mismatched filing cabinets that lined the 10th floor hallway. These reminded me daily of the company's rich history. When I came home and opened the mailbox, I was delighted to see the latest Budget Travel with a cover story on a trip to Paris and Amsterdam. The same trip we hope to take next year!

Glasses

Erik is on the hunt for a new pair of glasses. Like me, he is blind without his. He tried on many pairs and I took pictures so he could see what each pair actually looked like (while wearing his real glasses). Narrowed down the search and wrote down a few names. Think we'll go back later in the week to make the final decision. I had fun trying on pairs even though I'll probably hang on to mine for another year. Cast your votes!

Erik letterpress printing

On Thursdays Erik has been taking a letterpress project class at the Center for Book Arts. Stopped by at the end of his class and took these pictures. It's an amazing space. So many type cases . . . and the great sound of ink rollers! Nice to see work not being done on a computer.

My office is moving next week to the Flatiron Building. I'll be just three floors above my old department. We're expected to be there a few months until our new space is ready. Lots and lots of packing and throwing stuff out. I kept putting a book in the donation pile only to see another book I had to have. It will be sad to leave my cozy space that has so much character and my too easy Union Square commute.

Jackson Heights

Last Sunday we made a little Queens expedition to check out Jackson Heights, a neighborhood known for great Indian, Spanish, and Asian food and spacious, prewar garden apartment buildings. Henry met us on the 7 train heading over. Ended up at a very authentic Cuban place. Delicious! There are still so many areas in this big city we have yet to explore.

Eating at Home

Last night we both left work fairly early. Usually we head home if its just us or go out if we are meeting up with friends. The weather wasn't too chilly so we decided to walk towards the west village. Stopped by an amazing children's store on the way called Kido. It had all of the classic wooden European toys that Erik grew up with, Montessori books, and some very cool mobiles. Ended up eating at Home, an adorably quaint place on Cornelia Street. Love stumbling upon new (well, new for us) restaurants.
I am trying to pick up my Dutch lessons at home again. Read Pippi Langkous together and played my "Learn Dutch" cassette tapes. Yes, that's right, I still own cassette tapes.

Home Pics and some marathon

Reorganized the little cat collection and took some pictures of the late fall flowers in bloom. Only watched the marathon for a little bit today since we both had to get into the city. It's always so inspiring to see all of the runners.
Turned back the clocks this morning. Loved the extra hour of sleep last night, but it will be sad to not have any daylight after work until next year!

Halloween and the Police

Last weekend we dressed up as Max and Meisje and went to Isabelle and Nick's Halloween/Moving/Birthday party. It was so much fun. We are really sad to see them leave Brooklyn, but are excited for their big move and looking forward to visiting them in Seattle.

Last night instead of checking out the parade, I went to see The Police at Madison Square Garden with Henry, Dave and Simone. Great concert! Even though we sat pretty high up, the sound was still amazing and the binoculars worked quite well.

Can hardly believe another week has almost gone by! It's finally fall here. We took the AC out of the window and our landlord turned the heat on for the season. I had forgotten that the radiators make that hissing/clanking sound, but I love how toasty the apartment feels in the mornings. Meisje has also rediscovered her favorite spot on the floor under the radiator. We brought some of the annuals inside. Erik's 4ft high cosmos are about to bloom!