NEW YORK CITY #2

Pizza at Patsy's

As I was in NYC in September 2016, this was wonderful to see... but now, is crushing to look at. 

Caught up with Denise from my days at MTV.

One World Trader Center.

Oculus. Which is bananas.

NEW YORK CITY

A long weekend trip to NYC. (Posted 6 months later)

A foreigner and Lady Liberty.

Note the tiny NYC resident peering at me, the tourist, walking on the High Line. 

Each day we rode through Brooklyn from our Bed-Stuy AirBnB and whizzed over bridges to explore the (remarkably bike friendly) island of Manhattan. 

More soon.

SUMMER IN BOSTON: PART 5

Coolidge Corner.

Fletcher. 

The South End. 

Chance The Rapper at The Pavillion.

Downtown from JP. 

Jamaica Pond. 

This city has a certain vibe which although not my exact ideal, has a weird to charm to it.

Bostonians aren't warm and friendly immediately -- but if you do chip away at our frozen (from years of shoveling out our cars in January) social exterior, you'll probably end up meeting all of our friends from high school and getting invited to the family Cape house for 4th of July. All of our bars may look exactly the same (dark wood, vaguely Irish) but I truly appreciate that there's a Dunkin Donuts on almost every corner that's frequented by people in every tax bracket. 

P.S. The Simpsons actually did an episode this summer where they went on  a "hate-cation" to Boston and it's wonderfully spot on. "It's like heaven for people who don't believe in heaven!"

PORTLAND, MAINE

Kris getting a few shots for his Paka Appparel website. 

I drove up to Portland, Maine to visit my friend Kris from my time in Naples.

We had a bonfire, jumped off a bridge, learned about his first year of college (!!!) and his newest venture: Paka Apparel, got poutine and milkshakes at Duck Fat, had an early morning at the beach, met his cute brothers and enjoyed brunch to the sounds of his parents playing blue grass music (the whole family plays string instruments and they jam together). It was a great trip. 

If you're a fellow New Englander that needs to keep warm this winter, I recommend checking out Kris's clothing brand Paka and specifically, The Costa sweater (you may recognize a few of the models -- ha!). 

AROUND THE INTERNET #3

It's winter coat weather here in Boston, so I'm officially wistfully thinking of summer days -- like this one from camping in Newport in August. 

A PRELUDE: You never feel more patriotic than once you've actually left your country, so traveling the last 2 years has definitely boosted my sense of America pride.  

I think the American work ethic (while perhaps relentless and unbalanced) is something to admire -- it's nearly impossible to get anything done past 3 PM on a Friday in New Zealand.

I stand by our portion sizes.

And I really like that we're a big, giant, ever-evolving mix of people. I like that the USA is very different from Italy, for instance, where everyone kind of looked the same. And I know, because they all looked LIKE ME: big brown eyes, big noses and curly hair -- these Italian chicks were copping my look LEFT AND RIGHT.

With that (freshly amplified) pride, being back in the USA for this election season has been a bit confusing and soul-crushing. So in that spirit:

"Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried" - Winston Churchill, 1947

"It's like Humpty Dumpty fell and broke, then a giant lawn mower ran over it, acid was thrown on the pieces -- and a bunch of racist idiots ran off with an arm and a leg" -John Weaver, longtime Republican consultant on the state of the GOP 

Brilliantly edited, completely terrifying video on The Authorization for Use of Military Force which our next President will continue to have. 

What Obama told his daughters after Trump won the election. 

...and in other news: 

Women Having a Terrible Time Parties in Western Art History.

Words for Emotions You Didn't Know You Had -- I was relieved to see I'm not the only weirdo who experiences "L'appel du vide". 

Tricky and Brilliant: 10 Ways to Make the Most of Your Vacation Time

A photography project that makes you notice (the usually cramped + crowded) New York buildings as the incredible feats of architecture (that they are): Misplaced New York. 

A stunning collection at NYFW and a smart kickstarter worth supporting. 

I was reading a post about Pipilotti Rist's (a video and multimedia artist) new exhibit at The New Museum in NYC and of course, fell down an internet rabbit hole to one of her other works Ever Is Over All... which, reminded me an awful lot of Beyonce's "Hold Up" music video... and then the internet confirmed that Beyonce's video is indeed paying homage to Rist:

"The exuberant display of female power - the juxtaposition between Rist's cheerful demeanor and violent actions - is both charming and cryptic. It seems obvious that Rist is commenting on the false expectations of feminine delicacy, but the deeper significance isn't so easy to divine. All this makes it a perfect point of reference for Beyonce, whose work frequently charts the intersection between female power and sexuality." 

That's all. Thanks again for reading my particular contribution to the liberal echo chamber and I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving, filled with hearty American portion sizes. 

SUMMER IN BOSTON: PART 4

Bits of summer (from my phone). 

A free Thursday night at The ICA.  

Nahant Beach. 

Cafe Fixe. 

EditMate at BostonFest. 

A coffee date. 

Scott at the Arboretum. 

Corn hole at Coppersmith. 

View from an evening bike commute. 

Lunch at the Barking Crab. 

JP Porch Fest. 

Basil making sure his Jesse gets out the door okay. 

Sun bathing at Castle Island. 

SUMMER IN BOSTON: PART 3

Scott and one of his new friends in JP. 

Salisbury Beach. 

Jesse (my new friend and roommate) and Scott, prepping a lobster dinner. 

A little Smokey (!!!)

The Mayflower.

Whale watching in Plymouth.

An afternoon on the Ocean Frank. 

Dusk at Jamaica Pond with Basil. 

This summer in Jamaica Plain included many day trips out, dinners in and a surprising amount of new dog friends for someone who doesn't own a dog.  

SUMMER IN BOSTON: PART 2

In May, we scored a great sublet in Jamaica Plain (it's now my fourth apartment in that neighborhood) and settled in for a summer in the city. 

A new home. 

Commuting through Chinatown. 

Charles Bradley in Cambridge. 

The Charles River. 

Locking up our new bikes. 

Farmers Market in the North End. 

Commonwealth Cold Brew at the JP Farmers Market. 

Scott appreciating American portion sizes. 

Wanting to re-create the magic that was biking around Newcastle, Perth and Singapore, we bought bikes and declared ourselves a two-man bike gang, cruising around everywhere: commuting to a co-working space downtown, to farmers markets in the North End, through Chinatown, Castle Island in South Boston, over the Charles River to Cambridge and yoga in Brookline. 

P.S. I bought my sky blue Linus bike at Superb Bicycle on Beacon Street and now it's now become one of the top 3 items I wholeheartedly recommend to people (...the other 2 being a Spotify account and an electric toothbrush -- all 3 will elevate your quality of life enormously). If you want a bike that's super comfortable, easy to ride -- and (let's be real here) hella cute -- I deeply recommend a Linus. 

SUMMER IN BOSTON: PART 1

Landing in Boston. I was overjoyed to see the Pru from the plane, but was simultaneously crying from watching the end of the movie "Me, Earl and Dying Girl" so it was a real rollercoaster of emotions. 

New England quaintness. 

Cape Cod Canal. 

Ryan Family Amusements. 

Ikea. 

Craig's List find. 

Pizza at Mark Anthony's in Onset. 

Arriving home in Boston, Scott and I hunkered down at my Grandmother's beach house in Wareham. It was April, so it was more rainy than beachy, so there wasn't much to do. We hit up the arcade and other local hot spots (like Target) but spent most of our time scouring Craig's List for apartments and furniture in an attempt to piece together a solid home for the summer, and perhaps beyond.

After being away for an extended period of time, being home has a way of smacking you in the face with the realities of life.

That was especially true this summer, but having Scott around as part of my team made everything a little easier.  He has a way of making even the boring domestic stuff weirdly fun: treating Craig's List like a treasure hunt, never failing to be delighted by ordering "a slice" (you can't order slices of pizza in NZ, only whole pies) and getting excited about grocery shopping ("I discovered this awesome place today. It's called 'Whole Foods'. We HAVE to go there"). 

AUSTIN, TEXAS

On my way back to Boston, I visited Austin for my friend Jordan's wedding. 

Tourists. 

When in Rome.

Jordan and Maggie (her Maid of Honor) singing Karaoke at the spot Jordan and Timmer first met. 

Scott, dressed like a local. 

Springdale Farm. 

Timmer's clan and their newest member. 

First pizza as husband and wife. 

BC'08

Jordan + Timmer got married in a sweetly romantic ceremony at Springdale Farm, in the pouring rain. Jordan and I met at Freshman Orientation and it was wild to see her walk down the aisle 12 years later, with a husband so perfect for her it was as if 19 year old Jordan conjured him into being. 

RETURNING TO THE USA VIA LOS ANGELES

After 8 months away, I returned to the States with a layover in Los Angeles. It was apparent how thrilled I was to be back in the USA (despite the fact that the American state of affairs appears to be an absolute shit storm from afar) when I audibly squealed spotting Obama's portrait hanging above the escalators at LAX.

American accents were music to my ears as we power walked through the airports to grab our luggage, rent a car and make the most of our 9 hours in sunny LA. 

Filtered coffee/pure joy/airplane hair. I think I look a bit like The Weeknd here.

We got breakfast at the must-always-visit Sloopy's, walked off 14 hours of flying on the boardwalk, got caught in signature LA traffic and hiked up a canyon for a view of the LA skyline. 

It was warm welcome (almost) home. 

END OF THE SUMMER

The last few weeks of August were spent back on the east coast -- celebrating, moving, packing and exploring all around Boston + New England. 

I turned 29 with this good looking group. We had a biiiig night out and I made sure that one of my favorite quotes, "If you aren't embarrassed by what you were doing last year then you aren't growing enough" will definitely ring true by August 21, 2016. 

Afternoon at the Lawn on the D in South Boston. 

Birthday Partner for 17 years straight. 

Birthday fish tacos in Fort Point. 

Trevor and Jay got hitched and it was truly a beautiful wedding in Lincoln. It was super smooth and effortlessly fun -- much like their relationship. 

A night of scalped tickets and Fenway franks. 

Scott's first baseball game. 

Visiting the Vanderbuilt Mansion in Newport, Rhode Island. 

Inside the Vanderbuilt mansion, where they clearly ripped off Versailles. 

Newport, RI. 

Portsmouth, NH.

Jamaica Pond. 

Visiting the Alma Mater. 

Scott's reaction to visiting the Old North Bridge in Concord, where the "shot heard round the world" was first fired starting the American Revolution: "So you Americans have always been shooting people, ay?"

SAN FRANCISCO

Making our way through Monterey (where our bright green and purple camper van got caught right in the middle of a very large classic car parade, but we just smiled and waved through it) and Santa Cruz, we arrived in my favorite American city... San Francisco. 

Monterey

"oh hey girl what up"

Santa Cruz.

Making eggs in Golden Gate Park.

In front of a blurry Alcatraz.

Walking all round, the hills and colors of San Francisco were delightful as ever and we met up with my homegirl (current SF resident) Lisa, for a bbq dinner.  We drove over the Golden Gate Bridge as Scott butchered the Full House theme song and I had my best surf yet in Ocean Beach.

After turning in our camper van at the JUCY office, we had a full day of exploring left so we got a rental car for the day to store our things and make our way around. I was absolutely thrilled about our successful road trip... until we walked back to the car after grabbing a quick coffee at the Ferry Building. Our rental car window had been smashed and half our things stolen. 

Right about when I was taking this photo, our car was getting broken into. 11 AM on a Friday morning!

THAT SUCKED.  I've mentioned this before, but the universe really does have a pesky way of keeping you in check when everything is going a little too well.

Long story short (ish): I was a mix of relieved and insulted to find that the thieves dumped most of my things since they didn't find them to be of any value. Scott however, wasn't as fortunate.  Like any good former Cramer producer, I had all my contact information listed on my external hard drive... and like any lazy person, I didn't have a password on my laptop... so the good citizen who found my backpack called my cell and opened my laptop to post on my Facebook wall. This led to an influx of friends calling and messaging because the post sounded suspiciously like I had been kidnapped. This was really a fine example of humans looking out for each other and was a nice bright spot in an otherwise giant hassle of day. The rest of the day was spent sorting out paperwork at the police station and rental car agency, driving hours to retrieve my backpack and then it was a mad rush to the airport where Scott sweet talked security in order to board the flight without his (now stolen) passport. Lessons to take away from this: the $11 extra car insurance is worth it and travel insurance is always a good idea. 

But, all in all, no real harm done. Everyone was still alive, with just less baggage to check. So, I still love you, San Francisco. You beautiful, apparently crime riddled city. AND since we did get my external hard drive back I was able to edit the video that this whole road trip for! We shot it all with a GoPro and here it is, if you'd like to see:

It was a great California Road Trip, even if the end was a bit more of an adventure than we had planned.

BIG SUR

I was super excited to show Scott the wonder that is Big Sur, but then I was a little concerned that he might actually be completely unphased by it since New Zealand (his homeland) is all dramatic coast lines, plunging cliffs, winding green wilderness over bright blue oceans, etc. Luckily (and appropriately), he was enamored with it as I am.

No photos before coffee. 

We pulled over for the stunning views and a back-of-the-van peanut butter muesli and banana breakfast. I also made sure we stopped at the tiny + charming Big Sur Bakery for a strawberry scone. 

Being from the east coast, I kind of forget that the USA has landscape like this and it's easy to see why it attracted creative folks like Kerouac and Hunter S. Thompson. Big Sur is just so giant and incredible, it's good reminder that it's a big wide world out there -- even in your own country. 

ALONG THE PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY

We met a group of bros who had just graduated from Bible College and they led us down to a cove near Avila Beach. And baptized us. Just kidding. They were Bible College grads though. Real nice chaps.

Precise point this photo was taken. 

Over the Pacific.

Fruit stand stop.

Lake Casitas, the only Lake I've ever encountered where swimming is prohibited.

Santa Barbara street art. 

Santa Barbara Pier.

Avila Beach.

Seals created a Big Giant Bed at sunset. 

Along Highway 1 we stopped at a fruit stand in Guadalupe where I unnecessarily whipped out my limited Spanish ("que es?" "that's a nectarine." "ahhh si, muchas gracias"). Scott also experienced Urban Outfitters for the first time and could not, for the life of him, imagine why anyone would want to live in lovely, gorgeous Santa Barbara ("There's no waves!").  

It was a big stretch of highway up to Big Sur which called for good driving music, so from me to you: here's a mix. Enjoy it on your next road trip, even if it's your morning commute.