Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Take a walk...in the shop...on the wild side...

Talk a walk...
in the shop...
on the wild side...
















but first Thai
I don't know how they oragami'd that napkin like that
and then there was Thai Coffee--so very sweet (when I thought nothing could be sweeter than sweet tea)
the seafood treasure was a surprise, it wasn't mine but it was fun to see come out to the table

link to Nidda Thai Cuisine restaurant...
http://www.niddathai.com/

note: Thai toasts & Nidda Salad were my fav (but then I love crispy tofu)














rain
'merica
Houston, TX
that flag, you can't tell, is so enormous--I can hear it flapping over the noise of the rain thru the hotel window
oddly there is screen in the window at the hotel (mind you in a modern, updated, fun hotel)



















coffeebreak
Blacksmith Coffee
Lucky Cat collection (some with price tags still on...I wanted to ask if tiny yellow one was really for sale or they'd forgotten to take the tag off--but I didn't)
wallpaper, loved the design, is that dated or is it new or is it new made to look old - black & white graphics pull me in (like babies with mobiles in black & white over their cribs...I am mesmerized...)

link to fb pg, don't find a webpg...
https://www.facebook.com/blacksmithhouston

Lucky Cat Wiki...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maneki-neko
note: read this you know in case you live under a rock 'n never saw one or heard of one before
(talk about a sheltered life then...)


















description from Fab.com fits these guys pretty darn well...

The epitome of creepy-cute, these Max & Moritz Salt and Pepper Shakers 
were designed by Chris Collicot for Kikkerland...
(I know I couldn't have them looking at me all day or night from the kitchen--so no, no way...)








































Take a walk...in the shop...on the wild side...
4 floors or creative energy, topped off by a top floor to wander thru the sale items
strewn every which way, as it should be, like a bazaar or a souk--gawd I miss a good souk...sigh...
but this will do, in a pinch...
sense of touch & sight very happy in here, if only there were spices (like at the souks) then it would be grand
btw I am in (lust) love with this warehouse of a store...I will return to wander & wander, another day away...

link to the store, there is as well (of course) a catalog...
http://www.highfashionhome.com/?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Bing_Branded

note: lots of fun to wander past a whole side of a room dedicated to being set up for photos
all the set ups were marked 'not' to move anything for the photoshoot...
but alas I musta missed it as there was already a man with a skateboard type cart already as if it were all done, wheeling chairs, etc's away...



2013 Summer Catalog

another link, another of their shops--but just for Fabrics...their High Fashion Fabrics shop, just across the side street from them...
http://www.highfashionfabrics.com/

another note:  there is a whole other just Fabric Shop as well as the Home Shop...if I were a fabric/sewing person I would be in awe as well over there, just cross the side street, I'm sure...

Cream On The Grill

for summer...the bbq--in fabric...oh why not
it's kinda looking like a robot, alien, crown kind of image anyway to me
if nothing else there is orange, red orange, orange going on all over it


ps: the horse photos were all for my sis, of the Rescue Ranch--got a dozen horses kind of gal...



















another coffee...iced coffee...
this one a Vietnamese coffee
less sweet/more strong, after that couldn't tell






















take a walk...outside a shop...on the wilder side...
Party Boy...is not just interesting on the inside--be sure to walk the outside...
then keep going into the next building where there is a warehouse of costumes
for only $100 bucks can put together a Steampunk costume for 2 or 3 days
that you can take from Houston back to say Lafayette then ship it back when you're done
come November 9th, or before, with the Steampunk Festival & Maker's Fair going on in downtown Lafayette, LA
I may just reconsider to drive back earlier to Houston to rent me a whole costume
then take a million photos & I'm good--one day I may own such a thing, but until then renting is fine with me
(well I did buy a brown felt top hat & a vest to start a costume with--it's a start...)

link to Party Boy...
http://partyboytexas.com/
(note: don't get excited, there is 'not' a link to the warehouse of costumes--so you can't see them all online, you have to go there...I need to go back, check it out like a library or a bookshop--see what I can put together...try a few, few too many, things on--then we'll see if I'll end up with my very own Steampunk costume or not, finally...hmm...one day...



a sneak peek inside...Party Boy's costume warehouse...


top-hat-brown-stovepipe-057543840990.png


and I did find a top hat, brown, felt/fuzzy, nearly like this one...
what could I do with it--well I went to look see...

I like this idea to start: brown/yellow feathers, some pin on lapel type mini gears, prob a clock or some watch gears, plus coppery eye goggles...(and me, I want to add some buttons somewheres--I envision a vest as well, covered in buttons...if not completely...but can I sew that many buttons, hmm...)




from a thumbnail photo, the webpage will not come up on Chrome
also cannot search for the hat for halloween link below--I get an Opps
took note that there was a box & a blank on my blog post so went to look for the photo
I did not copy it into my picture file, so went back to find it by Google Search
this may or may not have been the hat--but it's the idea
add feathers, gears, watch parts or keys or etc plus goggles & voila--a Steampunk hat?!


thank you steampunk.com
http://www.steampunk.com/find-your-perfect-steampunk-hat-for-halloween/#more-2153
note: tho it says for Halloween, works for Steampunk Festivals as well...

of course too there has to be an octupus, a kraken...

or--there is this octupus...whoa...I may have to look up all the different kinds of octupus...

File:CirrothaumaMurDraw2.jpg
can you say bizarre-o
oh my

from Wiki
he's a--Cirrothauma murrayi (octupus)

drawn sometime in 1910
if you believed in nightmares, aliens & such
(the Kraken is looking really lovely right about now...)

enough--I will stop before I go to bed or I will have octupus filled nightmares for sure
like ear worm music, I must now go look at a lot of something else...

oh wait--there was more shopping, there was more coffee...


















NL aka No Label Beer
the choices at Spec's
I was sent to Oh just pick up a sixpack while you're in town...uh huh...
so there are no less than 5 choices--I was told 'not' to choose the jalapeno pepper beer
well that was the 1 choice they didn't have
rest of the story--pale ale won out

somebody I know knows somebody who knows/is perhaps related to somebody at this crafty brewery

link to NL/No Label Beer...
http://nolabelbrew.com/

"friends, sunshine, beer
no labels necessary"

that's their line, not mine...

link to Specs - wines, liquors store...
http://www.specsonline.com/cgi-bin/showpage?pageid=main
note: they're huge, they're in houston, they're in Texas, they're Texas-size




















started with (iced) coffee...end with (not iced) coffee
espresso--cortado, on the go
plus a garden of 'Goofy' grafitti art, street art
in the making or it's what you do with a broken pot
the clean white chalky surface was too much for someone
they had to draw, they had to draw 'Goofy'
Oh really why not
Cheers

link to Catalina Coffee...
http://catalinacoffeeshop.com/
there's prob already lots & lots, loads even, of coffee photos online
so why not a pot of cactus with 'Goof' Grafitti
(now I've nearly forgotten about creepy cute salt/pepper shakers or ancient octupus...nearly...)


Friday, August 2, 2013

#OITNB Am Totally Obsessed Y'all & Withdrawing--so I will Blog About It

#OITNB S1
aka Orange is the New Black
NetFlix TV Series - Season 1

In the beginning there were 13 Episodes
now there are none
we the followers await Season 2
until then
there are:

articles
interviews
youtube
music - OK, a song
photos of cast as they are in real life
a book & a real author, a real Piper

in hopes that withdrawals won't continue too long
the #OrangeWriters will have to put us out of our misery come Season 2
thankfully there 'will' be a S2
I am trying 'not' to be too pissed over the ending of S1
But in S2 I'm guessing there will be 'new teeth' to start
(I am not a Spoiler)

so even in lil ol' Lafayette, LA
on Facebook
a local comment: (in so many words) I watched #OITNB & I hate TV Series--they End
I feel their frustration
tho they claim they will not be watching S2
uh huh, we'll see how that goes comes next year when it's back again on NetFlix TV
(it's a hard habit to kick?!)
on Twitter
a local comment: #OITNB is not American Pie...
I have never watched American Pie, other than a TV trailer
I only knew the fiance looked familiar from some movie or another
after that the only character/actor I recognized was - of course - Captain Janeway (StarTrek--duh)
and Whoa--can she play Russian Red or What?!
OK, so there is 1 more character/actor I know--That 70's Show, Girl Next Door
again Whoa--can she play Drug/Lesbos Queen or What?!


before...Captain Janeway on Star Trek


after...Red on Orange is the New Black

Donna Pinciotti.jpg
before...That 70's Show - Girl Next Door


after...Alex - Orange is the New Black (you know what I said earlier)


This is not a review
I will for my own satisfaction just list everything I am interested in/blown away by in this Netflix TV Series
this after I was sooo disappointed in Netflix Movies, streaming or otherwise, that I was out picking up movies from RedBoxes all over town instead
now I've been sucked back in
this from someone who does not like TV, nor TV series
(Alright except Downton Abbey/Christmas shows or the weather channel when I have to due to say hurricanes or tornadoes...and on Netflix, again,--Lilyhammer, mostly because I lived in Stavanger, Norway for years so I could relate to the Norwegian parts - and - it also made me giggle with my hand over my mouth, like I wasn't)




Links will begin here...

NetFlix TV - Orange is the New Black...
http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/Orange_Is_the_New_Black/70242311?mqso=81003328
(note: there are summaries here of each episode...to start off easing those withdrawals)

In Withdrawals where else to go...

Amazon.com to order the book:

1) the orginal...
http://www.amazon.com/Orange-Is-New-Black-Womens/dp/0385523394/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1375412722&sr=8-1&keywords=orange+is+the+new+black

or 2) the tie in TV Series edition (tho don't know why they call it the Movie Tie in--there's no movie...)
http://www.amazon.com/Orange-Black-Movie-Tie--Edition/dp/0812986180/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1375412722&sr=8-2&keywords=orange+is+the+new+black
(note: this one won't be released until August 6, 2013...I couldn't wait, so I've ordered the Original above)

















Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Woman's Prison by Piper Kerman
Orange shoes on the cover (courtesy of Amazon.com)
but on the Netflix version on TV there were blue shoes
(note: first favorite line...Piper: Oh they're kinda like Toms Guard: Toms? then Piper explains Toms...that's about when I started giggling, with my hand over my mouth like I wasn't & knew too that I wouldn't miss any more lines right)

Wiki link--wait there's a Wikipedia already...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orange_Is_the_New_Black



Twitter
@OITNB @OrangeWriters
(or all the actors who have Twitter too--I have, not yet, gone that far...)
Hashtags
#OITNB #OrangeWriters
or #AskOrange when they have that Tweet the Cast going on

Facebook
Netflix TV Series www.facebook.com/OITNB
Piper Kerman Book www.facebook.com/orangeisthenewblack




Then there is the Series Song--You've Got Time by Regina Spektor on YouTube...
http://youtu.be/w9_isl1jjHc

Regina Spektor webpage...
http://www.reginaspektor.com/youvegottime
(note: where I find no Tour Dates for the USA...if I could be in the UK or Stockholm or Belgium or Krakow or Prague...sigh...but no I will not be there, so I have to wait--tho there is YouTube, for now)

Twitter - Regina Spektor...
twitter.com/respektor

OITNB Opening Credits with the song You've Got Time by Regina Spektor...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBITGyJynfA

The Song...

You've Got Time
Regina Spektor

The animals, the animals
Trapped, trapped, trapped 'till the cage is full
The cage is full
Stay awake
In the dark, count mistakes
The light was off but now it's on
Searching the ground for a bitter song
The sun is out, the day is new
And everyone is waiting, waiting on you
And you've got time
And you've got time

Think of all the roads
Think of all their crossings
Taking steps is easy
Standing still is hard
Remember all their faces
Remember all their voices
Everything is different
The second time around

The animals, the animals
Trapped, trapped, trapped 'till the cage is full
The cage is full
Stay awake
In the dark, count mistakes
The light was off but now it's on
Searching the ground for a bitter song
The sun is out, the day is new
And everyone is waiting, waiting on you
And you've got time
And you've got time
And you've got time



Then you find the article that makes it better--Orange is the New Black Withdrawal? 13 Things You Can Do...
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/orange-black-withdrawal-13-things/story?id=19746831

(note: what I've done so far off the list...#2 Buy the Book, #3 Listen to the Song, Repeat, #11 follow on Twitter/Facebook, #1 Listen to the Real Piper Kerman TV Interview...she sounds a lot like the actress when she's being all serious or perhaps it's the other way around & the actress did a very good job at studying her character)

See them interviewed together on Hey You Guys Co. UK - Piper Kerman author/writer of the book & Taylor Shilling/Piper Kerman character on OITNB...

http://youtu.be/JCiliDcpuNI




Piper Kerman Interview on ABC News...
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/07/piper-kerman-incarceration-does-not-lead-to-rehabilitation/
(note: hear about her book & not so oddly her work to further women prisoner's opportunities - WPA... http://www.wpaonline.org/)




WPA - Women Prisoner's Association...
http://www.wpaonline.org/


Piper Kerman's webpage...
http://piperkerman.com/orange

NYTimes Article - Prison Day 1 by Piper Kerman (written March 2010)...
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/21/magazine/21lives-t.html?sudsredirect=true&_r=0

The Pipe Bomb - Piper Kerman's - FAQ Blog - starting Feb 1, 2004 & writing in the 3rd person...
http://thepipebomb.com/archives/000244.php


IMDB - Orange is the New Black...here you can look up all the actors & what movies/TV they did before, or even if none at all (lucky b*tches for this to be their First Acting Gig huh?!)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2372162/

IMDB - about the Writer/Producer/Actress: Jenji Kohan...
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0463176/?ref_=tt_ov_wr
(note: I did not watch Weeds...I have a feeling I should have, maybe I still will--while I'm waiting/withdrawing from Orange is the New Black...but then I don't watch TV/TV Series...there's something like a hundred of them too...sigh...so many--will they last until S2 of OITNB)



Splitsider Nov 2011 - Jenji Kohan...
http://splitsider.com/2011/11/trade-roundup-pilots-from-weeds-happy-endings-and-everybody-loves-raymond-producers-affion-crockett-canceled/
(note: she's wearing my Jewish neighbor friend's glasses from when I was in Elementary School...and nevermind the rainbow hat...she could be off color Crazy Eyes on Orange is the New Black, until she lets her hair loose...I like this photo of her, before Weeds, before OITNB)

Then there is this Transgender, Sophia--which come to find out, is, & the pre-transgender parts were played by 'her' twin brother (who is not an actor) in the backstory episode...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/26/orange-is-the-new-black-laverne-cox_n_3660712.html
(note: who could make this stuff up, is truth stranger than fiction? I keep finding it so...also I like her character a lot, I like a lot of the characters a lot--I can't wait to read the book to find out more about the characters, their backstories, if they match anything to the parts being played on the Netflix TV Series...then to top that all off--Jodie Foster directed this episode, or so the Huffington Post article says so)

An Excerpt from the Interview on HitFix (about Jodie Foster coming in for an episode)...

[HitFix: And how did Jodie Foster come to direct the third episode?
Jenji Kohan: Truthfully, Jodie got a project at Showtime and realized that she'd never done television before and, to her credit, wanted to say, "Lemme try this to see how this goes before I go do my own thing." And when Jodie Foster says, "I wanna do this," you say, "Yes." So she came to us and I think we were sort of her dry-run for when she does her television thing.
HitFix: And based on what you saw, how do you think she'll do?
Jenji Kohan: Look, I think she's super-smart and really good. Movie directing is different from TV directing and I think some things were like a culture shock for her because, in way, you know the director's not the king in TV. It's more collaborative with the writers than she's used to. I hope she has a lot of power on her show [She laughs] so she can really do it all her way. That said? She was incredibly collaborative and really game and came in saying, "I haven't done this before. It's a learning curve." She was just delightful and she's really, really smart and really talented. And fast!]

Read more at http://www.hitfix.com/the-fien-print/interview-orange-is-the-new-black-creator-jenji-kohan-talks-prison-netflix-and-jodie-foster#RarHxd70Lo1Z34Jj.99 


~~~

OK--have obsessed, withdrew enough, about #OITNB or at least on a Blog...cheers 'n prison cheesecake until S2, next year?? - now to go find out how to make Cronuts that all the #OrangeWriters are eating in NYC...sigh...since they don't seem to sell them elsewhere--how unfair is that?! I do love them all tho, as long as they keep writing this series--no matter what they're eating, if that's what it takes then by all means...

Further Note--as far as I can tell there is no connection what so ever to Louisiana or Lafayette...but when I do find one I will mention it...for now there's only that I am in Lafayette & I am watching this & will be watching this (but then there's who's to say where I'll be for S2...not wearing Orange is about all I know for sure right now?!)

~~~
eee...my book arrived a day early--thank you Amazon.com...












so here's the back cover












and the 'new' front cover with the added red circle in the right-hand corner:
"Now A NetFlix Original Series" (just saying, just so ya's know, uh huh...)

note: so now tonight I 'know' what I'll be doing (into the wee hours)
has nothing to do with screwdrivers either btw, hmm... ;oP
bah--I'll be reading 295 pgs plus some after words...

~~~
More interviews--this time from a writer on Orange, she/Lauren Morelli calls it that--Orange...
http://mashable.com/2013/07/23/orange-is-the-new-black-writer/

Article Title...My First Writing Job: 'Orange is the New Black'
(I can hardly imagine--it makes me want to swear, but nicely...)

noted: 5 women, 2 men write for Orange she states...and I count something like 53 women, 20 men on the cast list of Orange off of IMDb's webpage

Orange

A Guide to the Cast of Orange is the New Black...
http://www.buzzfeed.com/louispeitzman/a-guide-to-the-cast-of-orange-is-the-new-black
note: I like seeing the what they look like on the show photos next to the what they look like off the show/in real life photos...at least for a lot of the main characters, that we see on S1

gingerhaze:

Remember all their faces
Remember all their voices
Taking steps is easy 
Standing still is hard.
Guys I’m so excited about Orange is the New Black right now

The cool thing about this show is that my favorite character is everyone.

from Ginger Haze on TooMuchNick...
"...my favorite character is everyone"
(that's what I think!)
I like her character drawings too
and that's just 12 of them