Curbside Recycling, Y'all!

Strangely enough, Savannah doesn't have curbside recycling. When I first heard this fact I was in shock. I knew the South would be different...but come on! Recycling is no longer for tree-huggers alone, even conservatives (well some conservatives) have embraced the notion. The latest is that a local Mayor Wannabe has announced that he filed for a petition to collect signatures to put curbside recycling up for a citywide vote. Interested? Visit www.savannahrecycling.org. Who's to say whether or not Mr. Mayor Wannabe is just jumping on the environmental bandwagon. I'm still trying to figure out who's who on the local political scene, but I'm just happy that someone is making an effort. As the article in ConnectSavannah notes, the Sierra Club Coastal Group put up their own petition online two years ago: http://www.petitiononline.com/cleannow/petition.html Of course, I promptly signed it. You should too - it couldn't hurt!

[Above photo of Forsyth Park swiped from the savannahrecycling.org site - gotta give credit where credit is due.]

Slog for Sudan

Starting tomorrow these way-to-cool-for-school folks will be hitting the C&O Canal towpath for a grueling 200-mile hike to raise money for healthcare and education in Sudan. So what do you take on such a journey? Food, tents, sleeping bags... no way! This is a Slog folks, wimps need not apply. The only "luxury" items on this trip are mosquito nets, safety blankets, blister kits and tea bags (one per person). Crazy, maybe...but I think they're my new heros. Check out the website and check out their blog. If you're inspired, donate to their cause - 100% of donations go directly to fund health and education clinics in Southern Sudan.

If you're gonna shop, shop smart

Kathryn Finney sent me an autographed copy of her book, How to be a Budget Fashionista, to review - how lucky am I?! Very. If you don't know Ms. Finney then you're missing out. She not only authored this wallet-friendly fashion resource, but she's also behind one of my favorite blogs. Before reading the book I thought, what could this book possibly teach me? I mean really, shopping is one of my top comfort "foods" (right up there with mac n cheese). But I was pleasantly surprised. The book is a fun, quick read but it's also a handy reference. Pages I flagged: the international shoe size chart (European sizes get me every time), the section detailing how to bargain for everything ("While I'm getting in touch with my inner ice queen, I calculate the highest price I'm willing to pay for the item"), and how to get invited to Fashion Week (I'm totally inspired!). So before your next mega-shop, grab yourself a copy! You'll thank me.

Yesterday = Lazy

Do squirrels flirt? I think the one outside my window is totally flirting with me while I type. Yes, definitely. He's flicking his tail and looking straight at me. And I wonder why I'm having trouble working today! Anyhoo yesterday I spent the day in a lovely lazy way - reading Harry Potter (so addictive) in Columbia Square (near Chris' studio). Very nice square, not too populated. Just the occassional tour trolly or carriage or local walking a dog (count: two beagles, a poodle, and two mutts). After a long afternoon reading I was craving a cold drink so I set off and found... Smooth.

Smooth is a cute little smoothie shop near Wright Square. I'll definitely go back - good smoothies and free wifi. Maybe I was inspired, but this morning I made the Peach Tea "Milkshake" (it's really more like a smoothie than a milkshake) from the Teany Cafe cookbook (think Moby, think NY, think Yum!). It turned out pretty good, tasting like cold peach cobbler. Speaking of recipes, turns out an old coworker of mine (she's not old, we just used to work together) shared her blog with me and she has some great recipes - if interested, check out TastyLifeStyle. I think I'm going to try her Lemon Fried Goat Cheese Salad - sounds like perfect summer food, plus you really can't go wrong with fried cheese. That's all for now...guess I should get back to work.

It's a Sign

Very true.

The Eddie & Derby Show

I promise I'm not going to turn into a blogger than only writes about her cats. That would make me an e-cat lady and I can't go there. BUT... as I was reading my Entertainment Weekly yesterday I came across this advertisement for a new show on ABC Family called Slacker Cats. Honest to god I didn't realize that ABC had signed on Eddie and Derby to star in their own show, but there they are in cartoon form in all their glory playing xbox (or is it playstation? I'm not hip to the game scene, sorry).

In other news we finally had our settlement closing on our house in Baltimore!!! It wasn't the easiest process. Closing was scheduled for 4pm, but at 2pm we were notified that the final settlement amount was not crediting us for the final home insurance and property tax payments made out of our escrow acct. Apparently, Baltimore City is very slow in processing those payments. Our mortgage company sent in the payment, but the City takes 30 days to process it. So Chris along with our real estate agent spent about 4 hours on the phone between the mortgage company, the City, the title company, and the buyer's agent trying to come to some resolution. Long story short - we fought the good fight and won. Whew! After all that we decided to treat ourselves to our favorite pizza place (possibly ever, but so far at least in Savannah) the Mellow Mushroom. So yummy I could eat there daily. I'd be horribly fat, but happy. nuf for now...more later.

Om...White Apricot?

So there's a new website called White Apricot that's geared towards the "the modern conscious consumer, who shops at trendy boutiques and has a designer shoe addiction, but pounds the pavement with a mantra repeating in your head." So if you go to a yoga class and then meet a friend for cosmos - White Apricot wants you. We'll see how this website pans out, it's definitely an interesting marketing idea. The graphic to the right was swiped from their homepage, I rather like it. Maybe because it hits close to home. Another great reason to visit the site, you can sign up to win a $500 Spa Week gift certificate when you subscribe to the White Apricot (not sure about that name) e-newsletter.

Shout out - Ted Casablanca!

Guilty pleasure: celebrity gossip. It's like coffee in the morning, I gotta have my daily dose. There's a lot of folks reporting Hollywood tidbits, but one of my favs is Ted Casablanca's Awful Truth. Something about Ted's snarky remarks gets me everytime. When I saw this photo in the Awful Express email, I just had to post it. Either there was some good Photoshoppin' going on or there's a ride-on pony in the world's most scenic field and I must visit it!

Thank Craigslist!

Over the weekend we biked to Chris' new art studio in the historic area.

It's such a great space. It's got really high ceilings, tons of storage and an office space in the loft. It's definitely raw, but I'm sure Chris will alter it to his liking.

The Long Arm of the Claw

This is what I have to contend with while working from home. He's tough to ignore.

Doh!

Just wanted to share a recent picture of Chris and I in Savannah. Strange, we look different somehow...

Tips from Dad: How to cool off

Heat and humidity getting you down? Grab a garden hose and cool off! Thanks Dad for emailing me this pic, which proves that even as a two-year old I was a slave to fashion.

A long and winding road

After a 12-hour roadtrip last Thursday, we're finally here in Savannah. If I could use one word to describe the ride down it would be Drama. I had a tire blowout on 95 just south of DC and had to be towed to a tire shop. Then 8 hours later Derby (my orange kitty) couldn't handle it any longer and peed in his crate - ick! After cleaning up Derbs and his stinky cage, we got back on the road. Not an hour later, a truck in front of Chris lost a large crate (or was it a box? who knows), sending it into the middle of our lane. Chris just missed it, but I had to slam on my brakes causing all of the junk in my backseat/trunk to lunge forwards, pushing the passenger seat and Derby's crate up near my dash. Derby was on "kitty valium" for the trip, but that didn't calm him enough to withstand the long ride. He meowed like crazy, especially after the near collision! We were fortunate not to be rearended. But thank god, we made it to blazin' hot Savannah in one piece. Now to unpack boxes and get settled...