Uncategorized | girl meets life.

it all adds up.

A tall Pike in the morning and a tall in the afternoon adds up to just about $3.50.

But just one venti? $2.67.

That’s right. For the sake of saving money, I sip on that baby all. day. long.

why you should always have pizza crust.

…because when you don’t know what to eat after a long day at work, you can top it with just about anything and call it a day.

And when I say “day,” I mean a rockin’ dinner that makes you feel all sorts of creative…and stuff.

My crust of choice last night was courtesy of Udi’s, compliments of my freezer.

I cut it in half and made two versions of my favorite food.

Behind door number one we have a traditional pizza of sorts – topped with garlic, tomato sauce, mozzarella cheddar cheese, and spinach.

And as the closer, turn your attention to its peanut butter + date + white chocolate-topped cousin.

There you have it – reasons #85 and #86 why pizza is in fact the greatest food on earth.

What are your favorite pizza toppings?

sunday funday.

Um, does anyone else hate that term/phrase?

Yeah…never let me use it again.

Anyway, how about a little recap of my day? K great. Well, after a 6am rise’n shine, a train ride into the city, and a few (much-needed) hours at church, I headed to Spring Street Natural to meet Gabriela for lunch brunch.

I had heard great things about SSN and was especially drawn to the fact that they offer natural vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. Because we meat-eaters can be healthy too, you know. Just sayin’

It wasn’t easy picking a dish because the menu was full of great options, but a particular one caught my eye.

It was a good choice. Flavorful, great textures, and…french fries.

And, being the absolute amazing blend that she is, Gabriela came to lunch bearing (birthday) gifts! I pretty much died because…well, I think the pictures speak for themselves.

Does she know me or does she know me?? And to top it off – a gift card to Crumbs! Thank you so much, G

I spent the next few hours of the day…*drum roll please*…apartment hunting in the city. Yes – the gal who just up and moved her entire life a few short months ago is looking to do it all over again.

I wasn’t going to advertise it on the blog yet since I’m not sure how things are going to unfold, but, secrets are lame. If it happens, it happens. If not…well, we’ll cross that bridge when it comes. Prayers/fingers crossed/ good no-fee realtor recommendations are welcome!

But for now – I need a night of unplugging before the work week begins. Have a good one, toddies. xoxo G

What terms/phrases bug you?? I’m personally not a fan of “Hump Day” and “it is what it is”…

my recent purchase.

It doesn’t get much more exciting than coming home to find a package at your doorstep.

DSLR’s are cool and all…..

But I’ve been wanting this baby in my life before I even knew what a blog was.

Did I forget to order the film? Sure did.

Am I going to go all artsy/fartsy/hipster on you with Polaroid photos? Sure am.

Now…can someone tell me how the heck to use this thing??

gracie downer.

How I was supposed to spend this Friday night:

Well, since I wore myself a bit too thin over the past few days, straight chillin’ on my couch sounded just about perfect.

How I actually spent my night:

By acting like a rockstar for “catching” the train with seconds to spare, when in reality I ran for the wrong track.

Three train rides, two and a half hours, and one stale protein bar later, I finally made it home. Let’s just say it’s a good thing I had a very fitting train ride playlist for situations like this.

At least I kept things classy with a dinner of once frost-bitten frozen pizza.

I know what you’re thinking, and yes, I am being just about as big of a baby as they come. And with the literally earth-shattering events that took place over the past 24 hours??

Ugh. I know….I know.

I guess sometimes one of the perks of having a blog is being able to rant to the world without getting (deservedly) slapped in the face.

Are you a ranter, or do you keep your frustrations to yourself?

good news.

I don’t have time to put together a full post just yet, but I had to share…

Details to come xoxo G

it’s valentime.

This was my mom’s Valentine’s Day gift to me, and now it’s mine to you.

Happy Valentine’s Day from GML. xoxo G

my morning workout.

Spoiled suburban girl confession: I can count on one hand the times I’ve had to clean snow off my car.

So when I could barely even find my car this morning, I knew that immediate action had to take place. I wasn’t about to let the 12-18 inch layer of snow turn into ice.

It was sort of fun.

Really, it was.

I did say I wanted to learn and experience stuff for myself, right?

At least my car looks outstanding.

starting to feel like home.

You know, adjusting to my new home may not be so tough after all! It will still take some time, but practicing my usual creature comforts has definitely made the transition seem less daunting.

This morning I woke up and instantly made my first pot of coffee…and it was a delicious one. There are few things worse than bad coffee, so I considered this to be a good sign.

It was apparently a well-caffeniated cup of coffee too because it gave me the urge to go on an organizing rampage. There’s still more to be done, but I’m at least making some headway.

And then…I worked! As excited as I am to start a new job in the future, I’m definitely going to miss what I now am calling my “office:”

Later in the afternoon Amanda came by to hang out and catch up on some work with me. Hooray for having at least one friend in NY

We grabbed lunch from Whole Foods, naturally.

…and painted our nails. Also naturally.

Clearly work was slow today

Plans for the rest of the night include some baking and a date with Jillian.

Actually, scratch that. I think I’ll reschedule.

(Which means I strategically placed those items for nothing. Oops!)

Goodnight, doll babes! xoxo G

Do you have a secret to making good coffee? Mine is to always put an extra spoonful of grounds, aka “one for the pot.”

just a sec.

Hello dolls!

Yesterday I mentioned how I have a lot on my plate this week and, well, that was an understatement. I know I’m not the only one who has ever been stressed out, but I’ve decided that easing things up for myself might not be a horrible idea.

So, I may have to take the next couple of days off from blogging. If I can’t shake the urge to post then I absolutely will, but I just wanted to give the heads up instead of leaving you hanging! I’m hoping that a few days of unplugging is just what I need.

Please enjoy the rest of the holiday week for me, will you? xoxo G

a bittersweet start.

Hi there, dolls! I want to take a second to sincerely thank you for the well wishes regarding my decision to move. You are too sweet! And the stories about your personal leaps of faith were so incredibly encouraging.

Yesterday was actually my first trip up to the new place. It was bitter in the sense that it was only a day trip. My parents are helping me with the official start of the move on Saturday, so until then I’d be completely furniture-less.

The trip was sweet, though, because when I walked in the door I realized that it was my apartment (or as I seem to be referring to it as my “nook”).

Even sweeter was that in addition to the kitchen and bathroom renovations that recently took place, there were also brand new stainless steel kitchen appliances installed, which I had no idea about.

This baker/eater was on cloud nine, to say the least.

I’m looking forward to stocking the cabinets, but for now this is all I’ve got…

The essentials, clearly.

Best friend Amanda (and now fellow Long-Islander) stopped by during her lunch break to see the apartment. Even though time was short, It was great to catch up…and get some veggies under my belt. Pun intended.

Being able to see a friend for only an hour is always a bittersweet rendezvous, but thankfully I’ll be seeing much more of her in the future. Saturday, in fact

After unloading the car and doing some cleaning, I hit the road early to miss rush hour. Bitter does not even begin to describe rush hour in New York. It’s even more painful than watching two episodes in a row of Bridalplasty (which, unfortunately I know that first-hand).

The one sweet thing about the drive?

The momentary view of Manhattan. I approve.

So while the pre-cursor to my move was quite a tease, it also made me even more excited about my decision. I can’t wait to go back and finish moving in!

But for now…off to work. Ta! xoxo G

oh, hi!