This journal is friends only!





Some of you may have found this through frumfashionista or gen_xslacker. Others, have seen me in other blogs/communities.

Warning: this is my personal blog. My journal is not like my fashion blog or the community I co-mod. The humor and pluckiness you see in those places you will NOT find here all the time...

hipstamom can veer on the oppressively bleak side. So if you can't handle my virtual whimpers and need to read a fun blog, this is not the place. Don't take this as being standoffish but I don't want to waste anyone's time.

I'm at a point in my life where I won't let just anyone in. I've left tons of frienemies in my wake. I'm not keen on picking up the broken pieces.

Check out my profile... and if this blog STILL peaks your interest then...

Comment to be added!

My boy is a super music geek. I did check out the mp3 previously suggested, the zen stone. I found it for $18. The problem? It only works on Windows...boo hiss! This is a straight up mac household. So I'm going give him the the mint iPod shuffle I bought for Hanukkah 2 years ago to take with him. My fingers are going to be seriously crossed with that one.

I did manage to find The Dangerous Book for Boys for a killer price on half.com.

Additionally, I found a bug repellant that may be workable for TP's sensitive skin. AVON's Skin So Soft Bug Guard! Kills the sunscreen/bug spray issue in one swoop.

Tomorrow, I will pick up some items from the Container Store; I used my 15% off coupon to get some nice prices on things.

I also have to trundle down to Old Navy and/or TCP; and IKEA. Most likely I will break up the trips over Sunday and Monday!

Shoes may be a challenge to find so I'm trolling all the Memorial Day Sales. Also, finding a bath robe is turning out to be a major PITA!!!

I did manage to find some l/s shirt from fall when he was in the previous elementary school.

I bought two Lands' End duffel bags on sale for $12 ea. Hubster wanted me to pay for monogramming. I said no. He was a little puzzled... I already have luggage tags from Mabel's labels. Why would I pay an extra $10 especially if I have iron-on tags in addition to the metal bag tags? I had to put my foot down.

I know that the shoe fashionistas have been jonesing for new shoes to drool over.

This is going to be a short, sweet shoe post.

Only five to check out, so I'll get on with the shoes:
American Classic Shoes

daring pump
embossed leather, 3" heel, shown in grey, also in cardinal red and black, $185, Kenneth Cole
( jump into more shoes )

I hope you enjoyed these shoes.

XOXO,
Ariella

My New Year's Eve/Day was supa eventful. I saw the new commercial for nip/tuck on New Years. That song was supa hawt! Of course, I found out who it was... Kanye West. It's such a fun song. I hung out with my friend and we had a blast!


Flashing Lights - Kanye West

I know why I want to convert. It just seems like the process has gotten ridiculously hard. I don't find the mechanics of observance difficult per se...it's the social stuff that drives me crazy. I just feel like I'm stuck in a hellish limbo. I know too much to even think about going back to church; but I'm not Jewish either. So it's irksome to say the least!

I'm just as closed-minded as Lindenites in certain ways. I really don't like close-minded, uppity snots! I don't have the stomach for those types. So doesn't that make me like the people I despise? Unlike those snots, I realize that's not a good way to be. I'm so thrilled that I don't live in da Jerz anymore. I feel like I'm graduating into adulthood finally.

Then again, I've always been a late-bloomer. I had my final growth spurt when I was in college. I went from 5'6" to 5'8" in a year. Ugh! I was in such a rush to grow up. Now, I'm not trying push stuff. This is my year. I'm going to grab life by the cohones!

I love living by the ocean. Period. My mother started getting hysterical because she heard Hubster and I talking about moving out. So I have to stay in Brooklyn for at least a while! My poor mother couldn't take it if moved far away again. Plus, the ASD program. I'm staying put for the moment! I'm not upset about it or anything. Finding programs for ASD children is difficult as is!

did anyone who recently friended me and I didn't friend them back let me know.

I'm tired and I have way lost my mind.

thanks for your patience while I go look for it!

I was wondering to myself how lucky am I that I don't associate with certain people anymore. My former BFF ragged on me on the memorial website. Then again she was never the tactful one.

If you had the balls to rag on me then why bother to take it down after you see me? Show some conviction!

:head scratcher: not really but it's highly amusing that she got scared shitless! The bonus is that I got her secret stuffing recipe. Ha, ha, ha!

Moral of the day: Keep your words sweet because you may have to eat them!

:roar: I guess it's time for a head to head! If you still think so then I'm going into freaking television dangit!

This is quite a nasty storm we got over here today!

The streets are flooded. I didn't even try to venture out of the house. I've been hiding out from hoomans.

( Supernatural wackiness in 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1... )
I hate it when these things happen to me. Now I feel like I just got a draft notice to go to war.

Why did Hashem make me a freak of nature? 

WHY????????

The majority of people on my friends list.  I met them through word of mouth; Blogathon '07; and Writer's Block!

and back to the ocean I decided to count down my move back to Brooklyn. 

In honour of this stressful occasion I also decided to change my journal theme.  Since my time in this community has been mostly bleak; I decided to change the theme to a nighttime river theme.  It's almost the end of a chapter and I'm glad about that. 

I definitely don't see them as "victorious."  This community lost out- not me.  They may not see it now.  When they repel enough decent people with their snobbishness and "frummer than thou" attitude then they will see.  Hopefully, their eyes won't open when it's too late and the community earns a bad rep!


I don't see leaving this community as a failure.  Sometimes, things don't work out.  Sometimes, both parties don't try enough.  Oftentimes, people wait until it's too late to repair things.

I see a new door opening for me.  I can be near my friends; family; and most of all I get to go home.

It's a strange mix of somberness and elation!  




See y'all on the NYC side...

Send me to one of Saturn's moons: for this Cappy it would be great. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, of course! After all, I don't want to panic!

When the morons in my ex-boyfriend's community college thought Video Music Box was coming down there. Xeroxes of a handwritten signs stating, "The Box LIVE 4pm in the gym" were posted all over the school. I said, "I don't think that's Video Music Box." He told me, "you listen to white music; what do you know about Video Music Box?" I said, "Well I know they ain't coming here! VMB would have used a logo, duh!" He grumbled, "Sister, you don't know what you're talking about!"

Of course, the mean side of me had to see this go down...

3 P.M.: I made sure that I got ringside seats for this one. Already, 200 kids showed up.

3:30 P.M.: "Hey Bilal... where the video cameras; where the lights?" With an icy glare, he responded, "They must be running late." "Aah... they're running on colored people time. Well, they're gonna be really late because they ain't coming" Dummy ex gives the :eyeroll:

4 P.M.: The gym was filled with almost 400 black students eagerly awaiting Video Music Box.

4:15 P.M.: Two white boys are setting up sound equipment. "So I guess, the Box is an EOE Bilal?" :eyeroll: from dummy. Meanwhile, a hundred more kids filtered in.

4:45 P.M. A petite white chick saunters up to the stage. Thanks everyone for being there and starts singing her song.

Imagine 500 hoodies with a dumbfounded look on their faces...
Priceless!

Mouths agape. They were so shocked they couldn't even cuss. I started laughing so hard and so loudly, I nearly pee'd myself!

After the first song, everyone walked out.

EX started to walk out too... "Oh no, no, no! You came here to see the Box. You gonna stay here and finish watching The Box. After all you know so much about hip-hop!" I taunted him further by speaking to "The Box" after their performance. This happened over a decade ago and I still LMAO thinking about it. If it's one thing I know it's old school hip-hop.

Enjoy the original theme song for Video Music Box (Whodini: Five Minutes of Funk):

P.S. Whodini also did "Freaks Come Out Night" Rest in peace Channel 31! You were the best channel around.

1. What is your occupation? Shaklee Independent Distributor/college student

2. What color are your socks right now? I'm not wearing socks now. I tend to go for multi-coloured socks. You know fun!

3. What are you listening to right now? Yelle: A Cause Des Garcons

4. What was the last thing that you ate? Somethings at Shalos Seudos.

5. Can you drive a stick shift? Nope. I learned on a automatic.

6. Last person you spoke to on the phone? My mom.

7. How old are you today? Today, I am 33 years old.

8. What is your favorite sport to watch? Football (Soccer)

9. Have you ever dyed your hair? Several times. My first time, I stripped my hair and dyed it midnight blue. I then went pink, orange, fuchsia. Then I shaved it all off. When I grew it back, I did auburn. Then last summer I highlighted it with honey streaks.

10. Favorite food? Mac n cheese.

11. What was the last movie you watched? Psycho Beach Party

12. Favorite day of the week? Friday.

13. How do you vent anger? on my LJ. I also go for walks and silently scream for hours.

14. What was your favorite toy as a child? Sit and Spin.

15. What is your favorite season? Winter. My birthday falls in December. What's not to love about snow?

16. Cherries or Blueberries? Blueberries!

17. Who is the most likely to respond? real_bethy

18. Who is least likely to respond? dararachel 'cos she don't do memes!

19. What is on the bottom of your closet? Various craptastic things and my shoe crates.

20. What did you do last night? Ate shabbos dinner and snuggled with da hubster.

21. Favorite smells? Fresh laundry, laundromats, lavender, verdant fragrances, oriental floral fragrances, flowers.

22. What inspires you? Music!

23. What are you most afraid of? Fame!

24. Plain, cheese, or spicy hamburgers? Plain. Cheeseburgers? Yuck!

25. What celebrity would you most like to meet? I've already met him: Neil Tennant. I love him so much. I also met other celebs. For the most part, they are normal folks. It's just that many people recognize their face.

26. If you knew you had 30 days to live, what would you do with your time? Travel to places that I've been meaning to visit but never had the chance.

27. All-time favorite cartoon? Hard to say... I like so many. If I had to choose one it would be Heathcliff!

28. Favorite spiritual place to go when your soul needs renewal? The beach. The ocean (and any body of water) has the power to cleanse your spirit. If you looked at most religions, water has a very important role in ritual purification

29. Favorite mode of transportation? Planes, most def!

Talk of the strike have been circling around. Ever since the big delete, things have gotten hairy here.

Now LGBT journals are being censored. I know some people don't agree with homosexuality. However, a "community" based company can't afford to get moralistic. What really cheeses me off are the strange "Cure Autism Now!" and "Asperger's school" pop-ups. Just let me write in peace dangit!

Now the word "fairy" brings three things off the top of my head:
Dishwashing liquid
Mythological creatures
gay men

So I'd better not talk about the winged elves (suffering from Streisand addiction) that I rescued from an oil slick and cleaned up with dishwashing detergent. Death is OK with LJ but faeries are not?! WTF?!

So I will participate in the strike and won't be back until Sunday night. See ya on the other side of the fence!

Here's the numbers for ya: Which one of these doesn't not quite belong?

( Here's the skinny on the strike! )

DH sent me this link from Yahoo News and all I can say is ewwww....

The gift that keeps on giving...

swiped from tinhuviel !

BOLD WHICH APPLY TO YOU:

Father went to college
Father finished college
Mother went to college
Mother finished college
Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers
Had more than 50 books in your childhood home
Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
Were read children's books by a parent
Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18 (various musical instruments, ice skating)
Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18 (guitar, bass guitar, piano, and violin)
The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively
Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs
Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs
Went to a private high school
Went to summer camp
Had a private tutor before you turned 18 (My mum scraped up tons of cash because I sucked at math until senior year in high school)
Family vacations involved staying at hotels
Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18 (I may have grown up in the hood...but my mom used to get my clothes from department stores)
Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them
There was original art in your house when you were a child
You and your family lived in a single family house
Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home
You had your own room as a child (I never slept in it until I was 17 because it was 10 below zero during the winter. The radiator didn't work.)
You had a phone in your room before you turned 18
Participated in an SAT/ACT prep course
Had your own TV in your room in High School (I got it junior or senior year...)
Owned a mutual fund or IRA in High School or College
Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16 (I visted my father's country Guyana, England and Canada before I was 16. I took my first flight when I was 4. I love flying!!!)
Went on a cruise with your family
Went on more than one cruise with your family
Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up (I grew up in NYC! I went with my mother to one or two museums. My father was a monster so going into a place like that with him would have been a disaster, LOL!)
You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was surprised at how much I did put in bold. Even though I grew up in the pjs, I had a surprising amount of stuff! I was more fortunate in some ways than others who lived where I grew up. I had nice clothes and two parents in the house. Not too many kids in my building had two parents in the household.

In terms of my parents education, neither of them finished elementary school. Most people my age can't say that. Then again my parents were older when they had me.

Re: original art. I don't think my refrigerator scribbles and posters count, LOL!

15 minutes to midnight. Now off to watch Dick Clark!

An article on the New Knight Rider car. I saw it on Yahoo and I got excited. After all, I'm a child of the 80s.

I love cars. I really, really love cars. When I saw the Trans Am in the original Knight Rider, I was so mad that I was too young to drive. It was sleek and for the 80s that was quite a feat considering the decade's penchant for bloat.

But a Mustang?! You go from a Trans Am to a Mustang?! Good Gawd man you know the new Knight Rider movie is going to be super cheesy. I think past the point of MST3K'ing it :-(

now i'm going back to bed...

This is one of my favorite Pat Benatar songs... This woman can sing her butt off! I wish I could sing this good!

Enjoy Invincible...

just because I can't sleep. My head and stomach are in knots...

I realized something - I haven't really put on hair bands. So here's one video by Winger that I feel is apt considering the circumstances... I loved the use of color overlays in the black & white video. His hair is Very Metal!!!!

DH is *crunchy. I think think he gets that from his mother. She's an anti-meat, anti-sweet, anti-anything tasty type of woman.

I remember when DS was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. The neurodevelopment specialist strongly suggested that I switch to organic. I just looked at her like she was crazy because at the time I was living in the projects. Plus, I buy groceries with food stamps.

Huh?

See I fell into the trap of thinking eating organic equalled PETA freaks who loved the smell of their own brand. Here's more on this in the NYT article, Mass Natural.

When we were living in Chilltown, we belonged to an organic food co-op. It was fabulous because we spent $40 a month for the organic fruits/veggies. (Keep in mind this was almost 10 years ago at this point.) We got our fruits and veggies biweekly. You only had to volunteer once a month sorting the boxes. They even have kosher pods. I cried when we had to move.
If I can find a kosher pod around here that would be fabulous!

The other thing is that the last time I ate organic, standards were stricter back then. Once the USDA got their grubby little mitts on "organic" the standards are sorely lacking. Now I can see why people keep *CY.

Now, that I'm sicky sick I'm forced to go green. For everyone's sake.

I did buy Shaklee's Get Clean Starter Kit. This stuff is spectacular and it's not strong smelliing. I was so terrified because of Seventh Generation and all those traditionally green brands. I love Method products too!

I found this article about Going Organic on the Cheap.

I also found this article on NYT, Five Easy Ways to Go Organic.

Milk is at the top of the list...gah! Oy, oy, oy...

When I was in Brooklyn shopping for Pesach, I was shocked to find organic kosher chicken that wasn't very pricey. It only cost a dollar more than the regular stuff. Still very, very expensive compared to non-kosher chicken.

Who ever on my f-list who is crunchy, slightly soggy, or anywhere in-between give a holla and sound off on this...

DH is dead set against giving DS meds. Unfortunately, meds may make more sense fiscally. Medicaid will pay for those. My food stamps aren't going to get raised because I keep kosher and/or organic.

Meh!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
glossy:
crunchy
Adjective. Used to describe persons who have adjusted or altered their lifestyle for environmental reasons. Crunchy persons tend to be politically strongly left-leaning and may be additionally but not exclusively categorized as vegetarians, vegans, eco-tarians, conservationists, environmentalists, neo-hippies, tree huggers, nature enthusiasts, etc.

Also used to describe establishments where alternative foods and products are sold, i.e. natural food stores.

Modified derivative of granola.

CY: cholov yisroel. Dairy products supervised by an Yid from milking to packing.

pod: local subgroup of an organic co-op.