Shopping Day

First of all, before I start, want to know what my most favorite thing in the WORLD is?? When I write a huge long blog and just before I publish it, the internet unexpectedly closes all windows!! Ahhhhhh I LOVE THAT! @#$%@%@&*%#

So anyway, today was a fun day. Whew! Fun, tiresome, and productive. We worked for it, I tell you. So, obviously, today was our day of shopping, part one. First we hit H&M on 34th street. H&M is a Swedish clothing company that is much-loved by many for its cute stuff and relatively cheap prices. Whenever Stephanie visits, she pays hommage to this place and gets her fix quite sufficiently to hold her over just about until the next trip.

I myself am not the best shopper. In fact, I am basically hammered and rendered useless after an hour. There's nothing I can do; it's beyond my control. But i work hard at it and I'm getting better. Generally, when I shop, I need someone to tell me what i like and/or to pick things out for me and ask me if I like it. If left on my own, I will wander aimlessly until I hide in some corner with the scarves or something. In the beginning, when Steph first came to visit, at the first step inside the store doors, she horrifyingly took off without another word. She was home, and I was forgotten. "S-steph?" i whispered. Gone. But, after she realized (or remembered) how I'm special in that way, she has been good and has stuck close by until she thinks I'm strong enough to go out on my own. And, like I said, I am getting better. I take things off the rack and actually try them on, all on my own. (Ok, I've never had to have someone help me IN the dressing room, but, you know... ok, moving on.)

We did well in H&M. I got some good shirts and winter tops. (pause) I just typed "tips" and that's interesting. Not only did i get some new clothes, but I got some winter tips in H&M. You know, how to stay warm and all that. What doesn't this place do? It almost wouldn't surprise me. We love H&M. Everyone does. You must.

After our damage there we lunched at Speedy's, my favorite deli. Speedy's is great because you can get ANY food you want. Breakfast-y stuff, salads, warm dishes--potatoes, steak, salmon, chicken, etc. You can choose from 6 delicious kinds of soup, or get a hamburger equally tasty, or cold sandwiches, or hot ones. You can get a milkshake or smoothie. Cheesecake, cookies, brownies are available. I love this place! One giant smorgasbord. We usually fill up a plastic container with the most random hodgepodge of food. Salmon, potatoes, steak, a piece of flatbread, and some soup! I want it all. So we refueled and ventured out for phase 2 which took place at Forever 21, another cheap clothing store. This one has a ton of stuff but it's kind of hit or miss. You've got to keep an eagle eye out for the diamond in the rough--the treasure amongst the clutter. But when you do, it's a pretty good find and again, at a good price. Also, as you take the escalator to the second floor, you can see, printed in giant letters on the wall, commonly mispronounced phrases. Here are some of our favorites:

- doggy dog world vs. dog eat dog world (Hopefully i don't need to tell you what it's supposed to be but I'll do it anyway).
- aks vs. ask (so true)
- Laura Noder vs. Law and Order (ha ha. Are you serious?)
- take it for granite vs. take it for granted (ha)

And our favorite: Blessing in the skies vs. Blessing in disguise. ha ha. Sad. And, even sadder, I totally believe that people actually say it.

We both found a couple of good items and left Forever 21. We were pretty beat by this time and decided to venture home carrying our loot. When we got out of the subway at 7th ave in Brooklyn, we walked a few blocks to a boutique to get some lotion Steph got for my mom a few trips ago that she really liked. Lavender lotion. Mmm. By this time we were definitely hammered and stumbled on home. Stephanie had looped her belt through her bags and had about completely lost her pants by the time we got to the apartment.

We unloaded everything and took the ol' red cart to the market and got some food items. We got everything for dinner (tortellini with alfredo sauce and tomatoes) and got home when we realized we'd forgotten the main item for the dinner, the tortellini. Nice. So we hoofed it back, got the pasta, and then we were good. We spent the evening making a nice dinner and relaxing. Sean had a meeting after work so he busted home to eat and then biked (using our landlord's bike, with his permission of course) to the meeting and got home at around 10. It was a pretty good day. I think it was successful as far as getting good things but we're going to need a Part II for sure. Maybe Friday? I need some brown boots and Stephanie wanted to get some... more.. things. I don't remember what. But there are many more H&Ms around town to which we still need to pay our respects. I'll let you know how it goes!