What I Bought (and Received)

Last week marked my 23rd year of life, and I celebrated in San Diego, Chicago, and NYC.  Literally all three cities in one week.  As a continuation of our series promoting consumerism, the following are things that I bought and received recently.

1. BOUGHT.  I admittedly walked out of the store thinking I had just purchased an owl teapot.  Then I looked at the receipt.  A penguin.  Oops.  Mama Gentoo Teapot from Anthropologie, $14.95 (matching mugs also available).

2. BOUGHT.  If you have an inkling of interest in Jazz, and miraculously find yourself in Chicago, go to the Jazz Record Mart.  It is a wondrous place with endless aisles of jazz, blues, r&b, and gospel CDs and records.  The website claims it is the world’s largest jazz and blues records store!  Sergio Mendes and Brasil ’66 Four Sider is a great compilation of covers with an enthralling Bossa Nova/Brasilian twist.  Sergio Mendes and Brasil ’66 Four Sider CD from Jazz Record Mart, $12.99 (I bought it on vinyl; you might have to sleuth for a vinyl edition).

3. BOUGHT (the postcard version!).  I decided to go on a last minute trip to NYC 11am last Friday.  I departed at 8:50PM.  Besides visiting friends, I WANTED TO GO SEE THE TIM BURTON EXHIBIT at the MOMA.  Really badly.  A month or so ago, I saw a snippet about it in a New Yorker, which led to a decision to visit NYC prior to April 26, 2010 (THE DAY THE EXHIBIT CLOSES).  My friend and I woke up early (to stop by Babycakes before the MOMA opened Saturday morning, of course), and floated around until our assigned Tim Burton exhibit time.  Worth the wait, the exhibit is the best special exhibit I have ever seen at any museum.  The exhibit is an extraordinary chronicle of Burton’s creative prowess.  I wanted prints of his number series, but couldn’t find them at the store (I might have to order them later).  Instead, I got a postcard of Burton’s “Romeo and Juliet,” which now resides in a frame on my wall.  “Romeo and Juliet” postcard from the MOMA store, $2.00.

4. RECEIVED.  Curiosity convinced my friend and I to investigate The Camp Site and The Lab in Costa Mesa, CA.  We honestly spent more time driving to/from Costa Mesa, than the time we spent walking around this pocket of Costa Mesa.  Although a slight disappointment (the architecture is stellar), I noticed a book that looked like the cover of Vegan Cupcakes Takeover the World, except instead of a cupcake, the book featured a COOKIE.  Turns out, the author of my favorite vegan cupcake book had just released a cookie book.  Cosmically, my sister gave me the cookie book as one of my birthday presents.  I flipped through most of the book on my return trip to Chicago, using torn up pieces of American Airlines napkin to mark cookies that I want to make.  Excitement.  Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar: 100 Dairy-Free Recipes For Everyone’s Favorite Treats, $12.21.

5. BOUGHT/RECEIVED.  When I asked my friend Tiffany, Assistant Designer to Tracy Reese, what piece she would consider her masterpiece (I think I actually integrated the phrase “blood-stained” in my question, not that this is essential clarification), she responded “Midnight Garden.”  Bought by Anthropologie (and renamed “Bubbled Meadowlands”), the glorious dress has a perfect bubbled bottom (sometimes bubbled edges are depressingly limp and frumpy).  The most stunning aspect, however, is the brilliant print.

There are amazing layers of teal, black, and magenta.  It’s difficult to notice in the above picture, but there is also a translucent layer of flowers and leaves.  Bubbled Meadowlands Dress from Anthropologie, $190.

6. BOUGHT.  While in NYC, I attended the Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival, which I heard about from Minty Lewis’ website.  I picked up a collection of stories by James McShane, an unfamiliar cartoonist from Rhode Island.  It’s wonderful, and I’m grateful to have a platform to express my love for this new acquisition.  I have a limited attention span, and I enjoy being bombarded with different images.  Perhaps my preferences condition me to be the perfect audience for Japanese seizure cartoons.  One of my favorite stories, “Carmine and Darnell and the Sleepy Creatures, has 40 tiny scenes per page!  Besides the prolific detail (err…quantitative affection?),  McShane’s stories are whimsical, but with sprinkles of eccentric.  A perfect combination.  You can download or purchase the collection here.

7. RECEIVED.  I needed a new wallet, and my friend Angelica surprised me with this Poketo gem.  Designed by Silvia Portella of Bukubuku (off the cute scale), this wallet never fails to make me chuckle when I pull it out of my bag.  I think my favorite cast member of the wallet is the red glasses-wearing bear drinking coffee.  I’d want to be his friend, and I’d want to avoid the saber toothed ice cream cone (good grief).

If you have ever wondered about how functional a Poketo wallet is, or what Tricia’s wallet looks like, below is a REAL TIME PICTURE OF MY VERY OWN WALLET.  The bearing my soul!

Note: The image of “Romeo and Juliet” by Tim Burton is from this Guardian article.

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