Adventures in Online Dating

Posted in Living Life by
open-for-beautiful

… and now open to online dating

Why not, right? That’s what I’m telling myself at least. It all started off as a great girls’ night. And, after a glass (or two) of wine perfectly paired with the latest episode of “The Bachelor,” it was hard not to long for a fairytale dream date — complete with glass slippers and teardrop diamond earrings (OK, maybe this week’s episode was a little heavy on the Cinderella product placement.). Following the reality-TV version of romance (excited for next week to bring on the drama and an ambulance!), my friend started telling us about her real-life new beau. How’d they meet? On Match.com, of course. Is he sweet and romantic? Of course he is. Should I give it a try? … I think you know how this night ended. Continue reading →

Mindy, Let’s Hang Out: IEHOWM Book Review

Posted in Book Reviews by

Mindy Kaling IEHOWMA book about funny life stories, references to Harry Potter, and a love for fashion? Sign me up! I was ecstatic to get the chance to read Mindy Kaling‘s book Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? for several reasons. And, just in case her sense of humor wasn’t enough, she basically sold it in the beginning by saying, “This book will take you two days to read. Did you even see the cover? It’s mostly pink.” She was right, by the way. I read the book mostly on the plane ride up to NYC last weekend, and I finished it the night I got home. I started out knowing that I would find several moments in the book that would make me feel like, “This Mindy! She totally gets it (and me)!” I started tagging pages that I felt would be nice to share. Like Mindy, I, too, enjoy making lists. So, here are some of my favorite parts from IEHOWM (in order of how they appear in the book because I can’t decide on which ones I like the most): Continue reading →

Finer Food Society: Restaurant Orsay

Posted in Foodie by

It has been a while since our last meeting at The Melting Pot, but the Finer Food Society has since had an appetite for some French cuisine. Our most recent adventure: Restaurant Orsay. It’s a small restaurant in Jacksonville that packs a lot of hard-to-find tastes, such as escargot, steak tartare, and foie gras. While I don’t think I’ll ever bring myself to try foie gras, I was up for escargot — because nothing says “finer food” quite like a slug.

Cheers!
compliments of the chef
(s)Nailed it!

Continue reading →

Now, I Need a Vacation: The Vacationers Book Review

Posted in Book Reviews by

the vacationersIt has been about a week or so since I finished reading the Birchbox Book Club’s first novel: The Vacationers. The book happened to show up on my doorstop the same time my monthly goodie box arrived, with a vacation theme, nonetheless. (Are you trying to tell me something, Birchbox?)

Recently, my reading list has included the latest book-to-movie stories. I’m late to the Harry Potter book trend, I suppose, but I just started The Half-Blood Prince, so I’m so close to the end! Just before reading The Vacationers, I read Catching Fire — and plan to read Mockingjay before the movie is released. So, this is the first time in a long time that I’ve been introduced (and had the chance) to read a “not-a-movie” book. (Maybe I should say “not-a-movie-YET” because I can see the potential.) Continue reading →