A Quick Note on Breathing

It seems like everyone’s trying to speed up.  Do more faster for longer.  Sounds tiring.  I’m trying to do the opposite.  Slow down.  Do less things at once.  I find that there’s a paradox in doing so; results are faster and better.  Essentially, it’s just focusing on whatever you’re doing.  When you do that, you have less energy to focus on other stuff.  And the more you do it, the easier it gets, the better you get at whatever you're focusing on.

The first step in slowing down, is noticing when your’e speeding up.  When I notice that I’m rushing, or thinking too far ahead, I stop and just focus on breathing.  I find there’s a direct correlation between the cadence of my breath and my experience of time.  Sometimes I’ll notice I’m not fully exhaling.  I think that would associate with not letting go, which I can, at times, relate to my own thought patterns.  Makes sense to me.  When I notice I'm rushing, I find I'm not taking diaphragmatic breaths.  They're short and fast instead of long and low.  Taking a slow, deep inhale and relaxing my shoulders can do wonders.  Unless I'm overly caffeinated, deep breaths are like Jackson's Honest Heirloom Purple Potato Chips.  You can't eat just one.  It’s like slowing down buys you time.

I know it sounds counterproductive, but just try it.  When you’re rushing and panicking and breathing poorly minutes before a deadline.  Just drop whatever you’re doing, take a few breaths and focus on what’s right in front of you.  Easy to talk about, right?

Sean Connery in a Baby Blue Romper

I never met anyone that didn’t like James Bond.  Then again, I don’t know any feminists either.  Anyway, 007 is a class act.  He’s always calm, knows everything works out; he’s totally chill.  And because of that, he always looks good.  Which brings me to the point of this article.  Sean Connery in a baby blue terrycloth romper.  In Goldfinger, we find James Bond, posted up pool side in such a thing.  I want one.

It just makes sense!  It’ll dry you off and add a layer of protection when you’re at the pool or ocean.  Considering there’s so much product placement in the James Bond franchise, I assumed it would be noted somewhere the make.  But it’s not!  After some searching though, I found a “costume” version on etsy.  $89, not bad either!

The Optimus of Desk Sets

I don’t know about you, but I like working from home.  I can totally do my own thing.  Lounge, play music, not waste time traveling.  Some of my friends enjoy going out to different cafes or libraries to get work done.  That’s cool too, and can be fun.  But on the whole, there’s nothing like a home office.

In doing my regular browser-window shopping, I came across this cool desk set.  They call it Equilibre and it's by Hermes.  You'll see the theme in the magnifying glass.  That's what really caught my eye initially.  But if I had to settle for just one piece, I'd go for the desk pad.  It’s a little bit pricey, but I think it looks great and could definitely be a generational piece, as could be the whole set.  Ok, it’s extremely expensive.  But it’s stylish.  Very nice looking and not over the top.  It's definitely timeless.

I like that you can sort of close it.  It's a nice way to hide a mess quickly or create some privacy.

If they're going to offer a matching vase, why not?  Another excuse to keep flowers around.  I love that magazine rack.  I have the perfect place for it.  I think it would really clean up the papers on my desk.  The trash can looks a little retro to me.  I think that design would also make a nice lamp.  

Boxes are interesting.  They're another way to keep the desk clean.  I also threw in the paperweight because in the spring/summer/fall I use my fan a lot.  I prefer it to air conditioning.

So you can see how cool this would be on my desk.  But brace yourself.  I'm going to break it down for you.  While I do admire this very much, I cannot understand why it's so expensive.  

Magnifying Glass $1975

Desk Pad $6900

Magazine Rack $23400

Vase $3825

Waste Basket $8200

Box $2350

Paperweight $5850

Total: $52,500.00

Why?  Is someone trying to launder money or something?

Sweet Potato Hash Browns

I love browned vegetables.  A few weeks ago, I did a spaghetti squash hash.  I had the same problem this time.  It didn't brown that much!  But I am getting better.  And I learned a few things in doing this recipe.

As I've said before, I love the shredded hash browns like Waffle House or ihop.  I was all gung-ho to do this, and then thought that shredding the sweet potato is going to be a bitch.  I quickly googled and found 2 good options, so I tried them both.  Two potatoes, two ways.  The first way, was using a Microplane.  Microplane is a branded grater.  It worked so well, that I used it for "mincing" and "dicing" the garlic and onions.  

The second way was to chop the sweet potato into smaller pieces, and then pulse it in the Cuisinart.  It worked, but was more riced than shredded.

2 shredded sweet potatoes

1/4 cup sprouted spelt flour

1 egg

1 diced onion

4 cloves minced garlic

4 tbsp ghee

big pinch of sea salt

black pepper

Shred the potatoes however you want.  Rinse them until the water is clear, and then squeeze out all the water. 

Combine all the vegetables, spices, half the ghee and flour.

Beat and mix in the egg.

Fry in the rest of the ghee on high medium high heat.  I didn't do so well at this part. I wanted it browner and crispier.  But it was still very good.  I also tried to make 1/4 cup serving cakes.  They didn't stay together, if you hadn't noticed.

Steve Martin - King Tut

Does this count as Ancient Knowledge? It is from 1979.

Disneyland - Mars and Beyond, 1957

Here's the third part in the Disneyland series I mentioned here.

25 Years of Disco

We're a little past that now, but I thought this video was great.  Another perfect example of Land Rover's amazing ability to relate to and build a relationship with their customers.  Interesting that it's made by Tavistock Productions.

Chocolatree: A Review

As I've said in a previous post, this was my first trip to Sedona.  And it was pretty cool.  Sima and I had been at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, scoping out the scene.  We knew we had to be in Las Vegas for Super Bowl Sunday (LOL), so we thought we'd make an overnight stop in Sedona.

On Friday night we bought moonshine and herbs out of the back of a truck by the train tracks.  Then we went to a guided meditation led by Dr. Dream at the Center.  At like 11:30pm, we ended up at Gem and Jam, which was a music festival I guess.

Long story short, we pulled an all-nighter and left for Sedona at 4:00 in the morning.  By the time we got there, we were both tired and hungry.

We checked into our Bed and Breakfast, the Cozy Cactus, which I highly recommend, freshened up and hit the town.

I insisted we eat first.  Sima took me to Chocolatree and I could not have been happier.  We ordered so much food and it was all so so good.  I wish I wrote this review sooner to my indulging.

We each got a golden latte, which was great.  It was one of the best I've had outside of the house.

Pictured here is our meal.  From the left, goat cheese quiche with an almond-pulp crust, vegan chili, aloo gobi, mashed potatoes, some kind of grain-free wrapper and and a fermented cream.  I don't remember the details.  Those were part of Sima's order.

I got a bunch of chocolates to go, but ate them all before I took photographs!  They were so good.  The Raspberry and Bee Pollen truffles were my favorites.  I wish I got more.  Sima had a bunch of the Raspberry ones, but she wouldn't share!

This restaurant was amazing.  The entire experience was hugely positive.  Oh and how could I forget, the whole place is SPRING WATER FED!  I even filled up my bottle before we left.  They have spigots outside for the public.  The quality of the food was phenomenal.  There's definitely an awareness around food that you won't find anywhere else.  I can't wait to go back and order everything else on the menu.

On Headphones

While I wouldn’t call myself an audiophile, I do like a good sound system.  I love listening to music, and I want to hear it just as it was created. Comfortably, with a good range and clarity.  Something that doesn’t muddle when you turn it up.  There are probably technical terms that I’m missing.

My first set of headphones that weren’t provided by apple, were the Bang and Olufsen Earphones in middle school.  That’s just what they’re called.  Earphones.  And this was like the first step in a Rube Goldberg.  Then my dad got a pair.  Then he got my mom a pair.  Then my mom got my aunt a pair.  Then one year for Christmas we got my uncle a pair.

In the meantime, mine broke twice, and Bang and Olufsen replaced them for free both times!  The second time, I went to the Greenwich store and they only had orange, which I was more than happy with.  Eventually those broke too.  In all of them, the left earphone stopped working!  I keep their newest version, the i3 in my backpack for emergencies and unexpected long phone calls.

Anyway, for the size, they sounds impeccable and aren't terribly uncomfortable for sticking inside your head.  Which I don’t think that’s a good idea.  Sticking headphones in your ear like that.  I don’t think it’s good electrically or acoustically.  There should be distance between where the sound originates and your ear.  I also think it’s not a good idea to have a wire going form your phone into your head.  Air tube headsets are shown to reduce EMF exposure from wired headphones by 98%, but they sound so shitty!

So here’s what I’m on now.  They sound even better than the Earphones, they are more comfortable and put distance between the speaker and your ears.  I’m talking about the Beoplay H6.  They’re over the ear, not bluetooth, not noise cancelling.  Bluetooth is handy and all, but I don’t need it on my head.  Noise cancelling headphones work by generating a frequency that cancels out the ambient noise.  I have a few problems with that.  It’s still something electronic on your head, and it’s just creating more noise.  These headphones block out enough noise on their own.

The H6, in my opinion are the perfect headphones.  You won’t find anything more comfortable.

Fashion Murder on the Orient Express

So like, trains are pretty cool, right?  I used to know a lot more about trains, but it’s not something I’ve really focused on since I had a set-up in my basement.  All of my trains were replicas of real life historical trains, like……

Trains are a classic way to travel.  The first locomotive ran in 1804!  But the Orient Express is what really turned travel by train into a luxury.  The first train ran from Paris to Istanbul in 1883.  Over the years, it had varying routes and was discontinued in 2009.  There are, however, Orient Express inspired trains and routes currently running today.  There’s a reason everyone’s heard of The Orient Express and why it’s featured in so many movies and novels.  It’s an icon!

And my grandparents got to take a ride on it!  In the late 60s, they took the Direct Orient Express from Paris to Istanbul.  And I’m pretty sure the luggage I have from them went with them too.

I wish I had pictures!  I don’t recall seeing too many, and not any at all recently.  But hearing the stories was good enough.  Although, I do have more than just the stories my grandparents used to tell.  I have a lamp and overalls!

The lamp isn’t a big deal.  They bought it as a souvenir.  You can still buy them.  I mean don’t get me wrong it’s a really cool lamp and still has a story.  But the overalls are a little more unique.  My grandmother bought them off of an engineer!  She managed to talk him into selling two pairs. She gave my mom a pair, and my aunt a pair.  I have my mom’s.  I’ve searched for anything similar, but have come up dry.  

These haven’t gotten that much use.  For a while, they were too big.  I wore them to the Gunnery once, and was told they were out of dress code.  How anyone knew I was wearing overalls is beyond me.  I covered the straps up with a sweater!

So maybe we can bring overalls back into style!  I'm afraid not too many people will get behind it.  You know what they say, overalls are the oldest form of contraceptive.  And it might be tough as we head into spring and summer.  But at least now I’m ready for next year.

Almond Butter Cookies

The other night I got a craving for something sweet, it was late and I wasn't going anywhere.  I'd already eaten a bunch of chocolate bars.  I wanted either ice cream or pastry.  So I looked around and figured I could whip together some almond butter cookies.  They were not bad!  In fact, they were good.  Here are the details.

So I used sugar, sue me.

You'll need:

1 cup almond butter

1 tbsp almond flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup chocolate chips

1 egg

1 tbsp ghee

1/2 cap of vanilla extract

big pinch of sea salt (or smaller if almond butter is salted)

You’ll need to:

preheat the oven to 350F

combine butter, flour, ghee vanilla and salt.  

cream the sugar and egg.  

combine.  

fold in chocolate chips

I made 4 large cookies, but it would probably make sense to make more, smaller

bake for 13 minutes.

The edges were slightly burnt, but just the edges, as pictured.  The bottoms were fine.  My error was having the rack too low in the oven.  I also actually had them at 375F for 11 minutes.  But I think 350F at 13 minutes would be better.

Tucson Gem Show-Better Late Than Never!

The Tucson Gem show was in February, and I'm just getting around to posting about it.  There were so many photos, I just kept putting off editing them!

The Tucson Gem and Mineral show is an annual pop up market place in Tucson.  From what I could tell, it takes over the entire city and lasts for several weeks.  I had no idea what to expect.  But it was very cool.  The convention center was set up with an official show with tickets required for entry.  The majority of the vendors took over local hotels.  These hotels became shopping malls.  And I met a new friend, Sunshine.

This guy hand makes each knife at his shop.  He was a pretty chill dude.  I think he was carrying.  (he was)

I got the impression it was mostly for retailers.  Everything was cheap and vendors were constantly asking for Tax ID numbers.  But there were all different sorts of vendors from all over the world.  Some vendors had little dyed carved chachkis.  Others had meteorites, and diamonds. It was a great mix of gem dealers/traders and jewelry makers, with more spiritually and energetically sensitive people.  

I don't worry, but when I do, it's about food.  I brought so much to the Gem Show.  We drove down from LA.  But there was this amazing food stand that supplied me with too much jun, and amazing brownies and empanadas.  Nice Food really came to the rescue.  The girl in the picture's name is Natafreak, like Natalie.  I think.  She was like "you gotta try the kava, it'll make your mouth go numb." So we tried the kava.

These were some high end pieces.  Guys come up from Brazil for this show.

The moon rock in my hand was found in Morocco, the larger one on the plate is from Mali.

I thought that would be a cool tile.  And see all that pyrite?  It was half off listed prices.  I bought the smaller of the spine/skull handles.  Gave it to my mom for her birthday.  I hope she uses it.  If not, I'm going to take it back.  That selenite looking bottle on the bottom is hand blown glass made in Massachusetts!

Blind Melon - Three is a Magic Number (Schoolhouse Rock!)

Not to pick favorites or anything.

Some CT Home Photos

I'm a huge fan of New England.  When I go to California, they don't get it.  "Why don't you live here, it's so cold on the east coast," but most of the people that say that have spent limited time in these parts.  Last time I was home in Connecticut, I went for a drive to Lake Waramaug and back home, taking photos.  Here they are!

Rockets, as easy as One, Two, Drei.

In the 1950s, Walt Disney wanted to build Disneyland.  His brother and business partner Roy, wasn’t into the idea.  From what I gather, Disney approached ABC for money.  In exchange for funding for Disneyland, Walt Disney created a weekly show to air on ABC.  He called it Disneyland.

von Braun, Ley, Disney and Haber

I came across this one called Mars and Beyond.  It was super cool.  I actually scheduled it to be posted.  But I did some digging and found out it was actually the 3rd episode of a three part series!

Presented here is the first episode in 1955, “Man in Space.” I started watching this, and I first thought, you couldn’t make this today.  And then it got better.  All of a sudden, they bring out Willy Ley, a german rocket scientist.  I’m thinking ok, 1955, and I’m listening to an older German rocket scientist.  This dude must’ve been paperclipped.  Turns out he wasn’t!  At least, as far as I can tell.  Looks like he moved to England earlier and then the US. 

1959 Randolph Air Force Base, Texas- Dr. Fritz Haber, Konard Buettner, Strughold, and Dr. Heinz Haber

The next scientist they bring on screen is Dr. Heinz Haber.  He’s a physicist, but his expertise for this show is Space Medicine.  Space Medicine was a term coined by another Paperclip scientist Hubertus Strughold.  Dr. Heinz Haber served in the Luftwaffe and later at Dachau.  It’s rumored that Dr. Heinz Haber was the inspiration for the Disney character, Ludwig von Drake.

Then for the finale, they ask Dr. Wernher Von Braun to show us how rockets really work.  You can’t make this stuff up!  At the time, he probably was one of the most knowledgable people on the subject.  But you don’t think of “learning” with Nazis on Disney.  I can’t help but think this is a slightly propagandist, as they seriously push nuclear energy throughout the series.

Disney and von Braun

I think this video is totally worth a watch.  It's slightly less than an hour.  And it is pretty informative.  It really gives you a simple break down of how rockets work.  I think most people probably don't know.  Good luck not getting a Tai Lopez ad.

Love from Land Rover

“This is a remarkable story. Adventure is a core part of the Land Rover brand, so the opportunity to breathe new life into a Series I Land Rover to help these four spirited friends to keep exploring was something that we couldn’t turn down.”

— Land Rover

I just heard about this story, and it's heartwarming.  Land Rover came across a decrepit l series 1 for sale, and they bought it, restored it, and gave it back to the owners.  I've never heard of any company doing anything like that.  And on top of that, it wasn't a big deal.  It wasn't done for the publicity.  It was done because those at Land Rover really understand the brand and their values.  I first came across this youtube video, which led me to the Land Rover site.  Read more here.  And it's from 2015!  So Range Rover Reborn isn't really a new thing, I guess.

Mesa Verde: A Review

During my last trip to Los Angeles, my friend Sima (founder House of Citrine) and I drove to Santa Barbara!  The original plan was to go to the Raw Food World’s warehouse in Ojai for some deals and go to this restaurant Sima had been raving about.  Well, I called the Raw Food World several times, no one answered.  We stopped for a quick charge in Burbank, at which point I looked up the restaurant we were heading to.  They were closed!

So we thought, “fuck it, let’s go to Santa Barbara.”  There was no question.  We were going to lunch at Mesa Verde.  I don’t know the details, but I know my friend Chef Greg Arnold is involved.  If I were to guess, he develops the recipes and menu and plating.  It all looks and tastes like his style.  And I know he used to work in the kitchen there.  But I didn’t meet him really until after that.  Greg, if you’re reading this, break it down for us in the comments.

I ordered: 

Polenta Fries.  Caramelized Onion.  Smoked Summer Squash.  Black Olive.  Basil.  Piquillo.  Tomato.  White Bean.  Herbs.

And it was amazing.  The fries were crunchy, the beans were soft.  There was a great variety of textures and flavors in this dish.  There was nothing I’d add or takeaway.  I ate it with my hands.  I also got this beer pictured.  It was good, but pretty sweet.  I would definitely call it a dessert beer.

The experience outside of the food was great too.  The restaurant was quiet, our waiter couldn't have been nicer.  We weren't waiting there for hours.  Dessert looked so good but were were stuffed!  I should note that Mesa Verde is vegan.  But don't let that scare you away!  It's worth it.

Sima got the Patatas Bravas Tacos.  I think she made some kind of modification.  I don’t remember what it was.  I’m guessing something related to grain-free, so maybe the shell?  I should ask.  Sima, if you read this and I haven’t corrected it, comment!

All in all, it was a great experience, as usual.  It's the only restaurant I can really recommend in Santa Barbara!  Except AH Juice, but it's a different atmosphere.  It's Nitsa's dad, Alfred's cafe!  I got to meet him briefly, which was great.  I don't have enough info or pictures for a full review on his cafe.  We got there as they were closing up.  I did get a turmeric drink that was ah-mazing.  Also had a chocolate made from juice pulp that was way better than it sounds. And a peanut butter chocolate bar.  Also very good.  I'd have gotten more, but it was the end of the day and they ran out!

Ok, now I can say all in all and mean it.  If you're going to Santa Barbara, check these two places out.

2 Minutes Will Save You Thousands on Your Wardrobe

Today, I’m sharing with you something that I just heard about from youtuber Drew Scott.  That’s a link to his video, from where I heard about this.  And it could potentially save you thousands of dollars.  It’s called, Shoptagr.  It’s a free service that notifies you when items you’ve tagged, go on sale.  I think it also notifies you when items come back in stock, or low stock.  But I haven’t gotten that far yet.  It only works with specific stores, but don’t worry it is a pretty extensive list.  The only ones that I noticed were missing were Mr. Porter and Neiman Marcus/Bergdorf Goodman.  But it works on Barneys, Saint Laurent, Shopbop et al.

It's the one in the middle.

The way it works is, you create an account.  You’ll be given a link to download the app for safari or whatever you’re using.  It’s just a plug in that shows up on the toolbar.  Now that you’ve got the plug in, you want to know where you can use it.  Look through Shoptagr’s list of cooperative vendors, and pick your favorites.  When you’ve found something you’re interested in, but not at full price, click the button on the toolbar.  Do this when you're on the page of the item you want.  You select the color, if there are any variations, the size, and what you want to be notified for.  You can also create lists.  I did, but I don’t think it’s required.

In his video, Drew mentioned the online store Ssense.  I’d never heard of it, but it seems pretty cool.  And according to him, they have good sales.  Says he got a pair of Saint Laurent Chelsea boots for 60% off!

Here are some things that I’ve saved!

JingSlinger Inspired Hash Browns

This was more of an attempt at a recipe than a recipe.  I blame myself, not the instructions.  The hash browns were still great and I ate them and wished I had more of them, but they were not optimal.  For a first attempt, I’ll take it.

The original recipe is from the cook book Food with Benefits by Joy Coelho and Jay Denman.  I switched a few things up.  As far as the book goes, it’s amazing.  I’ve made several things, mostly desserts, and they’ve all been great.  I might have posted a recipe or two before.  If anything, their frosting.  I've made it several times.  2 words:  Ghee+Honey.  Among other things.

As I’ve said before, it’s nice when things are easy.  I love hash browns; the shredded kind like from ihop.  But I find the shredding part can be annoying, so when I saw this recipe a bell went off in my head.  No shredding.  The squash shreds itself.  And I think it has a better nutrient profile than a white potato.

What went wrong for me, was the lack of crunchiness.  But again, I think that’s my own fault.  I think maybe I didn’t have the heat turned up high enough, but I don’t want to have carcinogen hash browns.  The picture looks amazing, so I know it’s possible.

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 spaghetti squash, scooped

1 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

2 Tbsp ghee

black pepper

sea salt

Bragg’s Sea Kelp Seasoning

What you’ll need to do:

Preheat oven to 350F

Cut the squash in half, scoop out seeds.  Save them, or don’t.  Season a little.

Bake face down for 35-40 minutes

Heat frying pan with ghee, add onions and garlic and more spices

Scoop out the shreds into the frying pan

I tried to organize like little latkes, but I’m not sure if it worked.  I fried for a little, rotated and rotated and rotated and finally ate.  There were crispy spots, kind of.  

Pergola Home

I came home to see my parents this weekend and, as per usual, went for a drive.  I love driving around here.  The roads are long and windy and the scenery is great.  It's like driving down memory lane.  Today I headed towards Washington, and stopped into see my former employers David and Peter at Pergola Home!

Dark Tibetan Quartz and Hematite Treasure Box by Nate Ricketts

There's nothing like Pergola.  Nestled on East Shore Rd in New Preston, Pergola is a unique intermingling of refinement and nature.  They have a beautiful and carefully crafted assortment of goods from books, to gardening supplies, to artwork and furniture.  Peter and David have great taste and travel the world finding the coolest pieces, shipping them back to the shop.  

When I worked there, the space was small but filled with the most interesting things.  Now it's the same, but bigger.  So they can fit even more cool stuff.  Here is a sampling of what they have to offer.  This isn't even the tip of the iceberg!

Banded Onyx Bowl

If you find yourself in the area, Pergola is definitely worth checking out.  And if you're not, at least check out their website!

Embroidered Feathers, forgot the maker.

Kikumon Seki, Chrysanthemum Patter Stones

Ben Wolff Pottery