baking is therapeutic!

Just made some psychedelic Alice-In-Wonderland-looking swirly cupcakes with food coloring for a friend's birthday... will post photos! I think it was just what I needed... it feels good to create something and get such immediate gratification and... create something. Just some thoughts!

Gorillaz Olympics Ad

Why is this so kickass and why doesn't America have ads like these. This one is based on the folk tale of the Monkey King, a Chinese tale.

Expected Regret

In reading some hedge fund research papers, I came across the term "expected regret". I feel like it can be applied to real life... as I understand it, expected regret is average underperformance of X compared to some benchmark performance Y. Obviously you want to minimize expected regret. Sounds like game theory of dating or life or something, haha. There's definitely some potential here.

Definition:

Expected Regret

Expected Regret is defined as the average portfolio underperformance comparing to a fixed target or some benchmark portfolio.

There is a close relationship between Expected Regret and Conditional VaR (=expected loss exceeding an alpha-Value-At-Risk, i.e. the mean of the worst (1-alpha)*100% losses in a specified time period).

An actual purchase

Instead of buying a bright pink sundress, it looks like I have channeled my desire for something pink into a different purchase -- a new digital camera, after my mom dropped (&broke) my trusty Canon Powershot SD450 a few weeks ago (see below -- isn't it so cute!).

I originally wanted to get something very similar (used) to mitigate the replacement cost, but I couldn't resist an upgrade. The price differential is about $50 which now I feel rather guilty about (I had instant buyer's remorse right after I clicked the "purchase" button on Amazon) but... I'll use it for the rest of my life, I swear! Pink is timeless!

Canon PowerShot SD1200IS 10 MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.5-inch LCD

Spring Craving

Every once in a while, I get that itch to buy something from Urban... I'll show you what I'm sweatin' right now.

 

And one from Forever:

What I really want, though, is a bright pink sundress. Like, nearly hot pink but more berry. Like my perennial favorite nail polish color. But I haven't found this dress. Gee, shopping is hard.

New $100 Bill!

 

Getty Images

 

When the new $100 is moved, the inkwell changes color from copper to green, and the Liberty Bell appears.

The Treasury Department unveiled what it calls "the next generation one hundred," a redesigned $100 bank note to stay ahead of counterfeiters. The new $100 notes will be available on Feb.10, 2011.

from WSJ

Unicorns + Lipstick

Photo: Courtesy of Lime Crime

 

I love all of these colors! So fun. I really want one... but which one??

$16 at Space.NK (99 Greene St., nr. Spring St.; 212-941-4200)

via The Cut

More funky pants

I love both of these pairs of pants/shoes from UO. While G works on her white pants, I'm looking for a new crazy pair that I can play with. The first pair are Levi's and are only $58, but I need to wait and see. The shoes are really cute, too! The second pair of pants I feel like I could maybe make if I knew how to sew. And if I were willing to fool around with a pair of old jeans. Which at this moment, I don't have time for since I'm supposed to be studying for my Japanese culture midterm right now...damn you, Fujiwara!

White Denim

For some reason I really want a pair of white denim skinny jeans and a pair of white cutoff jean shorts (jorts...). I think I've wanted them for a while but I'm kind of terrified of buying a pair of pure white pants because it'd be like wearing a liability. It's almost like asking to sit on something. But I'm kind of bored of my pants selection now so maybe a pair is in order...

I like the cut of these (but don't love the pocket design - not pictured). White jeans... very Victoria Beckham, it feels like. Or Blake Lively, maybe.

GOLDSIGN 

Misfit Slim Leg Jeans

Style #:GOLDS20109 

$169.00

 Some looser-cut, not-as-short white denim shorts... perfect for pairing with everything.

 

Current/Elliott 

The Boyfriend Shorts 

Style #:CURNT20158 

$147.00

Gah I am wanting to shop. You know that sinking feeling when you're tired of all your clothes? I need to buy professional clothes soon though (which will be nice too, that's its own reward), so maybe it's not prudent to spend on stuff like this, since I'll basically only be able to wear it on weekends... agh real life beckons, and I'm inching forward with one eye covered.

CUPCAKES

image courtesy of NYTimes

I want to bake cupcakes. I love this article about how cupcakes have become popular in Paris; does that somehow legitimize them as being "chic"? Is the cupcake the new petit four?

I think the savory one with the tomatoes looks cool...I wonder what the "cake" part is. A biscuit? Corn muffin? Here's the link to the article.

Shoes--Christian Louboutin

Tale of Heike Quote

"The sound of the Gion Shoja bells echoes the impermanence of all things; the color of the sala flowers reveals the truth that the prosperous must decline. The proud do not endure, they are like a dream on a spring night; the mighty fall at last, they are as dust before the wind."

--Chapter 1, The Tale of Heike

Intellectual Crush

Last night at Pratt, during a lecture from which many members of the media were banned, Vogue's Anna Wintour discussed fashion bloggers and her "intellectual crush" on photographer Irving Penn:

"Irving Penn and I developed our own ritual that involved meeting every so often for lunch, either at Il Cantinori or the Union Square Café. Over lunch, he would talk about how Vogue had become so commercial, how everything had titles over it ... 'Anna, I don't understand how you can do this,' and that was just the first course … I would throw out an idea and he would turn me down. It took me a long time to realize that with Irving, no meant no. Now, I don't take no very easily, but I learned that with Irving, there was no revisiting. But then,
miraculously, we would hit a home run."

 From The Cut via Jezebel

Who do you have an intellectual crush on? ...I'll need to think about this one. 

Pass the People, Please

Pass the People, Please

Check out the blog post in The New Yorker about a typo in a cooking book that says:

"salt and freshly ground black people".

Bad bad bad, Penguin Australia. You guys need some fresh eyes.

Dennis Hopper

One of the most important contributors to American film and photography, Hopper recently was given a star in Hollywood (about time...) and unfortunately is suffering from cancer. The Times' Manohla Dargis narrates a short retrospective of his career here

James Cameron in the Amazon

Cameron visits the Amazon to see the real-life version of "Avatar" take place: tribes fighting modern "progression". See the slideshow here.

Modern Love, NYTimes

This article about a man and Michelle Williams seeing their toddlers interact is adorable. I guess some things never change.
Read it here.

Noblesse Oblige

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus endorses the concept, saying, "From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded." (Luke 12:48)

Recycled Sound

Oh, Disney...

Elly Jackson

Photo: Dave M. Benett/Getty Images, Ivan Gavan/Getty Images, Neil Lupin/Redferns

 
From The Cut:
 

She cites Michael Jackson, Prince, David Bowie, and Tilda Swinton as her style inspirations.

“I don’t want to be a man,” she says. “I very much enjoy being a woman — I love my body, and the sexiness of being a woman — but I like men’s clothes.”

 Oh yes, those influences come through very clearly. Especially Tilda Swinton, they look hella similar.

“I am pretty ready to get rid of the hair, but I am kind of attached to it,” she says. “At the same time, I am kind of fed up with talking about it.”

It's such good hair! But I would be interested in seeing what would be next...

AND: SHE'S ONLY 22!! Ahh, makes me want to be a star too.

Reblogged from The Cut, which reblogged from WWD.

Rainy day

So it's rainy and disgusting outside, so here are some pretty pictures I took when I was in Naples, FL this March.

FM Belfast

Thanks to someone I'll call J, I've been listening to the Icelandic band FM Belfast. Kind of a poppier, happier version of The Knife, FM Belfast uses 80's inspiration for its techno beats and playful lyrics.

Here are my two faves now:





This is for you, J!

Rose Sangria Spritzer

This looks delicious.

* 2 bottles cold rose wine
* 1 green apple, thinly sliced
* 1 orange, halved and thinly sliced
* 1 pint fresh raspberries
* Simple syrup, to taste
* Ice cubes
* Fresh mint leaves, for garnish
* Club soda, cold, optional

Directions

Combine wine, apple, orange, raspberries in a pitcher, add simple syrup, to taste. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day. Serve over ice, garnish with mint and top with a few splashes of club soda, if desired.

Thanks, Bobby Flay.

For Students, a Waiting List Is Scant Hope

The NYT seriously loves writing articles like this. And I, sucker that I am, subsequently love reading them.

GLEE IS BACK

And Sue is Madonna! (Next week's ep features lots of Madonna-ness. I'm very excited.)

Sigourney Weaver...whaaaat?

Ummm....

"Jim didn't have breasts, and I think that was the reason. He should have taken home that Oscar. ... In the past, Avatar would have won because they [Oscar voters] loved to hand out awards to big productions, like Ben-Hur. Today it's fashionable to give the Oscar to a small movie that nobody saw." —Sigourney Weaver

Read more: Vulture - Entertainment News - Movies, TV, Music, Art, Books http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/#ixzz0l4qGZXZt

Girl in Translation

I've never been so excited for a book to come out (April 29, 2010), aside from the Harry Potter series.

Watch Video of author Jean Kwok introducing "Girl in Translation".

A View of the World from 9th Avenue

Click image for larger viewing.

Saul Steinberg, View of the World from 9th Avenue, 1976. Ink, pencil, colored pencil, and watercolor on paper, 28 x 19". Cover drawing for The New Yorker, March 29, 1976.

WSJ: College Grads' Outlook Grim Students Begin the Search Early, Look to 'Plan-B' as Campus Recruitment Falls

"Several years ago the state of Florida could not find enough teachers," Mr. Wallace said, "now we have school districts that are doing massive layoffs."

Meanwhile, business and technical majors are likely to see the most demand, particularly as Wall Street resumes hiring.

A recent survey from 7city Learning, a financial-services training company, found that 76% of Wall Street firms plan to hire more recent graduates than a year ago.

Graduate-school enrollment rose 6% last year and will likely continue to rise this year.

You hardly need to read the article.

Barbie!

Barbie is a computer engineer now? And an anchorwoman? Who knew.

Handbags for S/S 10

Oi these choices are spot on. Must. not. get. back. into. handbags.

Peeps! Just in time for right after Easter.

Happy Easter!!

Peeps: So many things you can do with them! Serious eats indeed.

Peepshi

[Photograph: Robyn Lee]

Peeps Krispie Treats 

In the making (accompanied by possibly my favorite caption ever):

Before: Peeps "My Peepbutt is so toasty! Peeps Sauna to the max." 
After: Peeps "gloob bloop." 

[Photographs: Grace Kang]

Completed:

[Photograph: Robyn Lee]

The colors are so vibrant and pretty... I even like just how they look on the page. This looks like it'd be really fun to do with kids :))

"I'm sorry"

From WSJ article "Prince Shows Shame, Rubin Defiance: Former Citigroup Officials Say They, and Regulators, Didn't See Risks; 'I'm Sorry' Three Times", reporting on the "three-hour grilling by a congressional panel scrutinizing the financial crisis":

Mr. Prince departed from his prepared testimony by saying "I'm sorry" three times that the crisis had such a "devastating" impact on the economy, millions of Americans "lost their homes," and "our management team, starting with me," didn't foresee the "unprecedented market collapse."

It's sad, the whole thing, and Mr. Prince recognizes it. This is a good passage. The next one is not as feel-good, but similarly revealing:

Still, Bill Thomas, a Republican former congressman from California who is vice chairman of the panel, which must produce a report on its findings by Dec. 15, compared the former CEO to "a lemming" because of his reluctance to rein in risk-taking as late as mid-2007.

The comment came after Mr. Prince tried to explain his infamous declaration in mid-2007 that "as long as the music is playing, you've got to get up and dance. We're still dancing." Mr. Prince was referring to the dangers of leveraged lending for private-equity buyouts, but Mr. Thomas responded: "You weren't going to be the lemming that stopped and said: 'I don't want to keep walking."'

It's a look into the (difficult?) sentiment of the times. Are financial institutions better today then they were in mid-2007?

P.S. I learned how to make blockquotes again!

Vimeo

Just made an account tonight and am excited to start shooting little things and posting them up there! Much higher quality than YouTube. Lots of great animations on the site that use After Effects. Like this one!

Trichrome Blue from Lois van Baarle on Vimeo.

thanks to someone i'll call "latka" for showing this to me!

If you like Whitney...

...you'll like this boy even more. I do, at least. There's a lot less Bobby Brown and more chubby cuteness.

nowness?

www.nowness.com, formerly eluxury.com, is another one of those art/lifestyle blogs (that comment is only a little bit tongue-in-cheek), except it's owned by LVMH. Do you care if it's owned by a corporation trying to sell you (expensive) stuff? Does that matter to you?

The Notorious XX

I've been going through a Biggie phase lately, and this makes me very happy. Some mashups are just genius, and this combo is one of them. Download/enjoy the XX/Biggie album here.

McQueen in the Times

This is the only article I've liked so far.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/04/fashion/04mcqueen.html?ref=style

WANT: Alexis Bittar Jewelry

So pretty. All available at Saks.

Ralph Lauren Dresses

Here are my fantasy lifestyle dresses for spring/summer from RL:

For a lawn party...

For a tea party...

For when I play tennis...

For when I go shopping/do lunch in town...


Ahhhhhh.

97%

This lady saves 97% on her groceries!

Does anyone clip coupons anymore? I've never seen anyone use a clipped coupon in a store in the past 5 years or so.

Money + Websites = Tools

The 20 best money Web sites by CNN Money

I just bought my plane ticket from JFK to Hong Kong using Kayak.com, one of the 20 websites recommended (I knew about it before though, from reading lots of travel mags... travel porn).