DANCING TREE

It's that time of year where we go out to the tree farm and choose our Christmas tree. Although my family is sadly not getting one this year because we'll be away for the holiday, I was able to tag along Justin's family trip to Stimpson's Tree Farm in Pittsgrove, NJ. While they went on a hunt to find the perfect tree, boyfriend and I just went up to our usual shenanigans.

ANNUAL YOGA POSE ON STUMP, 2015

Look at that awful extension. Skinny Jeans do not lend well to Natarajasana aka Dancer's Pose. Oh well practice is always perfect. This is the second year that we went looking for a tree on Friendship Road, and the second year of doing this. Last year featured my personal go-to "Yogi In The Wild" pose: Vriksasana. I thought it was funny. Tree pose on a tree stump. It's funny because it's redundant.

In other news. See that hat? I made that hat. I will be selling said hat...among other things. This Friday, in Philly, at Punk Rock Flea Market. Here is the link for info. Support Local Makers ❤

XXVI

Birthdays. They come and go. Another alter moment of another year passed. Usually this is a time of reflection; of where you've been, how you got here, and where you plan to be in the coming year. So here I am, getting deep in a coffee shop over a glass of La Colombe's New Fashioned.

TO LIVE IS THE RAREST THING IN THE WORLD.
MOST PEOPLE EXIST, THAT IS ALL.

- OSCAR WILDE -

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This quote by Oscar Wilde has been weighing on my heart these past few days, so let this be my anthem for the coming year. I swear to not coast through my day to day. Instead, ever action and decision I choose will be a conscious and purposeful one to not only live, but to be fully alive. From something as extensive as a big change of scenery in the coming year. To other aspects that are so simple like paring down my physical "stuff" that is weighing me down and creating a more curated wardrobe filled with pieces that either tell a story or are responsibly made (of course I will be sharing my trials and tribulations that come with that with you).

The coming year is going to be good, I can feel it in my bones.

SHAKE THE DUST

If you know me, there's always been a place for poetry in my heart, and a whole dedicated section on my bookshelf. Where the classics of Frost and Ginsberg are always a go to, the spoken word of the likes of Bradley Hathaway, Sarah Kay, and Andrew Gibson are the ones I can recite at will. Today is National Poetry Day to our friends across the pond. And in honor of that, I'd like to share a word that forces me to shake, rattle, and roll. It's a personal favorite by Anis Mojgani, although he has so many other good poems out there, it's hard to choose. This is Shake the Dust.

SILK CITY

Well first camping trip was kind of a success. But more on that later. Today we're talking DINERS. And no, not Guy Fieri's Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (although a guilty pleasure). We're talking legit old school diners. Maybe it's the New Jersey birthright in me, but I love myself a good diner.

This past weekend, my friends and I were rained out of having the deluxe camp breakfast we were planned to have. So instead, we went scavenging for food in the middle of the north woods of Pennsylvania. Somewhere between the foggy haze of Galeton and Coudersport, along Route 6, we came across Fezz's Diner.

Now this silver bullet plopped in the middle of nowhere Pennsylvania was our saving grace late Saturday morning. With a grumbling in hollow stomachs, we order a round of coffees; girls black, boys cream and sugar. The standard place mats read off the local businesses and a little story about how our shelter from the rain made its way here from Paterson, NJ.

See, as a couple of kids bred in Philadelphia. When we hear "Silk City", we think that diner/bar on Spring Garden. Who knew this was actually a thing? We didn't. We wanted to know more, but fading cell service wasn't helping us as we waited for our food. Curiosity peaked.

Silk City Diners was a subdivision of the Paterson Wagon Company. Between 1926 and 1966, around 1,500 diners were made in Paterson, NJ. Each diner was marked with an ID that signified the year it was made and the order it was built. In hindsight I wish I knew this little tidbit of information so I could photograph the tag. If I ever find myself in that neck of the woods, I will add it to this note. Now, many of these diners have been long shut down, but for the ones still around, most of them are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

It was nice to see a little bit of Philadelphia on our escape to the woods. Now, I kinda want to scope out the other Silk City Diners in the area, photograph the tag, and have a cup of coffee with a buttered toasted blueberry muffin.

FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS

So I love adventure times with good people. Especially when it's a celebration of a friend's birthday! Birthdays are the bestest. This past weekend was a 30th birthday celebration of my friend Ryan Hilley. On a car ride back from Pittsburgh, the beau and I came up with a brilliant secret adventure that we almost executed perfectly. But of course I let the cat (partially) out of the bag THE NIGHT before. We were so close!!!!

After a much needed breakfast at Cracker Barrel, the beau, Ryan, and his roommates/now-friends Dave and Jenn, and I all rolled out to Easton, Pennsylvania, home of Weyerbacher Brewing Company.

So me, I'm not a beer kind of girl. I like my liqueur (sans gin and vodka) all well and fine, but beer, no thanks! BUT apparently I'm just picky. At the brewery, I found two beers I actually liked: D'Tango Unchained, a new beer that Weyerbacher just introduced to their tasting room, and Tarte Noveau, beer that tastes like kombucha: ACE!

After the tour, Dave suggested we go to this place that makes pizza from Weyerbacher's used grains. This place looks like its in the hood, but be not afraid, Black & Blue is a KILLER spot. All five of us wish that there was a bar like that in Philadelphia, so Philly get with it. From the huge collection of skulls and weird memorabilia that graced as decor, absinthe as the highlight of the bar, and great food, Black & Blue is reason enough to end up in Easton.

Now all fueled up on food and alcohol, mostly alcohol, part deux of the celebrations must occur: hiking at Ringing Rocks. Located in Upper Black Eddy, and kinda my backyard, this strange patch of rocks is still mystifying scientists and explorers alike. Here the rocks ring like bells when struck. We forgot to bring hammers, but we found some small rocks to use and still had the same effect. Seriously, one of the coolest and weirdest places. It would be really cool to make some music there, maybe we'll go back and bring that to life.

And PS. Whoever said you can't go hiking in a dress. Break the norm!

MOOREA SEAL Morely Hat (I need to get this hat in THIS color) & Eye of the Beholder Scarf (similar) | URBAN OUTFITTERS Dress | NEW BALANCE 501

VICTIM

So really. Where did this summer go? I lack Vitamin D due to a shoebox closet office space and constantly running under the forest canopy, but it's okay I prefer autumn anyway. Usually summertime calls for going to AT LEAST one music festival, but not this year. As much as I would have died and gone to heaven to go to Osheaga this year, I have a wedding to attend in Pittsburgh.

On a brighter note, I was able to see two bands that I have been looking into seeing. One is a summer staple: San Cisco. If you never have heard of these Aussie wonders, stop reading this and go on Spotify. I dare for you to try not dancing in your underwear to Fred Astaire (been there, done that).

The other is a newer flame, and not just because of the dreamy eyed Lonely Boy from Brooklyn frontman, but because their music is just so different from all the "new" music you hear these days. MOTHXR is like a seductive phantom in the dark corner of hidden jazz bar. Their song "Victim" has been a personal go to late night candle lit yoga flows.

But yeah, it was a weird combination. But I like weird. It was my first time at the Johnny Brenda's venue after a failed attempt to go see GOASTT. And because I found out about this show super last minute, the fact that I was able to see these two super cool bands was kinda kismet. As the rest of the girls were fawning over Penn Badgley, because they didn't know it was his band opening for San Cisco, I'm just happy to have scored a 7" vinyl. Because you know, priorities.

XOXO

#AWKWARD

Let me tell you how AWKWARD I am in front of a camera. As you can see, very. In a shoot of maybe twenty tries of me acting like an idiot in front of my boyfriend in public places, we get two so-so and super candid pictures. All you can really do is laugh at yourself.

If you know me, the only color I wear is some shade of blue. It's a lot of black, white, and grey and I like it like that.

MOOREA SEAL Morley Hat | MADEWELL Breeze Back Tee (ps. it's on sale!) | Black Cuffed Shorts (similar) | TO WRITE LOVE ON HER ARMS Tee Tote (craft project by me)