Love Trumps Hate: The Hope Edition

Sorry to get sort of political for a minute, but hey, it's my blog. I am blogging while I watch the DNC and Hillary Clinton just passed the threshold needed to become the official nominee of the Democratic Party, and I admit that I am crying. As a woman who was raised to believe that I could do and be anything, I didn't think that this milestone would get me, but here I am, at work getting ready to teach and crying over my computer.

I mention this partly because the state of America has me really sad these days. My blatant liberalism aside, when did we become so negative and so divided? When did fear become the predominate emotion that we seem to feel, instead of hope and the belief that we can make the world better?

Two days after the shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, I went to Museum Mile with my friend Marci. Museum Mile takes place up and down Fifth Avenue, where one night a year, all of the museums are open late and free. In addition, the street is closed and there are performers, activities, and people of all shapes, colors and sizes. It really represents the best of New York. It felt very strange to be there doing something fun in light of everything that was happening in the world, but then I noticed something...

A butterfly landed on my skirt. That has to be a good sign, right?

All up and down the street, there were buckets of chalk. And all over, messages of peace and love and hope and solidarity were covering the street, in all different languages and colors. Marci and I got in on the action, in a way that we found strangely therapeutic. Our illustrations are the first two below:

We ended up not going into any museums because the lines were so long and there was so much going on on the street. It was a lovely evening, and helpful to remember that for most people in the world, we really wish to live in a world where love can trump hate. Our children are watching us. What will it be?

The Met's Fountain

The Gugenheim

We are stronger together. Love is love.

The Classiest Fail

Dear readers, by now you know that my sisters and I might just be the classiest people in the land. I mean, we wear black tie and drink in fancy hotel bars with $20 ice cream sundaes. (We already find the ice cream, because just we're classy, that doesn't mean we don't have our priorities straight.)

So about a month ago, we decided to be classy at a rooftop bar for fancy drinks round two, and to cross something else off the SBL 2.0. However, when we showed up, it was not classy (a surprise trashy Mexican theme) and it also was so full that they were not even taking names for the waiting list anymore. But never fear! When being classy, it is always good to have a back-up plan, which is why I suggested that we go north a few blocks to the Campbell Apartment.

Yup, that's right. A dress code. Because CLASSY!

I had been there once before. It's a place you would never spot, with a tiny entrance on the Vanderbilt Avenue side of Grand Central terminal. However, if you know it's there, it is TOTALLY worth checking out. The drinks are pricey, but only slightly more so than if you got cocktails anywhere else. And you get to feel so old timey and fancy, which is just great fun.

Sorry not to have a picture of the three of us together, but all of them were woefully unflattering of at least one of us, and it seemed mean to put that on the blog. Instead, here is a picture of our three fancy drinks:

The space was designed as a private apartment for a railroad executive in Grand Central, but apparently he never actually stayed there. However, the parlor/ living room, where the bar is, seems ideal for entertaining. It has high ceilings and marble walls and fancy lanterns and a great speak easy sort of feel. Even I, the one who does not enjoy drinking or bars, wanted to stay longer. So while the rooftop bar remains on the bucket list, I would call this delay well worth it.

Finally, how beautiful is this dress? I got it a few Stitch Fixes ago. I've been trying to only keep things I really love, which means I've been sending almost everything back, but this was something I knew I would be too sad to return. It is totally my shape, just the right length, and a beautiful blue color. Every time I wear it, I feel even happier. And classy :)

What I'm wearing: Maggy London dress via Stitch Fix (available here, but for more than I paid), Boden cardigan, b.o.c. sandals (similar here)

SBL 2.0: Family 5K Day/ You Can't Handle the Ruth

Here is the continuation of last week's blog post-- the time we ran the 5K in the 10000% humidity.

Here's the story. Our original plan was to "run" (it's a relative term) a family 5K on Mother's Day, before we did our usual event of eating a lot of brunch. But then we went to the baptism and were worried about not making it in time, so we pushed off the race until Memorial Day. But then the forecast was for crazy rain, so my parents bailed. LAME. So off the sisters went, with a Simon in tow, to represent the family in a great feat of athletic prowess.

In the end, it didn't rain. That being said, the race probably would have been more pleasant if it had. It instead was so humid that my glasses kept fogging up and we were all sweating before we even started running.

This was the view out of the tram.

Gloomy indeed. But we persevered. The challenge of running with Simon is, he likes to sprint for about 10 seconds and then starts complaining about how he's too tired/ his skin is itchy/ he doesn't want to run anymore. Apparently seven year olds are not known for their endurance. Eventually Rebecca, who was somewhat injured anyway, stayed back to walk with him, and Sarah and I ran the last two miles and then circled back to finish with them again.

Eventually, we all made it across the finish line. Points for all of us. Even Simon smiled for a minute (before reverting to his signature Simon Scowl.)

This race was more for fun than for anything else, but it also kicked off my "time to get my butt into gear" time. That has since gotten to be more for real (as this was more than a month ago), and it will only get to be more so in August. Last week I ran to the Little Red Lighthouse and then most of the way back (I would say I probably ran about 8 of 9.5 miles, if not consecutively), so we are on our way. Except for the part where I periodically wonder why I decided that it would be fun to try to run 13 miles. Unclear.

The Simon Scowl. Patent Pending.

You might notice that all of our t-shirts are coordinated. They are from the Look Human RBG line, which is a favorite of mine, since RBG is so freaking cool. But also, as you might know, my mom's name is Ruth, so we bought these shirts in honor of Mother's Day. (See above.) One day, we will all wear them together, but in the meantime, here is part of the Ruth Crew:

Time until half marathon: 2 months, 29 days. Eek!

What I'm wearing: Look Human t-shirt, Kirkland yoga capris, Adidas sneakers via DSW (similar here), Penn hat (go Quakers!)

SBL 2.0: Let's Go... Someone?

Dear readers, I've been taking a social media break. I even had Sarit change my Facebook password so I couldn't cheat. (Except Instagram, I guess, but that is not particularly time intensive.) It's been interesting to see how much time I waste on the internet. (A lot.) Also how much harder it is to waste time without Facebook. (Also a lot.) This is unlikely to be a permanent switch, but it's been an interesting experiment.

Citi Field, and some cool clouds...

 Anyway. Way back in the day (i.e. Memorial Day Weekend), we took on another Bucket List activity and took Simon to a Mets game. Simon, in an act of rebellion against his father, has openly declared his hatred for the Red Sox. I was very proud. (Sorry Bostonians.) However, since he is eight, he not yet mastered the idea of cheering for one team. Instead, he has created a hierarchy: 1. Dodgers, 2. Yankees, 3. Mets. This will become relevant in a minute.

Since the Dodgers are a West Coast team, they tend to only come to New York once a year. Simon really misses his (former hometown) team. That is how we found ourselves with an 8 year old, decked in Dodgers gear, for a game that began at 8:00 PM. Forget Simon's bedtime, that's late for me.

Yay Someone! It's much less stressful when your team isn't playing...

 Luckily, it was a beautiful evening, and I was wearing one of my favorite Stitch Fix shirts that I got during the blog hiatus. You can see it better in the picture above, but it combines some of my favorite things: stripes, lace, 3/4 sleeves, and softness. So I was dressed and ready to go.

We were sitting three rows from the back of the stadium behind home plate, because that is where the cheap tickets are. It's actually a great view from above, as you can see below, and it was a particularly beautiful sunset. The top deck in the back is also where the hardcore fans sit, as opposed to those who sit on the field level in their fancy pants, so I was a little worried about people yelling at Simon in his Dodgers gear, especially because the Mets and Dodgers have some serious bad blood after last year's National League Championship Series. Luckily, nobody said anything to him, despite booing lustily every time Chase Utley came to bat.

We ended up leaving in the eighth inning because it was almost 11:00, and because I have horrible memories of getting stuck in a traffic jam trying to get out of Citi Field, and thus being stuck in the parking lot for an hour. Simon was so tired that he started say, "I don't care who wins. I just want it to be over." The Dodgers had been winning 2-0 for most of the game. As we turned on the radio in the car, the Mets tied it up, but ultimately, the Dodgers prevailed in the 9th, 4-2, just as it started to pour. Simon was a happy camper.

Help! How does one take a selfie???

And then, despite the late hour, we got up and ran a 5K the next morning in 1,000,000% humidity. More on that soon...

What I'm wearing: 41Hawthorn shirt via Stitch Fix, Gap cropped khakis (similar here)