Thank you to all who entered the book giveaway. I got some great book recommendations and I'm excited to announce the winner of the four books. The lucky reader (as chosen by a randomly selected number) is:


Comment #2 or Upper West Side Writer of the blog Falling Into Words. Congratulations! I'll pop the books in the mail as soon as I get your mailing info!

Thanks again to all who entered. Be sure to follow me on Twitter at @nandita to find out about other fun contests and giveaways.

Labels: books, contests

For nearly two years, I have been meaning to get all these shoes repaired. I've traipsed allover the East Coast dragging the bag from Washington, DC, to New Jersey to my apartment here in New York City. For a while I even brought them all into work, thinking that I'd drop them off at the shoe repair place near my office and so for over a year (!!!) that bag of shoes sat under my desk getting crushed by my feet and the vacuum and stacks of magazines.

Until last week! As one of my 101 goals for the next 1001 days, I decided to finally repair ALL of these gorgeous, comfortable, and expensive shoes that had just been wasting away because of worn down heel tips, torn leather, or ripped slingbacks. I gathered them all in a big reusable shopping tote and marched them straight down to Dino's repair shop during my lunch hour. Three days (and $165) later, I had a brand new shoe wardrobe. Six pairs of fantastic and oh-so-comfortable shoes just waiting to be worn.

Now I just need to figure out what to wear with them...

The repair shop, for any of you in the city and looking for a great place, is called Dino's and it's located in Columbus Circle. It's a great little "mom and pop shop" that is run by an Italian family. (Like real Italy-Italians, not Housewives-of-NJ-Italians.) They also clean and repair leather (purses, jackets, etc) and adjust belts. If you go, tell them that Alejandra with the 6 pairs of shoes sent you. Maybe I'll get a discount when I bring them another half-dozen!

Labels: 101 Goals in 1001 Days, New York

I've had a hell of a time putting words down lately. Well, that's not true actually. I feel like I'm constantly putting words down--making lists, jotting, starting sentences that never quite reach punctuation. Lots of bits, but not much to show for it. It's starting to exhaust me. It's not even a block...more like writer's constipation.

Ugh. I know. I apologize, but really, really, really...it's how I feel right now.

I spend all day long, constantly and constantly, thinking and forming paragraphs in my head. Things that sound great, but which disappear on screen. I write and write and write and write and when I'm through I've said nothing.

I'm grasping for a minute, a moment, a something of quiet. Just enough quiet so I can hear past the static and figure out what it is that I've been trying to say for God knows how long.

Every night I go to bed dreaming of Joan Didion's peach and hoping that maybe tomorrow it will be quiet enough to taste it.

Labels: Writing

Something you may not know about me is that I organize the books in my library by color according to the rainbow. It's a beautiful, albeit totally illogical, way to do it, but it suits me just fine. The problem is that occasionally I'll find that I need to do away with a few books that don't quite fit into the rainbow, or which I already have too many (usually white and black). Lately I've been donating a lot of books or swapping them with strangers via paperbackswap.com, but I also thought it might be fun to do a little giveaway on my blogs.

So here is how it's going to work. I picked out four books that I really enjoyed, but with which I'm ready to part by giving to YOU!




The books are:

I Think of You, by Ahdaf Souif (Fiction. An incredible collection of short stories by the Cairo-born writer. All the stories tell about the experience of the Middle Eastern woman.)

Little Altars Everywhere, by Rebecca Wells (Fiction. A delicious southern tale by the writer of the Ya Ya Sisterhood.)

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (Memoir, A sensual journey through Italy, India, and Indonesia.)

The Archivist, by Martha Cooley (Fiction. An erudite and multi-layered novel about the relationship between a cool library archivist and a fiery grad student that weaves in themes from T.S. Elliot's life and the Holocaust.)


To enter to win them, all you have to do is one (or all 3!) of the following:

1.) Leave a comment telling me either what book you're reading now or what you like to do when it's time to organize your shelves. That will get you one entry.

2.) Follow me on twitter (@nandita) and tweet a link about this contest then come back here to say you did it (with a link so I can see it). If you're already following me, just tweet about the contest and then leave another comment telling me you did. That will get you a second entry.

3.) Post about this contest on your blog, website, or Facebook page (and then let me know you did). That will get you a third entry.

The winner will be chosen randomly using a random number generator. You must include your email or twitter name with your entry so that I can contact you. If I can't find a way to contact the winner, then a second entry will be chosen. Contest is open to everyone who is not related to me. It's OK if you live outside the US--we'll find a way to get the books to you if you win. Maximum 3 entries per person. All entries must be in by July 4th, 11:59 PM EST.

Good Luck!!

Labels: books, contests

My goals list is going along swimmingly so far! Since my 1001 days started last Saturday, I've cleaned out and organized the kitchen cabinets, seen a Mets game at the new Citi Field (in Johan Santana's private box, no less), purchased a vegetable and fruit juicer to start making my own green juices, and brought my iPod back into service by buying new (good!) headphones and updating the music on it. Not bad for the first week!

My plan for this weekend is to tackle a few more of the goals I'd been putting off until now. I'm going to gather and collect all those shoes that need to be repaired so that I can drop them off at the shop on Monday. I also want to order new stationery and business cards so if anyone has a good tip for those, please leave it in the comments. I'd love something a little offbeat!

My boyfriend, Eugene, has also started his own list. You can check his list out here: http://unluddite.blogspot.com/2009/06/101-goals-in-1001-days.html. Fortunately, all of our mutual goals match up so that's promising! ;)

Will continue to keep you posted on the list progress!

Labels: 101 Goals in 1001 Days

This is a list of the 101 goals that will complete within a time period of 1001 days. My proposed start date for this is June 20th, which means that I have until March 17, 2012 to complete my list. My list of goals is complete, although I may refine the goals as time passes in an effort to make them more concrete (for example, adding specific dates or locations).

I'm going to be keeping track of the goals I complete right here so you can check back to see how my progress is. I would love your feedback and support as I work through my list. If you ever have any ideas or advice that could help me accomplish any of the things on this list, please let me know in the comments box!

By the way, I admit the project was not my idea. I got it from my friend Vanessa, who recently posted a similar list on her own blog. The original idea actually came from another blogger a few years ago, and there are people all over the world trying to complete their own lists. If you decide to start your own, come back and leave me the link so that I can check it out and support you too!

Here are the basic details of the challenge:


The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Progress Tracking:
Items in bold: Completed
Items in italics: In progress

My 101 Goals for 1001 Days (June 20, 2009 - March 17, 2012)

1. Complete proposal for food-related nonfiction book.
2. Publish at least 25 articles.
3. Make a successful batch of French macarons.
4. Set up an attractive shelf with file boxes solely for the organization and display of magazines.
5. Send one handwritten letter or charming note a month to someone I admire
6. Complete my professional website with a design that I love and updated content
7. Buy a new queen-sized (or larger) bed that is comfortable for both Eugene and me
8. Replace all four pillows on our bed with new fresh ones that are slightly more ergonomic.
9. Bring all my broken (expensive!) shoes to a cobbler and get the heel tips replaced and other repairs made.--completed 6/29
10. Learn how to take full advantage of my Nikon D60 SLR
11. Grow my own tomatoes
12. Figure out how to keep hydroponic herbs alive after I bring them home from the store
13. Buy only organic apples, spinach, and strawberries
14. Make homemade mozzarella
15. Go on a volunteering trip to somewhere in South America or Africa
16. Find a local church home and attend at least once a month
17. Pay off all my debt including student loan (approx $6000)
18. Raise credit score
19. Buy a house with Eugene
20. Get a dog
21. Take at least one writing or otherwise enriching course every 6 months
22. Visit at least three (3) places in the US where I have never been before
23. Visit at least three (3) countries where I have never been before
24. [Private]
25. Buy nice welcome mats for all the neighbors on our floor that have old, dirty, or no mats
26. Donate 2 boxes of books to the prison library or other worthy cause
27. Arrange for the shell lamp from West Elm to be hung up
28. Get my signed Audrey Kawasaki print framed
29. Hire someone to hang the ceiling fan
30. Use the gym at work at least twice a week
31. Schedule some regular bonding time with Mama
32. Schedule some regular bonding time with Papa
33. Try to build better relationship with Gabriel
34. Find 3 new couples to socialize with
35. Throw a sit-down dinner party
36. Deep clean and organize the kitchen cabinets/pantry--completed 6/20
37. Bring lunch in to work at least 2x a week for 6 months straight
38. Go on a double date with Gabriel and Caroline
39. Visit Titi Gladys and ask her to teach me how to make pasteles
40. Learn Abu’s recipes for red beans
41. Go berry picking in the summer and/or apple picking in the fall
42. Visit Roosevelt Island
43. Bake a batch of delicious, flaky, buttery croissants
44. Visit Moe in Philadelphia
45. Visit Sara and Lindsay in Washington, DC
46. Find a local volunteer opportunity that has to do with food/cooking
47. Save at least $300 from each paycheck
48. Buy fresh produce, eggs, and dairy products from the farmer’s market at least once a month
49. Introduce myself to and build a relationship with the farmers at the market.
50. Walk all the way from our apartment down to the West Village (preferably with Eugene)
51. Plant shrubs, flowers, and trees that attract butterflies in the garden when we buy a house
52. Visit the eye doctor and get new contacts and glasses
53. Start and complete a Mederma treatment on the scar on my right leg
54. Get my driver’s license
55. Register to vote in NYC and then in NJ if/when we move there
56. Successfully complete NaBloPoMo (blogging every day in the month of November) in 2009, 2010, and 2011.
57. Start collecting a list of contacts for future book publicity purposes
58. Buy a juicer to make my own green juices--completed 6/24
59. Visit each of the new NY baseball stadiums (new Yankee & Citi Field) at least once
60. Back-up my hard drive
61. Have a picnic in Central Park
62. Sing in public
63. Get out of bed at 7AM when Eugene wakes up, and use extra hour to write. Do this at least 3x each week.
64. Buy feathers and tulle and make myself a fascinator
65. At least 1x a week during the pleasant weather months, walk up Central Park West or Columbus to 96th Street before getting on train (2 miles).
66. Buy a pair of good headphones and update songs on iPod so that I can start using it again.--completed 6/24
67. Start every morning with a glass of water with lemon juice
68. Maintain my routine of getting a manicure and pedicure at least every two weeks to keep my nails neat. Remember to go early in the week to get the $25 deals.
69. Get a real professional (as opposed to chair or Eugene) massage once every 3 months.
70. Clear all the “clutter corners” in our apartment (clear bins in bedroom, laundry basket, boxes)--completed 6/28
71. Go to Bra Smyth or other specialized lingerie store in NY and get a proper bra fitting.
72. Go to at least one outdoor summer concert.
73. Go to at least one play (Broadway or otherwise, per year)
74. Give my requested recipes to the people who have requested them (Marion, Brandy, Carmen)
75. Get married
76. Bake my own wedding cake
77. Take one photo a day of something that interests me for one month
78. Subscribe to The New York Times Sunday Edition
79. Have dinner by myself at a nice restaurant (meal must include appetizer, entree, and dessert).
80. Have dinner by myself at a nice restaurant WITHOUT reading material or playing on BlackBerry
81. Go to a taping of a show with a live studio audience
82. Meet and talk to Opera Lady (the opera singer who lives below us)
83. Eliminate all refined flours and sugars from my diet for at least 1 month
84. Bring my lunch into work every day for one month
85. Order new personal business cards with my web/blog/twitter info
86. Get my white Bulgari sunglasses repaired
87. Become proficient in Photoshop
88. Order personalized stationary
89. Go on a walking tour of Harlem
90. Take a course at Columbia University
91. Take a dance class at Alvin Ailey
92. Lose 20 lbs
93. Apply and be accepted into the Morningside Writers Memoir & Essay Group
94. Go to bed by 11pm every single day for one week (7 days)
95. Get into work before 9AM every single day for one week (5 days)
96. Develop habit of taking Concerta every morning at same time
97. Eat breakfast every day for one month straight
98. Complete one entire month of not buying anything that is not absolutely essential. (no fun purchases, no clothing, no food that is not groceries, etc.)
99. No eating after 8PM for one entire month
100. Talk to 5 people I normally would not talk to
101. Read over this 101 Goals list every day

Labels: 101 Goals in 1001 Days, life decisions

And a little girl, running with her dog.

Just a little boy, walking along the water at sunset...

Even feet look pretty on this beach. At least at sunset...

When you leave the airport, take the road heading north, just past the Texas and the big lot store. Make a left at the end of the road and you'll find this little restaurant right next to a tire shop. Park your car, grab a table and order the chuleta colombiana or the bandeja paisa. For less than 10 bucks each, you'll have yourself a plate overflowing with authentic (and delicious) Colombian food. Eat as much as you can, then take the rest to go--you can finish them on the beach tomorrow. If you can, this is the place to use your high school Spanish. If you can't, just point at the menu. You'll do just fine...

This one's so bright I can almost still feel it.

Unbelievably beautiful. Those colors, man!

On our way back from San Nicolaas, we pulled over in Savaneta to take pictures by the water. It was probably one of the most gorgeous spots on the island.

I just needed to post this one more time. Oh...just your average giant man statue on someone's front lawn.

This was probably one of my favorite things we spotted in Aruba. It was a giant statue placed on the front lawn of a house in the quiet town of Savaneta (a suburb located next to the refinery town of San Nicolaas). Having grown up in New Jersey, I've seen some pretty gaudy lawn decoration, but this definitely beats all those Mary-on-the-halfshells...

This is the Movie Palace in San Nicolaas, a small city on the south-eastern most tip of the island where the one of the largest Valero oil refineries is located. It's not a pretty city, although it does have it's charm. Brightly-colored (though rundown) buildings line tiny narrow streets shaded with divi-divi trees.

The thing to note about San Nicolaas is that, besides oil, the city also has one particularly interesting industry--prostitution. The area in San Nicolaas is known as the "Zone of Tolerance," and it is here that regulated prostitution is permitted (although the island now has control over its own internal affairs, it is still considered part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands where prostitution is also legal). Each of the bars is permitted 4 prostitutes on staff. The vast majority of the girls come from nearby-Columbia, and are brought there by agencies who specialize in recruiting pretty--but poor--girls to come and "work" in the island. The girls are granted 3-month visas and their passage is paid by the bars where they will spend their tenure. The first few weeks or so is spent working to pay back what they owe (airline tickets, visas, and rent), and only once their debt is covered are they permitted to keep what they earn. Every couple weeks, the girls are taken to see a gynecologist who examines them and pronounces them safe for duty. When their 3 months are up, the girls have to return to their native countries and are not permitted back to the island for a full year.

Eugene and I drove down to San Nicolaas just to take a look at this part of the island, which differs so drastically from the shiny tourist-central of the west. Though it was early--only about 11AM--the girls were easy to spot. Many were hanging around in groups of 3 or 4 by the doors of the bars where they worked. The bars were all closed, but some of the girls take advantage and work the streets during the day in order to make a little extra money. They were all young--probably around my age or younger--and Latina. Even though it was early in the day, they were already scantily clad. One girl wore a tight mesh dress that just barely covered her bottom. Another wore a pair of skimpy hot-pants with an unbuttoned midriff top that was spilling out with her enormous (and fake) bosom. On one corner we noticed one girl in a tight t-shirt and panties hugging a man good-bye. Before he walked away, he handed her a wad of the local currency.

The following night we went to a much less awesome seafood restaurant called Driftwood. If you're headed to Aruba, I would recommend skipping it. Eugene's former-friend, Jan, recommended it. I say former because after our dinner there, he was forced to un-friend him. (OK, not really)

The food wasn't awful. It was just on par with...oh let's say...The Olive Garden or maybe a Friday's on an especially bad night. The problems? Well, Eugene's freshly caught and filleted Yellowtail wasn't properly cleaned: he had a little pile of bones by the time he finished. My lobster tail was over cooked--it was dry and gummy. Really disappointing, considering I've had better lobster at at least 3 NJ diners.

Dessert, interestingly enough, was delicious (despite the fact that it was ordered off a menu with pictures on it). i had a truly spectacular chocolate cake that I was tempted to take home when I couldn't finish it. If you walk past the place and are risky enough, I'd suggest going in just for a drink and this cake. Eugene liked his Peach Melba, although the fruit was obviously canned and the syrup was--for some reason--strawberry, not raspberry.

Dinner that night was at Papiamento House, a delicious Arubian restaurant located inside a 150-year-old mansion. We were seated in the back patio, which was lush with palms and flowers surrounding a large pool. The food was lovely, although my favorite part was the Pan Bollo with rum sauce--a local bread pudding dessert.

The host took out picture a few time, although I have to admit that as sweet as he was, he wasn't much of a photographer. This is the only one of the pictures that didn't come out completely blurry. Of course, it may be our complicated Nikon DSLR that's to blame.

Papiamento, by the way, is the name of the local language. It's an interesting one--a blend of Spanish, Dutch, French, and a few other languages. It sounds a bit like Portuguese with that gutteral rasp of the Dutch. I spent most of the time feeling like I could "sort-of" understand it.

The Tranquilo sailed over to this tiny little pier, which was located on a small island in the south side of Aruba. There is a natural pool just beyond this, filled with coral and a variety of fish. We did a bit of waist-deep snorkeling in this area.

Later on, the stronger swimmers (Eugene) went out past the rocks for some drift snorkeling, while the rest of us went back to the boat for an unexpectedly-perfect lunch of Dutch Pea Soup and salmon sandwiches.

The day after we arrived, Eugene and I signed up for an all-day boat trip to the south side of the island for a bit of snorkeling and sailing. The boat was called the Tranquilo, and it was sailed by Captain Anthony and his first mate, Greg. All the other passengers on the boat were from Holland and spoke mainly Dutch, so E and I kept mainly to ourselves, taking pictures enjoying the incredible scenery--translucent turquoise water, passing boats, and the spooky-looking Divi Divi trees that dotted the shoreline (and, really, most of the island).

The Divi Divi is one of the few trees that can grow on this mostly desert island and the tops seem to grow almost horizontally. They say that the shape is determined by the constantly blowing wind on the breezy island.

This adorable little lizard slipped into our bathroom on our first night in Aruba. Both Eugene and I have a "thing" for little lizards (we kept trying to capture them when we were in Puerto Rico back in February), so we spent about ten minutes chasing it around the bathroom with the camera. I got this shot by standing on my tippy-toes on the toilet seat, while using Eugene's head as a balance.

The coolest part was how it kept changing colors based on the surface it crawled onto. It's practically translucent here, but when it was on the blue tiles, it had more of a greenish hue. He escaped soon after this was taken, and we learned to leave the window shut at night.

One of my favorite photos from the trip. Will share more soon!

One of the flower arrangements I made for the Mother's Day dinner we hosted at our place. I used fresh limes and roses from the bodega.

A friend of mine on Twitter posted a message that the Konami code (arguably the most famous gaming cheat code ever) now worked on Facebook. I tried it out and got a spray of multi-colored bubbles that popped up on my screen whenever I scrolled or clicked on anything.

I was trying to figure out if this was some kind of marketing ploy that was about to come out, or if it was just a fun little Easter Egg, when I saw another friend post a link of other Konami coded sites available on the web. The list itself requires you to enter the Konami code to view it (use your arrow keys to type: up up down down left right left right, then the letter b, the letter a). For Facebook you need to hit Enter (or Return, if you're on a Mac) and scroll up or down.

I get pure delight from Easter Eggs like this. My favorite ever still being the little taxicab that would drive across the screen of my (now defunct) Palm Treo.

Log into your Facebook account and check the nerdiness out. And follow me on Twitter @nandita for more inane updates.

Labels: Japanese monsters, Nerdiness