OOTD | A Trip to Oakland

{boots :: Steve Madden | socks :: old H&M | tights :: Hue | shorts :: Levi’s via Marshall’s | sweater :: Old Navy via Goodwill | denim jacket :: Climate Control via Wasteland | shades :: Clobba Haight St.}

Crossed the bay over to Oakland yesterday to meet up with some friends for dinner and drinks. The moon was huge and yellow as it came up over the Oakland skyline and I immediately regretted not bringing my camera with me. I am hesitant to bring it out with me since my last one was stolen. I have this wierd anxiety that I am going to set it down somewhere and it’ll just be gone. I need to get over this.

I caught Bart over to West Oakland and met up with my friend Dani, who bartends with me at my work. She’s a fantastic Floridian of the non-crazy variety. Or at least the good crazy variety. She scooped me up in her darling little orange rollerskate of a car and we headed over to feast upon the visual and culinary deliciousness over at Mua Oakland bar and restaurant. Their industrial/warehouse space is fantastic and huge, full of interesting art, attractive human beings,  and outstanding libations. A tiny, elderly asian woman in a green dress seated us at one of the small round tables in the center of the dining room, where we had a full 360 degree view of the restaurant, with it’s double-height ceiling and exposed brick walls. Their bar is beautiful and well populated, even on a Tuesday evening. We started out with the burrata and the beef bone marrow, which were both mouth watering. Our other coworker, Povi, joined us with her brother and not long after my friend Prudence arrived. We caught up over another round of drinks and an order of the citrus-chili chicken wings, which might have been my favorite of the evening. I got the duck confit for the main course and completely devoured the whole thing. The cocktails were scrumptious, my personal favorite being the rosemary martini, which was so refreshing and light it was a little bit dangerous. So easy to drink!

We moved on to Plum on Broadway, which was dimly lit and beautifully appointed, with mirrored light fixtures and walls papered in poetry. The bartenders were friendly and entertaining and the drinks were excellent and well recommended. It was a quiet evening, with maybe eight or nine other people at the bar with our group, most of whom seemed to be on dates; it was a tuesday night, after all. We lingered at the bar for a bit before moving to an open window table and carrying on conversations on all manner of things as the few people out on the street passed our warm little bubble of inebriated conversation.

It was a pleasantly crisp evening, with the christmas lights twinkling on the oak trees all over town. I was comfortable in these Levi’s shorts layered over a pair of tights, with some wooly warm socks keeping my toes from freezing in my boots. I ended up swapping this jacket out for my vintage velvet trench and my new favorite scarf (which I wore together here).

All in all a lovely night full of grand adventures with friends new and old. I don’t get over to Oakland enough, so I’m excited to have friends that live over there and know their way around. It’s funny, I have loads of family in the East Bay, but I never really explored it much. It’ll be fun discovering what it has to offer.

Brain Clutter | 11.02.13

Halloween has come and gone. alas, but this super cute Wes Anderson parody by SNL is both adorable and terrifying. Enjoy.

• Joss Whedon is awesome. And his response to the question of why he writes such “strong female characters” makes me love him even more.
• this incredibly moving piece of poetry, entitled “Piñata” by Pages Matam was inspired by one man’s poor taste and insensitivity on a bus ride.
• this amusing video about the differences between porn and real-life sex, as explained by a british mum in her kitchen.
• this post by Alexandra Pellegrino on The Art of Being Yourself over on HelloGiggles was precisely what I needed to hear today.
• this adorable illustration of Muni line’s personified is so spot on and hilarious. I unfortunately live on the cranky N line.
• in order to avoid said finicky metro line, I’m very seriously considering buying a bike…and with the invention of the Copenhagen Wheel, I might be able to ride it to work without showing up looking like a sweaty beast.
• these spiffy stacked skateboard sculptures are pretty neat.
• this article on Kaitlin Roig-DeBellis–the teacher who saved her students during the Sandy Hook shooting by packing them into a bathroom with her–and the ways in which she continues to be an amazing human being is so inspiring.
• i’m aiming to get back into yoga this new years, starting with this 30 Day Yoga Challenge, and this handy guid of the most difficult yoga poses and how to nail them might just come in handy.
• as the holiday season swiftly approaches, we can all anticipate ending up at a party where we don’t really know anyone. Here’s 9 tips from Refinery29 on how to rock it anyways.
• these cool, graphic takes on the charms and challenges of San Francisco.

Personal Style | No Place To Be Alone

I snagged these super spiffy purple pants at the big goodwill downtown and now their one of my new favorites. The color, the fit, and the amazing embroidered details on the belt loops are all so perfect I can’t get over it. And, to top off their perfection, they seem to go so splendidly with so many things I already own. For example, this vintage top with its red, gold, black and purple stripes accents them so splendidly. Threw on my trusty red flats and my ubiquitous denim jacket and felt like the classiest of ladies.

 

I snapped these photos on the steps of a staircase in Golden Gate Park that I thought might grant me a little privacy, since its a bit hidden at the back of a field and nestled amongst trees. But as soon as I pulled my camera out it seemed to become a primary thoroughfare. So I sucked up my chagrin at being the strange girl taking pictures of herself in the park and managed to capture these images in between pedestrians.

This might be my only real complaint about living in the city. As a child of the mountains, I am unused to having such a difficult time finding a bit of seclusion. The city is no place to be alone. I live in a house with four other people, on a street constantly mobbed with tourists and transients alike. I work a job where one of my primary duties is to be gregarious and charming, and while I love my roommates, my city, and my profession, at times it can be a bit much to be always “on” for someone. At times, a body just wants a bit of solace. And finding a moment to be alone is an entirely different thing in the city than it is in the mountains, where the solitude of nature can be reached within steps of ones front door.

{blouse | vintage a perfect match}{pants | vintage Mo Hee}{flats | thrifted MIA}{jacket | vintage Climate Control}

Here, you must seek silence. You must hunt for it like a lost set of keys. Finding a quiet spot to think, or read, or take photos, or just sit in contemplation is a rare respite from a city thrumming with curiosity about it’s inhabitants. Most often, one finds their solitude in the crowds. In the anonymity of being a member of this teaming metropolis. By sitting quietly on the train without making eye contact, secluding yourself with head phones and far-away stares. But finding a true moment of isolation, of pure aloneness, is rare.

 

personal style | a circle around where you are now

apologies for my absence. i’ve been in the midst of many a personal crises and haven’t known what to do with myself. but things are better now, settling into a rhythm i can rely upon. i am feeling calmer, clearer. my sense of purpose restored. for the first time in a long time i feel like i am exactly where i’m supposed to be.

{vintage skirt | thrifted} {leather purse | thrifted} {f21 blouse | thrifted}{shades | buffalo exchange}

Flora & Fauna