Absolut Awesomeness

Well holy shit, Chiho Aoshima designed limited edition collectible Absolut Vodka pitchers earlier this summer and I just now found out about it. Sometimes I search eBay for various superflat artists to see if anyone's selling a print or book I can afford, and this time I got a real surprise. I Googled and ended up on NotCot checking out their extremely thorough article and wondering why I don't visit that site more often.

God. So awesome. That wonky city work of hers has been my wallpaper forever.

Vodka and superflat. Please enlarge these and appreciate this most holy union. I think I'm in heaven.

Weekend (8.21 - 8.22): Mill Ave and Shopping

Awesome ring holder I found on sale at Urban Outfitters plus awesome soon-to-be-hair-accessory bird from Goodwill is...

... way better than the creepy overloaded hand ring holder my ex-boyfriend's grandmother gave me.

This nice Clown School-educated balloon man had never made a lobster before, so I set the task to him.

The finished product was this adorable, legless Zoidberg-esque creation. D'aww.

What a badass.

The Street

This place is a trendy Korean boba, smoothie, shaved ice, juice and milk tea bar that also serves other tasty miscellany on Southern and Dobson.

(obligatory dramatic pose)

This is one of those places that lets everyone write and draw on the walls, but instead of just the bathroom or hallway, it's the whole restaurant.

We like cephalopods.

I was massively entertained by the fact that this robot doodle shirt I got him for $2 at Goodwill allowed him to blend in with the walls like a chameleon or rebel guerilla in the forest.

Whale plus Helper

We got the "mini" (it must weigh a pound) size Diamond Ice, a summer specialty, for $4.50 (guy with the Justin Beiber haircut not included). It was red bean, mochi, cantaloupe, honeydew, pineapple, mango, strawberries, creamy stuff and a cherry over creamy shaved ice. They also charge $3.50 for Thai tea, so we stuck with our original plan before happening upon this little gem and got it from Szechuan Express in the same plaza for $1.50.

Finally, my weekend also included a successful trip to 99 Cents Only that procured these wheat-free items, mini roses and Wall-E socks. Satisfaction.

Craft(y) Project: Makeshift Earring Holder

This is more of a re-purposing than a craft, hence the "crafty" title. 

Recalling a story of long-lost sand toys from my childhood, Chuck brought me this whale from the dollar store and said, "If you don't sift sand with it, you could put things in it." I decided right away to use it to organise my stud earrings.

(a)Musings: Ponyo Ponyo, Little Fishy in the Sea

Everyone likes tuna occasionally, right? I'm totally fine with that, this isn't going to be a rant about how you shouldn't eat it because you're destroying the natural balance of the ocean. Rather, it's going to be a rant about how you should demand that your seafood is labeled properly lest you contribute to said destruction.

Just the other day, my mom went to Costco for a few essentials. She commented on how Costco has always had the best tuna, as she was opening a couple of cans to make herself some tuna salad. She tilted the can and showed me.

"Oh, wow" I said, "it looks like a perfect circle was cookie-cut right out of the tuna."

"Yep!" she replied, satisfied as always with her purchase.

She says that StarKist brand, in sharp contrast to Costco's tuna, is always a bunch of pathetic little watery dark meat pieces as opposed to solid all-white meat fillet. There's no comparison. StarKist, if anyone remembers, was involved in a scandal in the 80's that had to do with selling tainted tuna unfit for human consumption in Canada. Because it's probably the most recogniseable brand of tuna as well, environmental agencies had also been after them for ages, trying to educate the public about dolphins and nets and "Dolphin-Safe" labeling and what have you. Considering all of this, one has to assume that for at least the last ten years or so, StarKist has been operating under more stringent regulations and watchful eyes than other mass suppliers of this delicate commodity, which could explain the lesser quality of their tuna. Maybe it's not as good because they're no longer catching fish they're not supposed to, right?

"Where was it caught?" I asked automatically.

Lo and behold, Costco puts no information whatsoever about where its tuna comes from on its cans. One has to assume that a big company doesn't give consumers information because there are simply things that they don't want them to know. So, people should demand the information. Maybe it doesn't seem like a big deal, but what else aren't they telling you? Maybe you don't care now, but you will one day when you're buying products for your newborn son or young daughter. 

I don't always support Greenpeace. The way I see it, if you act like an extremist psycho who lives in a tree and subsists entirely on raw organic vegan trail mix and doesn't shower, people definitely aren't going to listen to whatever you have to say. Occasionally, though, they're right on target. I mean, I happened to go to their site and find this just days after I was thinking about this tuna business: Send a Letter to Costco's CEO

Go ahead, sign it. Orange roughy and Chilean sea bass, as I'm sure you can guess, are threatened species that should simply not be consumed. I went ahead and added a paragraph about tuna to my letter, lol.

What's that? You were expecting something about Ponyo? Well, like all of the other Hayao Miyazaki Ghibli movies, it has a strong environmental message; I'd say the strongest since Princess Mononoke. So if you like Ponyo and the ocean, send the letter to Costco's CEO. And here's a really surprised-looking tuna some guy caught. Silly cartoon fish post title correlation complete.

Things I'm All About This Summer

Ok, so obviously I've finally decided to get a blog.

However, blogging is not one of the things I'm all about this summer, so don't get confused.

Bloggers have always seemed so pretentious to me, especially as time has gone on and a whole new generation of technology buffs and wannabe fashionistas has grown up with the Internet at its infantile and entitled fingertips. Around ten years ago I recognised that I would need to learn basic HTML coding, how to create and design websites, get a blog and learn how to use Photoshop, but I refused to do any of these things because they weren't relevant to my immediate interests; midi songs and oversized scanned images on Sailormoon Geocities sites and trying to figure out what it meant to be punk rock were. I don't do things because I feel pressured, I do them because I feel like it.

Onto the topic at hand!

1. Comfortable High Waisted Shorts.

If you're all about the 80's and 90's like me, these are a fun yet grown-up and sophisticated essential. Flattering to both curvy and thin body types, they're an immense improvement to trite and trashy teeny weeny denim shorts with 1/4" inseams. Clearance for $7.99 from Victoria's Secret.

2. Frozen Yogurt.

In the North Phoenix/Glendale/Peoria area, my 
allegiance belongs to juju berri. There was an 
article about them in the New Times last year.  

My favourite is Green Tea with mochi.

I'm so happy that this California trend caught on here a few years ago. It's delicious and affordable, unlike most of the shining fashionable glory that trickles down here from said shining fashionable glorious state. 

In Tempe, my allegiance belongs to Yogurtland. They somehow managed to capture the essence of Nilla Wafers, Rootbeer Floats and more in frozen dairy form! Their summer Lemonade Passion Fruit Tart flavour is refreshingly seasonal, too. Try every single one of them. I did. Forget Mojo and whatever other overpriced shit downtown Tempe can throw at you and become a loyal follower.

3. Failing JPN302 in Summer School.

Self-explanatory.

4. Nicktoons Summertime Primetime. 

Avatar: The Last Airbender (though we could all do without the "extras", thanks), Invader Zim and Dragon Ball Z Kai is the best programming block this channel has ever come up with. Hold off on calling me a nerd until you do a Google search and find out how many Gir tattoos there are out there or until you get a good look at the above image and spit whatever you're drinking all over your monitor and keyboard.

5. Looking Like Lady Gaga.

Lady Gaga has given me even more excuses to take risks and more new ways to combine existing elements of my wardrobe. Hat: Vintage (Etsy.com), Handmade Dress: Urban Outfitters (the grey and bright blue are now on clearance for $14.99, get one!) Mickey Mouse Sunglasses: Sunglass Warehouse Necklace Earrings: Handmade Teacup & Saucer: $1 at Savers Eyes: Sephora feather eyelashes Lips: L'Oreal Le Grand Kohl pencil and Mac lipstick in Cyber.

The above outfit won me these awesome Heartbeats at Josh's Lady Gaga Concert Pre-Party! Thank you!

6. My Upcoming Super Cute Moving Sale!

I'm selling clothes (some vintage!), makeup, furniture, and tons of other items because we have to move next month.