Baxter Bark Twice

Do as I say, never as I do

Posts Tagged ‘lists’

I asked, and then I answered

Posted by AllieB on March 13, 2013

Name: BBT

Age: I am 29 years old. In sixty-seven days I am turning thirty, and in seventy days I am having a superfab thirtieth birthday party. Join me, won’t you? Actually, it’s going to be invite only…but maybe you’ll get one. K, we’ve got a lot to talk about this weekend.

Neighborhood: West Village

Occupation: I have a job at a company and I work in an office. I like it a lot, therefore I will not disclose the name so as not to link us in any way. I’m confident they’re not at all ashamed that I work here, but better safe than sorry…who knows – maybe I work for the CIA

Who’s your favorite New Yorker, living or dead, real or fictional? Miranda Hobbes from Sex and the City is my favorite fictional New Yorker. I wish she was real.

miranda

What’s the best meal you’ve eaten in New York? L’Artusi, Perilla, Pylos, the crab spring rolls in Grand Central Market…I have a new best meal like every day. Eating well is impossible to not do here

Do you give money to panhandlers? Sometimes and only when there’s music involved – like the guy who plays the accordion in the tunnel of the Bryant Park subway station during morning rush hour. And the guy on the 1 last week who was playing “Georgia On My Mind” on  his harmonica – I gave him $2.

What’s your drink? It might be easier to say what is not my drink, and that is white wine. It used to be just Chardonnay I didn’t like, but I’ve pretty much cut out all white varietals. White wine – blech

white wine

I can’t talk about wine without a shoutout to these two – see you soooon!

How often do you prepare your own meals? Eh. Once a week? I try to make something on Sunday that I can have during the week when I work late and don’t feel like making dinner…thus far I’ve accomplished this exactly zero times, so I guess when I said “once a week” just then I was fibbing. Sorry, Gaylen

What’s your favorite medication? Melatonin, maybe. Definitely not the sleeping aid my work friend gave me. Let me tell you something: when someone offers you no-name sleeping pill from Mexico and warns you to break it up into fourths, or smaller if possible, and to make sure you have a “loooooooong time” to sleep it off, it is in your best interest to decline. Trust me on this…me and Captain Obvious.

What’s hanging above your sofa? A big mirror. It is probably from West Elm

How much is too much to spend on a haircut? It depends where I am in my budget cycle. I almost walked into Great Clips the other day…Allie, NO!

When’s bedtime? Midnight

What do you hate most about living in New York? I am legitimately terrified that I’m either going to trip and fall into the path of an oncoming subway or that some loco person is going to push me.

Who is your mortal enemy? Taylor Swift; LeAnn Rimes; the dry cleaner on my corner that I swear closes when they see me coming…notably not mentioned: Hilary. Hilary is actually something of a hero today. (I’m not even going to make a remark about packing your ice skates because hell has frozen over – that’s how sincerely I mean it.)

When’s the last time you drove a car? Christmas. But I will this weekend!!! I miss driving.

#BuckheadBetty

BBiT: Buckhead Betty in Training. Hop in, y’all!

How has the Wall Street crash affected you? Yes

Where do you go to be alone? I think if you’re sans mobile device, you’re pretty much alone. I leave mine at home when I run errands sometimes. NYC can be very isolating even when you’re surrounded by peeps. I am reminded of my going away party when people kept playing “All By Myself” – kinda mean, looking back.

What makes someone a New Yorker? I don’t know the answer to this just yet…I do know this city is not for everyone, and I think you’d probably know pretty much instantly if wasn’t a good fit. Me – I knew right away that moving here was my best decision of all of my decisions. This doesn’t say much, given my history of decision-making, but it feels good to get at least one right.

The End. (Credit: NYMag 21 Questions)

Now for the other stuff:

This corgi saw himself in the mirror for the first time and I die:

mirror image_corgi

If you love Friends the TV show even half as much as I do, you will appreciate these two compilations of the best, most quotable quotes and scenes. (Part one, Part deux)

The 13 Most Annoying Questions People Ask Dogs. This is very true and accurate and funny, and I already knew that dogs hate it when they’re asked them because Missy told me ages ago. She keeps me in the loop on stuff.

 “Where’s your bone?”

The 13 Most Annoying Questions People Ask Dogs

I missed y’all last week, so I wanted to write early this week. I plan to return on Thursday. Until then!

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People I Want to Punch in the Face

Posted by AllieB on August 16, 2012

Want: unlike the rest of the free world, I enjoy physically writing down my to-do lists as opposed to keeping track of tasks electronically. My reasons are twofold: first, it’s still way more satisfying to cross things off manually then check a little box on my Wunderlist app, and, second, I am continually amazed at how horrible my handwriting is, and it entertains me to see it degenerate with each passing day. A nice bonus of the latter is that sometimes I cannot read items on my list, therefore I cannot fault myself when they do not get done. Admittedly, a con is people getting a hold of these lists…but I found these highly personalizeable agenda/to-do books online, and I must purchase:

Before/After

May Books – choose from like a zillion patterns/colors/monograms – you can even choose what’s on the inside, you can even choose a “Bump Book” wherein you can paste pictures of your sonogram. I am fine with this because maybe if you are putting your sonogram in your Bump Book, you are not putting it on Facebook. Okay, retract…..I’m going to talk about this – I really don’t want to offend anyone, so please read carefully: I enjoy seeing/tracking baby progress of people I know and love; unfortunately I have, like, 2000 friends on Facebook (humble brag!) therefore am learning a LOT more information about people I vaguely knew in 2005 than I’d really prefer. However, isn’t it my fault for not tidying up my friend list? I’m sure the girl I sold ads with at the Red and Black has lots of friends who have a vested interest in her trimesters; it just isn’t me. But instead of berating her for daring to keep her loved ones informed, maybe it is beholden to me to take action. Facebook has become a highly public information-sharing arena – few people really understand the privacy settings, and I’m guessing many don’t even realize just how much info they’re actually putting out there. If you’re that offended, quit. There, I addressed the baby/Facebook issue. May it never be mentioned again. The people bitching are becoming just as obnoxious as the people about whom they are bitching. Besides, you do realize you can choose who does/doesn’t appear in your mini-feed…if you don’t want to see the stuff, simply remove the culprit. Or block them. No, blocking is stupid – just take a second and change your filters. Truly, it’s not rocket science.

And I thought I was just talking about monogrammed to-do lists?? That kind of went awry…

Moving along! I am getting very VERY excited about my imminent move to New York. Even watching the tourists in matching, ill-fitting, way-too-tight-around-the-neck orange t-shirts go bananas in the plaza of Studio 1-A in Rockefeller Center on the Today Show gets me excited. I might even do that one day. Who knows?! As Sister has pointed out, I think I’m really going to enjoy to anonymity of NYC…just me and my horrible sense of direction wandering around the city…which reminds me, I’m definitely going to need another phone charger to carry around on my person so I am never without gps and/or enough battery life to call Sister and leave her phone messages of me sneezing. I have a really loud sneeze.

Case in point: page two of notes from my meeting earlier this week with Emily about w.port…we were planning her grand opening event.

Don’t worry, Emily, I’ve got the invites under control. Seriously, I can read this just fine – I blurred the pic on purpose…you know, for effect.

BTW – I don’t really have a list of people I want to punch in the face. That’s a bit aggressive…I keep track of that stuff right up here {slow tap to my temple topper} – as if I’d be foolish enough to write names down.

PS – speaking of the R&B, I trust y’all saw that horrific column, “How to find that perfect husband in college” – I’ll tell you who won’t be guest-blogging on BBT: that girl. Vom to tha max. I wonder if she wrote that nonsense on purpose, going so over the top as to put herself on the map…if so, kudos, especially since she’s not even that good of a writer. BURN.

Thirsty Thursdizzle!

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Top 10

Posted by AllieB on July 13, 2012

When Lucy Chastain, owner of Xanadu Fine Art, a boutique art consulting firm, asked me to do a list of My Favorite Things for her company blog, I said, “sure!” And here it is. If you’re a devoted BBT reader, none of this will be brand new information…but for the sake of having two posts this week instead of one: happy reading.

1. Beverage: a summer time Shandy (credit; Carol Harrell). I like this southern (read: red-neck) spin on the English cocktail: light beer and frozen limeade. The alcohol content is very low, and it’s so refreshing – a perfect daytime, poolside beverage:

4 light beers to every can of frozen limeade. (I like Bud Light and Minute Maid Limeade).

Pour beer into a bowl, add limeade, mix. Voila.

Don’t let an aversion to watery light beer keep you from trying this tasty treat, but if you’re not convinced, I also love Moscow Mules (Esquire’s recipe).

 

2. Beauty: Oscar Blandi Dry Shampoo. The best of the best in this ever-growing market…everything else is just a knock-off.

3. Monthly Read: Vanity Fair. I love this magazine – it’s like the perfect hybrid of The Atlantic and People.

4. Trend: Neon. I’m not big on color, but I’ve come around on this…in small doses. Props to El and Caro for embracing neon so enthusiastically: respect.

Essie: off the shoulder

5. Dining: I love everything that has become the Westside in Atlanta – particularly the shopping (Free People, Anthropologie, Jonathan Adler) and the dining (JCT, Abattoir, Taqueria), but right now my favorite spot is The Optimist Fish Camp & Oyster Bar. It’s the newest venture from owners of JCT and No. 246 and is a great spot for cocktails, food, socializing…and maybe a few more cocktails. I actually wrote up a little review and posted it on Yelp – for reals, check it out. 

Photo from Atlanta Dish

6. Exercise: Flywheel/Flybarre. It’s as great as everyone says.

7. Travel: Australia. I studied abroad here in college and I look forward to going back someday. The Whitsunday Islands in between Sydney and The Great Barrier Reef are home to the most beautiful beaches I’ve ever seen, Whitehaven Beach in particular. In fact, it was recently named The Cleanest Beach in the World as well the Top Eco-Friendly Beach…so it’s got that going for it, which is nice.

The cool thing is that this is not a picture from Goog, but from my point and click disposable – it had like negative pixels and you can still tell how incredible this place is.

8. Easy Appetizer: Manchego cheese with honey. I fully intend to start cooking more one of these days, but til then I make-do with easy dishes that require zero preparation. This is a sure thing with pretty much any crowd – just be sure you have enough cheese.

To serve: One large piece of Manchego (I asked the guy at Whole Foods for a milder variety – there are several) on a platter with a bowl of honey for dipping/drizzling.

I suggest a cheese board and serving dishes from Scout for the Home.

 

9. Shop: Zara. I’ve never met a white blouse I didn’t like, and Zara always has several different styles at great  prices.

And it’s on sale! They’re having a huge sale right now, you should probably check it out. This actually pretty much sums up my uniform: jeans + white blouse.

10. Best Kept Secret: Full Cup Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies. They’re not even that bad for you – there’s no refined sugar or processed flour, but you’d never know it to taste one. I’m kind of a cookie snob, especially when it comes to chocolate chip, and I usually only like the homemade ones, but these are definitely an exception to the rule.

Honorable Mentions: pizza, Pour la Victoire pumps, Ryan Lochte, Game of Thrones, Lights by Ellie Goulding

This might be the most boring list I’ve ever read/written. That’s too bad, considering it’s about me…

Happy Weekend!!

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Chicken wings and truth bombs: because that’s what BBT does

Posted by AllieB on January 26, 2012

While I appreciate what this flowchart (I LOVE FLOWCHARTS) is trying to do, it has one fatally egregious error that I cannot get past. See if you can spot it (credit: Julia)

No? I’ll tell you. There is no mention – nary a one – of condiments. HelLO the best part about wings is the blue cheese (or ranch) dressing. Well, maybe not the best part, but a very significant perk – for me, wings are the vehicle that justifies consuming inappropriate amounts of BC dressing…and, for the record, my wing personality is Maple Chipotle Hot Wings. I totally saw that coming. This did get me excited for the Super Bowl. Often overshadowed by more popular foodie holidays, such as Thanksgiving, the Super Bowl is a great day to take advantage of one of my favorite food groups: glorified bar food. I’m not above a good mozzarella stick (Treehouse has excellent ones), but I’m all about trying a gourmet wing. Who’s organizing/cooking/hosting this year??

Thursday! Thursday is one of my favorite days of the week and also a great day for lists – like this one about stuff for which I was thankful. Today I share with you things that I know to be true… No gray (grey?) areas – just black and white truth bombs.

  • if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, talks like a duck…newsflash: it’s a duck
  • you really do have to drive 25 mph Peachtree Battle Ave – there is always a cop with a radar gun
  • change is hard…
  • doing a full minute wall sit is harder
  • if you think the rules of personal space apply to the table situation at the Peach Starbucks, well…you’d be wrong.
  • Carrie Bradshaw is a whiny narcissist
  • puppies will always make you feel better…cookie dough will, also
  • it is very validating to have double digit re-pins on Pinterest
  • age is nothing but a number…
  • I really am concerned about America’s youth – kids these days: their clothes, attitudes, everything…what a bunch of brats
  • if you think that cute, slightly older gentleman the next table over is smiling at you, well…you’d be wrong again – he’s smiling at his bratty daughter and his perfect looking wife, who are walking over to join him
  • red wine = friend. Also, foe.
  • how HOW is it still January!?
  • I’ll have what Hoda and Kathie Lee are having

Welp, that was random. Keep it real, ya heard?

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I’m just a girl, standing in front of a turkey, asking it to be delicious

Posted by AllieB on November 24, 2011

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

My initial plan was to do a sort of live-blogging situation of the Baxter Family Turkey Day – frequent updates with pics, shenanigans, what have you. I then realized that I do not know how to do that, so I’ll just do the one post. Currently, I am making whiskey sours and heating the Parmesan Pups (glorified pigs in blanket from Trader Joe’s), and I have on my fringe boots that are a treat for both the eyes AND the ears.

Today I am especially thankful for these things:

– Missy and my mom and dad and sisters and Stanton and my friends, new and old

– Baxter Bark Twice

– whiskey sours

- Holeman & Finch

– my new luggage by DvF – now I just need someplace to take it

– Revenge; not the practice, the TV show on ABC. Emily Thorn 4 eva

– Florence + the Machine

still thankful for The Devil Wears Prada – I now own the DVD, but I still rent it from Comcast every month. Which is really dumb.

– Georgia football…most of the time, anyway

Missy took this one of us – she’s surprisingly dexterous.

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