Peanutbutter Pandemonium

This post's title is named after the Steward's ice cream flavor I had on the way home from my adventures this weekend with my adventure-er in crime Maria and I find it very fitting to describe my mind after the bombardment of art classics. We traveled over into the Berkshire mountains and somehow ended up in Impressionist Paris! The Sterling and Francine Clark Institute (aka The Clark) acts as a wormhole between here and France and if you stand long enough in front of Giovanni Boldini's art and squint in just the right light, you risk never returning.

Panorama Bonanza

I just spent a very amusing half hour figuring out my new Panorama Maker. It's stitches photos together like magic and even though you can edit the borders for a smooth finish I actually prefer the collage look the black background gives. The first view is Lake Champlain in Burlington, VT and the second is on a trail at Five Rivers in Delmar, NY

Happy Birthday Maria!

To celebrate Maria's 23rd we traveled to Deutschland for a pint of the best brew around. The beirgarten was a magical land with mountains of peanuts, papermache trees and antler lighting fixtures. Not to mention you can drink out of your shoes (with a little practice of course)

Siamo in Arrivi a New Paltz!

I knew I had to get out of the house this weekend. Cabin fever was definitely setting in and I need a sure fix, a visit to New Paltz, NY where my belle amiche that I met in Urbino, Italy go to school. There with snowtubing at Sawkill, hot chocolate, soup, pastries, vino bianco, a scrumptious dinner, and a taste of the NP nightlife my fever finally broke and I was ready to face another week of the grind. It's great to know that just an hour down the thruway lies my avenue for adventure!

Washington the Tiger and Saint Valentine got to the Mardi Gras Parade and left with Ashes.

This weekend has been a whirlwind of little known holidays and the big commercial giant, Valentine's Day. For my handsome boyfriend I crafted a pop-up card inspired by my friend Maria's make-up case from Sephora. Since Alice in Wonderland is his favorite book I figured it was kismet. It was a tricky business but I had fun recreating the Lewis Carroll characters.

From the rabbit hole we toured the strange adventures that Albany, NY has to hold. It was impossible to pass Washinton Park without stopping to skate infront of the beautiful theatre house. Good thing I always keep (forget) my skates in the backseat of my car. It was a very classic 'goodoldtime' way to pass the afternoon with the sun just peaking out of the snowy sky. The rest of the after noon was spent in the NY State Museum which is quite large and windy and filled with slightly creepy mannequins representing the industrial history of my new state. Some gems are the found hidden on the fourth floor, the antique carousel and the rocketcar, two must-sees.