why did that link not work

I hope this works if not google coolhunting.com/culture/papergirl.php
or papergirl berlin, because that is actually where the idea began !

Papergirl Inspires Me to do Good

So in looking for something on line i came across this website and am thrilled to say i got me thinking of something that i could do that didn't just mimic Papergirl but had a charity angle to it as well.

Papergirl operates in a growing number of cities and gives away artwork.

Around Valentine's day i was in a Goodwill looking for ( yes still looking for the ABC murder books, see previous posts ) and i ended up in the T shirt aisle thinking look at all these hundreds of t shirts, so many logo's , so many " work related" give aways. In Los Angeles it seems like the number of t shirts made for any given movie must be exponential to the profit margin. Long story short it just stayed with me, so many people need free shirts but they can't actually get in the stores to get them.
That was when the Papergirl idea and the Brand You project came together !
I'm pledging to buy at least 100 t shirts in May, wash them, Tag them ( Nick o's coming up with the logo for our project)

We are going to make the act of giving the art ! ( and we want the emphasis to be on the person not the Logo's )

Our manifesto is " Not the Logo, You !)

so stay tuned for more Visuals as i get ready for my first May delivery !

The Hunt for letter C proves to difficult.....

I'm thinking that this hunt for Letter C in the Susan Grafton series, see previous post, is to hard.........Would the blog followers be mad if i said i would start collecting them out of order?
please advise, i wouldn't want the blog followers to think i cheated !

Does the world need another mineral makeup ?

The answer yes!
Go buy Almay's wake-up mineral makeup right now !
First off , remember when you were a kid and some novelty toys were more about texture than actual fun. Like silly putty,and that weird jelly that was all about the squeakiness.....well this makeup is like that.

Its a powder, looks like a powder, goes on the brush like a powder, touches your face and damn if it isn't liquid !
It is the coolest thing !

They have a brush tucked neatly into the top that is not only cool looking, it is fully functional ! This is a highly and well engineered product launch !
Using the Almay brush makes the product go on with a bit more precision, its neater,and you waste less.

Seriously i didn't know anything about the product when i popped into beloved CVS yesterday morning but I know everything i need to know now !
Go get some , for under 10.00 you get a very nice look,and have fun doing it !
If that isn't what make up is about then what is !

Hunt for the letter C

You know how it is , the minute you say I've noticed this ,,,damn if that won't break the pattern.

It seemed like a fairly cute and fast idea based on how many Sue Grafton books I'd seen in the " thrifts", until i posted it that is and then apparently everyone ran out and scooped them up. Three thrift stores into it , Arlene, friend and doyenne of thrift stores, finally spotted a small ( i think they call them trade paperbacks)version of letter B ! I didn't make it a rule to rule out those cheesy rack paperback versions,only because i didn't even think she was published in that format, i really hate that size, but since i was in no position to choose to just get letter b , I'm allowing it in the rules !

We did a lovely job of tidying and organizing several shelves over there at the Glendale Goodwill and although letters much further down were there, no C, was present, so the hunt continues.

Well dear readers, you can expect this one to go on for a while, Ms Grafton is on letter U and at this speed she will be well through any numerical series before i complete this challenge ! If it continues this slow, i may have to go upstairs and route through the stacks of books i have at home and possibly allow any i have into said challenge !

Will keep you updated, I am pleased to say that i did beat my previous 81 books read in 2009 ( audio and in print )so the 2011 number to beat is now 83 ! What am i doing on the laptop , i better get in the car and start that audio !

Here is to an amazing 2011 for all of us, and letter C , I'm looking for you baby !

Book Hunt 2010-2011

It's impossible to ever go into a thrift store and not see at least 2 or 3 Sue Grafton books. I started thinking she must be one of the most beloved authors in the country ( and prolific !), so i made an invisible challenge in Sept that i am going to try and buy the entire series but with certain conditions.

Condition # 1: I can only buy them in thrift stores .

Condition #2: I have to buy them only in alphabetical order.

Condition #3: If i have any at home or have read any , that won't count. Still need to search for them and then read them in alphabetical order. Gifts of any of these would also NOT count.

Condition #4: Must log where they were bought.

So dear readers, its now November 27th and it has taken that long to find the first.
Written in 1982 "A is for Alibi" begins the treasure hunt for all of Ms Grafton's books in this series. Letter T book is due to drop on November 30th , but of course by the time i get to T it will be in all the thrift stores I'm sure !

Stay tuned for the treasure hunt as we head into 2011 !

A is for Alibi: 11/27/10 Discovery Thrift Shop Burbank

Divinity in a Donut

To say I wish i had thought of the Maple Bacon Donut idea is putting it mildly !
Having been a lover of all things Maple since being a kid i did start to get discouraged when my co workers actually had to tell me that my yearly " gift" of maple sugar candies were not only not liked they dreaded me bringing them back to them every summer. Sold only in a small amount of north east gift shops, they are in fact sugar drenched in maple flavor and then pressed like bricks into tooth breaking
replica's of mini maple leaves. Apparently another one of those things maybe you had to be raised on.

I am pretty sure i am the only household in Los Feliz that has not one but two bottles of Mapeline in my pantry. If there was every a retro product its Mapeline, as dark as the black hole and I'm pretty sure its deep maple essence has absolutely nothing to do with the real thing. I wouldn't be surprised to find out its totally a byproduct of an oil spill, its that black in its tiny bottle, but nothing will kick up that packet oatmeal like a single drop !

But back to heaven on earth ! Last week Nick and i went for the newly famous Maple Bacon donut at the Nickel Diner and we were beyond ecstatic. Its just like the best thing in the world and worth every calorie !
I would even venture to say, and idea that could be replicated at home with a 6 pack from Dunkin donuts and a pack of that pre cooked Oscar Myer its that good of an idea to steal ! I mean don't get me wrong the Nickel one is HUGE, the donut itself is already above any donut standard set , and there was no whiff of fake Mapeline in their product, however they open at 8:00 and i was up at 6:00 today, so a girl has to make due. The only thing is donut shops /LA /Maple, its totally not the same. Dunkin ( when they have them in stock , and by the way corporate guys at Dunkin, when the hell did not having maple donuts in your bins 24/7 start? Move those lousy white bagels out and get back to your namesake ! ) If i lived next to a Dunkin, I can tell you i would wear them out about that, they are just so lucky I'm a visitor because that's just wrong !) but i digress...

So not only did we try the Maple Bacon donuts, the Nickle diner has amazing other flavors as well. Nick said the Nutella which did look like a small fist, was even better the next day. That should tell you we didn't just " try" them, we basically stole the stock they would let us have that morning ! Ricky's grandmother used to serve him leftover stale donuts squished flat in a pan grilled in butter. I'm telling you don't turn your nose up until you have tried that ! It can turn a supermarket plain carton into something dinner party worthy !

Its so fantastic to see such creativity on an item we would consider so mundane, so thank you to all the creative chefs out there ( and all the frugal grandmothers !)
So lets take our inspiration from unlikely places and go get crackin in the kitchen !