Awwwwww....... 

May cause giggling

No, I'm not on strike, just a bit lazy and out of inspiration lately. Thanks to a good friend (hi Mo!), though I have found something I think everyone will enjoy. This site is full of cute pics, but even more full of funny photoshop experiments and captions. I especially reccomend the link to "kitten wars" and the feature, "cute or sad?"

 

Changing of the (breakfast) Guards

In the last few months, I have developed a habit. No, not that kind of habit. I have been buying a banana every morning from a vendor on the corner on the way to work. It costs just 25 cents, and goes very well with my morning cereal at work. Also, if laundry looms on the horizon, I can just pay for the banana with a dollar a few times and get all the quarters I need in just a few days.

Well, I have noticed this week that my morning vendor is gone, replaced with one of those coffee/doughnut guys in a metal box. I thought this might be just one corner, but today I took a different train to work and my secondary banana guy was now replaced with a doughnut box as well. Looks like it is just too freakin' cold for fresh fruit (or fresh fruit vendors) to stay outside. Nothing in that doughnut box is a quarter. I hope my laundry can wait till spring.

Jdate is so gay! 

Oy Gay!

Well, maybe you didn't hear this first, but I think I have mentioned to enough people my disdain for the fact that Jewish internet dating service, JDate, does not do same-sex matching. Well, now they do. Now Jewish mothers of gays and lesbians can go back to harping on that same point...but is s/he Jewish?

Of course I'll still be railing against the fact that they charge $35/mo to join. I highly recommend free(or pay per email) internet dating as a fun way to meet people, go on dates, compile some funny cocktail party stories, and maybe meet someone great. I did.

Kazakhstan...world leader and plaintiff against fictional charactors. 

Fictional Character Offends Eastern Nation

Did anyone else notice the huge travel advertisement section in the Weekend Times about Kazakhstan? Apparently, the goverment of this nation is offended by its portrayal by the FICTIONAL character Borat on "Da Ali G" show, and this ad in theTimes is their way of showing the world the "true" character of their homeland. They are also suing the actor who plays Borat! Even reading this article on the whole saga only makes it seem more ridiculous. Borat's response can be found on his website.

Did anyone else notice the huge travel advertisement section in the Weekend Times about Kazakhstan? Apparently, the goverment of this nation is offended by its portrayal by the FICTIONAL character Borat on "Da Ali G" show, and this ad in theTimes is their way of showing the world the "true" character of their homeland. They are also suing the actor who plays Borat! Even reading this article on the whole saga only makes it seem more ridiculous. Borat's response can be found on his website.

Good Morning Sam! 

Morning Celebirty Encounter

As I braved the insane cold this morning, I could hardly keep my eyes open. As I approached my office, I opened up in a sigh of relief when who do I see? Sam Waterson. Yeah celebrity sightings! Maybe it's an omen. But for what? The Law & Order Marathon over Thanksgiving, maybe? Oh well, happy turkey day everyone. Whimper and Whine to your families and friends, just like the pilgrims did with the Native Americans.

You've Been Warned

My birthday is November 28th. That is next Monday, the day after you get back from whatever Thanksgiving fun you are having in or out of town. I turn 28 which, I hear from my midwestern friends, means it is my golden birthday. Gifts of gold, chocolate covered with gold paper, gold stars for good behavior, books on the gold rush, trips to the gold coast, shopping sprees with your gold card or anything else gold (well almost anything) will be accepted.

Alternately, I will accept hugs and well wishes in lieu of gold.

Forget the Registry. This is the wedding gift you need. 

More On Marriage/Moron Marriage

I've been thinking about marriage a lot lately. First, the pandas (see below). Then I became slightly obsesesed with the tear-jerking wedding show First Comes Love on Logo. Now I have come across this helpful book . I guess I'll put it in my hope chest.

I now pronounce you....pandas. 

Panda Marriage Hurts us all.

Pandas need health insurance and tax breaks too. As long as their not gay pandas.

Baruch Ata Spaghetti Monster 

Flying Spaghetti Monster...Now in Beany Form

When the emails about the Flying Spaghetti Monster went around, I was completely enamored. I almost considered joining this religion dedicated to a flying spaghetti monster in the sky. (If you are looking for guidance in your religious or spiritual path, check it out here.) Now I see that you can have your very own spaghetti monster, in squeezable, pet-able, lovable (with no possibility of sauce stains) form. Shouldn't every deity be available as a stuffed animal?

She's pretty. Who's that? 

She looks familiar. 

Oh, that's Michelle Trachtenberg. 

The Buffy Sightings Continue

Friday night at Vynl I saw Michelle Trachtenberg. Who's that you say? Why, she was Dawn on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. She was the little sister who suddenly appeared in season 5 as a teenager and turned out to be the key to the whole universe staying together. How could you not remember?

She was also Macauly Culkin's girl/friend in My Girl, Harriet the Spy, Penny in Inspector Gadget, Celeste in Six Feet Under, and of course she was the lead in Disney's Ice Princess. And yes, you can read the details of her career here.

I think she is really beautiful in person. Huge smile, long wavy dark hair, very elegant for a teen.

So now that I have seen both Willow and Dawn, can Buffy be far away? Stay tuned for pics of me and Sarah Michelle soon.

Oh, great. 

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

That's how I feel about Fridays sometimes. Of course they are the best because the weekend is just hours away, and by the time you read your emails and take your lunchbreak, you only have a few measly hours to waste before you are free until Monday.

Unfortunately, sometimes those measly hours are worse than the actual hours you spent in bed as a child with measles. Yes, I know everyone gets vaccinated now, and I never had measles either, but you get the idea. The waiting sucks.

It doesn't help when the morning commute is like today. How can a fire in the West Village make the F train turn into a G and go to Queens? You think you are going to Manhattan and then all of a sudden you are in Queens, that is just unfair. As if the G isn't enough of a joke when you are actually intending to ride it, an F turning into a G during the morning commute is like a VCR (something I never use but still keep around for the occasional return to VHS) turning into a betamax (something i never use and never want to use-what is beta anyway?).

Autumn Fun

Now that the rain that has saturated the city, and my life, for the over a week is over, I finally was able to have some autumn fun this weekend. I went apple picking up in the Hudson Valley, and it was just as fun as always. Apples, cider, doughnuts, and they even had a few farm animals to visit. Who knew my day would be brightened by a pig and a goat?

We went to Wilklow Orchards in New Paltz, which I highly recommend, but they're only open till Halloween so get pickin'! We picked Macoun, Cortland, Janagold, Rome and Golden Delicious. Macoun was the favorite as it was surprisingly tart, but it sure is fun to say Janagold.

I hope autumn in the city was fun this weekend too. Here's to a rain-free week.

Guess Who's Reading WhimperandWhine?

Imagine my suprise while ready my daily blogs, only to find reference to whimperandwhine. Thanks Daily Slope!

Wave Riders! 

You know a hotel's classy when....... 

Check me out! 

Remember Summer?

I guess it's not hard to remember summer when its still in the 70s on October 3rd (yeah!). But I just got my photos developed from my summer vacation in North Carolina where I conquered my fear and actually swam in the ocean. Check me out! And check out Erin and Shawn demonstrating how to ride a wave. Maybe next year that will be me.
What should be the next fear I conquer?

My Rock and My Redeemer 

Redeem Me.

I'm so lucky! Right on the corner near my girlfriend's apt is this convenient Redemption Center. Now I can make up for all my sins right on the way to and from the subway! And just in time for Yom Kippur.

geek power! 

Soduk-u? Soduk-me.

Thanks to my brother-in-law for introducing me to a new way to procrastinate, avoid work and ignore music/arguing/bad breath/proselytizing on the subway. It's called Soduku, and it seems like I may be the last nerd to hear about it. Anyway, its like a crossword puzzle with numbers. It promises no math involved. You can play for free in the NY Metro paper (finally a reason to take one of those) or online here. Enjoy and please keep the teasing to a minimum.
-Anita

I have always thought this was hilarious. Just thought I'd share the fun. Shout out to Gretl who originally introduced me to this great little photo. 

Not Yet!!!!!!!! 

Summer may be over

Summer may be over as of Labor Day, but I am ready to embrace the fall. I just had some old photos developed and this one reminded me about how bad the weather really can be. This is the view from my front door of my old apartment after a blizzard in January of 2004. But fall is not bad as all that. Fall is cute sweaters, changing leaves, apple picking, apple cider, other apple related things, wearing your favorite jeans again, crisp mornings and breezy evenings. It's fun, and so much less sweaty/smelly than summer. What do you look forward to this fall before the snow comes in?

My apartment as it appears today. 

Hole Sweet Hole

It has been months (10 to be exact) since I moved out of my 1-bedroom on 5th avenue and Garfield place to make room for the controversial Commerce Bank. As time has gone by I saw the building abandoned, the roof removed, the building torn down, and a huge hole created in its place. Here is what the site looks like today. Looks like the last thing this neigbhorhood needs is another ______. Bank? Baby? Boutique? What is the last thing park slope needs?

All the things she said...were not true. 

What I really want to be blogging about is that I went on a vacation to North Carolina. But, I am waiting for my pictures to be developed, and it seems to be a longer process than I originally realized. Sorry about leaving up that roll of toilet paper as the only whimper and wine news for a while. In the meantime...

Remember TaTu? Remember when they performed at the MTV Movie Awards with a hundred girls dressed in schoolgirl outfits who then stripped to underwear and made out? It's all about class.

Well, they are back, and like many of those who experience a same-sex relationship while in school, they are no longer gay. Oh well, I never judge. I just don't know what their music and videos will be about this time around. They have a new album out, so if anyone downloads it, let me know if it's any good. I didn't care if the music last time was overproduced and based on a fake lesbian relationship, it was sure a good cd to bring to the gym.

Is This Really Necessary? 

Oh Canada! 

Those Crazy Canadians

So, this past weekend (I love how my summer weekends include Thursday and Friday) I went to visit some friends in Western, NY-Rochester to be exact. While the University of Rochester tour by my friend (an alum) was fun, and eating what are called "garbage plates" (a UofR tradition involving macaroni salad, beans, home fries, burgers, onions and of course mystery sauce) were both fun, the highlight was our trip to Canada. We saw Niagara Falls, which was just as impressive and even more wet than expected. I also unsuccessfully gambled $10 into 0. The most unexpected part of my trip to Canada was the superfluous use of the word 'beaver' and images thereof. The picture above was taken at a gas station. I guess the gas company is called Beaver. There were even signs reading "Beaver-working hard for your money." Sadly, these were neon and did not make good photos.

Two For One 

Two-Two-Two Memories in One

A recent conversation went like this....

"so when I have to pee, and it's not coming, I just think back to this beautiful waterfall I saw as a kid. It was the most amazing waterfall I've ever seen, so beautiful...and then I start to pee."

What a convenient, efficient, double-bang-for-your-mental-buck memory. You get to think of a fond childhood memory, envision a beautiful waterfall, plus the pee. I wish more memories could be evocative and practical.

Thanks Coney.

After 7 (yes, non-consecutive) years living in NYC, I have finally visited Coney Island, or as friends call her-just Coney. I guess somewhere in my head I just could not believe you could take the subway right to the beach. And, given my huge fear of the ocean, I didn't really want to find out. Well, you can. The train is just a block from Nathan's, and then it's just a couple more blocks balancing act with a chili dog in one hand and a large lemonade in the other until you are officially on the beach having the Coney experience. I also played some serious ski-ball. Of course, I picked up my ski ball skills on the Jersey shore, but it's nice to know New Yorkers appreciate a sport where you through wooden balls down a lane in exchange for plastic rings and bracelets, novelty erasers, and dare-I-only-hope.. a really fun toy like the kaleidoscope I took home for just 40 tickets! I also had a nice time walking on the beach and even put my feet in the water without hyperventilating. I'm so proud of myself.

Coney, thanks for a great day.

rest in peace...on a bed of wonder bread