Califor-ni-a

Here's something I did to occupy my time on my flight from LAX to JFK this past weekend. It's part of a thank you present for the most amazing host a girl could ask for. (just pencil done in my trusty Moleskin)

My Mom and Her Leaf Blower: Caught On Tape...err Satellite

To say that my mom is a neat freak would be the understatement of the century. She is almost constantly cleaning our house or the yard, and there is never a speck of dust or stray leaf to be found. As a matter of fact, just the other day I was having a discussion with her about tattoos, as I would love to get one that representative of her. Her response was, "Well Meg, there are really four things you could get: a monkey [a decorating passion of hers], a rake, a vacuum, or a leaf blower." Not to say that these things are really symbolic of who she is as a person, but they are certainly representative of the things she does most (besides running). She has actually given herself tennis elbow from raking. For real.

Anyway, to get to the point of this post: My mother obsessively blows the leaves in our yard. Actually, she usually doesn't blow leaves, because there are rarely any around. My dad refers to it as "vacuuming the driveway," because she is, most often, just blowing dust and dirt around into piles. She actually uses her leaf blower so much that she wears it down until it breaks. Never fear though, because she owns two leaf blowers for this very occasion. While the broken one is being repaired, she has a trusted backup on hand.

Knowing all of this, you can only imagine how incredibly amused I was when I received an email from my sister telling me to Google map my parents' house and check out the satellite image. This is what I found:
I don't know if you can see it from here, but THAT IS MY MOM IN THE DRIVEWAY BLOWING LEAVES! Amazing. I think myself, my sister, and my dad almost laughed until we cried. Thank you, Google Maps, for making my week.

Sidenote: Unfortunately, you can't see close enough to appreciate the fact that she is also wearing her official yard uniform, which features white ankle socks and Birkenstocks. My mom is truly one of a kind. Man, I love her.

Kitten Mittens

If I was having a bad day, I'm not anymore. This video just made me laugh until I cried and almost hyperventilated at my desk. For real.

Inspired by another song I came across recently. (Check it out here here.)

My Life: A Diagram

Guess who couldn't sleep again last night? Oh that's right, me. Here's what I did instead (in between reading Harry Potter).

Strawberry Swing

My roommate, the lovely Kara Schmidt, passed this video to me this morning. It's incredible. That's pretty much all I have to say about it, other than it makes me want to go out and draw with sidewalk chalk immediately. So sweet.



(via BlackEiffel, via Stereogum)

Home is wherever I'm with you <3

This song by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros is the sweetest thing I've heard in a long, long time. I have been listening to it on repeat all day (and I will probably do the same tomorrow). They even mention Arkansas at the beginning. Win.



I highly recommend checking out all of their stuff, if you haven't already. Also, they travel around in a converted school bus with their name on the side. I mean, really, what's not to love?

3 Seconds of Fame

Mischief Maker's Manual, a book I designed, got a few seconds of recognition on Good Morning America this week! It's a book about pranking, written by the ultimate prankster, Sir John Hargrave. I know I'm a dork, but it was pretty exciting to see this book on TV, even if it was only for a millisecond. Check out the link below to see the clip:

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Books/story?id=7959719&page=1

Jones Beach: An Epic Journey

My friend and I went to Jones Beach this weekend to reconnect with our inner teenagers and see No Doubt. It was awesome. However, being that I am a total dingbat when it comes to navigation, I managed to turn the trip into a hilarious adventure. I quickly made a flow chart (see below) to chronicle my day.


I wasn't feeling well on Saturday, so I will blame the events that transpired largely on my NyQuil-induced stupor...

I left my apartment, hopped on the L train, and transferred to the 1 train at 6th Ave. However, I absentmindedly transferred to the uptown 1, not the downtown 1. So, I got off at 23rd St. and headed back downtown. From there, I managed to completely zone out and/or fall asleep; I missed my transfer at Chambers St. and rode the 1 all the way to South Ferry. So, I stayed on the train and went back uptown to Chambers and got on the 2 train.

An hour and a half or so later, I made it to Flatbush, and Sarah and I got on the LIRR, headed to Freeport. Once we arrived there, we realized we had no idea where we were going. There was no beach in sight, and after wandering around Main Street and getting nowhere, I phoned for help from my sweet friend, Chad. He directed us to a bus that would take us to the beach. We happily climbed aboard, and we were on our way. However, we weren't sure where to get off. Consequently, we missed our stop and realized we were on our way back to Freeport. Yep, we rode all the way to the beach and back—without getting off. (This was also the exact moment that I realized I had left my concert ticket sitting on my couch. Awesome. Thank goodness for the lovely customer service rep at Live Nation who sent another ticket to Will Call for me.) We rode back to the beach, and the bus driver made sure we got off at the right stop. (He got a good laugh out of it.)

We were so excited to be at the beach, until we realized that it was CLOSED DUE TO LIGHTNING. Seriously!? As a consolation, we ate chicken fingers and french fries at Friendly's, which were quite delicious. Then, the beach reopened, and we relaxed on the sand.

After a few hours in the sun, we headed over to the show. Both of us could not wait to see No Doubt. We had purchased our tickets months ago. Oh, and guess what? When we bought them, we never thought about buying them together so that we could sit together—we were seated in totally different sections. (Again, seriously?!) We sadly went to our separate seats.

I was so bummed, but I eventually managed to sneak over to Sarah's section, and we got to see the show together.

So, all in all, it was an awesome day. No Doubt was amazing, and it ended up being quite an adventure.

Forever

I just got back from a trip to Indianapolis, where my dad had a heart procedure. (He refuses to classify it as surgery, even though I'm pretty sure that's totally what it was.) He is doing well, and I want to thank everyone for their warm words and thoughts. My family and I are so lucky to be surrounded by such an amazing support group.

A few years back, my dad became obsessed with the Chinese symbol for "forever." (He loved the meaning, and he thought it kind of resembled the letter K, for Ken.) In a Prince-like fashion, he signs it on everything he sends to me. Anyway, this song lyric made me think of him. This project kept me busy while he was in surgery, much to my mother's chagrin—apparently I'm not good company while I'm messing around on the computer.

Ft. Alafia Antiques & Country Store

(Front)

(Back)

I designed this business card this week for a store that Haylie's mom and aunt are opening in Florida. Haylie, her mom, and her aunt are all insanely talented ladies, and I'm sure the store will be super cute. You should check it out if you're ever in the area! (They open this month.)

Playground Love

This is the kind of stuff I do when I can't sleep. Some people have Ambien, I have Micron pens, paper, and a lyric from a song that has been stuck in my head for days.

Cupcakes, Graphic Design, and Random Musings

So, I decided to start a blog (obviously). I am using this space primarily to keep up with my baking addiction. (Hence the "ABC" for "Always Baking Cupcakes.") I will explain:

When I was a freshman in college, I was extremely upset at the prospect of celebrating my 19th birthday without one of my mom's homemade birthday cakes. Eating one of her creations every year on January 19 was a tradition, and not having one suddenly made me feel very homesick. But fear not, because Sarah, Jamie, and Julia came to the rescue. The got me not one, but two, birthday cakes that year. A cookie cake and a regular cake. Oh happy day.

From that year forward, I decided that I would bake birthday cakes for all of my friends on their birthdays, and so my baking obsession was born. (Okay, I admit that it might also have something to do with my complete addiction to eating desserts, but I'll save that issue for another day.) Whatever the reason, I just really love to bake.

So, all of my lovely friends, if your birthday is approaching and you want cake, let me know! (I tend to be on the forgetful side sometimes, so a reminder never hurts.)

On an unrelated note, I had the honor of baking the groom's cake for my friends' wedding a couple of weeks ago. These two people, Halli and Adam Smith, are definitely up there on my list of favorites. They are actually the people who nicknamed me Meggs Benedict. I can't think of a more perfect couple, and I am so thankful to have them in my life. Their wedding was incredible. The cupcakes I made are below. (Special thanks to Clare Ward for the photo.)



And here's a sweet photo of Adam and Halli taken by the incredibly talented Josh Goleman.


Yes, they are probably the cutest people I know. I love them. Congratulations!