21 Questions

Some may know, some may not - I'm temping this week and so between waiting for the phone to ring and someone to assign me a task like faxing or copying, I have spent a good part of the day reading New York Magazine online.

After reading NY Magazine's 350 entries of "21 Questions" I felt doing one of my own. So here are my 21 Questions...

Name
Christina Algeciras

Age
31

Occupation
Temp, dog sitter, freelance designer and researcher, blogger, aspiring artist, aspiring yoga teacher and whatever else I can do to make a few bucks.

Neighborhood
Kensington, Brooklyn (yeah, nobody else knows where it is either)

Who's your favorite New Yorker, living or dead, real or fictional?
Realistically, probably my friends, cause I love em!

What's the best meal you've eaten in New York?
Too many to even say but anything at Da Ciro's ranks pretty high.

In one sentence, what do you do all day?
God only knows.

Would you still live here on a $35,000 salary?
Yes

What's the last thing you saw on Broadway?
Lots of people trying to cross the street.

Do you give money to panhandlers?
Sometime yes, sometimes no.

What's your drink?
Tea, water, beer or a vodka tonic (not all at once, of course).

How often do you prepare your own meals?
About 75% of the time and that includes reheating.

What's your favorite medication?
Sunshine, reggae yoga and glassy surf on a warm day.

What's hanging above your sofa?
Nothing, I have no wall behind my sofa.

How much is too much for a haircut?
Anything over $60.00 but I haven't cut my hair in over a year.

When is bedtime?
Usually too late.

Which do you prefer, the old Times Square or the new Times Square?
I'm not equipped to make that comparison, but I can say I generally avoid all of Times Square.

What do you think about Donald Trump?
Tacky.

What do you hate most about living in New York?
NYPD Traffic Police, endless construction on the BQE and the high cost of living.

Who is your mortal enemy?
I could not really say I have a mortal enemy but I don't care much for people who are mean or have attitude problems.

When's the last time you drove a car?
Last night, reparking on the Upper West Side.

Who should be the next president?
Someone who is not a "politician".

Times, Post or Daily News?
Times online when I have nothing else to do, but generally I avoid newspapers.

Where do you go to be alone?
Just about anywhere, but I have a spot in Central Park, a bench in Dante Square or a seat in my car for a drive to the beach.

What makes someone a New Yorker?
Knowing how to navigate through pedestrian traffic and standing on the street NOT on the curb when waiting to cross the street.

Music/Movie Monday - The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

So today we are doing a music/movie combo day. A couple of weeks ago I headed to my local Blockbuster and rented "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou". The movie is written and directed by Wes Anderson, who has written and directed a number of other films that are probably best described as quirky.

The movie is a black comedy starring Bill Murray, Owen Wilson and Angelica Huston (who is so fabulous and super cool in this movie) amongst many other notable actors. We meet Steve Zissou, an egotistical oceanographer whose career is fading. Steve's partner has been eaten by a jaguar shark and Zissou is determined to exact revenge. He gathers a crew and is off to a fantastical journey at sea.

I have seen the film before but it is one I can watch time and time again. The humor is offbeat, the story poignant and the film is shot in a strangely engaging and beautiful way. Somehow reminiscent of a grown up childhood fantasy.

In addition to being a great movie, there is also a fantastic soundtrack, particularly "The Life Aquatic Studio Sessions featuring Seu Jorge". Seu Jorge is a Brazilian singer and actor who acted and sang in the movie. Especially cool is Jorge's interpretation of David Bowie songs in Portuguese, which he sings solo with an acoustic guitar.

The cover of Bowie's "Oh! You Pretty Things" is so incredibly lovely. It makes you feel as though you could be transported to a lovely garden somewhere in the South of France or on the Italian Riviera, where you literally dream your days away lounging with a glass of wine in your hand.

Nothing like a little mental transportation on a grey, rainy, chilly NYC Monday.



Movie poster credit BLT & Associates

Random Thursdays - Fun Stuff

I have decided to write about any random topic on Thursdays so today I'm giving a big shout out to one of my new favorite bloggers. Funky Brown Chick is a blog about sex, dating and relationships and it's hilarious.

A couple of weeks ago I was searching the internet high and low for temp agencies in NYC. While looking for some more in depth information on NY staffing companies, I stumbled on this blog called Funky Brown Chick, the writer by her own admission is funky, brown and a chick - hence the name.

So I read the post about her employment situation and explored FBC's site a bit further. Funky Brown Chick has some hilarious posts like Manly Mondays - How to Hide an Erection and a variety of other highly entertaining entries.

Bonus points also go to FBC for her posts on Paul Walker. Nice to know I'm not the only grown woman with a celebrity crush! Ha ha ha!

So for some laughs, head over to Funky Brown Chick's site and tell her Christina sent you!

Work Wednesdays!

So the theme for Wednesdays is work, but I'm not talking about ordinary things. I'm going to blog about cool people who have amazing jobs.

This week one of my ambitions is to be the back up singer for the Rolling Stones. Last Sunday a friend and I went to go see the Rolling Stones IMAX movie. It was a seriously rocking movie! We almost felt like we were really at the show. It was actually tough to stay seated but we may have gotten kicked out of the movie theatre for dancing in the aisles. Those guys are soooo cool and they have so much energy!

So my friend decided she wants to be Keith Richards. Yes, I said she wants to be Keith Richards. So I'm gonna buy her a headscarf and a pirate pin. I think she could pull it off.

Since we were on the topic of fantasy jobs, I picked being the back up singer for the band. Lisa Fischer is the the back up singer for the band. She performed with so much charisma and looks like she's having a blast. So this week, I want to be Lisa and shake it with the Stones! If only I could sing!

It's Earth Day!

Since I have not quite figured out what Tuesday's theme will be, I just figured I would write about Earth Day.

I tend to get really taken with the beauty of our natural environment, it often leaves me breathless - especially in the last few months where I have taken the time to appreciate it all the more. Very often I can be caught at the beach going on and on and on about how gorgeous it is.

I started to write a post about a recent discussion I had with someone about conservation, but the whole sentiment of the debate is annoying me so I just deleted everything.

What I really want to say about Earth Day is that if you have a gift shouldn't you cherish it? The world is a treasure and why shouldn't we do what we can as individuals and a collective society to conserve it?

So in honor of Earth Day, I'm going to do some walking in the sun, some yogaing, some meditating and some art projects. Hope you do something nice too.

Post script
I sat in the sun in Bryant Park and I went to an Earth Day art event at the Creative Pier in Union Square, where I played with paint, glue, paper and scissors. It was fun.

Music Mondays - Turning Frowns Upside Down!

I have decided to try to put some structure to my blog and being that I am currently doing a bit of this and a bit of that for work, now is as good a time as any to get started. I am making Mondays either Music Monday or Movie Monday, I love both artistic formats so much that it makes it quite impossible to choose, so depending on my mood it may be one or the other, or even both.

This week, as you can tell by the title, it is Music Monday!

Now you may ask yourself, what can I write about music? Honestly, I'm no proper critic but I know what I like. I have had what some could classify as an obsession with music since I was a kid. I listened to my parents records of The Steve Miller Band, Strauss and Sergio Mendes as a little girl. I actually remember sitting on the floor by my parents records looking at album covers for what seemed like hours. And there was nothing better than when my mom would take us to the beach and we would listen to the Caribbean guys playing their steel drums.

When I was a bit older my dad introduced me to the artistry of Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones and Fleetwood Mac. We would get in the car, blast the music and just drive. Over the years I have developed a passion for music from all genres, from hip hop to punk rock to folk to reggae and so on.

Now I have had a few missteps in terms of my music choices in the past and like most people I have a few embarrassing tracks in my collection but really, who the hell cares. I can't help it, I really loved Wham!

I read a post by Jonathan Fields today "108 songs that’ll stop you from biting your cubicle-mate…or at least curb the urge!" and thought this would be a fitting way to start off Music Mondays. Jonathan lists his 108 favorite songs for changing his mood. I am not sure I could limit it to 108, for me it depends entirely what mood I'm trying to get in/out of and being that I'm a woman, you know that means LOTS of moods.

So Thursday I was in a super crappy and frustrated mood because of this whole job search and didn't wake up feeling much better Friday morning. I had a meeting in Manhattan, got in the car, plugged in the ipod and got on my way. I started to play the best music in the car and all of sudden I'm seeing it's a beautiful day, the sun is out, all of NY is in spring bloom and it's about 70 degrees. Perfect! And the cause of this sudden shift in perspective? Music. Rather, listening to the right music.

Here is my list of some of my current feel good music. Being that it's Monday shouldn't we talk about stuff that makes us feel good anyway? I'm talking about sun on your skin, warm breeze, no traffic, cruising around, weekend afternoon, chilled out happy.

Slightly Stoopid - Up on a Plane
Slightly Stoopid - Basher
Slightly Stoopid - Ain't Got a Lot of Money
Slightly Stoopid - Bandelero
Kings of Convenience - Live Long
Gipsy Kings - Djobi Djoba
Culver City Dub Collective - Crying Shame (Culver City Dub Remix)
Born Jamericans - Warning Sign
The Beautiful Girls - Music
The Beautiful Girls - Morning Sun
Ballyhoo! - Cali Girl

So I say get your ipod, cd player, tape player, record player or even 8 track player and put on your favorite happy time, sun shining, life is good tunes and enjoy the day. Happy Monday!

Cool As Sh*t Job

This morning I got up and got on my computer as I do most mornings. I checked my email and then checked my blog reader. For those who are not technically "with it", (usually I fall into that category too), you can use google or yahoo and probably some others to subscribe to a number of blogs. Then you can read all your favorite blogs at the same place rather than going to 35 different websites. Pretty handy.

I digress. Anyway, I get the all the job postings for Patagonia in my reader. Patagonia is a SUPER cool company that designs outdoor clothing and gear. They have been actively involved in environmental initiatives for over thirty years, it's about cherishing the natural world we all live in.

So this morning I'm reading their job postings, one was Surf Sales Representative - East Coast, the other was Surf Sales Manager. The Surf Sales Manager reports to the "Director of Surf" - how freaking cool is that?! Imagine you are meeting some people and going through the usual what do you do for a living nonsense and you can say "Yeah I work for Patagonia", then comes the "Oh what do you do there?" and you can reply "I'm the Director of Surf." Too cool.

If I was inclined to move to California at this stage, I'd be all over these jobs!

Just sharing!