This route has tolls.

Go to Google Maps.

Click on Get Directions.

In A, Type Japan.

In B, Type China.

Press Enter.

Scroll to step 43.

Giggle as much as I did.

If you couldn't figure out those foolproof steps, just click here.

Hope you packed your jet ski!

peaceloveandgchat.

C

Fred's.

MCG was in town again for work last night! So great to catch up. I love when people visit, it is a great excuse to try new places I've been dying to go.

Last night we hit up Fred's at Barneys. I know it might sound weird to take an out-of-towner to a department store for dinner (don't worry, I judged myself too), but I have heard great things about Fred's so I decided to check it off my list! And honestly, of all department stores to have dinner. . .BARNEYS. Please.

To start off, I really loved the atmosphere. It was cozy and cool.





Our very enthusiastic (a little much at times) waiter brought us a bottle of pinot, we each ordered a salad (caprese for me, beet and goat cheese for MCG), then split the Wise Guy flatbread with mozzarella, tomato and ground hot & sweet sausage. Yum!

Definitely want to head back here - maybe a lunch shopping break?

peaceloveandfred.

R

your fav day!

I woke up this morning to this email from my mom:

From: Mom
To: R
Subject: your fav day!

halloween on the today show, hope you can see them in costume! guess matt's out of town. hmmmm, planned?

CLEARLY my mom knows my obsession with the Today Show, as I would wake up early in high school so I could watch Arthur (yes, the aardvark) and then Katie & Matt on Today.

I DO love the Halloween episode because they always have amazing costumes.

This year:



Highlights: Natalie Morales as Biebs (bahaha), Meredith as Lady Gaga (duh), Al as Superman. They also threw in Will Ferrell and Tina Fey. . .not sure why but I like it. Not super creative, but I can never say a bad thing about this bunch. Ha.

To check out the (funny) segment on the Today Show, click here.

I wish I had a seamstress, hair and makeup crew to help me out with my costume this weekend!

peaceloveandgchat.

R

Celebrity Sighting.

Sorry for yet another (oops) post about Girl & the Goat, but last night was too amazing to not talk about.

KS and I arrived right on time for our 7:15 reservation last night, and we were seated immediately. The place was buzzing - 20- and 30-somethings hanging out at the bar (which, by the way, is so handsome), and all the tables seemed to be full. We sat down and I immediately noticed how CUTE their goat mascot is! It's all over the menu, napkin holders, and on the back of a little wooden clipboard that your check comes on.



Adorable.

Now on to our INCREDIBLE dinner. We started out with the chicpea fritters with heirloom tomatoes and fresh mozzarella. Hummus underneath. Insane. Could have eaten 60 of these little guys.


Next up was roasted cauliflower with pickled peppers, pine nuts and mint. This cauliflower was CRACK. Seriously. I couldn't put my fork down.


KS ordered the sauteed shrimp with peanut pork ragout, shiitake and spaghetti squash. Looked awesome, but I am allergic to shellfish (this is a new development, and it really really stinks).

We ended our din with grilled beef short ribs, edamame with scallion vinaigrette. YUM! The edamame was delicious with the scallion vinaigrette. Perf.


To top off the night, we saw Top Chef Stephanie Izard in the kitchen! ! ! Celeb sighting for sure.

Really excited to get back there! I guess I should make my reservation now if I want to get in within the next few months?!

peaceloveandthegoat.

R

Disclaimer: I did not take the photos of the food. . .thanks Google Image.

It's finally here!

I made this reservation MONTHS ago and the day has finally come.

I'm meeting up with my friend KS for dinner at Girl & the Goat tonight! ! !


So pumped. I'll let you know how it is!

peaceloveandgchat.

R

World Zombie Invasion

HLR was on her way to work this AM and while driving her usual route, casually passed a group of Zombies. Yes, you read correctly. A bunch of dead walking people, strolling down the street. Why, you ask? Oh, just the World Zombie Invasion to promote the new show The Walking Dead.

If I was HLR, I would have been terrified.

Some pics of these Zombies terrifying innocent citizens of the world....

Istanbul, Turkey...

Buenos Aires, Argentina...

Munich, Germany...

Athens, Greece...

I guess PR is being taken to a whole new level these days. Either that or they just want to scare the living daylight out of people right before Halloween.

Should be interesting to see if their plan works out!

peaceloveandzombies.

C

Easy J.

Alright, now that I'm back in the swing of reality (and by that i mean not consuming my life with ordering things online from Bed Bath and Beyond and Home Depot), I can devote my attention to what really matters: Gossip Girl. And equally as important, the Daily Intel Reality Index.

Realer Than a Teenage Boy Gratuitously Using the Word "Shuttlecock"

• Blair: "What have we here? Bed unslept in. Hair in missionary disarray. Yesterday's dress with today's shame all over it." Plus 4 for a morning-after description so vivid we felt greasy looking at Serena for the whole first half of the episode. -----AAAAAAAGREED. I primarily laughed here because it was so realistic that Serena was still in her room and her bed was made. Of COURSE Serena wouldn't wake up and make her own bed. As for Serena's greasiness/sluttiness, I feel like that's expected.

• The scary music leading up to the first shot of Jenny Humphrey seemed over the top until her goth child prostitute drag queen image appeared in the frame, and we literally gasped. She looks like the little girl from The Ring! The only thing more frightening would have been if she'd flashed her underage boobs again. Plus 2 -----Ok. She did look like the member of a cast from a horror film, but not just for her gothic attire and standard black eye makeup. It appears that they do not have a barber OR hairbrushes in Hudson. Either that or Little J has developed a severe case of arthritis since she was banned from the big apple, and can no longer create a full braid. Either way, it was scary.

• After listening to all of the truly sensible, inarguable reasons Serena should not get involved with the known womanizer who lives in her building and also happens to be her teacher, Serena pouts adorably: "I really like him, though!" Plus 5, because love conquers all, especially the stupid. -----I don't think I need to argue why I thought this was hilarious. Serena did that all on her own.

• Serena, who just last week was given a stern talking-to by the college dean after a professor at the school received a sexy message sent from her cell phone, agrees to accompanyanother professor to a public event at which he is to receive an award for being an eligible bachelor. Plus 6 for the aforementioned reasons. At least she knew to wear a demure pantsuit! -----SEEEEERIOUSLY. Although let's be honest. Serena doesn't really give two shits about school and loves her some 6 figure man. I would expect nothing less from her. Not to mention, Colin is sexy and if he was my teacher, and I looked like Serena, and had already had pillow talk with him, I'd drop the class too.

• The only books visible in Colin's office are copies of his own. Plus 3 -----Duh, he probably has 15 co-eds coming to his office daily pretending to have lost the book. Any excuse to spend one-on-one time with the elligible bachelor, right?

• Blair to Chuck: "If you’re here to deliver more humiliation, Dorota can sign for it." Plus 3 for long-suffering Dorota, put-upon even when she's not in an episode. -----Another great one-liner by Blair. If only I could put sentences together the way she does.

Faker Than a Member of the Fortune 500 Showing Up to Receive an "Eligible Bachelor" Award From an Alt-Weekly

• Wait, creepy prison guy is Juliet's brother? Weren't they just telling each other how cute they were a few episodes ago? Minus only 1, because this show does love incest best. -----Enough Said.

• Tim Gunn's reaction when Jenny's models appear is totally absurd, and not just because of his acting. A prospective student sending out a line of models wearing dresses that spell out the word WHORE probably wouldn't even be that unusual at Parsons, never mind offensive.Minus 5 -----This was like a bad episode of Project Runway. Or a good one, depending upon how you look at it...

• A lot of Serena slut-shaming goes on in this episode, and yet no one at any time looks at her chest in the outfit she wears to the Observer party and says, "I didn't realize this was the Golden Globe awards." Or, "I'm sorry, what did you say your name was? Serena van der Boobsen?" Or even "Holy hell, look at those bazongas!"Minus 10. This is a show where even the sight of a badminton racket is cause for entendre, and yet when the main character shows up with giant inflatable balloons strapped to her chest no one blinks an eye? -----BAHHHH LITERALLY died when she got out of the cab. I mean honestly. And they didn't even move. How does one do that?

• We can see Serena believing in Colin's sincerity after the Let's Talk All Night About Art gambit. We can even understand how her ego might have allowed her to swallow it when he said, "Tell your mother I'm crazy about you! I could be your future!" after knowing her for, like, a day. But when he said that she'd inspired him to reshape his life so that it included "Fewer models and martinis, more flow charts and footnotes"? Come on. Minus 5 -----It's Serena! Would you really expect her not to believe him?! What I find more unblievable is that she ACTUALLY dropped the class and thinks she successfully last 7 weeks of sexual frustration in a class where she undoubtedly won't understand 90% of what is going on. But then again, anything to prove her mother wrong.

I give Serena props for trying to fool herself into thinking that she can survive this course. I also give her one epsiode before she caves. Colin is dreamy.

peaceloveandGG.

C

Hide Yo Dogs.

Well lookie here. . .an alternative to C-Mac's costume.

Dogs Looking Depressed in Their Halloween Costumes by the Daily Intel.

peaceloveandgchat.

R

C-Mac, I've found your costume!

I woke up this morning to an email from my cousin, ECQ, titled "C-Mac's dream come true?" (Also, ECQ--what were you still doing up at 2:04 in the morning, searching halloween costumes?)

As you may know, C-Mac is a big fan of Antoine Dobson. As you may NOT know, C-Mac does not yet have a Halloween costume! Sounds like ECQ has come up with the perfect solution! It truly is C-Mac's dream come true! No more bumble bee or bow/flower costumes! The true C-Mac can shine through this Bed Intruder Costume!

peaceloveandantoine.

C

take coverrrr!

APPARENTLY Chicago is going to experience the worst storm in 70 years today. Eek!

SEVENTY YEARS?! Yikes.

My pants are soaked from my walk into work today. Eew.

peaceloveandtornadowatches.

R

I like.

Pour La Victoire Irina Suede Pumps.

peaceloveandpumps.

R

NYE.

I don't have New Years Eve plans, but that doesn't mean I can't shop for a fun dress! I know it's a little early, but that's fine. . .

Milly Bridget Dress.


Milly Liana Mini Dress. Loving the lace look!


Torn by Ronny Kobo Tara Cosmic Dress. Long sleeve minis are so fun.


Shoshanna Shirred Strapless Dress.



Alice + Olivia Marina Sequin Dolman Tunic.


I'm sure I'll add to this list as the date is closer.

peaceloveand2011.

R

Blame It.

Just received an email from KK that read the following:

"Every time the song "Blame It" comes on my ipod, it makes me think of you. I hope that makes you feel special."

Haha yes, KK. It does make me feel special....and like a raging alcoholic.

It's the thought that counts though, right?

peaceloveandgchat.

C

Poop.

An email conversation with our friends from college that is too good not to share.

From: H-Ster
To: C, R, HLR, HHS, NN, MCG, KK, C-Mac
Subject: Poop Terrorism

I just heard this hilarious story from my friend. His friend, let's call her Amanda, finally hooked up with the guy she's been dating for a few weeks now. In the morning, the guy leaves for work, Amanda, unemployed, stays in bed but gets up to go to the bathroom. She ends up pooping and clogs the toilet. She tries a plunger to no avail. She then gets two zip lock bags and scoops the poop out of the toilet into the bags. She leaves the bags on the guy's kitchen table and goes back to bed.

skip ahead a few hours, Amanda leaves the apartment, walking outside realizes she LEFT THE ZIPLOC BAGS ON THE KITCHEN TABLE. She hysterically cried to the door man but he wouldn't let her up. The poop remains on the table and she has not spoken to the guy.

Would you even TELL people you did this? now people like me hear the story and tell everyone.



HHS: WAIT a second...is this an urban legend? I've heard this same exact story before...


C: OMG this story is hilarious.

Also---why wouldnt she just leave the poop in the toilet. Like lets be honest, he probs would have thought he or one of his roommates did it....


C: No, HHS. You have told a version of this story about that girl on your swim team who pooped INTO a plastic bag.


HLR: HHS.................


R: OR the story of KC's RA freshman year who pooped in the hallway on the way to the shower and picked up her poop and put it into her shower caddy...


HHS: yeah, no I am aware of both of those stories...im saying i have IN ADDITION TO hear this one as well..that makes 3 poop stories for me.


KK: HAHAHAA I'm laughing at my desk.

OK- first of all, no. Why would you scoop your poop and then PUT IT ON THE KITCHEN TABLE?!?!? That is unbelieveably unsanitary and there's obviously doodie water all over those bags. Why didn't she hide it at the bottom of the trash can or throw it out the window or something?! ANYTHING other than put it on the kitchen table.

Idiot.


C: Can we please reveal who amanda really is? I want to judge her more than i already am....


MCG: And how could you go back to sleep after that?? I don't believe it. Too many holes in the story. No pun intended.


H-Ster: I just spewed water all over my computer from laughing so hard.

What is WRONG with people? the fact that we have at least 4 similar poop stories is crazy!


H-Ster: So that first story came out at happy hour last night. And another guy had a funny poop story too.

A guy came in for an interview at his company last week. He sits through rounds of interviews and asks by the end if he can be excused to go to the bathroom. They say no, we're heading to HR first. On the way to HR, the guy turns around and starts running down the hall - poop is falling out of his pants. My friend's boss was so mortified that the kid shat his pants bc he didn't let him go to the bathroom!!! that he went to the Gap, bought the guy a new pair of boxers and pants, and brought them to the men's room. They also had to quarantine the hallway because of his feces droppings.


KK: What I don't understand is how poop just falls out of people like this.


peaceloveandpoop.

C&R

The Long of It.

I am headed to a family black tie wedding in January and, naturally, I have already started looking for dresses.

AAE and I are undecided if we'll wear long or short, but right now we're both on the hunt for long.

Here are AAE's top contenders:

BCBG One-Shoulder Tulle Gown. Awesome. So dramatic. So AAE.



BCBG Strapless Hi-Low Hem Dress. I love this. The only issue is if the hemline is approps for a wedding? I think AAE will totally pull it off, but we'll need confirmation from our moms about this one.


We're hoping these go on sale after the holidays ($800 is a little much, dontcha think?). I'm banking that they will - BCBG always does awesome 70% off sales.

I am loving J.Crew's Silk Chiffon Taryn Gown in dark charcoal.


And their Silk Chiffon Arabelle Crinkle Gown in dark charcoal too. The graphite is cool too.





The silhouette on the Silk Tricotine Cecelia Gown is soo pretty. The sleeves work well for me because sometimes I have issues with strapless (especially when I am getting DOWNNN on the dance floor, which, let's face it, I will.) I'd get this in black, obvi.



We have plenty of time to shop, so we'll see what we come up with!

peaceloveandgchat.

R

HOW CUTE?!

As I stress about my Halloween costume, I'd like to take a moment to look at this:

Pig in a blanket! Adorable. From RealSimple. Typical - everything in that mag is cute.

peaceloveandgchat.

R

Dear Girls Above Me

This is hilarious. Charlie McDowell has new neighbors. And he can conveniently (or not so conveniently) hear everything they do/say. He has kindly begun to post some of their antics on the World Wide Web for everyone else to appreciate.

A few gems:

Dear Girls Above Me,
“Did you hear that all these kids were rescued in Chile after being trapped in some mountain?” Miners, not minors.

Dear Girls Above Me,
“You can’t go on birth control, your tits will get bigger than mine! We had a plan!” Does this plan involve small boobs and a baby?

Dear Girls Above Me,
“He’s on some fantasy team, but don’t you think he’s too small to play football?” I can’t wait for you to go to one of his games.

Scope his website if you aren't cool enough to follow him on Twitter.

peaceloveandgchat.

C

A Pumpkin Post.

Over the past year, I have really tried to get into cooking (as you have seen here, here, here, here and here). This fall, however, I have not been up on my cooking game due to my busy work schedule, traveling, etc. Last night, I decided to get back into it and made dinner for P. Lemon chicken with roasted eggplant, cherry tomatoes and red onions, and a side of orzo with feta (I cheated on that one - bought it from the salad bar at Whole Foods. Oops.) It was a delicious and got me excited for work to slow down, and for me to spend some more time in the kitchen.

What also got me excited to cook is this article: 100 Pumpkin Recipes. Umm. . .yes please! I love pumpkin anything, and with this article, I can cook pumpkin EVERYTHING! Ha.

Pumpkin Pancakes.


Pumpkin Whoopie Pies.


Pumpkin Hummus. (???)

Pumpkin Ricotta Ravioli.

And so many more! (96 to be exact.)

peaceloveandpumpkin.

R

HLR wants to plan a wedding. Any takers?

HLR: omg look how cute this is
http://merrymaps.com/
ahhhhh i need to plan a wedding

Check out Merry Maps - adorably drawn maps for weddings, parties, etc.




peaceloveandgchat.

R

iPod History

This is interesting.

A Brief Illustrated History of the iPod.

peaceloveandgchat.

R

uh oh.

It's that time again...

Saks Friend and Family! Clearly this is dangerous from me. Going to try and steer clear of this place in the next few weeks. Although...my birthday IS coming up! hmm.

peaceloveandsaks.

C

once in a lifetime?

Every so often my dad mass forwards chain emails out to myself, my sister, and a handful of other people that I either have not met or have not seen since I was in a stroller. That being said, you can imagine the stupidity in the bulk of these emails. Today, however, while waiting for C-Mac on her street corner (where we then proceeded to hop in a cab because she overslept by an hour), I decided to actually read todays junk mail. And while it wasn't all that exciting, I found it rather interesting. The important part of the email read (followed by something along the lines of "if you don't send this to 12 people you are going to die"):

This October has 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays and 5 Sundays, all in one month. It happens once in 823 years.

Not sure if I believe the once in 823 years part, and I certainly do not plan on doing the math on that one, but it seemed pretty cool to me! And yes, I checked the calendar when I got to work. Dad was right! Anyone bored enough to figure out the next time this happens? Let me know.

peaceloveandoctober.

C

SCARY.

Dear Shopbop,

Why would you put this picture on your homepage? It is too scary for innocent internet shoppers.



peaceloveandgchat.

C&R

Is this a joke?

Browsing J-Crew's (J-Crook's) new arrivals in an attempt to spruce up my fall wardrobe. Came across this Lacey Top. I'm not a huge fan of lace but for some reason it struck my attention. And then I clicked on it. It costs a mere $695.00. Who is J-Crew kidding?! HLR thinks it must be a mistake, but I beg to differ.

Get your head checked J-Crew. And your price points.

peaceloveandripoff.

C

My Fall Color.

Essie Merino Cool.


Perfect for the fall.

peaceloveandgchat.

R

Spotted at H&M

No.


This is all sorts of wrong. The bushy tail is the worst part. Who would come up with this and WHO would buy it??

And you know how I feel about squirrels.

peaceloveandsquirrelsarefoul.

R

THE DATE TO MOTIVATE.

10-10-10.

Yesterday. The day of the Chicago Marathon. "The Date to Motivate" was the Marathon's slogan this year, and motivate it did. I am totally running in the 2011 Chicago Marathon.

E and I watched the race for a while yesterday morning (they ran right by our apartment!) and we were hooked. I was surprised at how silly some people get with their attire for the race - tutus, American flags, crowns, the Eiffel Tower. . .


Yes, this is real.

There were even pregnant women running. ("Baby's first marathon!")

Time to start looking into training schedules!

peaceloveandgchat.

R

Backwards on a pig

Seriously, this is so catchy. I actually can't get the stupid song out of my head. But quite hilarious at the same time. If you haven't already seen it, enjoy.



peaceloveandbabymonkey.

C

I'd like to add to my shoes post. HLR just purchased these awesome Topshop suede platforms.



Great find. Jealous my card is in hiding.

peaceloveandgchat.

R

catalog living.

I think I read this entire website in one sitting. Catalog Living. Hilarious on all sorts of levels.

Thanks, CP!

peaceloveandgchat.

R

Third Coast.

Yes! A new stationary company for me to love! And it specializes in Chicago stationary and cards - how perfect!


Third Coast Collection. Adorable and funny.

peaceloveandgchat.

R

GG RECAP.

Your weekly Gossip Girl Recap by the Daily Intel.

I haven't watched it yet so please don't spoil anything for me.

kthanks.

peaceloveandgchat.

R

On my radar. . .shoes.

A few things I have my eye on right now.

Steve Madden Brigitt Black Suede.



J.Crew Coddington Suede Platform Pumps.



HLR found pretty much the same shoe, yet way more affordable: Nine West Ample.


J.Crew Mara Suede Wedge.


Nine West Sadock.


Tory Burch Quilted Nylon Reva.


My credit card is in "time out" for the moment (oops), so these will all have to wait, sadly.

peaceloveandgchat.

R

PS. This is post #300! ! !