United Nations Green Initiative 2014

Hello Readers!

Today I thought I would let you into my thoughts while living in the city of New York. It has been hampering on my mind and I can't seem to shake it off. This city is dirty! Each day when I come to and from work, I noticed overflowing city garbage cans, restaurants dumping their food on the streets, empty plastic bottles and newspaper pages scattered all along the subway tracks. I can't stand it!

I have become morphed into a recycling queen.  Everything that I throw away gets categorized into three garbage cans. You would think, with 8 million people living here, it should be a law to recycle. I still don't know how today, we as human beings can even fathom of throwing an empty paper coffee cup on the ground. Who does that? Please don't do that. There was a March last Sunday in NYC with thousands supporting the way to go green. De Blasio wants to reduce greenhouse gases by 80%  by the year 2050. It's 2014, we need to start now!

With all the garbage bags being thrown on the pavement for pickup; it's literally disturbing. Bags upon bags as tall as me get placed outside for the trucks to scoop to landfills. I have since come to the conclusion that I have to do something, even if its just little ol' me.

I have made a promise to myself to stick to a glass water bottle when traveling to and from work, a coffee mug, using reusable bags when shopping, recycling at least 85% of the products I use (the rest is disposable food or things that cannot be recycled), I wish I could compost here. If I am in desperate need of a bag, I will reuse it as much as possible.

When you live in such an overpopulated city, it really makes you think about how you can really affect the enviornment. And it's just me. If I was Mayor of this city, one of the first things I would do would be to clean up the garbage problem. Scott toilet paper had a campaign in the city and said that each year we throw away as many toilet paper rolls enough to fill The Empire State Building. 17 billion rolls! Another fact I reads each year we throw enough plastic water bottles away to circle the Earth 3 times. Thats disturbing.

This should be a wake up call to not only New York, but to the planet! This has nothing to do with politics, but keeping the planet a better place for the next generation. Here are some pictures of artists reusing trash around the city. Where is all this garbage going? What can you do differently? How much smaller can you make your carbon footprint?


Glass Water Bottle:

http://www.shopbymonika.com/products/bkr-water-bottle


GreenNYC Initiative:

http://www.nyc.gov/html/greenyc/html/about/about.shtml

United Nations Climate Summit:

http://mashable.com/2014/09/24/united-nations-climate-summit-takeaways/?utm_cid=Mash-Prod-RSS-Feedburner-All-Partial

 NYC Climate March:

http://www.amny.com/news/environmental-activists-paint-city-green-with-people-s-climate-march-1.9370557

http://www.nyc.gov/html/greenyc/html/about/about.shtml

Good Apple: Love a Teacher!

Hello Readers!

I hope you are all doing well. I have recently been off on my teaching career lately. I feel a tug to keep writing my posts that I used to write so frequently! I miss this!  I feel like my writing has really become a part of me. Its also really special that I get to share it with people all over the world. I love expressing my voice through writing. its also a fun creative outlet!

As you know, Fall is here!  There's nothing better than slipping into a brand new cozy sweater, or sipping a hot cup of coffee while taking a stroll in the park. Boot weather is so my thing. If I could pick weather to stay in all year long, it would most defineatly would be Fall.  After the sweltering summer in the city, I can't wait. There is nothing worse than briskly walking down to the subway and feeling like your in a sweaty sauna room.

My first unit for my Pre-K students is Apples. It's so fun to teach them about healthy eating habits and how apples are harvested in the Fall. We talked about everything from Apple Pie to applesauce. I've never eaten so many juicy and crunchy apples!  I think they are appled out.

It's fun to see the meaning behind the true Teachers Apple. I always wondered why students gave teachers an apple. I also didn't realize how much work a teacher really has to do! Teachers have a lot on their plate. So reflecting from when I was a student, to now teacher, its really an eye opener to see the roles reversed! If your a student, teacher or parent, just know if we all work together, and want to work toward the same goals, things are bound to work out for the best.  Happy school year!  Don't forget to eat your apples!

Since I'm talking about apples, I wanted to share a great recipe for a fall apple salad. It's so good!

http://jessicainthekitchen.com/apple-pecan-feta-salad-honey-apple-dressing/#_a5y_p=2391716

 APPLE PECAN AND FETA SALAD WITH HONEY APPLE DRESSING

 

PREP TIME

15 mins

TOTAL TIME

15 mins

Apple Pecan and Feta Salad with Honey Apple Dressing is loaded with fall flavours and is sweet, crunchy and good for you! You can customise the portions in this salad to your liking.

Serves: 1 big salad

INGREDIENTS

Salad

• 3 cups kale, de-stemmed, washed and torn
• 1 apple, sliced thinly
• 2 tablespoons cranberries
• 2 tablespoons pecans
• 
  
• 
  
• 3 tablespoons feta cheese, crumbled

Honey-Apple Vinaigrette Dressing

• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

Salad

1. In a bowl, place the kale. Add the apples, cranberries, pecans and feta cheese on top - if you'd like, toss them in a bowl first them sprinkle on top.

Honey-Apple Vinaigrette Dressing

1. Whisk the ingredients together and pour over the salad.
2. Enjoy!

Turning a New Leaf: September

Hello Everyone!


I just wanted to pop in and say Happy Sunday! I can't believe my birthday is just days away!  I feel like I just turned 30! I also can't wait for the cool, crisp Fall weather. I will say that this year was pretty incredible! I graduated with my Masters, moved to New York and got married to the love of my life!

Things usually don't happen like that for such huge milestones. I guess that's just the way it happens! When your least expecting it, things just " happen". I know people write goals or things they need to achieve before a certain age. I had goals for my life, but didn't put too much pressure on myself for things to pan out. They just did!

I think that's important, to have goals and a predetermined idea of how you see yourself, but things can always change, and you must be flexible with those changes in life. Wether you like it or not! I don't try to measure my worth by what others are doing, that just leads to unhappiness. You have to love yourself and be confident that there is a plan for your own life!

I try to find something funny in my workday and make each day count. As I look back on my life, I remember being so small and it literally seemed like yesterday. I thought about Joan Rivers this week and how young she looked in the early 90s. I was in 5th grade watching E! Seems like yesterday!  Time goes by so fast, just being positive and making someone else feel good recycles the positive energy!

This birthday, I'm grateful for my loving husband, my parents that will still be by my side, my family and extended family, and the simple things in life. My life lessons for 31: Keep it simple. Less is more, Smile and Laugh, and make a (little) difference in the world.

Thank you Joan, for making the world a more funny, stylish place.

Nothing is yours permanently, you better enjoy it while it's happening. - Joan Rivers

House of Etoile du North: Fall 2014

Hello Everyone!


I have been inspired recently to write about the kind of fashions I've seen on the streets of New York City. I feel like you can do anything here. You could literally go around in a black garbage bag and people would think your portraying some kind of an up and comer artists muse.

With that being said, I looked through many different designers Fall work and saw some synchronicity and some stark contrasts. For Fall 2014, Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel focused on embellishments like finely placed jewels and the signature pearl look. His colors were cream, black and reds, very neutral and fall like.

Tom Ford was very black conscious with cognac and a few spritzes of red tones. His popular Tom Ford jersey worn by Beyoncé was everywhere! I'm sorry, but if one person wears it, it spoils it for the rest of us. Where's the originality? I'm not a fan of labeled clothing. Wear it once, then what? His boots were super high and reminded me of my Frye riding boots- minus the heel.

Ralph Lauren really played into the aluminum color. Think classic gray, jersey knit, easily moveable fabric. All I saw was this color! I love gray, suits look great and tweed inspired gray work dresses can be worn well from work to a night out.

Onto Valentino. He was inspired by the color red. Think Sangria and scarlet. Vibrant red! For some reason Valentino reminds me of Valentines day, hence the red. Maybe he was going for the same theme. Coincidence?

J.crew played on mixing florals with stripes and the color army green. Which is cool. I like the depth that these prints make when combined. Anywhere outside a major city, people would think I was colorblind. But, that's ok, I live in New York. Sorry, not sorry Y'all, New Yorkers are weird.

New Yorkers love their classic Wayfarers and Aviators. I went to The Metroopolitan Museum of Art for our new member night on Friday, wow what a crowd! I saw everything from a remake of Lourdes style, to Kylie Jenner. Yes, people are copying off the youngest Kardashian, or shall I say Jenner.

All I really want for Fall 2014 is a great pair of classic white Converse for commuting to and from work ( I put them in the washer almost every other month).   A chambray shirt ( I over worn my last one), I am really feeling the light chambray and a dark wash jean. A  black skinny pant, J Brand skinny jeans ,gray, black, and white shirts, and my navy blazer. Oh yes, a quality pair of black heels. I also found a cute pair of Sam Elderman ankle boots in cognac at Nordstrom. I can't forget my army green jacket!  I do like the idea of a punch of yellow for a clutch. This one is Dior. My list hasn't really budged much from last season except for a few minor details. I think this works for my Fall 2014 list.

Love this Chanel bag, Etoile du North loves it too! Fashion inspiration!

What's your Fall 2014 wardrobe wish-list?

Fall Color Trend Report: 2014

Hello Readers!

Each season, Pantone Color Forecasting releases their color report for the upcoming season. Since I have not received my September Fall Vogue issue yet, I am in full anticipation to hear all about the color combinations this season has in store.

I prefer classic neutrals, especially black in New York, but every once in awhile, I love buying a piece that accentuates my wardrobe. It's even fun using these colors with paint and crafts inside  the classroom and experimenting with different color.

You can even use their colors in interior design or buy a bunch of fresh cut flowers for your home. Flowers add a vibrant "pop" to any drab room. Try buying a radiant orchid in  the color "Radiant Orchid".  Some people are partial to "Trends" but I think it's fun to try different colors each season. So, enough of my babbling, here are the top ten colors for Fall/Winter 2014.

In no particular order. Have fun with it! Fall 2014:

1. Bright Cobalt
2. Cognac
3. Radiant Orchid
4. Sangria
5. Misted Yellow
6. Royal Blue
7. Mauve Mist
8. Aluminum
9. Aurora Red
10.Cyprus