Fake Ink

In my last post, I mentioned Tria, the fun wine bar that Debie and I went to in Philadelphia thanks to a recommendation from our friend Kate. While we ate, we noticed that a bunch of the staff had identical "Riesling" tattoos on their forearms. What's the deal with that, we wondered. Did they really like Riesling that much? There's commitment for you.

They were temporary, of course. The manager gave me one after I inquired. Debie said I should put the tattoo on my forehead, or maybe on my neck. A "Riesling" neck tattoo. That's gotta be the yuppiest neck tattoo ever.

I stayed true to my conservative nature and just went for the fake wrist tattoo. I dipped my napkin in my water and applied the tattoo at the table. Classy. When I came back from the bathroom, a waiter had carefully folded up my soaked, crumpled napkin for me. Now that is service.

The manager kindly posed with me for a snapshot. I've joined the Riesling cult.

Two days in, and the "N" and "G" had already rubbed off. All last week, I wondered around with a "Riesli" tattoo. A lot of people thought it was the real thing! It looks very real. I'm getting used to the idea of having a tattoo now. I like the typeface and location. Hmm... Could I take the plunge?

The fact that it is so permanent is still scary. Maybe I'll just wear the same temporary tattoo in the same spot and constantly reapply until I'm 40.

Today, it just says "Riesl." That could be a name, if you were German maybe. So it's been a week with the temporary tattoo. I am going to see how long I can keep this going.

Purse Twin

Debie and I met up halfway this weekend in Philadelphia. It was a day trip totally on a whim. We each thought the other was planning the itinerary. Whoops! But it turned out to be just right. We both took Megabus from our respective cities, then went and stood in line for cheesesteak and peeked in the window at the Liberty Bell (the line was way too long, ok?). Thus concluded the cultural aspect of our tour, and we marched onwards, partaking in gelato-eating, shopping in Rittenhouse Square and a fun, leisurely dinner at Tria, a fancy but not at all snooty wine bar.

Debie had tweeted about the Philly day trip, and the Philadelphia tourism office dutifully tweeted her back on Monday, asking "How was your trip?"

I said she should write that we spent money and contributed to their economy. Ha.

This is the new purse I bought at South Moon Under in Philadelphia. I love everything at South Moon Under. They do a great job of stocking cute, affordable items. Back to the purse - look at those black and white stripes, and poppy colors. It was the only one like it in the store. How could I not take it home with me? My problem is that I am always drawn to crazy things like this, and then everything I own is crazy and I have no white t-shirts.

So I got the purse on Saturday and wore it for the first time on Tuesday. Guess what I saw in the Metro today?

I know this purse was mass-produced in China, but still, small world. This girl actually exited at the same stop as me. Maybe she is my doppelganger. Or evil twin. Sorry for taking photos of you on the Metro, evil twin. But I think I'm going to win the "Who Wore It Better" contest. Though I might wear it with jhorts too.

Little Details in Philadelphia

Shots from a weekend trip to Philly, which Joe was nice enough to arrange...

"Hello Kitty."

Wearing the gigantic scarf

College ices at Franklin Fountain, an old-timey ice cream shoppe (that's shop with an extra "P" and an additional "E").

Joe made fun of me because often when I take pictures, I don't stop. I just keep walking, snapping away, often barely looking in the viewfinder. Well, turns out there was an artist who employs my particular style of photography with an exhibit in the Philadelphia Museum of Art - Mark Cohen. I am not alone! Although his style is probably more artistic rather than laziness-based, as mine is.