Friendsgiving

This week has been very busy at work, but now it's holiday time! I am spending thanksgiving with Osho and couldn't be happier. 

Osho is scared of me here, but it's cool. He is just being silly. His mom came over to make food and it was awesome!

We have so much food between Osho and I getting groceries at tj's, him picking up extra at whole foods, his mom bringing more, and me bringing stuff from work. It's pretty great and I'm excited to relax. Definitely going o hit up the hot tub. This is my second thanksgiving without my immediate family- the first being when I was living in Australia. Sammy is coming over osho's tomorrow for dinner and his parents are obvi already here.

I am thankful for my loving family, wonderful friends, and awesome apartment! Might add Osho since he is pretty great, too... Also thankful for my work buying me my new phone, shoes, and book (Chelsea handler, of course!). Actually writing this post on the new phone. 

I could write more, but carpel tunnel isn't a cute look. Might hit up some sales, so you might catch me there!

Xoxo

S

Weekend Recap

Friday
werk
spin
met osho at ippudo
dinner at this new west african/ haitian place called la marecage (?) with dope lamb
chickalicious green tea shake for dessert

Saturday
woke up early and didn't move out of bed
brunch at russ and daughters
walked to gansevoort market
walked across the highline and back
got a pizaa thing at chelsea market
ate half a pita
ordered masala wala
rebel bingo

Sunday
woke up at 6:30 am and coached forevers
met osho at whole foods to buy dinner ingredients
hit the steam room
watched tv
made bloody mary's
helped osho cook green etoutffee with shrimp and scallops, rosemary pureed cauilflower
ate that
chilled
good night

Weekend in Mass

This last weekend, I went away to Boston with Osho and it was great!

We hurriedly left Friday night on the bus to Boston, which was heavily delayed. As a result, we ate a second dinner with his parents at 1 AM. His mom's cooking is always amazing! I brought truffles from Fika as a house gift and we also brought some of the CSA vegetables for his mom to cook- noms!

Saturday, it rained, so we stayed in. It was very nice. Later, we ended up going to Whole Foods (the nicest grocery store I have ever been to in my life), Trader Joe's, and Star Market, before Osho and I split from his parents to hang out in Harvard Square. We went to a bar called Jimmy's or Charley's Kitchen (?) and drank beers in the cold weather. It was very refreshing because we sat in front of a little fire. I had clam chowder and Osho got a lobster roll- really hit the spot. Then, we walked around Harvard Square a bit and chilled in the law school, contemplating the future and business ventures. His dad picked us up and we are more food his mom made- still yum. She makes so much food- every meal is a feast! After dinner, we watched bad cooking shows together and fell asleep.

Sunday, we went to Salem in the morning. It was nice and Osho's parents had never been before. The leaves were changing colors and the festive spirit was catchy. I am really feeling Fall this year- not sure why more than other years. Anyway, they really liked the town and it was very cheesy, fun. By the afternoon, we drove to Lincoln for Sergei and Robin's wedding. We arrived early so his parents could walk around with us in DeCordova Sculpture Park. I had never been before and it was very pretty with the leaves changing and sun setting. Plus, the art all around was cool. Osho and I (hilariously) changed in the gift shop bathroom into wedding attire and his parents left. We attended the short ceremony (it was very cute) and then went into the museum within the park for drinks and apps. Following drinks, we ate lots of food. Osho and I both got the fish. I got to meet some of Osho's high school friends at the wedding, which in the least, was interesting.

Monday, we stayed in town, though I did not feel well most of the day. Osho, his parents, and myself walked across this gorgeous, elaborate park called Mount Auburn Cemetery. If you want to get technical, it is the first landscaped cemetery in America. The walk was long and we walked up a tower in the middle of the park with panoramic views of all of Boston and Cambridge. It was absolutely stunning and filled with colors and wildlife. I saw plenty of chipmunks and even a hawk perched on a grave. Some of the graves were very interesting, shaped like dogs and people. Most of the graves were very old- from the 1800's. We had to use a map to navigate through all of the little paths within the park. Overall, it was a very nice experience and very New England with the leaves changing so many colors (I keep writing this, but it's true!). I wish I was feeling better to enjoy it more, but looking back now, this was probably my favorite part of the trip. We ate plenty more food Monday and then headed over to Boston Amtrak. The train was miles better than taking shitty Peter Pan. It was very frustrating hunting for transportation options because all of them were expensive and terrible. Nonetheless, Osho and I agreed that we would probably stick to Amtrak since it was significantly more comfortable (though much more expensive). When we finally got back to his apartment, we cleaned and watched some Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.

Overall, it was a lovely weekend. Now, I just need to focus a bit more on promoting the book. We have a small number of sales, but it is definitely a start! Otherwise, Osho and I are considering new book ideas and also attempting at making a meme or imgur story relating to lasers- stay tuned!

xoxo
S

Animal Story Buzzfeed Article!

This: http://www.buzzfeed.com/sarahevak/12-epic-e-books-under-5-to-connect-with-your-in-n05e

Weekends are a Wonderland!

So I have been thinking lately how lazy/ boring I am during the week. Usually, I go to work and the gym. Then, I eat dinner and go to sleep. I have been dropping my goals a little bit and need to get back on the horse (promoting my book, reviewing Spanish on DuoLingo), etc. Nevertheless, my weekends are wonderland. Work is going fairly well (I guess), but I love my free time. I spend most of it with Osho when I am not working. I love coaching- don't get me wrong, but it is nice to just chill.

Friday, I met Osho at Spiff (his salon) and then we went to the Peninsula for the view. Then, we reached MoMA and looked at some art. We hungrily walked through Central Park over to Calle Ocho and had some paella and ceviche. Then, we picked up treats at Magnolia- so many. We got a lemon bar, banana pudding, a cheesecake, and a Snickers Icebox cake. Everything was really good, but not something I would want to eat on a regular basis- don't want to get fat!

Saturday, we stayed in because it was raining and hung out with his brother, Sid. We watched a bit of Peaky Blinders and ordered Cafe Con Leche (so yum)! In the late afternoon, we visited the Hayden Planetarium and watched Dark Universe. The tickets were expensive, but the show was so awesome. Then, we picked up groceries at Trader Joe's and had an awesome, chill dinner. We made bloody mary's, ate smoked oysters with foccacia, and devoured lobster ravioli with tomato sauce. It felt indulgent and fun- plus, the food totally felt restaurant quality. We also watched the molecular gastronomy CD and Osho got especially into all of the foods- lemon mist, yogurt raviolis, chocolate spaghetti.

Sunday, I coached in the morning. However, we still got our morning coffee at Mud. Osho stayed at my apartment to work (Skype, eat at Tompkin's Bagels, and go to Verizon for a new phone). I met him at the cell phone store, but they were slow, so we headed over to Hester Street fair because they had a special gathering of food vendors- sponsored by GrubStreet. We ate:
- Grandma's Pie from Roberta's
- some sort of Brazilian cheese bread (this was all Osho)
- Tartufo Arancini Ball from Arancini Bros
- Corn from Habana Outpost
- Coffee Custard from Claudia's
- Chicken Laksa from Aux Espices (been wanting to try forever)
- Jasmine and Regular Ginger Ale from Bruce Cost
- Cod Fritters with vinegar something salad something from some yum Jamaican place
- A pickle from the Pickle Guys (we got pickled mangoes and jalapenos after at the store since it was across the street)
- Maybe something else I am forgetting?

Basically, the food was awesome. We walked over to Tompkins and looked at the dogs playing. This is one of my favorite things to do- they are always so cute and having so much fun! Later, Osho made apple crisp and I made spaghetti as we watched Sabrina the movie. At the end of the day, we watched dog videos and researched dog breeds, deciding maybe we should get an Italian Greyhound (iGrey) or poodle. All of this is TBD and I want to see what is available for adoption at the time.

Other news is that I am going to India with Osho in February for his friend Sagar's wedding. The wedding is in Mumbai, but we are spending the rest of the time in Delhi. Tickets still need to be bought. I am so excited!

More immediately, this weekend is a long weekend for me- Columbus Day! Osho and I are heading into Cambridge to hang out with his parents. We are going to apple and pumpkin pick, visit Salem, eat his mom's food, and go to another wedding for his friend Sergei in Lincoln, MA. Will provide updates soon!

xoxo
S

I am a published author!

Osho and I published our first book, called "Elsa and Astor take New York"! I could not be more proud. It is exclusively available on Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Elsa-Astor-take-New-York-ebook/dp/B00NN3DU4O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1410955411&sr=8-1&keywords=elsa+and+astor+take+new+york 

Yes, Osho and I really wrote this together. I like to think we are so cute, but maybe I should be more modest ;)

This process taught me so much about writing and publishing! For now, I have to figure out how to market this baby! 6 months to write and push this for marketing now, now, now!

More about the book:

It's free with a Kindle Unlimited subscription and meant for children grades K-6th.

Here's the quick summary:

Take a wild trip through Manhattan with Elsa the Bengal tiger and Astor the Indian elephant! After escaping Central Park Zoo in New York City, the pals explore the city in a fun-filled adventure eating human food, becoming famous, and being chased by zookeepers. 

Sarah Kamenetz and Osho Jha co-authored Elsa and Astor take New York as recent college grads after falling in love in NYC. In real life, the couple have their own animal adventures when they aren’t working in advertising and finance. This is their first book! For further inquiries, contact sarahandosho@gmail.com.



Enjoy!

Toronto-es!

Last weekend I went to Toronto with Osho!

It was really fun and easy to get there (1 hour-ish plane ride). We woke up super early Saturday morning to get on our flight and arrived in our hotel on the water by 9:30 AM. We spent that whole day exploring and walking through the city. We must have walked for 7 hours and by then, our legs were broken. I also managed to get a sunburn in Toronto (starting that day) because it was so warm and sunny outside. We went to Little Italy, Little Portugal, University of Toronto/College Area, Chinatown, and the Art Gallery of Ontario. The art gallery was pretty awesome and we spent a lot of time there. We discovered an area called Kensington Market at the end of the day, which was more alternative (read: not corporate) and had a lot of different (cheap) food options. The best coffee we had there was the Voodoo blend at Voodoo Child Coffee (so good!).

We were surprised how much of the city was under (new) construction to create massive luxury apartment buildings. The city of Toronto seems to be extremely prosperous and wealthy. We also were surprised by how easy it was to get around, though each neighborhood is pretty spread out (unlike in NYC). We also enjoyed quite a bit of of roti (there soft bread with delicious curry-like things inside) from an Southeast Asian place and a Jamaican place.

For day 2, we did more walking and tried to do a lot (but it didn't exactly work out how we expected). We went to St Lawrence Market, but is was closed (so sad). We looked at some antiques in the area and then decided to walk by the harbor. By that point, we hopped onto the ferry (literally in front of our hotel) to the island. We spent a few hours walking around and trying not to get lost in the little amusement park there. It was super cute and a nice (close) escape from the city. On the way back, we tried to go to Amsterdam Brewhouse (super famous, but the wait was ridiculous). Instead, we grabbed some quick bites and headed over to CN Tower. We decided not to go up because we were too tired. Instead, we headed back to the hotel to rest. At night, we went out to the nicest dinner. The restaurant was called Buca and the entire experience was amazing. Even though the restaurant was on a main street, the spot was tucked away in a little private alley and we got to eat outside. Osho ordered the best Rose and we ordered hare pasta, shrimp pizza, the best tiramisu of my life, and this awesome cake thing. Overall, it was one of my favorite memories of the whole trip.

For day 3, we made sure to check the last things off our check list. We took the subway in Toronto for the first time (which was so fast!) to Casa Lomo, which was a medieval-style castle a rich Toronto financier built in the early 1900's. The entire building was beautiful and over the top. It was really fun to walk through and look at the intricate furniture, huge rooms, and blooming flowers everywhere. The weather was so beautiful the entire time we were in Toronto. After mustering up enough energy to walk again (we were exhausted the entire weekend from so many activities and walking), we went to the Royal Museum of Toronto. It was kind of a mix of the Met and the Natural History Museum. We grabbed some food after, walked a little bit around the Bloor area (luxury shops and boutiques), and then headed back to the hotel. Before hopping into a cab to go to the airport, we picked up some gyros. Overall, the trip was pretty great. 

Inspired

I was in a little bit of a funk, but I feel like I am reclaiming my inner fire. Sounds lame or cool- probably lame. Anyway, the fact that I am even writing again on this blog seems like a good sign. Here are some of the things I have been working on/ doing:

• I have been researching more for my business idea- domains, logos, farmers, growing produce, recipes, future trends (secret!), and even molecular cooking (I know- what?). 
• Started sorta kinda writing a children's short story/ book about animals, loosely based on Osho and myself. He is co-writing with me. 
• Looking more into other parts of my future. Maybe I will start freelance copywriting on the side? Maybe this is all too much. We'll see.
• Coaching and working, in general. 

I love having these projects because it makes me feel busy, which isn't necessarily a good thing- but I can't really function well without them.

Maybe relearning Spanish or cooking/ baking/ blending on a regular basis will become part of my routine.

In other other news, I broke my finger and have therefore been avoiding the gym (I have so many excuses). I have also been pretty tired. I just want to chill and eat (and pursue my dreams!).

Until next time.

xoxo

S

Love is in the air

I am more settled into my life at this point in time. I am more used to work, coaching has slowed down, I renewed my lease in my current apartment (love this place), and am wildly in love with my boyfriend. I am blushing writing this, but am committed to publishing that last sentence (and him). There is so much positivity and wonderfulness in my life. In other words, I have very little going on to report. But this is a short list on things worth noting (only to a self-absorbed extent):

• I celebrated V-Day with the boo and it was great! I got him custom sneakers :)
• For his birthday, I got him a matching outfit
• We went to his parents' house one weekend, mine after, and both sets of family members visited
• Osho and I are going to my house in CT for Passover
• I have been trying to read more, take online classes (to little success in terms of sticking with it), and researched some of my business ideas (a lot)
• Pondered many questions for too long

So in other words, I have not been writing as much as I should, but eating lots of amazing food. My life could be worse.

That's all for now.

xoxo

S