Went to Ireland for spring break this year and came back with this:

Is it weird that I was tempted to shout "Riders of Rohan move out!!" while walking along the rolling hills? 

... well, if you call bumping into her while walking by in a room full of people "grinding," then yes, that is what happened this weekend. despite exaggerating the truth a little, to my credit, there was music blasting.

anywho, i was invited to Shoplifter's birthday party Saturday night at this new lounge bar in the lower east side. She's an awesome Icelandic artist that recently had a display at the MoMA. She's also best friends with Björk and has collaborated with her. She does amazing things with braided hair:

It was kind of surreal to sit 2 feet away from her and Matthew Barney, another crazy-talented artist, for the evening. The bar was a little swanky for my taste and there were lots of fashionable people there, including designers such as Three As Four (they designed some stuff for GAP way back when... but they're pretty serious fashionistas). I wish I had pictures to share but the lounge was so dark and I felt silly. I also felt really really really intimidated, especially when I was waiting in line for the bathroom with Björk. But that's another night in New York for ya...

Em

p.s. my life really isn't as glamorous as i may play off: my heating hasn't been working in my apartment for about two weeks.... and for the past two weeks it has been FREEZING in new york.

I'm not sure whether I find this disturbing or hilarious.  I laughed until I cried, so I'd put my money on the second one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMdWqaN_Tms

and yes, those are Jonas brothers posters in the background. Priceless.

Em

Although it felt like New York City had become part of the arctic circle this weekend, I managed to be social and venture out of my somewhat heated apartment. Thursday night I hung out with Gary King and I was so excited to hear about all the great reviews he's getting for his film "New York Lately." If you haven't already done so, you should definitely check them out here and here!

Friday night I went to my first Atomic Tom show. Needless to say, rock-induced face melting ensued. I may be deaf as a result, but the set was amazing. The whole room was shaking from the boom of the bass and drums. Luke's voice and Eric's gangsta guitar solos made you jump up and down. The night carried on to Rockwood and Boat, complete with the usual pinball playing mischief and falling asleep on comfortable couches. I was glad I got to see Amy before she left for Australia! Dark Night will never be the same...

Saturday night Eric invited me to my first Knicks game at Madison Square Garden! I don't follow basketball that much, but there's something about good seats, good friends, and (amazingly) good chicken fingers that makes you a believer. Plus, we were sitting by the most New York New Yorker I have ever met. He knew everything about the Knicks and his colorful commentary was definitely an added bonus. AND the Knicks won.

So I may still be thawing out, but mannnn what a great weekend.

Emma

As an indecisive person, I usually decide to do things at the last minute, and last night was no exception. Desperately finding an excuse to not be productive at all, I headed over to The Canal Room and saw Jared Scharff and the Royals for the first time.

But really.... you don't need an excuse to check Jared out. Despite the fact that this was their first show in NYC in 6 months and half of the band members are away touring with other artists, the concert was AHHHMAZING. I love when there's so much energy that you can't help but tap your feet, jump up and down, or start flailing around. And I love love love when the beat of the drums and bass are so strong, that you feel it in your chest (if that makes any sense? people who listen to their iPod's on max volume probably get it). They won the Billboard song contest for americana/folk for their song "Bedroom Eyes," which is a personal favorite of mine. Check out "Stereo" too - it'll get you out the door.

Val Emmich was actually the headlining act of the evening. He's an actor and a guest star on "Ugly Betty" but apparently moonlights as a rock star... I was pleasantly surprised by his music. Half way through the show he asked the audience if anyone had questions (a la Nate Campany). I always love when bands do this, but I never can think of a good question to ask. The only person brave enough asked him why he was so awesome. I think I'd be more creative than that...

xoxEmma

I swear this is my last video of Beyonce... this was just too good not to share: 

Sooooo..... It's no secret to anyone who knows me how obsessed I am with music videos (it may be a little unhealthy). I was watching Beyonce's new music video for "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" and thought it was pretty cool with all the lighting, shadows, leotards, high heels, single robot-esque hands, and, of course, synchronized dance moves (which I'm extremely jealous of... if only I could dance like Beyonce... the world would be my oyster).

But I noticed something else. Listen closely. It sounds like when Pac-Man eats the big blinking balls that make the ghosts vulnerable and the game freaks out and makes a high-pitched noise... repeatedly. It works here, though. I think Pac-Man might be the next Timbaland. 

Bleep-Bloop-Bleep fo' shiz,

xox Emma

If you ever find yourself in NYC:

Listen to "Myriad Harbour" by The New Pornographers and obey the song... "stranded at Bleecker and Broadway looking for something to do" ;)... you don't know who you might run into. 

Saturday I was taken from my warm and comfy bed and was stolen away to uptown, which for me is anything past 14th street (gasp). I arrived at the Met with some friends by 9:30 AM right when the doors were opening. I eventually was grateful for arriving early, with only a few people at a time in the galleries, due to the following commentary my friends shared with me when appreciating the surrounding masterpieces:

"That looks like Mr. Bill." (If you don't know who that is or you can't tell the resemblance , 1. shame on you and 2. I've provided a reference picture):

 Mayan Mr. Bill at the Met

 The real Mr. Bill (currently not on display at the Met, unfortunately)

"What is that?? Cousin It?":

"Ancient Chinese Where's Waldo!":

"Looks like they had boob jobs back then too.":

Please don't judge me. I really do love fine art. But I think that was probably the most fun I've ever had at the Met.

Mischievously,

xox Emma

If you ever find yourself in NYC:

Listen to "Shut the Club Down" by Girl Talk while walking down Park Avenue on the Upper East side. Try and pet every single dog you pass by.

So... when I looked at my schedule/calender today I realized that I booked myself on 3 separate film projects for the first 3 weeks of November, basically working back-to-back.

I started to fret about all the pre-production work I haven't even thought about beginning. Whenever I'm juggling 10 million things on my mind, I bust out my OCD and make a To Do List (it's also an awesome way to procrastinate from doing the things you need to do on the list - I highly recommend doing it... people will think you're productive without you actually having anything to show for it). The list got longer and longer and didn't really give me a grasp on what I was doing.

I was on the elevator in my apartment building this afternoon, contemplating my art direction job and how I would build a fake wall for actors to pull an Andy on and punch through (The Office, anyone?), when a man ran onto the elevator, gasping for air and in an obvious hurry. He kept looking at his watch and whispering, "Relax, Cesar, Relax." I asked him if he was having a stressful day. The elevator stopped at his floor and he smiled and replied, "Not anymore. I feel better now." 

The elevator doors closed and soon, I was back in my apartment. I took out my massive To Do list and added to the bottom "Relax."

Here's to life,

xox Emma

If you ever find yourself in NYC:

Listen to "Old Old Fashioned" by Frightened Rabbit while eating Tasti D-Lite on the steps of Union Square. Watch out for skateboarders.

I think I've finally recovered from the weekend enough to be able to introduce myself properly...

It all started at Gary King's premiere of "New York Lately" this past Friday. Gary invited me about a month ago and I was pretty excited, considering I had heard about the film earlier this year. You don't need an excuse to see this when it comes out in the festivals - it's that good. The script was witty and insightful with characters you could really relate to. I don't want to give anything away, but Gary's cameos are hilarious! It was a joy to watch and great to see how proud Gary was when the audience clapped at the end.

At the after party, Gary was kind enough to introduce me to many of the One Love Bloggers, two of which, Nate and Ben, were involved with the film's music (which was, of course, fantastic as well). We got to talking and eventually Nate and Cassie invited me to blog at the One Love (who could turn that down?). I hung out with their group for the rest of the night, and as you have probably read in their blogs, hilarity and awesomeness ensued... complete with Ben busting out his 3 patented dance moves, Luke's white shoes, Chris' rendition of "A Whole New World" and "Under the Sea," Eric mentioning S'mac in some way, shape, or form, Rockwood Music Hall...

I didn't get back to my apartment until close to 4, so Saturday was a sleep day. I didn't roll out of bed until evening, when I went to a fundraiser party at the White Rabbit for a film I'll be doing wardrobe for. It started winding down after 1, so I went with some friends to get bagels at Ray's Pizza on St. Mark's (which is apparently the fake one? oh well... mmm.. their cinnamon raison bagel was delicioussss!).

On Sunday, after 3 hours of sleep, I got up and decided to be productive and headed to a coffee shop by Washington Square Park to read some scripts. I thought a four-shot espresso in the late afternoon was a good idea (which it wasn't) and it pretty much kept me going and going and going until the wee hours of the morning. Which turned out to be okay because I hung out with Ben, Phil, and Eric watching the Red Sox game (very intense) and freaking out over the explosion of flavor going on in our mouths (really... wow). Ben documented our experience... check it out on his blog :)

All in all, it was an amazing weekend and even though I probably won't ever make up the hours of lost sleep, it was well worth it!

So, hey there, everyone ;) I'm excited to be part of the One Love community!

Don't be a stranger,

xox Emma

If you ever find yourself in NYC:

Listen to "Streetwalker" by Delta Spirit while walking around the East Village. Check out Cafe Pick Me Up on Ave A & 9th St for a place where you can lose yourself reading and writing for hours. They have good tea, too.