Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Soccer

I am ABSURDLY excited about the U.S. vs. Belgium soccer match this evening at Cleveland Browns First Energy Stadium. I LUUUURVVEE soccer and soccer players-- Besides their talent, they have the cutest bums, and really nice legs. Yes, I just objectified them, and no, I'm not sorry.

I will be cheering on the U.S. team with my national team scarf, despite the fact that it will in the high 80s. Its a soccer thing...



Make sure you follow me on instagram and twitter for pictures this evening (and other pics in general)!

Are you going to the match? What are you wearing to show your team pride?

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Listening Now: May Playlist

Hope you had a LOVELY Memorial Day weekend! Mine was spent buying a new car (a Nissan Rogue), watching Star Trek Into Darkness (Benedict Cumberbatch is an EXCELLENT villain and I LURVED it in 3D), attending a cookout, and getting ribs at the Rib Cook- off!

Since I was MIA for a few weeks, this week I have yet another playlist, this one for May! (song-- artist)
1. Cough Cough-- Everything Everything
2. Late Nights-- Foals
3. Second Chance-- Tristan Prettyman
4. Songbird-- Oasis
5. Promise Me-- The Saturdays
6. Never Let Me Go-- Florence + the Machine
7. Sing Out Your Love-- Churchill
8. Heaven-- Emilie Sande
9. Wildest Moments-- Jessie Ware (I am OBSESSED with this song)
10. Deadlines and Commitments- The Killers
11. Dissolve Me-- Alt-J (Will be at House of Blues on June 11th!!)
12. Lolita-- The Veronicas
13. Daddy (feat. Naughty Boy)-- Emilie Sande (yet again. She's really really really good)
14. MoneyGrabber-- Fitz & the Tantrums (I ADORE this band)
15. The Loving Kind-- Girls Aloud

There you have it! The May Playlist. I'm putting some finishing touches on the June playlist, so I will have it up soon!

Friday, May 24, 2013

Things I Lurve: Hazelnut Butter

I lllluuuuuuuuuurrrvvve Nutella. LOVE IT! Sadly, my waistline does not. All the sugar just doesn't do my body good, but I absolutely LOVE the flavor of chocolate and hazelnuts. Luckily, I found a worthy substitute: Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut Butter! There are some significant differences between the two products though: Justin's includes hazelnuts and almonds, and has way less sugar than Nutella. I especially like the hint of sea salt in Justin's-- its a little bit like salted caramel in that sense-- a little salt to enhance the sweetness. One other major difference-- a jar of Justin's is usually $9.99, a significant premium over Nutella.




I guess my thinking is this: If I'm going to eat this as a treat, then perhaps the price tag reflects its position as a TREAT rather than a staple...

What's your favorite nut butter (besides peanut)?


Thursday, May 23, 2013

Spin for Strays III and More Secondhand Mutts Events

On April 27th, psycle played host to the Third Annual Spin for Strays to benefit Secondhand Mutts! This was, by far, the most successful Spin for Strays yet-- we sweated, we had fun, and we raised over $1,000 to benefit the pups!! None of this could have been possible without the support of dynamic duo Jenn and Scott of pscyle, and all the hardworking, generous and supportive psyclists who rode that day!

After 60 minutes of sweat, we were joined for cuddles by Secondhand Mutts Splotch and Muddy while the humans enjoyed some well-earned adult beverages.



Brooke (teaches Wednesday and Saturday), Kyle, and Alana


So sweaty! Alana, Colleen and Jenn C (teaches Sunday)


Back: Brooke, Kyle, Jenn, Jenn C, Scott
Front: Splotch, Muddy, Alana & Colleen


Best news of all, both pups, Splotch and Muddy have subsequently been adopted!!



Meghan getting kisses from Muddy


A very excited Splotch

If you're bummed that you missed this great event, there's no need to worry!

On Wednesday June 12th, Around the Corner in Lakewood plays host to yet another fun Secondhand Mutts event. This event is targeted at dog loving singles, and even though there will be no dogs at this event, it may be the perfect opportunity to make a new, non-furry friend. The event runs from 6:00 pm- 8:00 pm, and tickets are $20 in advance ($25 at the door). Each ticket gets you light appetizers, beer, and the opportunity to mingle with other singles in a very low pressure, easy going atmosphere. We will have some conversation starters if you get tongue tied, and of course, you can always just ask the person you fancy about their dog! Advance tickets are available right here. While I will not be participating as a single (duh) in the event, I will be there helping coordinate, so I hope to see you there!!!

NOTE: THE 6/12/13 EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED.


Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Cleshopaholic Travels: Singapore

The air conditioning is on the fritz. Which means that its 82F in our house. Combined with the humidity, it means thats temperatures are very much like those in Singapore. N and I were in Singapore as part of our awesome vacation in April, to celebrate my Mom's birthday. She has always wanted to have a Singapore Sling at the legendary Long Bar at the  Raffles Hotel, so that is exactly what we did.


The inner courtyard


The Long Bar at Raffles. I love the old school fans. But they did nothing for the heat, if I'm being perfectly honest. 



Two of my favorite buildings in Singapore. I just love all the colors in the one on the left, and the one on the right reminds me of something I would see in The Great Gatsby (watched it in 3D and LOVED it!! It was absolutely gorgeous)



One of the nights we enjoyed dinner at Clarke Quay Singapore-- its a densely packed area with restaurants and bars. Sorta like a lifestyle center with restaurants. It was really nice to eat on the water. I really wish we had more lakefront restaurants in Cleveland....



Our hotel in Singapore. 



N and I took my parents to brunch at Sky 57 at the Marina Bay Sands to celebrate my Mom's birthday. As you can see, the views were absolutely incredible!! The next time we visit Singapore, I definitely want to spend at least one night at the Marina Bay Sands so I can hang out at this AWESOME infinity pool!!! 



So one of the places I loved most in Singapore was the Louis Vuitton store at the Marina Bay Sands. Not only does it have incredible views (top right), it is actually built IN the harbor, so part of the store is underwater. There is even a dock around the side, you know, just in case you want to dock your yacht and go shopping!!! There is a LOT of high end shopping in Singapore-- I counted at least 4 Cartier Stores and Louis Vuitton stores, but I'm fairly certain there were a lot more. 


If you do visit Singapore, I highly recommend getting a hotel room with a harbor view-- as you can see, amazing views at day and night!



Overall, I really really enjoyed Singapore. It is incredibly clean, almost disturbingly so for a city of its size, but its nice to be able to walk around and not have to worry about dodging dog poop and potholes.  Singapore's laws actually make it quite difficult and EXTREMELY expensive to own a car, and the public transport system is extremely efficient, comfortable and in no short supply.

So if you end up way on the East side of the world, I highly recommend a stop in Singapore.  You can hit most of the big sights in 3 days, and its definitely worth a quick stop!!

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

A Delayed April Playlist

To be honest, I feel a little ridiculous posting this today in light of the destruction that happened in Oklahoma yesterday. I encourage you to donate to the Red Cross or another non profit that is providing aid to the region if you are able.

If you're looking for a lighter moment, here is the much delayed playlist that I crated for April:
1. Can't Speak French - Girls Aloud
2. Express Yourself - Labrinth
3. Don't Say - Scars on 45
4. Don't Gotta Work It Out - Fitz & the Tantrums
5. Clarity (feat. Foxes) - Zedd
6. Girl In The Mirror - Cheryl Cole
7. Faster - The Saturdays
8. Tonight I Can't Say No - Timeflies
9. My Number - Foals
10. Please Don't Say You Love Me - Gabrielle Aplin
11. Can't Hold Us (feat. Ray Dalton)  - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
12. Perfect World - Kodaline
13. My Blood - Ellie Goulding
14. Devotion - Jessie Ware
15. Drumming Song - Florence + the Machine
16. Pompeii (remix) - Bastille
17. Sweater Weather - The Neighbourhood

There you have it!!! Next week: the May playlist!

Friday, May 17, 2013

Things I LURVE: beats

So one of my last posts before I went on hiatus talked about how I wanted these Frends headphones. Then, a couple of weeks ago, I finally got around to opening my mail from vacation, and happened to stumble upon a United Mileage Plus catalog that happened to feature Beats by Dre. Coincidentally, I had happened to test them out at Target just a few days prior. I mean, if that's not the universe speaking, I don't know what is....

Not one to turn down a sign that obvious, I ordered them. A week later, these beauties arrived at my doorstep.



You might notice I went with purple instead of white--- very simple reason: makeup. I absolutely LUUUURVE these headphones! They are everything they are hyped to be, and on the occasions I have to go back to my earbuds (workouts), I'm actually a little bummed. The new line by Beats has these in neon colors (also available at Target) and they are really really cute. Best of all, if you use miles  through your airline's mileage program (assuming they offer these), THEY ARE FREE (essentially)!!! And really, who doesn't love free?!

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Cleshopaholic travels: Bali

So, you might have noticed, I've been MIA for a while. While on hiatus, N and I took an INCREDIBLE vacation all the way across the world. One of the stops on this trip was Bali.

It is incredibly beautiful, more beautiful that it looks like on TV. Everything about Bali is beautiful: the traditional clothes (which I will get to in a later post), the incredible temples, the offerings that people leave at their temples at home, even the food is beautiful!!

The only downside is that alcohol is really expensive in Bali-- an inexpensive local beer (think Bud/Miller) is the equivalent of $10!!! But rather than focus on the one negative, lets look at some pictures instead:



The incredible beaches. The top right corner is a sculpture of a crustacean, and the little umbrella in front houses a holy offering-- its made of bamboo and palm leaves, and usually has fruit and flowers in in it. The two pictures in the bottom panel are from a seafood restaurant on the beach. 



Bali is famous for its beautiful temples. Unlike in India, the temples are only open on certain days. They are only accessible to people who are there to worship and in traditional dress. The top panel is a temple on the lake, and the bottom panel shows two different temples at the sea. Both spots were absolutely breathtaking! The pictures do not do them justice. AT. ALL. 



One of my favorite parts of the trip was a visit to a monkey sanctuary. Here they monkeys just run around, and are fairly tolerant of humans, although you are warned to (a) not step on the monkey's tails and (b) not carry any food into the sanctuary. None of these pictures have any zoom-- they were literally THISCLOSE!! At one point, another tourist was a victim of theft by monkeys-- they stole his water bottle, opened it, and drank right out of it!!! Its a little dark, but the bottom left panel is a teeny tiny baby monkey--- SO STINKIN CUTE!!!



 The beautiful Balinese food. We tried a number of traditional dishes like Nasi Goreng (the national dish), Satay, Nasi Campur and Mie Goreng. Delicious!!!

Unfortunately we weren't there long enough to fit in scuba diving or snorkeling or surf lessons, but if Bali is on your travel wish-list, I would highly recommend giving yourself at least 5 days to see the sights and get in some water sports! 

And don't forget to pack your sunblock!!