it's the first of movember

Having been raised by a faithfully mustachioed man, I've always been quite amused by the stuff. It takes commitment to grow a 'stache—just ask my dad who, for all of my 30 years on earth, has been utterly faithful to his chosen facial 'do. A good mustache gives a look of authority and can even strike fear into those who dare cross it's path (just ask my high school suitors who were subjected to some of my dad's infamous mustachioed rages back in the day).

A good 'stache can even change the face of men's health—or at least that's what the Movember movement hopes to accomplish. This quirky campaign was conceptualized as a means of drawing attention and funding to prostate cancer research, and is supported by the Prostate Cancer Foundation and Livestrong. Last year's Mo Bros and Sistas raised a whopping $7.5 million!

To register, visit the Movember website by clicking here. And if you just like crazy mustache art, check out the Etsy stores where I found all sorts of fun stuff pictured above!

Mustache art via Beardowear, jakes90, OnePinkPoppy, sweetperversion and thepixelprince 

doing good: japan aid bag by two oranges

One of the most used items in my closet is the humble canvas shopping bag. I love using them for everything from toting groceries to my Spanish workbooks. During my last whirlwind Cali-Philippines-Hong Kong-Macau trip, the canvas bag I bought at Coachella was every bit as handy in the desert of Palm Springs as on the 11-hour bus ride to Sagada. Canvas bags are awesome for traveling and even just carrying around in your purse as they take up so little space and weigh nothing.

I'm an even bigger fan of canvas shopping bags with a cause. Philippine brand Two Oranges has created a Japan Aid bag in an effort to raise money for our Japanese brothers and sisters whose lives were devastated by the earthquake and tsunami. Months since disaster struck, they are still in dire need of help and every little bit counts.

The bags are priced at P250—that's less than $6! Proceeds will be donated to the Japan Earthquake and Relief Fund of the Philippine Red Cross. For more information on ordering, visit the Two Oranges website.

can i close out my tab? that'll be $460,000 ma'am

When Zoe asked me if I wanted to come along to watch people bid on some "really really old whisky" at Sotheby's, little did I know that we would witness a record-breaking auction. Last Monday, we went to Sotheby's where an open bar flowed and a crowd gathered around this treasure: a Lalique carafe, intricately crafted using the lost wax method, encasing 1.5 liters of the finest and rarest 64-year-old single malt whisky produced by Scottish distillery Macallan. We witnessed the exhilarating bidding that started at a humble $10,000 and initially involved members of the chi chi crowd gathered at Sotheby's on York and East 71st. But soon it became clear that the big players were not even in the room. As bids skyrocketed, it was as if we were in a tennis match. Heads swung from the left side to the right side of the room where Sotheby's staff members were burning the phone lines and transmitting bids from all over the world. It was quite a sight to see.

In the end, the lot went to an unidentified female bidder who bid $460,000 for the whisky and the carafe. I'm still stunned by the amount. I wonder if they'll ever even drink that whisky. Maybe every child who comes of age in her family moving forward gets a sip.

All of this was for a good cause (*cough* tax deduction *cough*), of course. charity: water is dedicated to providing clean water to communities in developing nations. They've managed to create a business model where the organization itself is funded through sponsorships so that 100% of donations go towards providing sources of clean water. I can only imagine what impact this event will have on the communities supported by charity: water.

At the very least, the evening had a great impact on Zoe and I. We had a great time! There was a river of cocktails generously infused with Macallan flowing from the bar. I really liked the Blood & Sand, which incorporated 10-year-old fine oak Macallan with cherry heering (a Danish cherry liquor), Carpano Antica (a red vermouth) and good ol' OJ.

The bartenders had a verrry heavy hand with the whisky in the Rob Roys. We gave up on those drinks two thirds of the way since our stomachs were only very slightly insulated from hors d'oeuvres and bite-size burgers.

We had a quick chat with the evenings DJs, AndrewAndrew, who had a pretty clever little schtick. Can you spot the DJs?

No you can't because they're not at the DJ booth! Where, pray tell, are they? Why spinning music on their iPads while milling about in the crowd, of course.

Clever sons-of-a-gun. Way to write off iPads as a business expense. PS: They are, in fact, both named Andrew. I presume they have other matching sports jackets, as well.

So in all, it was a good night. Thank you Zoe, for letting me tag along on yet another a phenomenal New York adventure!

shepard fairey

I don't buy magazines that much anymore, but today I felt compelled to buy Time Out New York, both for the gorgeous cover art and the promise of having my next three months planned out for me. The cover art is by Shepard Fairey, the rock star urban artist who seems to always be in trouble with the law. He is best known for creating that contentious "HOPE" poster of Barack Obama. He seems to be everywhere these days, also appearing in Interview magazine, where he was actually interviewed by his long-time hero (and  subject), Iggy Pop. I'm bummed that I completely missed his May Day exhibit in New York. See the amazing pictures here. His style is distinctive and I like that he's got the balls to make his ideology known. It sucks for him though that he isn't anonymous like Banksy because he has to bear the brunt of the backlash.

I've been admiring his art since 2006 when I first saw his work. My friend Joel and I stood in line for four hours in the freezing November cold to see the urban art inside 11 Spring Street in Nolita before it was powerhosed and covered up in drywall, then made into the multimillion dollar condo that stands there today. That was an unforgettable experience that I treasure to this day. This article about 11 Spring Street in the New York Times still makes me nostalgic for what that building once was. Since that day, I've dreamt of owning a massive Shepard Fairey print. Here's what we saw inside 11 Spring Street:

He apparently also has a clothing line, Obey Clothing (OBEY being his tagline). I'm thinking of getting either this "Hope for Rwanda" t-shirt or a shirt benefitting Haiti.

And one of these days, I will order this print.

Ok enough time spent in front of the computer for today. It's a beautiful day in New York but I have to rest up and recover from my cold so I can run the Newport 10K tomorrow. Hopefully I don't tempt pneumonia in the process of working towards one of my 30 Before 30 goals. Have a great sniffle-free weekend!

shop for haiti at gilt groupe

Gilt Groupe is running a sale 9PM EST on Friday, February 26, 2010 to benefit charities that help those affected by the earthquake in Haiti. There are limited edition shirts by the Council of Fashion Designers of America for just $25, FEED bags for $35, and TOMS shoes from $34 to $79. Just imagine, for every FEED Haiti bag purchased, 50 school meals will be donated to the UN World Food Program's School Feeding initiative.

I'm really liking these gold glitter slip ons by TOMS. For every pair of shoes you purchase, TOMS gives a new pair of shoes to a child in need. Isn't that just brilliant? Methinks these would make a great summer shoe. Wear with shorts, a white shirt dress ... they just look way too comfy!

If you're not on Gilt Groupe yet, then you should be! Sign up here.

have you made your restaurant week rezzies yet?

NYC foodies, it's that time of the year again. Those two weeks that make Winter in New York a tad more bearable are coming up ... yes, it's almost Restaurant Week! It kicks off this Monday, January 25 and goes on until February 7. There are some exciting new restaurants on the list like Breslin Bar & Dining, SHO Shaun Hergatt and A Voce, but maddeningly they're all just participating for lunch and the Breslin doesn't even take reservations! So since I actually work, I don't think I'll be getting a crack at those. But that's okay, because there are many, many good meals to be had during Resto Week! Zoe and I are kicking it off with dinner at Bond Street on Tuesday, and I'm sure there will be plenty of other foodie friends who will want to indulge.

Also new this year: the Restaurant Week Truck! The RW Truck will be stopping at three different locations throughout restaurant week serving up hearty soups from 24 different establishments. The truck schedule is:

January 25–29: Broadway (bet. 50th and 51st Sts.)
February 1–3: Fifth Ave. (bet. 18th and 19th Sts.)
February 4–5: Greenwich St. (bet. Warren and Murray Sts.)

The first stop is bit of a walk from my workplace so we'll see if I am tempted enough by the thought of creamy white onion soup with duck confit and mustard oil from Marseille or butternut squash leek soup with cranberry beans and sage croutons from Nice Matin to trek over. It's only $6 for a cup of soup and a piece of bread from Tom Cat Bakery. Plus, $1 from every $6 NYC Restaurant Week Truck purchase will go to The Haiti Relief Fund at the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City, aiding disaster-relief efforts in Haiti.

If you haven't made any reservations yet, then get your foodie on by clicking here. If you want to get in the mood, check out my posts from restaurant weeks past here.

I meanwhile, will be signing off. Feeling under the weather and want to rest up for our chill country weekend getaway! Have a great one dears!

help haiti

The devastation at Haiti just continues to boggle the mind. I have been following Dr. Sanjay Gupta's Twitter feed and he is seriously a hero in my eyes. He's in Haiti to report for CNN but being a neurosurgeon, he has also been helping the injured Haitians. In fact, he stayed at the field hospital last night, turning his crew into a "crack med team" to continue helping survivors, when every other doctor and nurse was pulled out due to security concerns. I have so much respect for him. His latest Twitter feed reads: "So sorry to not anchor my show today. couldn't break away from the field hospital. if #cnn doesn't fire me, promise to do the show tomorrow."

If you would like to make a donation, a quick and easy to way to do it is to text HAITI to 90999. $10 will be donated to the Red Cross and will just be charged to your phone bill. I did that today and it was amazingly easy. You can also make a donation to the Red Cross through iTunes.

T-shirt company Kid Dangerous has also created a Help Haiti shirt, which you can pre-order from their online store for $35. Proceeds from these sales will benefit One Dome at a Time, which is helping provide immediate relief and longterm rebuilding to the victims of the Haiti earthquake. Every little bit helps.

please pray for those affected by the earthquake in haiti

Truth be told, I am not really in the mood for a fluffy post today knowing that over a hundred UN colleagues are still unaccounted for after the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti yesterday. I don't know anyone stationed there, but it could have been any of my friends who have selflessly dedicated themselves to doing the UN's work in the most dangerous places. I too had aspirations of serving in Haiti, and it's just dumbfounding to see what happened to our colleagues there. I am just praying fervently that some good news will come soon.

In a few hours, I'll have a rather lighthearted post up that I started working on yesterday, before calamity struck. But for now, please stop and say a little prayer for those who are still trapped under the rubble in Haiti.

get that warm and fuzzy feeling

After a few days of almost summery weather,the winter chill is descending on Manhattan today. I got my wool winter coats from the cleaners today and received the new down coat I ordered yesterday. I guess you could say I'm over the denial and anger stages, and have now come to accept that it's winter again.

If there's one thing keeping my spirits up despite the plummeting temps, it's the idea of cozying up in a beautiful glamorous fur. This fox fur jacket by Pologeorgis at Saks is super cute and only $500.

Ok fine, for me and my rapidly rising credit card bill, "only" and "$500" don't really belong in one sentence together. But if you've got better finances than me, you gotta admit this is a good price for a fur. And here's a great deal to motivate you: from today, October 23 through Sunday, November 1, Saks on Fifth Avenue in New York will give you 25% off a woman's or men's coat, fur, or men's suit if you donate a gently worn coat or men's suit to One Warm Coat, an organization that has donated over a million coats to people in need. For more information, call 212.753.4000 or visit The Fur Salon on Two Women's Outerwear on Four Men's Suits and Outerwear on Six and Seven.

Talk about getting that warm and fuzzy feeling!

umi nom for typhoon ondoy victims

Dear Readers, if you live in New York and are looking for more ways to help the victims of Typhoon Ondoy in Manila, there will be a special benefit brunch and dinner at Umi Nom on October 11, 2009. Some generous Filipino chefs in New York are banding together for this event, which will raise money for the San Antonio Parish Youth. This is one way you can help and also be sure that the money goes straight to those in need, foregoing any bureaucratic red tape.

Brunch is from 2pm-5:30pm (last seating at 3:30) and costs $75. Dinner is from 7pm-10:30pm (last seating at 8:30) and costs $100.

Of course, it is a perfectly valid point that you might as well give all of the money you would otherwise spend on the meal to those in need. For me though, I think of it as more like if I'm going to go out and share a nice meal with friends or my boyfriend that weekend anyway, then I'll just go to Umi Nom so that I can do some good while enjoying a great meal. In other words, if I'm going to spend good money on eating out during the weekend, then might as well spend my money at the fundraiser, right?

I'm not sure yet who the other participating chefs will be, but I assume Chef King Phojanakong is one. This Filipino-Thai chef is the man behind Umi Nom and Kuma Inn, the Lower East side tapas establishment I love going to (Incidentally, Tyra Banks is apparently also a fan of this Asian tapas joint). I've been meaning to check out Umi Nom so this is a great reason to do so.

Please feel free to pass this information along! The flood victims need all the help they can get.

Umi Nom is located at 433 DeKalb Avenue between Classon Avenue and Taaffe Place, Brooklyn, NY. Tel. (718) 789-8806

Images via Time Out NY

please help

I woke up on Saturday to the news that my hometown, Manila, was submerged in the worst flooding the city has seen in four decades. Thankfully, my relatives in Manila are safe, and our home there was spared from the flood. But it was staggering to see how it could've easily not been so. Our family's ancestral home, the home I grew up in, was submerged in flood waters all the way to the roof. On Facebook, I watched friends' status updates with horror as they listed names of people who were trapped on their rooftops and on the higher floors of homes for days with dwindling food and water supplies. Just to give some perspective on how bad these floods were, Hurricane Katrina dumped over an inch of rainfall in Louisiana for 3 hours and another 0.5 inches per hour over the next 5 hours on August 29, 2005. Tropical Storm Ketsana dumped an average of 2.24 inches per hour for six hours over the Metropolis.

One way to help from outside the Philippines is to make a donation to Red Cross through this website. I'm trying to find a more direct way to help. I've heard that Filipinos are mobilizing in New York to get relief goods together to send back to the Philippines, so I'll try to help through that group. I'm appealing to readers to please do what you can to help as well.

See the following articles to read up on the tragedy that has befallen Manila:

TIME

CNN

BBC

breast cancer awareness necklace

I'm sorry that my posting has been so spotty. First reason is because I've decided to apply for graduate school for the Fall 2010 term, so I've been busy studying for the GRE, gathering up the application requirements, and looking into schools (going NYU a la Blair and Dan is high on my wishlist). Second reason is that I fell ill Thursday night. Nothing major, just a head cold and a bit of fever, but I've put myself under house arrest because I refuse to let it get worse. But I feel way less than 100% even with my minor illness ... which made think about how incredibly difficult is must be to be really truly sick.

Breast Cancer Awareness month is coming up in October, but I've had it on my mind because this week I attended a fundraising event to raise money for colleagues who are doing the Avon Walk. When I opened my inbox today, I saw that Elizabeth & James and Shopbop are also doing their part with this special necklace:

I like how on the website, Shopbop says that they are donating $15,000 to the Breast Cancer Network of Strength, and that these necklaces are a symbol of their support. So regardless of how much money they make with this necklace, you know the charity gets their donation. I also like it that this necklace only costs $58. The pendant is rose-gold-plated and hangs on a sterling silver chain, and it's designed by Robert Lee Morris for Elizabeth & James, so it's something you'll feel good spending on. It's so pretty and also supports a good cause. I'm 100% behind this product!