If You Can't Meet Them, Read them!

I have completely exhausted my mother with stories of Gertrude Stein, the 20's, 30's, 40's, and Europe. And when you exhaust one outlet, what do you do? You find another! So here I am.

It is fair to say that I am living in the now but dreaming of the early-mid 1900's. I am Owen Wilson in Midnight in Paris. But do not fret! I have a solution. Here is what we are going to do. We are going to build a time machine and then we are going to hope right onto this beautiful piece of machinery and make it in time to have dinner with Stein and Matisse on the rue de Fleurus. I mean, if Stewie Griffin can build one, why can't I? Then, on the way back, perhaps we can enjoy a Ballet Russes, conceived by Diaghilev, decorated by Picasso, and dressed by Chanel. Like seriously! Am I the only one that finds it incredibly unfair that we missed this era?!? My awe and infatuation is seriously turning into plain old bitterness. 

I love history, fashion, and art and lately, everything that I have been reading has revolved around these three subjects and I am loving it! I’m just going to go through one today. If I discuss more than one in one blog, I have this fear that you may return.

Side note: I get VERY attached to books. I am disgustingly obsessed with Europe, especially Paris and the South of France at the moment. But, I think I am in love with what they used to be and not necessarily what they are today. Although, that does not mean that they are not beyond exceptional today. They are just different. They lack the life and emotion that exuded from them when art, literature, and fashion were conceived by the geniuses that lived there and expressed in countless books, on plenty of canvases, and listened to through beautiful gramophones. These revolutionaries thrived on the simple things in life. They lived for friendships, love, and adventure. 

Sleeping with the Enemy, Coco Chanel's Secret War - Hal Vaughan

This book was mind blowing! If you haven't read it, I seriously recommend that you do especially if you enjoy learning about WW2. It encompasses everything! Incredibly engaging from beginning to end.  

To begin, Coco Chanel was a Nazi. Yup! Safe to say that that was quite the disappointment. At that point in history, I would assume many people shared her anti-Semitic views however, not many jumped at the chance to collaborate with Nazis. Not that they shine in a better light, a racist is a racist. However, what I do not understand is why anti-Semitism still runs through the veins of the fashion industry today. Take Galliano for example, he's a charmer wouldn't you say? Gotta love such thoroughly expressive assholes. Although Dior had done the right thing and suspended him, I’m sure he is fairly cozy shacked up with Oscar De La Renta nowadays. And by Oscar de la Renta, I mean the fashion house, not the man himself. But I digress. Back to Chanel. After reading the book, I am just in awe about how clueless people are. Actually, I'm not in awe of their ignorance, I'm mostly in awe of the sheer quantity of individuals who possess this blatant ignorance.

Sure, Coco Chanel was a creative genius. She did a great deal for fashion in her day and her legacy lives on today. In fact, she basically set the precedent for the little black dress, suits for women, jersey fabrics for women's daily wear, and costume jewelry. She broke through many of the expectations and customs of the day. However, it should also be noted that she accomplished everything that she had not because she was a brilliant businesswoman, but because she had many rich and powerful lovers. This, as one would assume, can really help a young gal out! And it did. Unfortunately, her anti-Semitism worsened over the years, as did her use of morphine injections. Her collaboration with the Nazi's was a personal choice. Her betrayal of her country was a personal choice and interestingly enough people do not care. But why not? If we're quoting every completely empty and pathetic thing she has ever said such as, "A woman who doesn't wear perfume has no future." Really Chanel? Really? Maybe that is why her first perfume Chanel 5 did so well during some of the hardest financial times in history. Maybe everyone was desperately seeking a future than can only be guaranteed by a bottle of Chanel perfume. Maybe. But probably not. How about "A woman should be two things, classy and fabulous''? I swear, i think this quote is reposted on social media more often that the rate of babies being born. Now, don't quote me on this, but I think a woman should be a few more things. Just a few. BUT, as I was saying, if we are quoting these lovely perils of wisdom, why are we not focusing on the other things she said and did that were not so neutral? Do people truly not care? When millions of Parisians were starving on the street, Chanel and her Nazi companions had no problem dining on the finest delicacies and wines at the Ritz Carlton in Paris. I understand that war is a complicated time and, inevitably, there will be those that fair well and those that do not but, she was French and Paris was her life. If that does not tell you everything about her character, than I do not what will.

Coco Chanel may have been a creative genius that dressed impeccably and built an empire, but she was neither classy nor fabulous. She was, what you would call a social climber and once she got to the top all that was left was a lonely traitor. The only thing that leaves me satisfied is knowing that she lost her company to a Jewish family. If she lost her company to anyone else, I'd be satisfied quite frankly, but the fact that it so happens to be a Jewish family is really just icing on the delicious Chanel cake.

So classy. SO Fabulous.

Syria, Miley Cyrus, and Pumpkin Spice lattes.

Syria, Miley Cyrus, and Pumpkin Spice lattes. 

These highly unrelated subjects are the most frequent topics I hear on an every day basis.

What is wrong with our society?!

How has everyone forgotten about the very irresistible Salted Caramel Mocha? I'm very disappointed in mankind. Very, very disappointed. 

In all seriousness, I haven't made up my mind on any one of these matters. If you know me, you know I'm not one to take an immediate and definite stance on Syri-ous issues (Yes, that just happened). I prefer to do some research before taking on faith what CNN reports. However, seeing as Miley Cyrus's PR ploy is neither a serious nor world changing matter, I have decided not to take a stance at all because I do not care. 

People care because they like to occupy themselves with someone else's life instead of their own. It's a favourite past time of ours; to judge, scrutinize, and condemn others for their behaviour. What many people don't understand is that a team of genius PR masterminds have been devising, planning, and preparing for this kind of unprecedented outrage and attention for months. And, that is the most interesting part of this whole situation.

        If you can find a way to get 19 million YouTube views in 24 hours without straddling a wrecking ball naked, I'd give you a thousand dollars (I probably wouldn't, but saying so helps me make my point). 

But, these guys, they did it and they did it well! A month hasn't passed since she twerked her little butt onto the front covers of newspapers and various media outlets, and yet here she is again, licking a sledgehammer. Yum. If this doesn't wreak of a perfectly calculated PR stunt, then I don't know what does. After all, we as a society, would never commit so much of our precious time and attention to something that we couldn't wag a finger at because, let's face it, it makes us feel better about ourselves.

Now, for all the parents out there who are downright outraged that a teen actress would ever act in such an inappropriate manner, you need to stop. You suck as parents. Miley Cyrus is no longer a role model for children. In fact, Miley Cyrus has not been a role model for children for a few years now. Hannah Montana ended in 2011. That is almost 3 years ago. You need to be aware of these changing trends or risk the day your daughter starts wearing red lipstick and granny panties. Ever since she came out with a song praising the party life in the U.S.A, it was safe to say she was no longer an icon for 10 year old girls. This next point is going to be a little off topic, but I'm throwing it in regardless. Parents who think Miley Cyrus is a children's icon are probably the same parents who buy Bratz dolls for their kids. Just out of curiosity, when you're at the store buying your daughter a doll called Bratz, what pops into mind? ALL of the positive attributes of a brat? No. Nobody wants a bratty child, so why give them the opportunity to idolize one? Get it together, parents. 

Anyway, moving on...

Although, I am sure many of you think that all of this negative attention is going to somehow make Miley feel insecure and ashamed, I promise you that it will not. Miley will keep doing her thing, and she will keep doing it naked (most likely). Why you may ask? Because, she has you hooked. That's why. You hate to love her. Wrecking ball will climb the charts and the radio will inevitably overplay it to the point where is will burn a hole in your brain. You will continue to watch the video and you will most likely watch her next video. That's just the way it works and boy, does it work! Not to mention that the lyrics themselves represent self-destruction and zero self-worth in a relationship.

Just in case you have forgotten, Britney Spears sang a song about being a sexual slave and released videos either half naked or covered in christmas lights. And, we LOVED her. Soooo, as much as we claim to hate Miley, all signs point to us having more of an obsession with her bad girl image than anything else. 

I am no pro at this stuff. I don't have any special insight into the music world, but this is nothing new. We've seen it happen before and we idolized then too. The only reason this is such a hot topic is because we live in a new age of social media where everything and everyone's thoughts and opinions spread like wild fire. People love the power of self-expression and we will continue to be outraged within our 140 character limit. In my opinion, Miley Cyrus is just one smart girl. Feel free to judge and criticize, but if you secretly blast her song in the car or whistle the tune in the shower, you are quite the hypocrite and I would only assume you are in the majority. 

In the words of the Twerking queen herself; 

And we can’t stop

And we won’t stop
Can’t you see it’s we who own the night
Can’t you see it we who bout’ that life

This is really our fault. Not hers. 

Jet setting like a pro...or something like it.

Oh god - I have literally forgotten how to blog.

I ask you to please bare with me as I shamelessly pick myself up (once again) and try to make a comeback to my neglected blog.

I have a good explanation! I promise.

If the title of this blog were to ever make sense, it would be right now. Everything has truly been upside down and sideways, but in a good way... if you can imagine that. I would reference the last blog I wrote, but I feel like that would be equivalent to grabbing a shovel and just digging away at my own grave. So we're just going to slowly walk away and never (ever) look back.

What's new, you may ask? OR, of course, you may not... but I shall still tell you.

Aside from wrapping up my forth year of university and getting a job like a 21 year-old ought to, I have had the opportunity to hit up a few nice places this summer. You know, the usual hot spots like Monte Carlo, Milan, Barcelona, and Naples...just to name a few. Oh! There was also Israel. How did this all happen? I couldn't tell ya. Just when I felt like I'd end up working all summer, BAM! I turned into a little Globehopper.

Disclaimer: Globehopper is not a real word. It didn't even come up in Urban Dictionary...and we all know that is by far the lowest level you can stoop down to in the English dictionary.
Disclaimer Pt. Deux: If I capitalize the first letter, it looks legit and I am just going with it. Sue me.

Anyway...

Instead of boring you with tons of information and good ol' facts about the places I've visited, I have made the executive decision to just throw a whole bunch of photos on this baby and call it a day. When it comes down to it, we're all "visual" people anyway, or is that just what they call lazy/stupid students?

Let's start with the Holy Land. Aside from all of the political bullshit that seems to stick to that region like flies stick to shit, it truly is a beautiful and indescribably fascinating place. The people, the scenery, and the food! Oh, the food... I would literally pay money to have UPS just ship me off a fresh shawarma (extra hummus, please). I spent the majority of my time in Jerusalem, but also got to visit Sderot, the Dead Sea, Tel-Aviv, and the Golan Heights. I can go back year after year.

Took this baby out of the road. It was only 40 degrees celsius. Totally healthy to be riding all day.

 I think this place is pretty important, I just forget why... Oh riiiiiight! It's only the Western Wall.

 Tel-Aviv at sundown. Ps. Tel-Aviv is crazy (with a capital K)

 Late day stroll through the Carmel Shuk in Tel-Aviv. You have to get yelled at by at least one Israeli, otherwise it's just not the same.

We ran out of ATVs for these fellas. They had to walk.

After a mere 10 day "pit stop" in Toronto, I was right back on another plane. This time, we found ourselves in Barcelona, the capital of the craziest architecture and street vendors I have ever seen. Actually, I take that back. The street vendors were far worse in Rome (and the architecture wasn't too shabby there either!) It was the beginning of a whole new adventure. Jeez, how cliche was that sentence? Whole new adventure... can't say I'm proud of that one. But, then again, it is 2:30a.m. and I am starting to toss all creativity and proper grammer out the window.

If you would like to read about our trip, my awesome cousin has taken it upon himself to write all about in Harvard Independent. Cruising Through Europe

I, on the other hand, have no patience to do so.

I bid you fair well and a good night! Until next time.

 Duomo di Milano. It's kind of a big deal.

 Cruise ship safety is no laughing matter! (Plus, it looks like a peace sign. Can you say artsy?!)

 Just hangin' in Nice.

 Yeah...this Gaudi guy thought this one up. It's pretty serious.

In Napoli beside the sea It happened on a night like this In Napoli our hearts were free.

Couldn't have said it better, Mr. Dean Martin. Couldn't have said it better.

oh Yeah! This exists.

Better late than never, right? RIGHT!

This blog may exude an annoyingly apologetic tone peppered with excuses, buuuut that is only because my all-of-3 fans have devoted themselves to make me feel like a complete slacker (and rightfully so). My last blog post was ....wait for it...9 months ago! I won't lie to you, I haven't been extremely overwhelmed with work, school, or anything else for that matter. BUT, I do think that since I stopped baking and coming up with foodie concoctions during the past semester, I have had nothing interesting or worthy to blog about. For those of you wondering why I stopped baking/cooking...you can take a quick glance at my previous semesters and you will wonder no more.

Recently, I had my cousin over from New York (yes, you are being mentioned). We were sitting at the table along with the rest of my family members when he says to my sister "Did you read Raisa's last blog!? Wasn't it just so funny?" Ha.Ha. A natural comedian, you might say. Now I am sitting in my Brand Management class and instead of focusing on this incredibly rich and interesting powerpoint presentation on "What is a Brand", I am blogging sir...all for you! But not actually, don't feel special.

There is absolutely no way, and I mean NO way, I can catch you up on everything that has happened over the last nine months, but then again I am in a 3 hour lecture... sooooo I'm going to give it a go.

I left off with Polina's Baby Shower which, if I can say so myself, was quite a success. Now we have 6- month-old baby Mia! I don't want to be biased or whatever, but she is literally the cutest little girl... EVER. Since then, we also have had another munchkin in the family from another cousin of mine. As I am sure most of you are familiar with (either because you know me or I have probably mentioned it in previous posts) I am insanely obsessed with kids. No, not kids actually. Babies. LOVE babies. Kids, on the other hand, can be annoying.

Baby Mia!

In other news, I have made my way to Mexico, Israel, New York, and Cuba.  I don't even know how all of that happened to be honest, but it did and it was amazing. Mexico was an amazing time spent with family from New York, including my Bubbie, who has never been to an all-inclusive resort. Thinking is would be exciting for her, she grew bored of it in roughly.5 seconds upon arrival. Success. But in all seriousness, it really was an amazing trip. Israel was way to short. Two weeks to explore the beautiful country in its entirety is literally impossible. New York was just lovely as always. I got to watch two broadway shows; The Book of Mormon and Old Jews Telling Jokes. The Book of Mormon was really funny but half of the time you are sitting there thinking What the F**k is happening right now? Old Jews Telling Jokes literally drove me to tears. I think I was the youngest member of the audience by 20 years, but it was by far one of the funniest shows I have ever seen, hands down. Cuba was the most recent trip with my girls. We were there over the break and like all good Jews we dressed up for Christmas and had some very yummy lobster.  Travels continue when I make my first stop in Boston this February to visit the aforementioned cousin at Harvard university. That's right, he's not just funny (arguably), but he is also a little genius.

Hiking up Masada, Israel

Covered in mud at the Dead Sea

Varadero, Cuba. Unbelievable water!

Beautiful view of Mexico

This is my sister.

Okay, I'm not even going to lie but I am having a huge brain fart as to what else I did over this extended period of hiatus. I have participated in Frosh Week (again) as a leader and almost collapsed by the end. I can now say with certainty that I am boycotting Frosh events for the rest of my life. Enough is enough. I attended an amazing Road Hockey Tournament hosted by the Princess Marget Cancer Research Hospital which helped raise $2.4 million dollars for cancer research. Also, I attended an Intergenerational Chanukah party where I got to meet absolutely incredible people including Holocaust Survivors (That's a story for another day).

Road Hockey To Conquer Cancer: Team Passion Capitalists!

 Intergenerational Chanukah Party

Okay, that's it. I'm done. Prof is ending the class early, wooh! I'll be back. (If you said that in Schwarzenegger's voice, 10 points for you)

Talk soon! 

Oh Baby!

We are officially ready to welcome baby Mia into the world. Of course, the only way that was ever going to be possible was with a successful baby shower and successful it was! All the little things I dreamed up in my head were executed perfectly with the help of some handy family members. Let me walk you through it...


Polina, the future mom, has her heart set on a butterfly theme for the baby room. Therefore, I knew that somewhere I was bound to have some butterflies flying around (not real ones). In all honesty, aside from that little detail, I put very little emphasis on developing a theme in the first stages of planning (although I was taught otherwise). The theme kind of came to be on its own and from that point on it was a lot easier to continue because I had something to tie everything together. A theme gives you a strong sense of direction which is always helpful. Anyways, the theme turned out to be very green. By that I mean there were butterflies and flowers and a homemade tree! (I'll get to that). 


My job consisted of constructing all of the decorations as well as the sweets table and given my recent baking streak, that was a piece of cake (no pun intended). The real food table came together with the help of my awesome family and it was amazing! I always have this overwhelming fear of not serving enough food, but at the end of every party I think to myself...what the heck did everyone eat if so much of it is still here!? Then again, since we are Russian and we never come at a specific time or leave when the party is over ...most people end up staying very late to just chat. And what do people do when they sit around and chat? They eat! They may not be hungry. In fact, they may be on the verge of popping, but they still eat. So in our case, extra food will never pose as a problem (thankfully). Now, let me just take second and fill you in on the outrageously delicious food that we all devoured...

• A delicious summer salad with spinach, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, berries, tossed in a combination of balsamic vinegar and olive oil
• A very light and fresh Quinoa salad with red and yellow peppers, parsley and orange zest
• A pasta salad with tangy feta cheese and veggies
• An assortment of homemade party sandwiches (tune salad, egg salad, and cream cheese)
• BBQ chicken kebob skewers with zucchini, peppers and onions accompanied by a chilli dipping sauce as well as a plum dipping sauce
• Amazingly crispy oven-baked spinach, ricotta and cheese pockets (Mom's famous spinach pie in a bite-size little creation)
• Over baked sweet potato 
• An assortment of sushi
• Veggie tray and dip
• Tostitos and salsa
• And god forbid people were still hungry, we served thin crust pizza with various toppings

Moving on...the dessert table came to look just as I had hoped. I made cake pops for the first time in my life. Not that making something you have never attempted for the first time for someone's baby shower is a good idea, but whatever! I took my chances. I am glad that I did because they were a hit. Absolutely everyone loved them for their moist cake interior and the fun serving size they came in. Polina's absolute favourite dessert I make are the oreo cheesecake cupcakes. So I thought I would substitue the usual graham cracker cheesecake crust with an oreo crust and turn the recipe into a full blown cheesecake. This way everyone was able to cut off as much as they pleased and it gave me the chance to decorate it with a little message. In addition, my sister ordered delicious gourmet cupcakes with dolce icing on top. Of course, I also made sure to have an assortment of gummy candies and little pacifier hard candies (this is probably the only event where those candies make any sense). Anyways, it's safe to say that there was enough sugar on that table to make you sick...in a good way of course.

Now, onto the decorations! Let me tell you something... there was quite a bit of research that went into this partay. As some of you know, I sit on Pinterest religiously so I am always coming across amazing party creations. One of the things I knew I absolutely HAD to have were tissue paper pom poms. For those who are unfamiliar with this term, they are literally pom poms made from various colours of tissue paper that you can hang from the ceiling in bunches. They look insanely cute, like massive flowers (refer to photos). I watched a few youtube tutorial videos and with a little bit of practice there they were, hanging about from the ceiling. Every single person who pointed them out was shocked that they were handmade. The cool thing about them is that they are like a little mystery. Not a single human being can look at those things and say OH! pff, I can totally tell how she made those!

One of the coolest things I made for this Baby Shower is the Wisdom and Wishes Tree! I bought a metal bucket, fake grass, collected my neighbours branches, clothes pins and designed very adorable baby Wisdom and Wishes Cards. This awesome creation was placed on top of the gift table along side a keepsake box. Guests were asked to pick a card off the tree and either give the future mom advice or send her their best wishes and place the card in the box. Now, years down the road she can always reach for that box and be reminded of all the people who were present at her first Baby Shower. I also bought a wooden butterfly, spray painted it pink (of course) and wrote Mama's Little Present on it with cute bubble letters. The butterfly was there to mark the gift table but it also doubles as decoration for the baby's room.

Last but not least, I had Polina open up her presents. All of the gifts were so adorable. I know that a new born baby is ridiculously small, but when you see the baby clothes you can't help but be shocked that a human being can actually fit into those tiny little pants! It's bizarre. At the beginning of the party, I tied a ribbon around Polina's belly with a big bow and a tag that read "Do not open til June 14, 2012" (which is her due date). The idea behind it was that the best present in the whole room was what is inside her belly. However, I will admit that although everyone found it cute and funny, some initial reactions sounded a little like this "Oh my god! That's kind of gross!" Regardless, it always sparked laughter so I am still calling it a successful idea!

Well that's that! I'm really happy I took on this project, I learned quite a bit from it. It kind of justified all the time I spend on social media sites (maybe not in the eyes of my mother, but it works for me). Now, I get to just sit back and await the arrival of my little niece! 

Thanks for dropping by and sorry for the insanely long post this time! 

Bye for now.

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/raisanakhimova/