hey. it’s been a bit. it’s been a 43-day bit hiatus. things have been made. movies have been watched. papers have been written. and everything else in between.

i’m back home for four weeks. i’m excited to just have some down time to cook and maybe make some mini movies, but i’m also anxious about getting stir crazy. it’ll be a balance.

speaking of watching, these are some of the things i’ve loved recently:

1. movement

i think i’m a pretty picky music video critic. hozier’s song “movement” in tandem with a very raw dance and dark, shadow-y footage makes for a stunningly beautiful video. i love the side-by-side twins (and eventually triplets) cut together to make a seamless choreography.

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2. where the artists live

me and my friend ana (whose work is awesome !) share art things and design porn frequently. she sent me this new york times video a few days ago about the (kind of) communal space of a few artists. look at those windows. look at the interiors!

“that half door. holy sh*t” - me

“so amazing. the windows>>” - ana

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3. sushi scene from isle of dogs (2018)

it’s well known that i’m a sucker for wes anderson films. isle of dogs was no exception to my obsession. i love this scene so much (and have consequently watched a few more analysis videos than needed on it). can you believe that this is stop motion with mini-figures. the detail is crazy. and this is a time lapse of how it was made.

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4. tom misch medley

misch has never failed to amaze me. his talent live is even more apparent (especially with the slick comps and improvs). wow o wow. i just want to dance in my room. please watch all ~15 minutes of this for your ears’ pleasure.

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5. date and walnut loaf

i love nina montagne’s videos. they’re warm, cozy, inspiring, peaceful. although i don’t eat vegan, i appreciate the simplicity and transparency of her recipes. they’re real. in between videos about food and things, she talks about self love, stress, the joys of being alone, and wellness. it’s really lovely

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hope you like my little update

in case you’ve been wondering what things I have been up to in the past 43 days:

• come home for the first time and realizing i don’t live in NYC anymore

• 2-on-1 lime scooter-ing from koreatown with john

• vote ! !

• win 8 jars of almond butter

• dress up as azumi fujita for halloween (me, for reference)

• fit 6 people in a 4-person car in the rain with the top down

• survive the usc-ucla rose bowl game (loss)

• see toro y moi in concert

• ride home on the bike handlebars with aaron in the pouring rain

• witness a ferris wheel in the middle of campus

• make a short film about an intense dodgeball championship set to '“sicko mode” by travis scott

• rent a casita to live in next year

• ice skate at midnight with like 30 of my friends

• visit casey neistat at 368 (broadway)

• get a christmas tree (not the shrub like last year)

welcome back.

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hi there. remember this iconic post when i did that cool thing with the roll-over image? yeah check that out again for these sweet potato bowls.

over the past couple of weeks i’ve been realizing how much i miss new york city autumn. like this sort of thing. any color besides the very vivid blue whenever there’s never a single cloud in the sky—which constitutes most of the week.

i can’t even remember what it was like to have lived here and see this every day. i’m revisiting, i guess.

something i haven’t done is share some link-love stuff. here’s what i’ve loved over the past week or so:

• i could look at a hand making lines all day

• “hey it’s tom misch” and this is awesome

• rose pink sneaker love (with velcro, because velcro is still a lazy style)

• someone reminded me of the eames house recently. i remember seeing one of my favorite videos there when i was little in the yard.

• this film was incredible. watch it asap.

and now onto the autumnal things i’d like to make sooner or later:

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1. sweet potato bowls with spiced lamb

i’ve really been loving sweet potatoes lately. i’m able to steam them in my microwave in my dorm room and just top them with almond butter, yogurt, and coconut that get warmed and gooey. weird? eh. i guess this recipe is more or less an upscale and savory version… spiced lambs, mushrooms, quick-pickle fennel and onions, and yeah, yogurt just how i like it.

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2. kabocha and kale miso soba salad

i have a little bit of an obsession with the winter squash family. (couldn’t you tell from the last recipe being sweet potatoes?). i’ve been meaning to make soba salad recently, and i feel like a miso dressing is the perfect umami-salty flavor to balance out the mild sweetness of the kabocha squash. and a little added kale for good measure. need those greens, too.

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3. ottolenghi’s lamb + pistachio patties

the wonderful yotam ottolenghi just released a new cookbook of simpler recipes for the amateurs like me. from the pages i’ve gotten to see (from a copy at a design book store in culver city) the recipes are, yes, simple, but uniquely flavored and have pretty minimal ingredients. like these lamb and pistachio patties! and yeah, yogurt is also featured. there’s a lot of izzy food trends happening here…

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4. chicory salad with honey-mustard vinaigrette

okay! now! for! very! simple! things! sweet & bitter things. honey & chicory leaves. there’s nothing like a super simple salad for your more complicated entree. “sweet and sharp” is how bon appetit describes it. plus this photograph is just so beautiful.

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5. steak tacos with cilantro-radish salsa

okay, i’ve realized that LA has really good tacos. especially street tacos. that you can’t really find in new york city, or at least, i never really tried hard enough to look. these skirt steak tacos are another addition to our simple recipe collection. a lot of savory and salty going on here: medium-rare steak, a crunchy radish salsa slaw, only the most complementary herbs, and salty cojita cheese to top it off. don’t forget lime.

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i seriously need to make all these things.

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oct 1, 2018

the broad & walt disney concert hall projections

went to the broad with john in the afternoon. there was a long ling for the infinity room x kusama exhibit. ended up going to the kusama “pod” that you could only stand and look into. the security guards timed you for 30 seconds. walked around to the disney concert hall projections. sat on a cleared parking lot structure. it was a little underwhelming. watching the shadows drift on the broad was conversely a lot more pretty.

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october 6-7, 2018

weekend in venice beach & photoshoot for veuve cliquot polo classic

drove out to venice to meet simbarashe and the rest of the team. got tacos on abbot kinney for dinner. prepped for our shoot the next day. didn’t sleep. was in the sun photographing at veuve cliquot polo from 9a-6p. my legs hurt by the end. celebrated with an ironic meal of pizza, ben & jerry’s and champagne. ate twice at great white. i learned a lot.

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october 20, 2018

row DTLA

went with maia to row DTLA this morning. it was quiet and serene. popped in and out of little shops. sat at a table and just listened to cars and the birds and the people putting away produce boxes from earlier in the morning. bought a little pin that says, “art every day.” it felt a little empty.

october is almost over.

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