Gift Scrap Blog

Buttah giving a high five

Buttah playing poker

Seven years ago, my friend and I were walking to our local tanning place (how “Jersey Shore” of us) when we noticed a pet store.  It seemed like the dogs in the window were screaming for us… “Come here, come here two NYC girls, come here, roof!”

We felt the gravitation towards the store and couldn’t fight it so we walked in. Immediately, a little smooched up faced Maltese stared at us.  He didn’t bark or jump – he just looked at us with those “puppy dog eyes.” My friend and I looked at each other and thought, oh why not, let’s play with him for a bit.

Yep, as you may have guessed, our “play time” at the store led to a rather expensive purchase, but nevertheless, the best investment ever.

We named him “Buttah.” Similar to “Butter” but with a slight edge.  Say it with an attitude if you will.

Buttah has been in our lives for 7 years now and has brought joy to so many people.  Over the years, I have realized several things about Buttah…

1. I will be a great mom one of these days. Poop and pee will not phase me as I have cleaned up so much of his, nothing grosses me out anymore.

2. I will never get any exercise walking him.  He literally walks half a block and sniffs every 3 seconds.  He’s definitely not a runner.  He just loves to take his sweet time.

3. He is a great girl magnet. I often let my single guy friends walk him to pick up girls – they are always very appreciative.

4. I create awesome themed parties in honor of him.  For instance, for his fifth birthday, I made “Buttah” saying shirts for all guests.  Some of my favorites were “Buttah Believe it,” “Can’t Believe it’s not Buttah,” “Buttah Bing, Buttah Boom,” and “Buttah Fly.”

5. He is a great judge of character.  Whenever I start to date someone, he knows immediately if he’s a good guy or not.  Cuddles and kisses for those he likes; barks and snarls to those he doesn’t.  (There have been more barks than cuddles over the years).

6. He always feels the need to sit on random items – the remote, my scrapbook stuff, my cell phone, poker chips, laptop, etc.

7. He is such a team player…Buttah LOVES to give high fives.

8. He loves to chill and watch TV.  We could watch The Bachelor, Big Brother, American Idol or whatever mindless reality TV show for hours.  I wonder where he gets his love of television from? hmmmm….

So as Buttah stares at me from the couch right now, I want to say thank you to you little guy.  You’ve brought me companionship and given me patience.  Not to mention some great reasons to throw a party.

Delivery.com

I think I am a little behind the times on this, but my friend and I discovered the greatest website in the world.

Let me introduce you to my new favorite lazy man’s site: www.delivery.com

Let’s face it, it’s cold outside.  DC just got hit with a historic snowstorm that paralyzed the region- who wants to go out in this kind of weather?

Well, now you never have to leave your house again to order food or groceries. Delivery.com is easy, quick and I will never pick up the phone again.  Plus, many of you know that I LOVE winning and I LOVE free things.  The more points you earn from your orders, the more points you acquire – thus giving you the chance to get some free stuff.

Anyway – I wanted to share my new finding with you.  Enjoy my fellow lazy friends!

Also, please share any other sites like this!

Famous older man with his younger ladies...

Scenario…
He had vinyl records and 8 tracks growing up and now thinks an iPod sounds like an odd vegetable.  And just forget about trying to explain what the new iPad is to him.  Despite his technology innocence, he’s extremely charming, attractive and knows what he wants in life.  Sounds pretty good, right?  Well, what happens when you both go out and the younger ladies start paying attention to him?  All of sudden his once light blue tapered jeans and turtleneck combo have become a nice dark-wash pant with an out-of-this world button-up specifically made for the 28 and younger crowd.

His favorite Johnny Walker Black drink has now shifted to the Jager bomb…time to worry?

Possible Outcomes…
#1 You go out.  Instead of the extravagant French bistro he took you to on your first date, he takes you to a hole in the wall pub because his new friend is working there who promised to give him a discount.  And by new friend, we mean the guy who just mastered Photoshop in order to make fake IDs for all of his frat brothers. (Desirability: LOW; Reality: MODERATE)

#2 You go out.  Dinner is extravagant and the drinks are flowing.  You are feeling good and your man is looking hot in his new outfit.  You notice the cute waitress that is serving you acting a little flirtier with each round she brings over. You get up to go to the restroom and when you return, the bill has been paid and your man gets a cute little wink from the waitress and a phone number. (Desirability: LOW; Reality: HIGH)

#3 You stay in. You are enjoying a lovely evening of dinner and drinks.  He surprises you with a dozen roses and an iTunes gift card.  He mentions he has already downloaded your favorite song, “Beautiful” by Christina Aguilera.  He says you are the most gorgeous thing in the world to him and he’s so lucky to have you in his life.  (Desirability: HIGH; Reality: MODERATE)

#4 You two stay in.  It’s Sunday.  You know what that means…football.  You hate football.  You don’t know the players or what teams have the best chance of making it to the Superbowl.  Your idea of a “pool” is one that you can swim in, not bet in.  Your man realizes that the last thing you want to be doing is watching the games so he surprises you with a shopping trip.  He says, you are the best thing he’s ever gambled on and he has already won the jackpot.  (Desirability: HIGH; Reality: LOW)

#5 You go on a double date with another couple and you decide it’s “game night.”  Dave & Buster’s is the hot spot of the night – full of basketball, air hockey, wings and beer.  Your man is a hit with your friends and with the games and he wins you a stuffed bear.  His game tactics are perfect and doesn’t have a mean, competitive bone in his body.  He supports you even though you missed 20 out of 21 shots on the basketball game and gives you the last buffalo wing on the platter.  (Desirability: HIGH; Reality: MODERATE)

The Lesson:
“Sometimes an old dog can learn some new tricks”

"Dona & Rabbana"

A friend of mine forwarded a great article to me (thanks @DuxieClothing) about the side effects of fake perfumes.  Living in NYC, we see tons of street vendors selling cheap, knockoff perfume.  95% of the time I walk by them because simply put, I just don’t trust it.  However, there has been that rare time where I decided to take the plunge and buy a bottle.

One afternoon my colleague and I were walking back from lunch when all of a sudden three guys pop out of a van and start yelling, “Hurry, get your perfume, get your perfume. This sells at Macy’s for more than $80, here…it’s only $5.”  I am one that absolutely loves a bargain, so I was like what the heck, I’ll pick up a bottle.  Here’s how my transaction went down…

1. All the bottles that the guys were holding out had the correct name of the perfume and looked exactly like the real deal. I pointed to the Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue box and said I will take one of those.

2. Guy #1 turns around and grabs one from the box behind him and passes it to guy #2 to his left.

3. Guy #2 puts it in a black bag

4. Guy #3 takes my money

5. I get the black bag and Guys #1-3 all encourage me to hurry off

As we walk to the door of my building, all of a sudden we hear police sirens.  Obviously, something pretty sketchy was going on!

I get upstairs to my desk and open the bag.  Instead of seeing a beautiful “Dolce and Gabbana” box like I originally saw outside when the guy was holding it up, I was now holding a fake “Dona & Rabbana” light blue box. I couldn’t help but laugh.  They totally pulled a fast one on me and did a complete swap.  Very clever I have to say.

I never ended up using any of it because honestly I was nervous I would break out into hives or something.  And after reading the article below, I’m glad I did not try it out! Bad reactions from knockoffs range from a runny nose to redness and eczema. Eek.  Article from Harpers Bazaar

How about you…ever try a fake perfume? Did it smell like roses or make you break out into a red blob?

flounder dinner

I am sitting here on my couch and just thinking about what I did this weekend.  Parts of it were very girly, others a bit boyish, and then whole other parts of it could classify me as an 80 year old woman.

Here’s the rundown of my last two days…
1. Made flounder
2. Drank wine 
3. Broke a glass pitcher because apparantly pouring hot water into it was not smart
4. Booked a hotel in Yountvile, CA for my friend’s wedding
5. Started a scrapbook for my friend’s son’s first year
6. Went to the Gym
7. Watched the Jets lose
8. Walked my dog
9. Spent some time on Twitter and Facebook
10. Cleaned my apartment
11. Started to plan a poker night
12. Had brunch with my parents
13. Watched “The Pregnancy Pact” on Lifetime. I really do love a good Lifetime movie.
14. Became very perplexed by the new Walmart “screaming clown” commercial
15. Checked out my horoscope and is now very excited for January 30th.  That apparantly is MY day for good change.

All in all, a very diverse weekend.  It makes me realize that I am pretty unclassifiable. 

How about everyone else? How would you classify your weekends?
Tame with a splash of crazy?
Boyish with a touch of Girl?
Party so hard you don’t even remember?
So lame that you wish you could forget?
Unclassifiable? 

…let us here about it!

Snooki dancing on the boardwalk

All good things must come to an end.  Last night was the finale of The Jersey Shore…it will be a long, cold winter without the outlandish fist-pumping, hot tub going, bar fighting, hook-up crazy shore crew. 

Here are some of my favorite highlights from last night’s episode:

1. Part of me really enjoyed watching Vinny, Pauly D, and Mike head out for some male bonding, which turned out to be pretty tame.  Another part of me was like, huh? When did they all of a sudden become guys who enjoy air hockey and darts? Where was “the situation” there?
2. I was pretty bored when Sammi bailed Ronnie out of jail.  He said he’s not sorry he hit some guy, only that he got caught.  Eh, lame.
3. I was definitely NOT bored when Snooki turned the boardwalk into club Karma…in broad daylight.  Her leopard print mini dress made it even better and watching her break it down in front of the entire shore made me laugh.  She was too lazy to climb the stairs to the bar to chat with guys, but she was definitely not too lazy to dance the afternoon away.
4. My good friend loves Sammi and Ronnie, so I am sorry in advance when I say that their little date should have been cut out of the show.  Although, I did enjoy their cheesy toast, “to their future, post-Shore.” Unfortunately, that is now up in the air thanks to the “unseen footage” on the reunion show. 
5. Pauly D had the most enlightening quote of the night, “”We stayed boys throughout this whole thing. This bond that we shared brings us together and no one can ever take that away from us, ever. Like, we take that with us for life, this bond … That was deep.” Yes Pauly, it was.
6. The hot tub scene with Snooki and The Situation took me completely by surprise.  That kiss was um, revolting? It was nasty to watch, but it was cute to see Mike being genuinely nice to her (before and after the make out).

Thank you MTV for another stellar show.  Keepin’ it classy! I can’t wait for “Snooking for Love!”

The Jersey Shore Cast

Tonight is the most exciting (and sad) night in a long time for many Reality TV show fans.

It is the season finale of the mega MTV hit, The Jersey Shore. 

This past season, people have never seen so much gel, bronzer, GTL (Gym, Tanning, Laundry), blowouts (fights and hair), Italian food, boardwalk, and accents.

When you Google “Jersey Shore Finale” there are over 2.3 million results.  Hmmm, I wonder if MTV is going to make a sequel to the show?  I think it’s a pretty safe bet.

So, tonight, what will I, along with millions of people in Amercia be watching at 10pm? Yes, you guessed it, The Jersey Shore Finale.  I am not ashamed to admit it either. It’s mindless entertainment and it makes me laugh.  Fist pump.

Fun facts

To all my Twitter fans out there – do you know that you can follow the cast? Here are their official account names…

@Sn00ki
@vinnygmtv
@RonnieandSammi
@MTVDJPaulyD
@JENNIWOWW
@ItsTheSituation

Do you know how Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino got his infamous nickname? He and a friend went to a club a few years ago when a woman walked by and complimented his washboard abs. The woman was with her boyfriend, who as you can imagine, did not take well to his girlfriend’s friendly advance.  Sorrentino’s buddy called the moment “a situation” and thus, the greatest male nickname was born. 

Favorite Jersey Shore quotes:
“I’m not trashy unless I drink too much” – Snooki

“I’d have sex with him…he’s a nice guy I mean he’s gotta be clean, right?” – Snooki

“I’m gonna break it down dancing, I love the beats, I got my creepy patent move.” – Ronnie

“We’re beatin’-up-the-beat, that’s what we say when we’re doing our fist pump.  First, we start off by banging the ground, we’re banging it as the beat builds ‘cause that beat’s hittin’ us so we’re fightin’ back, it’s like we beat up that beat.” – PaulyD

“G.T.L. baby. Gym, Tanning, Laundry.” – The Situation

What about you…Will you be fist pumping along with the finale tonight?
What are your favorite moments from the show?

Scenario…
Your relationship starts out great. Your new man is charming in all those bad boy ways that all of us love.  You like his confidence, street smarts, sense of humor and he makes you feel special when you are together.  However, as you begin to get closer, you step into some awkward territory…

Step 1:  You are on your way back from a long day of work when you get a text, asking you to pick up some essential toiletries at CVS for him. You say “of course, no problem babe,” and bring him his razors, shaving cream, gummy bears, and deodorant.  He works nights, and needed to get ready.  He must have had an exhausting day of playing videogames that he didn’t have a minute to get the things himself.

Step 2:  His credit isn’t so good.  Yours is impeccable.  His pay-as-you-go cell phone isn’t doing the job anymore so he asks if you could get him a phone under your name.  He swears he will pay you monthly and would never dream of messing up your credit.  You agree it is important to keep in contact with each other frequently and could never picture him doing you wrong. 

There have been some roadblocks in your amazing love race thus far. His “can you pick up a few things” texts have become fairly frequent and he has missed some of his monthly mobile payments because he hasn’t “cashed his paycheck” yet.  Plus, he couldn’t stop talking about getting that meaningful eagle tattoo and how could you be the one to crush his dreams?  Despite some of the hazardous signs, you decide to trudge along…

Step 3:  His landlord kicked him out.  He asks if you would mind if he crashed at your place for a little bit, until he finds a new one.  He promises that he will help out with the rent and keep your little dog company during the day.  Sounds like a pretty sweet deal to you.  Three months pass and his stuff is all over your apartment, your wallet is emptier and your laundry bag seems to get fuller faster. 

Step 4:  The requests for loans get larger and the cell phone, electric and cable bills grow…What’s a generous girl to do?

Possible Outcomes…
#1 You continue to help him out.  He just needs to get back on his feet and when he does he will pay you back.  Who knows, maybe he will hit it big with his music career and make a really successful album. Of course he’ll dedicate it to you since you are his rock.  (Desirability: HIGH; Reality: LOW)

 #2 You kick him out and show him who’s boss.  Enough is enough.  You work hard and all he does is lay around your apartment all day.  Sure he has unlocked a lot of great prizes on your PS3, but is it worth it?  It finally hits you and you realize this is so not worth all this pain to your heart, and your wallet.  (Desirability: HIGH; Reality: MODERATE)

#3 It’s the little things that matter, right?  He starts to pay you back by cooking you romantic dinners, doing the dishes and walking the dog.  He even changes the battery on your smoke detector and the light bulbs that are too high too reach.  It’s like having your own personal handyman around.  It’s not so bad. (Desirability: MODERATE; Reality: MODERATE)

 #4 You give him an ultimatum.  He either pays you back or it’s over.  He says fine, and leaves you…with a $300 phone bill.  Next day, you see him arm and arm with some other gullible girl.  (Desirability: LOW; Reality: HIGH)

 #5 You continue to help him out.  The vicious cycle continues and you are stuck with some money grubbing bum who can’t even figure out how to program the speed dial on his cell phone that you are paying for.  As the bills continue to pile in, you happen to notice many unfamiliar phone numbers.  Got to love a guy who cheats on you on your tab.  (Desirability: LOW; Reality: HIGH)

 The Lesson…
“Money comes and goes…so should the losers who mooch off of you”

Twitter

Have you fallen for the 140 characters or less phenomenon, Twitter, yet? Many people have embraced the short and sweet social network but others look at it as just another nonsense trend.

I, like many, have fallen for the Twitter trap.

Why you ask? I’ve realized that…

-I love writing in 140 characters or less.
-I love following some of my favorite celebrities and reality stars. (big shout out to @Sn00ki, @JENNIWOWW, @JessicaSimpson, and @TheEllenShow)
-I love reading the news in one sentence. Why should I read an entire article ever again?
-I love my TweetDeck. If you do Twitter, and don’t have the TweetDeck, download it today. http://www.tweetdeck.com/  Everything I need to know is right in front of my face in beautiful columns. Nice and neat.
-I love when random people comment on my tweets. Who knew I had followers in South Dakota?
-I love see what the latest trends are and what people are tweeting about. I’ve connected with a lot of people who were looking for the perfect gift (ah hem, a GiftScrap book for instance), suggestions for where to go on a Saturday night in NYC, the best sushi restaurant in Midtown, etc.
-I love using #hashtags now.

Today in fact, I have a tutorial with my friend who has started her own business and wants to experience the power of Twitter. She will download that TweetDeck, post exciting things, follow the right people, and stay away from weird adult entertainment spammers.

How about everyone? Have you fallen for Twitter or do you not understand the hype? If you are a Tweethead, make sure to follow @GiftScrap on Twitter! http:///www.twitter.com/GiftScrap

Cheers

Scenario…
Going out with your friends is a great way to socialize and meet new people.  Usually, you end up at a bar. Once you find a bar you like, you get comfortable and it becomes your stomping ground.  You come to know the staff on a first-name basis and their friendliness and sense of humor becomes attractive.

A pattern develops in this new found home away from home:
Step 1: Pay as you drink
Step 2: A free shot here and there
Step 3: Hugs & friendly kisses start to be exchanged more frequently with the bar staff, along with the steadier buy-back
Step 4: You and the bar back wink “hello”
Step 5: When you walk in, your favorite drink is passed over to you even before you open your mouth.
Step 6: You close out the bar and are invited to stay for after hours.
Step 7: The bouncer lets you skip the long line and bypass the cover charge.
Step 8: The new after-hours spot becomes the bartender/bouncer/DJ’s (insert appropriate staff member here) apartment.
Step 9: You start feeling something for him, and plan your drinking schedule around his work schedule so you can hang more.
Step 10: Love is in the air, at least on your end. You treasure his winks from behind the bar, from the DJ booth, or from the door where he is stationed.

Are these the steps to your next happy relationship? I mean, it sounds pretty great…free drinks, no waiting in the cold on line, good conversation, and a desirable, hot man that is all yours! Isn’t he?

Possible Outcomes…
#1 You continue your pattern of going out.  Despite your day job and his night job, things seem to be going really well with him.  Your work suffers from exhaustion, and your colleagues ask quite frequently about your late nights due to the fact you practically fall asleep at your desk every day. But you are happy and make a note to buy concealer to cover up those dark circles under your eyes. (Desirability: MODERATE; Reality: MODERATE)

#2 As you continue going to the bar, you can’t help but notice the amount of “extra friendly” girls that also are there regularly and seem to be floating on cloud nine around him. Your man assures you that you are his one and only, and runs outside on his break to buy you a single rose. (Desirability: MODERATE; Reality: MODERATE)

#3 You get butterflies when your man winks at you from his position in the bar. But when you turn around, some hot blonde is returning the exact same smile that you are.  You start to wonder, who was that affectionate gesture really for? (Desirability: LOW; Reality: HIGH)

#4 You surprise him during his lunch shift with his favorite iced coffee.  He is making out with that redhead that you noticed coming around the bar more regularly. You go up and dump him and the coffee over his head, and march out. (Desirability: LOW; Reality: HIGH)

#5 You go to the bar to hang out with your man.  As he is at the other end of the bar hitting on a group of bachelorettes, the guy next to you leans over and says you have the most stunning eyes he has ever seen. You stop staring at your man behind the bar to turn and be blown away by the most beautiful man you have ever seen.  Time flies as you immerse yourself in conversation with the new man with a stool in front of the bar.  You cast one last glance at your bartender and realize that he hasn’t even noticed that you have been preoccupied for the last three hours. You have been dating your new hottie ever since that blissful night.  (Desirability: HIGH; Reality: MODERATE)

The Lesson…
“It’s time to raise the bar”