Singles: Time to Get Rustic! (sponsored post)

As a single, I've learned to cook for one. Chili and casseroles-portion and freeze. PBJ? Check. Really desperate? Granola bar on the go. But as far as my favorites go, nothing beats ordering in a pizza and enjoying it solo. As in, eating all of it SOLO. Yes, in one sitting.

Ah...the single life.

Needless to say, I can't keep pizza around for that very reason. I have no self-control (surprise, surprise) and have been known to inhale a medium pizza myself and two days of calories with it. Which is why I'm so relieved to have recently learned about the great people over at American Flatbread and Rustic Crust Pizza. Natural and nutritious, this is crust you can trust. Catchy, huh?!

As I've said before, I'm no cook. But their products are easy, quick, delicious and convenient. The organic ready-made pizza crusts and pizza sauce are filled with flavors of parsley, basil and garlic and keep their flavor even without refrigeration and the ONLY ones of their kind that can be stored in the pantry for months, though you will want to gobble them up before then! I'm just relieved because they are available in individual-sized portions-so I can eat the whole thing without guilt in the morning! Also, they come in a gluten-free version for those of us who need it. How awesome is that? Just add your favorite toppings :-) Plus, there's such a fun element to making your own just the way you like it-and knowing exactly what the ingredients are.

Let's be honest. The cold is setting in here in the big city, and soon, we'll all be hibernating for the winter. Why wait for a delivery guy when in 7 minutes you can have your own wood fired oven (the only wood fired oven production the US, in fact!) already waiting for you at home. Go with their American Flatbreads-the cheese and herb is super yummy as I found out at our recent Single Edition Night Out. Trust me, I worked the room-aka had a ton of flatbread pizza! It hit my craving to a tee without leaving me bloated with sodium, an unfortunately side effect of other brands.

Here's the best news-single or not, you can enjoy these yummy creations for a quick dinner, afternoon snack or even stock them for go-to hors d'oeuvres for your other favorite ladies. Easy peezy!

I'm On the Market & In the Moment! And now I'm craving...

Thursday Deals!

Happy Thursday guys! I woke up this morning early and yet refreshed-such a rarity for me, especially with the rainy weather, but I managed to sleep so well. I attribute my perfect zzz's to the mix of reading Spirit Junkie (a post on this new book to come!) while eating zeppoles in bed. If you don't know what zeppoles are, you're missing out! This deep-fried dough dessert is being served around the clock on Mulberry Street for the festival if you want to give it a try-sooo rich but my reward from my roommate after a hard day of work and auditions (AND I was called an Isla Fisher lookalike at one of them-I'll take it!).

But back to this morning-wanted to share some deals from Daily Candy for city dwellers that I'll be checking out. First, there's tonight's NYC Fall Shopping event in Soho.

"From 5 to 9 p.m., more than twenty clothing and accessories stores in Soho will offer at least 20 percent off everything in stock. (Yes, you read that correctly.)

The A-plus roster includes Theory, Scoop NYC, AllSaints, La Perla, Paige, Betsey Johnson, and others. All you have to do to score the offer is R.S.V.P. and check off the stores you want to shop. Registration is free online at oo.com/vip." I'm FINALLY going to use my Nanette Lepore gift certificate!

Also, don't miss the Daily Candy Beauty Bus, which is parked on Broadway as of noon today and will move to a new location in midtown tomorrow followed by a final stop in Union Square on Saturday. I plan to swing by for a mid-day refresher from the pros at Hair Room Service featuring products from Pantene, COVERGIRL, and Olay.

See you in line!

I'm On the Market & In the Moment!

Spirit Junkie

It's been a whirlwind of a week-which I've decided may be the entry for every blog post since (gasp!) every week I say the same thing...I promise I'm working on the originality! But to get down to the post at hand. I have been working through and on a lot of things-multiple auditions which is always exciting, getting to catch up with old friends from home as well as those in town I haven't seen lately due to my whirlwind behavior. And to top of all the good stuff going on, I received a text from my Mr. Whatever/Meet Me Halfway/Stuck in a Snowstorm guy. The universe really knows how to stir things up.

It's been three months since our little encounter on the corner of Broome and Mott, and I more or less had settled in with the rejection and pain I felt from that chapter in my life. But this text was more or less a test from him and the universe to see if I'd green light these feelings back into my life again.

I deleted.

For me, this was a really big deal. This was coming from a person who I had really wanted to be a part of my life and my future, despite the hurts that we eventually caused. And yet, I knew in my gut that a text was no longer enough to get my attention or rather, was a lame, lazy outreach which totally LACKED intention. I had no idea what he wanted or for that matter, what I wanted (though I now know what I deserve). I've always been a firm believer that if you don't know what to do or say, stick with nada. But boy, did I lose some zzz's over that little test from the universe.

I say "from the universe" knowing that some people will say this was a test from "him" (ie. was I willing to let my standards and self-respect slide for another round?). But I really asked-no, prayed-for answers as I struggled between wanting 1-him to make the grand gesture that this time would be different and 2-at peace with my decision not to respond. And if I was going to go the "peace" route, I figured I needed to drum up all the reasons that I was angry with him, all the past rights & their subsequent wrongs and those memories, both wonderful and debilitating, that I had suppressed the past few months.

As I write this, I realize how strange it sounded...I thought opening Pandora's box would bring me peace??? C'MON!

While I was wrestling with these emotions, I meanwhile met a friend of a friend who seems to be a nice guy, is an up-and-coming director and was interested in learning more about me. Score, right?!? Well, I have been freaked. Here is someone available who wants to go out on a date and thinks I'm pretty great and I'm agonizing over the man who done me wrong-it was an all too familiar dillemma from my past. This definitely wasn't my first trip to the crossroads.

But as they say, when you're ready, the teacher comes. The very day I receive this text which was the same night I met this director (in my pjs and old I LOVE NEW YORK t-shirt, no less!), I finally opened up my advance copy of Spirit Junkie by Gabrielle Bernstein, and began reading. I had been looking forward to this for awhile, someone knowing that Bernstein had it going on yet, I simply hadn't had time to be quiet.

Now I don't want to ruin the book for you, but this is one that I really, REALLY cannot recommend enough for anyone struggling with unfulfillment, difficult relationships, dreams or just simply looking for mental peace. What you'll find between the pages is Bernstein's story, and what I found was a person whose journey seemed linked with my own tale (she even had a chapter on HER Mr. Big...), thus someone I could model after. Amid tools for meditation and releasing past hurts, Bernstein promotes forgiveness and love above all. I'm big on trading and borrowing books, but this is one I plan to buy for my shelf to read and re-read (I got an early e-reader edition!). Trust me, Bernstein's plan is way better than carrying around negativity-my tote bag is enough baggage for me!

New Yorkers, buy your copy at Strand (and support local indie bookstores!) for just $13. Everyone else, check out the amazing praise from Elle Magazine and the New York Times on Spirit Junkie's Amazon page.

I'm On the Market & In the Moment!

Words to Grow On

We are fighting the rain here this week in New York City, and coupled with the cool air, it's the perfect breeding ground for the blues. Personally, I'm loving another excuse to hunker down in my down comforter for some much-needed downtime, but I know I am probably the odd duck in thinking that. So for those of you experiencing some Mean Reds this week, I wanted to share a bit because let's face it-life and all its crazy decisions gets a little overwhelming sometimes. When I can't pull myself out of a funk, I look to the wisdom of others for the figurative kick in the butt I need to keep moving forward. Here are some of my favorite "words to grow on" which I hope helps your Tuesday, whatever you're going through!

I'm On the Market & In the Moment!

“When I wake up in the morning, I feel like any other insecure 24-year-old girl. Then I say,'Bitch, you're Lady Gaga, you get up and walk the walk today.”

-Lady Gaga

Don't listen to those who say, 'You're taking too big a chance.' Michelangelo would have painted the Sistine floor, and it would surely be rubbed out by today. Most important, don't listen when the little voice of fear inside you rears its ugly head and says. 'They're all smarter than you out there. They're more talented, they're taller, blonder, prettier, luckier, and they have connections. I firmly believe that if you follow a path that interests you, not to the exclusion of love, sensitivity, and cooperation with others, but with the strength of conviction that you can move others by your own efforts, and do not make success or failure the criteria by which you live, the chances are you'll be a person worthy of your own respects."

- Neil Simon, is an American playwright and screenwriter.

"Things don't go wrong and break your heart so you can become bitter and give up. They happen to break you down and build you up so you can be all that you were intended to be."

-Charles "Tremendous" Jones is a publisher, motivator and humorist! c/o Daily Love

"Creative work is not a selfish act or a bid for attention on the part of the actor. It's a gift to the world and every being in it. Don't cheat us of your contribution. Give us what you've got."

-Steven Pressfield, is a best-selling author. This quote is taken from his short and perfect book "The War of Art". c/o Daily Love

"What we really want to do is what we are really meant to do. When we do what we are meant to do, money comes to us, doors open for us, we feel useful, and the work we do feels like play to us."

-Julia Cameron, is an American teacher, author, artist, poet, playwright, novelist, filmmaker, composer, and journalist. She is perhaps most famous for her book The Artist's Way. c/o Daily Love

"I'm still mad at Jerry Maguire. Be whole, be happy, be complete -- that's when great love is possible."

-Andrea Syrtash, life coach, relationship expert, & author of He's Just Not Your Type (and that's a good thing)

"Our guts and our hearts are like hard drives, our minds the software. We need to let our centers do the heavy lifting and lead the way. But like any other muscle, you need to exercise love, intuition and trust in yourself on a regular basis. Then, little by little you grow stronger and more confident in order to let that part of you run the show, instead of your brain."

-Kristina Leonardi, life coach

"All the things that truly matter - beauty, love, creativity, joy, inner peace - arise from beyond the mind."

-Eckart Tolle, spiritual teacher and New York Times bestselling author of A New Earth and The Power of Now

Fall Frenzy

With the arrival of the US Open, Mercedes Benz Fashion week and finally, some crisp cool weather, I am pumped for fall. And a little exhausted, no surprise, since I've been running around like a madwoman trying to get it all done-though locking eyes with Matthew Perry while working at Ralph Lauren this weekend was WAY worth the late nights. He totally made me re-think my previous age cap! Anyway, tonight is my first night to myself in almost two weeks! Inspired by the waif-thin 14-year-old models I saw around Lincoln Center yesterday, I'm celebrating the evening with leftover strawberry cheesecake from Caffe Roma while downstairs, the local restaurants busily prepare for the first day of the Feast of San Gennaro, which is this Friday.

Meanwhile, I'm in back-to-school mode as I do a little re-evaluating and re-organizing. For some reason, this time of year prompts me to get creative and set new goals for the months ahead, sometimes even more than New Year's. On my list? To add a little spice to the blog with pictures, more products and places for New Yorkers and visitors alike to enjoy as well as set aside the time to write more often. Plus, it gives me more motivation to explore new spots for dining, shopping and having fun in my fair city! Dating New York is the ultimate relationship.

I'm also hoping to cook more which I'm sure it's scary to many people who know me. I've yet to set off the fire alarm in the new apartment so now's as good a time as any! And I've found some easy recipes to start with before I venture into the pages of my new copy of Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking (freshly stamped from the Shakespeare & Company bookstore in Paris! Add it to your must-go list!). And of course, audition, audition, audition though I'm now receiving more opportunities to choreograph here and there as well which is super exciting. Next up is a short piece for the comedic play NEVER LET GO which will be presented as part of the Manhattan Repertory Theatre's Fall 1 Act Competition. Tickets here!

And the goal of reserving Thursdays and Saturdays for happy hours, football and friends? Well, it's a lofty one, but I'm learning the power of Starbucks Iced Coffee (which can keep me going, and going, and going-you get the idea). If $2.35 is what it takes for me to stay in the moment and get it all done, then sign me up. I don't want to miss a thing this season. It's my favorite, after all.

I'm On the Market & In the Moment!

Living the Expat Life

Hi guys. Sorry for being so M.I.A. It's been a whirlwind of two weeks. I've been in London, Paris, and back to London again living the expat life. And I gotta say, life abroad agrees with me. Sleeping late every day (which for me, late is 10am!), Earl Grey, scones or pain au chocolate, bottles and bottles of wine, and crepes and croque monsieurs. Of course, there are other things to do besides eat, though eating my way through Europe can't be beat. We also powered through two days of wandering the streets seeing the Louvre, London Bridge, Greenwich market, the Globe and of course, hours spent drinking champagne watching the Eiffel Tower light show. I can't remember the last time I felt so relaxed. Sure there's no 9-5 grind when you're on vacation and my blackberry and cell didn't work so I really had a true escape, but I am point blank in love with these two amazing cities. Not to mention, my friends live in the equivalent of Battery Park/Wall Street so every afternoon there are happy hours filled with oh so cute Brits. For my next trip, I'm already planning to forgo sightseeing and instead, park myself at a cafe table every evening for the post-work ritual...

And now I'm back to the city, working hard for the money I didn't worry about spending abroad (the only downside of the expat life is the horrible exchange rate!). I'm catching up at work and also working at the Ralph Lauren store at the US Open for the next week and a half. And puppy sitting for my best friends as I simultaneously retreat in their high rise apartment on the Upper East Side. It's a really busy but also, quiet time. The city is dead for the holiday weekend which is both eery and pleasant (and also thankfully, makes puppy walking a breeze down Park Avenue). So I'm in recovery mode here after powering through the summer with rehearsals, shows, and traveling. And with visitors in town almost every weekend for the next two months, downtime must be relished in the present. Meanwhile, my trip made me realize how hard I've been working this summer and how fast it all has gone by. I've made progress professionally speaking and have been saving money like crazy as a result of being so focused, but my social life has suffered a bit. So I've decided to continue prioritize auditioning for the fall but perhaps take a break from evening shows. It's time I start balancing work and life with a little less structure-we are on the market after all! Fall is one of my favorite times of year, and it's the perfect time to be out and about in the city before the winter weather hits. Everyone will be back in place next week (Fashion Week, too!) and it's time to bring back happy hours, afternoons at the museum, brunches and bottles of wine stateside-continue living the expat life right at home.

I'm On the Market & In the Moment!

Star Power

My 72 hours of being sad up (yes, that's the rule-72 hours to wallow and then move to the next step!), I decided to channel some star power today. As an actress and celebrity in training (gotta shoot for the...ahem...stars, people!), I often check out PEOPLE magazine and am in awe of the women who not only have to deal with the pain caused by their lying, cheating boyfriends and husbands, but they have to do it in front of the world. I joke with my best girlfriends that one day, we'll be able to recover from our broken hearts by the pool at Canyon Ranch, where we'll spend three weeks in hiding: week 1 will be spent sleeping, crying and kabashing our delicate diets and exercise routines with major comfort food; week 2 will consist of hours on the therapy couch to complain, analyze, and cry some more; and week 3 will be the overhaul where our stylists and trainers fly in to detox, whip our butts back into amazing shape and give us the magical new hairstyle and wardrobe that will make "he whose name we no longer speak of" lose sleep at night.

So until then, I'm channeling my inner Reese. Witherspoon, my go-to girl for both her talent, her Southern charm and class, has definitely been raked through the mud by "what's his name" Phillipe and had to pull herself up by her Manolos with two kids in tow. Not only that, she channeled her pain by getting into better shape-both physically and with her career-and took home an Oscar not soon after. Then there's her film alter-ego Elle Woods who took her rejection to the doorways of Harvard, and not only saved the day but landed a kind, funny and sexy partner in crime, too (I do love Luke Wilson...).

With this in mind, I took myself to Hee Soo Beauty in the East Village, a hole in the wall nail salon that is AMAZING. As in cheap ($10 manicures and $25 pedicures) with the most lovely little ladies to take care of you. Clean, personable and with the most delightful massage chairs, it was just the respite I needed to feel cool, calm and collected again. Plus, you get a free shoulder massage with any service! I went with Essie's STATUS SYMBOL which is a creamy, feisty hot pink-perfect. And yes, I pick colors based on their names and how I want to feel...

In case you were wondering about their stats, here they are. They don't have a website but you can also check out their great reviews on Yelp. It's not just me that adores this place! You must go the next time you need a pick-me-up!

Hee Soo Beauty

114 4th Avenue

(between 11th & 12th Streets)

Salvation Army is next door so this is also the perfect time to drop off clothes to make room for your upcoming closet makeover!

Next on my list. Cut and color. Ok, confession. I am BAD about spending money on myself. Or rather, when I do, it goes towards classes and headshots rather than clothes and personal care. So with my long locks, I tend to skip expensive salons in favor of good old Supercuts. I told you this was a confession! But actually, the one on St. Mark's does a pretty good job in case you need a quick and cheap trim...

But I'm splurging on myself a bit. I've been so good about saving the past few months but now I need this TLC, a power boost to get me ready for the week of auditions, rehearsal and oh yeah-that amazing trip abroad where I'm just positive an Irish lad is waiting for me. I was going to go for the out-of-the-box color, but I keep wavering so time to head to the pros at Salon NK. Gilt City NYC has a great deal for single process color in case you, too, are ready for a new look. While still undecided if I'm going to go for a more dramatic deep brunette or more auburn (I'm headed to see my Irish roots after all!), I'm sure I'm in good hands with Nerik's knowledgeable staff.

Now I just need to find the time for an appointment. Thankfully, the paparazzi aren't yet banging down my door, so I have a little leeway. I think post-show is the way to go...with all the curling for the production, my hair will need some extra care in two weeks. So whether you had the spa money in hand or only $10 singles to spare, it's amazing how some personal fluffing and taking care of yourself can make you feel a new sense of personal power.

I'm On the Market & In the Moment!