Bonjour, babycakes!

How you doing? If you’re having a rough day, week, month or year, I would LOVE for you to try writing a gratitude list to see how it helps you & changes your perspective. I know it sounds too simple to ever work, but it really does; it totally alters your mindset. In fact, the more you train your brain to focus on the good things, the better it becomes at looking for those positive things, & this is a way in which you can learn optimism!

Here’s my gratitude list for the week.

Going on motorcycle adventures as an “old married couple”! The temperatures have started to cool off in NYC, which is wonderful, but also signifies that summer is drawing to a close. (The weather has been SUPER-WEIRD this year!) So we’ve been making the most of the bike & riding all over the city, eating fancy dinners & enjoying life! It has been so great.

Instagram! Clearly, I’m late to the game, but you’re going to have to forgive me since I only JUST got an iPhone! (I resisted for a long, long time, but now I am a happy member of the cult!) Anyway, Instagram is ace. I’ve been using it to take shots of photobooth celebrations of pie & taxi portraits, as well as lots of photos of New York City. So much fun! If you have Instagram, add me, my username is (wait for it!) galadarling!

Jeff Buckley on a rainy day… I love me some Jeff Buckley, & he’s definitely the perfect accompaniment to a dreary day. If you don’t know him, GET FAMILIAR! P.S. Eerie?!

Secret photobooths all over the city! After filling up on pie yesterday, Chloe & I ducked into an underground Japanese mall where we took photo stickers. SO MUCH FUN! I haven’t taken photo stickers since I was in Auckland last — in fact, I took this set of celebratory photo stickers after I got my American visa! (I used to live across the road from the video arcade where I took those pictures… It was an excellent late-night tradition to drag my friends there & cram into the booth!) So, let’s just say, I was really excited to take more Japanese sticker photos! They were unbelievably expensive ($28?!?!?!?!?!?!) but… sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do!

I recently discovered Amande yoghurt made from cultured almond milk (!!!), it is amazing, delicious & lactose-free! Bubby’s Pie Company! Chloe & I went there yesterday for breakfast, though we didn’t exactly have breakfast… I had sour cherry pie & she had apple pie. It was SO GOOD! Seeing Billy Walsh from Entourage (aka Rhys Coiro) on the street! JOAN JETT! This bear! Watch The Throne (I’ve barely listened to anything else!) Taco night + Frank Sinatra Watching documentaries about the secret, awesome parts of NYC — I just learned about Roosevelt Island & now I really want to visit! Australia’s Next Top Model (soooooooooo great) M Shanghai Bistro & Garden (new obsession…) Late-night visits to Lula’s Sweet Apothecary for vegan ice-cream sundaes Very happy manicures My Rabito iPhone case (so great) Late night mani/pedis & sparkling emerald toes Being really busy Hank & Dolly’s happy faces Obnoxiously bejewelled iPhone cases from Chinatown Pink sparkly Converse Perfect temperatures!

&… Chloe & I are getting up at the crack of dawn tomorrow morning in order to jet off to Chicago for the 20SB Summit! I’m amped to speak, & we’re also super-excited about exploring the city for a couple of days; I’ve never been before! If you have any suggestions of things we have to do while we’re there, holler at me on Twitter or Facebook or just email me!

Bet your bottom dollar you’ll lose the blues in Chicaaaaago…