These are a few of my (current) favorite things...

Audrey Kawasaki
I came across this artist by accident on LiveJournal. Her paintings had been fashioned into icons for the site, and I downloaded a couple of them for my own use. Then I got curious about the artist and googled her. (Can you believe we use the word "google" now as a verb? Sigh...) Anyways, I fell for her style -- hard -- when I took a look at the rest of her work. The one at your left, "My Dishonest Heart," is my favorite piece of hers. Here is a description of her style from her website:

The themes in Audrey Kawasaki's work are contradictions within themselves. Her work is both innocent and erotic. Each subject is attractive yet disturbing. Audrey's precise technical style is at once influenced by both manga comics and Art Nouveau. Her sharp graphic imagery is combined with the natural grain of the wood panels she paints on, bringing an unexpected warmth to enigmatic subject matter.

I think that's pretty much accurate! To view more of her work, you can visit her site, and to learn more about the artist, you can visit her blog.


Neverwhere
What is Neverwhere? It's a book by Neil Gaiman that tells the story of Richard Mayhew, an ordinary man just going about his business in London when he discovers that he may not know London as well as he thinks he does. After coming to the aid of an injured girl on the street (no good deed goes unpunished...), he opens the portal to a shadowy new world that exists beneath his, London Below, which he must travel and ultimately conquer if he wishes to go back home to London Above. This is one of the most satisfying books I've read in a while. I started it on a Saturday morning a few weeks ago and finished it in a matter of hours. It's got action, romance, mystery, danger -- all the elements you can hope for in a great book. I highly recommend it!

You can click on the book cover to read a snippet from Amazon.com. If you've read this before and are looking for another good book by Gaiman, I recommend The Graveyard Book.




Transit Lounge
Now let me get this straight -- I am not that big into clubs. Yes, I may live in Miami, but I don't eat sleep breathe clubs. I can't even remember the last time I was in one. So I tend to prefer more laid-back places, like bars. I discovered a great one recently.

If you live in South Florida or just happen to be visiting, you might want to check out Transit Lounge, a very cool bar in the downtown Miami area. There's no charge to get in at all, for guys or girls, and the drinks are reasonably priced. It's a very low-key place and the crowd is mostly people in their late 20's, early 30's. They feature great live music plus karaoke on most nights. I've enjoyed myself the two times I've been there, both on a Saturday night and on a Wednesday night, so that tells you the place is good on any night.

For more information, visit their website.



Ropes of Silicon
I am a movie fanatic. I actually used to have a less discerning taste before I met le boyf. He's an uber film buff who has taught me to be more discriminating with the movies I watch. But truthfully? I still enjoy watching laugh-out-loud grossout films and romantic comedies, even if they aren't exactly Oscar material. I like keeping up-to-date with the latest films and I love seeing trailers.

Ropes of Silicon is a most awesome website that has the latest film buzz, including trailers and movie stills. Thanks to them, I found out when my much anticipated "The Time Traveler's Wife" is coming out in theaters (August 14!!!) plus I saw the just-released trailer, poster, and a gallery of movie stills on their site last night. Read my article for Examiner to see the trailer and movie poster.

Check out Ropes of Silicon's website here, and if you're on twitter, you can follow them here.

What are some of your favorites this month? Share them in the comments! :-)

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