Daisy Diamante

New York City dweller, caped commuter.

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Winter Olympics now in full swing here. Dear New York, we adore you but our relationship feels like it’s about to reach its breaking point and we are hoping that we will make it all the way to spring. This week we have three snowstorms, the nth this year. The city is really postcard-perfect gorgeous but for humans out there slugging it—it’s not very romantic. The amount of jumping, sliding and falling made us into unwilling and unfit athletes. Also sucks to be: forever smelling like a duck with all the feathers stuffed inside the coat; forever trudging with fellow commuters who equally smell like ducks with sheep thrown in with their damp wools; forever bad hair day with the variety of hats and caps that mess the hair that no gallon of hair spray and gel can fix; forever looking like a gardener with rubber boots and umbrella that look like a rake; forever annoying my FB friends for seeing endless posts on winter; forever New Yorkers acting like PMS-ing polar bears lumbering around ready to snap at the nearest victim; forever seeing bundled up miserable babies and only seeing their eyes. But we can’t give up on you yet gorgeous city, you still make us feel warm and fuzzy even if you b-slap us with your icy hand every now and then. [Photos/J. Ricasio, J. D. Handschuch, R. Bennet]

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International Day Against the Use of Child Soldiers. With conflicts raging all over the world, from Sudan to the Philippines, Syria, Afghanistan, Myanmar and other countries, hundreds of thousands of children remain the real casualties of armed conflict. When will it stop? [Photo/Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers]

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Asked once how come New Yorkers are slimmer compared to the rest of the US, simple explanation—every day is a rat race, a mini marathon, a bit of pushing here and there, free skating during winter time, and not to mention endless debates (that is, arguments that can easily escalate into fisticuffs). And that's just going to the subway. You have to be at the top of your game and definitely physically and emotionally taxing. Yes, you can save up on gym fees but you have to pay for extra life and disability insurance. Make sure it covers mental health too. [Photo: Business Insider]

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-16°C or 3°F and I can’t feel my face, my brain and my hands, and I don’t care if I look like I’m auditioning for a remake of The Clan of the Cave Bear. But this is my best selfie ever; maybe I should take off the ski mask before I enter the office building? There’s a bank on the ground floor.

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Even birds and bees do it. Migration. It’s International Migrants Day today. 232 million people living in a land where they were not born in, and that's including me—bringing diversity to the new country. I took a photo of a poster on migration many months ago, thought it was quite an appropriate one for this migrant.

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Growing up Mowgli. If I am to be reborn on this planet, I want to have her childhood. Meet Tippi, she played with Namibia’s most beautiful animals and grew up with tribes people–learning about life and wisdom with her ears on the ground and eyes on the grassland–the best life lessons the world has to offer. Beats playing with Barbies or video games. More stunning photos here… http://bit.ly/1bwrcIH [Photo/ S. Robert and A. Degre]

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Like penguins in a huddle—trying to get warm in sub-zero temp with the rest of the miserable working masses waiting for a ride in this wintry, damp day. And this bus perkily passes by to rub it in on my cold, miserable nose. Rush hour, more fun in the Philippines? Sigh. Beam me up, Scotty. Now. [Photo/Noel]

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Sephora, NYC. Cheeky name for a lip product. 

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Driving on a rainy morning in Manhattan, unconsciously cut off taxicab and at stop light, cab driver rolls down window and screams—“Hey lady, you are one lousy $#%^&*@ driver!” My quick comeback of a shout, “Coming from you, that’s a compliment, thank you!” His screaming reply, “You’re welcome and Happy Thanksgiving!” And he zooms and cuts me off. Gotta love this city, the rudeness is quite adorable.

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Swiper no swiping. Girl caught walking by a poster of a cat, Athens 21st International Cat Show. The 42 Strangest Photos Of 2013 from Business Insider— http://read.bi/1iljRCS. [Photo: Reuters/J. Kolesidis]

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Working for an organization that works for the preservation and expansion of any form of human knowledge, expression, and memory means learning is part of the culture. First event of the day, famed astrophysicist Brian May on Victorian stereo cards featuring the devil and his henchmen in a parallel universe set in hell. May, is also the brilliant guitarist of the band Queen. Second event, great essayist and semiotician Umberto Eco’s thoughts on the preservation of human knowledge. By lunch time, I bit up the dust with gray matter imploding and I went for a burger to get ready for the afternoon and the rest of the week. Several learning events lined up weekly in the hallowed halls. As Eco said, “Learning does not consist only of knowing what we must or we can do, but also of knowing what we could do and perhaps should not do.”  Figaro magnifico.

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According to Starbucks, I'm Davey. Not that bad this time, I had been Jessie, Debbie, even Carl (unless I took someone's cappuccino?). Meet the rest of the misspelled Starbucks customers' names here: http://thrl.st/1bHN4CQ. 

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Such a delight to find a toy that defies stereotype and that doesn’t poke holes on your soles when you step on them. This little boy traded his Bionicles with Rainbow Loom. Yes, the craftsy, rubber band bracelet craze serving as great equalizer of toy choice for boys and girls. This boy does not know he’s into crocheting, not bothered about the color pink or lavender, and trading bands with girls. Also good to know that Bionicle Rookie Team Leader Furno has a new weapon, the lethal rubber band bracelet that can annihilate evil.

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As my pagan little ghouls and I start to warm up to shake some strangers for candy this Halloween, we stopped for a moment in this serene spot to think about the faithful loved ones who left this mortal world. A moment of contemplation remembering the last words of someone before moving on, “Why do I have to go? I still have many things to do here.” The premature life was snuffed out just like that, making me realize the time in my hands is often taken for granted. Hoping to leave this world with no regrets and celebrating a life well lived—with all the items in the to-do list checked. Now time to act silly and beg for candies, life is after all like a box of chocolates, with a few jawbreakers thrown in.

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Souvenir shop in Vienna—crikey, no kangaroos in Austria? Hey it can be confusing. I once mailed a package to my sister who lived in Sydney, Australia, and a young postal clerk said I misspelled the country; crossed it out and wrote AUSTRIA in red permanent marker. I asked, what are you doing, it’s going to Australia, like Down Under? Under where, she asked? So I crossed out her Austria and rewrote "AUSTRALIA, under Papua New Guinea." First hurdle done, hopefully they didn't confuse that with Equatorial Guinea in West Africa. Hey sister, did you ever receive the package?

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It exists. Check out what women "should" do according to Google searches! Powerful new ad series developed for UN Women by Memac Ogilvy & Mather Dubai. More here…http://owl.li/q21Vb

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The Ambassador Wears Prada. Meet 40-something Susan Power, the new US Ambassador to the UN—youngest ever to hold the post, Pulitzer-winner, Harvard graduate, liberal hawk, human-rights champion, former journalist, mother of two young children, and now featured in Vogue. If you push the glass ceiling a bit, there’s such a thing as balance. But Power acknowledges that it’s tricky, “Having a one-year-old and Syria together: not a good fit.” Watching the Security Council like a hawk. More here http://bit.ly/172Yt2Z [Photo/Vogue]