"Babe, the ASPCA is waiving the adoption fee on cats this weekend [Dec. 13-14] for the holidays," I mentioned to my boyfriend after reading the pet adoption listings in this week's Time Out.
"Awesome, we should get a little mewpet."
"mmmm....Nah"
"We could at least adopt a bunch and give them to homeless people to eat...I mean, have....I totally didn't mean to say that, hahaha."
December 10, 2008
December 7, 2008
The Queen of Cheap doesn't have to look that way
I'm starting to seismically shift how I present myself to the world, and I'm not sure if I'm fully comfortable with it yet.
I've always thought of myself as the Queen of Cheap (move over Tyra Banks). My wardrobe has consisted of disposable clearance rack purchases and the most unique items I could find at mass market stores like H&M or New York and Company. News of the next Payless BoGo sale is music to my ears. I love the feeling of buying something/anything so cute and trendy and seemingly one-of-a-kind, even though I always see other people wearing my "unique" clothes.
The most perfect example of this is the Bitten Houndstooth coat I got at Steve & Barry's for $8.88. I've since seen at least 15 chicks walking around Manhattan in this coat, and even on one chick I sat next to on NJ Transit! "I like your coat, heh heh heh."
So I've always bought cute things with the intention of wearing them for a season and then purchasing 20 of the latest new additions a few months later. Maybe it's living in Manhattan, surrounded by beautiful people and beautiful fashion, maybe it's that I'm getting older, and/or maybe it's because Tim Gunn just sounds so smart when he says a woman's wardrobe needs only 10 essential items...but I want to invest in good quality, beautiful, classic items of clothing that I can wear for years to come (or at least until I have children and will never again have the body I have now). And I'm starting! Just bought my first Diane Von Furstenberg dress, thanks to the Depression-fueled sale at Barney's.
So when I mentioned above that I'm not quite sure I'm ready to make these changes yet, it all comes down to my other deep-rooted theory about my image: That I don't want to look like I'm trying to hard, or look too good. You will NEVER see me with a cute outfit, flawlessly applied makeup, and coiffed hair. 2 out of the three, yes, but never all three. It's probably an insecurity--that if I put a lot of effort into my appearance and no one notices or suddenly no one thinks I'm attractive, that would SUCK. So I might as well do just enough that I feel good about myself, without feeling fake.
In the past I've never wanted to look my best or like I'm trying too hard to look good at work, because I never want other people to think I've achieved the success I've achieved because of how I look. I know this is becoming a more far-fetched idea now that I'm getting older, but it's something I'm grappling with.
But the more I work with men (and women) who compliment me when I look good and think I'm smart when I say something smart regardless of how I look, and the more I read things about the importance of image and business (i.e. Sarah Palin's extensive wardrobe budget, or this awesome article by Penelope Trunk. Of course I've used her advice about spending money on image when the economy is bad quite literally--take today's DVF and Louboutin puchase...) the more I'm trying to be more comfortable looking put together.
I've stepped up my game lately--just a little bit, by adding a few Anne Taylor pieces to my wardrobe (a store that just a year ago I would have been caught dead shopping in because it's for "old people"). And I think people are taking me more seriously. I've even been told by a coworker that they "like the new me", and I'm thinking, "oh wow, how craptastic was the old me?"
So I'm taking baby steps to overcoming this insecurity---literally! My stride in my new 4 inch heels is a lot shorter and wobblier than in my usual Payless ballet flats, haha.
I bet my boyfriend had no idea he would be one of the factors that started this whole transformation when he uttered the simple words "Want me to get you those shoes you like for your birthday?", and that my friend Melissa really got me thinking when she said "You need to be careful what you wear with those--you don't want your outfit to make people think your shoes are fake."
Basically I think this utterly superficial fashion transformation I'm undertaking is really about moving towards a new level of confidence and maturity and comfort in being a successful chick in her *gasp* late twenties...
Eh, maybe that's not too superficial after all.
I've always thought of myself as the Queen of Cheap (move over Tyra Banks). My wardrobe has consisted of disposable clearance rack purchases and the most unique items I could find at mass market stores like H&M or New York and Company. News of the next Payless BoGo sale is music to my ears. I love the feeling of buying something/anything so cute and trendy and seemingly one-of-a-kind, even though I always see other people wearing my "unique" clothes.
The most perfect example of this is the Bitten Houndstooth coat I got at Steve & Barry's for $8.88. I've since seen at least 15 chicks walking around Manhattan in this coat, and even on one chick I sat next to on NJ Transit! "I like your coat, heh heh heh."
So I've always bought cute things with the intention of wearing them for a season and then purchasing 20 of the latest new additions a few months later. Maybe it's living in Manhattan, surrounded by beautiful people and beautiful fashion, maybe it's that I'm getting older, and/or maybe it's because Tim Gunn just sounds so smart when he says a woman's wardrobe needs only 10 essential items...but I want to invest in good quality, beautiful, classic items of clothing that I can wear for years to come (or at least until I have children and will never again have the body I have now). And I'm starting! Just bought my first Diane Von Furstenberg dress, thanks to the Depression-fueled sale at Barney's.
So when I mentioned above that I'm not quite sure I'm ready to make these changes yet, it all comes down to my other deep-rooted theory about my image: That I don't want to look like I'm trying to hard, or look too good. You will NEVER see me with a cute outfit, flawlessly applied makeup, and coiffed hair. 2 out of the three, yes, but never all three. It's probably an insecurity--that if I put a lot of effort into my appearance and no one notices or suddenly no one thinks I'm attractive, that would SUCK. So I might as well do just enough that I feel good about myself, without feeling fake.
In the past I've never wanted to look my best or like I'm trying too hard to look good at work, because I never want other people to think I've achieved the success I've achieved because of how I look. I know this is becoming a more far-fetched idea now that I'm getting older, but it's something I'm grappling with.
But the more I work with men (and women) who compliment me when I look good and think I'm smart when I say something smart regardless of how I look, and the more I read things about the importance of image and business (i.e. Sarah Palin's extensive wardrobe budget, or this awesome article by Penelope Trunk. Of course I've used her advice about spending money on image when the economy is bad quite literally--take today's DVF and Louboutin puchase...) the more I'm trying to be more comfortable looking put together.
I've stepped up my game lately--just a little bit, by adding a few Anne Taylor pieces to my wardrobe (a store that just a year ago I would have been caught dead shopping in because it's for "old people"). And I think people are taking me more seriously. I've even been told by a coworker that they "like the new me", and I'm thinking, "oh wow, how craptastic was the old me?"
So I'm taking baby steps to overcoming this insecurity---literally! My stride in my new 4 inch heels is a lot shorter and wobblier than in my usual Payless ballet flats, haha.
I bet my boyfriend had no idea he would be one of the factors that started this whole transformation when he uttered the simple words "Want me to get you those shoes you like for your birthday?", and that my friend Melissa really got me thinking when she said "You need to be careful what you wear with those--you don't want your outfit to make people think your shoes are fake."
Basically I think this utterly superficial fashion transformation I'm undertaking is really about moving towards a new level of confidence and maturity and comfort in being a successful chick in her *gasp* late twenties...
Eh, maybe that's not too superficial after all.
November 6, 2008
An Historic Election
Something has been bothering me for a while now, especially after everyone started talking about how the presidential election would be historic no matter who won, and ESPECIALLY now that everyone is talking about how historic it is now that we have our first African American President.
So anyways, here's my issue.
I am thrilled that Obama won the election, but my happiness keeps getting squashed every time a reporter calls it: "AN historic election" or "an historic day."
Who says its okay to use "AN" in front of a consonant? No one says, "I think I'd like an hamburger for dinner" or "My favorite animal is an hippopotamus."
If you're British, it makes sense, because your accent makes your "H's" relatively silent, so it would sound like "an 'istoric election."
(An exception that makes sense for all accents is the word "honest", because you don't really pronounce the H, like in "an honest mistake"...or "hour"...)
Does this bother anyone else? I googled this and while both versions are correct it looks like I'm with the majority on this issue...now I just wish people in the media would start saying the phrase without the faux British accent so I can enjoy the election results without anything clouding my emotions.
So anyways, here's my issue.
I am thrilled that Obama won the election, but my happiness keeps getting squashed every time a reporter calls it: "AN historic election" or "an historic day."
Who says its okay to use "AN" in front of a consonant? No one says, "I think I'd like an hamburger for dinner" or "My favorite animal is an hippopotamus."
If you're British, it makes sense, because your accent makes your "H's" relatively silent, so it would sound like "an 'istoric election."
(An exception that makes sense for all accents is the word "honest", because you don't really pronounce the H, like in "an honest mistake"...or "hour"...)
Does this bother anyone else? I googled this and while both versions are correct it looks like I'm with the majority on this issue...now I just wish people in the media would start saying the phrase without the faux British accent so I can enjoy the election results without anything clouding my emotions.
October 6, 2008
Missed the obligatory birthday post
So today is the first day I'm posting in over a month. I didn't even post on my birthday, nor have I really taken the time to reflect on what happened during the past year. 26 really flew by...
Let me pay tribute to 26 by listing some of the "firsts" I experienced before turning 27:
*Living in Manhattan for the first time gave me the following firsts:
*First visit to New Orleans: First time taking the stage at Stiletto, first time riding a mechanical bull, first steamboat ride.
*First time taking actual business trips- First time ever to Chicago, first time going to Orlando and Phoenix on my own, first room service order.
*Discovered the joys of Guitar Hero, Rock Band, Absinthe, and Absolut Pears and Ruby Red, the Starbucks Double Shot on Ice, and private karaoke rooms with all-you-can-drink sake.
Is that it? Oh, and first time blogging.
Let me pay tribute to 26 by listing some of the "firsts" I experienced before turning 27:
*Living in Manhattan for the first time gave me the following firsts:
- First broker's fee
- First encounter with a bug that actually made me shed tears out of fear
- First exterminator visit
- First Christmas Eve visit to the Rockefeller Center tree
- First sojourn to Williamsburg and Washington Heights
- First time trying on shoes that cost the same as my monthly rent
- First time getting a bagel and coffee delivered
- First time getting my laundry picked up and delivered
- First time riding the NYC Bus
- First Korean BBQ
- First walk around the Reservoir and visit to the Guggenheim
- First time attending a book signing
- First second-hand clothing store purchase
*First visit to New Orleans: First time taking the stage at Stiletto, first time riding a mechanical bull, first steamboat ride.
*First time taking actual business trips- First time ever to Chicago, first time going to Orlando and Phoenix on my own, first room service order.
*Discovered the joys of Guitar Hero, Rock Band, Absinthe, and Absolut Pears and Ruby Red, the Starbucks Double Shot on Ice, and private karaoke rooms with all-you-can-drink sake.
Is that it? Oh, and first time blogging.
Safest Seat on the Subway
Okay, prepare yourself for a glimpse into the small portion of my psyche that may be abnormal...
I didn't choose the title for this post because of its awesome alliteration; it is in hopes that if someone has the same question that I do, and tries Googling "safest seat on subway" perhaps they will see my page come up first and have some solace knowing that someone else is as crazy as they are. Because they aren't going to find answers on Google about which seat is the safest.
Do you ever have really morbid thoughts?
Sometimes when I'm on the train, and I lean my head against the wall when I'm sitting in a corner seat, or when I'm sitting right next to a pole, I wonder what my odds of death would be if the train crashed, and then wonder if my likelihood of survival is more or less than if I was sitting or standing elsewhere on the train. (Like, I'm guessing that standing in the midst of a crowd of people is much safer than sitting next to the pole, because all the people would cushion your fall--We all know I sit all the time so I guess that means I usually choose laziness over survival.)
I know I'm not alone in this type of insanity--In "Killing Yourself to Live", the memoir/history of rock star death, Chuck Klosterman thought a lot about his own death--but its not something you usually discuss with friends. Although, friends, would love to hear your crazy moments of noticing your own mortality.
The bright side is that this fear doesn't paralyze me. It's not even fear really, just another opportunity to create a life strategy...literally. Thinking about my skull cracking open every now and then has done nothing besides make me think 'I should blog about this'. I would just love a definitive answer of which subway seat is safest.
I didn't choose the title for this post because of its awesome alliteration; it is in hopes that if someone has the same question that I do, and tries Googling "safest seat on subway" perhaps they will see my page come up first and have some solace knowing that someone else is as crazy as they are. Because they aren't going to find answers on Google about which seat is the safest.
Do you ever have really morbid thoughts?
Sometimes when I'm on the train, and I lean my head against the wall when I'm sitting in a corner seat, or when I'm sitting right next to a pole, I wonder what my odds of death would be if the train crashed, and then wonder if my likelihood of survival is more or less than if I was sitting or standing elsewhere on the train. (Like, I'm guessing that standing in the midst of a crowd of people is much safer than sitting next to the pole, because all the people would cushion your fall--We all know I sit all the time so I guess that means I usually choose laziness over survival.)
I know I'm not alone in this type of insanity--In "Killing Yourself to Live", the memoir/history of rock star death, Chuck Klosterman thought a lot about his own death--but its not something you usually discuss with friends. Although, friends, would love to hear your crazy moments of noticing your own mortality.
The bright side is that this fear doesn't paralyze me. It's not even fear really, just another opportunity to create a life strategy...literally. Thinking about my skull cracking open every now and then has done nothing besides make me think 'I should blog about this'. I would just love a definitive answer of which subway seat is safest.
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