out with the one-shoulder corsage. in with the gray.

it's only been popular for now two seasons, but i'm already kind of over the random-giant-corsage/pageant-sash-one-shoulder wedding dress look. i think it's the puffy sleeves of this decade - all my friends' daughters will look at their mom's dresses in 20 years and scream, "you WORE a one-shoulder dress?!" bring something else back! where are the illusion-lace-short-sleeved dresses, à la ivanka trump? that's a classic look i can get behind.


dress by morilee, 2011 collection

yeah, i do think it's trendy, and yeah, like the mermaid wedding dress, i do think it will be around for a while. but i do not endorse it, yo.

dress by elie saab, fall 2010 couture

what i will get behind is the gray wedding dress. ever since i read katy perry wore a gray elie saab (pretty sure it's the one above. i am obsessed. don't you just LOVE it?), i am dying to see this color in more stores. it fits in with the vintage laces and old-hollywood styles in stores already. if brides can do champagne, they can do gray.


dress by vera wang bridal, spring 2011

apparently kp isn't the first hollywood-bride-in-gray. supermodel natalia vodianova wore a gray gown by tom ford for her russian wedding in september 2002.

pawprints in the snow

i write a lot about clothes and fashion and crap i can't afford, so much so that i sometimes hang my head in shame for the seemingly wasteful vanity i feel i sometimes exude. i don't mean to come off that way. i just love clothes too much. i am a clothes whore. the only reason i throw clothes out (aka, donate them) is so i can make room in my (way too small) closet for new clothes. this week i was going to drop more money (that i don't have) on clothes (that i don't need - but when has it ever been about needing clothes with me? although i do currently need black pants and patterned camis. ugh, anyway....) but i'll have to wait with that purchase that would have admittedly made me very happy. but happiness is not this adorable cashmere sweater (in baby blue) or this beautiful kate spade birdcage necklace (that i saw in person in soho last month and so i can indeed vouch for its adorableness. yes, i did just drop a soho reference. i'm a dork like that.).


happiness is this face, healthy and happy, snuggling next to me. it wasn't a happy ending for me two years ago, coming home from the vet without the dog i had only had for two weeks. but i never felt my love for animals more than when i was deep in despair for the doggie i had lost.

i love his smell. i love his smile. i love it when he does the beagle wiggle in excitement. i love his little snores as he floats in doggy dreamland. i love that face, those adorable ears softer than velvet, that spotted belly that turns pink when he snuggles deeper in the blankets. i love that it took the worse to make me realize how lucky we are, this beagle and me, to have found each other and take this road together.

finding the elusive perfect tuxedo jacket

1. it has to be lightweight
2. it has to be semi-shiny (or feature a shiny lapel)
3. it has to be price-friendly*

*or not

this one by j. crew is pretty damn close. but the price - oh, the price! but i love it! but it costs almost two cable bills! but i love it! but i need a new sink and medicine cabinet! but i love it!

damn you, j. crew.

in the car, holding hands, laughing

we're having movie night tonight.

we don't do movies much anymore, at least at the theater. i'd like to say it's because they're expensive but honestly i'm kind of a homebody, and also lazy. but movie night is fun, especially since we got the (hand-me-down used flood-rescued) big screen from my brother. i haven't been on the comfy couch in forever now that it got sucked into the man cave. it's kind of his zone, like mine is me knitting something or reading on my kindle, wherever i might be sprawled out.

life is hard. and busy. even though we only (ha) have two dogs and a cat, we're still busy. i still get home some nights so tired my eyes hurt, so cranky i'm yelling at melissa block on "all things considered," even though she has the sweetest, most non-anger-inducing voice. i was talking about relationships with a friend a few weeks ago, and i said something that i think made me pause all my baby fantasies.

"it's not going to get any easier. it's just going to get more stressful."

crap, it is. in fact the past few times we've planned a movie night, i've said let's do something else, even though we both knew that something else was me zoning out on youtube and him playing wow. i needed to zone out. i had had a long day.

it's ok if tonight's movie night doesn't happen. right now i'm thinking it will and planning for our mini date at home. it's funny that the little things cheer me up now: the laughter, the walks with the dogs, the car rides to and from work, hearing about his day, smiling, excited for tomorrow.

i can make this

the best part about being a knitter?
i see something for sale, like this super-cute snood (what is it with the snood lately?) from j. crew - on sale for $49.50 - and think to myself, i can make that.

victory!

book review: "smooth talking stranger," by lisa kleypas

it was her historical romances that drew me into lisa kleypas. she's an amazing author, and her hathaway series remains one of my favorite (i still get shivers thinking of the wonder that is "married by morning." i have yet to finish the series because i can't bear to say good bye to the beloved hathaway family.)

i had seen this book on quite a few favorite lists and had it in my amazon wish list when i finished a few others. historicals will always be my first love, but i'm oh-so-slowly treading water into contemporary romances.

maybe it's that i love history, maybe it's that i like imagining a different time and place, but i've never been drawn to contemporary. then this book happened and doomed me because not only is jill shalvis amazing (seriously, i can totally picture sharing a bottle of wine with her and having a blast), but she gets people. she gets how they talk, how they respond to situations, how messed up they can be. and lisa gets that too.

"smooth talking stranger" centers around ella, a 20-something texan finally getting her life together after what can only be described as a truly fucked-up childhood and years of therapy. then her sister, tara, who has obviously not invested time into therapy, dumps her baby on their mother - then tara checks herself into a heath clinic. ella gets pulled in and goes after the baby's father, jack travis, only one of the most powerful and richest men in houston.

the question in romance novels is NEVER who falls in love with who. it's always how - and maybe why not. the best novels often have incredibly (to borrow a word from SB's Candy) schlocky premises and details - hello, illegitimate baby meets hippie girl meets big town manwhore! - but it's all in the execution. ella is an incredibly believable, smart, caring character who wears glasses and worries about things like how much water a luxury shower is wasting. the schlock is taken for granted in this genre. some write crappy schlock. some write good schlock. and then there's lisa.

the snood

here i am, usual weeknight of ignoring the crap that i need to do (tonight's procrastinated chore was cleaning out the mountain of clothes i need to get rid of while also doing the other mountain of dirty laundry). instead i'm listening to the beautiful cover glee did last night of "one of us" and surfing net-a-porter and what do i come across?

only the cutest accessory for fall EVER.

the snood.i had no idea it was called a snood. i thought this was a cowl scarf (aka, an attached scarf). snood sounds like a snooty name, but it is quite possibly the easiest way to spice up an outfit, and warm to boot. this particular one would look great with boots, jeans and a comfy sweater.

sigh. i want.

snood by burberry, $325

first look: white by vera wang

i'm not ready to buy a wedding dress, but dang it if i don't have to rethink my anti-david's bridal policy now that vera wang is getting ready to unveil (ha ha) a line of dresses for them. since her dresses retail for anywhere from $5000-$25,000 (and up), the line - officially called white by vera wang - will open her brand up to a whole new group of brides, since they'll be on sale for $600-$1400.

vera finally showed her designs last week on oprah, where 50 lucky brides-to-be get to pick from any one of them. of the line, which i'm going to estimate is around 12 dresses, i like these three the best.





jeez. not only do these make me rethink my i-hate-davids-bridal mantra, i'm actually contemplating a pink wedding dress.

thanks to dallasweddingplanner.com for the photos

the big d

it was a quiet summer - only one wedding, compared to last year's four (three of which i was in). next summer is already scheduled to be busier - my brother is getting married in may. we've never really talked about his future marriage and what it means for him when our parents are married. but apparently the chances of his marriage failing are 50% higher because he comes from a divorced home, according to this story on cnn today.

it gets worse for me and t. since we're both from divorced families, our chances of failing in marriage are 200% ahead of everyone else. what the fuck? i feel doomed. 200% is kind of off-the-charts bad, like slim to none but without the slim.

200 fucking percent?

i know i'm taking a stat from one study, but it makes some sense to me. divorce, to put it mildly, fucks one up. not just the persons getting divorced, but the friends, the parent's parents and especially the kids. not to wave my own self-pity flag or anything; that's the truth. marriage is serious. at least i come out of surviving my parents' divorce realizing that. i'm waiting until the time is right, and i'm trying not to let my emotions get ahead of me.

divorce - like overalls and jeggings - just isn't an option for me.

photo via isleptinyourheart

a plea for fun underwear

disclaimer: i have big boobs. i say this only to point out that i cannot simply go and buy whatever. good support is as important in a bra as it is in a friend, and that goes unsaid for me. a quality bra is essential. underline, exclamation point, extra bold. i don't go cheap on my bras, because i believe you get what you pay for, and i refuse to pay for something that i have to wear all day that's uncomfortable, which is what most cheap bras end up being for me.

plus most big-box stores that sell cheap bras don't believe girls with big boobs wear them. or at least that's the impression i get when i can't find my size again and again and again.

so i have to wear underwear. so do you. it's an essential in life, like water and chocolate. and i am of the mind that if you have to eat chocolate, you may as well eat good chocolate. the same goes for underwear. you have to wear it - so why stick with boring white?

it's not about who will see it - because no one but you (and maybe your partner) will. it's about life being short and having fun and trying something different and rebelling even if it's something as small as buying a red bra.

and if i had to recommend a brand, it's of course victoria's secret. they know what they're doing. my favorite? body by victoria full coverage. i'm kind of obsessed (especially with their new invisible lace option! ok, so i went a little crazy when i saw those.) p.s. i don't own a single white one.

jewelry lust: the tiffany key

when tiffanys introduced the key necklace, i thought they were a little crazy. a key? really? as it usually is with me, after giving the idea a chance - and seeing it around the neck of a very fashionable friend, i've decided i love it.

i'm not a huge jewelry person. i prefer more simple, longer pieces, since i'm so ticklish, so i probably would have to substitute the 16" chain this comes with for something longer. bigger charms like this should be on a longer chain anyway. i love the simplicity of this piece and the tiny heart on top of the key - just a little detail that makes it unique.

there are some things i love more than clothes and shoes

i was only in my apartment for a couple weeks last year when i started looking at the beautiful faces of dogs up for adoption. a month later i was saying good bye to my first dog ever (due to bloat - if you don't know what this is, and you have a dog, please do your research. hours can make a difference, though it unfortunately did not for me). then two weeks later, outwardly protesting but inwardly eager to bravely step back into the scary, wonderful world of pet ownership.
that's when i found him, the cutest, funniest beagle-daschund-hound ever - hamlet, my little snuggler, a dog whose favorite things include stealing toys and burrowing under the covers. he was - still is, if i'm honest - a handful. but i love him, even when he drives me crazy. pets are good practice for kids, i keep telling myself. if that's the case...maybe i want to stick with pets for a little bit longer.
but of course one was not enough. i've had a dream to get a cat since i was six, quickly squashed by my brother being "allergic." fast-forward to may when i was taking hammie to get his nails clipped and saw this beautiful little white kitten at petco. he was the sweetest, most inquisitive little thing. they had named him charmin, and i promptly changed that to othello, though he is mr. kitty, mr. furrypants, mr. man, stinkhead and some other cusswords at times (he has already broken a vase and a light bulb).

and once you have two, hasn't the chaos already reigned for a while? (you know where this is going, don't you, tricky reader.)look at that face. LOOK AT IT. how can you say no, knowing the risks? we found out he was five on the way to pick him up. too late, i was and am already head-over-heels as he sleeps on the living room floor, probably getting massive puddles of drool everywhere. my mom is horrified, my grandparents call it a travesty, but i can't get over that face.

don't tell t, but i think it has to be romeo for him. my little loverboy dog.

i will get these shoes for fall

shoe boots, nine west

shoe boots are gloriously amazing in that almost-too-trendy kind of way. these i really love, particularly with the soft fold on the front - like they're heels you snuggle up in (and by snuggling, i of course mean wear with tights and a lbd).


fringe boots, minnetonka for j. crew

i have been lusting for fringe minnetonkas ever since i was a nine-year-old vacationing in petosky, michigan, and picked out a pair that my mom immediately denied me. lesson #1: unless it's a. too expensive or b. too impractical, i will never deny my children their right to fashion. lesson #2: now that i'm my own independent person, i will immediately buy myself these and enjoy the hell out of them. can't you just see these paired with leggings and a long sweater on a cool-ish october saturday? almost makes me miss college.

perfect leopard pump, ann taylor

my third must-have pair of shoes is from ann taylor - a leopard print version of their perfect pumps, which are perfect. i have a pair of in black. i had to run six blocks in chicago on michigan avenue, practically knocking over christmas shoppers to get them, never mind the swine flu i came down with later, but they are WORTH IT. srsly.

kindle my heart

yep, i already ordered one.

i was going to post this long review of the kindle, since i went back and forth over whether to get one for so long. then amazon went and surprised everyone (ok, well, just me) by coming out with a third-generation kindle well before the expected fall 2010 announcement.

kindle 3, as it's unofficially been dubbed by the techie media, has double the battery life (at least one month without wireless on), double the storage (4g) and turns pages 20% faster than kindle 2. since i ordered my kindle within the 30-day time frame for returns, i quickly shipped it back and ordered a new kindle. sadly, amazon isn't shipping kindle 3 until the end of august - and apparently a wait list has already formed because of so many orders.

sigh. i miss my kindle already. hopefully kindle 3 will be worth it - and from what i've read of the scant reviews, this will be the case.

i'll post a full review after i've had it for a few weeks, with comparisons to kindle 2. in the meantime i'm revisiting my "real" books and adding new titles to my wish list on amazon. one can never have too many books to read.

oh, and if you don't know where the title of this post came from, you've probably never seen the classic 1995 version of "a little princess." one of the most beautiful movies ever made, featuring one of the most beautiful soundtracks - including the theme song. listen to it here.

oh blah

what a negative last post! i've finally pulled that stick out of my ass. instead of all that, i'll let you enjoy a picture of my new cat, othello. if i only had half his energy...

why i hate organized religion: #95851

npr aired this story yesterday about a nun excommunicated from the church because she allowed an abortion to happen at the hospital she was in charge of.

the woman was 11 weeks pregnant and so gravely ill, she couldn't even be moved to a different room, much less a different hospital than the catholic one she had been admitted to. she already had four children at home, and after hearing the doctors' opinions that she wouldn't survive much longer, the nun allowed the abortion.

the archbishop of arizona (seriously, what is up with the crazies in arizona lately?) immediately excommunicated her. because apparently both of them dying - leaving four children without a mother - is better.

let's be honest - it's a sad situation no matter what. but i love the comment of one of the readers: "if men birthed children, would this even be a question?" never mind the fact that NO priests accused or proved to be molesters have been excommunicated.

this story makes me so angry, i feel like my head is going to explode. once again, the church proves why it's a big barrel of fucked-up hypocricy, and i'm left wondering why i even went in the first place.

the glorious pile of crazy that is the met ball

there are a few things you can count on in may: your tax return (though where the hell is mine?) and the craziness that is the met ball - specifically the gowns some of the celebrities wear. i thought they were wacky, though mostly in a good way, this year. and call me crazy, but i LOVE what gwen is wearing:


i should mention it's her own design, which makes it even more awesome sauce. i love the black with the draping around it, the simple hair, the red lipstick, the hot man candy. gorg.

and damn if i'm not so excited for vera wang's line for david's bridal. especially after seeing mila kunis in this dress.


wonder what my mom would say if i wore THAT down the aisle. HA. worth it.

pics via style

almost

do you know what i almost called this blog?

"where to buy shit in indiana"

shopping is heroin to me, and when it goes well - in indiana - it's amazing, the highest high. because there isn't a lot here, people, and it kills me. i love this place, and it chokes me sometimes with anger. my town has one tiny mom-and-pop bookstore that, while totally cute and adorable, has the most pitiful section on romance. seriously, i do my book shopping at target.

what was the point of this post? i don't remember. only that i started reading "a homemade life" and it's making me wish i was a better cook. her blog is amazing, too.

wishful wednesday: extensions

sigh.

i miss my long hair.

photo via aela

first look: zac posen for target

my obsession with target just got worse.


behold zac posen's line for target. gorgeous, colorful dresses with posen's trademark twist. my favorite pieces include a strapless blue dress with a gorgeous ruffle skirt and a dress with snaps on it that allows for custom bustling and draping. here's hoping to god/allah/zeus/baby jesus my nearest target gets some of these pieces - and that they don't sell out before i get there myself!

wishful wednesday: the kindle

apparently the boy was going to get me one of these last year, but it didn't pan out. heartbreak! i never thought i'd actually say i want one, but i am an avid, voracious reader, destroying books like a hyena rips apart a dead zebra - though perhaps without the blood. i am not one who can savor a book, much like i cannot savor a dessert - i must eat it all now, in one bite preferably. i'm usually tired most mornings because i stayed up too late reading the night before. and the idea of having nearly every book at my fingertips, 60 seconds away from reading, in one device i can carry with me...it's more than tempting. i think i'm going to take the bait.

and this from the girl who enjoys the smell of books. seriously, i'll lean into my book and smell the pages. i love that first crack of a brand new book that has never been opened and will even buy the book buried in the shelf just so i can be the first one to open it. all that love, and i still think i want a kindle - if only because i'm running out of room for all my romance novels.

omfg

i love j. crew, but ... no.

jeggings with men's oxfords? there are no words.

wishful wednesday: any pair of louboutins

well, actually this pair. i'm a little obsessed. they're just gorgeous, aren't they? classic. goes with everything. and i love how they're called "very jaws" pumps.

price is not important, mkay?

yes, i copied that last bit from east side bride. i love her. sue me.

summer playlist #1

april is close enough to summer. when you've suffered through an indiana winter, you'll understand. if you're in a state more north than indiana, my sincere apologies.

1. la la lie, jack's mannequin
2. take your mama, scissors sisters
3. go do, jonsi
4. if you c jordan, something corporate
5. ldn, lily allen
6. rainy day, coldplay
7. songbird, eva cassidy
8. strawberry swing, coldplay
9. time of your life, green day
10. tree hugger, kimya dawson & antsy pants
11. folding chair, regina spektor
12. animal arithmetic, jonsi
13. everywhere, michelle branch

photo via fine little day

a love letter to jonsi

ok, he's gay and has been with alex for forever. but i don't care. i love this man. he's a genius. his new album is out today, and i'm listening to it right now. i have a headache and am being propped up today by this man's creativity and genius via music. it's like a child's dream world in a song - or nine songs, in this case. beautiful doesn't begin to describe it. do yourself a favor and sit down with this album. the world is more lovely because of it.

wishful wednesday

a new feature to the blog: me profiling something i want really, really, really, really bad(ly) on wednesdays.

shamefully copied from celia. apologies and gratitude.

today i'm lusting after hermione's gray knit hat from "harry potter and the order of the phoenix." considering i am just now learning how to do the purl stitch - and this hat is significantly more complicated - it will be a while. and also probably a mess. whatevs.

photo via jlyarnworks

i live in the land of guns and corn

this is how fucked up indiana is: our governor just signed into law a bill that allows people bring their guns to work if they leave them in their cars and lock their doors.

say it with me now... "what. the. fuck."

photo via isleptinyourheart

trends that make me ill

these things are apparently coming back into style. puke.

new obsession

my grandma jojo taught me how to knit a while ago, and thankfully like riding a bike it all came back to me. right now i'm making leg warmers...or if i mess up too badly, a very, very thick scarf.

next is a matching hat for winter - though apparently you have to use five needles to knit in a circle. scary.

photo via amber in norfolk on flickr

nyfw: review (oscar de la renta fall '10 rtw)

oh oscar de la renta. i say that name like some people say "ooohhhhmmm." while some lines have the illusion of everyday wear, oscar is all luxurious feminity, fifth avenue chic. he has pieces for all ages, as well as, i am sad to say, fur. fur is everywhere on the runway, and is the number one thing i abhor more than leggings as pants, more than size-00 models. fur is disgusting. but i digress to this fashion porn:

love the sheer part at the top! this is how to do sparkles and floral combined.

















oh blue. my true love color.















this is actually my favorite. i love orange. everyone needs to have some orange in their wardrobe. it's the hardest color to wear that's really not that hard. match with pink for extra points.
















every one of oscar's creations look like they belong on a red carpet or a manhattanite queen. most of this line would definitely fit on women ages 50 and up, and minus the fur, it was one of my favorites. oscar's like peyton manning - he scores every time.

see oscar de la renta's entire fall 2010 ready-to-wear line here.

nyfw: review (cynthia steffe fall '10 rtw)

i love it when i find a new designer with a fab line (see yesterday's entry about adam). cynthia steffe's collection was 70s mod girl meets prep school student: peter pan collars, plaid and knee socks, which are going on my must-have list for fall next year.

details, details: love the beret and the sheer panel. sassy without being too revealing.


















i love ponchos!

















my favorite outfit of the line. this just screams sexy to me. it's all in the subtle details - from the sheer sleeves to the buttons on the dress that are reminiscint of a pea coat.


















oversized collars were another trend i saw on a lot of collections. is it a scarf? part of the dress? who cares - i'd love to wrap myself in it once temps drop in october.


















if i had to describe my style in one word, i would choose feminine. cynthia's line uses textures, accessories and most importantly interesting details to twist classic pieces that would otherwise border on boring. they're sexy because of what they don't reveal - and seriously, who can resist a good knee sock (or two)?

see cynthia steffe's entire fall 2010 ready-to-wear line here.

nyfw: review (adam fall '10 rtw)

full disclosure: i have never followed adam closely, compared to some of my other favorite designers (carlos miele, j. mendel, badgley mischka, elie saab, in case you were wondering), but this season's line caught my eye. it was full of youthful pieces - shorter skirts, sparkles, layers and cozy dresses i would love to curl up in.

next year's christmas party outfit:




















next year's christmas morning dress:




















and a frock for new year's 2011:


















kind of surprising these are all from the same line. but i loved it, the mix of styles and occasions. there were work dresses and comfy knits and beautiful gowns with origami-style skirts. i'd love to have the entire line in my closet. a girl can dream, right?

see adam's 2010 fall ready-to-wear line here.

nyfw: review (monique lhuillier fall '10 rtw)

football is finally over, and now my favorite season has begun! it's new york fashion week right now, and i'm loving some of the shows i'm seeing. i'll be posting reviews this week of some of those shows.

monique lhuillier has long been one of my favorite designers, and she's a celebrity favorite, too. her designs are gorgeously feminine with beautiful colors and sparkle. one of my favorite things about the line was that it featured gowns that would look good on girls with curves.

exhibit a:




















exhibit b:




















i would totally wear this to the oscars if a. i was invited, and b. i could afford it.




















still, some of the clothes were slightly reminiscient of marchesa or versace, circa last year. case in point:



















i guarantee a young hollywood type is going to wear that one. amazing on curves, but geez, i think i'm sick of mermaid silhouettes. in general, i thought this line was sexy and feminine, and i'm still drooling over that red dress.

see monique's entire line here.

twenty-something-something

this is a few weeks and days late, the birthday post that i meant to write on my actual birthday. i turned 25 in mid-january, my Scary Age, that point-of-no-return. today i write this on the birthday of one of my very good friends, because i wonder if she is feeling the same way i feel about this time in our lives.

we always talk about that terrible time for people when they're growing up - those teenage years with all their hormones and angst and impatience to just get there already. but no one ever mentions how difficult being a 20-something is. the hormones and angst and impatience don't go away. you just don't have a good excuse to make mistakes anymore. or that's what it feels like. i feel like i have to be perfect, that every single decision i make is a Big Decision and if i choose the wrong fork, i'm going to pay for it down the road. stock purchase plans. mortgages. my uncle even mentioned i need to have a will. when the fuck did this happen? i'm YOUNG. or young-ish. i'm not even married.

and that's the other problem. in my teenage years i just wanted a boyfriend. taylor swift would have been my mary queen of heaven. now everyone's asking me when the wedding is. the expectations don't double, they go up to the tenth power. at 18 i was worried about my prom date. at 28, it's the prime time to have a baby. twenties are way harder than the teens, and i just wish someone would acknowledge that those stupid teenagers don't have it so terrible after all, because they're still kids and they can still make mistakes that everyone understands and forgives. no one seems to be as understanding when you make those mistakes in your 20s. we're supposed to have it figured out by now. right? sure.

making a fool of myself on ice

i bought skates over the weekend.

my old ones - which were used and lovely - floated away in the flood last year. sad. and though i'm afraid the really cold weather has left indiana for the year, i had to buy some skates, just in case.

i took lessons when i was younger. that doesn't mean i'm a good skater; it just means i can stay up (most of the time) and fake gracefulness.

i used to be mad at my mom that she didn't make me take more skating lessons. i remember watching gordeeva and grinkov - who remain my favorite skaters of all time - win the gold medal. i also remember my grandmother taking me home from school one day, pulling up to my house and telling me sergei died.

i have watched every skating competition since then, especially the olympics. when i was younger, i stayed up way past my bedtime to see who won the gold medal. i love the music, the costumes and the artistry of skating, and will always prefer someone with artistry (sasha cohen) to someone strength (see irina slutskaya and rachael flatt).

and in a move to capture back a childhood regret, i bought ice skates which i plan to use at the public rink if not on my mom's frozen lake. there is something about skating that i love - but i love pocketing a regret even more.

picture via the woods hutchinson health series

a question of ethics

there is a lot of suffering going on in haiti right now. i thought about that last night, tucked in warm in my bed. i've thought about it since a week ago when the earthquake hit - about the dead, the dying, the people who are suffering. it's not just a natural disaster - it's a man-made one. say what you will about big brother, but the absence of governmental organization has probably tripled the number of dead in haiti, and it's getting worse.

i've been blown away by some of the reporting going on there - even the reporters i have had doubts with have done an amazing job of conveying the brutality of the situation. how much can a photo, a scream, a teary voice speak? they have connected me into the stories, and i plan on donating to the cause because of it.

but i had to know this was coming when i saw a video of dr. sanjay gupta from cnn examining a 15-day-old baby girl with a head wound. as dr. gupta explained what was wrong to the baby's father, he also explained it to the viewers. the purists in my field are now questioning in articles like this one whether doctors who work for new networks should get involved so heavily.

or you could read this article quoting the doctoral student i worked with when i was an a.i. mike brings up a valid point: "'In the end, I tell my students it is up to the individual person,' he adds. 'But most of my students say it is wrong for the reporter to insinuate themselves into the story, and I tend to agree. In that moment when they become the story, how can they bear faithful witness to the truth?'"

true - but how could i as a person bear watching an innocent get hurt, a country crumble to its knees, without at least trying to help?

jónsi's new song is amazing

i feel like i have to scream about it, because i'm so excited - jónsi birgisson, lead singer of sigur rós, one of my all-time favorite bands, is releasing a solo album in march, "go." but if you sign up for email updates, you get his first single, "boy lilikoi," free. and it's AMAZING. it's so good, i'm using caps, and y'all know i don't do that very often.

he's also on twitter. it bummed me out that he only had 2500+ followers - though he did ask to follow me!!!!! this man is talented. listen to his music. you'll thank me later.

diversion: Southwest Airlines review

i meant to write this post ages ago, when the flights were fresh in my mind, but i remember them both well - mostly because they were so good!

for those of you flying any time soon, you really should consider southwest. they're a great company to work for (i hear), they're super-nice with their customers (love their twitter feed @SouthwestAir) and they have cool deals like their new early-bird check-in service. in the past year, southwest started early-bird check-in. between when you buy your ticket and 25 hours in advance, you pay $10 per way for a boarding pass that allows you on the plane right after the frequent southwest flyers and business select ticket holders. the sooner you pay $10, the better position you'll get. i purchased the early-bird check-in for my flight to phoenix and back home about three weeks prior to my trip. in southwest days of yore, every passenger can check in and print their boarding passes starting 24 hours in advance - with the idea that the sooner you checked in, the better chances you have for a group A pass, and thus a better seat on the plane. with the early-bird check-in, your spot is automatically assigned 36 hours in advance - and you can print your pass starting at 24 hours to go. gone are the three groups; instead, southwest gives everyone a place in the a, b or c group, plus a number. you check in based on that number. if you're a person like me who likes to have a certain seat (my preference - window, as far front as possible), getting on the plane asap is critical. on my flight to phoenix, i was in a window seat in the fourth row. on my flight home, i was in the third row - another window seat. totally, completely worth it.

now if you don't care where you sit, it's probably a waste of $20 (roundtrip). but if you're hesitant to pay and checking a bag in, consider this - southwest lets you take two bags for free. on some other airlines that's $40-75 you'd have to pay. after being on some flights where my seat fate was not in my hands, having the luxury of picking it - and getting a good one! - is priceless to me.