A New Bathing Beauty Suit

Before heading off to another Memorial Day weekend in fabulous Sunland, I of course had to purchase yet another bathing suit. By the amount of swimwear I’ve accumulated in the last three years, one would think that I just love to prance around half naked all the time. Not exactly, but summertime events such as the Sand Bar or Seafair are like bathing suit fashion shows–God forbid you wear the same suit two days in a row.

I haven’t purchased a quality suit in a couple years (by quality, I mean anything outside of the $40 suits Target offers in approximately one million styles and colors), so I bit the bullet and headed to Macy’s to purge the slightly more expensive swim department.

I accumulated probably 30 bathing suits before heading to the fitting rooms to try them on. While I was throwing off tops and bottoms, cringing, smiling and turning in the mirror, I could hear two other girls in the dressing room next to me.

“This one doesn’t make me want to puke,” the girl trying on swimsuits said to her by standing friend. (Us females usually like to drag someone along for an opinion). “I don’t look terribly fat in this one,” she said when she put the next one on. And on and on with every negative phrase including fat, ugly, bulge, stomach. Blah, blah, blah.

Now, I saw these girls in the department when I was picking out suits for myself, and both of them were probably 19 years old and 30 pounds lighter than me. It overwhelmingly depressed me–every girl is guilty of it, but it’s just so damn sad that we have such a low self opinion of our bodies. And even if you’re 115 pounds, you can’t be happy with how you look in a swimsuit. Self esteem and body image gets better with age, but then you look back and only wish you could or would have been happy when you had the body you did at 19.

I wanted to shout to them over the dressing room, “I’LL TRADE YOU!”

But then again, they probably wouldn’t have understood why I’m self conscious either because clearly I look exactly like this in my new suit:

(I like the criss-crossing in the back. How bout you?)

Currently Feeling: Chipper and cheerful. Probably cause I fell asleep at 9 p.m.
Currently Anticipating: Spa day and the Sex and the City movie tomorrow at Big Picture with my marketing team.
Currently Dreading: Cleaning my room and locating my car key.

How a Fashionista Keeps Her Books

Oh yeah baby. I finally did it:

In last Friday’s aftermath of one of the most stressful and crappy days in my professional career to date, (will explain when it’s safe to talk about the enemy), I decided to come home, turn off my phone, put on a little bit of “Burn One Down” by Ben Harper and color-coordinate my bookshelf. [Yes. Sometimes I'm a little bit crazy. Hence the whole label reserved for this.] There’s nothing that says calm like a little bit of order and semblance to my life when other parts seem to be falling apart.

And there’s something about these lyrics that have always spoken volumes to me. Since I was a 19-year-old college freshman, unsure about my path in life and how people view me, till now—a 26-year-old, sometimes still unsure about my path in life and how people view me:

“My choice is what I choose to do;
And if I’m causin’ no harm,
It shouldn’t bother you.
Your choice is who you choose to be;
And if you’re causin’ no harm,
Then you’re alright with me.”

If only I had something I could turn into a rainbow every time there was a bad moment…life would be a little bit easier. And brighter.

Currently Feeling: Rejuvenated.
Currently Anticipating: 10 days from today.
Currently Hating: 250-foot Jesus. I’ll stick with the 8-pound baby, thanks.

Wearing Underwear is So Uncool

This weekend my little sister (19 and in a sorority at Washington State University) came and stayed with me for some sisterly girl time.

“I’ve stopped wearing underwear because one of my friend’s read that it’s supposed to give you cellulite,” she declared while we were getting dressed and ready Saturday morning.

“What?! You. Stopped. Wearing. Underwear?! Isn’t that a little weird?” I replied.

“No,” she said. “In fact, I don’t really know any of my friends who do wear underwear.”

Great. Twenty-six years old, and I’m already super uncool because I wear underwear.

Currently Feeling: Bored and stuck.
Currently Anticipating: Snuggling with slippers and sweats tonight. It’s cooold!
Currently Hating: That I can’t kiss Mike.

Coordinated Bookshelves

I am a list-maker, color-coordinated closet, organized freak. I don’t go as far as to label my cupboards like prudish Sally Fields in Mrs. Doubtfire, but I’m a stickler for organization.

I would never have thought to go this far with my organization, however, but I LURV IT!!:

It’s a color-coordinated bookshelf! Courtesy of Karyn Bosnak, blog author of Pretty in the City. I think it’s genius and so much more appealing (obviously). As soon as I get a spare moment, I’m color-coordinating the ridiculously huge bookshelf in our apartment. Long live organization!

Currently Feeling: So much better than yesterday.
Currently Anticipating: Spending time by myself tonight. I’ve been occupied with visitors, and I miss my alone time.
Currently Listening To: The awesome Christmas CDs Jesse sent me.

I’m Dreaming of a Pink Christmas

White?! Screw white. I want my Christmas to be pink and sparkly—20-Something style.

Enter Christmas tree that my co-worker found at Target yesterday for $2.50 and decided to buy it for me, along with pink, purple, green, turquoise and silver glittered Christmas bulbs. Could it be anymore me?

I sat on my bed last night and decorated my little foot-tall, pink shimmery Christmas tree underneath the glowing twinkle of my hot pink Christmas lights that I hung up around the window in my bedroom. It is gag-me, over-the-top girly. I can only imagine how many men would outwardly groan or secretly loath my love for hot pink. But I sent a photo of my little hot pink wonder of a tree to Baby Daddy and he wrote hack:

“I like your pink tree! It’s hot, just like you!”

Exactly what I wanted to hear…

Currently Feeling: Excited to knock off some Christmas shopping this paycheck, most of which I’m doing online. God bless the Internet.
Currently Anticipating: Drinks with Noah tonight.
Currently Listening To: Warm 106.9 Christmas music. That’s right. You read it. I’m listening to Christmas music at work to get me in the spirit. After all, it does only come once a year!

Coping with Fashion

I feel pretty today.

I gave myself a manicure and pedicure last night in a pretty coral pink. I put a sexy, flouncy black pencil skirt on this morning, a silky flower top and my favorite tall black Guess boots. To top it off, I added my favorite butterfly earrings and the best berry shade of lip-gloss that I own.

I needed to feel pretty—personal relationships and friendships are melting to the ground around me. A couple of my friendships are hurting in deep, personal ways; a Dolphin Sister just broke up with the man she thought she was going to marry; my roommate is hurting from another friend’s betrayal; a girl friend of mine just found out her best friend slept with the guy my friend’s been on and off dating for months; and my sister is being ousted from her social circle by a group of Mean Girls.

So in the middle of all this emotional turmoil that I’ve found myself to be at the hub of lately, I’m just going to stand here and feel pretty.

Cause it’s the only thing making me feel good right now.

Currently Feeling: Like I need a good vacation.
Currently Anticipating: Seeing American Gangster at the Big Picture tonight.
Currently Loving: Vanessa. My heart goes out to her.

Oohhh. Shiny. Shimmery. Sticky icky icky!

Lip gloss—it’s a woman’s paradise.

And I’m pretty sure I have an extremely unhealthy obsession with it.

I’m always on the endless search for the perfect lip gloss—the right color, the right applicator, the right consistency—it’s a very fine-tuned, particular recipe. Anytime I’m at Target or Bartell’s, you better believe that I’m going to spend roughly an hour in the make-up aisles and walk out with at least three new lip glosses. All of which, I try on—one by one—as soon as I get back to my car. I’ll toss the new ones in my bag, which at any given time, you’ll be able to find six or more tubes of gloss.

“Do you have some chap stick I can borrow?” someone will ask.

“No, but I have lip gloss!” is always my reply. I mean, really, who wants to taste like a medicine cabinet anyway when you can taste like Cherry Cola Slide or Strawberry Melon Delight?!

I remember, once when I was in high school, I had a huge crush on a very sexy, outdoorsy type guy. One night we were at a party, sitting on the couch, while I rifled through my purse for a lip gloss I wanted.

“How many of those do you have in there?” he asked me.

I reached in, pulling them out one-by-one, and counted eight tubes.

I’ll never forget the look on his face. It was a mixture of appall, incredulousness, shock, pity and disgust. I think he truly thought I was completely crazy. I wonder if that had anything to do with him never giving it up to me…

Occasionally, I’ll have my absolute favorite that I’ll tote around with me for any given short period of time, but it’s only a matter of time before I’ve bought a new color or brand that I decide I like much more. When I find one that’s really great, I’m bound to tell at least two of my girlfriends about it. I’ll get really worked up and excited and say, “Oh my gosh. I just bought the best lip gloss EVER…”

I know you’ve heard it.

And my favorite Christmas present last year? Not my digital camera. Not the crock-pot I was dying to own. Oh no—the six pack of Juicy Tube lip glosses my Lancome make-up lady Aunt got me for free.

Have I painted a good picture of crazy yet?

So, I’ve always known that I’m teetering on an unhealthy level of lip gloss obsession. However, this morning it was even more apparent to me when I opened the drawer I keep—overflowing with at least 60 tubes—searching for a color that matched the sweater I was wearing to work. And what should I see? But at least three tubes I’ve had since early college, and even worse, high school. They all have nothing more than two or three more applications in them. But, I stopped using them and threw them in the drawer—never to use again—just because I couldn’t bear the thought of one of my favorites being gone and irreplaceable. Every time I think about throwing them away, I’ll whine to myself, “Oh, but I really like that color.” And there they’ll stay. So, I’ll probably keep the three-quarters-empty tubes forever and never use them. As long as, if I ever FEEL like wearing that color again, they’ll be there. Ah. What a comfort.

I’m one lip gloss away from crazy.

Currently Feeling: Like I might take a weekend away at my dad’s house—mmm, Country home-cooking, here I come.
Currently Anticipating: Oktoberfest in Leavenworth next week. Can’t wait!
Currently Watching: Season one of Ugly Betty. It’s fantastic!

Let’s Get Some Shoes

I might have found the best thing know to all fashionable women—or perhaps the worst. You decide.

Women have a reputation for being obsessed with shoes. It’s true for most I know. It is never as simple as being a guy; we can’t have one pair of tennis shoes, one pair of dress shoes and one pair of casual shoes. We have to have the latest style—open-toes, wedges, slouchy boots. We have to have the right color to match our outfit—I own shoes in the following colors: brown, tan, white, black, orange, teal, pink, yellow, red, bronze, silver and gold. And that doesn’t even touch the printed shoes. In basic colors such as brown tan and black, I have boots, heels, wedges, flats, open-toed, close-toed, sandals, etc. It’s ridiculous.

“It’s really hard to walk in a single woman’s shoes—that’s why you sometimes need really special shoes!”

Residence Revamp

Now that the weather is cooling down and the drizzle has begun, I will inevitably be spending more time at home. This has spurred me to do a mini “home revamp.” I’m big on lighting, color, atmosphere etc, which if you’ve ever been to my apartment you’re aware of this. Case in point: my huge pink wall. So, today on my lunch hour I went to Ikea with one goal in mind—a new area rug. I have hardware floors, and when I moved in, I bought a large, cheap white rug. It is now hideously dirty and adds insult upon injury when I have new people over and my apartment already looks like a junk show. A comment I received recently, “It looks like Hiroshima in here!”

Ikea did not have the large, fluffy white rug I had envisioned, so I settled for a black area rug. Since my leather couch is also black, it forced me to rethink a few things, and of course, purchase more items to incorporate a little more white and color into the room. I left today 250 bucks poorer, but with the rug, two new throw pillows for the couch (obviously four isn’t enough and six will be better), a side coffee table, curtains, a lamp for the table, some orange accents, and a Weeping Fig tree (that I’m not going to play “see how long it takes this thing to die without water” with like I did the last).

In short, I’m excited to go home and clean today and recharge my currently boring, dreary and dirty apartment. Perhaps it will inspire me to spend more quiet evenings at home…

Currently Feeling: Tired, but oh so satisfied.
Currently Thinking: That I’ll attend Burning Man Festival next year.
Currently Reading: Another Bullshit Night in Suck City