Pretty Fancy

 I think this dress from Intuition (Shopintuition.com) is super cute!

Red Dalia! I am excited to try it. Hot! Available at Sephora.

 If I had somewhere fancy to go, I’d wanna wear this.  I’d feel like a ballerina princess! By Cynthia Rowley, available at Shopbop

 Wearing this with a plain white t-shirt and jeans = coolest girl in the room. Again, shopbop

From Ron Herman… ugh. I love it. Kill me.

I’m a fan. From Kiston.

 Sgt. Pepper coat! From Fred Flare! So cute!

Adorable and affordable, from Mod Cloth. To wear over a pair of jeans. The one below too!

Sassy!

I love getting tan. I love the smell of coconut oil, and night time runs to Baskin Robbins or Menchies. I especially love the triathletes joining the swim workouts, it boosts my swimmer ego. I love swimming when it is hot hot hot and the water feels cool cool cool. I love lazy afternoons in a hammock reading book after book, between naps. I love walking the dogs once the sun heads south, and the smell of jasmine and other blooms fill the air. People smile more, talk more, stress less, laugh more. Even in Los Angeles, which has semi-perpetual summer, when the subtle seasons change it is electric. There needs to be a catch phrase that goes with the summer season, and not the bland “have a good summer”. Wah wah. There should be a “Merry Summer!” Or “Happy Beach Weather!” Hmmm. Needs a lot of work.

Here are some of my summer essentials:

1. Spray Sport Sunscreen (SPF 15). It is great for the pool, and you don’t miss spots on your back! Also does not run into your eyes. Target generally has the 2fer in the generic brand which is just as good as coppertone. It needs to be perfected though, cuz it has 2 major downfalls… a) no ‘it is pool time!’ suntan lotion scent. and b) the can empties FAST. Probably lasts 1/4th as long as a normal lotion bottle.

2. TYR surf bikini. Um. They are sporty enough for swim practice or (duh) surfing, yet cute and cheeky enough for a regular bathing suit. AND THEY ARE REVERSIBLE! What?! That is two suits in ONE!

3. Wavy hair. My chin length bob is summer-riffic!  I let it air dry wavy, and it is totes makes me feel beach sexy. Too hot for a blow dryer or flat iron anyway.

4. Cargo bronzer. The best in the biz. Seriously. With different shades for every complexion, including fair/light, AND matte versions. Most bronzers make fair chicks look like they smudged dirt on their face. Not these! Healthy glow all the way. Apply with a kabuki brush. Get some action. You’re welcome.

5. Flip flops. I used to be Haviannas crazy, but really… Old Navy ones are just as cute and cheap enough to have in every color. 2 for 5?? WHAT?

6. Speedo Vanquisher goggles. If you swim, you should try these. They don’t leak at all, ever… anti-fog, and come in a bunch of colors. The “plus” version is perfect for summer with tinted, mirrored lenses so you don’t go blind during backstroke.

7. No makeup makeup. I’m back to bare minerals…. just a dash of the foundation, concealer, Cargo bronzer, and a lip gloss (loving DuWop venom gloss now after a MUA used it on me at a photo shoot, LOVE!) and I am out the door. I mentioned loving the tan, right?

8. Abercrombie & Fitch shorts. Am I too old to shop there? Yes! Do I shop there anyway? Yes! Listen, the stuff is cute and it fits, and I love the smell in there. Before you go light a dumpster on fire in shock, let it be known I would never wear anything with ANY label on the front (except LAMB). So, I don’t wear any of those super dumb A+F t-shirts or anything. But their shorts? Super cute, super comfy. Whatever. I’m not trying to impress you! Psssh.

9. Bloch’s Elastosplit canvas split toe ballet shoes. Amazing.

10. Being back in ballet. Though I sweat more than I used to sweat in Bikram yoga!

What about you? Top 10 things you are loving right now?

Billy Collins is a contemporary American poet, having served as Poet Laureate of the United States from 2001 to 2003. Collins was also selected as New York State Poet for the year 2004.

The following is a podcast of his poem Introduction to Poetry.

Introduction to Poetry

I ask them to take a poem
and hole it up to the light
like a color slide

or press an ear against its hive.

I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,

or walk inside the poem’s room
and feel the walls for a light switch.

I want them to waterski
across the surface of a poem
waving at the author’s name on the shore.

But all they want to do
is tie the poem to a chair with rope
and torture a confession out of it.

They begin beating it with a hose
to fine out what it really means.

Why HAVEN’T I been posting… I’ll be honest with you (cuz I’m an honest gal)… I’ve been really super duper boring and I didn’t want to write about the stuff that has been occupying my mind. Mainly I have been obsessed with losing those pounds I gained when I quit smoking, and with that, obsessed with my new vegan diet. I didn’t want to bore you… and plus, no one likes to hear a skinny girl complain about her weight.

 I will say this… that shit works. I’ve lost 10 pounds and fit into all my old jeans again. I still want to lose another 5-6 pounds, but here’s what works for me… diet and exercise. Yeah, fucking DIET and EXERCISE.

I’ve heard 80% of your fitness goal is diet. Since my metabolism went from 100 to 0 when quitting smoking (it will level out in a few years again), I have had to exercise more and be super strict with my diet to lose the weight. So, I swim 3-5 times a week… and I am going to start running on the other days.

The vegan transition has actually been pretty easy for me. I was vegetarian for most of my adult life, so cutting out meat was a snap. But there was no way I was going to change my body without getting rid of my mass cheese and sugar consumption. The first four days were painful, but I now feel better than I ever have in my life, physically. I’ve also been a super whiz in the kitchen, making my way through Skinny Bitch in the Kitch. Just the other night I made the meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy… and it is to die for.

Don’t get me wrong, there are some crappy, gag inducing vegan products out there. To which I say, BLESS YOU TRADER JOE’S!!! Eating healthy can be expensive, and rolling the dice as far as taste when trying something new. I have not had anything bad from Trader Joe’s, EVER. And… the vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, and the vegan chocolate chip cookies from there are addictive. Like, I really can’t have them in my house anymore. They are that good. I call them heroin cookies. I have to eat them 2 at a time, and it is not uncommon for me to stop by the TJ’s near my pool after my work out to get my smack.

If you want to be inspired to get in shape – watch The Bigger Loser. Not only is it great tv, it is really inspirational. You also see that to lose weight you have to work really fucking hard, but you can do it. You have to just have to want it bad enough.

I mean, guess what? I love garlic bread and could eat french fries and ice cream (mmm tofutti cuties!) every day too… but I love fitting into my clothes MORE.  I am not a person who can do moderation. And turns out, vegan food is fucking delicious and makes me have more energy, feel better, and have a clear conscious about doing good work in the world.

So every time I think about a large pizza… I think, yeah, you can eat that… and I’ll be able to jump around in a thong and look hot.

Hopefully I can do this, and eventually start thinking (and blogging) about OTHER things.

Linda brought up one of my “I will NOT participate in this trend” trends. The high waisted, tapered, and yes… even stone and acid wash jeans… and colored jeans. No, as a gender I think we have fought too lond and too hard to finally get jeans that fit and look great. To do a fashion “remember when?” is just insulting to the low rise, boot or straight fit jeans that have personally saved my life. If I were a cartoon and had a cartoon closet… it would be high end jeans, and low end layered t-shirts… with sneakers, flip flops, or boots depending on the season.

The colored jeans trend reminded me of 1994… I had a forest green pair, and a red pair… I think they were ESPRIT. I am wearing the red pair in my college class picture, and I cringe each time I see it. I’m like… did I think I was Latina?

High wasted and tapered, some with even an ironic zipper at the cropped ankle. Yeah, I remember junior high, and not with fond fashion memories. I don’t think ANYONE looks good in this look. Let alone the average woman who has some hips and a butt.

Ok, yes… the 5′11, 120 lbs model looks good on the right and the left. But, in the middle??? Who wants their butt to look as long as the Panama Canal, with a bridge going over??? Imagine that look on a real ass!!!

NO. NO, NO, NO!!!!! What is Extreme going to make a come back? Tesla too? Am I going to have to go to a party with dry fucking ice? I think my home ec teacher wore this exact outfit – full on spike heels with skinny jeans, with a CUBS T-SHIRT tucked in to school.

I guess if you are going to only make these jeans in sizes 24 and 25, maybe 26… that’s ok. The thought of trying to squeeze myself into those jeans is painful for me. It would be like pop-in-fresh dough falling over the sizes. I am imagining taking them off would be like those cinnamon rolls that you have to press a spoon along the edge… and it just explodes open.

*shudder*

Fortunately, the colored trend has already pretty much exited… and I think once people see the photos posted of themselves in the high waisted jeans on Flickr and Facebook… that trend will be over as well.

…but I am just soooooo sick. blech.

I’ll leave you with this one recommendation… I am loving Ryan Adams “Come Pick Me Up”… such a gorgeous song, in that heartbreaking way that I love. Take a listen.

Jessica Simpson is not fat. Those were just some really unflattering pictures and bad outfit choice. I mean, for the record… pretty much 99% of the world looks bad in high waisted jeans, and I bet Jessica won’t be wearing them again. But she just has big boobs, put on 10 pounds to her thinner frame… It is amazing how these series of unflattering photos of her are everywhere! I excitedly flipped to see if she gained 50 pounds or something… but no. She’s just a little curvier. Not fat at all. *sigh* Seriously, size 2 or 4 is not fat and I wish US Weekly and the other rags would stop perpetuating this idea!

I’ve been off my Bare Minerals stuff for a couple of weeks now. The excitement wore off, and I realized that my skin is just too dry for it. I still use it occasionally, but I think I just look more polished and put together with my MAC Studio Fix. I am also using Fiberwig mascara… I *think* I like it…

In other news… I’ve just been busy being back to school – both in grad school and in the elementary school. I have really been slacking on my swimming!!! I need to get back in the pool tomorrow, and I am just dreading how painful it is going to be. I know it will be pulling lead, but I miss the water, I miss my workouts.

Let’s see… what else? Well, it is all fun and games until someone gets diarrhea. Let’s just say, no more people food for the dogs! Poor little Coco Marie. She seems like herself (protecting us from the doorbell ringing girl scouts), except for the squirts. I went back to cooking their food – boiled chicken and brown rice. Even though I’m not eating meat! Actually, cooking their food is far less disgusting then their gross smelling wet food. And… since they are my babies, I actually like cooking for them.

Wow. I’m boring!

We adopted three new adorable buns from the shelter, too! They are still getting used to the place and are on a MAJOR diet… but they are adorable and funny. My house is just not a home without buns!

Here they are… Jack, Janet, and Chrissy! Jack is the white Californian bun, Janet is the black and white lop, and Chrissy is the brown and white English spot. They are all on a major diet too!

www.modcloth.com

I love the vintage inspired looks with the tongue-in-cheeky-ness. And the prices are right! These items caught my eye…