Branson and Moving

I'm back from my mini-vacation to Branson, MO for my cousin's wedding. I had such a good time. It was great to actually be able to spend more than a day with the relatives and I really was in need of a vacation. And we went to Dunkin' Donuts for breakfast one morning. I pigged out on donuts, of course. The coffee, unfortunately, was boiled and horrible. At least the donuts were good. Branson is a weird mix of the Wisconsin Dells and Vegas. Of course, lots of white trash tourists, too. It's almost like I never left the MOA. We made the mistake of going to the outlet mall on a Saturday--it was awful. White Trash Fest '08. Ugh.

Back in the 612, the reality of moving has hit me. It's weird how I went from thinking it was a long ways away to it's happening in less than a month. I think that the cleaning out of my apartment has really helped. This week, I sold my guitar and my crappy IKEA bookshelf. I only have nine days left at work. I still am super excited, but I'm also kind of sad. I will miss many of my co-workers. I will miss my local hangouts. But, at the same time, I am looking forward to starting over. This is a huge change. The last time I made a change that was even close to this was going to college. And that doesn't really count. College is such a controlled environment and this is, well, the real world. It'll be nice to step outside of my comfort zone. Find a new coffee shop and favorite pizza place. I cannot wait. More importantly, locate my creativity. It's in there somewhere. It has to be.

The Wristlet

It just occurred to me that in my last post, I failed to post a picture of the Marc by Marc Jacobs Wristlet. Silly me. I posted a picture of the Marc by Marc Jacobs bag with the wristlet inside, but unless you had X-ray vision, you couldn't see it. So, here it is:

Isn't it so fun? The inside has tons of room and pockets for things, too. I heart Marc Jacobs.

Back From Vacation

I'm back from my trip to Milwaukee and Chicago. I have to admit it was hard to come back, I had such a good time. I am really not looking forward to going back to work this afternoon. That is going to be a rude awakening. I did have six days in a row off. Which, in my world is unheard of. Anyways, back to the fun. Here's a picture of the roses from my Dad's awesome garden.

I am always so impressed and amazed by my Dad's garden. It takes up a huge portion of his backyard. And requires so much work. The one thing about Milwaukee I will never miss is the lack of quality radio stations. It is seriously the music void of the Midwest. As I was driving into town, I was listening to New Rock 102.1 and they were playing the same stuff I recall from 12 years ago. Not exactly New Rock. More like Old Rock. I heard local Milwaukee fave, the Gufs song "Smile." It was big when I was in high school. And the Offspring. Sigh.

I took the train down to Chicago. It's so affordable. It only cost me $37 round trip. And it only takes an hour and a half. Not, only did I save gas and time, I saved my sanity. I abhor driving in Chicago. I never would've gotten there in an hour and a half. Maybe three and a half hours. My Dad had to leave me with some words of wisdom before dropping me off at the train. "Remember that Chicago isn't like Minneapolis. It's a big city like New York." Oh my gosh! Really? I thought they were the same. I am so not country. And not stupid. I proved my city-savvy by beating out a woman for a cab at the train station. She tried to talk her way into me letting her have my cab because she had been waiting there longer than I. I don't think so.

Anyways, my friend, Steve and I checked out Millennium park, which very cool. And a huge tourist draw, which you can tell by the people surrounding it. I love how modern it is. Yet, it is odd to see something like this in a city.

This is the Bean . Sort of trippy. You can walk underneath it, which is even cooler.

While in Chicago, I did a lot of shopping. The stores there are so much better than here. Even the Old Navy is better. It's bigger and had great displays. It almost didn't look like an Old Navy. Shocking, I know. The highlight, though, had to be the Marc by Marc Jacobs store in Bucktown. I heart Marc Jacobs. His store was really cool. The best part is they carry affordable gifty items that everyone can afford. I bought a rust colored wristlet for only $25. For Marc by Marc Jacobs. This makes up for the fact that I can't afford the super cute dresses that look like Marc designed them with me in mind.

Here is my wristlet, hanging out at the bar (in the safety of the bag). I have to admit that I was pretty obnoxious showing off my bag. But, it's not everyday that I buy Marc Jacobs. The other cool thing is shoes stores carry an awesome selection of sneakers. Tons and tons of unique Nikes, Pumas, and Converse. I did use my restraint and didn't buy any shoes. Woo-hoo. It was hard, though. I love fun sneakers, but really need to wear the ones I have.

All in all, it was a good vacation. I got to hang out with my friend Steve and catch up with my relatives that I haven't seen in a couple of years. The one thing I didn't do is go to Dunkin' Donuts. I saw a really big one with a Baskin Robbins in it, but I wasn't hungry for a donut. Sad, I know.

J.Crew Style on a Target Budget

I absolutely love J.Crew. I've loved it since I was in high school--back when I was into wool sweaters. About a year ago, J.Crew turned all upscale and the prices reflected this. I still drool over the catalog, but really can't afford a $230 pair of flats made of Italy leather or $195 cute as hell blazer. Until now. I was at Target the other day, looking at the clearance shoes, when I found the above flats. They look exactly like the J.Crew ones, but they were only $4.98! What a steal! I am ok with the fact that they're not made out of Italian satin. In fact, that's probably a good thing. I could just see myself ruining an pair of Italian satin in about five seconds. I'm so excited. They're so pretty. And very J. Crewish. And they won't break my bank.

For the Love of Bad Customer Service

Yesterday on my break at work, I got a cup of coffee from Starbucks and went over to For Love, the accessories store of Forever 21. I am on the hunt for a necklace to go with my dress for a wedding. I was in the store for a grand total of ten minutes and no one said a word to me. There was about four sales associates that were apparently too cool for school to talk to me. They greeted and acknowledged every other customer in the store. I was staring at a wall of necklaces when Suzie Sales Associate made her way over to me to inform me that I couldn't have a drink in the store. She would be happy to hold the drink for me at the counter while I shopped. WTF. Great customer service skill. She had a great totally teen attitude, too. Nobody else noticed. My beverage had a lid on it and I wasn't planning on dumping it all over the cheap merchandise. I could see if I had a big cup of soda sans lid or a big pretzel with a cup of cheese, but I was holding a cup of coffee with a lid on it. I was so shocked. I have never been in a store where you couldn't have a beverage with a lid on it. I didn't know what to do. I told Suzie that I was on my way out anyways. She was so snotty about it. I wasn't about to leave my drink with her. She'd probably spill it or put something in it. I wanted to ask her if her mommy drove her to work. Or where was the sign about no Food or Drink in the store? I just can't be that customer no matter how much I want to. I am partial to the rock star exit of dumping the coffee slowly onto the table of scarves and knocking the table over. Sadly, I am not a rock star and cannot do something like that no matter how much I want to. Plus, I paid money for the coffee and I'd like to enjoy it.

I just left. My coffee didn't taste as good because of rude snotty Suzie. It really isn't worth it to make a scene with a snotty teen who makes six dollars an hour. I can find better jewelry at thrift stores anyways.

Spring Cleaning!

Today I finally got motivated for some spring cleaning. Back in December I went through my closet and got rid of all the clothes I never wear, but I never went through my dresser. I managed to fill three grocery bags full of goodies that I don't wear anymore. In fact, I put less back into my dresser than I took out. Hooray! I had tanks and tees that were in horrible shape and some that I just don't wear anymore. I was also shocked to discover that I own more leggings and tights than American Apparel. I don't even know how that happened. I think it's one of those things that I can't pass up when they are on sale. Note to self: next time I should. I have more tights/leggings than I have skirts. I went through my purses, too. This was a really hard thing for me to do. I always think I need to have a Rubbermaid size tote with purses on hand. Today after going through the tote, I realized that I have the strangest collection of purses EVER. They run the gamut from totally teen to old woman. I have no idea how that happened. It was scary, though. I uncovered one of those initial purses and a beige Sak purse that looked like something a 60 year woman would carry. I also have an absurd amount of silly going out bags that look ridiculously cheap. Lately, I've been very cautious about clothing purchases. I don't want to end up with the scary wasteland of clothes ever again. It does feel good to get rid of all the crap. More importantly, I have a clear idea of what I need to buy for summer.

Oprah Says Jump Off a Cliff

It really amazes me how women are so brainwashed by Oprah. Seriously. Oprah could tell women to rub dog poop on their faces to look younger and everyone would. There's something about Oprah that makes her the expert on everything. If Oprah has UGGS and a Juicy tracksuit, then I should too! Oprah loves Beloved. It's my favorite book, too! Oprah endorses Obama, I like him too! I just don't get it. I used to think it was just stupid women who live in the backhills of Arkansas, but smart women buy into Oprah, too. Maybe because I like to think for myself or I see through Oprah's act, but this doesn't work on me. I am also highly cynical and can see through her marketing ploys.

The other day, while checking out the sales section in the shoe department at Kohl's, I saw Oprah's power in action. I I overheard a middle-aged women say, " I really should get these leopard print flats. Oprah says that every woman needs a pair of leopard print flats." I was so shocked, that I had to look around the aisle to see if this was true. It was real. Her friend agreed and she bought the shoes. Wow. That's brainwashing. I knew Oprah was powerful, but to see it in action in suburban Minnesota solidified the power of Oprah on women. To clarify, there's a big difference between seeing something on television and wanting it because you like it than buying something because Oprah said you need them. I'd much rather hear someone say, "oh, I should get these leopard print shoes; they're really fun" than "Oprah told me to buy these."

The influence of celebrity scares me. Women should be thinking for themselves, not doing things because they come with Oprah's seal of approval. What will women do because Oprah does it? How far will they go? Will they go get a trainer, a cook, and a huge condo because Oprah has these things? Will people buy 10 Juicy track suits because Oprah has them? Would you jump off a cliff because Oprah says it's OK? Not me. I'm thinking for myself.

Dress Hunt '08

I've got two weddings to attend this summer. That means I need to find dresses to wear to them. I do have some cute sun dresses that I could wear, but I am just tired of them. Dresses are such a pain to shop for. I admit, I am a bit particular. I want something unique and something I might actually wear again. It just seems like all the dresses out there fit into two categories: super skanky teeny bopper or old lady. Since I fit into neither category, it makes it more challenging. Over the weekend, I thought I had found the perfect dress. I was shopping with the relatives at Kohl's when I stumbled upon the cutest Simply Vera dress. I loved the slightly retro style and the color combo is perfect for my hair and complexion. I could actually see myself wearing this again. Plus, if the weather was unpredictable, I could throw a blazer or sweater over it. The best part was the dress was on sale and I had a 15% off coupon. I tried the dress on and it fit me like a mumu. I had plenty of room for a mom pouch. Perfect for playing crabby old lady. All I needed was a pair of terry cloth slippers. I was so mad. The kicker: I tried on the XS. I am small, but I am not Olsen twin small. I just assumed that the dress would be cut on the small side, since it was Vera Wang. I forgot I was at Kohl's. It's just so strange. I can usually fit into misses sized clothes. Sigh. It looks like dress hunt '08 continues.

What Not to Wear: the Home Game

In honor of the New Year's Resolutions, I bring you, "What Not to Wear: the Home Game." I think everyone needs to do this at least once a year. Maybe more Even if you have good fashion sense, you still need to purge your closet. My closet was so full, I didn't think I could I fit another article of clothing in it. I know, I know. I do work in retail and I can never pass up a good deal. After 5.5 years of retail, I accumulated a lot of interesting articles of clothing. I also have a hard time parting with some of my favorite articles of clothing--even though I know I will never wear them. The key to playing "What Not to Wear: the At Home Game" is to be in the right mood to get rid of stuff. And a really honest friend, who can tell you that you're never, ever going to wear the ugly pink and grey herringbone blazer even though you only paid $5.82 for it (yes, I really did have that lurking in my closet). With my friend, Steve's help, we what not to weared my closet and filled four big bags of clothes and shoes.

I really like the brown fairisle poncho peaking out of the red bag. That was such a great purchase. I never wore it. I was planning on wearing it as a skirt over jeans. Yikes.

I am so excited to start the new year with a well-organized, room to grow closet. My fashion resolution for 2008 is need to stop buying crazy patterned shirts. More solids.

If only I could have the $5000 Bank of America card to fill my closet with more clothing.

New Shoes!

Aren't these just the coolest sneakers ever? They really take me back to when I was 12. I was a bit of tomboy and loved Nikes. I had a pair of navy and grey ones for basketball. I loved those shoes. In 8th grade, I saved my baby-sitting money to buy myself a pair of black and red Air Jordans for basketball even though my dad assured me that the shoes would not help my game. I recall being a total trend setter of the middle school set. None of the other girls wore boys shoes. I took a fair amount of flack for it, but looking back it was one of the first times I took a fashion risk and didn't care what others thought. I just loved my shoes. Yesterday I was so excited to find the perfect NIkes that make me excited and happy like I felt when I was a preteen. I found them at Journey's (of all places). A perfect use of my Christmas money from my grandparents. I can't wait to wear them. They're a nice change from my chucks. So pretty, yet very tough.

Nevermind

Gilda Radner played a little girl on "SNL" who always was doing something she shouldn't be doing like running around her bedroom. Whenever her mom asked her what she was doing she'd reply "never mind." The other day I totally had a "never mind" moment. I somehow got into my head that I wanted a Chloe purse. It was a random thought. The more I thought about it, I decided I really wanted and deserved a beautiful, leather Chloe purse. A Chloe purse is sort of fun, yet timeless and classic. The Chloe website only had pictures no prices, which lead to me using my imagination and guessing what the purse cost. I'm a good shopper, I have to be close. Wrong! I pegged the one I liked at $300. After doing more research, I discovered that it cost $2000. Never mind. No Chloe purse for me. Seriously, I should know better. I am, however, going to look for them at thrift stores. You never know.

A Very Special White Trash Moment at the Mall

Yesterday at work I happened upon one of the funniest white trash family moments that I've stumbled upon in a long time: a woman pushing a Marshall's shopping cart (not in Marshall's) with three rugrats in it. Wow. Seriously. How did they get the cart out of Marshall's without the alarm going off? The kids were totally out of control; crawling all over the cart and shoving french fries into their mouths and wiping their greasy fingers on each other, all while mommy and her friend shopped. Of course, they didn't pay any attention to the kids until one of the kids hit the other and screaming ensued. Then it was the typical white trash response of "shut up!" That always works. Being the seasoned retail veteran that I am, it really takes a lot to shock me, and this scene made me want to go laugh in the corner and I felt appalled at the same time. I just don't get people. At the same time, whenever I see something like this, I can't help watch them like a bunch of animals in the zoo. It just looked so tacky and trashy and very Brittney Spears to see this woman with the shopping cart. It was classy. Klassy with a K.

The Hunt for New Shoes

The other day I had some time to kill before work, so I decided to go look for some new shoes at DSW. I really, really, really need new shoes. Most of my flats have seen better days. Especially my black patent leather flats. I don't know why I ended up at DSW, of all places. I really hate that store. It's not so much the merch that they sell, it's the horrible warehouse arrangement of the store. I really have to be in the right mood to wander aimlessly down the aisles. I also think it's better to not have a specific shoe that you're looking for. Well, Sunday was not the day for the DSW wander. After going down three aisles, I'd had it. I was crabby at the selection of shoes. The white trash customers were really getting on my nerves and the sales people were equally annoying. I went to look at the sales shoes. I found the Steve Madden flats that I'd been wanting: cute grey ballet flats with purple polka dots. And they were only $23.00. I talked myself out of them. Seriously, I don't need another crazy pair of shoes. I have plenty of those. I really wanted something unique and I knew I wouldn't find it in DSW. I left in a really crabby mood.

I went into Urban Outfitters to do a little comp shopping. I wandered back to the shoes section. I started digging through the pile of the Urban Renewal Shoes (these are vintage one of a kind shoes sold at not quite vintage prices). I tried on a pair of brown boots that were just ok. As I was putting the boots back, I found just what I had wanted for two years: cowboy boots! And they fit me perfectly. So meant to be. They were exactly what I wanted. I didn't want too country cowboy boots, because that's not me. I didn't want them to be too flashy or cheesy, either. I think that's why it took me two years to find them. And they are one of a kind. Yay! So excited to wear them. They'll be perfect with jeans or skirts or dresses. Hooray for Urban Outfitters!

Best.Shoes.Ever

Aren't these the coolest shoes? I am so excited! Sparkly silver space age Chucks. I found them on super clearance at the Gap (of all places) for $9.97. Such a bargain. They were regular price $60. I am not sure what I am going to wear them with, but I couldn't pass them up. I think pretty much anything. They would be cool with a dressier outfit... like a skirt or a party dress. I can't wait to wear them.

I love my Chucks. I've been wearing them for half of my life. In high school I wore black high tops and my beloved black one-stars. They're just such classic shoes and always so comfortable. I can wear them for 8 hours at work and my feet never hurt. If the stopped making Chucks, I'd be very, very, very sad. I can't think of anything else that I still like from high school. They're also the one thing that I don't really mind if everyone wears. Usually, this makes me mad, but with Chucks, I just don't care. And they're my thing. My trademark shoe that I now own in silver. Hooray!

Always Late to the Party

from nataliedee.com

It seems to be a trend throughout my life: I am one of the last people to get the latest greatest tech gadget. Not that I really mind it, it's just how I roll. I think it comes from having thrifty (not cheap, there's a difference) parents who taught me how to manage my money. Plus, I over analyze everything to death. I can talk myself out of buying ANYTHING. I am also very cautious with how I spend my money. I nursed along my dying computer, nicknamed the Death Computer because it ran in it's own time zone, for a good two years before I caved and bought a new one. My cell phone? It's really old, but it still works.

For the past year, I've been contemplating buying an iPod and I've finally decided that I do need one (See? I am so behind the times). I have a ton of cds and I don't listen to them because I forget what I have. I have a bunch that I keep in my car, but I am so random that I'll be driving along wishing that I had Nirvana 'Unplugged' or Radiohead 'the Bends' with me. An iPod would help me organize all of my music. Not to mention, I'd be able to watch all of the episodes of "the Office" I download on it. It could be back up storage for my screenplay. The possibilities are endless.

The other day, I visited the Apple store at the mall. I was so excited. It was going to be the day that I finally got an iPod. Upon entering the store, I was annoyed by all the people in the store, just taking up space and letting their children play around with the iPods. After standing around for five minutes, little Johnny finally dropped one and I was able to play around with it. Thank goodness, I was just getting ready to go up to the parents and ask them if I could have a turn since I was actually in the market for buying an iPod, not destroying it. Well, I didn't buy one. Why? Not one salesperson came up to me and either greeted me or ask me if I needed some help. Plus, I was confused if I need the 30g or the 80g. Strike two, Apple store. Working in retail and customer service has turned me into a bit of customer service snob. They just lost a $300 sale for not acknowledging me and answering my questions. Before leaving, I did take about 10 minutes to play around with the iPhone (really slowly, too) as the herds of people stood behind me tapping their feet and giving me the death stare.

I think I am going to go back later in the week (on a weekday) and buy my iPod. Hopefully, it won't be family shopping day at the Apple store.

If You Ask a Stupid Question....

Tonight Jen and I went shopping for shoes to wear to the rehearsal dinner for Nikki's wedding. We were in a store that shall remain nameless that pretty much sells nothing but shoes. They do have some accessories, but not a whole lot. The sales person comes up to us and asks, "What are you looking for?" Jen replied, "Shoes." I had all I could do to not burst out laughing. What else could we have come in there looking for? Toilet paper? Maybe some underwear. Or jeans. What kind of question was that? Seriously. "What kind of shoes are you looking for?" would be far better or my favorite, "Can I help you find anything?" As Jen put it, if you ask a stupid question, you get a stupid answer. And that is why Jen is my friend. She's a smart ass and straight forward.

Sunday Fun

Yesterday Christine and I did a little thrifting. But before I get to the shopping, a public service message about carpooling. Something I would like to call: " Carpooling: It's Not Just For Work Anymore." This was inspired by Catherine's Earth Day post. It just seems like it is such a simple thing that everyone can and should be doing. Why should two or three or four people drive in separate cars to one location? Not only do you waste gas and cause undo wear and tear to your car, it isn't pratical for everyone to drive separately to one location. It isn't logical. Yes, it takes careful planning, but it is totally worth it. I have found that it is the most effective when everyone meets at a central location and figures out who will drive from there. And to be fair, it is important to alternate who drives, so one person isn't stuck with all the driving. This is something that could be adapted to a variety of situations including going grocery shopping and attending a sporting event.

Anyways, onto the thrifting. We went to the Sun Ray shopping center in Saint Paul. Our main purpose of venturing to Saint Paul was to visit the Valu Thrift store, but we discovered that there is a Turn Style Consignment Shop and a TJ Max there as well. The Valu Thrift store is massively huge (it is in the location of the old JC Penney store--and uses some of the old fixtures, as well. Hooray for recycling!). The clothing selection is ok, but the best finds are in the house wares section and the accesories. I found a pair of brand new old school Keds for $2.99. They even have the yellow and blue inside. I also found this cool Owl nic nac:

The wise old owl was a bargain at $1.91. Plus, I love that he's sitting on a stack of books. He fits in perfectly in my sun room.

Christine found a cool A&W tee shirt, a cute little stuffed alligator, and kids book for work. I would reccomend checking out Valu Thrift. I was only disappointed with the selection of costume jewerly.

Turnstyle and TJ Max were not as exciting, but it's always nice to find multiple stores in one central area. After shopping we went to back to my neighborhood and walked over to the local watering hole for some drinks with this guy:

On our way home we visited the pink Flamingo graveyard:

Poor, poor flamingos. We observed a moment of silence for the flamingos that didn't survive the winter of '07.

I think that is the most pink flamingos I have ever seen gathered in one location. There was more on the lawn, too. Very impressive.

All in all, it was a very productive day thanks to carpooling!