Where's New Year's Eve?

Where will you be bringing in the New Year for 2007? I've found that a lot of my friends are leaving their trusty residential city for a trip to unfamiliar but alluring territory.... Miami, San Fran, Chicago, Orlando; I'm trying to decide if I should follow suit. It's getting late being that New Year's Eve is at the end of this week, but I'm getting pressure from my friends for us to find a glamorous city to ring in the New Year. It is exciting to be in a cool club surrounded by strangers (and close friends) and a trendy atmosphere, but airports, weather uncertainties are a couple of cons I don't know that I want to deal with. Often times I look at this holiday as being over-rated, but its intent is to be fun. I'll have to make a decision and fast!

pre-Christmas feast!

Last night a group of my friends and I got together for dinner. With Christmas and everything that comes with it around the corner, I suggested we go for sushi. Sushi to me was an excellent alternative to the traditional Christmas dinner. Fish, avocado, sake, are three things that will not be at our dinner table for Christmas, so I was thrilled for the feast we were about to partake. Great food, great conversation, libations; what a Christmas treat! Happy Birthday Noel

Party on!

How gorgeous is this dress by Emilio Pucci. Glam.com put together the hottest outfit for if you're partying for the holidays in New York City, which includes this Pucci silk chiffon dress. I adore the color, the cut, the length - just everything about it. It's a shame that it is not in my budget at over $3,000.

Winter treat

I was flipping through my January 2007 issue of Lucky magazine and saw quite a bit of cute items from miniskirts to patent leather wedges, but one designer in particular caught my eye. There is an adorable turtleneck sweater dress by Rachel Pally shown towards the end of this issue. Since sweater dresses are everywhere for fall and winter I was immediately drawn to it, not to mention is was in one of my favorite colors - purple. After staring at the dress for about 20 minutes straight and imagined all I could do with it - wear it with tights, wear it with ankle boots, knee-high boots, a thick belt (you get the picture), I googled Rachel Pally to check out what other cute items the designer may have out there. What a winter treat! She has so many gorgeous ready-to-wear dresses, and in a variety of cuts, styles, and colors. I found a nice selection for Rachel Pally at Shopbop.com, but there are plenty of other sources that have her items available also.

DVD time

Yea, The Devil Wears Prada comes out today on video! It happens to be on sale this week at many video store distributors all around the country. The cheapest I found is at Circuit City for $13.99. Just in time for Christmas.

Scissor happy

How cute is Posh Spice, I mean Victoria Beckham's new haircut. Well not so new I believe she got it cut in the fall, but she keeps popping up everywhere and I keep staring! She is my new inspiration to grow my hair out. It's so adorable; truthfully she's just plain hot! Victoria’s haircut is my latest obsession.

The seven foot woman

I'm beginning to realize that finding a heel under 3 1/2 inches that is not a flat is virtually impossible. I can wear a super high heel with the best of them, but there are times when I just want to be a normal height and cute simultaneously. Barefoot I am taller than the average woman, and when I wear a heel sold on today's market I am taller than a lot of men too! I love my height, but I don't want to be mistaken for a drag queen when I walk into a bar or club (or anywhere)!... especially my conservative job. Most cute shoes today are at least 4 inches high and growing.... Steven by Steve Madden is selling a platform pump that's 5 1/4 inches!

What's a girl to do? Grin and bare it and put those sexy 4+ inch heels on my foot, or be comfortable, i.e. boring, and slide on a flat? Flats can be cute; the ballerina slipper is more and more popular, and you can't go wrong with the classic pointed-toe flat. These styles however make up a very small population of the women's shoe market.

Plus I like diversity in my shoes. Women's shoe designers are getting more and more creative and flamboyant. Check out these Gucci pumps! I may just have to conform and be one of the tallest people in the room.

Right decision for BCS?

It's official - Ohio State will play Florida in the Tostitos BCS National Championship game January 8th. After USC, which was a sure lock for the challenger spot, lost to UCLA debates began louder than ever; Michigan for a rematch or Florida, who sneaked into the conversation within the last couple weeks. It is no surprise to me that the committee chose Florida to make the trip to Arizona for this game after watching them beat Arkansas Saturday night. The SEC was arguably the toughest conference this season. This game should be as exciting as any national championship game with both teams' offenses, but we all know defense wins championships.

Good God Google!

Stock Markets closed down this week, but it didn't stop Google's stock from reaching its all-time high of over $500 a share. Only two years ago this stock had an IPO of around $85 a share, which currently sounds so minor. Still a small company in California their P/E ratio is very high, but their financials look good. For your Chloe Paddington bag you can own 3 shares of Google stock, now doesn't that sound like an even exchange!

To the left, to the left

How skinny was Beyonce at the 34th annual American Music Awards last night. I thought she looked her thinnest ever during her performance of her latest hit Irreplaceable. Her tummy is usually flat and in the past I've seen her with narrow hips, but her legs, I've never seen them smaller than tree stumps! Last night they were toned and defined, they were just plain skinny! She looked great, but hope she's not starving herself the unhealthy way to do it. By the way, her performance was good too! Oh and on a side note the Pussycat Dolls, in the words of Simon Cowell, were absolutely dreadful. Thanks to my boy Andy for the pic of B.

Go Bucks

It's 7:30 in the morning on Saturday and what's for breakfast: Kegs and Eggs!! #2 Michigan is in town to face the #1 Ohio State Buckeyes for not only bragging rights, but for a bid to go to Tempe for the BCS National Championship game. This game is anticipated to be exciting and hard fought. People all over the country, including celebrities were trying to get a ticket to this one, only they're not that easy to come by. Most of us will be watching this one on television. I'd like to express my condolences to Michigan football fans everywhere with the passing of former UM football coach Bo Schembechler, he will be missed. The media really hyped this game up as if we as fans do not understand the importance of this game to football and the season. I wouldn't miss it for the world!

Stam it!

How can anyone choose just one bag from Marc Jacobs' signature line! This line has so many gorgeous bags in all shapes and sizes, colors and styles; I absolutely heart Marc Jacobs bags right now. I was on the market for a new bag, not necessarily a Marc Jacobs bag, but a designer bag. I wanted it to be catchy to the eye, a relatively good size, and something other than the basic black or brown bag. I stumbled upon the Stam Bag by Marc Jacobs, which was initially released during his fall 2005 line, and fell in love with it. This bag is the perfect size and comes in a wide array of colors; black, white, brown, blue, green, etc. I chose the Stam bag in white, figured the color would be great for winter and can be worn with many things. I must say, I receive so many compliments when I wear this bag, I'm wondering what took me so long to find it!

NetFlix wins

So I entered a stock pick competition pool at work, where about 15 of us pick a stock and the highest rate of return at the end of the year (not including dividends) wins the pot. The pool is a $20 buy-in so the winner stands to gain a nice amount of cash. I love what Apple Computers and Steve Jobs is doing with the company; I figured it was a sure lock to win it all with all the new products they have coming out, and not to mention collaborating with Intel. After Apple Computers released 3rd quarter earnings numbers, my stock pick rallied from eighth place to second place in my pool behind, of course, eBay Inc.! I was on top (well second place) for only one day when Netflix released its 3rd quarter earnings numbers. Netflix soared to first place with a one day return of nearly 20%, doubling its position, did I mention in one day! The pool is not over until the end of the year, but at the rate Netflix is going there would have to be some pretty awful news for this stock to fall out of first place. I'm not advocating purchasing this stock or any stock for your own portfolio; just want to point out the unbelievable year Netflix is having.

Redo your hair

Ever feel like your hair looks like it needs a pick-me-up, but have no time to wash it? I found the best product by hairstylist Jonathan Antin that freshens up your hair and gives it a revived look called "Redo". It is perfect for when you leave a smoky bar and want to rid your hair of the odor without having to shampoo. Redo is a mist made with vegetable enzymes and natural extracts, which break down dirt and oil with no alcohol, which can cause dryness. After spritzing a little onto my hair it feels and looks clean with a hint of added shine. The bottle says it can also be used to hydrate skin, which I've never tried; but on my hair this product is tops for me - a must have!

Hip Hop honored

VH1 honored old-school hip hop on Tuesday in a celebratory ceremony in New York City. They gave legend awards to Beastie Boys, MC Lyte, Rakim, Ice Cube, Eazy-E, Russell Simmons, Afrika Bambaataa, and Wu-Tang Clan. The honorees were greeted by current hip hop artists where they paid tribute by performing some of their old-school hits. The show started with Diddy, Q-Tip, and Fabolous taking on the persona of the Beastie Boys by performing a few of their hits, followed by a cool performance from the Beasties Boys themselves. The fans in the audience were also excited to see appearances from Xzibit, Fat Joe, Young Jeezy, Common, and so forth. Like typical awards shows this one lasted for two hours, but the time flew by with every minute filled with a nostalgic act taking the stage. It was exciting to see the two generations on one stage entertaining us with ease. VH1 will re-air the show throughout the week and weekend. I cannot wait to watch again.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia!

Comedy series It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia has to be the funniest show on television today. It's about four twenty-something year old friends and an Irish bar. Three of the four of them own the bar in Philadelphia, while the fourth is a bartender/server. The cast contains three guys and a gal, of which prior to this show I've been unfamiliar with their work. The show just wrapped up its second season on network FX where they've added Danny DeVito to the cast. Danny Devito plays the father to one of the bar owners and the gal server, where he is divorcing their mother and needs something else to focus on.

Each character is very different and brings something unique to the table. Dennis is the narcissistic twin brother of Deandra a.k.a Dee who, being the only female, gives the guys a piece of her mind whenever she sees fit. Mac is lighthearted and immoral at the same time. Last but not least Charlie is the easy target they all pick on, and happens to be my favorite character. The show covers unconventional and controversial topics, but in a comedic manner. Show topics like "Charlie Has Cancer" where Charlie pretends to be sick with cancer in order to win the sympathy and heart of a girl. "The Gang Runs For Office" is where the four of them get involved in politics, knowing they cannot win their haphazard cause, just to make an extra buck. One of my personal favorites "Charlie Gets Molested" is where they mistakening think Charlie was molested by a teacher back in high school and have an intervention for him years later.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is a great show where the writing is wity and hilarious, and the characters are addictive. When in season the 30 minute comedy airs on FX, Thursdays at 10:00 pm. Currently the show is airing re-runs on FX, Sundays at 11:00 pm where there are usually back-to-back episodes.

A little RA anyone

Rock group Ra is on a multi-city tour right now across the country landing in places like Cleveland, Colorado, and West Hollywood just to name a few. I had the pleasure of seeing them in New York City at an intimate venue where the fans were live and raring to go. Ra is one of the opening acts on this tour so their set was only 30 minutes long; a well worth 30 minutes though I must say. They performed hits from both From One and Duality CDs, including the ever popular Do You Call My Name on the From One CD. I loved the way they got the crowd to sing along during that song when lead singer Sahaj put the microphone towards us while the band stopped playing - acappella style. They also hit us with their new smash single Don't Turn Away, which will be included on their new CD Raw scheduled to release October 24th on their new record label Cement Shoes Records. This CD will have live tracks and a few new studio tracks. They completely rocked the joint, and the crowd loved them. They are on tour for another month coming to a city near you; I recommend you check them out. In the meantime, below is a link to their myspace website where you can hear a few of their hit singles and check out the tour schedule.
http://www.myspace.com/ramusic

Fendi fall '06 collection

Fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld really out-did himself this season at Fendi. Dark colors were the trend on the Fendi runway, worn with dark tights and booties. Big belts worn high at the waist were in full effect, along with skinny belts to accentuate the waist line. As always their bags were beautiful; big and small, totes and satchels, and of course the ever popular Spy bag! As most of us know New York's Fashion Week was last week, but I'm not quite ready for Spring 2007 just yet. Check out a few pictures from Fendi's fall show.

Justin Timberlake is back

Futuresex/Lovesounds is the CD to get right now. It is hot hot hot. JT will be as hot as Usher was with the 2004 Confessions cd, and you know SexyBack is the #1 single on the charts.... Congrats! Its sound is so different from what is currently out there, and appealing to many different genres. He's got funky beats, with a bit of a pop and rock sound attached. Producer Timberland really nailed it for Timberlake. His second release will be My Love, where his falsetto is brilliant and the beat is thumpin'.