Breaking Up with Facebook

During Mardi Gras break of my junior year of college I was meandering down a street in the French Quater vastly underdressed for the weather and ran into one of my friends from high school. I'm sure we talked for a few minutes or so, but all I remember was her telling me to "facebook" her. I was pretty drunk and hadn't heard of facebook--this was like 6mos to a year after Zuckerberg had his techie aha moment in his dorm and facebook was only available on a few campuses then--so I dismissed what she told me until another friend later that night said the same thing. A few days later I Googled facebook, saw that LSU was indeed on the cool list and made my page. The snarky girl inside of me fell instantly in love with this online gossip mill that connected me to people I knew, kinda knew, wanted to know and had no inclination to get to know. Fast forward a couple of years and that same need to know has me wanting to run screaming from the site.

Just like any relationship, my relationship with facebook started out innocent enough and full of time spent swooning over the pages--and getting mine down to a science--when I should have been paying attention in class. Before high schoolers and randoms with an email address could join, the exclusivity of facebook meant that only my classmates, colleagues and actual friends could friend me. I was swept up in being connected to girls I'd lost touch with since graduating high school--I was living post-Katrina and needed that connection to home-- nd loved that I could make groups for classes, student organizations and my inner circle. It was like someone put together the best parts of AIM and myspace and left out the creepiness. Until it got creepy when some guy who was friends with all of my friends but had never seen me in real life decided to start chatting me up. (I knew that posting an actual picture of myself was a bad idea, which is why to this day I have my privacy on lock and rarely use pictures of myself as my profile picture.) It would have been all good if it stopped there but then this person told friends of friends that he waas in love with me--b*sh I don't know you--and all kinds of other weird stuff. But sadly, that was only the beginning of the creepy.

Eisenberg is a better Zuckerberg than Zuckerberg lol

Facebook grew,  and eventually let everyone and my mom join facebook as long as they had an active email account. My inbox flooded with friend requests from people I didn't know or want to know and my timeline began to fill up with images and topics that made me cringe. I don't care about your religious/political views, I wish you were acquainted with grammer, I don't want to see your baby baking or the meal you cooked, I am not donating to your cause, I don't live in your state to go to your event and in general I don't care...if I did I would call/text/email/write/smoke signal you. The red flags of the dangers of over sharing began to pop up and I stopped accepting friend requests from most people. Relationship turning sour, I began to plan my exit...which is exactly where this finds me. 

On one hand, I'm a blogger who is all over the internets and I love to shameless promote myself which is why I log on to facebook in the first place. On the other hand-- that would be my left hand--I do not like the superficial level of connectedness that it perpetuates. Just because we are fiends on facebook does not mean you know thing the first about my life--unless I'm an over sharer and in that case you know waaaaay too much. Seriously, my relationship status, posted pictures, links and quotes and my likes and dislikes aren't me. If you wanted to know me, and more importantly I wanted to know you, we would actually talk...like on the phone. The connection that you have with me online is not only superficial but contrived by me to sell whatever I'm selling just like you're selling whatever you're selling. Sadly, 80% of my "friends" on facebook are selling things that I would never buy. All of this leaves me feeling both torn and confused, facebook helps contribute to my profile online and my side hustle but it grosses me out...much like a boyfriend that you've outgrown that you love because he's comfy and familiar but since he let himself go and started acting like a major douche you can't bring yourself to kiss him let alone practice making babies with him. 

While I haven't had the "it's not you, it's me" talk with FB just yet, I know its coming. Especially since all those food and fetus pics make me want to gag, and the thought of people that I would avoid at all costs in real life knowing my life bothers the heck out me--that's the reason I rarely post anything personal that and the fact that both of my parents and several aunts, uncles and cousins are my "friends" now and most of them would flip their shit if they knew how I felt about God, politics, music, art, movies, men and pretty much everything else.



 
John Legend - I Used To Love You by mgl_la

Shake It Out

You know I love me some Flo + The Machine but this isn't about her song, it's about me saying a few things that I'm sure 99% of America--well 99% of the people in America that know me--would never know about me in a million years. Getting this stuff out isn't about you feeling sorry for me or anything, I'm too old for your pity give it to Eden Wood, it's about putting what's real and true out there. So here goes....

5 Things You Wouldn't Guess About Me From Looking.

5. I'm a socially awkward snob.

4.  Guys do not ask me out, aside from creepers who ask everyone out. Seriously, my ex was the only non-creepy guy who asked me out in 5 years of living in Atlanta and that scares the hell out of me 95% of the time.

3. I work in fashion so I have a million and one better things I would love to discuss that have nothing to do with fashion...like quantum physics.

2. My spirit animal is a combination of Zooey Deschanel, Witch Baby and a mama wolf.

1. I like my men smarter than I am and just as socially awkward. Maybe I should start hanging out at Tech...

There's a few things I'm leaving out but I'm not ready to go there...yet.

You Look Like You Read Books...

My younger brother is 6 years younger than I am, that means that for 6 years I perfected the art of hanging with solo. I spent hours in my room letting my imagination run wild after throughly nurturing it with every word that I could pronounce on my own in every book that I owned--which was a heck of a lot considering that most children under 10 aren't usually prolific readers. By the time my brother arrived I was starved for a playmate--not that I didn't have friends I was just a little kid and little kids don't ever have tons of friends--but I only wanted a playmate who, like my imaginary friends, also loved to read, paint and play games based on the stories I read. Yeah, I love my brother but we do not share the same passion for the written word.

By the time I entered middle school the characters in my books had become my best and most trusted friends, as evidenced by my bookshelf beginning to sag under the weight of 11+ years of books. I'd added two encyclopedias--that's Wikipedia's grandma for you whipper snappers,The Boxcar Children, Witch Baby--I think I read that so many times the cover fell off--R.L. Stein's Goosebumps, and the ultimate "I was an adolescent girl in the 90's" identifier,  The Babysitter's Club--Claudia and Stacey aka Anastasia McGill were my faves. It was also right around that same time that I my love affair with glossies lik Seventeen, Sassy, YM (Young & Modern), COSMOgirl and Jump began, but that's another blog post. 

 

Things got rocky as I began to transition from childhood to whatever the hell you call being a teenager. My grandma died, my childhood home flooded and my parents got divorced but my books were still there ready to help me escape the hell of being a 12 year old black girl who could quote Clueless verbatim, openly loved Alains Morrisette and Nirvana, had her first celeb crushes on Elijah Wood and Leonardo DiCaprio and wanted to be a VJ/actress/model/writer/slash in New Orleans. (For those of you who don't get how hellish this could be all I have to say is it was not pretty being in a group of people who looked like me but didn't accept me because I wasn't a stereotype. Those girls are now knocked up and/or married, doing God knows what and couldn't dream of squeezing into their prom dresses while I'm still a size 4 with no baby daddy drama and I'm some kind of writer.) What was I saying again? Oh right, my books pretty much got me from 6th grade to high school, where I began to pretty much stick to assigned reading materials and Cosmopolitan. 

After high school life went from cheerleading, homework and boys to partying, homework, boys and more boys--I'm the first to admit that I was a bit boy crazed up until about 21 or so. My books didn't really fit in with my schedule but that doesn't mean I didn't read, it just means I'm not really 100 on what I was reading. I still spent hours in Barnes and Nobles between classes and loved walking into the library just for the smell of it, I just didn't have time to forge many new friendships with Tolkien's characters until I graduated and moved to Atlanta where I didn't know anyone. My first summer here I read the entire Harry Potter series in reverse order and then moved on to Twilight (let down)....Then I fell in love with my very own Edward Cullen who left me in the woods like Bella after almost 3  beautiful years.

Now, post breakup, the books are back again but these aren't the books of my childhood. My new bookshelf houses hardcopies of Harry Potter 1-7, the Twilight Saga, a bunch of chick lit and reference guides and my newest addiction self help/spirituality tomes. Girls, getting broken up with does some strange things to you. I've seen girls become whores, crack addicts, crack addicted whores, lesbians, crack addicted lesbian whores, workaholics and only God knows what else after having their heart really broken, it either brings out the best or the worst in you. I didn't go the crack addicted, workaholic slore route, instead I took a break from writing and became a full on student of now age spirituality, see DharmaAndTheCity.

The point is, my books have been the one security blanket that got me through life. They never bore the hell out of you, whine about anything and always provide the perfect escape when the going gets tough without the lows of alcohol and coming down off of a drug/sex/chocolate binge. So I'm beyond ecstatic that one of my former co-workers took one look at me (and my FBF) and said "You look like you read." I mean what is the alternative, looking like you're illiterate?

Check Out My New Baby!!

So being a complete eff it let's go type of girl, I took a little dream I had for starting a blog dedicated to merging my love of pop culture and awakening my spiritual side and did the dang thang! And guess what? This is the easiest blog I've started, ever! So check out Dharma And The City and tell me what you think. xo

Fashion Meets Music: Marry The Night

*Another MISS exclusive for you, check it and the amazing images as laid out by C_Rocka at Fashion Meets Music: Lady Gaga Marry The Night.


After splitting with her creative director of four years, Laurieann “Boomkat” Gibson, Mama Monster has taken the reigns and delivered a music video wrapped in a 14 minute short film. With less than subtle nods to “Fame,” “Black Swan,” “Desperately Seeking Susan” and a touch of “The Bell Jar,” this somewhat dark trip into the recesses of Gaga’s mind is worth the 14 minutes just to hear her muse on BeDazzlers and next season’s Calvin Klein.


According to the lady herself, “Marry The Night” depicts the worst day in her life. If the worst day in her life included well phrased monologues, custom Giuseppe Zanotti shoes, break downs in Manhattan lofts, mint hair dye and blowing up cars in over the knee Christian Louboutin boots, I’d gladly trade. Of course like she says at the beginning as she’s being wheeled to a room in a psych ward after an undisclosed operation, this is her version of the truth which is more true than the actual truth. Whatever break down that lead to Stefani becoming Gaga was devoid of the sick clothes, amazing choreography, over the top imagery and hard hitting sounds that we see in “Marry The Night,” but it undoubtedly lead to it.

Break down over and done, the beauty in “Marry The Night” is not just the metaphor laden overarching theme but the clothes of course–I mean seriously, it IS Gaga. From the moment we see a barely conscious Mama Monster being wheeled down the hall by two hot nurses in sterile white dresses with sick white heels and mint hair nets, we know this is a Gaga production. Fast forward to a newly released Gaga losing her mind in her studio, bathing in honey nut Cheerios and dying her hair mint green as she sings the opening lines of “Marry the Night” in her bathtub wearing, as we see later, nothing but a pair of sparkly platforms. She has her Madonna moment in BeDazzled denim and a pair of awesome custom shades, and slides into the roof of a car in a black pleather outfit that is equal parts Batgirl and dominatrix. Through the quick flashes of the moments leading up to her break down we get glimpses of a pre-meat dress Gaga circa The Fame. While I loved every outfit from beginning to end the most beautiful, and wearable ones, were worn by the nurses as they wheeled our little “morphine princess” back to reality.


Whatever you think about Gaga, her backstory or her abilities as a director, you have to admit that the girl is smart. I mean only someone with a mind full of references addled by self induced trauma could come up with such a fitting homage to the struggles of fame and reinvention,  and everyone’s favorite city all while wearing heels so high that falling off of them would break a major bone.

Give It to Me...Now!

*This is a MISS exclusive, featuring me tapping into my inner Veruca and demanding asking for some lovely Christmas gifts. View it in its original format at What I Want for the Holidays 2011: Anastasia. 

It’s the holidays again and you know what that means: family is driving you bananas, the mall is crowded as hell and it’s time to get your wish lists in order to ensure that you don’t end up with leaping lords, milking maids and water fowl under your tree on Christmas day. As a “grown up,” my Christmas list usually begins with requests to pay off my student loans, pay off one of my credit cards or a brand new car, and eventually ends with things my parents, friends and boo can buy without taking out loans to do so. This year, after a rocky past few months, I’ve decided to keep it relatively simple and only ask for stuff I’ll actually use and get, not that I wouldn’t be happy with something not on the list that is green and can be used to buy whatever I want. However, I have a few people in my life who are bad gift givers–daddy–and need to use this as a visual aid to find the present that will guarantee I don’t go all Veruca Salt on Christmas day.

1. Carrie’s Lost Choo aka Jimmy Choo’s Marlene Sandal- I’ve always had a thing for shoes, my friends can tell you that in college they watched me work up the shoe ladder from Steve Madden, Nine West and Aldo to Calvin Klein, BCBG and Michael Kors so it was inevitable that Choo would be my next step. While other girls are eying practical red bottom shoes just to say they have a pair of Louboutin’s, I’m embracing my inner Bradshaw and going for Carrie’s iconic Marlene sandal. At $1995 these violet platform sandals with hand-applied feathers and crystals may be more of a shoe dream than a reality, but you can’t knock a girl for asking.

2. Rebecca Minkoff Snake Stamped Metallic Leather Laptop Case- Last Christmas, in addition to boots on boots on boots, I got the most amazing grown up life present ever: a 15″ Macbook Pro. She’s a life saver and my best friend, unfortunately she’s a bit smaller than my old Toshiba and doesn’t have a laptop case to call her own. Sooo…she needs this more than I do. I mean my Mac is a fly chick and deserves a fly place to sleep when she isn’t busy hanging out in coffee shops, on my coffee table or working her tush off.

3. Spiritual Gangster Limited Edition Guru Yoga Mat- On top of being a bomb dot com writer and fashion addict I’m also a huge spiritual gangster and in love with yoga–although I’m just getting back into it after a brief hiatus that has lasted several years. To get back in my yoga groove I need a new mat–I had crawfish and beer on my last one years ago and ruined it–and this one is certified gangster, like listening to Jay Z while reading Deepak Chopra and retweeting @UncleRush kinda gangster.

4. Vitamix Blender- With the call back to my yoga mat finally being answered, my body is now calling out for a break from pizza, tacos, burgers and all the other junk I feed my body. The best way for me to get my body back on track is to blend and the best bet in the blender department is the Vitamix. It blends smoothies, frozen big-girl beverages and juices, which is the real reason I want it since buying fresh juice from Whole Foods is a good way to be healthy and poor.

5. Tiny Devotions Transition Mala- Part two of my spiritual gangster path brings us to my mala, aka prayer beads. This particular set is made with labrodorite and amethyst and is supposed to protect you during vulnerable growth stages and add a little peace and tranquility to your life and outfit. With a big move from the dirty south to the big apple looming on my horizon, I figure I can use all of the protection, peace and tranquility that I can get.

Remember, ’tis the season for giving, gathering, and being grateful so keep your head up and pass those unwanted fruitcakes my way, because I’m strange and I actually like fruitcakes. Happy Holidays y’all! 

Things That Made Me Smile

*Free round at Escorpion!! * Dinner with the gals at Cafe Circa * Running into Valerie...which started out awkward got super cool the awkward the ended well * Working with my fave coworkers * BISTRO FRIES!! * Sparks everywhere * Me time * You time * Time with my gals * Red, red wine * Finally getting paid for my hard work, at the j-o-b and as a freelancer * Hanging with Meg Reggie, Caren West (for 2 minutes), Robanne and of course, Go Kindra, Go Kindra at Escorpion * SuperSoul Sunday brunch * Free pralines * FINALLY FINDING JEZEBEL"S NOVEMBER ISSUE ON NEWSSTANDS (sorry the photo is crooked, tilt your head) *11:11 * Nails did!!! *Getting off of work the day before Thanksgiving....in retail...so I can have more time to write * Synchronicity * Ego Warriors * Pancakes * HUGS!!! *

Can't wait to see what things I'll be grateful for this week!

Mother of Pearl SS12 Lookbook

Fashion piece for Frank 151....so you know the drill. Find it in its original format at Mother of Pearl SS12 Lookbook.

Adrenaline junkie Maia Norman’s Mother of Pearl line is back with a new collection of athletic-inspired fashion for SS12, and has been winning fans all over the Internet. This season MoP has brought in acclaimed artistFiona Banner to produce a series of prints that form the foundation of the collection. She also took the "book" portion of the word lookbook literally, and published the collection as a book complete with its own ISBN number, registered under the title Mother, that can be seen throughout the designs. 


Heavily inspired by art and Norman’s sporty lifestyle, (she drove in the 2011 Gumball 3000 in an Audi R8 with a wrap designed by Jim Lambie), the SS12 MoP collection features a fresh palette of mint and line green, pastel orange, electric and pale blues balanced with black, grey and cream. Banner’s illustrative prints add an edge and energy that make MoP the clothing line of choice for ladies who have outgrown that sneakers and tees phase but haven’t fully embraced the fashion beast lifestyle. 


Rounding out Mother of Pearl’s SS12 collection is the brand’s first official swimwear collection. Expanding on capsule swim ranges from previous seasons, the one-piece and bikini styles offered for spring and summer feature Banner’s prints and fit in perfectly with the ever growing brand.


Available at Colette in Paris and Joyce in Hong Kong, Mother of Pearl is enjoying a cult following amongst the most hardcore anti-fashionistas. Blow your girl away this Christmas by snagging one of these hugely coveted pieces for her.

Things that made me smile

*Feist at Tabernacle with Elle Elle * Giving out free hugs with my spiritual running buddy Kindra * Two days off in a row * 11.11.11 * Spirit Junkie Lecture * Releasing * Forgiving * Manifesting a parking spot!!! * Meditating with Deepak * 3 hours gabbing with Gabby * Bringing a healing to my co-workers and pals * Not selling a thing at work * Cupcakes * Inspirational quotes from my favorite underage author * Inspirational sparks * Rewrites * "I'm Back!" * Synchronicity * Sweater weather * Tea please * Jay-Z * Girls time * Knowing that I will be off the days before Thanksgiving and Christmas *

Ronnie Fieg x New Balance

This was done as a part of my new duites as a contributor in style area over at Frank 151. To view it in it's original format go to Ronnie Fieg x New Balance. 

Ronnie Fieg is moving to Manhattan this Friday, November 11, or at least Kith will be. To celebrate the opening of their downtown flagship, the Kith crew has teamed up with New Balance on two classic, American made 574's. Owing their saturated color and plush feel to the use of premium pigskin and soft mesh, each one of the 72 pairs--that's 36 pairs per colorway--will retail for $135 and will come with an NB x Kith tee shirt, also made in the USA. Both colorways will be exclusively available at Kith NYC on Friday 11/11/11 when the doors open at 10 a.m. So get there early, it's Friday morning and you don't have anything to do except work maybe.

Fashion Meets Music: Our Deal

This is a M.I.S.S. original so....you know the drill. Find the original at Fashion Meets Music: Our Deal.

What do you get when you put the beachy, SoCal sound of Best Coast in a blender with some of Hollywood’s hottest up-and-comers, The Warriors, West Side Story and tons of eyeliner? Drew Barrymore’s music video directorial debut for Best Coast’s “Our Deal.” Shot for MTV’s Supervideo series, videos shot sans the band under the premise of telling a story not selling a single, “Our Deal” features my favorite under 20 actress Chloe Moretz as a star crossed lover in an L.A. gang kicking ass and falling in love with the wrong guy–who hasn’t been there.

“Our Deal” is a typical easy, breezy Best Coast track that would fit right into one of Drew Barrymore’s smaller budget romantic comedies or a movie about a modern day Romeo and Juliet who are members of rival houses and gangs–wait Baz Luhrmann already made that movie. Either way Barrymore’s four and ten minute long videos both accomplish what so many videos fail to, telling a smart story with good acting that does not rely heavily on seductive dance moves and over the top costumes. Although it was tough to watch as a recently single gal, this video gets an A for storytelling and an A+ for style.

Speaking of style, Drew Barrymore told the people over at Pitchfork that the entire video was inspired by the timelessness of the jean jacket and Best Coast’s modern meets retro sound. Sound aside, it is beyond obvious that pre-filming Barrymore was on a strict visual diet that included The Warriors, West Side Story, The Outsiders, and Rebel Without a Cause. Her girls sport Winehouse-esque hair, tons of eyeliner and the kind of bad chick attitude I’ve been trying to cultivate for years with little success–I don’t think my hair gets big enough to hide eyeliner and razors in for that. The guys in the clip have that dangerous mix of James Dean and that cute hipster dude you always want to ask you out but never does. Channel this urban rebel look with skinny dark denim, biker boots, an amazing leather jacket, vintage tees, black liner and enough Aqua-net to kill the ozone layer dead.

NaNoWriMo

So we are 7 days in to November and I've decided that I will be participating in NaNoWrMo-National Novel Writing Month--in an effort to finally get my ass moving on this collection of short stories that has been knocking around in my head for the past few years. With a move to NYC in the making, a recent break up clouding my mind and a not so awesome job, I have come to the conclusion that this will be the best way to shake everything off and move me into 2012 on the best note. I'll be keeping you guys posted on my word count and progress. That is all.

LOOK MA! I'm On The Homepage!!!

Without any online fame whoring, ie tweeting, facebooking or social media-ing, my blog post on my current relationshit drama and how I am slowly but surely recovering from some serious heartache it was on featured on the homepage at HerFuture.com. That is pretty awesome considering blogs make it to that page based on page views and in three days I got more pageviews from women who have gone through and are going through similar situations than I do on sites that are about shoes and clothes and have marketing teams behind them. Just goes to show that sometimes people just want to know that they aren't alone in what they are gong through, and that if one person can find a way to climb out of their pain and live the life they've always wanted they can do it too.

xo
Ana

Kidrobot x Jeff Staple...Pigeon

This was originally done for my new online fam, FRANK 151. To view it in its original format go to KidRobot x The Jeff Staple Pigeon...that is all.

The birdman, Jeff Staple, is back with another send up to the one bird that runs the streets of New York, the pigeon. This time teaming up with the folks at Kidrobot, the much anticipated KidRobot x Staple Design pigeon collection will go on sale November 3. This time around, Staple’s venerated urban fowl takes over the top of the statue in everything from toys and keychains to key caps and tees. Just for Kidrobot, the grey Staple Pigeon will be joined by the rare, albino Staple Pigeon White.

The 7-inch, vinyl Staple Pigeon modeled after the grey rock pigeons that hang outside of Staple Design’s NYC headquarters is limited to 800 pieces worldwide. His pigmently challenged  friend, Staple Pigeon White, is an elusive breed with only 200 available worldwide, exclusive to Reed Space, Kidrobot NY and Kidrobot LA. Rounding out Kidrobot’s pigeon obsessed capsule collection are an enamel and zinc alloy keychain, a 1-inch vinyl keycap, and three fresh tees. The Staple Pigeon T-shirt in black for men and women, and the Staple Pigeon T-shirt in white for men, available at select locations, make this the hottest collection of pigeon droppings that we’d touch without swearing.

Check me out on FRANK 151

You know the drill. This content is all for FRANK 151, my newest online home. They don't hold all the rights to my work but they do hold a few. To view this in its original format go to Vans OTW November Releases over at FRANK 151. Big, big hug to C_Rocka-my M.I.S.S. PnG- for the hook up.

Since last summer the Vans OTW Collection has been quenching shoppers’ thirsts for skate-inspired designs that go the extra mile in the style department. This month we’re getting three new additions to the oh-so-popular OTW collection. Arguably the most in-demand of the bunch, the Vans OTW Bedford comes back this month in two new suede-textured colorways. One pair of the mid-cut sneaker features a grey and burgundy paneled upper while the other is solid black, both have plaid linings. This month’s grouping also sees a new colorway in the low-cut Ludlow hitting the shelves in grey wool and tan vegetarian leather. All three pairs are available now. 

Things That Made Me Smile

Remember gratitude is the attitude! You can't get more of what you wan if you aren't already thankful for what you've got!

*Meeting with my new favorite writer Taylor Diamond. He's 11, has more figured out about life than I do at 27 and buy his books! * Finally reclaiming my space for me * Forgiveness * My j-o-b (whoo-hoo tomorrow is payday!!!) * My article in the November issue of Jezebel peep it * An email from Jez's managing editor saying she LOVES my December piece * Texts and chats with the most awesome member of my 3rd tribe Caren West! * Patrice suddenly being so wise * What does a fern look like? * MFCM laughing with me from the bottom of his peanut heart * Time apart * BG being a mama * Bistro fries!! * Cupcakes * Discoween * Love * ACIM * Tapping with Brad * The job that I don't have yet but I will have soon* 3 weeks * Ecc 7:14 * Dinner * Halloween with old and new friends * Quantum shifts * Jay Z* Knowing what is real * Seeing * Crispy weather * Updating my iPhone * FRANK 151

Things That made Me Smile

Meeting all of my deadlines * The monster at the end of this book * Family "emergencies" that allow me to get my real work done * Pumpkin cookies!! * Learning that one of my tribe members is a real live Sookie Stackhouse * Jimmy John's veggie sub...the sprouts give you life * 8 of Atlanta's Most Beautiful People from the inside out * Getting the right kind of feedback on my writing, finally * Big girl job opps beginning to roll in * "Don't trade your time in for this" * Sonnaween planning * Yogi tea speaking the truth (Word is bond!) * Reading A Return to Love * Connecting the right people at the right time * Passing my copy of Spirit Junkie on to the original OG, BG * Running into my favorite swimsuit designer Kenyatta Williams and her mom at Barnes and Nobles * Red wine and alone time * Imitation of Life * Green Smoothies!!!

This week I'm also throwing in a list of people who've saved my life at one point or another whether or not they know they did. So without further ado here are the DJs that have saved my life:

BG the OG * Ari S Diddi, please say the Diddi * Amber * Tricie Stackhouse * Keisha * Yosef * Silly Sill * Rodney * Kindra * MFCM * Eric (not THAT Eric but it would be nice) * Ashley E Doggie * Gabby B (never met her but she did save me ) * Lil Lauren * Moe Breaux * Jodi * Benz-O * Ms Janice * Mrs Wiggins * Lil Curtis and Bellinger * Cheryl * The Broke and Pretty crew * Jay * Elle Jay *Gabs * Junji * The Kaiser * CW

Fashion Meets Music: Shake It Out

This was written exclusively for M.I.S.S. To view this post in its original format please go to Fashion Meets Music: Shake it Out. Big thanks to C_Rocka for doing all of my FMM images, no matter how late I get them to her. 

Blame it on the economy, Boardwalk Empire or next year’s Great Gatsby release but designers have gone head over heels for the Jazz Age. In almost perfect timing, Florence Welch is embodying the joie de vivre of the prohibition era in the video for her latest single, “Shake It Out.”

 Before I dig in on the inspired and inspiring fashion sported in the video, I have to talk about the track itself. As the second single from Florence + The Machine’s upcoming album Ceremonials, slated to drop on Halloween, “Shake It Out” is filled with the beautiful and stirring lyrics that we’ve come to expect from Flo and Co. Seriously, “Shake It Out” will be to Ceremonials what “Dog Days Are Over” was to Lungs, you know the catchy, poppy hit that strikes a chord with everyone from self help devotees to Gleeks. The magic one this one is not only in the lyrical content, which is spectacular, but the instrumentation as well. It literally makes you want to get up and shake the bad juju out of your hair before attempting to start again.

 Sartorially speaking the entire video is a send up to the raucous all weekenders that we who did not live through it associate with the Jazz Age thanks to a Mr. F. Scot Fitzgerald. While the fashion isn’t 100% true to the era that brought us the little black dress and the bob, it does touch on important high notes of the defining style of the time. Florence floats ethereally in a flowy red dress, becomes the life of a masquerade in a gilded sheath with serious back emphasis--a hallmark of evening gowns form the 30’s--and gives us a little Victor Victoria vibe in a black dress that would be at home in the decade preceding Gatsby and Daisy’s. Not only are Florence’s looks beyond ideal but the looks of her fellow revelers, clad in 1920’s-ish pieces and Venetian masks, hints at next spring’s love affair with decade that perfected excess a generation before the 80s .

Incorporate a little 20’s glam into your wardrobe, and look like such the trendsetter by picking up on next season’s trend before it hits the mags, by seeking out pieces that pour on the glitz. Think dropped waists, t-strap, moderate hight heels--leave the super high skyscrapers at home, lots of gold, silver, sequins and feathers, and rich fabrics and colors. A perfect way for girls no blessed with Florence Welch’s mile long legs to get in on this trend and the video’s vibe is to pair a knee length dress like this one by French Connection with t-strap heels, a great cocktail ring and a perfect red pout--lipstick only came in varying shades of red way back when. Taller girls can shake it all out in a dress similar to the red chiffon number that Florence gets down in and float into their next fete with all eyes on them. Just be sure to top it off with costume jewelry to bring the look together.

Things That Made Me Smile

So it's been a while but that doesn't mean I haven't been smiling! Here's my list of things I appreciate and am grateful for in the past few weeks.

Getting my first short-short story published on Airplane Reading * Getting my pitches to Jezebel green lighted (Look ma, I'm a real writer!) * Being asked to style for the 25 Most Beautiful Atlantans issue of Jezebel (my name will be all up in that mag next month!) * Meeting my newest most spiritual tribe member, Kindra Gans. Girl is super gifted * Hanging up proof of my achievements in my entry way * Green smoothies!!! * No coffee for two weeks now * Hanging with my boo for life at the Alternative Apparel event * Oh the topic of the Alternative event, checking in as media for my blog baby Gamine and not one of the 50 million other spots I write for * Michael Kors wedge booties * Cami Cakes * Having the time to focus on me * My boyfriend * Dinner with my family * Finally getting this life thing figured out * Spirit Junkie! * Detoxing with red wine * Urban Daddy's amazing event at the Goat Farm that featured real plates not lite bites! * My work * My allowance card finally getting here! Yay $100 to blow on work clothes * Detox done = CARBS!!! * Unexpected checks in my mailbox * Sneakers when my feet hurt * A quiet cell phone * A new coffee table * Getting an actual LETTER from my HS reunion planning committee--still not sure about my attendance.

Oh and this...

Things That Made Me Smile...

Last week was a doozie and this week has been equally challenging but in the spirit of trying to come from a place of love, here are the things that made me smile last week and this week.

*The boyfriend returned (more on that another time) * Dropping wisdom on the freshmen at Clark * Being invited back to drop knowledge on those kids * Being unemployed was the best vacation ever * Getting a new job (more on that another time too) * Bottomless mimosas with Janice and BG * Going to the Equally Wed Love is Love wedding show where BG and Janice were constantly being mistaken for a lesbian couple * Seeing some of my fave Atlantans @GoGlenCocoBlog, @fashionadostyle, & @CarenWest at the Equally Wed event * With events come goodie bags!!! * Seeing the progress on Gamine's logo, it's going to be AWESOME!! * Being interviewed for a full time big girl job doing pretty much the same thing I do now, blog, but getting paid much more for it (positive thoughts they call and rescue me from retail purgatory soon.) * Getting my copy of Spirit Junkie * Oh and this happened like two weeks ago but I forgot about it...Getting a few texts with photos of me as a kid because my parents lost pretty much all of them during Katrina.