To hotel stairs to the emergency exit door...

I would have written from the hotel, had I not been sleep-deprived and completely bored. But for the most part I was both of those things, and I rejoice in my own bed, which is miles above and beyond any fold out, especially the one at the hotel. I did have some interesting shopping experiences this week, however, which I will chronicle tomorrow or whenever I can actually lift my head off of my pillow to write. Which, unfortunately reminds me that I have two (short) articles to write tomorrow for the conclusion of my internship. Three weeks from today I will be back in Evanston, back with (hopefully all of) my friends, back to school. I'm definitely feeling ready to go back. There's only so much time I can spend with my mother before I want to kill something.

Searching for Skipperdee

Two nights from now, instead of sitting in my little red Ikea chair in my room, I'll be sitting, probably on a couch in the Ritz Carlton. My parents have decided that it's too much of a hassle to live in our house while the upstairs hallway is getting refinished, with which I wholeheartedly agree. So Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday we'll be living out of a suite and you can bet that I'll basically be pretending I'm Eloise. Monday my mother and I are going shopping and Tuesday I'll probably have the car, but Wednesday I think I'll probably just roam around the hotel and the mall it's attached to. Somewhat unfortunately, the hotel is attached to the super-expensive Tysons Galleria instead of regular Tysons, so I won't be able to buy anything. But I will be able to stare at all the beautiful clothes in Anthropologie and dream about what I'd do if I had the money. So it should be a good time. And to evoke Eloise, I'm going to dress really girlie while I'm there.

Thursday music happiness

These are just songs that have been rattling around in my head since last night when the first one came up on my shuffle. Two very quality songs by the beach boys. Enjoy.


Sorry that they're lame and not actually videos.

Girl Crush Wednesday

Clearly the occurrence of our floors being resurfaced has given me infinitely more time to actually think about writing and actually write - as I spend more time sitting in a Starbucks. Today's subject - my girl crush, Jessica Valenti. Or maybe I should say woman crush, since neither of us are minors. So woman crush it is. Jessica Valenti is the editor of feministing.com, which I read far less than I should. But the reason I decided to write this is mainly based on her books. Yesterday as I browsed Borders I picked up He's A Stud, She's a Slut and 49 Other Double Standards Every Woman Should Know. I've enjoyed what I've read so far as well as other books by Valenti (The Purity Myth, Full-Frontal Feminism, Yes Means Yes). I think what I like so much about her is partly her writing style and mostly how she presents herself. She represents a lot of what I'd like to be like. She has no shame in who she is. She talks about what other people might perceive as flaws as just matter-of-fact things. I admire that a lot because I wish I were like that and I wish other people were like that. Also, she's disproving myths about feminists and letting young women know what feminism is and why it's okay to classify as a feminist. I do, but I know that a lot of people still equate feminism with ugly, unshaven women who hate men. And that's not it. I mean, I'm sure there are unshaven men-hating feminists. And to them I say keep doing what you're doing, though I dont think all men are deserving of ire. But I do love a good woman who provides a positive role model for young women and girls. And that's why Jessica Valenti is my woman crush. for reals.

Good Morning

I'm sitting in a starbucks on Eye (I) Street downtown. Due to the floors in my house being resurfaced, and my mother having to go to work, and my father having a meeting, this is where I have been placed. I'll sit here waiting for a call from my dad, signaling that I can do something else with my day, but for now, I'll use the free wi-fi and watch the people walking by on the street and walking into the Starbucks. The people here know my dad. He comes in about every day so they start making his drink when they see him walk through the door. He thanked the cashier by name. I think it must be nice to be known. It's interesting to sit here and see all the people in their suits come in. It's hot outside - the day will probably get into the 90s, but there are men in their suits and ties walking around like the day is cool. I wish it were. I'm wishing for fall weather, though I'm sure it won't be coming soon. Maybe when I get back to school. Though I do hope for some warmth when I first get there so that nights can be spent sitting on the rocks next to the lake, looking over the dark expanse of water towards the bright lights of the city. Today it's a month until I go back. And my friends from home will mostly be gone by the end of the week. So, I bought a lot of stuff from Michael's yesterday, and plan on being supremely crafty during my month. I might as well have something to show for my summer.

Summer reading

I read a lot about fashion on line. I have a subscription to Women's Wear Daily (that my mommy paid for because I needed it for a journalism project), I read fashionista and the cut on New York Magazine's website. I'm impatient when I wait for rag trade to come up on Jezebel. I read Elle's fashion blog as well. I also read a lot of fashion blogs maintained b just regular people who show off their style, what they're wearing, their thoughts. I can spend hours and hours reading the old posts of a blog that I've just found. In general, i really like those kinds of blogs, though sometimes I don't like the writing voice or what have you and after reading a page I won't continue on. I've considered turning this into one of those types of blogs, but I can never decide. Sometimes I feel like certain bloggers come off as a bit pretentious. And I don't want to be one of those people. Though, maybe by consciously making that decision, I wouldn't fall into that trap. But who knows? I feel like if I had a group of friends who cared about fashion the same way I would be more confident about doing that. Though I did something to help combat the insecurity. I joined weardrobe, and I post my outfit photos, and getting positive feedback is really nice. I think that might be the most important part of the fashion blog community. It seems to me a lot of people feel out of place because of their love for fashion or their strange personal style or even just because they're wearing dresses when other people are wearing sweatpants. You can find a lot of like minded people. Or even people who aren't like-minded, but people who are interesting who have different ideas and open you up to new things. And I like that.

New obsession...

this is completely unrelated to my other recent posts and I'll continue on that train of thought later today. But there was something I wanted to write about before it flies out of my head. I saw (500) days of Summer yesterday, and it was fabulous. I loved it. It was sad, sweet, relatable, funny...it was such a good movie. And the soundtrack is just as good. I bought it last not on itunes and I listened to it twice in a row. I'm listening as I write this. It's perfect for August, I think. Maybe it's just perfect for most times. I want to have a tea party or maybe dinner out on the deck where the soundtrack is this cd. Yesterday was an excellent day. Today should be good too.

What do I dress like? I've told people before that I like the style of the fifties. I like to look a little like a stepford wife sometimes. I love Alice in Wonderland and I've definitely worn outfits inspired by her pinafore look in the animated movie. I wouldn't be unhappy if I looked appropriate for a tea party everyday. I don't wear pants all that often. It's been a few weeks since I wore jeans and that's completely fine with me. I think I have enough skirts and dresses that I can avoid wearing pants. People ask me why I'm so dressed up a lot. I love being dressed up. I love feeling put together. I don't leave the house in sweatpants unless I'm exercising. I don't wear leggings unless it's around the dorm when I'm cold. And I certainly don't deem leggings a suitable replacement for pants. I prefer that my skirts go to the knee, though above is fine as long as it doesn't look trashy. I always want to look appropriate. I try to keep from being boring though. I like little things that are odd, I like trying to make ugly things pretty. I love colors. Though I think black and white are lovely and classic and eternally associated with class, I love colors and could not live without them. I love wearing bright colors - they lift my mood, make me happy to get out of bed to go to class or wherever the day is taking me. I love wearing brightly colored tights. I guess maybe I figure since you can't spot my head in a crowd, you should at least be able to look down and see my legs. I don't much feel like writing more right now, but tomorrow, my thoughts about fashion and the online world. And later, thoughts on clothes and such - what I'm wearing, what I'm looking forward to wearing, what I wish I were wearing.