Congratulations to the winner of Princess of Taylor's Blog-aversary Giveaway!
The winner is Jules! Congratulations, Jules!
Please contact me at princessoftaylor@gmail.com by Thursday February 3, 2011 at 12 noon to claim your prize, a $50 gift card to the store of your choice and a pair of earrings, handmade by my sister-in-law with proceeds going to the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF).
Remember if Jules does not contact me by Thursday February 3, 2011 at 12 noon, I will select another winner!
Thanks to everyone that entered and welcome to my new followers!
I look forward to another great year here at Princess of Taylor!
Husband and I recently had an interesting conversation about celebrity encounters. Ultimately we were left in complete disagreement so I'm curious to open the question up to a wider audience.
A while back we had the opportunity to attend a comedy performance by Tom Wilson. I'd be willing to bet that every single one of you knows who Tom Wilson is, but I'd also be willing to bet that most of you know him not as Tom Wilson, but rather as "Biff" from the Back to the Future trilogy.
Tom Wilson in Back to the Future, Part II and Tom Wilson now.
Now I've made no secret of my love of the Back to the Future trilogy: three entire movies about time travel? Sign me up! But I've also always been a person who enjoys the villains more than the protagonist hero (i.e. my love of Alan Rickman and Tim Curry, who somehow manage to make even the most despicable villain likeable) so Biff really is my favorite character in the Back to the Future movies. I always think of what fun it must have been for Tom Wilson to dress up in all the costumes for various time periods and makeup for various ages and then just go around picking on everyone.
Lest anyone think that we only appreciate Tom Wilson for his role in Back to the Future, let me assure you that's not the case. We loved his role as the gym teacher in Freaks and Geeks, he had a guest role on Psych last season, and he's currently in the middle of a several episode stint on Big Love. The guy's really a pretty good actor and every time he shows up on screen somewhere, we're pleasantly surprised.
But anyway, back to the point. Husband and I attended Tom Wilson's comedy show. Husband was particularly excited as he'd just received the Back to the Future trilogy in blu ray and thought perhaps he'd ask Mr. Wilson to sign it.
Once we arrived at the show, however, our friends informed us that they'd done a little research on Mr. Wilson (okay that makes me think of Dennis the Menace) and discovered that he was trying to separate himself from his Back to the Future persona and that he had made a conscious and public decision to not sign any Back to the Future memorabilia.
The show began and less than five minutes into it, Tom addressed this issue. He said that he was going to just put all the Back to the Future stuff out there and then he was moving on. So he said the lines: "Hey, McFly!"; "Hello? (knocking on an audience member's head); "Butthead!" and then he picked up a guitar to sing a song that he had written about his decision. Here's a similar version that he's performed before:
Video courtesy of TomWilsonUSA.
At the end of the song, he did just what he promised: he moved on to the rest of his routine. And guys? He was totally freakin' funny! We were in stitches the entire performance! He sang, he told hysterical stories, and he ad libbed with audience members. Husband and I (and two friends) all agreed that he was genuinely entertaining and we were glad that we'd come to the show.
Now here is where Husband and I have differing opinions (and for the sake of not getting biased feedback, I'm not going to say which one of us had which opinion. Tricky, eh?)
Opinion A: Tom Wilson is totally entitled to not want to sign Back to the Future stuff. That was from 20+ years ago and he's done other work since then, which we've enjoyed (television, movies, and, now, stand-up). He realizes that many people are coming to see him because of his Back to the Future connection so he addresses it upfront in a humorous way and then does his real routine. Would it be great if he went around quoting lines from the movie nonstop and "calling people Butthead on their answering machines" (per his song)? Sure, but he's also a person and that probably gets really old.
Opinion B: Tom Wilson is famous because he played "Biff" in Back to the Future. If he had decided to leave show business entirely, he would be completely justified in being annoyed if people continue to bring it up. However, he stayed in show business and is counting on people recognizing his name and his image to come see his shows. He should not only accept that recognition but embrace the fact that people are coming to see him now because he was Biff in Back to the Future and sign whatever people present to him. Otherwise people wouldn't care.
In the end, Husband decided not to wait in line to meet Tom. No doubt that was partly due to the fact that he didn't trust me to not squeal, "I love you, Biff!" I tried to convince him to go have his own "Brian May moment", but he lamented that no celebrity would ever be as gracious and wonderful as Brian May had been so he would surely be disappointed.
I agreed that the "Brian May standard" is all but insurmountable and off we went to dinner.
Now, in all fairness to Tom Wilson, he's surely not the only celebrity who struggles to get past such a recognizable role and character. He just happens to be the celebrity that prompted the discussion between Husband and I.
For example, here's a video compilation of a guest appearance that Brent Spiner did on the short-lived television show "Joey".
Video courtesy of digikotw.
I particularly like this example because not only is the actual clip about Mr. Spiner trying to distance himself from his role as the beloved Data, but subsequently Matt LeBlanc is in a similar predicament with his character Joey.
By appearing as himself in this episode, Mr. Spiner seems to be taking an approach similar to Tom Wilson: poking fun at himself and the character, but hoping that fans understand that there is some truth behind every joke. Interestingly enough, most of Mr. Spiner's recent movie roles have also been science fiction themed (most notably in Independence Day and Superhero Movie). I'll say this: he's definitely got the role of the slightly crazy scientist down cold.
However, the Star Trek genre is a beast of its own and for Mr. Spiner the role of Data, while more than twenty years old, continues to be lucrative for him so long as he makes appearances at Star Trek conventions across the world. Or by guest staring on the best episode ever of Family Guy with the entire cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Matt LeBlanc, on the other hand, completely embraced the role of Joey, following the ten year run of Friends, by agreeing to star in a spin-off. Of course, this show ended years ago and I'm unsure how Mr. LeBlanc has handled the role of Joey since, but it's safe to say that the role of Joey remains his most recognizable character.
And then there's my botched encounter with Andrew McCarthy from way back in 1999. Perhaps there's no one role or movie that Mr. McCarthy is best known for, but he is remembered as part of the 80s ensemble "the Brat Pack" and the numerous teenage angst-ridden movies in which they starred. I so gushed and fawned over Mr. McCarthy and his roles in movies such as Pretty in Pink, St. Elmo's Fire, and Mannequin (yes, Mannequin), that he thought I was kidding and gave me a really nasty look and moved on to the next fan.
I really wasn't kidding, Mr. McCarthy. Seriously.
So is Tom Wilson justified in not signing Back to the Future memorabilia? Should he just be glad that people still care who he is and leave it at that? Or is he entitled to decide that he wants to move on both personally and professionally and fans should have to go along with that? (And again, this question applies not just to Tom Wilson, but to all celebrities who are best known for a single role or series of roles from a long time ago.)
So this week I'm in a bit of a quandary: every song featured from here on out in Queen's set list of their 1982 Milton Keynes show is a well-known single. And many have already been featured as Queen Songs of the Week.
What's a girl to do?
I had anticipated this when I first decided to feature the set list of this concert, but that was like three months ago and I wasn't prepared to actually acknowledge that at some point the future would get here.
But it's here. Drat.
The songs I haven't featured are actually scattered rather nicely throughout the rest of the set list so I think what I'm going to do is just skip through to the next new song and provide links to the songs already featured. Make sense?
So after the guitar solo, the band played Under Pressure: one of my favorite live songs by the band for reasons I've already discussed in detail here.
Now, I've referred to Fat Bottomed Girls a few times on this blog (specifically here and here), but I've never featured the song so let's get to it.
Fat Bottomed Girls was written by Dr. May and appeared on the band's 1978 album Jazz. The song was released as the Double-A side of a single (along with Bicycle Race) in 1978, peaking at #11 and #24 on the U.K. and U.S., respectively.
Though RT sings background vocals onstage, he doesn't sing on the studio version: Dr. May and Freddie Mercury perform all the background vocals. The rest of the song itself is pretty simple although there is a bit of a tricky drum beat that took me weeks to figure out on Rock Band! Oooh that RT!
Performed live, this song was always a crowd favorite and was one of only two songs off the Jazz album that the band played into the 80s.
This song always makes me smile because without fail while on a run and facing a particular massive hill, my iPhone would shuffle to this song. It always made me giggle and made the hill seem less daunting.
Today's What I Wore post is brought to you by Princess of Taylor trying desperately to stay warm and dry yet still moderately adorable this winter season.
Let me give you a little recap of the weather thus far this winter.
December logged the the lowest average temperature ever in my area.
And now January has recorded the most snowfall ever in my area.
Husband says that I'm now officially a true New Englander.
I say I'd rather officially be a true Puerto Rican or indigenous to some equally non-snowy climate.
It's a wonder I even convince myself to get out of bed anymore let alone get dressed!
It's been so bitterly cold outside for the past few months, that my lovely Alice in Autumn Sweatercoat has gotten little to no wear. I tried layering it over another sweater at Christmas, but less than a minute outside confirmed that I needed a more substantial jacket.
Then last week I had a brainstorm: I can wear Alice as a sweater!
It's funny how on the mornings when I'm doing something that isn't really daring fashion-wise, but is something new for me (i.e. sweatercoat as a sweater), everyone suddenly notices. I've worn this sweatercoat to court several times only to toss it off immediately upon entering the courtroom. But this time I kept it on and I got so many compliments!
(Although no one really knew what to call it so everyone basically said, "Oh I love...that!" I should have told them all her name is Alice!)
Tank, Loft
Night Skating Top, Anthropologie
Cardigan, Ann Taylor
Black Motocross Jeans, Loft
Uggs, Nordstrom
Necklace, Honora for QVC
Earrings, Kohls
Of course because of how my life works, immediately upon discovering cute ways to dress in the freezing cold temperatures, the universe threw me another curve ball: more than four feet of snow in the past three weeks, with one storm dumping 22 inches on my poor sad town.
Thank goodness my new boss's first order of business was lifting the no jeans embargo. I didn't have court on the morning after the big snow and knew that if I was going to even consider braving the mean streets of the city where I work, I needed big snow boots and jeans!
As a funny aside, I spoke to my mother the evening of the snow and she asked what my plans were for the following day.
Me: Um, work.
Mom: Work? Really? But you got 22 inches of snow today.
Me: Um, yeah and they cleaned it up.
Mom: We got four inches of snow on Monday night. They shut down the school for three days.
Ridiculous.
Dress, Loft
Tucked-Away Blooms Cardigan, Anthropologie
Pin Dot Tights, Anthropologie
Uggs, Nordstrom
Belt, Kohls
Artist's Palette Necklace, Anthropologie
Bright Bulb Posts, Anthropologie
The next day, not wanting to press my luck, I ventured back into full dress-up territory and, wow, did I regret it. We ended up going to lunch to a restaurant across town. A co-worker volunteered to drive and as I stood in the freezing cold waiting for her to pull up, I wondered out loud why I was wearing a skirt. Then before I blacked out, I vaguely remember saying how I needed to invest in some leggings.
The next thing I knew it was Saturday. I was back at home and my computer had this page bookmarked.
Weird.
Incidentally I did try on some leggings over the weekend and am seriously considering buying some to wear under my dresses because tights are simply not getting the job done these days!
Reverie Blouse, Anthropologie
Crimpled Cardigan, Anthropologie
Modern Trousers, Ann Taylor
Nine West Boot, DSW
Necklace, Kohls
Bracelet, Pandora
Bracelet, Gift from Husband
Earrings, Kohls
Finally, I just gave up. Apparently I live in a world now where seventeen feet of snow outside is just the norm. Because I can't won't just wear snow boots every day, I opted to suck it up and get dressed like I normally would.
If my pants get dirty, fine.
If my shoes get wet, whatever, I'll wear thick socks and non-leather shoes.
I hadn't worn my Crimpled Cardigan in a while so I built an outfit around that.
There's also something super special in these last two pictures: can anyone see what it is?
My obsession with cream eye shadows continues. I originally started experimenting with cream eye shadow when I purchased Smashbox Cream Shadow Liner in Starstruck for $5 at Sephora! The product is mislabled on the website as Jet Set Eyeliner, but it is definitely the cream shadow liner. I immediately loved it and began wearing it at least once a week to work in combination with a variety of different eye liners.
Back in November, I spotted tarte Amazonian Clay Waterproof Cream Shadow Pot with Brush on QVC. I was intrigued and added it to my Christmas list. My sister-in-law purchased it for me in Slate and I finally received it when we celebrated our late Christmas a few weeks back.
Since then, I've worn this shadow several times, including to my first session with my new psychologist. Let me just say this: they aren't kidding when they say "waterproof". Once this stuff is on, it's on until I remove it at the end of the day with my philosophy Purity Made Simple cleanser.
Here I am wearing only the tarte eye shadow.
As you can see, the Slate color is actually more of a bronze-gold, which I love. My favorite powder eye shadow is Clinique's Colour Surge Eye Shadow Super Shimmer in Rum Spice and this tarte shadow is the perfect cream counterpart to that lovely shade.
According to the tarte website, their "high-performance natural™ Amazonian clay is nature's most perfect ingredient, lending deep color pigments while nourishing skin, reducing surface oil and improving overall texture for smooth application."
I have to admit, that they're description of what the Amazonian clay accomplishes is pretty accurate. This product reminds me of a talc in that it goes on creamy and then dries enough that it doesn't smear. However, it also manages to not dry out so much that my eyelids get cracked or dry.
The brush is great and part of the reason why I wanted this specific product. Up until receiving this brush, I'd been having difficulty applying the cream shadow to only my eyelid. No matter what I did with the prior brush, I'd end up with cream shadow in my crease and creeping up towards my eyebrow. Not flattering. I do wash my brush after every use so the cream shadow doesn't get the brush all crusty and clumpy.
Because I'm never one to be happy with wearing just eye shadow, here I am with my finished eye look.
The lady at the Bare Escentuals store that I visited a few weeks ago showed me how to use a dark color in my crease and I'm so glad she did! I'm such a fan of this semi-smokey look! The already ridiculously cheap Meet the Browns kit was an additional 25% off during a Sephora promotion right around New Years and I just couldn't stop myself from picking up these three full sized brown shades!
And the Jet Set Liner is fast becoming one of my favorite eye liners ever: I clean my brush every day and make sure the cap is tightly closed and mine has lasted for months! I wish I could wear it on my inner rim like the models do, but unfortunately my gas permeable contacts make that rather uncomfortable.
Is it weird that I'm seriously considering Lasik surgery so that I can use a specific eye liner technique?
My biggest complaint about the tarte cream shadow is that I can't find it available anywhere without the brush. I didn't mind the $22 price tag when a brush was included, but I don't want to have to rebuy the brush just to get the other shades! I couldn't even find the cream shadow available on the tarte website!
I'm hoping that means that the product was a QVC exclusive and it will start appearing elsewhere soon because I really would like to pick up a few additional colors of this cream shadow. I'm definitely a fan!
Today Neil Diamond is 70 years old! Happy Birthday, Neil!
Neil Diamond is my favorite solo musician. He's been writing songs since the 1960s and is still going strong, releasing his most recent album of original songs Home Before Dark in 2008. This past year he released Dreams, a collection of reinterpretations of his favorite songs by other artists.
Like Queen, part of Neil Diamond's appeal is his magnificent stage shows, complete with his famous sparkled shirts. I've been fortunate enough to see Neil Diamond in concert twice (once in 2001 at Madison Square Garden and once in 2008 at Fenway Park). I also squeezed my way to the front row of Neil's performance at NYU back in 2001 where I competed for his attention amongst a sea of approximately 400 women aged 50 and older. It was pretty amazing and I managed to get some awesome photographs (though I was too shy to take any while he was actually looking in my direction!).
If anyone is unfamiliar with Neil's songs, here are a few of my favorites for your consideration.
1) Hello, Again: Husband and I used this song as our first dance at our wedding reception. It's very simple and very sweet.
2) If You Know What I Mean: I'd never heard this song when I saw Neil in 2001, but when he played it at that show, I immediately loved it. I returned home and deduced which song it was by remembering a few of the lyrics. The studio version is just as powerful as the live version was (and I have to say I was rather disappointed when he didn't play this song in 2008).
3) Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show: This song always reminds me of my dad. His favorite line is "Pack up the babies and grab the old ladies and everyone goes." The song has a mock-gospel feel to it, complete with Neil's own spoken sermon halfway through. Awesome!
4) The Story of My Life: One of my first favorite Neil Diamond songs. Figure skater Brian Orser skated to this song and I was instantly a fan.
5) I'm a Believer: Sure, this song has been covered a hundred times, most famously by the Monkees and Smash Mouth, but did you realize that Neil Diamond wrote it? He also wrote two other famous songs by the Monkees "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You" and "Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow)". I was a Monkees fan as a little girl so Neil had a spot in my heart even back then!
In March, Neil Diamond will be inducted (finally) into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame! Congratulations in advance, Neil! And Happy Birthday!
In an effort to actually leave my house occasionally (thanks to the massive snow that seems to clobbering us every other day), I decided to head out to Anthropologie to check out some of the new arrivals.
I'll admit, I've not been terribly in love with many of the current Anthropologie offerings, mainly because I'm not very competent at layering and that seems to be the focus of many of the outfits on the website this winter. But slowly spring is starting to creep into the new arrivals section and even though it's still -7 degrees outside, I'm embracing the warmer options.
I see on the website that Anthro is claiming that this is a side zip skirt. Well I zipped it in the back but I don't think that affected the fit of it too much. I tried on this skirt, not really because I liked the pattern, but because I liked the cut. I'm so sick of pencil skirts everywhere and I really want to encourage a-line skirts. This one fits the bill and is one of the few a-line skirts currently available on Anthro's website. Unfortunately this skirt did not work on me. First of all, it's high waisted. Like seriously high waisted. And even pulled up nearly to my chest, the skirt was just way too long. I'm 5'8" so unless some of you shorter ladies are going for a literal interpretation of "Little House on the Prairie" fashion, I can't imagine this is going to work for you. There also aren't any pockets, which I've come to expect on a skirt and honestly, the price point of this skirt is just too high. Add to this that I already own the Penciled Abronia Skirt, which is also a green skirt with a floral pattern and I'm going to pass on this one.
My fox obsession continues. I spotted this skirt with my mother over Christmas, but we were leaving the store and I didn't want to go back to the fitting room (since I knew that at the $148 price point, there was no way that I would actually be buying it!) The stock is dwindling now so I figured if I didn't try it on now, I might not have the chance. I took the Medium and figured that between the elastic waist and the a-line cut, I should be fine. The skirt fit fine. The waistband is a little weird and has a black ribbon above the elastic which does not have as much stretch at the elastic, but I got the skirt on without a problem. My problem with this skirt is the same that I have with the Thousand Days Skirt/Circle the Globe Skirt/Field Skirt: my natural waist is high and an elastic waist settles there, making the skirt (1) too short and (2) too poofy as it flares out from my natural waist at an alarmingly high ratio. Also this skirt is rather impractical: it's silk, short, doesn't have pockets. I love the pattern, but the skirt itself is not doing me any favors.
Today is my one year blogging anniversary! Click here to read my very first post ever.
That anybody is interested in reading my ramblings continues to amaze me. And though I'm definitely on the small size when it comes to readers, I've received so many encouraging words, both privately and publicly. I had no idea when I wrote my first post a year ago that I'd have the opportunity to "get to know" so many wonderful people!
I spent today having my hysterosalpingogram. It was...horrible. I can go into more details if anyone's dying to know, but for now let me just say that if I ever actually do have a kid, I'm going to have enough fodder for guilt trips well into his twenties. Possibly thirties.
The good news is that according to my doctor, I got an A, meaning that everything is okay.
The better news is that I'm feeling so grateful that the experience is over that I decided to increase the amount of the gift card for this giveaway from $25 to $50!
So here's how to enter to win one (1) gift card worth $50 to the store of the winner's choice and one (1) pair of earrings which were handmade by my sister-in-law. All of the proceeds from her jewelry go to the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF).
1) Be a public follower of my blog. Leave a comment on this post stating that you are a follower to receive one entry.
2) Be a public follower of my sister's blog The Square Root of Style. Leave a separate comment on this post stating that you are a follower of her blog to receive one additional entry.
3) To receive one additional entry, blog about this giveaway on your own blog and leave a separate comment providing the link.
All the lawyer stuff: This giveaway is open to all followers, regardless of location. Maximum of three entries per person. This giveaway ends at midnight on Friday January 28, 2011. I will randomly select a winner using Random.org and post that winner's name on Monday January 31, 2011. The winner will have 72 hours to contact me at princessoftaylor@gmail.com and tell me from which store she would like her $50 gift card. I reserve the right to request that the winner select a different store if I cannot easily access the winner's selected store. If the winner fails to contact me within 72 hours, I will pick another winner. Giveaway void where prohibited. Please contact me at princessoftaylor@gmail.com with any questions.
Good luck and thanks to everyone for making this a wonderful year at Princess of Taylor!
I toyed with the idea of combining the Guitar Solo from Queen's 1982 concert at the Milton Keynes Bowl with the next song on the set list, but ultimately I think it's fitting that the guitar solo gets a post of its own.
After all, it's not just any guitar solo: it's a guitar solo by Brian freakin' May!
Dr. May's guitar solos were an interesting creature: they originated as the lengthy guiar solo from Queen's 1974 song Brighton Rock and from there transformed into a nearly unrecognizable series of riffs and chords.
Early on in Queen's career, RT would play a drum solo that sequed into Dr. May's guitar solo. Later on, on account of RT claiming to hate drum solos, he eliminated them from the set list, but continued to occassionally appear on state for a portion of Dr. May's solo.
(As an aside, RT once again began playing drum solos during the band's 2005 and 2008 tours with Paul Rodgers on vocals and by most accounts, they were excellent!)
It's very interesting to listen to Dr. May's guitar solos and try to pick out familiar portion's from the band's songs. It's equally interesting to listen to his solos through the years and see how they've changed. For reference, here's Dr. May's solo from the band's Rock Montreal blu ray, the concert was filmed just a year before the Milton Keynes show, but listen to how the guitar solo has changed!
As promised, I'm continuing my feature of Data's storylines in the four Star Trek: The Next Generation movies. Click here to read about Data's role in Star Trek: Generations.
The timing of my watching this movie seemed most appropriate. On the very same day, I remarked that as much as I like the character of Data, I did question why he was permitted to remain aboard the Enterprise. Yes, there are certainly times when it comes in handy that he's an android: when, for example, a virus sickens all humanoid crew members, Data is unaffected or when addressing a situation requires exposure to radiation or another equally dangerous environment, Data can pass through unharmed.
However, there are also times when Data himself malfunctions and when that happens, it's a pretty big problem as Data is smarter and stronger than everyone else on the ship. When he goes rogue, for whatever reason, the crew is basically at his mercy until he is able to correct the malfunctioning program.
Pretty scary, if you ask me.
So when we popped in the blu ray of Star Trek: Insurrection over Christmas, it seemed rather ironic that one of the first scenes is Data shooting his phaser and wildly running through the peaceful Ba'ku village, after having removed his cloaking helmet and making the Federation's presence on the planet known. Admiral Dougherty, who is in charge of the Federation's joint mission with the Son'a, requests that Picard assist them in capturing Data lest he further compromise the mission.
Ultimately Data steals a shuttle craft and makes his escape, but Picard manages to disarm him by singing excepts from the Gilbert and Sullivan show HMS Pinafore, which Data had been rehearsing prior to the mission. Picard encourages Worf to sing along and eventually Data, who's memory is triggered by the familiarity of the song, joins in.
Luckily, Picard is successful in stopping Data from causing any more damage and after a full diagnostic, he's allowed to resume his duties aboard the Enterprise.
(As an aside, I recently discovered that in his spare time Brent Spiner, who plays Data, released a CD titled Ol' Yellow Eyes is Back and on which his Star Trek co-stars Patrick Stewart (Picard), Michael Dorn (Worf), Jonathan Frakes (Riker), and LeVar Burton (La Forge) sing background vocals. Click here to listen and pay special attention to Picard...erm Stewart's monologue midsong. WTF?)
The reason Data malfunctioned is tied closely to the plot so I won't include those details here, but a more lighthearted exchange occurs when Data attempts to win over a young child, Artim, whom he had scared earlier...when, you know, he was a body-less head running through the countryside shooting at things.
Artim first is reluctant to befriend Data, but becomes more willing after Data assists the Ba'ku in finding a safe haven when they are under attack. At this point, Artim attempts to teach Data how to "play" resulting in a completely adorable line at the end of the movie where Data tells Artim that he "has to go home now."
Too cute!
(And as as another aside, is it just me who finds the "casual" clothes of the Enterprise crew absolutely hysterical? Here we have Data on a planet trying to save a small race of people and what does he choose to wear for the occasion: a button down shirt and a fully buttoned vest. And don't even get me started on Picard and his weird draped ensembles. It's 90 degrees and the 24th century and look at what this fool is running around wearing.)
But I digress.
So we're back to my initial point: Data is clearly well intentioned. And in this case, it turns out that there was a logical and justified explanation to his behavior at the beginning of the movie, but it still seems concerning that all it takes is one nasty computer virus and he goes off the deep end.
I guess in the end, it becomes a balancing test: with the benefits of having Data on board, also come some potential risks. Ultimately even when he does malfunction, he manages to course correct before causing too much damage. And, in fact, there are times, when he turns out to be pretending and it turns out that he was really helping the Enterprise all along (more on that in Parts III and IV).
I could seriously write about this for another thirty paragraphs but I'm interested to hear what others have to say: is Data an asset or a liability aboard the Enterprise? Or a mixture of both?
Thanks for humoring me and this line of posts! As thanks and in recognition of my one year blog-aversary, stay tuned tomorrow for a new giveaway!
For Husband's 29th birthday, he requested a HD video camera. Reluctantly I purchased it, understanding that I would now be subject to the potential horror of seeing myself in high definition as Husband claimed that he would basically be filming our lives, documentary-style, from that point onward.
Thankfully, he's used the video camera sparingly and shockingly, I don't look all that bad in HD (although the fact that I'm basically blind and can't tell the difference between HD and regular video probably helps).
However, as nice as the video camera was, it was rather bulky for everyday use and Husband finally decided that he wanted a smaller digital camera, which I got him for Christmas.
These three outfit pictures were taken by Husband with his new camera: a Sony Cyber-shot W350. For some reason, even though Husband was standing directly in front of me, the pictures all look like they were taken from below, which is, frankly, not terribly flattering. I can't decide if the issue lies with the camera or with the photographer. I think I'll be continuing to use the video camera on our new tripod, especially since the video camera comes with a remote!
The above outfit was strictly for warmth. We had gotten hit with a snowstorm right after Christmas and the city where I work is notoriously bad about cleaning the streets and the sidewalks. I've always thought that wearing a skirt and boots in snow is better than wearing pants because the hem of my pants end up getting wet. Yuck! My Konnichiwa Sweater is fast becoming one of my favorite recent purchases and I'm crazy about the pop of color that my gifted necklace adds. Thanks again, Andie!
Tank, Loft
Whipped Woolens Cardigan, Anthropologie
Tiered Skirt, Banana Republic
Hue Tights, Macys
Matisse Penny Slouch Boots, Lord & Taylor
Necklace, Banana Republic
Rosy-Posy Posts, Anthropologie
Bracelet, Pandora
I've begun the process of cleaning out my closet of items I rarely wear and I think this tank is going to end up in the Donation Pile. I've had it for about a year and a half and it's shrunk a bit from all the washings. The color is also beginning to fade a bit. I wanted to give it one last chance to win me over, but I have to say: it failed to do so. The cardigan, however, is another one of my favorites due to the length and the pretty ruffles. The next step is finding some more patterned things to wear underneath it!
That's right, readers! Thanks to the lovely and wonderful Contessa, I was able to track down a Wiley Sweater in St. Louis, MO! My love for this sweater wasn't solidified until after it was completely sold out in size Large at my local store and for a while I feared that it was lost forever! However, between Contessa's keen eyes and Anthropologie's additional 25% off sale promotion, I got this beauty shipped to me for $37!
To keep with the outfit's theme of "Completely Ridiculous and Random Queen References" I topped the look off with my brand new Crystal Peddler Posts, which were a late Christmas present. Of course, I don't need to tell you all that one of Queen's more comical songs is Bicycle Race.
The sweater was, of course, a hit with several people curious as to whether I was wearing one or two layers. I'm such a fan of the vest-like overlay of this sweater: this time, I decided to wear the top part half open, but it looks equally nice completely buttoned. I think this sweater is going to get a lot of wear as well!
Happy Monday and to everyone who is lucky enough to have today off work, enjoy your long weekend!
Since I went ahead and let the cat out of the bag regarding our struggle with infertility a few weeks back, I figure I might as well continue to write about our journey.
It was really great to read everyone's comments. And equally helpful to put into writing a lot of what I've been thinking and feeling. I was also able to make a pretty significant decision which I'll go into more detail about at the end of this post.
Thus far, we've attempted IUI (inter uterine insemination) three times. The most recent time I pressed my doctor to be more aggressive, telling him that we'd be fine with multiples if it meant that we got pregnant. He reluctantly allowed me to increase my dosage of medication and I ended up with three mature follicles, which ended up not even being enough.
This most recent attempt was really frustrating: I was convinced that it had worked. After the procedure, the toughest part is waiting the two weeks before you can take a pregnancy test, but this time the two weeks just flew by because I was so sure that I'd be getting good news.
The next step is probably IVF (in vitro fertilization). My doctor has scheduled me for a hysterosalpingogram next week. I've tried to envision circumstances where we wouldn't proceed to IVF and honestly I can't think of any: if the test shows a problem, that means IUI will probably never work and if the test shows no problem, we've already tried IUI three times and the odds are that it should have worked by now, especially with us stepping up my medication dosage this past go round.
In any event, we're losing a month, which is frustrating. Back in August, I thought we'd have a baby by April and now a best case scenario is by April, I won't even be into my second trimester. Two years ago, I envisioned telling my family at Christmas that we were pregnant. Then I reluctantly acknowledged that perhaps it would be this past Christmas that we'd have good news for our family. Now we're less than three weeks into 2011 and I'm starting to worry that if we don't have some success soon, I might be looking at not having a baby until 2012.
Which is irrational...I know that. Like I said, we're three weeks into 2011. There's no need to discount the entire year already, but in my mind, I'm already starting to think that way.
When I spoke to the nurse on Friday, and she confirmed that the last attempt had not worked, I asked to speak to the clinic's on site psychologist. She's not currently taking patients, but she recommended another local psychologist who was. They both specialize in working with women and couples dealing with infertility.
Husband had suggested that I look into seeing someone several weeks back. All my life I've been someone who succeeds when I've set out to accomplish something and now there's this relatively simple yet monumental thing that I just can't seem to get right. I think about how Husband would have kids already if he was married to someone else. And I glare at my clients who seem to get pregnant at the drop of a hat only to have the baby promptly taken away.
I don't think my line of work helps matters much. Every day from 9am-5pm, I'm surrounded by children and parents having children, losing children, and children being returned home after years in foster care. I wake up in the morning and think of what's in store for me at my office.
And I don't want to go.
Recently my sister-in-law had ankle surgery. She's been on a variation of bed rest for the last few weeks. I told Husband that sounded pretty good to me.
Husband tells me that I don't have to work through a pregnancy and if I want, I can quit whenever.
To do what? I asked him. Be a stay-at-home-Kathleen?
So in an effort to actually make going to work, to a job that I formerly loved, bearable, I'm meeting with this psychologist for the first time on Tuesday morning.
We'll see how it goes.
In any event, we're losing this month. Between doing the histerosalpingogram and attending an IVF training session, it's going to be mid-February before we can attempt anything, IVF or otherwise.
Hopefully I can take that time to take care of myself. I'm not doing anybody any favors by being an emotional mess throughout this process.
I really do appreciate everyone's support and comments. It helps to know that I'm not the only person out there going through this and honestly, it's beginning to amaze me that anyone manages to get pregnant since it seems like everyone has some story to share. I don't intend to post every aspect of our journey here, but I can certainly share the big decisions and milestones.
And in an attempt to not make this post a total bummer, I'll leave you with one thing I found today that did make me smile: a performance of Brent Spiner, best known as Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Chita Rivera, of too many Broadway shows to name, singing An English Teacher and Rosie from one of my all time favorite musicals Bye Bye Birdie.
The next song from Queen's 1982 concert at the Milton Keynes Bowl is Get Down, Make Love. This is a rather polarizing song by the band, with some fans finding it absolutely atrocious and others quite liking it.
I'm in the latter category myself.
Get Down, Make Love appeared on the band's 1977 album News of the World. It was written by Freddie Mercury and was not released as a single.
Yes, the lyrics are ridiculous, beyond laughable, but perhaps I'm just used to that. After all, I'm an RT fan, and while he didn't write the lyrics to this song, he's definitely written some doosies in his day. If you can find a way to get past what Freddie is actually singing, the tune and theme of the song is kind of fun.
And the stage experience is pretty cool. Queen tended to experiment with lighting during their concerts, trying to tie the whole visual and audio experience together. This song in particular, with its psychedelic undertones, lends really well to the spectacle of a full stage production.
This song has also been covered by quite a few artists. Most recently, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails released his own studio version, after performing the song live for quite some time. True to his style, he plays up the "creepy" aspect of this song a bit more than I like, but he does seem to be getting some positive feedback. Click here to hear his version.
This starter kit is great. It comes with a foundation, concealer bisque, and mineral veil along with two brushes and a lip gloss. It lasted a rather long time (through the fall of 2010) and my only complaint is that the lids were too small for the swirl, tap, and buff method that you're supposed to use to apply the makeup. Luckily once I got full sized versions, that problem was resolved.
As to the color, I never in a million years thought that I'd wear a shade as dark as Medium Beige. The description is "for medium skin with neutral undertones" so even though the shade appears to be in the middle of the foundation spectrum, it really is the color that is designed for most people. The lighter shades in the Bare Escentuals line are really light and in my opinion foundation that is a shade too light looks more ridiculous than foundation that's a shade too dark. With Bare Escentuals, you can also control how much of the foundation you use so I've managed to continue using Medium Beige into the winter by just using a light touch during application.
So here I am without any makeup on. I washed my face using philosophy Microdelivery Exfoliating Wash and applied philosophy Hope in a Jar and Hope in a Tube. Then I waited at least fifteen minutes before applying any makeup (this is a tip I've heard from a few different sources. Your moisturizer needs time to absorb and if you apply your foundation too quickly, it ends up absorbing into your skin along with your moisturizer. Yuck!)
First, I use the Maximum Coverage Face Brush to apply Bisque concealer. This part is the most important step as far as I'm concerned. I have Poly-Cystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) and one of the side effects is acne so I tend to get small blemishes and scarring that I need to cover. My problem areas are on my chin and along my cheek bones. The brush does an amazing job of covering up every discoloration. Because of the high concentration of makeup that goes on this brush, I wash it every few days. The good news is that Bare Escentuals brushes dry overnight!
Here I am after using the Bisque concealer.
Second, I use the Full Flawless Application Face Brush to apply Original SPF 15 Foundation in Medium Beige. The proper method to apply the foundation is to put a bit of it in the lid of the container, swirl the brush in the lid, and then tap the excess off the brush. The new invention is a locking sifter lid which I highly recommend. It's never nice to be able to tap out what I need and then close the sifter so it doesn't spill out all over the place. When it comes to Bare Escentuals foundation, it's really trial and error to figure out the right amount to use. If I tap out too much, I just tip it back into the container and use it the next time.
After I'm happy with the coverage of the foundation, I finish off the look with Mineral Veil. In a perfect world, I'd have a second face brush, but I don't so I use the same Full Flawless Application Face Brush which seems to work just fine for now. Mineral Veil doesn't have any color to it: the idea is that it minimizes lines, absorbs oil, and softens your complexion. I'm not posting that picture because since Mineral Veil is translucent, it looks basically the same as the previous picture.
Finally, I applied Warmth with the same Full Flawless Application Face Brush. I still use the same small container of Warmth that my coworker gave me last June. I use it very sparingly and not every day. It ends up looking like a mild bronzer, not too dark but a bit of color across my face.
Here's the finished look.
Once I'm done applying my Bare Escentuals foundation, I apply the rest of my makeup. The whole process takes some getting used to and in the beginning, it took me nearly twenty minutes to apply everything to my liking. Now I'm down to about five minutes total, which isn't that bad as far as I'm concerned.
Here's the first photo and the last photo side-by-side for comparison purposes.
It's hard to really tell the difference from one picture to the next and honestly the entire look ends up being really subtle, but frankly that's why I like it. I've never been someone who liked heavy foundation so this works perfectly for me. And it's so lightweight! I don't feel like I'm wearing any foundation at all which is great, especially in the summer when the idea of a lot of makeup just feels miserable.
I definitely recommend going to a Bare Escentuals store if you are near one. They'll do a consultation with you, show you how to apply everything, and help you pick out the perfect shade. If you don't have that as an option, get a small starter kit, like I did, so if you end up with the wrong shade or it just doesn't work for you, you aren't breaking the bank.
I ended last week's random blog discussion on the subject of robots so let's use that as a jumping off point today, shall we?
While I'm on the subject of robots (well there's a sentence I've never typed before), it probably makes sense to elaborate a little bit on my current love for Star Trek: The Next Generation because my favorite character on the show is Data, played by Brent Spiner.
Fans of the show will be quick to correct me: Data is an android, not a robot, but seeing as how I'm not preparing a research paper here or anything but rather just doing a semi-clever segue in a personal blog, I think we're fine.
Like most of my obsessions, I go through phases with this show. My most recent phase was right before I started law school when I'd come home from work each afternoon and watch a rerun of Star Trek: The Next Generation after my run. My parents were fans of the show when it was actually on the air, but I don't really ever remember watching it with them, although I'm sure I did.
My love was renewed at Thanksgiving when we happened to catch Star Trek: Nemesis on television. Husband swore up and down that we had seen it before, but after it ended, he admitted that he was wrong, but that we had, in fact, watched Star Trek: First Contact together. I told him that must have been with another one of his dorky girlfriends and to prove it, the next day watched the movie by myself and was totally right because I had never seen that movie before!
The two movies were enough to make me yearn for more episodes of the show which are unfortunately on at really infrequent and irregular times. My solution: to DVR every episode and watch commercial free at my leisure.
Ah, it really is the good life!
Right, but back to androids.
Data is my favorite character. I write that realizing that Data is nearly everyone's favorite character and I understand why: he's totally and completely awesome.
As an introduction to why I love Data and since I just recently saw the four Star Trek: The Next Generation movies, I thought it would be interesting to discuss Data's role in each of these films.
The first of the movies yet the last that I saw (somehow I managed to see them in reverse chronological order), the plot of this movie is kind of a mess and at the end, I really had no idea what the bad guy Dr. Soren (Malcom McDowell) had even been up to or how Captains Picard (Patrick Stewart) and Kirk (William Shatner) had managed to foil his plan.
However, that's not the important part here: all we care about is what Data was up to!
At the beginning of the movie, Data remarks that he has tried to be more human for 34 years and yet he can't even grasp basic humor. He decides to finally have Geordi install the emotion chip made for him by Dr. Soong and stolen by his evil doppelganger brother, Lore (sound like a soap opera yet?)
Throughout the series, many of Data's most endearing and unintentionally funny moments revolve around his inability to experience of understand emotion. Once Geordi installs the chip, however, that's a whole different story and Data spends the movie an emotional mess.
He experiences fear for the first time and finds it so paralyzing that he is unable to act to save Geordi from Dr. Soren. He is so taken with humor that he has trouble focusing on his tasks on the ship and at one point begins to sing as he searches for life forms at his console.
Data worries that his emotion chip is malfunctioning, but when he asks Dr. Crusher to remove it, she discovers that it has fused into his system and cannot be taken out. So convinced that he is a liability to the ship, he asks Captain Picard to relieve him of duty and deactivate him!
Luckily, Picard refuses and explains to Data that courage is an emotion too and one with which Data should become familiar.
Awww.
In the end, Data pulls himself together in time to help save the crew when the ship is in peril (though not before uttering what I think is the only swear word in any of the Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes or movies!) And then, the icing on the cake? Data is reunited with Spot, his beloved cat. Again Data suspects that his emotion chip is malfunctioning because he is happy, yet he is crying.
Double awwwwwwww.
I'm glad I watched this movie last because I might not have been convinced to sit through the others as this plot was a bit of a hot mess. However, I did watch it while on the treadmill so at least it wasn't a total waste of time!
Has anyone else seen this movie? Can anyone actually explain the plot to me?
Luckily my opinion of the other four movies are much better so I'll write up those posts soon!
So here's my first attempt at a multiple outfit post. This is already working out much better than my daily posts because I found these first two outfits lurking in my blog archives and I'd never posted them! The horror!
I wore this first outfit shopping back before the weather got absolutely freezing. I bought this corduroy blazer at Loft last year for $14 and I've gotten a ton of wear out of it, particularly as outerwear on not too cold days. And the Forever Garden Tee was part of my first-ever Anthropologie purchase so even though it's not necessarily my favorite shirt in the universe, it always makes me happy to think that it is part of what introduced me to Anthro!
Forever Garden Tee, Anthropologie
Corduroy Blazer, Loft
Jeans, Loft
Puma Sneakers, DSW
Necklace, Banana Republic
Nonpareil Bracelet, Anthropologie
Bright Bulb Posts, Anthropologie
Here's another one from before the holidays: I'm pretty sure this is the outfit I wore to Probate Court on the day that I was 100% positive that the judge was going to scream at me. Shockingly, he did not (I still lost though) and I convinced myself that he held off on his yelling due to my adorableness (probably not).
Field of Fancy Blouse, Anthropologie
Beribboned Buds Cardi, Anthropologie
Tulip Pencil Skirt, Banana Republic
Sweater Tights, Kohls
Rampage Kassy Oxfords, Endless.com
Rings and Things Necklace, Anthropologie
Bracelets, Kohls
Earrings, Kohls
Ah a change of venue.
Hold onto your hats, folks: Princess of Taylor is on the road.
Er...well...in the backyard.
Husband and I are now the proud owners of two camera tripods and I've claimed one as my own for blogging purposes. Sadly, because it's still freezing, I don't have the patience to stand outside long enough to get the "perfect" photo, but I snapped a few before I lost consciousness and this one was the best.
The tripod only allows me to take horizontal photographs which means I have to stand about 400 miles away and since I'm basically blind (even with my contacts in), I can't see the display on the camera so I have no idea if I'm standing in the right spot. Lucking, the zoom on the camera is ridiculously strong so I ended up just standing clear on the other side of the yard and then cropped my way to blog photograph perfection!
Vagabond Dress, Anthropologie
Neapolitan Cardigan, J. Crew
Hue Tights, Macys
Sofft Odina Pumps, DSW
Necklaces, Kohls
Earrings, Honora for QVC
Finally, we have the sad sad tale of my brown Neo Refinement Pullover. Oh how I loved this pullover. In the two weeks that I owned it, I wore it for New Year's Eve and to my boss's retirement party (when this photo was taken).
Halfway through the day last Friday, I realized that there was a big hole in the waistband! I located some brown thread and sewed it shut so that I could get through the day, but I knew that I'd have to exchange the top.
On Saturday, I arrived at Anthro to find that while the sweater was in stock in a Camel and a Grey, the Brown was nowhere to be seen. And wasn't available online either!
I swapped out my pullover for the Grey and was sure to check the integrity of all the seams, but I'm so sad to have to say goodbye to this pretty brown version.
Farewell, brown Neo Refinement Pullover. I enjoyed spending two fun evenings with you.
The cuff bracelet is hard to see but it was a Hostess/Christmas gift from a fellow Princess. Apparently they gave them out at a work function as a gift. Um, I totally need to start working at her office! She thought the cuff was a bit too funky for her to wear, but immediately thought of me. I'm glad she did because I have seriously worn this thing every other day since I got it! Thanks Princess Diane!
Yesterday while out shopping, I spotted a small crowd gathered around an UGG boot display at Nordstrom. This is not unusual as the shoe section of Nordstrom is basically taken over by UGGs during winter months, but this crowd seemed to centered at a certain table. I made my way over and discovered what was causing all the commotion:
These babies are so new that they aren't even listed on the Nordstrom or the Superfeet website yet!
I'd heard about them initially back in November when my local Fleet Feet sent out an email saying that they had a limited edition order of about 25 pairs. Of course, those were gone by the time I finished reading the email. So when I realized that the inserts had finally been released, I pounced.
Why the excitement?
Well, for a few reasons. First, my UGG boots are about four years old. They are still in great condition and I don't need a new pair anytime soon, but the original insoles were a complete mess. There seems to be a split of opinion on wearing UGGs with or without socks: I wear mine without socks so I need the insole to be soft and comfortable against my feet. Many a time I'd consider purchasing these new insole inserts but for one reason or another, I'd change my mind.
Second, UGGs are constantly being criticized for having zero arch support. Now I don't wear mine day in and day out, but when I do wear them, I have noticed that my feet can get a little cramped after too much walking. I've used Green Superfeet before for running and adore the support that they offer so I had high hopes for using the Wooly White Superfeet with my UGGs.
The scariest thing about using Superfeet is that you are responsible for cutting them to size. The sales associate at Nordstrom offered to cut them for me, but I didn't have my UGGs with me yesterday so I wasn't sure about how much she should cut. Ultimately I figured since I had successfully cut my Green Superfeet, I could cut the Wooly White ones.
The instructions for cutting Superfeet are pretty straightforward: remove your old insoles, place them on top of the Superfeet with the heel and the interior arch lined up, and then trace the outline of the old insole onto the Superfeet. Once you have a line, use some scissors to cut along the outside of the line. It might take some trial and error to get the Superfeet to fit perfectly, but make sure not to cut them too short!
*Note* Above, the left picture is of the line traced on the left insert. The right picture is me cutting the right insert.
I got the sizing right on the first try and the new inserts feel great. In fact, I've been trotting around the house in my boots all morning, enjoying the simultaneous warmth and support! True, these inserts are expensive, but Superfeet offers a 60 day fit guarantee and a one year warranty. Personally I've found that my previous Superfeet lasted longer than the one year and as far as I'm concerned, I'm saving at least $100 because now I don't need to buy a new pair of UGG boots!
