A very hopeful display

What's more refreshing than a Pepsi? How about seeing an entire wall of 24-packs with the new breast cancer awareness design on them in Bakers. Well done, Pepsi.

P.S. Can't wait to see what design the sugar-laden soda company comes up with to deal with obesity awareness....

Wild at heart

Late this summer, Banana Republic started carrying a "Mad Men" line - being the only female ad copywriter in my agency (and yes, the copy machine IS in my cubicle as well), I channeled the Peggy Olsen within me and purchased a 1960s inspired dress to wear at the office.

Now, a fabulously trendy upscale boutique called Opening Ceremony in New York City has launched their "Where The Wild Things Are" line. Though I may not be able to identify with it quite as well as the said above, I still appreciate what this store and their designers are doing. We all know the movie is going to rock it at the box office, so I have no doubt that this line will sell out and be a huge hit.


Photo courtesy of the blog at ideeli.com

Triplets in the Twin Cities

This weekend I made the back-to-back trek from Omaha to Minneappolis. In under 36 hours, I managed to drive for 12, party for 14, sleep 6, and shop at Ikea for 4.

Was it worth it? Well that depends what "it" is. And in my case, "it" is an irreplaceable, unrepeatable, invaluable time with the closest friends I've ever had. So, yes. "It" was.

Not to mention, the room off my landing now looks incredible thanks to a touch of Swedish decor.

No, I don't feel bad...

...that my boyfriend and I split an X-Large pizza and I ate more than him.
...that I jammed out to Miley Cyrus' "Party in the USA" on my way home from work.
...that I didn't workout yesterday.
...that I did that (shall remain nameless).
...that I boxed dyed my hair the last two times I changed my color.
...that I'm sometimes too tired to brush my teeth before bed.
...that I tattled on the person above me in the apartments for having a dog (illegally) that barked all day (annoyingly)
...that I wore your shirt to make guacamole and ruined it.
...that I told you I made a fat-free chicken wing dip when it was probably the biggest calorie bomb out there.
...that I got an overpriced t-shirt at the John Legend concert.
...that I ate an entire batch of brownies in two days.
...that I called you out on going to the strip club.

Home is where the neckline is.

Lately I've been feeling pretty homesick. In the midst of dreaming about a Portillo's Chicago-style hot dog, a Lou Malnati's Chicago pizza, and a true skyline...I found refuge in placing a simple online order from Maya Brenner's "State" collection. Each state is offered in gold or silver, and a small diamond can even be placed anywhere around the inside border for an additional charge.

So, there I had it, hometown pride on 16-inch chain.

Showing my love - or lackthereof.

I just realized something.

I used to think that I showed my affection for people through tampering with the visual arts. You see, I've made paintings, designed things in photoshop, and drawn pictures for a number of important people in my life. This is odd to me. I'm a copywriter by trade, thus, I'm usually all about words, not pictures

This is where I deduced the scary part. I tend to reach for a brush rather than a pen because I feel that the written word is very committal, more committal than I'm comfortable committing to. You see, I am of the belief that once you have something down on paper, there's no going back on it: shit has been declared. So if writing down "Apples are my favorite fruit" gives me a panic attack, why in the hell would I write on a piece of paper that "I love you more than anything ever."?

Given that, how much can I really care about these people who I do these artistic gestures for? Not enough to put it on paper, that's for sure.

So if you were the unlucky recipient of the above artwork, I hereby declare, I'm sorry.

Disclaimer: This post is utterly facetious. To the beholder of this custom monogram, I love you very much, you have my word.

High-style

I'm a displaced Chicagoan living in Omaha - you can bet that when I dress up for anything in this cow-town, I look like I came straight off the runway. But all that changed when I met - and was styled by! - fearless fashionista Mal Pearson. She's the editor-in-chief of LVCmag.com, an online fashion magazine that originally debuted in New York City. I thought I had style...but boy was I mistaking. Here she showed me how to turn my go-to summer look (a bright flowy, graphic dress) into a fall staple.

What I learned:

• Belt everything.
• An oversized comfy sweater is a must.
• Boots of all colors, textures, heights and lengths are in.
• Offset summer brights with distressed fabrics and washed out neutrals.