Category Archives: Seriously

Soothing Through Organizing

Posted on 02.23.2012 | 7 Comments

After last night’s post, I’m wondering if I shouldn’t be calling y’all Woolen Warriors instead of kittens.  Because it would seem that we are all cardigan-hoarders.

I love it.

Today is the kind of day where I feel like I’ve spent the entirety of the it raising one or both eyebrows.  Not in a skeptical-sort of way, but in a Seriously?-sort of way.  In an I Am Not Impressed-sort of way.

You know, the kind of day where you want to start planning out the next few days just to ignore the reality of this one.  Not because it has been bad (it hasn’t) but because it’s the kind of day where something just doesn’t feel…resolved.

Yes, THAT.

As a cherry on top of the cake, I decided to check my horoscopes, which is what I do recreationally and when I need answers to something quickly that I just don’t have the time to figure out on my own.

If you learned nothing else from the centaurs in Harry Potter, it’s that the answers are in the sky.

And yes, I said horoscopes, plural.  Because under the old horoscope I was a Virgo and under the new horoscope I’m a Leo.  I’m still as confused about all of that as you are.  The whole old-new thing.  But I think it’s important to hedge my bets and check all the things, just in case.

The Virgo horoscope said that “dark, depressing dreams could plague your sleep tonight,” and the Leo horoscope said “Your concentration is likely to be off and what your reading will probably look like Greek to you.”

Can we all agree that The Universe has totally set me up for success here?  Because I don’t know how much more ominous we could get.

So right now I’m meal planning (which is usually relegated to the weekends) and grocery list re-writing because for God only knows what reason, that feels soothing to me.

It probably has to do with the Type A within and the need to organize…something.

Say what you will, those lists look a hundred times better than they did 20 minutes ago.  And right now I’m craving Mexican, so that’s pretty much all we’ll be eating next week.

Whims: They get things done.

What do you do to de-stress?

Are you soothed by order like I am?

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Posted in Seriously

For vanity’s sake.

Posted on 11.15.2011 | 15 Comments

Happy Tuesday, kittens!

I have to tell you, I’m still in total denial that Thanksgiving is next week.  I feel like we’ve only just gotten to the middle of November and suddenly, we’ve nearly reached the end of the month.

I haven’t even gotten the chance to make my hand turkeys yet, for crying out loud.

Don’t fret, my best efforts at burying my head in the sand haven’t kept me from bookmarking recipes for stuffing and potato casseroles and the multitude of things you can do with leftover turkey.

Um.

Check back with me next week.

For vanity’s sake, tonight I decided to attempt another self-portrait.

And I thought I took a fair number of decent snaps, until I realized that I was sporting a MAJOR muffin top in all of them.

Ooops.  Not suitable for public consumption.

See?  Blogging: Not just fun and games.

It’s constant vigilance all the time.

So instead, y’all get a bug-eyed kissy-face peace sign.  Because that’s what everybody needs for an It’s almost the middle of the week-pick-me-up.

How original.  I know.

In some circles they call that getting back on the horse.

I promise that next time, I’ll try to bring you something more inventive.

For now I’m left to ponder important stuff like, Is J.Crew’s Neon Peach really my color?  How bad are my roots?  I really need to fix that Tiffany’s bracelet that exploded on me the day before the marathon.  Should I do my mirror face all the time?

Seriously.

Have you ever committed a photo faux pas?

Are you mentally prepared for Thanksgiving?

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Posted in Seriously

A Head Start on Fall Fashion: The Working Woman

Posted on 08.23.2011 | 13 Comments

Last week I promised you Career, which is not entirely unlike being a fish out of water for those members of the group who exclusively embrace the seasons of Fall and Resort.

While the chosen apparel of The Working Woman tends towards Fall more than anything else, halfway there is by no means all the way there.

Welcome to the new regime.

Some selections.  To get your mind going.

Ann Taylor, LOFT, LOFT, LOFT, Express, Anthropologie

Not-so-much smokin’ stuff, but worn correctly, some of it could be…flattering.  Which is kind of the heart of the matter here.

Humor me for a moment.

Raise one hand if you’ve tried on “work clothes” and they’ve made you look like a box.

Now, raise the other hand if you have shown up at work before and you felt like everything you somehow managed to squeeze into made you feel like a sausage.

Finally, have a laugh if you’re actually sitting in your cubicle right now with both hands in the air.

Me too.

We’ve all been there.

I understand that people apply all sorts of rules when picking out professional clothing, but for women, I think it boils down to one simple question:

Will people judge me when I wear this?

To which there are two possible answers…

  1. Yes.  If the answer is “yes,” try to determine if they’re going to be jealous OR if they’re going to be secretly laughing because you made like Michael Scott in that one episode of The Office where he wears a women’s suit.  If it’s a jealous-yes, then buy it in every color.
  2. No.  Your selection is probably safe.  And deeply unmemorable.

Given that I’m the girl who spent the entirety of last winter in a parade of J.Crew Perfect-Fit Crew Neck Long-Sleeved Shirts with coordinating, contrasting-pashminas I will be the first to tell you that it’s okay to go either way.

But in light of recent events (read: the fact that I will be gearing up for another winter with The Company), I felt like we had probably reached the logical point for me to start taking pride in my appearance.

Or at least trying to make it look like I do.

We all know seeing is believing.

Target has been having some crazy end-of-season sales lately, so after a few stops at the stores in Edina and Plymouth, I was able to amass all of these goodies for ~$150.

Mossimo, Mossimo

Yes, seriously, I own blazers now.

Here I was thinking that I would never have to touch another blazer or suit for as long as I live and now…this.

We’ve regressed.

Given the fact that I already have The Monopoly on cardigans, drape-y cardigans and ruffled tanks, it kind of seemed like it was time for me to pick up a few of those shells where you could dry clean/iron them if you really wanted to, but you could also just hang-up directly out of the dryer.

Those are the types of tops that say, “I see a future here.”  And as long as they’re a color other than white, express some sort of attempt at individualism.

See one on the sale rack?  Not sure if it’s your color?  Buy it anyway.  You’ll thank yourself on the morning when you have nothing to wear and the tags are still on it.

What’s your favorite piece of work clothing?

What’s the worst outfit you’ve ever worn to work?

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Posted in Clotheshorse, Seriously, Style, Work

Sometimes you just have to get out of the house.

Posted on 08.20.2011 | 6 Comments

On Thursday night, I thought I was tired because my eyelids were fighting a losing battle with gravity.  But on my way home from work yesterday, I realized that this week absolutely kicked the crap out of me.

The worst part?  It took no names.

I KNOW.

Earlier in the day, Marcus and I had batted around the idea of going on a Dive Bar Date.  But then laziness crept in reality hit and we realized that with the amount of effort it was going to take to Plan and Organize, we really just needed to get out of the house.

Or else that bottle of Two Buck Chuck wasn’t going to stand a chance.

Armed with a Parasole gift card, we headed over to The Cafeteria to relax on their rooftop patio with a happy hour that runs until 7:00 PM.  What’s not to love about that, right?

And yes, for those of you who were wondering, Marcus was trying to channel Vampire Bill post-silvering with the bags under his eyes.

Lest you think that my weekend has been all cocktails and the great outdoors, this afternoon, I got to attend a baby shower for Stephanie and Baby.  She’s due mid-October, and the hostesses did a wonderful job of making sure that wonderfully sweet touches were included.

Instead of traditional shower games, we did a lovely activity where we filled out cards with hopes and dreams for the little one.

I think this should be mandatory at all showers.

And in addition to a lovely luncheon spread that Sara put together, Laura went to town and created a literal jungle of treats.

Obviously y’all know that I was in heaven :)

A little tale to close with: As the shower was coming to an end, I was bouncing Sara’s little daughter around.  I’m not usually the first in-line to hold babies because quite honestly, they overwhelm me.  But anyway, I’m bopping about with the little tot for a good 20 minutes or so, and suddenly I felt a trickle of water run down the back of my leg.

Yes, seriously, I was sweating.

Who knew that entertaining babies was such hard work?

What is your favorite game to play at baby showers?

On a scale of 1 – Insane, how would your rate this week?

Personally, I’d probably give it a 9.5 myself.

p.s. I’ll be drawing for the winner of the giveaway tomorrow!

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Posted in Faves, Going Out, New Beginnings, Seriously

A Traitor in Our Midst

Posted on 07.07.2011 | 9 Comments

I don’t know about you all, but has anyone else noticed that appliances seem to be going down left and right lately?  I’ve probably read/heard enough stories from people I know to fill up both hands and then some.

I will say that as per the Law of Large Numbers, I was getting rather good at the whole listening-sympathy thing…Because it’s impossible to NOT feel bad for somebody when their Air Conditioner went out on a ninety degree day.

But I guess it’s good that I didn’t use all of that sympathy and patience up.  Our Dishwasher is a Joiner and out of nowhere on Tuesday night, it decided to spring a rather festive leak as it cycled.

The Traitor Dishwasher

I was hoping in my heart of hearts that it was merely a by-product of something we had loaded in.  Or one of those freaky incidents.

Mais, non.  We’re in it for the long haul, kittens.

Marcus left messages with appliance repair companies across the cities, but I’m guessing that at this point in the week, with the best case scenario we’re still probably looking at a Monday morning fix .

How lucky.

The thought of having to wash dishes by hand (I know, seriously…first world problem) had me all up in knots.  But when we stopped by David and Sue’s tonight (Marcus had to help them haul some things about for the Master Suite renovation they’re doing right now) I was pleasantly surprised.

Having assumed that the hotel tossed our cake post-reception, I was thrilled to learn that they were storing it for us in their freezer.

You see, in addition to all of the cupcakes, we got a two tier “cutter” cake for us to slice at the ceremony.  My biggest regret?  That I didn’t eat more of it then.  I know that you’re meant to wait a year before you start hacking away, but this cake is FAR too precious for that frightening, flavorless fate.

So tonight, we took home the bottom half (we’ll retrieve the top half when we polish that off) and I proceeded to slice myself off a hunk of The Best Treat Ever.

Stress management?  Absolutely.

Shiraz and Vanilla Buttercream are the new pairing.

Predictability: I only ate the frosting.  I’m going to assume that when there’s a layer of vanilla buttercream frosting spread 1/2″ thick, that means that it no longer has calories.

What is your favorite cake/frosting combination?

Have you ever had an appliance go down?  Did you have to repair it?  Replace it?

p.s. If you’re a shoe fiend like I am, scamper on over to Mads’ blog and enter her giveaway for a $25 Zappos gift card!  You don’t need to be a blogger to enter and Lord knows that at this point in the summer, we could all use a little extra cash to buy something that says “I don’t plan on being functional today.”

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Posted in Faves, Kat in White, nesting, Seriously

Those People

Posted on 05.09.2011 | 16 Comments

What needs to be addressed…

Uno: I saw the Extreme Bow Hunting-guy on the freeway last Friday when I was driving to work.

To jog your memory…

Before you ask, yes, I’m positive that it was the same guy.

First and foremost, I refuse to believe that there are any other people rampaging around the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area with a truck that has been tricked out like that.  Secondly (and more logically), the truck I was cruising with had firefighter plates and unless this is some sort of bizarre-o underground fire department thing that I’m just not privy to, IT HAD TO BE HIM.

Dos: When we were out for Jody’s birthday on Saturday night, our waitress felt the need to publicize her son’s business by festively distributing his business card along with the check.

Yes, that was weird.

But the card itself was weirder, and basically cancelled out any of the initial weirdness.

These things happen sometimes.

I’m not sure what made her decide that we were the kind of people who obviously had a gaping hole in our lives that could only be filled by this…

…but apparently, we just are.

Starring: Cletus…The Mechanical Bull.

Seriously?

I die.

Have you ever had a server who has given you something that’s just a little bit off with the check?

Do you ever commute with the same drivers?

Last year, I spent some quality time on the drive home with Extremist Bumper Sticker Man.  This spring?  I’ve found that if I leave the house ~5 minutes late, Maserati Man and I end up driving the entirety of our commute (within a block) together.

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Posted in Seriously, Weird as Hell

Paint Chip Invasion

Posted on 01.05.2011 | 18 Comments

No, this isn’t part of Operation: Paint the Bathrooms.

We’re picking out colors for our Ketubah.

If you’re opting-out of the Wikipedia option, a Ketubah is the Jewish marriage contract and in the modern-day an objet d’art.  Since we’re working with an artist, we get to design it from scratch.

For our theme, we’re going to be designing it around a star chart from our wedding day, June 12, 2011.  My name in hebrew means star, Marcus minored in astrophysics and we love the night sky.

All signs point to yes.

We’re working on finding a color for the arrangement, and I keep coming back to the Mediterranean sea and frescoes.

Obviously to make the process easier, we thought it would be a good idea to have an actual color to show the artist.  So we arranged for a trip to Lowe’s .

And then things started to get a little bit out of control.  I mean, I knew how many blues and greens and purples there are.  But seriously, did you know how many there are?

Obviously the idea of moderation didn’t even cross my mind.

I haven’t counted how many chips we grabbed, but on our way home, I decided it would probably be more fun to make it a competition.

So this is how we do.  Whoever is able to correctly guess the number of paint chips in the pile will get a wonderful prize from the Bahamas.  Since the Bahamas doesn’t do a rousing trade in prescription drugs a la Retin-A or interesting alcohol like Mexico, the prize will probably be some fabulous arrangement involving seashells as a design concept, plastic palm trees and some sort of ridiculously pun-y slogan emblazoned across the mess in gold script.

Game is on: How many paint chips are in the pile?

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Posted in Seriously, Weddings

A true conundrum.

Posted on 12.29.2010 | 11 Comments

It’s rare that I lose the will to type.  But last night, that was pretty much the case.  Thank God pictures are worth the thousand words I didn’t take the time to tap out.

Our Reward: An Excedrin Hangover.  I spent part of the morning trying to figure out where that fit in relative to the more popular Sudafed and Nyquil hangovers.  My results are as of yet, inconclusive.

But now, a true conundrum.

We all know that as a part of my Drugstore Diva-hood, I don’t even embrace what could be described as a modicum of skincare.  Yes, I know that’s probably why I look pre-maturely 27, and why I should be rue-ing the day that I turn 30.

But that’s neither here nor there.

Yesterday, a co-worker and I had to take a moment in the ladies’ room to mourn the state of our skin.  In the 23 years I’ve spent on this earth, I have never experienced a winter as dry as this one.

To that end, despite my total domination of the Jergens bottle and my Ponds Night Cream (which usually yield totally appropriate results), I am still not winning the war.  And neither is she.

Please send help.  And an under-eye skin graft.

Separately, Jess @ A Taste of Confidence gave me the Stylish Blogger Award.  Thank you, lady!  It’s my first ever go-round with one of these – I’m so excited :)

As with any game worth playing, we have to play by the rules.  Since we already know that I’m Type A to the point of sorting presents, I think I’ve got the situation under control.  They are as follows…

  1. Thank the person who gave you the award.
  2. Share seven facts about yourself.
  3. Give the award to seven bloggers that you just love.
  4. Comment on their blogs and tell them that they won!

So, without further adieu, some things that y’all still don’t know about me…

  1. I despise the squeak that cotton balls make when you rub them together.
  2. The only television set that Marcus and I have on the main floor of our house is in the bedroom.  When we cook together, we actually listen to oldies music on the radio.  How old-school is that?
  3. I’ve never worn my UGGs without socks on.  I know they’re allegedly warmer that way, but quite honestly, I find the situation to be totally uncomfortable.
  4. I’m scared to death of getting a professional pedicure because if some killer bacterial infection doesn’t get me, I’m afraid that they’ll take off my running callouses.  They’re not hot, but I really need them.
  5. The only reason I stopped biting my fingernails in eighth grade is because I got braces and it became physically impossible.  Retrospectively, I probably didn’t need braces.  But I got a nice pair of mitts out of the deal.  Most expensive way to break a habit.  Ever.
  6. When I was little and still in ballet, I used to do grand jetes in the freezer aisle of the grocery store.  Sometimes I still do grand jetes in the freezer aisle of the grocery store.
  7. Everything in my closet is organized by first by style (cut, length, type of garment, etc.) and then color in Roy G. Biv fashion.  And yes, I still use Roy G. Biv to determine what’s what.

Kittens, I have a crazy-case of Sadie Hawkins syndrome (that really could have been a fact of its own) so, you’re all tagged!  Feel free to bring the award to your blog, or spill your facts in the comments.

What sort of moisturizer do you swear by?

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Posted in Seriously, The Hard Questions

Making it Happen

Posted on 11.07.2010 | 9 Comments

Friends, I hope y’all had simply wonderful weekends.  Mine was one of the more memorably fantastic ones, but my energy is just gone.  Naps probably would have been the obvious solution, but that would have meant that I was sleeping and not living life. 

For the record, if you’re in bed by 9 PM on the day that daylight savings time begins, does it still count as tragically pathetic?

Who knew…

That a simple sandwich could overwhelm me? 

Last week, Ameena discussed her extremely short stint as a short-order cook. 

Today, I was all like, Girl, I totally hear you.

You see, I was a little bit surprised today when Marcus came home from frisbee and informed me that while he was in the shower/was watching the Vikings game, I would be making him His sandwich. 

Specifically, the roast beef-cheese and tomato sandwich he eats like, every other day.

Seriously.

This is the portion of the show where I tell y’all that NEVER, EVER in all of the time that I’ve known him, have I made him that sandwich.  I’ve grilled him sandwiches and baked/roasted/braised anything and everything that’s edible under the sun. 

But a cold cut sandwich?  His sandwich?  Has not happened.

You'll notice the shredded cheddar cheese. My man, he shreds it by hand. In order to maintain the integrity of the sandwich, I too had to hand-shred.

So as I was making the sandwich, the OCD perfectionist inside wanted to know, How much meat?  How many slices of tomato?  How much will he notice if I don’t actually shred the cheese?

It was a humbling experience, really.

And probably not one that I’ll be repeating any time soon.

When you’re making a sandwich do you go for shredded cheese or sliced cheese? 

Personally, I’m all about the sliced cheese unless I’m making an open-faced melt, in which case I can be swayed.

p.s. Separately, I realize that lots of people have joined The Group (as it were) since I went wedding dress shopping in July.  So, if you want to know all about that ordeal and see every dress I tried on except The One, check out 16 Dresses Later.

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Posted in Cooking, Seriously

I take it all back.

Posted on 10.26.2010 | 6 Comments

Internet, I take it all back.  The traffic yesterday was atrocious.

But when I got home yesterday, I didn’t come home to this.

Those six shingles would be the ones that happened to fall in the middle of our driveway. Lord only knows how many others came down.

WTF, Mother Nature?

Not cool.

I bet it will be really hassle-free to work through our association to get an insurance claim filed. 

Thankfully, we didn’t lose our power…though the lights did try to pull that flickering nonsense on me.

I didn’t want to have go all Laura Ingalls Wilder on the situation and break out the candles.  I couldn’t tell you to save my life where we might have a flashlight hiding (No lie, when the power went out in my apartment in March, I had to use the Flashlight app on my iPod Touch.).  But candles?  We have an entire drawer full.  It’s because we’re prepared like that.

In the spirit of uncertainty and comfort, tonight was a repeat dinner night.

Those happen more than you would think when Marcus is at class. 

Sometimes it’s nice to have a fast dinner.  Sometimes it’s nice to be able to make something for one meal without having to commit to days worth of leftovers for lunch and dinner.  It’s never for lack of options.

If it’s delicious, we feast.

1 piece of Trader Joe's garlic naan, shredded cheese, one tomato (for the base w/ s+p+evoo), garlic-stuffed green olives and red onion. Just delicious!

Like I said – if you haven’t done it, do it.  Now.

Confession Time: How frequently are you a dinner repeater?

Today, I actually ate the exact same meals that I had yesterday (Apple Cobbler Overnight Oats, Roasted Fall Veggies over Arugula w/ Bleu Chese and Balsamic Vinegar, and Naan Pizza).  But we already knew that I have no shame.

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Posted in Cooking, Seriously