'Highlight' of my Weekend

Last week, I caught a glimpse of the ends of my hair and nearly jumped out of my train seat in horror. They were a mess!!! Then when I glanced in the mirror later that morning, I noticed that my roots were about three inches long. I am always so prompt with every other appointment but I struggle with keeping up with my hair cuts and highlights. Which is even more weird because I love highlighting appointments. I generally fall asleep within two seconds of sitting in the chair and wake up about 45 minutes later. It's so relaxing!!!

It was as though fate was on my side that day because an email from Aveda Bethesda was waiting for me in my Inbox. Aveda Bethesda sends out this fantastic email on Tuesdays that lists all of their available appointments for the remainder of the week (and there usually are not many) and offers a discount on these appointments. Check to see if your local spa/salon offers the same service/incentive. It is a fantastic way to pamper yourself at the last minute at a substantial discount. Anyway, I saw "Friday, noon, highlights and haircut, 20 percent off" in the list of available appointments. I called immediately and the appointment was mine.

I had never actually had my hair done at Aveda Bethesda. I get facials there fairly often though (If you have problematic skin, the Outer Peace facial is fantastic!). I have been pretty loyal to Patrick at the Bubbles Bethesda Salon since I moved to D.C. He does an amazing job.

However, I am currently reading the book Not Just a Pretty Face which exposes "the ugly side of the beauty industry." This ugly side includes the scary chemicals used in so many of the products that everyone has made part of their daily primping rituals. Because of my work with Whole Foods, I am probably more aware than the average person about the chemicals in the products that litter my tiny bathroom. I choose organic and natural whenever possible and avoid the red flag ingredients (parabens, SLS, etc.).

But I never really thought about my hair coloring. In Not Just a Pretty Face, Horst Rechelbacher, the founder of Aveda, is quoted as saying, "There is no safe hair color, unfortunately." But Aveda has made strides where others have not. I had read on the Internet recently about the color used by Aveda and was immediately drawn in by the fact that the colorings are 97 percent plant based as opposed to the petroleum based dyes used by most salons. I am no chemist but I have read that petroleum chemicals can make the hair quite dry. More information on the risk of hair dyes can be found here.

And yes, I know the obvious answer to my concern is to just stop highlighting my hair. But I like how it looks, and I am vain like that.

Anyway, I settled into my chair at Aveda on Friday and let Adrienne work some magic on my hair. Then she uttered, "It's my first day" and I nearly darted out of the place. But then I remembered reading that Aveda has a pretty intense training program for all its stylists. So I sat back....and fell asleep. She did a fantastic job. Really, I think it looks so good and SO much healthier than it did a few short days ago. (I always look awful in self-portrait photographs so I am not posting a photo. Whenever I take self-photos, I either look mad at the word or my upper lip disappears when I smile. Ick. So sorry, you just have to imagine it until you actually see me.)

But seriously, the best part of any hair cut is that it always looks SO good the day of the appointment in the day after. I LOVE how the stylists always say, "Oh you can easily do this at home." And then you get home and discover that you need seven arms and a Ph.D. in Physics to get your hair to look the way the stylist did it.

Nonetheless, I was rocking some fairly fantastic hair when I met some friends for dinner on Friday night and it continued to look fantastic all day on Saturday. The straight sleekness of it was a huge contrast to the frizzy, curly, messy ponytail-bun hybrid (buntail?) that I usually sport.

A little change that just made me feel fabulous!

The 1970s called. They want their color schemes back.

I recently needed to replace my running shoes. I had pounded the sole out of them (ha!). I always dread getting fitted for new gym shoes. Now for me to dread shoe shopping really means something. My mom always tells me that I have a homing device that directs me to the shoe department of any store. It's a gift, really.

But here's my problem with sporty shoes. They are just not cute. I really think that the colors have not changed in the past 20-30 years. Icky blues and reds. I think Nike might be doing something with new colors. But am I only the person on the planet whose feet get completely shredded by Nike shoes? I just cannot wear them.

What's weird is that the rest of the workout clothing industry has kept up with the trends. You just have to check out Lucy, Prana, or Target to see that. My personal theory is that the popularity explosion of yoga has caused the workout clothing industry to evolve. But since no shoes are worn during yoga, not as much attention has paid to footwear. Again, that's just my theory. Then I also wonder if there is some part of the shoe engineering process (if that's what it is called) that inhibits the use of certain colors. Like certain shoe materials cannot be made certain colors? Or it's not cost effective to make certain colors?

The last time I was fitted for running shoes, I cringed as the pair that fit me perfectly were a red and white athletic shoe abomination. As I looked down at the size 9 candy canes, I asked the salesperson if that had anything, um, prettier or more feminine at least. He replied, "Real runners don't care about the colors, they care about the shoes." Um, okay, real runners may not care, but us slow joggers...we are a vain bunch. We like our shoes cute. That way when Ms. Fit zooms past us on the treadmill, we can at least think, "Well, at least my shoes are trendier than hers."

So I wandered into Fleet Feet in Adams Morgan a few weekends ago to get a new pair of shoes. I had my fingers crossed that there would be some fun shoes on the shelves...but no. Darn. I did have this funny exchange with the salesperson though (well, I found it funny):

Salesperson: So what are you training for?
Me: Um, training?
Salesperson: Half or full?
Me: Wait, what?
Salesperson: Which marathon are you training for?
Me: (Speechless because I nearly fell off the bench from laughter)

I am SO not a marathon runner nor do I want to be. I could walk that far no problem. But if I am running that far, it will only be because there is an alligator chasing me (I would be running zigzag in that scenario, of course) or there is a million dollar shopping spree at the end. Those would be the only two reasons. I still have post traumatic stress flashbacks to the 12 minute running test in gym class (One day I devote an entire blog to my horrific high school gym class experiences. It would be cheaper than the therapy I desperately need to get past it.)

Plus, well let's face it, the main reason I won't run one is that I heard marathon runners don't stop to go to the bathroom when they run. They just go on themselves. That grosses me out.

So anyway, I did end up with an ugly pair of shoes that are really comfortable and supportive. I even learned how to "loop tie" my shoes so they fit better...my right foot is bigger than my left foot, so my left shoe always slips a little. The "loop tie" keeps it secure.

My new shoes:



They would be so much cuter in pink with chocolate brown and pale green accents. A girl can dream I guess...or learn how to be a shoe engineer.

"The (Cute) Handbag"

As I was dashing through the station this morning to catch my train, I noticed a poster advertising the movie Street Kings. (Basic plot synopsis...good cop accused of bad, has to fight back, blah, blah, blah. Hasn't some combination of Jack Nicholson/Leonardo DiCaprio/Denzel Washington/Marky Mark made this same movie like ten times in the past five years?)

Anyway, it wasn't the movie itself that caught my attention as it is so not my kind of movie. Rather, it was two names above the title. "Common" and "The Game." Those words apparently pass as names. Huh. So I did a little research and discovered that they are both rappers. I really don't know much about rap except that it annoys the blueberries out of me when people blast it on their Ipods on the train. My rap love pretty much began and ended with Vanilla Ice in the sixth grade. Although I may or may not have owned/still own a cassette single of Whoomp! There It Is! That's rap, right?

But now I kind of want a rap star name. One name is really just an adjective; the other just a noun with an article plopped in front of it. I really contemplated this all day.

So I came up with "Fabulous" (because I am) and "The (Cute) Handbag" (because I always strive to carry one).

What are your rap star names?!?! Have fun with it!!! And post them in comments section because I want to hear them!

Have a great night!!!
"Fabulous" aka "The (Cute) Handbag"

You Asked For It....A Knitting Update!!!

"Fashionable girls are turning to old-fashioned hobbies to ease the strain of urban life. Now knitting has replaced networking as the hippest after-hours occupation." Vogue, May 2004.

I am the first to admit that I do not lead the most stressful life. Often, my biggest dilemma is deciding which movie I should move to the top my Netflix queue. But then sometimes, something happens like my phone rings and immediately after answering, I just know it is one of those calls that I should have just let go to voicemail and then promptly deleted. This happened last night and turned me into a stressed-out, teary-eyed girl walking down the street. (Not too worry, it all ended up being resolved.) But I got home and had to do something to calm myself down. And then I saw my knitting supplies sitting on the floor.


(Don't you LOVE my knitting basket?!? It's a watering can (duh!). If I knew knitting involved buying super-cute accessories, I would have started doing this much sooner. A piece of advice, if you ever want me to do something or try something new, just have it be an activity that involves shopping for fun new things. I will so be there.)

Anyway, I plopped myself down on the couch, turned on the movie In Her Shoes, and knitted, wait for it....FIVE WHOLE ROWS. I was so proud of myself!!!

Happy Easter!!!

Burnt Sienna College Won!!!!

So new rule of picking your brackets...never pick against the Crayola! So if next year rolls around and you see Periwinkle University or Hot Magenta College in the field, you'll know what to do.

If I speak in the office on a Friday, do I make a sound?

Thanks to the joys of flexible scheduling, I have not worked a Friday in my office in over a year. And I have never worked a Friday in our new building.

Today I am heading into the office. Weird. It's the busy time for the projects that I work on, kind of like the Super Bowl of time series statistics; it's actually kind of fun. I will never deny that I am a pretty major nerd.

I have always kind of wondered what goes on there on Fridays. Is it an all-day dance party? Or is there an all-day all-you-can-eat ice cream bar? I am sure it is just same as every other day, except more people are wearing jeans. But I enjoy imagining the possibilities. And since it is Good Friday/Easter Weekend, I am guessing a lot of people will take the day off and it will be quiet. Which is always good.

Happy Friday everyone!!!

And the award for the best college almost named after a crayon goes to....

So today and tomorrow are like the only days of the year that I actually get really excited for sports. The first two days of the NCAA tournament are my favorite part of sports. I love, love, LOVE when a tiny little school ends up in the tournament and the general look of glee on the faces of the players. Because you just know that this is the biggest moment in their lives thus far. (I realize that the players on the big powerhouse teams probably experiencing same thing but I think is a different sort of glee between the teams that are expected to be there and those that got there through some random chain of events.)

My favorite team this year is Siena. Mainly because when I was looking at the bracket and saw Siena, and thought, "Isn't that a Crayola crayon?" It turns out that the crayon is actually Burnt Sienna, but nevertheless, I am now officially a fan of the small New York liberal arts college.

So in the spirit of the day, I made basketball cookies for the office. I also attempted basketball player cookies but their uniforms ended up looking like a man's old-fashioned swimsuits or those awful unitards that wrestlers wear.

I also attempted a Coach K cookie but I don't know that I completely captured the "Coach K angry face." I was told that I needed to add a speech bubble with profanity coming out it to completely capture him...but I try to keep the content of the blog G-rated.

P.S. "What was up with Duke this evening?" LOL, this is the content of the many texts that lit up my phone this evening. Luckily, they won...barely...and I stress ate a half of a bag of jelly beans.

So here picks are my for the Final Four:

• Pitt
• Wisconsin (The last time they made it to the Final Four, I was out of the country. They kinda owe me.)
• UCLA
• North Carolina (It pains me to pick them.)
  

Champion: North Carolina...again, it pains me. But I have watched exactly one complete college basketball game this year and it was a North Carolina game...and they just looked like a good team. Plus, I have never met him or anything but their coach, Roy Williams just seems like a nice guy. Like the kind of guy you would see at Home Depot or Target on a Saturday morning. And I saw an interview or press conference with him shortly after the UNC student body president was murdered and his expression of the grief and horror of the situation was just so eloquent that I got goosebumps.

I Knitted!!!!!

Okay, so I only knitted one row, but that's progress, right?

A friend at work and I discovered that we are both wannabe knitters. So we promptly formed the Wednesday Lunchtime Knitting Club. Our membership is currently capped at two. No, we aren't antisocial. We are just both competitive enough that we do not want to be the worst knitter in the room. So once we get better we'll recruit...um, someone not as good as us. LOL!

When I was home in February, I finally nailed down the art of casting on (or is it casting off? Or is casting off when you fish? I need to get this terminology down.) I believe there was even a moment where my Mom shouted to my Dad, "Oh my God, I think she's got it!" It was huge event. Hallmark should make a card for moments like these.

It's everything after casting on/off that I still stink at.

So today, we used this knitting instruction book geared toward, um, middle schoolers? LOL! It had big pictures that were easy to follow and before I knew it, I was cruising along (well depending on how you define "cruising"....it took me 15 minutes....but it seemed fast).

My first row!

We have decided to knit washcloths. A basic square should be easy enough. It is 10 rows of 37 stitches and then we have to something else knitting-ish that neither of us understood. But we will worry about that in 9 rows. Anyway, at this rate it will be October before I get 10 rows done anyway.

And if I end up being a knitting rockstar, expect to receive a washcloth for Christmas.

Green with Delight!

Earlier this year, I wrote about Whole Foods Market's decision to eliminate plastic grocery bags in all of its stores by April 22nd (Earth Day). I was practically bubbling over with glee. I learned over the weekend that my neighborhood Whole Foods will use its last plastic bag tomorrow! I am told that it will be the first store in the area to go plastic bagless!!!! YAY! In addition to being delighted about this change, I am also thoroughly intrigued to see how shoppers will react. Will they just switch to paper or will they start bringing in their own bag. I sincerely hope it is the latter and I will do everything in my power to motivate people to do so.

In other exciting news, I recently read that the British Chancellor Alistair Darling (a role similar to our Secretary of Treasury) has told retailers that they must begin reducing the number of plastic bags they hand out or he will introduce legislation that will charge customers for the bags. Love it! Alistair, you may be my new hero even though your eyebrows kind of scare me.

To all of you who have told me that you have made or at least attempted the switch to reusable bags since my initial posting, you officially rock!!! I love hearing these things. Keep them coming!!! And I have to give a huge shoutout to my Mom who I think has earned the title of "Official Reusable Bag Princess of Northeastern Wisconsin." (Mom, I'll make you a tiara!) I sincerely hope she becomes a trendsetter. Funny story: When I was home over Christmas, my mom and I attempted to use a reusable bag at the local grocery store. The cashier looked at us like we were from another planet. I think she even asked us if wanted to put our purchases in a plastic bag before we put them in our reusable bag. HA!

If you are still looking for the perfect reusable bag, body+soul magazine has a nice feature on them in its April 2008 issue. The magazine also has very cute story about one woman's attempt to switch to reusable bags. I am kind of loving this bag from Alchemy Goods (They are made from recycled banner ads that adorned the sides of buildings in Seattle.)

How cool is that?!?

Note to self: Drink more water

It's funny that I, of all people, have to refocus on drinking my water. I don't want to brag, but I'm kind of a rockstar water drinker. In a typical day, it is not unusual for me to drink 300 ounces of water. Really. I am not making that up. I drink a lot of water. I have a hard time relating to people who do not drink much water or have a general distaste of water.

But the other day when I was putting out my empty 5 gallon dispenser bottles for Deer Park Water to pick up, I noticed that I had a lot fewer bottles than I usually do. I had only been out of town for one weekend so I must have been drinking less. Quite the deductive reasoner am I! And I also know that I have not substituted anything for the water. I NEVER drink soda or juice or alcohol. I really only drink water and one cup of coffee a day. That's it.

That same day, I had an eyebrow waxing appointment with Francois the Fabulous (She really does an amazing job with eyebrow waxing. She's like an eyebrow artist.) Francois holds nothing back but she says it all with a very chic French accent so that somehow makes it okay. As she was waxing away, she uttered, "Your skin is soooo dry." I truly hoped this did not imply that I was leaving the salon with waxing scars. I jumped in front of the mirror as soon as I could afterwards and no scars, whew!

Now I do not know if I necessarily believe that how much water you drink is directly related to how dry/not dry your skin is. I have always had a hard time reconciling that logic; I don't know why. But for the time being, I am going to take my dry skin to be the direct result of my diminished water consumption.

So I am going to work on drinking more water. I honestly think that I drink the requisite amount of water that a person should. (What is it now? Eight 8-oz glasses or something?) But normal for my overhydrated body is not normal for most people.

I even have very cute new SIGG water bottle to use . Everyone was coming into Whole Foods to buy them so I had to find out what the big deal was! The SIGG bottles have gotten a lot of press lately as an eco-friendly alternative to plastic bottles and the company generally seems to be very environmentally aware. Which I love. What I love about the bottle though is that if I leave water in the bottle overnight, it does not take on that weird, plasticky taste (hard to describe the taste but I think you know exactly what I am talking about.)

In the spirit of the upcoming cherry blossom/tourist insanity season, I selected the SIGG bottle with the cherry blossom print:

I bought mine at Whole Foods but I think you can also purchase them off of the SIGG website. The prices vary but plan to spend around $20.

Lattes and tigers and bears, oh my!

It is an absolutely beautiful day!!!! I met my friend Mel for a delicious brunch at one of my most favorite brunch places in the world, Open City. I ordered a chai latte in honor of you, Erin! It was too early to order pizza, or else I would have ordered that for you, Sean!

We then took a walk through the National Zoo. Since I moved here, I have been to the zoo just twice. One day was an uber-humid (i.e., gross) August day; the other was a chilly, gray January day in the middle of the Baby Panda Craze of 2006. So it was nice to explore the zoo in perfect weather. I really should get there more often because 1) I do not live very far from it 2) Much like other D.C. attractions, it's free.

The animals were out and about playing in their environments and seemingly having a blast. (Note to the zookeepers: Can you put nametags on the pandas? Now that the baby panda is big, it's hard to tell them apart.)

I like to imagine that the tiger is thinking, "Ugh, look at all this yard work I have to do this weekend" as he surveys his domain.

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

Score One for the Rule Followers

I really do not drive much. In fact, the other night I did have to drive somewhere and I actually had to dust my car off. It's just that in recent years, my world has become so very accessible via walking or public transportation. And I love it.

When I do drive though, I am what you may call a "grandma driver"--although I prefer "vehicularly cautious." Quite simply, I follow the rules. I go the speed limit; I yield to pedestrians; and I do not turn when the sign says "No Turn on Red" or the turn arrow is red. And that last one usually leads to someone behind me honking or flashing a lovely magical finger my way. You know what, I do not care. I am not turning. As sometimes I feel like I am the only standing my turning lane ground.

Until yesterday.

I was walking home and was waiting to cross a very major thoroughfare at a bustling intersection. I noticed that a car driven by, let's call him Mr. Rule Follower, had come to a stop in a left turn lane when the arrow turn red. The driver of the car behind him, well let's call her Ms. Impatient, began repeatedly honking her horn encouraging Mr. Rule Follower to turn. And this is where it got interesting. Instead of ignoring the honking as I do, Mr. Rule Follower hopped out of his car.

(I do admit that I got a little nervous at this point. I had to get to Pilates; I really did not have time to serve as a witness to a crime scene.)

Mr. Rule Follower very politely (HA!) informed Ms. Impatient that the arrow was red and he was not going to turn no matter how much she honked. He kind of said everything that I have only thought when I was the one being honked at. At this point, Ms. Impatient realized that she had become the star of the evening commute spectacle and that everyone was staring at her. She quickly said, "Thank you, sir!", rolled her window up, and zipped into the other lane to go straight instead of turning. Mr. Rule Follower returned to his car, the turn arrow went green, and he turned.

Now I realize that this situation could have gone a hundred horrible ways (and I do not advocate this type of behavior) but I seriously wanted to clap or give Mr. Rule Follower a thumbs up.

Because he totally made this rule follower's day.

I demand a recount!

(Note: This is not a political post. I am so tired of the election already.)

So I know Chicago is the offically Windy City. Whatever. It was named that in 1876!!!! Times have changed, and if they hadn't, chances are I would be sporting this lovely frock as I hammered out this blog entry using a quill ink pen on parchment paper:

Almost 133 years have passed since Chicago was given the Windy City title by the Cincinnati Inquirer. And I may be going on wind-smacked limb by saying this, but I am betting wind patterns/wind force have changed since then.

As I walked home this afternoon in a hail storm (yes, hail...and yes, ouch) and my lovely pink umbrella was rendered completely useless by the dramatic wind gusts, I thought to myself, D.C. is a seriously windy city. I actually have this thought every morning as I cross the street/wind tunnel in front of my building and nearly get knocked on my bottom.

I never, ever expected DC to be this windy although I guess I could insert some entirely lame hot air/politician joke here. But if you have ever been here in the winter, you know that it is honestly not that cold temperature-wise. It is the bitter wind that cuts through every fiber of your being that is cold.

After two winters here, I finally had to invest in the wind-resistant Patagonia Au Train winter jacket this year. It's not the cutest jacket in the world (although my black jacket is infinitely more fashionable than the brown one in this picture) but it's water-repellent, wind-resistant, not bulky, and actually has a really flattering cut. It's seriously amazing how much wind it, um, resists. I love it. My sister so lovingly informed me that it looks like scuba suit. At least in the event that I am needed to perform water rescue in the Potomac, I will be ready and dry (but I will probably grow a third arm or something from all of the pollution in the river).

But as I was walking home tonight, I realized that I am in desperate need of a wind-resistant umbrella. My umbrella is on its last spoke. I am just waiting for that final gust to completely knock it out. I think I like this one from Manhattanite:

Before I invest in it though, I need to investigate just how wind-resistant it really is.

So I am putting it out there, I really think D.C. is a contender for the "Windy City" title. I will be in Chicago in April so I will perform a very thorough scientific comparison and report back!

For those who encounter me in the morning...

I apologize in advance for the impact Daylight Savings Time may have on me.

Worst-Case Scenario:

It is definitely not that I am not a morning person. I love mornings!!! But I also wake up before the crack-of-dawn. So making that pre-crack-of-dawn hour actually an hour earlier....well things could be rough. Luckily for me, it usually only takes me a week to adjust. Luckily for everyone else, I am usually the only one in the office for the first hour or two of the day. I will try to use that hour waking up my happy face!

Remember to set those clocks ahead tonight!!!

P.S. I so rarely watch sporting events. But I was all ready to watch Duke play for the ACC title against North Carolina tonight (I kind of wish I was down there for this game. The vibe in the Triangle surrounding Duke-UNC games is always seriously fun!!!) But then I noticed that the game STARTS at 9 p.m.!!!! Factor in a time change and omg, that's way, way, WAY past my bedtime. So let me just get a GO DUKE out now and I will read about the game in the morning.

P.P.S. The graphic above is courtesy of a google image search...lol, I love seeing what images match my search string. Far too entertaining!!!

Thinking outside the salt shaker

There is nothing I admire more than creativity. I have the utmost respect for those who think outside the proverbial box and try to put a new spin on an old problem. Even if it is not always a success story, I love the motivation and the thought process that got the idea that far.

I was reading the Green Press Gazette online the other day (to catch up on my Packer news, of course, HAHA!) and came across this story that made my creativity-loving day.

My home state, Wisconsin, has received ALOT of snow this winter. I believe they are even setting snowfall records. For that to happen in that state, well, it has to be incredible amount of snow. There have been numerous side effects of this snowfall: plenty of snow days (so jealous!), my numerous pairs of wet socks (which pretty much sealed the deal on my ever moving back there, LOL, I really hate wet socks.), and slightly more important than my wet socks, most road crews have completely depleted their salt reserves for the winter.

Many counties throughout the state have turned to a fantastic alternative, GeoMelt, made from...wait for it...beet juice! GeoMelt is an environmentally friendly de-icing agent that can be used in place of salt. It is less corrosive than salt and will not kill trees and shrubs as salt does. GeoMelt can even work in the frigid temps (under 15 degrees) where salt cannot.

And no worries, the beets in GeoMelt will not turn your car pink. But I think it would be cool if it did...as long as it was not permanent.

But what fascinates me about the product is that which I do not know. How did GeoMelt come to be? Did someone have an overabundant beet crop one year and have no clue what to do with them (kind of like how every year in late August, piles of zucchini and tomatoes start showing up in office lunchrooms across the country) and just start experimenting with them? Or was someone hauling groceries from the car one frigid January day when the plastic bag broke and the glass jar of beet juice fell and shattered on the sidewalk where the ice quickly melted away? EUREKA! So many questions!!!! I am completely fascinated by this product.

And I also have to give a big green thumbs up to the Green Bay Department of Public Works (and other departments like it across the Midwest) who are turning to GeoMelt not because it's cheaper (it is roughly the same price as salt) but simply because it is eco-friendly! I love it!!!!