I made it all the Way to Palm Sunday...

before I broke my Lenten ban. I made it through 35 of the 40 days without shopping. I just didn't have the self-control to make it all the way to the end. Sigh...anyway... Here are my new Christian Louboutins, picked up over the weekend. They've got unmistakable Louboutin ingredients: a platform, the Greissimo knot, rich exotic nabuck skin in an uncommon color (called "jade"), the sky-high stiletto heel, and of course, the red sole. All these ingredients make for one sexy, yet feminine shoe. This style is called the "Jenny", and it's a new one for the Spring/Summer 2011 season. It must be very popular because I saw 3 other girls try it on, and I believe 2 of them bought it, too.

The cost is definitely more than I was hoping to pay for what would have been my "ban is over" gift, but let's just say that I was given some great news right before their purchase that pushed me over the edge ;) Although I won't beat myself up for falling short 5 days, I will vow to do better next year. I will do it for the sake of my own sense of discipline, for me.

Time for Another Update

Sorry about all the ranting lately. From those, you might not have guessed, but honestly, my life is pretty sweet right now. Not to say that there's nothing to bitch about. There always is, but I choose to ignore those things because if I didn't, I wouldn't feel grateful for the good stuff. First, I got a promotion. The promotion doesn't alter my job description or title one bit. However, I did get a raise to go with it. Yay! Second, I'm losing weight. I now am at the same weight I was in graduate school. At this time of year in 2008, I was 20 pounds heavier. I was able to put on a very old pair of Seven jeans last week, and I even had a little room in the waistband. Thank God I decided to hold onto those. And the best part is that my weight loss didn't involve any gym visits. I just pared down my life so it was less stressful and ate a little less. I didn't even give up any foods. I still eat the junk I love (pasta, ice cream, soda, cupcakes, etc.), I just don't crave it as much. My butt is smaller, but still has that feminine, round shape. Go, me! Third...I don't want to jinx anything, but if it's truly meant to be, I wouldn't be able to jinx it anyway. I've met 2 new great guys. And no, there's no playa-playa stuff going on. I'm simply keeping my options open. Being in my 30s has opened my eyes to the fact that life is short and there's plenty of fish in the sea. In my 20s, I would start something with a guy, then wait and see if he was interested, barring other guys from having a chance. It didn't work. It's simple, really: if someone wants to meet with you, they'll find their way to you, no effort needed on your part. I noticed that the 3 good things going on in my life right now are a result of a new behavior: letting go. I haven't tried for any of the 3 things. I simply decided to just go about my business and not worry so much, and they just happened. And I'm truly happier.

The Drama Queen Travels...to Hawaii

Besides drama and shoes, the Drama Queen loves to travel. I got to travel again, this time to Hawaii. The reason was for my mother's 70th birthday. She didn't want a party celebrating her entrance into her 8th decade of life, so she decided that she wanted the family to vacation in Hawaii instead. I haven't been there since I was a little girl, so I was due for another visit. This time, thanks to my awesome younger sister, I got to stay with her at the breathtaking Hilton Hawaiian Village, in the very popular Waikiki area of Honolulu. We were able to get a room in the Rainbow Tower, which overlooks the beach. Check out the view from our room!

As I like to engage in local culture on every trip, a luau was in order. We went to one at our hotel, which consisted of dances from various parts of Polynesia. The finale dance consisted of 4 guys literally playing with fire!


Of course, for the Drama queen, no trip is complete without shopping. I visited the Ala Moana Center, home to shops of many high-end fashion houses, like Hermes, Gucci, and Dior. I looked for a pair of Christian Louboutins, as I've done on each trip during the last couple of years, but the only store that had them was Neiman Marcus, and I didn't see anything I really wanted.


I did, however, buy myself a new bag from Louis Vuitton, one of which was conveniently located on the grounds of the Hilton Hawaiian Village. It holds a special meaning for me. You see, almost 3 years ago, my home was robbed. One of the items stolen from my home was a Louis Vuitton white multicolor pochette. It was one of the first items I bought when I started making money, a celebration item. One of the things I loved most about that bag was the soft red suedelike lining. A darling sales associate patiently showed me about 20 bags until I found the one I thought was right for me. I was pretty sure about it, but decided to wait on my decision to pull the trigger. I returned with my sister the next day, and the SA again showed me the bags. My sister, whose taste I trust dearly, wasn't feeling the bag I picked out the previous day. Then the SA brought out a bag he hadn't shown me, and she exclaimed that it was the right bag. I slung it over my shoulder and carried it around the store and decided she was right. And I looked inside and realized that it had that suedelike red lining (the one I originally wanted didn't). I thought about buying a replacement for my stolen white multicolor pochette, but the reality is that I'm no longer that 20-something carefree girl I was when I bought it. I had nights of clubbing and bar-hopping with it tucked under my arm back then. And now I'm a 30-something, and the clubbing/bar-hopping scene is no longer for me. I need a bag I can take to work and to a weekend luncheon with friends, and the pochette isn't one. So now, I'm the proud owner of a Saleya.


Did I bring home anything else? Of course! I bought a couple of pieces that truly reminded me of Hawaii. I bought a coral floral (heehee-that rhymes) tube dress. I know they may look little-girlish, but I've been wanting one for the last few years, and what better place to buy than Hawaii?! I also bought a gorgeous 1960s-ish white dress with ruffle trim. I'd never bought anything from a hotel clothing store, but I couldn't help thinking about how beautiful it was and that it was a piece I'd also been looking for for a while. It was just like that scene in the Madeleine Wickham book, Sleeping Arrangements, where the main character, Chloe, wanders into a little shop in Spain and just decided to plunk down some money on a dress that just made her feel so feminine and sexy. I tried on the white dress and was surprised at how much I loved how I look in it, despite it being short and me never wearing minis. I probably paid too much for it, but I knew that if I didn't take it home with me, I'd regret it later. And of course, the obligatory chocolates with macadamia nuts! A true Hawaiian souvenir, I bought a case of 6 boxes. I really shouldn't be eating sweets, but souvenirs just have to be an exception ;)

Baby, It's Raining Outside...Come Inside, and Let's Get Nude!

Another cheesy title...oh, well. At least it perfectly describes today. LA's experiencing some rain this week. True to Angeleno-in-the-rain style, a drive that was supposed to take 25 minutes ended up taking 2 hours. People here just don't know how to drive in the rain. I nearly lost it as I was almost at my destination--inside my little car, I screamed to myself, "F*ck this! It's so not worth it!" and nearly turned around to go home. However, I'm not one to break promises, especially to my sister, with whom I had a shopping date at a consignment store tonight. I pulled myself together and made it to her house, albeit an hour and a half later than the time we were supposed to meet. She forgave me, so it was all good.

I tried on a See by Chloe dress, French size 40. It's supposed to be equivalent to a US 8, but honestly, it looked tiny. I tried it on, anyway. I pleasantly discovered that it actually fit! The zipper even went all the way up the side, and I was wearing a bulky sports bra (I didn't have any clean regular bras--I hang my head in shame as I admit this). I really do feel like I've lost weight, and a coworker even commented today that I looked like I did. I'm not really trying to--just eating a little less and trying to stay active (but without the gym--the environment just seems so stale to me). And the dress was much shorter than what I'm used to (about 6" above the top of my knee), but I don't think I looked that bad. I probably could've gotten away with it. However, I didn't end up getting the dress. It was black and gorgeous, but I still feel too self-conscious to pull it off, and I don't want to get sucked back into the cycle of buying clothes I'll never wear. I still have a fabulous Oscar de la Renta black lace number that is desperately waiting its debut!

I did, however, get nude (tee-hee) again--shoes, that is! A girl can never have too many. These are by Chloe, and they're so comfy (and I got a great deal on them, too). They're perfect for a little summery dress in a setting. They go with everything and will allow me to spare my precious Loubies, too, particularly in settings where walking on grass in inevitable. I'm sure they haven't even been worn. They have minimal scratching on the soles, similar to what you'd find with shoes you get on sale (after being tried on over and over). This is the first time I've bought shoes from a consignment store. I've never even bought shoes off ebay. I think I might do consignment stores again, but not ebay. I would want to see the shoe before I buy it. Come to think of it, that's how I am with shoes from any store. Getting to inspect the shoe before I buy it gives me peace of mind. It also allows me to engage in the pleasure of shopping, which includes building relationships with sales associates and taking home my purchase in a cute shopping bag, too. The shoes are a half-size bigger than I'd normally buy, but they still work. The ankle straps are a little long (as you'll see from my modeling pic), but I'm sure a short trip to Eddie's will result in some holes in the straps and fix the problem.

There's the Real World, Then There's LA

The city of Los Angeles has many nicknames, one of them being "La La Land". You can take the "La La" to mean "LA LA", LA being the abbreviation for Los Angeles. However, more often than not, "La La" refers to the chant repeatedly uttered with fingers inside one's ears when one is indicating that they're choosing to ignore a stimulus, like another person stating a point of view in strong disagreement. I've traveled to various cities and countries around the world, and what I've learned from all my travels is that Angelenos are unlike people anywhere else. We put our fingers in our ears and ignore the rest of the world. After all, our own little world is much more interesting...and a lot less depressing. I've known this for years, but events from this past week made me think pretty deeply about it. Rewind to yesterday. In order to protect the privacy of certain people, let's just say I was in a ladies' restroom somewhere in the city. In walks 2 minor celebrities. Like many female celebrities, they look like models. One of them gets into a stall to do her business, and she squeaks, "Omigod! These toilets are huge! You can fall in!". I'm thinking, Huh?! Honey, they're not that big to me! Let's just say I have a womanly figure, but I am in no way obese or even overweight (I wear a size 6, thankyouverymuch), and those toilets were just fine for me. If they were fine for me, I'm pretty sure they're fine for at least 90% of the women in America. But LA is not America. In LA, it's not uncommon to walk into a boutique and find that a size-6 woman like me can't fit into any of the clothes and has to walk away empty-handed, even though she really didn't want to. Drive along the streets and into the shopping centers...is driving a Range Rover really necessary for navigating CITY streets?! How often do Angelenos need an 8-passenger vehicle, especially in a city where everyone over the age of 16 has a car? Yup, those huge $100K cars that seat 8 passengers have just one passenger in them 98% of the time! Oh, and it's awards season. That means street closures galore. That's in addition to the traffic so bad that "I'm 15 minutes away" could mean you're 1 block from your destination. No Angeleno ever mentions how far away they are in terms of actual distance. It means nothing. And let's not mention the whopping 9.75% sales tax we pay for every purchase and the enormous state taxes. Groan... I once read an article that equated LA with ancient Greece. The gods lived along with the mortals, but of course everyone knew the difference. That's true in LA. A few years ago, I had been in a high-end shoe store with a B-list celebrity. We happened to be finished shopping and ready to pay at the same time. My total was given: full retail, as stated on the box. Her total: full retail, as stated on the box. Then she blurted, right in front of me, "Is the manager here? She usually gives me a little discount". The saleswoman gives her her new total: 20% off retail. Didn't even bother with discretion. After all, this is LA, and mere mortals like me should understand. Then, just as my annoyance with the city peaked, I drove along the Cahuenga pass. Sunshine all over the luscious green mountains. I look at the temperature display in my car: 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Then the annoyance passes...

Killer Manicure...at an Affordable Price!

At the suggestion of my sister, we headed to CVS today. She wanted to pick up a set of Sally Hansen Salon Effects. She was wearing a set of them today, in the "Skinny Jeans" color, and it looked awesome. Since CVS Extra Care card customers also got an extra $3 off $10 cosmetics purchases, I picked some up, too. I got 4 sets for $30, including sales tax! It's so much cheaper than getting a Minx Nails manicure at a salon, which can cost you upwards of $65 (although I have to admit that Minx has more variety in design). And it's very doable at home! I tried them for the first time, and within minutes, I figured it out. See the results in the pic on the left.

And Mom's doing well. Her surgery was finished in less than an hour, and she is up and about like she normally is. She didn't even need her pain meds! Yay, Mom!

Bad-A$z

I had a particularly rough Friday (yesterday). I nearly cried, as I always do when I find that the loyalty I give to my friends isn't returned. Late that afternoon, I just suddenly had this urge to get a mani/pedi. Fortunately, there's a nail salon by my house that does a quick, yet thorough job for just $20, so I ended up there. I was settled on black (to go with my mood), but then saw this gorgeous deep slightly shimmery burgundy. The sticker on the OPI bottle that has the color name was peeled off, so I can't be sure, but I believe I've had this color before and it's called "Midnight in Moscow".

I was still feeling rotten today, so as I settled into my Saturday night routine of watching "48 Hours Mystery" (I see absolutely no point in celebrating the weekend in Hollywood with the crowds and receiving bad service in restaurants on these nights), I decided to play with my new babies, my Christian Louboutin black Clou Noeud platforms, with the 150 mm heel. I normally wear a 38.5 in CL slingbacks, but these are a 39. They're actually doable, but I put some gel pads that I picked up at Walgreens inside them just to make them fit a little better, and they do. I hate to reveal the sources of my purchases publicly, but I got these on sale! I had been told by a very rude Christian Louboutin Miami staff member that they sold out more than 3 months ago (I'm NEVER buying anything from there-he was sooooo rude in the way he spoke to me), but they turned up somewhere else, and now they're mine! I put them on today and posed with them (I even did the pose inspired by Lovely&Amazing from tpf), and I just felt so bad-a$z wearing them, even in my $4 sweatpants purchased from KMart LOL.

Ah, the transformations made possible through the simple action of putting on a shoe...

the 2011 Holiday guide of Guitar World (former Playboy model/ex-girlfriend of Hugh Hefner/reality TV star/Las Vegas performer Holly Madison wears my shoes!)