A PICTURE FOR THE WEEKEND NO. 20

I was walking around here over the weekend. No one really knows or likes this beach.  I would like to keep it that way. 

SO CLOSE

This is a pic taken waiting in traffic (not driving) during my morning commute. I don't particularly like it, the job or the commute.  But I recently got an interview where I can leave both of these behind.  It might come to nothing, you never know, but if I got this gig, my life would take a quantum leap forward. It would be a big deal, so much so that I'm almost afraid to hope.

By the way,  I'm not talking about a movie or book deal our anything,  just a better job. it's just interesting to be at a crossroads.

A PICTURE FOR THE WEEKEND NO. 19

STYLE ESSENTIALS: BASICS

Untitled #135 by kristin-gp featuring leather shoes

Remember basics and keeping to a clean color palette? I came across Kristin-gp's outfits on Polyvore recently, and she just puts pieces together beautifully, and then she remixes pieces into different outfits. I thought I would share her outfits as a reminder of how well basics can work and how simple styling yourself can be. I sometimes forget that I don't need all that much to look put together, and this is a nice reminder. I also didn't link to the actual clothing items because 1) most people probably have a version of each item, and 2) let's just say I would have to whore myself out to afford them, and that's not quite in line with my priorities. 

Untitled #285 by kristin-gp featuring rag & bone boots

I added some more outfits after the jump, just to look at, for those times when I find myself staring at my closet wondering where in the hell everything went so wrong.

QUICKIE LINKS: AMERICA'S WORST CHARITIES

The Tampa Bay Times and the Center for Investigative Reporting put together a list of 50 charities who are not spending the funds they solicit on the people they are supposed to help. In addition, some of these charities are probably named so that people will confuse them with well known charities.  For example, #1 Offender "Kids Wish Network" may easily be confused with the legitimate "Make a Wish Foundation."  These types of "businesses" can only function because people don't know about them, so below are the top 10 out of 50.  For a list of all 50, go here. 

Rank	Charity name	Total raised by solicitors	Paid to solicitors	% spent on direct cash aid
1	Kids Wish Network	$127.8 million	$109.8 million	2.5%
2	Cancer Fund of America	$98.0 million	$80.4 million	0.9%
3	Children's Wish Foundation International	$96.8 million	$63.6 million	10.8%
4	American Breast Cancer Foundation	$80.8 million	$59.8 million	5.3%
5	Firefighters Charitable Foundation	$63.8 million	$54.7 million	8.4%
6	Breast Cancer Relief Foundation	$63.9 million	$44.8 million	2.2%
7	International Union of Police Associations, AFL-CIO	$57.2 million	$41.4 million	0.5%
8	National Veterans Service Fund	$70.2 million	$36.9 million	7.8%
9	American Association of State Troopers	$45.0 million	$36.0 million	8.6%
10	Children's Cancer Fund of America	$37.5 million	$29.2 million	5.3%

KARLIE KLOSS: WHEN COMMENTS COLLIDE

Source

So I came across the following discussion in the comments section of a Refinery 29 article announcing that Karlie Kloss was going to be a Victoria's Secret angel.  Fake names have been changed to other fake names in order protect the original fake identities. I will add that reading these comments  reinforces my belief that I should stick to my previous plan of avoiding them.

• Bro1: Meh. I don't care for Karlie too much as a VS model. She's a little too bony. And she doesn't really exude sex appeal.
• Bro2: I'm with you. Definitely not a fan. I don't understand the appeal. She has the sex appeal of a cactus and I'm sorry that I'll have to see more of her.
• FeminineMystique: So maybe if you shame her body on the internet VS people will listen to you and change their minds
• Bro1: Well, aren't you touchy. I didn't even come close to "shaming" her body. VS models are known to have a slightly more athletic build than traditional models. Karlie's build is more runway than VS. She's not right for the role, that's all I'm saying. Way to overreact. 

So...negativity, huh? The comments section is this weird place where people who would otherwise never meet or talk to each other...meet up and argue.  I just picked this one out because the original speaker became really defensive, and that's kind of amusing.      

Karlie is an interesting choice for an angel - she looks noticeably different, as the bros have pointed out.  A lot of the angels fit a certain mold: pillow lips, bedroom eyes, long mussed hair.  It all adds up to sexy seduction - of a certain type. It seems like VS is trying to break out of their own definition of "sexy," and as a female*, that's an interesting direction to go towards.  

Karlie projects a kind of knowing intelligence. You can see it in a lot of her photographs, along with her personality. It's what makes her so recognizable. I, for one, hope VS continues to move in new directions.   

* Because what do men really do with the VS catalogue, eh? 

WHAT KIND OF ASIAN ARE YOU?

I wish I had the balls to do this whenever I'm asked the "Where are you from?" question, but I don't, so I watch YouTube.

THE SNEAKER CONUNDRUM

Images Courtesy of Stockholm Street Style

How to jump on the sneaker train? It always seems so odd to me - I'm more of a ballet flats person myself, so I studied up on some representatives from Stockholm Street Style.  The trick to this seems to be so flash a bit of ankle.  Maybe a looser fitting pant to keep the illusion of a clean line. 

WOULD YOU BUY ORIGINAL ART?

One, Two, Three

When I say "original art," I mean an actual painting. I was poking around Sacchi Online and found a few things.  Good resource, this one.

A PICTURE FOR THE WEEKEND NO. 18

When's the last time you were on a train?  I think it's more of a European thing, but I have to concede that it can be a rather enjoyable way to travel if you can get a good one.  Images from the Andean Explorer train that travels between the cities of Puno and Cusco.

Sorry about the tilt, the train was moving and shaking.

ODE TO VINCE MASUKA

Source

Did you just read what I just read? Disgusting, right? That line is an expression of pure and unfiltered vulgarity, and one of the great benefits of watching shows on cable - through netflix of course, because you can't actually afford cable.  And it comes courtesy of the foul mouth of Vince Masuka.  

One of things I enjoyed about Dexter was its development of its side characters, because whenever I see a bit of color, that Asian on the side, I always wonder what exactly it is that he's there to do.  I sometimes wonder that about female characters too. You generally know what the main character is about to do - the show promos will answer that for you - and it should be part of the show's hook, but what exactly other people are doing or like is never revealed until possibly a few episodes in.  

C.S. Lee

Then you meet Vince Masuka - nerdy, short, bald, competent and a complete and unrelenting perv. What's not to love? He's not subtle, if you don't believe me, just reread the pic above and ask yourself what he means.  At the same time, he's likable. I think that's a plus in the Asian portrayals category. 

I know the show's coming to an end soon, but to be honest, I stopped watching after Season 4 when John Lithgow guest starred and let's just say the end of that season broke my heart.  But Vince Masuka, is an excellent find.  Here's a pic of C.S. Lee in non-Masuka civilian clothes FTW.

A PICTURE FOR THE WEEKEND NO. 17

It's my new profile pic!  What do you think?  Too blue? 

FORMAT CHANGE

Okay, this may be obvious, but I decided to get rid of the Dynamic View format in favor of a more traditional look that I can customize more easily. I didn't want to be boring, but the lack of options was getting seriously frustrating. And I wanted to add more water imagery.  Better? Worse?  Generic?

QUICKIE LINKS: SHINE THEORY

Photo Courtesy of The Cut

Shine Theory: Why Powerful Women Make the Greatest Friends  is an interesting read. I think it may be human nature to be jealous - jealousy is a good motivator, but you have to fight against it to stop from becoming constantly dissatisfied.  This seems like another way to re-interpret that tendency in a positive way, but actively appropriating successful women into the their lives so their association becomes a source of strength.  

I have to add that there is such a thing as reflected glory, which is most commonly exhibited by sycophants who try to associate themselves with powerful people and in that indirect way, to appropriate some of that greatness for themselves. 

I suppose it comes down to self-assurance, because only a truly self-confident person can genuinely feel happy for the success of those around her.