Prairie Style

Did you guys do any Black Friday shopping?  I definitely did.  Last year was my first time, and I guess I enjoyed it because this year I went back again.  Last year I did the whole 4am thing, but this year I decided that unless you want one of those limited big-ticket doorbuster items, there's no need to be there at that time.  I slept in, and around 8:00am my mom and I trekked off to the local JC Penney store.

Prairie-inspired collage via here

So what did I buy?  Clothes, of course!  One of my favorite looks from the runways is what I'm calling "the prairie look."  I LOVE what the Mulleavy sisters did for Rodarte Fall 2011 RTW (with clothes inspired by one of my favorite films, Terrence Malick's Days of Heaven) as well as Anna Sui's Spring 2011 RTW.  (Her collection was also inspired by the same film.  Seriously, if you haven't seen it yet, you should; Days of Heaven is one of the most beautiful films, cinematography-wise, I've ever seen.)


Yesterday my sister and I went to the dog park with her two cute Papillon puppies.  Here's my take on the prairie style:

Prairie Dress: JC Penney, purchased on Black Friday
Duster sweater: Simply Vera Vera Wang for Kohl's, purchased on Black Friday
Riding Boots: vintage

And here's the handsome little Cole Bear.  Isn't he a cutie?

Meet my niece and nephew

I'm totally ripping off my twin sister's blog, but I thought this was cute. She did these little bios and collages of her two dogs. Without further adieu, I present Cole and Lillie

Meet Lillie:
Tiger Lillie: the independent thinker
Breed: Papillon
Birthdate: 12/11/07
Weight: 8 lbs.
Likes: Balls, biting hair, ice, food, and pigs ears
Dislikes: Snuggling, getting in trouble, baths, and wind
Favorite Trick: Shake (AKA "paw")

Meet Cole:
Cole Bear: the little lover
Breed: Papillon
Birthdate: 12/11/07
Weight: 8 lbs.
Likes: Barking, soft fabric, Nylabones, cats, treats, and cuddling
Dislikes: Baths, yelling, the cold, and being alone
Special Ability: To make anyone love him

My new Poloroids

It would have made sense to post this with my last post but I didn't think of it until my friend Christina left a comment on my post. These, then, are my new Polaroids. Unlike the pictures on my comp card, these pictures are less then a week old and show what I look like currently. They're useful in that they show if I have gained or lost weight, how my skin is looking, and most notably in this instance, what my hair color and cut is. As you can see, I am currently moonlighting as a blonde.

My new Comp Card

I met with my agency last week to get a new composite card made-- this is my business card, what I hand out to potential clients so that they can remember me. I'm pretty happy with the new card. The cover is from a test shoot I did with Seth Sabal, and the pictures on the back are all from magazines I shot while working in Dubai (and, actually, the two full-length shots were taken in Amman, Jordan for U Magazine).

Yes

I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes.

~e.e. cummings

My dogsitting days have come to a close: yesterday my mom and I drove the two-hour trek to return baby Cole Bear (as I've taken to calling him) to his adopted mom, my sister, Erin. It was a sweet reunion, with Erin and puppy eager to see each other, and with Cole eager to see his twin sister, Lillie. I must admit that I was sad to see him go as he was quite the lover, and always wanted to cuddle with me. That said, I am also excited at the prospect of sleeping in again, not to mention the idea of actually sleeping uninterrupted through the night.

We took the pups to Trap Pond, somewhere near Laurel, Delaware, which has the northern most stand of natural Bald Cypress Trees. I had no idea what Bald Cypresses looked like, but upon seeing them I was overwhelmed by their majestic beauty. They stand in the water, with knee-like protrusions jutting out. There was a nature trail that winded up around whatever body of water that was, and afforded us great views of the trees. The puppies enjoyed the walk, and did mother and daughters, and the only thing we had to be wary of were ticks.

Today my mother and I arose early and went to our church for CPR training. I was reluctant to go, as it meant setting my alarm for 6:45am, but now that it is behind me, I am delighted to be a more useful member of society. I learned a couple of things which I thought were interesting:

1. If you don't do anything else, at the very least do the chest compressions,

2. Always call 911 ASAP (that seems a no-brainer but read number 3 to see why,

3. Once you start CPR you are legally required to continue until help arrives. If you don't call 911, you may be doing CPR for a LONG, long time.

My parents also indulged me in turning out all the lights tonight for Earth Hour from 8-9pm. It was meant as a show of solidarity to conserve energy. Apparently, big cities (including my former home-for-a-minute, Dubai) planned to cooperate and turned out the lights on some major buildings. 7:30pm found me circling around the house turning out every light I could find, as well as digging up, and lighting candles. My mom and I left around 8:45pm to drive around the neighborhood (I was curious to see who else participated-- about 30%) and to go to the grocery store, and when we came back, of course my dad had managed to spill wax everywhere. Somehow I knew he shouldn't have been left home unattended.

I took a test on Facebook (yes, very silly), entitled something along the lines of, "Which Jane Austen character are you?" My results said that I am Catherine Morland from Northanger Abbey. The sad thing is apparently I read that book last year (I keep a list), but I have no recollection of it whatsoever. I think I've come to the conclusion that Austen's books aren't that memorable, which isn't to say that they're not good. The truth is, I throughly enjoy a Jane Austen novel, but I can't seem to remember them or their characters much, or rather a few stick out (Yes, Mr. Darcy, please), but overall, give me a few months, and I forget what I've read. Now, I suppose I shall have to go back and re-read Northanger Abbey so that I can reacquaint myself with Ms. Morland so I know who exactly it is that I "resemble."

Also, I read a funny article on nytimes.com called, "It's Not You, It's Your Books." It's talks about how what someone is reading can be a deal-breaker. Perhaps sad to say, but I think that I personally subscribe to this philosophy. I am a bit of a classics fan, and while I might cut someone a break about Pushkin (see article), there are other authors I would not be so forgiving about. I have a clipping in my possession that was written by novelist Jennifer Egan. It's a little blurb that details how she fell for her future husband at the age of 23. She was sitting in a garden in Cambridge, when he joined her and referred to the "sticky little leaves" (which is what Ivan in The Brothers Karamazov calls them) that were being unfurled above in the springtime trees. Egan simply nodded and pointed to her journal she had been writing in, where written in her own hand were the words, "Sticky little leaves." Ahhh, a marriage of true minds.

Full-time job

I must admit that this has not been an illustrious start to my very first blog. To be fair, I've never followed through with anything in my life-- except that which I was under supervision, or was required. I should say I've never voluntarily followed through with anything.

On Sunday, we went to church as a family-- mom, dad, sister, sister's husband, and niece-- for Easter to celebrate the risen Lord. Afterwards, mom cooked a delicious, albeit small-ish (for holiday fare) meal. We had ham with glaze; my green beans with almond slices and garlic; cauliflower with cheese; and my sister's strawberry, cream cheese, and pretzel concoction.

When my sister left to return to her house, she left something very precious behind: her 15-week old Papillon puppy. There are actually two puppies, but she thought it would be helpful if I took one for the week so that the twins can get individual attention. I, of course, took the cuter one (in my opinion). His name is Cole, and he's a really sweet teddy bear of a pup, except when he's keeping me up at all hours of the night with his insatiable need to go out. Like clockwork every night around 3am, I hear his little 5lb body stir, which means that I need to move fast, or there will be a mess for me to clean up. I've taken to sleeping with my coat and shoes on so that I, like Paul Revere, will be ready at a moment's notice. I'm also sleeping on the floor next to Cole's crate as he seems to really miss his sister, and whimpers unceasingly if he does not sense anyone is near. Individualized attention indeed!

I am exhausted, and unable to get much of anything done around the house. I am eager to get him back to his mother, which will be on Friday. During the day when he is sleeping, he seemingly has a halo placed above his head, but come nighttime, he begins to bare his teeth, and has enough energy for three. I am thankful to my parent's dachshund, Oscar, who keeps little Cole busy by tackling him and encouraging him to play chase.