I don't feel guilty at all.

These gorgeous tiffany blues are on my healthy knee to do list.

Celebrity gossip. Scented candles. Bubble baths. Shoes. (Many many high heeled shoes.) These are just a few of my "guilty pleasures" and if I'm being honest, I don't feel guilty about them at all! How on earth could something as awesome as a HUGE movie theater cup of fountain soda make me feel anything other than happy!? 

I suppose we call certain things "guilty pleasures" because they're frivolous, unhealthy or over-priced. While there's a good degree of logic in this explanation, it also seems impossible to be satisfied by a lifetime of "essential items only". If something gives you pleasure, why should you feel guilty about it? I say, you shouldn't, even if the thing you love is silly or what some might consider a waste of your time or money. Today make yourself merry with a guilty pleasure and be sure not to feel an ounce of guilt! It'll be the perfect anecdote to our post-long weekend ho hums. Now, I'm off to read my Us Weekly.

I love George Washington.

Seriously, he's my favorite President. (Yes, I have a favorite President.)

FRIDAAAAYY! Woop wooop! Hopefully most of you are anxiously awaiting a three day weekend like I am, or maybe you're one of those lucky few that's about to get an entire week off (damn you educators!) However long you'll be celebrating the great Presidents Lincoln and Washington (LOVE me an American President) I hope you've got something awesome on tap. In honor of the holiday (and because I am truly a dork at heart) here's some Presidential greatness to take you into the weekend:

Someone PLEASE make me this
(I'll take that rad print chair and red accent pillow as well please).

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Did you know that George Washington's favorite foods were pineapples and Brazil Nuts? 

(I have not verified any of the information on this website, but I do believe everything I read on the internet.)

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Reason number bajillion why uncommongoods.com is the coolest place to shop

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Did you know that Abraham Lincoln was the first President to have a beard?

(*I told you, everything I read on the internet.)

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Does anyone want to come over and do arts & crafts with me? (I'm only half kidding)

I am my own pet peeve.

New Yorkers tend to move at a fast pace. I, like many of my fellow Manhattanites, am peeved by people who don’t obey the unspoken “stand to the right, walk to the left” escalator rule or who meander down the sidewalk, 5 people wide. It’s not that I’m always in a rush, or that I want to be rude, it’s just that I appreciate efficiency. I can stroll with the best of them, but sometimes I’m squeezing a lot into a little time, or I just want to get where I’m going and slow pokes get in the way!

WELL… this week has been quite the eye opener. I have returned to the real world and Gimpy over here moves SLOW. And as if the knee brace fashion faux pas, limited mobility and discomfort aren’t enough, now I have people throwing me looks!!! They’re all “hey lady, if you can’t handle the speed get off the sidewalk!” Today an SUV trying to make a turn actually honked at me to get out of the way while I was trying to hail a cab!! I realize now how disorienting and rude all these rushy people can seem! 

Have you ever been on the other side of a pet peeve and realized that it's rotten over there too? I don't like slow moving people when I'm in a rush, but I don't like rushy people when I need to move slow! I am my own pet peeve. Oy.

Hump Day Distractions

Invented by a genius. Obviously.

Here we are, at the hump. This week the hump feels huge for me... knee surgery recovery is full steam ahead (and going well!) and it's tiring. Despite all those days on the couch, I'm ready for a weekend. Hump it out with me...

* Ladies... did you forget your man on Valentine's Day? Maybe THIS will make up for it?

* The Grammy's happened. (Wow girl.) The Oscar's are coming... If you are a fancy pants mcgee, you should throw an Oscar party like THIS one (via Snippet & Ink). I can also recommend from experience pizza, good wine and a dry erase board with you and your friends' nominee guesses. Get the full list of nominee's HERE

* This is some pretty hysterical home decor (also likely to horrify your grandparents) (via Cup of Jo and The Daily Muse)

* I need more colorful bookshelves in my life.

* I want a dog and I want it to be able to do THIS.

Update! I tested out the "sock bun" from last hump day and learned a few things: (1) Do not expect this to go well the first time; it's likely going to take more than one test-run; (2) Use a spray bottle for the water like the video says. For some reason I thought splashing from the sink would be a good substitute. It wasn't; (3) Don't use a dress sock. I think it wasn't "plush" enough. I saw signs of a great hair trick in my efforts girls, but we're not there just yet. I will report back next week on attempt number 2.

Valens Part Deux

Our day to celebrate love has arrived and the timing is perfect. My husband, the awesome Dr. H, has been the superhero of my recent bum-knee recovery and is more generally, the love of my life.  Given our shared passion for music and my complete inability to adequately express my unwavering love for this incredible man, I thought I'd leave it to the experts:

* Man, oh man, you’re my best friend, I scream it to the nothingness, there ain’t nothin’ that I need... home is wherever I’m with you * 'cause I love you more than I could ever promise and you take me the way I am * I'd gladly lose me to find you, I'd gladly give up all I've got, I'd call that a bargain, the best I ever had * how much do I love you? I'll tell you no lie, how deep is the ocean how high is the sky? * it had to be you * where you are, that's where I wanna be...  you're everything to me * so please, grow old along with me, the best is yet to be * and in the end I know that we'll find, love so beautiful and divine, we'll be lovers for a lifetime, and I'll stay with you *

Happy Valentine's day to my love, my merry readers and all those you love.

RIP Famous Person I feel like I knew.

It’s interesting how we mourn the death of a celebrity. As I’m sure you’ve heard by now, Whitney Houston passed away over the weekend and since the news broke, I’ve heard her music in bars, seen her videos on tv and there are too many posts on Twitter and Facebook about her to count. We all seem to feel a loss, an emotional connection to this stranger whose celebrity persona and accomplishments touched our lives, however distantly.

And this is not a new phenomena; from John Lennon and Marilyn Monroe, to Chris Farley, Aliyah, Heath Ledger or Michael Jackson... when a celebrity dies, particularly a sudden death, we gravitate to the “story” and feel loss even though the gross majority of us never met or knew these individuals personally. Is it that we are fascinated by their downfall as much as their success? Is it that their pop culture contributions are so a part of our own memories that we feel the loss on a personal level? Whatever the reason, it’s amazing that these famous strangers have made their way into our hearts. Rest in peace celebrity "friends" and thank you for your contributions to our lives.

Image via Pinterest

The Power of the Green Coat.

Hello lovely.

It's jade green with turquoise, yellow and cream satin lining. It prefers collar up and all but the bottom button closed. It makes me feel unique, put together and happy... Pulling my green peacoat out of the closet for the first time each year is one of my favorite parts of winter.

I believe that there are few things more fabulous than the simple joy of finding an article of clothing which makes you feel confident and proud to step out and I know many women (and more than a handful of men) who agree. What's better than those heels that make you strut a little sexier or that suit jacket which makes you feel powerful and confident? While it may seem materialistic to equate a feeling to a piece of clothing, getting dressed can be more than a functional activity without breaking the bank! One of my favorite dresses came from the sale rack of a no-name store!! It isn't the cost or brand that matters for your "it" item, it's how wearing it makes you feel. Everyone deserves an article of clothing that makes you feel like your "best self" no matter what else life is throwing your way. This weekend, I say put on your "green coat" and work it!