As Ludacris Would Say...

Roll out.

Yes, this past week was, what we in the biz call, fall roll out (did anyone get The Break Up reference?). I probably should have just set up a cot in the stock room with how much I was at the store. But I am really proud of how great everything looks and am in love with the buzz of a new collection.

Our marketing right now is also really cool- and really poignant. It's based on finding a wardrobe that "works for life," which I love. When I moved home from college I realized that all I owned were sloppy sweats or "going out clothes." Then I went through the all-I-do-is-work faze where I would only buy "work clothes" because that's all I did (what a difference a couple months makes). Now, I am hoping to buy clothes that don't make me want to change as soon as I get home from work, and that is what I am basing my new fall wardrobe on. Check out this cool commercial for the fall collection- all the people in the marketing are people taken off the streets of New York, or at least, they aren't models:



I think what I love the most about roll out though is the fresh start that fall and back to school brings. As far as new beginnings go, I definitely prefer this time of year to New Year's. Maybe it's because it accompanies a change of season, or maybe because it's not as forced, but either way, I have my goals for the month all set and am looking ahead to a lot of changes for the rest of the year.

Vogue Can Wait

Ever since my sister introduced me to Sex and the City, at arguably too young of an age, I have been hooked. We would come home from school, pop in a VHS and not move until the end of the tape. We'd be sitting in the dark with only the glow of the television when my mom would come home from work and find us mesmerized by women far beyond our age.
I'm a Carrie. I don't have as avant garde of a fashion sense, and am much more cynical, but I'm definitely led by my emotions the way she is. Most of all, I'm a writer. And I always identified with her reflective self-questioning, imagination and desire to romanticism, which is often characteristic of those in the profession.

It seems that no matter what I've been going through in my life, I can find an episode where Carrie is going through it too.


Recently, I put in the first disc of season five (because VHS is obsolete) in search of an episode I knew of where Carrie is in a rut with her career. Sitting at her computer, she reflects on her situation and says, "The worst thing about not being in a relationship, is when your job is to write about being in a relationship."

Lucky for me, I write about life's gaps and getting through them. And since I started writing two years ago, I have realized that no matter where in the world you are or how old you are, every stage of life has "gaps." I never run out of things to write about, but then again, I don't have a book of my blog posts... Oh well, even Carrie Bradshaw didn't start out at Vogue.

Seasonal Sneak Peak

The days are definitely getting shorter.

I opened the back door at 4:45 a.m. and swatted away bugs zipping around the light above the door. It was darker, which made the light brighter and more attractive. The air was still heavy with humidity, so I know summer hasn't left yet, but it's packed it bags.

I got in my mom's car and fumbled for the ignition and then the lights. Hers aren't automatic like mine. Surely one day I'll return to the parking lot to find the battery dead. As I drove the familiar route, that's when I noticed- brighter green lights. And no rabbits congregating on the corner and feasting on my neighbors plants.

I love the seasonal sneak peak that comes every few months. The air was downright cool the other morning on my run, and it felt amazing. Wind blew past my face and I breathed without the weight of the air on my lungs. As a born and raised Midwesterner, I will always love, and need, a seasonal change. A reminder that time is, in fact, passing. Life is continuing on despite how stationary I feel.