Everyone Loves a Boston Girl

Oh hello, Boston Winter. I hear you will be arriving next week. Though you’re not quite here yet, you’ve already brought us some frigid temperatures and even a bit of snow. Somehow we’ve avoided slush thus far. But I KNOW there’s a lot more of all of that coming. Dread. Dread. Dread. And there’s absolutely nothing I can do. But pick up and move to Hawaii (which will work until my sister moves home mid-January, which is the worst time for winter in Boston) or hide out in my apartment all winter (which is actually quite feasible. but I unfortunately can’t avoid all commitments all season long).

I’m a long-time lover of Uggs, no matter what the haters say. And I still love them mainly because I believe they’re the most comfortable things you could ever put on your feet that aren’t slippers (Ugg slippers?! The world implodes). However, I took WAY too many spills last winter (flat out had bruises from falling on the ice). Not to mention, Uggs are all warm and cozy until you step in a traditional Boston slush puddle and your feet get soaking and freezing. So I’m on the search for something a little bit more waterproof.

Yes, my friends, I want to be able to trudge through a blizzard, come up to my ankles in puddles, and jump in a snow bank and come away with completely dry and warm feet. And I also want to be semi-cute. Sound like too much to ask? I don’t care. I want it.

But the big dilemma is that I just don’t know which ones I like the best and which ones will do the job best. So I created a collage because a lot of times when I want to buy something, I sit and obsess over it until I don’t even want it anymore. By the time I make this decision, I will either a) hate all boots in existence or b) be sitting on a beach because it’s now summer.

But I’m cold. And I still want some boots. And here are my top picks for winter boots this year.

Winter Boots by susieand featuring Sorel boots

That gem of a blog you can’t believe you didn’t know about until this year

I could list about 55 billion new food blogs I’ve discovered this year. And maybe about 22 billion celebrity blogs I’ve discovered (for work research purposes!). But I’m only allowed to pick one favorite. ONE! Actually, nobody is really enforcing any hardcore rules over here, so I’m sure I could combine those new faves and pick 77 billion favorite new blogs in 2009. But alas, I don’t really have the time for that. You know, I’ve got other things to do. Like write my own celebrity news. And go to bed before 1 a.m. for once. Huh.

So, I’ll simply choose one.

And that one is: Frugal Fashionista

Honestly, the only thing I really don’t like about this blog is that it’s called Frugal Fashionista, but the blog address is FrugalfashionistaS.com with an “S” there on the end. Yeah, stuff like that really bugs me.

This blog basically takes a celebrity (yay celebrities!) and tells you how to get their look for less. Yeah yeah, you’ve seen it on just about every other blog, but it’s different here. Why? Well, they just do it SO well. Like honest to goodness here, you could dress like every single one of your favorite celebrities for no problem at all. Sometimes I have to write “steal her style” type pieces, so I know how hard it is. And that makes me really admire how Frugal Fashionista does it!

I mean, check this out. It’s goooood. Real gooood:

And now I’m off to continue to steal every one of my favorite celebrities style. But on a budget. Also, that above purse? Only $44.95?? Heck yeah! I’m definitely not feeling the jeans, but that jacket? I think I could attempt it. Maybe.

Was there a conference or workshop you attended that was especially beneficial?

Not only is this little Best of 09 challenge is not only causing me to repeat myself a million times, but it’s also making me realize I’m really forgetful. Either that or I’m simply super boring. Ugh, I hate that.

However, it is the 6th of December and I’m blogging, which means I’ve blogged here for 6 days straight. And to that, I say, GO ME! You should say it to (to me) too because it will make me feel good and continue blogging. Positive reinforcement FTW.

The best conference I attended this year was, no doubt (unless I’m forgetting something major, which is quite possible), the FoodBuzz Festival. I’m not even completely certain Foodbuzz Fest would be considered a conference, but for the purposes of this post, it was indeed.

I mean, it was pretty awesome.

The food was, of course, perfect. ALL WEEKEND LONG.

I’m still dreaming about this yogurt, no lie.

I sipped on olive oil at 9 a.m. Who knew that was such a good way to wake up?

And we saw some awesome sights as well.

And now I’m convinced this whole challenge thing is making me boring. Maybe that’s the point of it? To make me realize that I can come up with my own perfectly entertaining blog material than following prompts and being boring. If that’s the point, well my friends, I do believe it’s working. Of course, now that I’ve started, I feel like I have to finish. Blahhh sometimes I hate being a non-quitter.

Did you have a night out with friends or a loved one that rocked your world?

Guess what bloggies? I had about a billion nights out in 2009 with friends and loved ones that rocked my world. OK, so a billion probably isn’t believable as there have only been about 330-something nights in 2009, but whatevs. You get the point. Yes?

Really, my #1 favorite night has to be my sister’s wedding because it’s the night she married the love of her life. And I was surrounded by my family and loved ones and total and complete happiness. There is no beating that.

But there were more too:

Every night in Hawaii rocked my world.

Every night I spent at blogging events worked my world.

Every night I spent with my friends rocked my world.

Every night I spent sitting in my parents’ kitchen rocked my world.

Every night I spent with my love just hanging out, drinking wine, and watching bad reality TV rocked my world.

And you know what? Even the nights I spent alone working my butt off until 2 a.m. rocked my world.

Basically, 2009 was a year full of nights that rocked my world. And I hope 2010 has even more!

(Gosh, this Best of 09 challenge is making me totally sappy and stuff. I need to start writing about questionable fashion trends and my vapid wants again soon. Also? Hawaii is pretty much the answer to all of these questions. All of them.)

What book – fiction or non – touched you?

Back in a college literature class I had to read Lorrie Moore’s Birds of America. I had never heard of Moore before, but instantly fell in love. Like before the book even started. Mainly because she started the book with a quote from Charlie Smith’s “The Meaning of Birds”:

” … it is not news that we live in a world
where beauty is unexplainable
and suddenly ruined
and has its own routines. We are often far
from home in a dark town, and our griefs
are difficult to translate into a language
understood by others.”

Wow. And that wasn’t even Lorrie Moore writing, but it set the tone for the whole book. Anyway, I’ve since read Birds of America about a billion times and FINALLY realized I needed to read another Lorrie Moore book. So, I picked up Self-Help and yup, I fell in love again. Honestly, I generally dislike books of short stories, much preferring a good novel, But Moore’s short stories are to die for. They make me feel like I opened a box of chocolates and ate every single one. And everyone had something delicious inside (peanut butter, toffee, fudge…)She’s one of those writers who says basically everything I’m thinking, but ten times more beautifully. Her writing makes me so emotional- happy, sad, and everything in between.

This excerpt is from a Self-Help story called “How to Become a Writer, Or Have You Earned This Cliche?”

“First, try to be something, anything, else. A movie star/astronaut. A movie star/ missionary. A movie star/kindergarten teacher. President of the World. Fail miserably. It is best if you fail at an early age – say, 14. Early, critical disillusionment is necessary so that at 15 you can write long haiku sequences about thwarted desire. It is a pond, a cherry blossom, a wind brushing against sparrow wing leaving for mountain. Count the syllables. Show it to your mom. She is tough and practical. She has a son in Vietnam and a husband who may be having an affair. She believes in wearing brown because it hides spots. She’ll look briefly at your writing then back up at you with a face blank as a doughnut. She’ll say: ”How about emptying the dishwasher?” Look away. Shove the forks in the fork drawer. Accidentally break one of the freebie gas station glasses. This is the required pain and suffering. This is only for starters.”

OK, I’ll admit it. I want to be Lorrie Moore. Nothing would make me happier in life than if I could put my ideas on paper like she can. I’ve said it before, but one of the most joyful and most painful things about being a writer is reading other writers who can say things a million times better than you.

But I wouldn’t have it any other way. Lorrie Moore played a big part in my year and will continue to play that part throughout my entire life.