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27 April 2009

Drool...


Heaven knows its not about what he says, its the way he says it...I had no idea that Ed Westwick was even yummier than Chuck Bass. First Rob now Ed, I guess I just love those dirty brits.

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You little Devil




Image from Urban Outfitters

26 April 2009

Gossip Girl Prom

You can buy Serena's prom dress for 20K, but you can't have Blair's...not even for ready money.
I adore Blair's dress.

Image from Gossip Girl Insider

25 April 2009

The Little White Horse

One of my favorite childhood books, "The Little White Horse" by Elizabeth Goudge, was made into a movie back in 2007. It was allegedly released in England in February 2009 as "The Secret of Moonacre."I just watched the trailer and read the wikipedia synopsis and I am sad that the movie doesn't stay all that faithful to the book. In fact, they've taken LOTS of liberites. Worst of all, the hero in the book, Robin, looks like a character out of a clockwork orange instead of a character out of Heidi, as I always envisioned. At any rate, I hope the movie is released in the USA at some point. In the mean time I highly recommend the book. It is children's fiction, but it is a sweet story. I've alway imagined that I would love to live on an estate like the one described. I must give you warning that the book has a fair bit of moralizing, kind of like what you would expect if Louisa May Alcott had written a fantasy novel.

Image from Warner Bothers UK

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24 April 2009

Bar Bingo

Loving these Bar Bingo cards from Knock Knock. Can't wait to host a bar bingo outing!

Image from Knock Knock

Fake Mini Model Boobies


Last night I heard a totally intriguing rumor from a New York City Makeup Artist about model boobies. We all know that today's models are disturbingly skinny...as in count every single rib and knob of their spine skinny. So, when you think about it, someone with single digit percent body fat probably doesn't have much to spare for cleavage. There are, of course, genetic anomalies, but most of these girls should be as flat as a malnourished ten year old boy. So, I guess it should come as no surprise, that many models get fake A-cups. After all, models need at least some boobage ,they need them to look real-ish, proportional, they need them to be perfectly symmetrical...what could be more perfect than dainty little pillows of silicon? There are apparently plastic surgeons in New York who focus their entire practice on implanting perfect tiny model boobs. I wasn't able to find info about this anywhere else on the Internet...anyone able to corroborate this rumour?

Image from stylefrizz.com

23 April 2009

Virtual Bitch Slap: Ghetto-Latte Lovers

Cow juice or milkshakesThis shit ain't free!

Dear Revoltingly Cheap Starbucks Customer,
I think you should know that there is actually a name for "two shots of espresso over ice in a grande cup," which you then add condiment bar milk to...its called a ghetto latte (or fake latte or poor man's latte). You may think you are sticking it to the man, but actually you are just sticking it to all of the other poor wage slaves addicted to Starbucks. Not only do the prices of all the drinks get inflated because you don't pay your fair share, but when the rest of us go to add a few teaspoons of milk to our coffee/tea there is none left because your cheap ass used it all up. You may think you are clever, but really...you are not much better than a classless dime store shoplifter.

Kisses,
Sophia

P.S. Thanks for inspiring my new article category "virtual bitch slaps," I have a feeling it is going to be a real classic!
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03 April 2009

Nylon *exasperated sigh*


Thank you to Odd Cincy who informed me that the Nylon online shenanigans are all targeted at those of us who cashed in on the free Urban Outfitter Nylon subscription. I kind of suspected as much. It is at least good to know that Nylon didn't screw over it's paying customers. None the less, SHAME ON YOU Nylon and Urban...what about truth in advertising? I was promised free magazines for a year, not two months.

This post marks the end of my self righteous bitching, since this problem has an easy solution and its not like I paid for the subscription anyway. I'll suck it up and call customer service on Monday to resume denuding forests, one issue of Nylon at a time.

*oddcicy, incidentally, has a hilarious post up about cement penis sketches in ancient Rome

Image from gossipgirlinfo.com
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02 April 2009

More Geisha


So it seems I am not the only one out there obsessed with Geisha. For those of you who responded to my Mizuage post, I'd like to also recommend Geisha, by Liza Dalby. This book is part memoir, part history and part anthropological study. Dalby is the only non-Japanese that has ever trained as a geisha, and she described her apprenticeship through western eyes. She was allowed first hand, if a bit limited, access to "the flower and willow world." This is another great book for those interested in Giesha.

Image from Amazon

01 April 2009

Nylon dumps paper subscribers


I received an email from Nylon in my inbox this morning informing me that I would no longer be receiving issues of Nylon in the mail. I have to opt IN to paper issues. WTF?! Please tell me this is just an April Fools Joke publicity stunt.

Obviously, I enjoy reading content in digital format, I am a blogger after all. However, I just have not warmed up to the digital magazine platform for ANY digital magazine. Why might you ask?

  • You can't read the format in an RSS feed.
  • There is no easy mechanism to save things I like. I used to rip my favorite pages out of the magazine, now am I suppose to print them on my crappy printer? On a blog I can tumble my favorite images, this is not possible in current magazine platforms.
  • It takes a while to load new pages, which is super annoying when the first 15 pages are advertising. At least on blogs and websites there is almost always content somewhere on the same page with the advertising, or at worst one lone advertisement, not 15 in a row.
  • The platforms tend to be slow, Nylon's is no exception.
  • Reading articles in this format is difficult and annoying. The print is small, the zooming and navigation of the pages is annoying, like reading a Pdf in acrobat, but worse because of the double page layout. I always print out Pdfs to read. I am not going to print an entire freaking magazine that I subscribed to in PAPER originally. If you are going to publish online, you should make your content readable and scrollable.
  • Also on the readability issue: online articles (especially longer ones) are constructed differently than print articles. They are formatted for skimming. Online magazine are obviously not.
  • I used to read print magazines on the bus. I can't do that with a digital format. I doubt the magazine layouts look all that awesome on the now ubiquitous iPhone.
I am so annoyed I am thinking about unsubscribe from the emails and not even bothering to call in for a print issue subscription. I don't have the time to waste with an automated message system re-signing up for something I already subscribed to once.

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah. You are trying to be "green." You want to get you your magazine faster. You want to eliminate lost magazines. Whatever. At least be honest with your readers, Nylon. If you are going digital because you can't afford to print the paper magazine anymore, and this is your alternative to folding, say so. I could at least forgive that, but only if you investigate other online publishing platforms.

Dear ,

We’re pleased to attach your April issue of NYLON Magazine – in digital format. Just as DVDs have it all over VHS tapes, we think you will come to agree that our digital edition of NYLON offers a number of advantages over the traditional print edition:

  • No more waiting for your new issues to come in the mail! We will email each new issue of NYLON to you the day our editors sign off on it! And yes, the digital edition has all the content of the paper version; plus you can easily click, save, and print out the photos -- or share them with friends online.
  • No more lost issues! Ever had a magazine misplaced by the post office? Chewed up by the dog? Borrowed by your BFF? No problem – each digital edition in your NYLON subscription is always available to you, on our website or your computer!
  • No more paper! Looking for ways to reduce your carbon footprint? You have found one – enjoying NYLON Magazine on your screen instead of on paper! You’ll have less to throw out too.

Again, thank you for subscribing to NYLON. Wait ‘til you see what we have lined up in months ahead…

Sincerely,

Don Hellinger
President

P.S. If for some reason you would prefer to receive the print edition of NYLON instead of the digital edition, simply call 1-866-639-8133 between the hours of 8AM and 10 PM central time , and a Customer Service Representative will be pleased to assist you.

mediabistro.com

Mizuage

In the book Memoirs of Geisha, the mizuage ceremony during which a geisha graduates from an apprentice (maiko) is depicted as an auction of the geisha's virginity. I found the description of Chiyo's clinical deflowering disturbing. Believing that the author had correctly researched the lives of geisha, I imagined that this was how the mizuage ceremony happened in real life. I was wrong.

I recently finished, Geisha: A Life, the story of Mineko Iwaski, one of Japan's most famous Geisha. There is a detailed description of her mizuage ceremony, and there is no sex involved. She further goes on to state that the sexual mizuage ceremony described elsewhere was not a geisha ritual, but the ritual of cortesan group of Kyoto.

I highly recommend Geisha: A Life. It is an easy, entertaining and educational read. In fact, I read it in less than a day :).

Image from theage.com.au

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