Want proof of how out of touch Mitt Romney is with his own upbringing and peoples' abilities to move up into the upper 1% with the deck stacked against them? Borrow $20,000 from your parents? Equate happiness with money and a house with a golf course? Puhlease!
The number of women who remain stubbornly Republican mystifies me these days. Unless they belong in a cult or wistfully watch Mad Men wishing back the days when women stayed home, wore aprons and pearls and girdles as they vacuumed, and were treated like children, I can see few reasons why they would want to be associated with a party that no longer bears close association with the Reagan republicans, many of whom are being ousted from office for being to moderate and willing to compromise. This video takes the Republican quest to marginalize women to an extreme, one that is scarily true.
An unarmed peaceful group protesting the detestable Virginia ultrasound law was stopped by a group of riot police armed with machine guns and kept from protesting at the Capitol steps.
These scenes prove that Republicans don't have the guts to stand in front of their actions. Afraid of middle aged women and college students, they prefer to hide like frightened little girls behind the police.
One viewer commented that Jolie was the best looking woman at the Oscars. Really? I loved what one twitterer had to say:
"Angelina Jolie's arms are skinnier than any kid's she could adopt from Africa," said one, while another wrote: "Sweet baby Jesus Angelina Jolie put it away your children are watching."
It would be hard to find a more awkward stance
She's still holding Pitt's hand as she wrangles
her thigh out of her gown
For me, beauty comes from the inside. How quickly the public has forgotten her willingness to steal men away from women, as Laura Dern and Jennifer Anniston can attest. Somehow, by adopting three kids, she's become Saint Angelina.
All I can say when I see her image and those skinny arms is, "Ughh".
Pretty dresses on the runway,
Pretty dresses made of flowing fabrics,
Low cut dresses on the runway,
The winner's outfits are all the same.
There's a kaftan and a kaftan
And a swim suit and a kaftan,
And they're all made out of flowing fabrics
And they all look just the same.
And the viewers in their houses
All were rooting for a choking Viktor
And the judges with their score cards
Decided Anya all the same.
There was Josh along with Anya
And he too was the judges' fav'rite.
Despite bedazzlers and a mean streak,
Despite his outfits made of ticky tacky,
Josh came in second all the same.
As those two rode high on score cards,
K and V got tepid comments,
Dismissed like flotsam, dissed like amateurs,
Told to go, and auf wiedersehened,
Told to pack their sewing kits,
Told that all their pretty outfits,
All had come out pretty lame.
As for Michael and for Heidi
and for Nina and the other judges,
All their comments sounded biased,
And their judgments were all ticky tacky,
for they all ruined Project Runway.
What a gosh-darned-awful shame.
Winner Anya will start her fashion line
And Josh will raise more hackles
And their outfits made of ticky tacky
Will all look just the same.
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one,
And they're all made out of flowing fabrics
And they all look just the same.
Andy Cohen from Bravo clued me in on this funny, fabulous, image-filled site. If you are a Real Housewives fan (or not) you will love the drawings. Check them out: Pretty on the Outside.
The uproar has been loud and my guess is that most of us have seen them. Two ads designed by L'Oreal have been banned in Great Britain. Good for them. While Julia Roberts and Christy Turlington are beautiful women, they are both over 40 and have "over forty" skin, but from the ads you would never know it. In these two photographs they are shown as they appear normally, so you can judge for yourself. I think they still look beautiful but more their age.
Still beautiful, but you can definitely see the
lines in her face
It's a bit unfair to take an image of a person who
only intends to do a bit of grocery shopping, but
it shows that Julia is just like every woman.
Now compare the above two photos with the banned ads. No wonder women feel self-esteem issues about their looks when they look at these false ads.
Was the Advertising Standards Authority in Great Britain right to ban these ads in your estimation? I for one am glad that someone is putting their foot down. Those cosmetics would in no way produce such drastic results. Truth in advertising protects the consumer. I am glad these are banned across The Pond.
This photo of defense attorney Cheney Mason at the victory celebration after the verdict says it all about the caliber of the people who made up the defense team of this lying whoring (their terms) "good" mother:
Image of Cheney Mason, Casey Anthony defense lawyer @Daily Mail
Juror Jennifer Ford cried when the jury voted to clear Casey Anthony of
her daughter's murder.
Yeah, I agree that the prosecution did not prove the murder of this little girl by her mother beyond a reasonable doubt, but the verdict still sticks in my craw. What's even worse is that HLN (Headline News) reports that Casey wrote that if she got off she intended to get pregnant again. I am aghast.
I loved Bethenny Frankel's humorous observations on The Real Housewives of New York, where she played not a housewife, but the friend to one. I love that she's made it big with her new show on Bravo and with the sale of her Skinny Girl margarita (to the tune of $120 million). Having never tasted the stuff, I thought I would look up a review of the drink. This one from Esquire is pretty funny:
What it tastes like:Say the cute little four-year-old down the block made a bowl of lemonade but instead of sugar used Splenda and instead of lemons used lemon flavoring and put it in a big bowl filled with ice and set it in the sun so all the ice melted and the "lemonade" got kind of hot and she got bored and went inside and a Labrador retriever came along and lapped some up and then stuck his head in the bowl and got the stuff all up in his nose and sneezed uncontrollably into the bowl for a while. That's what it tastes like. On ice.
I have never seen Elizabeth Taylor's violet eyes in person, but always wanted to. This image is striking for showing their color, which made Warren Beatty exclaim his admiration out loud when he met her.
Rest in peace, beautiful lady. In your final years, your charity work on behalf of others made you as famous as your stunning looks, drama-filled life and fifty plus films.
Margaret and Helen prove that while the body ages, a mind that stays as sharp as a tack combined with a talent for writing biting satire plus years of sage wisdom prove to be a winning combination. If you are among the one or two liberals who have not yet visited this blog (their insights will infuriate other political leanings), then rush over to their blog. Here are some nuggets:
"I find it funny how universal healthcare is big government gone bad, but somehow the government crawling up my uterus and telling me what choice to make isn’t. Odd how giving patients information about end of life options is a “death squad for Grandma” but sonograms before abortions are simply souvenirs for the family photo album."
"Those lavish benefit checks on average are about $375 per week or about $1,600 per month. Only about 37 percent of unemployed workers actually collect unemployment benefits, and the unemployed workers who are not collecting benefits find a job, on average, only about one week earlier than unemployed workers who are collecting benefits."
"The thing about politics, Margaret, is that these days there really is no middle ground. Not a single candidate won their seat with a mandate. Show me a candidate who took 100% of the votes and I’ll show you a candidate with a mandate. For example, even Mr. Coons up there in Delaware represents 40% of voters who preferred a witch. And Governor Perry down here in my state is still the Governor for over 2 million Texans who voted for the other guy. Which one do you think is looking for middle ground today?"
And on and on. They remind me of my liberal mother-in-law (now deceased) who spoke from the heart. One might not always agree with them, but you have to give them kudos for their wisdom and courage to speak their minds. Really.
I adored HBO's Sex and the City. Newly single when the series came out, I could related to the trials and tribulations of single working women. There were aspects of all the girls in their personal and professional lives that I had experienced. So when the series ended, I felt a pang. Then the films were announced, and while the plot of the first one was a bit strange, it didn't matter, for it gave me the opportunity to visit with Samantha, Carey, Miranda and Charlotte once again.
The girls in Abu Dhabi
Sex and the City One was such a hit that a second film was ordered up almost immediately. I wish they hadn't bothered, for this sequel finally killed any desire on my part to see any Sex and the City movie or episode ever again.
This is what this train wreck of a film has taught us:
That Carey, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte are vain, selfish, predictable and boring. They have become their own cliches.
The rich are not brighter, smarter, or more interesting than us, they just happened to be brand-loving, over-privileged consumers.
No amount of restaurants, vacations or fabulous clothes will make up for internal emptiness or shallowness of character.
Choosing the setting of Abhu Dabi in these economically challenged times was not only an idiotic move, it was suicidal. What American living in Detroit wants to be reminded that oil rich nations are living so high off the hog that hotel suites cost $22,000 for the night? What American, for that matter, wants to see the physical evidence of how our money to purchase gas is being spent? And what American woman wants to watch a film whose sole point of suspense reminds us how oppressive the United Arab Emirates are towards women? Stupid move. Moronic idea. The irony? The scenes were shot in Morocco when the United Arab Emirates failed to give the crew permission to film in their country.
Even the fashions were all wrong
The ladies are no longer funny. There was no humor. None.
The script writers forgot the most important reason why people come to see a film: You need a reason to sit and keep watching, or you'll feel that Hollywood fat cats have once more ripped your hard-earned money from your wallet. Not once did I care what would happen to these shallow characters. Note to the script writers: Whining does not take the place of deep, meaningful conversation.
A truly cringe-worthy and pointless moment in a film crammed with them
Last but not least: Don't insult the intelligence of your audience. Carey, who hardly ever showed her cleavage in New York or Paris (but regularly flaunted her fabulous legs) was Miss Boobs in Abu Dhabi. Samantha, no matter how horny, would not grab at a man's crotch in public in Abu Dhabi. Only Miranda made some sense – but just barely.
Carey summarized this film best when she said to Samantha: “You're exactly the same as when I met you.” Yes, but the ladies are now in their forties. They need to disappear and grow up.
Now, I would have paid to see this version. See spoof below.
Post note to the producers: Yeah, I understood the Hollywood-Depression Era associations in this film, the big Busby Berkeley-staged wedding at the beginning of the film, the "It Happened One Night" hitchhiking ploy cleverly tied into the end of the plot, the "romance" of the Middle East so frequently showcased in 30's movies, and the fact that the blatant materialism in films of that bygone era did help people to leave their economic woes behind for the length of the film.
But we live in a different time and century. We are inundated 24/7 with images and videos the world over, we travel more, and exotic foods and customs have infiltrated our own cities. Today, the magic of Hollywood does not make us forget our economic realities. If anything, the blatant materialism in Sex and the City2 forcibly reminds us of the free wheeling financial ways that many of us have so very recently lost.
Nina Garcia was such a supporter of Gretchen Jones and, along with Michael Kors, "persuaded" Heidi Klum and Jessica Simpson to award top honors to her mudslide collection over Mondo's vivacious looks. Let's see how well Gretchen's clothes look on Nina:
How Nina Garcia would look Gretchen's diapers
How Nina Garcia would look in pleather and diapers
This sad moment was not how I envisioned the ending of this season.
I was going to write a rasping, foul-mouthed and snarling rant over the astonishing ending of Season 8 of Project Runway, but Mondo, who is such a class act, would not approve. His final thoughts on PR and interview with Tom and Lorenzo show a generosity of spirit that neither Gretched nor I will ever achieve, and that knowledge has directed me towards writing a kinder gentler post than I had planned.
I did not outright hate Gretched's collection, though I thought her vomit and poop colors were worse than Michael C's, who was aufed for his monochromatic designs. I actually did like one or two of her pieces, and could see myself wearing them while I was taking out the garbage or disinfecting my dog from the stench of skunk spray.
Here's the thing: I liked almost all of Mondo's exciting collection except the pieces that Nina, the Unjust, and Michael, the Duchess of Orange, salivated over. And I gloried over the way Mondo overcame the obstacle of losing three of his chosen models, and how he stuck to his guns. This was HIS opportunity to shine and he wasn't going to compromise or cave in to anyone else's demands. His vision was that strong. GO MONDO!
From the moment I saw Mondo's strong point-of-view collection on T&Lo's site several weeks ago, I KNEW he had won. With the same certainty, after studying the other collections, I knew that April was in and Gretched was out. Good gawd was I ever wrong.
I had better get my instinct-o-meter adjusted, for I can no longer trust my gut.
What can I say about Teflon-Coated Gretched that hasn't been said before? This win will make her smug self-assurance even more insufferable.I can see here gazing lovingly upon her brown turd, fairy queen, hippie-bloused, baby-diapered, fortune-teller outfits and say, "I AM a force to be reckoned with. I AM THE FORCE".
Like Heidi and Jessica I would SO wear this dress. And doesn't Mondo look awesome?
How can 91% of the viewers be so wrong? In Blogging Project Runway's polls a staggering number of us thought Mondo would win and thought he should have won. On every blog site and online magazine site, the comments are overwhelmingly in support of Mondo. Only one person at work was rooting for Gretched and we figured this was because she wears Gretched-like outfits, loose drapy things that look like dishwater brown discards from a 1930's housewife's closet.
Mondo's clothes are playful and make us laugh even as we can imagine wearing them. He made me smile and feel protective towards him, and that is a rare thing. The Mondo we have all come to admire and love is a talented, gentle, sensitive, and forgiving soul, and I loved watching him come out of his shell and relishing each challenge in the competition.
The Duchess of Orange dressed Jessica in this gray mess
The Duchess of Orange did Project Runway a great disservice by strong-arming Heidi and Jessica into aufing Mondo. MK's gawdawful dress made beautiful but zaftig Jessica Simpson look like the Goodyear blimp, and he had the nerve to sniff his nose at Mondo's delightful collection, calling it theatrical. Mondo's playful designs are frankly better than MK's, who, in this instance, made a size 8 woman look like she should be floating over a stadium.
And Nina, the Unjust, should get off her high horse every once in a while and start lurking around bargain basement sales, where predictable Gretched-like outfits hang on monotonous brown and grey racks that stretch far into the horizon, unworn and rejected at even 90% off.
Awful decision. Awful aufing. I commented on Blogging Project Runway and Tom and Lorenzo's blog that I was done. And I am. This is my last post about Project Runway. It's time that this former fan moves on.
Our fathers and grandfathers salivated over Virna Lisa, who, like Venus de Milo, emerged from a shell in 1965 in her first film, How to Murder Your Wife. Typical of the time was the beauty spot at the corner of her mouth, her beehive hairdo, and her rounded, unmuscular figure in a bikini. Lovely Virna.
A thief broke Amanda Ennayati's car and ran off with a backpack, blackberry and a wallet filled with cash. That was his first mistake, for Amanda, as in her description below, is no ordinary woman:
See, aspiring thief, you just never know what you're stepping into when you hit up a random car on a random street. However badass you think you may be, there is someone on the other side of the robbery. And in this particular case it was someone who escaped the Iranian Revolution as a child; who roamed the world alone for five years because her parents couldn't get out; who watched from a dozen blocks away as the twin towers crumbled; who had just barely clawed her way out of that concentration camp known as late-stage cancer, if only because she was intent on raising her babies, come hell or high water. And all of this before she even turned 40. Can you see how that someone might be way more twisted than you?
Blame the judges for aufing all the colorful characters of Project Runway, resulting in last night's sleep-inducing episode. With this 8th installment of Season 8, Lifetime has found a cure for insomnia - Heidi and her merry band of producers could rake in millions selling the DVD to sleep clinics the world over.
The Jackie Kennedy American Sportswear challenge should have been exciting
For over 45 minutes of this 90-minute episode, my head kept nodding. I literally napped through the middle section, even during Tim's critiques, and woke up every once in a while only to see Gretchen making judgments of other people's designs, Valerie questioning herself, Michael C. making one new outfit after another, and Ivy frantically sewing at a machine.
Yawn.
However, I sat up and remained wide awake when the judges entered the pitbull arena. They then began to tear the bottom three contestants to pieces to the point where I squirmed at the verbal evisceration. All participated in the blood bath, except January Jones, who had been sleeping along with me.
Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, style icon
I intectually understood the judges' frustration, for they must have been working up their excitement to see the results of this challenge: To reinterpret Jackie Kennedy's classic American sportswear style and give it a modern twist. The challenge should have been a shoe-in for the designers, instead all of the outfits, except for Mondo's and Ivy's, fell short of the mark.
No other First Lady influenced fashion in the 20th century they way Jackie did
I began to wonder if these folks had ever seen an image of Jackie Kennedy, the style icon of the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Her style hallmarks were good taste, impeccable fit, simplicity, perfect proportions, rich materials, and classic lines. Her clothes were “boxy”, angular, and lacking over embellishments.
It was apparent that 7 out of the 10 contestants left in the competition had no idea what Jackie's style was about.And only two figured out how to pair their Jackie-O-influenced designs with outerwear.
The Top Three
Mondo nailed it with his modern reinterpretation of Jackie's look.
Mondo's winning design...
...was definitely influenced by his Muse...
...from the short boxy fitted jacket to the short fitted skirt.
Ivy understood the challenge as well. While she is one of my least favorite PR designers ever ...
...she channeled Jackie's elegance and came up with a winner.
Christopher's dress was beautiful, though not sporty. Michael Kors mistook the wrap for a toilet seat cover, and I am convinced that Jackie would not have been caught dead wearing an assortment of bath towels around her shoulders...
...as the wraps in these images clearly show.
The Bottom Three
I agree with the judges: Valerie's color sense is vile. And why she chose these Piperlime shoes is beyond me.
Jackie liked large lapels on her fitted raincoat classics, but they were sharp and stiff, and played an important role in framing her face and hair, a detail Val forgot.
I am switching the order of the bottom three, since I sincerely believe the wrong designer got aufed. I do agree with the judges - almost every proportion and detail about Michael D's outfit is wrong. Michael Kors described it as "schizophrenic Jackie Kennedy: an old lady on top and a cheerleader on the bottom." Ha!
Jackie always pulled together a look, even when going casual, and seldom got it wrong. Her casual clothes were tailored and slimming and pulled together...
...even when the event was extremely casual..
An now for the design that should have come dead last: "MC Hammer meets the Beverley Hills grandmother." The judges this year have have been so obsessed with spouting clichés like throwing "someone under the bus" or accusing the designers of creating outfits for old folks, that their decisions have been out of whack all season. I have rarely agreed with their top and bottom choices.
This week they were more correct in comparing Andy's outfit to a costume Nicole Kidman would have worn in Cold Mountain.In no way did this design evoke Jacqueline Kennedy in any way, shape or form.
The fact that Andy liked his final product, while Michael D understood that his outfit sucked, should have clued the judges on who to auf.
Nothing in Jackie's extensive wardrobe resembled this hot mess...
...which she would not have been caught dead wearing, not even for a stroll in NYC or a ride in the park.
Michael D. was robbed! As for Michael C, Gretchen, and April, their designs were off too, especially Gretchen's, who continues to be inspired by Nottingham Forest and fabrics dyed with natural substances by primitive tribes.
Note to Lifetime: Piperlime has to go. These granny boots are seriously ugly.
Since Episode One I've been suffering from a serious case of Mondo worship. After this week, there's no question in my mind that he will be among the three designers to compete in NY Fashion week.
