I recently (erroneously, I must add) stated that I grew up in a home where makeup wasn’t emphasized during a discussion of Kathy Peiss’ piece “Making Up, Making Over.” A few hours of mulling over the idea that the world judges me on how my face is “made up” without consulting me, I decided to [...]
Just as vacationing results in excessive expenditure, so does homecoming. After all, once you’ve cleaned out your stinky fridge you find that food is lacking, transit cards have expired, your toilet no longer works, and your stomach is grouchy. Even more pressing, though, is that need to eat a bag full of Red Vines. Going [...]
My husband took me on a lunch date yesterday. On the surface, our reason was to celebrate the fact that he is employed (something well worth celebrating in a world of $1500 rent, which we paid on Wednesday using a check). Underlying that surface reason was the reality that two friends of ours recently surprised [...]
Leaving home inevitably opens up a pandora’s box of justification in expenditures. Vacation destinations, cruise ships and airlines are all aware of this–consider, for example, the sky malls of the air, with their hot-diggity-doggers (an all-in-one toaster/hot dog roaster), planter/litterbox combos and UV toothbrush sanitizers. None of these are pressing needs (or, to be honest, [...]
I talked to a stranger in the elevator today. My pretext for breaking the social contract of silence? Her lunch tote. I couldn’t help but exclaim over the breathtaking combination of functionality and fun embodied in one little bag. She replied to my “I love your lunchbag!” with a “I had to get [...]
I recently visited a promotional event for Electrolux (to read about it, see here). After the camera lights finished popping, and my mouth recovered from the glow of a little red velvet cupcake (not as good as this, though), I realized that the final frosting on this cupcake was a little gift bag filled with [...]