Good morning, Monday. I am at the bitter end of this cold thank goodness. It's been a rough week of sickness but think I am on the mend. Needless to say, I have not been to the gym in a week and feeling a bit depleted- perhaps I shall insert a feeding tube a la this piece in the Times yesterday- what in the hell is wrong with people? Seriously? To lose 15 pounds to fit into a strapless Vera Wang? People have officially lost their shit. (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/15/fashion/weddings/Losing-Weight-in-Time-for-...
Despite my sickness this morning, I went with David to buy a suit this weekend; he needed a new one for a wedding we have next weekend (yes, we still get invited to those). And I gotta tell you, I was thanking the sweet Lord above that I am not a man as we hit the stores. I was shocked at how expensive mens suits are- and it's pretty tough to get away with a suit that's not pricey, because they not only look bad, they are cut really poorly. I can't believe how much easier it is for us girls to stroll into a store like H&M if we don't have full pockets and buy a dress for under $50 that we can wear to any snazzy occasion and still look fabulous. I'm not sure men have as much luck when it comes to dressing up on a budget.
For example, we found ourselves at the Brooklyn Flea yesterday on the Willamsburg waterfront (which strangely felt a bit like Brickell) and I purchased a vintage sheer black number with a great ruffled skirt for $30 that I am seriously considering wearing next weekend, in addition to any number of options I already have in my closet ranging from an not so cheap Alice and Olivia one shouldered job to a vintage floor length Indian dress to a great Cynthia Vincent maxi that I found on guilt. Hey, men, apparently it's your world (James Brown said so), so somebody should probably take care of the fact that unless you want to look like a junior mafioso, you're not getting a good suit for under the price of a monthly lease on a new Audi. I think that's crazy. And don't even get me started on men's shoes- the prices are out of control- for a good pair of lace ups that have some style, you're easily going to spend $300. In the battle of the sexes, this is an area where we clearly win. Boys if you know otherwise, please enlighten me.
And speaking of enlightenment, I read a great piece in the UK Telegraph this weekend about how men fail all on fronts when it comes to complimenting women (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9203674/A-mans-guide-... . In fact, the wrong compliment, though well intentioned, can often feel more like an insult.
The gaffes range from telling a woman she is "curvy" (um, don't ever do that) to, and I quote, "you're not as stupid as you look" are proof positive that men are clueless when it come to knowing what to say to women when it comes to a showering of praise. It's interesting that both my husband and a Facebook friend of mine (I posted the article there) both said that it's simply not necessary to constantly compliment women- talk to them like they are normal (as in not so different than men) and you'll do much better. My friend went even further to say you're always safe if you compliment a woman on her shoes or her nails, and I think there's real truth in that. Also a simple "you look great today" (thanks, David) would suffice. I have my own thoughts on compliments, which to me become really important after you've been married for a while, when you need a bit of confirmation that you "still have it". Then again, after last night's "Mad Men" (great episode about masculinity ps) where a super butch Don Draper, stripped down to a white tee shirt, fixes Pete Campbell's kitchen sink when it sprung a leak, geyser like, in the middle of a dinner party. Although I have taken issue with Don's alpha male loutishness in the past, I have to say- save your self the tedious and awkward pause that will ensue when you say the wrong thing and just fix a woman's sink in your tee shirt. In my mind, that's the biggest compliment of all.
Cause that's what's up this mannish manic Monday in the 718. All the love and you all look fabulous and skinny and hyper intelligent today. Oh, and nice shoes. XO