Watch out, brain!

"The study says that the women aged 27-45 have more sexual fantasies than the women aged 18-26."

-From Cougar Sex Decoded: Why Older Women Seek Out Younger Men

I just turned twenty-seven. I don't know if I am horrified to be included in an article about cougars or excited to learn that I am in my prime.

Fictional Romantic Gestures That Have Ruined Me for Ordinary Males #3: Friends

This is a fictional romantic gesture that took years to actually get recognized. Rachel and Monica revisit an old home movie from their prom night. I'm not entirely sure why Phoebe, Joey, and Chandler are so enthused to watch this home movie but that's not important. Rachel finally learns that, when it looked like her prom date was a no-show, Ross got all dressed up to go with her. The date showed up, leaving poor Ross looking bereft. Current Ross is clearly uncomfortable reliving this moment, but he is rewarded with a passionate kiss from Rachel.

As Phoebe says, "He's her lobster!" Who doesn't want to find their lobster?

Fictional Romantic Gestures That Have Ruined Me for Ordinary Males #2: The O.C.

I loved The O.C. (2003-2007)

This wonderful television program had it all: witty banter, beautiful people, and lots of punching. They tried for a while to make the show's core couple be Ryan and Marissa, but this was beyond boring. No, it was really all about Seth and Summer: one of the greatest television couples of all time. Summer was a little hesitant about publicly dating Seth, so he made a grand romantic gesture that made my little undergraduate heart flip flop all over the place back in Season 1.

Fictional Romantic Gestures That Have Ruined Me for Ordinary Males #1: Say Anything

So, it's no secret that I love John Cusack. It's also no secret that there are many women out there who share my love of his character in the 1989 film Say Anything, Lloyd Dobler. Why hasn't this inspired more men to be like Lloyd Dobler? That is unclear. Sure, it's hard to pull off a stunt like this. In the wrong light, you might get labeled a stalker. You had better have a record of sweet, earnest, non-creepy behavior to back it up.

At any rate, the boom box over the head gesture is iconic, romantic, and really sets the bar too high for everyone else in the whole world. I apologize for that, but there's not much I can do about it now.

shopping recovery

I just took an on-line survey, and it reminded me how much of a shopper I used to be:

In which, if any, of the following venues have you ever purchased goods such as apparel/accessories, jewelry, beauty product, home décor, electronics and other home goods?

Stores at a mall Outlet malls Online stores Mail order catalogue Boutique/specialty store not found in mall Television Network (TV shopping by phone or on Network’s website) Flea Market/Garage Sale In-home direct sales (a representative comes directly to you or a party of your friends and family to sell products) That's right. Every single answer applies to me because I had no boundaries when it came to shopping. Luckily, I have come a long way. My shopping is now about necessity rather than pleasure--at least for the most part. I went to Wal-Mart yesterday and spent just under $70. When I got home, I broke the receipt up into three major categories. I found that the breakdown ended up being $29 on cat supplies, $22 on health and beauty, and $15 on food. I'm not sure that I want to analyze this too much.

Valentino is my favorite shade of red.

I recently thought of a reason to be good at math; it probably helps you to be a designer. I firmly believe that I would have tried harder in math classes as a child if we could have applied it to, say, designing the perfect pair of red high-heeled pumps. Maybe it wouldn't have done any good, but I wish someone had brought it up. Valentino's Spring collection is full of exquisite rosettes, and it would be much easier to afford them if I was a wealthy fashion designer. I could dream up some brilliant shoes, but I couldn't draw them for you or give you any measurements. Very sad.

Top: "Rosette Peep-Toe Pump" by Valentino $745

Bottom: "Vicky" by rsvp $89

Reincarnation as an inanimate object

Andy Warhol wrote, "It would be very glamorous to be reincarnated as a great big ring on Liz Taylor's finger."

I wonder if Liz ever, very covertly, looks down at her rings and whispers, "Andy? Is that you?"