Monday, July 25, 2011

Mustard yellow

My favorite color of the season accompanied me out today; thanks Veronica (sister) for letting me borrow this lovely jacket!



I have gotten reacquainted with my romance novels due to the disappointment that was Single Ladies.  In hand is one by Rachel Gibson.  I love all of hers-- nice, cheesy, and informative.  I am now fluent in Hockey speak thanks to her hockey series.  -

On moi: Kay Unger Jacket and chiffon pants by Carmen Marc Valvo

earring from Ylang Ylang

belt by Missoni

Pardon my face, I have no idea what I was doing.  Red slides by Guess

Have a good week, 
XOXO

Pictures taken by DMJ Productions

Friday, July 22, 2011

WWJD… Remember this bracelet?

Oh wait… you don’t? Why am I not surprised? I’m apparently one of the few people in America that went to a middle school where a What Would Jesus Do bracelet (an imitation of Lance Armstrong’s LIVESTRONG bracelet) was as cool to the kids as a pair of TOM shoes is to this generation.  So… as a frenemy to wearers of these bracelets (the only kind of friendships that was granted me during middle school for reasons better left unexplained), I quickly recognized that today’s front-running pop stars were made up of versions of my childhood pals.  Naturally, I  felt a nostalgic need to congratulate their kind for successfully infiltrating pop culture, and to note to all (especially conservative christians) that religion is not dead--- fear not, because the champions of the WWJD bracelets are all grown-up and Judas freaking all over town:  

K$sha- Seemingly on coke every time she is in the public eye, she manages to always have a cross as an accessory, a unicorn as her ride and fairies serving as her entourage.  She is definitely one with the spirits.

Katy Perry—representing the typically spaced out, backslidden –or at the very least, lukewarm— pastor’s daughter, she marries a prodigal son, parades around naked, yet points fingers at others (poor Lady GAGA…) for sins such as blasphemy.   Her sister in faith, Jessica Simpson, will be very proud.

Lady GAGA— The girl whose enrollment was always in question, she stood outside the pearly gates and patiently waited for the never offered invitation to the in-crowd.  Her angst against the Deity in current times seems somewhat well deserved.

Honorable 80s mention:
Madonna— kicked out after a semester for saying the 'f' word one too many times, the Dan Brown of her era went on to successfully capitalize on religion by trying to piss off any religious figure that was mentioned during Wednesday afternoon’s bible class.    Fortunately, unlike her Oscar misses for movies such as Evita (whatever… I liked it); the universe rightfully rewarded her by presenting to her a spawn in the form of Lady Gaga. 

… so here is a glass to the SAVED high school class of 2000!!!!!!!!!

Monday, July 18, 2011

Flower Power

Inspiration: the first time I saw this video, I momentarily forgot I wasn't partial to any of Rihanna's creative sensibilities-- the vibrancy and brilliance of the petals on display served as a memory erasing pill for moi.  Since then, frolicking in a sea of flowers has replaced my favorite imaginary past time of skiing.


...It was only natural that this rekindled volcanic love of flowers will manifest itself in my closet:


Zara top and Erdem shorts



Paired with nude Chloe sandals.

Hope you are having a great week,
XOXO
Ava

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Single Ladies Recap… Episode 6

Is the show getting better or are we experiencing olfactory fatigue syndrome?  (I.e. in comparison to the previous episodes, we actually thought the bulk of episode 6 was much easier to stomach).  And since both of us are not critics by nature, we have decided to stop short of picketing in front of the Single Ladies set—the next obvious step since outside of our little “illness”, it still does not seem like our letters and memorandums are being heeded.    Consequently, this will be our last review and we wish the show all the best going forward.   This is not to say that we might not come back if a particularly interesting episode is shown—we are somewhat dedicated to this cause.  To mourn this quittance, C and I will be conducting a memorial at sunset for the loss of potential.  After sunset we will move right into conducting a 24-hr fast and prayer session to the Gods of Primetime devoutly requesting a SATC replacement.   In the meantime… readers please put on your Ebert hat and enjoy our maybe last review of this week’s episode.

The good:
-The romantic in us could not help but get excited when Malcolm and Keisha finally got togetherHowever, and yes— we know this is beginning to sound redundant – for such a big development as Malcolm and Kiesha hanging out more and more, and Kiesha beginning to fall in love with him; we believe the audience should have been shown some of these developments.  We are honestly growing tired of being “told” the story, instead of being “shown” the story.  How characters go from BOOTY to googly is a very important story line for a show entitled Single Ladies.  If the writers would just cut out unnecessary scenes like Christina and her pathetic professor or Sharon Love’s self-absorbed promotion of her upcoming syndicated talk show, they would have more time to show quality scenes. 

-April’s acting was superb in this episode.  In all her scenes, she’s captivating and demands the viewer’s attention.  Her lines are much more substantive than the other characters – perhaps it’s because she has “real” problems like a dissolving marriage and a precarious career and therefore her role demands more seriousness.   She actually delivered our favorite line in this episode:  Reed:  “I was just feeling appreciative.”  (When he tries to get in bed with April)-  April:  “Put it in a song”.

The bad:
-The world is apparently a village.  A debatable enough concept since I have yet to run into the idiot man at the checkout line I have dreamed of telling off for cutting in front of me, but was too dumbfounded—who does that during the holiday season?— to utter anything at that particular instant.   However, in the minds of the Single Ladies’ writers, the world is actually smaller than a village—it closely resembles a middle eastern family compound where Val is unknowingly (initially at least) dating the owner of her ex boyfriend’s team, the same boyfriend who did not put a ring on it after five years yet put a ring on someone else a month after they broke up.  Did we mention that this new fiancĂ©e is the daughter of Val’s current boyfriend and now a “friend” to Val? As if this story line is not twisty enough, in last night’s episode, Keisha saves a girl from sexual peril and finds out later that she is Malcolm’s sister.  When are these coincidences going to cease? This leads us to our last and final plea:

Please limit the coincidences and try for a hint of reality.  It is bad enough we have to believe that three beautiful, successful, outgoing women only spend time with each other at home or at work.  Honestly, what do they eat—they cannot possibly cook all their meals!?!??!!?? How do they get their alcohol nourishment during their girl talks?  Are they carrying their flasks to work?  Of course one might say that C and I find these overlooked situations odd since our frequent catch-up time with our girlfriends are actually a cover up for our obvious addictions—alcoholism and gluttony.  And to that we say, cest la vie! 

XOXO
Christiana Duodu and Ava Drake

Monday, July 11, 2011

A whole new world...

I am still partial to concrete, steel, and glass but it is nice to once in a while (for 30 minutes or less) walk the earth.  For the occasion: 


Anne Klein watch, Kenneth Cole ring and pearl bracelets

Missoni wrap top and Zara skirt

Vintage pearl head band-- my grand mama's


I did not feel the need to put on hiking boots (don't own any) so I opted for the next best thing-- Pelle Moda animal print sandals.  These sandals have definitely been through the wire

For all the unbelievers out there (mainly my husband), see how at peace I am with "Grandmother Willow" and my surroundings????  I might be ready to play like Thoreau and start working on my version of Walden...

Until next time,
XOXO
Ava

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Single Ladies Wrap Up… Episode 5

“I propose that we go to the floor and slow dance... lalalalalala…… lalalalalalala”. 

Recommendations for this episode can be summed up with one saying: less is more.  Or… it's primetime not daytime—we do not need an All My Children in this time slot; or... this isn't a sprint but a marathon, pace yourself.  Yes… we feel the need to keep throwing out more sayings even though just one would have sufficed… because… hell, that is what we had to endure on Monday night: too many story lines. 

It was not all bad though… the good:
The witty banter between Val and Jerry were quite entertaining throughout the show—from Jerry’s, “you look trustworthy to me” to Val’s cheeky reply, “Oh I am… I was a Girl’s Scout”-- those two character’s scenes were actually the only scenes worth watching.  The only recommendation we have was for the director to show the restaurant scene with Val and Jerry where he manages to pay for the dinner, even though Val insisted repeatedly that she wanted to pay for it to make up for Jerry’s purchase of her golf clothes.  It was pointless to hear the story in the third person – via Jerry’s account. We saw him show up at the store to ask her out to dinner, and then walk her back to her apartment lobby – and nothing in between. 

Favorite line— Keisha’s reply to Val accusing her of also being a man junkie: “I am a recreational user; I do it for the sport”.

The not so good:   As mentioned earlier, there were so many story lines that kept getting introduced even though older story lines/plots are still stuck in writer's limbo.  Like a child who never rises above his or her parent’s station in life, this show is quickly slipping down the tandem pole.   From last week’s SL wrap-up, we recommended for the writers to figure out who is going to be the lead character—preferably Val—and stick to revolving the show around her.  Evidently, they didn’t get the memo in time to heed our advice – so we repeat, identify the lead character and develop the remainder of the show’s story lines around her.  And with that, try to stick to one or two story lines per episode.  There were at least a dozen story lines in Episode 5, and none ever flourished by the end of the show.  This entire episode should have been limited to two stories— for comedic effect: Val’s attempts to “man cleanse” and for substance:  April and Daryl’s story line. 

The following scenes should have been eliminated, properly developed, or introduced in later episodes:  

-Workout scene with Kiesha and her personal trainer:  Was it just us or did you feel like an intruder looking in.  There was no prior introduction of Armadello (sp?).   It seemed like this was the first time Kiesha was meeting her trainer, yet the first series of exercises seemed more like routine foreplay that usually leads to the kind of wild sex the viewers witnessed.  Anytime a viewer asks herself “what is going on?” and the show isn’t a thriller or suspense but rather a romantic comedy, red flags should go up in the writers/director’s heads. The scene needed more conversation or background –i.e. in the scene preceding this one, when all the girls were in Val’s kitchen discussing her man cleanse, the women should have also discussed Armadello.  Keisha refused to go on the “cleanse” with Val because “she had some things lined up”.  Which things exactly? Most friends would have asked and that would have been the perfect time to introduce Armadello to the story.  

-So off to the party scene with the fashion institute students.  First of all, when girlfriends show up at a party, they usually stick together for a huge part of the festivities – unless they attend with dates/significant others.  We are not quite sure why Val, April, Kiesha and Omar were all positioned in opposite corners of the room.  And Christina, who supposedly invited the gang, was off dancing with her friend and making out with a professor while her “guests” were left to fend for themselves.  Oh, and there were no scene shots of the great clothes Christina and Val both mentioned.  If the writers want to continue giving Christina sizeable screen time, they could have shown her introducing the gang to some of the key players at the fashion institute who are presumably at the party showing off their work.  Quite honestly, what was the point of the entire party scene? So that we can know that Kiesha is a man eater with a conscience because she wouldn’t stoop so low as to “do” a 19 year old?  Or that Val isn’t too keen on people spilling beer on her designer shoes?  Or that Christina or Omar will screw anyone, anywhere?  We’ve already seen it all.  What’s next?

-Robbing scene should have been axed, very incongruent with the story.  Also, who immediately enters their place when they first find out they have been robbed? Umm... the robber could still be there.  

-Another thing that is beginning to irk us more and more is Val’s increasing meanness to her so-called “friends”.  When the series began, Val was portrayed as the loveable, sweet, and protective girlfriend who would diffuse any tension at all costs.  But in the last two episodes, she’s uttered a few nasty comments toward her friends, which gives us the inkling that either the writers would like to change her personality traits or they are not quite sure which direction to develop her character.  For example, why would Val suggest to April (after they were robbed) that it was bad enough that she had to hide the affair from Daryl, now she has to keep April’s behavior regarding her finances (transferring her trust funds) from Daryl?  Why in a million years would we think that Val would divulge this information to Daryl?  Even our frenemies would not stoop that low.  The opening episodes made it clear that the girls are best friends – even though Daryl introduced April to Val.  Also, Val barks at Kiesha that if it wasn’t for her screwing her personal trainer in order to get over Malcolm, whom she really loves, the robbery wouldn’t have happened.  How harsh is that?  Even if she thought it, Val, as we were originally introduced, would have never made such a comment.  She’s the diffuser, the mediator, and quite frankly, the one with the least backbone of all the girls.  A suggestion:  leave Val’s character as she was originally introduced.   If you feel the need to have her grow a pair, show the viewers the steps she goes through to get there (this will take more than one episode by the way). 

This is all for now; as usual, we held back some of our opinions and hope to God this gets better.  It is getting painful and Christy and I are thinking of pulling out our SATC’s DVDs and just giving up on Single Ladies... tear!  

XOXO
Christiana Duodu and Ava Drake

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Ode to Michelle O and...

CHICAGO-- the play!!!!!!!!!
Finally saw this play on date night with my hubby and our new live-in overgrown child, my little sister.  The play, as expected, was enjoyable and the soundtrack to the play has resumed its number one position in my CD line up.   The CD was my entertainment for a whole semester after the movie came out in early 2000.  My dress-- with the exception of her ever present accessories, sculpted arms--  reminded me of a Michelle O look.

Kay Unger dress, love the bow and detailing.

Christian Louboutin shoes and Chanel purse



Close up view of the detailing on the dress

Happy 4th of July and hope you have a good rest of the week.

XOXO
Ava