It's been a bad break up for America

I was 17 when I experienced heartache for the first time. It was the kind of heartache that makes you realize there is something that hurts much more than physical pain. When you understand what it means for your heart to really hurt.
My mom, who's heart was breaking just watching me feel so sad, did the one thing she knew would cheer me up. She took me shopping.

Like the Phoenix, out of the ashes of my burned relationship came a beautiful birth: the birth of a new wardrobe.

And for the first time, I understood the true meaning of retail therapy.

I liken my broken heart to our broken economy. Although we've lost so much, out of the ashes of our economy, good will come. And though we've lost far more than my high school boyfriend, it is still important to rejoice in the minor victories.

As the holiday season is approaching, these victories are becoming more apparent. Since noon yesterday, I've had three.

I went to the mall to redeem a free gift at Victoria's Secret. Simply for coming in and buying something, they rewarded me a gift card. At any point during the month of December I can take my gift card in and they'll tell me the amount of money that is on it; it will be at least 10 dollars, up to five hundred.

When I returned home from work, I had a mini look book from BCBG waiting for me. Hours later, I received a call from BCBG explaining that in the back of the book, there is a free gift. I have to go to the store to learn what the gift is (anything from cash to a shopping spree).

And today, in the J.Crew catalog, a new offer: the Gift Gurus. They make holiday shopping easier through five steps:
  1. They'll schedule an appointment to review every item on your list (and check it twice).
  2. They'll handpick perfect presents for everyone (no matter how fussy, far away, naughty or nice).
  3. They'll give advice to anyone shopping for you too, so you get exactly what you're wishing for.
  4. They'll find it for you fast - that means tracking down that just-right item in 48-hours or less
  5. They'll wrap things up. Literally. From gift wrapping to doorstep delivery, they'll handle every detail for you.
And it's completely complimentary.
So I have a gift card to Victoria's Secret, a present waiting for me at BCBG and elves at J.Crew.

Although I like to think of myself as a loyal shopper, I know I'm not a whale.

But stores, desperate for holiday sales to be up from last year, are doing anything they can to bring shoppers in. I may not have an AmEx Black, but those account managers know I'm weak. When I see the baubles and ruffles and sparkles (ah), and I'm holding a ten dollar gift card, I won't be able to pass it up...

So I'll shop and help myself, while simultaneously helping the economy, confident that things will get better. I mean, I got over my heartbreak. Why can't America?

A kiss on the hand may be quite continental...

"Imperfection is beauty. Madness is genius. And it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring." Marilyn Monroe

My friend Megan always says that I’m shambley. She says that even at my most together moments, something is always amiss. If I’m on time, presentation in hand, my cardigan is off by one button. If I’m looking pulled together, 100 percent aesthetically pleasing, I’m running two minutes behind.

And while I like to think I’m not always in shambles, I know exactly why it happens. I perpetually think I can do one more thing before I need to walk out the door. If I have five extra minutes before I need to get dressed, I become convinced that I can finish a pending assignment. If I have twenty minutes before a meeting, I’m sure I can bake a quick batch of cookies. If I have an hour between classes, I think I can fit in a quick work out and shower.

And some mornings, when I have an hour and twenty five minutes before work, I really believe I can work out, while the cookies bake and my assignment prints.

Essentially, it’s a mix of overconfidence in my capabilities and a belief that I really can make time move more slowly.

But I cannot…

Hence the cardigan that’s inside out (and maybe a little wrinkly).

Luckily for me, Jim says this is something he loves. It makes him smile when he can’t quite run his fingers through my hair, because I didn’t have time to condition. And he laughs when I’m running out the door and he has to remind me that my keys are on the counter.

Imperfection is beauty, right?

Right. Unless you’re a diamond. Then perfection (and clarity and cut) is beauty.

But times are tough and sometimes you want a perfect five carat diamond – and you just can’t afford it. And sure, some may settle for opting out of a new diamond. But Louisa Johnson doesn’t settle. She gets creative. Thus, Diamantine. They are the first and only diamonds to contain lab-created stones. She created the beauties in a lab in Los Angeles and they’re scientifically indistinguishable from traditional stones. Except, they’re thousands of dollars less. Because Diamantines are backed by third-party test data and certified by the most respected labs in the world, it’s impossible to tell them apart from natural diamonds.

Which means, they look perfect. Not even Megan could call them shambley.