"bling night"

last night was a lot of fun. two of my girlfriends came over for some girly time (no, not having pillow fights in our underwear. that's next weekend. *grin*)... we did the whole gluing-swarovski-crystals-to-our-clothes thing, and it was really a hoot. i wish i'd taken pix of the end results, they came out really good. L#1 did a great starburst design on a '70s-style denim purse... and L#2 put a few each on a t-shirt, pair of panties, and an evening bag. i started doing a design on a black t-shirt, and got frustrated with it and stopped (i wasn't sure what design i wanted, so i'd rather sketch some stuff out before i finish).

i also did a t-shirt for our token male, J... he didn't want to be there for the sparkly stuff, even though we begged him to come and have fun. he said it was too girly, and he'd come over later for chinese and a movie. but unbeknownst to him, i had gotten him a black t-shirt in the mall while i was down in philly... and i spent a good chunk of last night gluing "paco" (our nickname for him) in crystals on the back. when we surprised him with it later on, his face totally lit up. it was priceless.

the chinese-and-a-movie part was fun too... we watched "you got served" (yes, i own it) for the second time... but this time, because we weren't in the theatre, we could rip the hell out of the plot and acting. as if you watch that movie for anything other than the dancing... but hey, this is what we do. *grin* the food was good, i hadn't had chinese in forever because it's like a million points on WW. i'm really trying to be good, i want to lose at least another 30 pounds so i can have more energy (and be a sexy bitch), so i just ordered a clear soup with rice noodles. L#1 is on south beach, and i am so psyched for her... she's already lost 7 pounds and is really focused. she's so beautiful, but she doesn't always see it... i really want her to reach her goal so that she can realize it herself.

all in all, a good night. today it's back to the grind... 2 tests to study for and take, a report due, and i have to get my act together (clean the car, etc.) because my manager is with me tomorrow. god, i really need to go dancing this week to blow off some steam.

a tale of two shoes.

okay, maybe the women out there can appreciate this.

i love shoes. i feel like such a stereotype in saying that... the whole imelda marcos-y, sex and the city, "i'll spend my whole paycheck on a pair of manolos" mindset. i'm not that bad, i think the most money i've ever spent on shoes was when i bought a $100 pair of cowboy boots in 1994 and wore them for 9 years. my shoes used to fall into one category: practical. for most of my adult life, all my shoes have been black, comfy, and cheap. if the heel was too high, or they cost more than $29.99, i walked right on by.

that is, until 2 years ago. i had to go back into training for my job, to learn some new products. being in a training class for my company is always interesting, because the women get totally decked out and you pick up a lot of fashion ideas. well, in this training class was a girl who had 2 big things going for her: 1. a wealthy husband and 2. an apartment in manhattan, just blocks from the Prada outlet. i have never seen someone dressed so funky in a corporate setting... she was head-to-toe prada every day. bags, suits, shoes... everything was right off the runway. and it was looking at her outfits week after week, that started my shoe and bag addiction.

it all started innocently enough... a funky pair of heels i found at famous footwear in the mall for $60 (that i still get compliments on)... a sexy pair of camel sandals at an end-of-summer sale. all very affordable.

until... i saw... THE SHOES.

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