“People think chutzpah is in the genes. It isn’t… it’s in the needing and wanting and being willing to fall on your face. It isn’t fun. Who wants all that rejection? But life is sweeter if you make yourself do uncomfortable things.”

- Helen Gurley Brown

What a great picture of Lana Del Rey?!

Thought Catalog is pure fun! This piece on How To Be Fabulous pretty spot-on and tongue in cheek at the same time

Can Creativity and Productivity coexist? The Daily Muse seems to think so. Check out the article to read how

Man Repeller examines a culture (generation?) of irony, humble brags and guilt by association

Speaking of the humble brag, this article in the New York Times is too good to pass up. False humility is on the rise and social media is aiding its spread!

Curvy is the new buzz word… The Cut singles out (pun intended) why Curvy is not created equal

Dream big or dream small, but please dream. This piece on Clutch talks about the shaming of people’s goals. Very interesting.

Deb Perelman snagged a book deal (and a husband) from her blog. A case for blogging if I ever saw one.

Really cool Ted Talk on the Power of Introverts!

x Have a Frolicking Friday!

“Life shrinks or expands according to one’s courage.”
~ Anais Nin

Josephine Baker by Andy Warhol

Last week was a whirlwind, hence the MIA Required Reading. To make up my slack, here’s a double-sized RR! Here are some great links and reads I came across this week!

This site is pretty useless except to look at pretty colors. Refresh it and get a different color each time!

There has been so much talk about Willow Smith’s hair & clothing choices. Here’s her mother’s (Jada Pinkett-Smith) response 

Who doesn’t love Grace Coddington?! With her new memoir out on shelves here are her 3 Keys to Success 

I’ve been experiencing some strange energy lately. So I read Deepak Chopra’s guide to changing your energy

Last RR I posted Marie Forleo’s interview with Steven Pressfield. Here are more tips on becoming a professional from Mr. Pressfield

I love Marian Kihogo’s style and this vintage kimono too!

These DIY Boot Stuffers are a great lazy Sunday project.

This post is hilarious! Black Gay Slang explained to Suburban White People. Too good!

I had my graphic tee phase & I think it’s coming back around. Here’s how to make graphic tees grown up from XoJane.

Paper Magazine has a great guide to Holiday Pop Ups in NY. The Brooklyn Night Bazaar looks cool!

It’s OK to be a late bloomer. Writer Emma Straub explains why success takes time

Ur Pretty Haute loves her lashes and asks what beauty routine can you NOT live without?

How hot does Joan Collins look in these vintage contact sheets? Va Va Voom!

Black Girls Hack is a great organization for African-American women in Tech. They hosted their first hackathon!

Loving Andre 3000′s verse on this song! Three Stacks come back!

x Have a stylish weekend!

“One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn’t pay to get discouraged. Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself.”
― Lucille Ball

We make plans and God laughs… with that said  there are 5 weeks, give or take a few days, left in 2012 and it’s around this time every year that I start to think about my plans for the coming year. I take a snapshot of where I am in life and where I would like to be. It’s not as intense as it sounds, trust me, but I do get down and dirty into the stuff of goals, achievements and dreams.

To prepare for the new year I do a few things: meditation session to clear out old spirits, retiring journals and starting new ones. It’s all a big to do to get me pumped! Cue Rocky theme music and me in the gym hitting the punching bag. It’s me against 2013.

OK, dramatic much? Yes. But in all seriousness, it pays to be prepared, organized and ready to have a great year. And why wait until the ball drops to get a clear idea on what you want to accomplish in the next 12 months. In the past few years I’ve done many of these things to get ready for a new year and while no one knows what the year will bring these are all tried and true traditions to get your mind right and your heart in the right place to take on 2013.

BUY A NEW PLANNER

New planners are a blank slate. You’re leaving behind all of the plans, appointments and to-dos of the last year and moving into the new year with a fresh start. My favorites are Moleskine, Anne Taintor.   I’m coveting a mega-planner from Erin Condren.

PLAN NEXT YEAR’S VACATION(S)

It’s never too early to plan a vacay, the sooner the better actually. If there’s a destination you’ve been dying to see now is the time to map out a plan to get there. Start your research, find cool boutique hotels, request time off and start your savings plans to make your vacation dreams come true. Wanderfly is a great travel wishlist and helps plan affordable vacations.

MAKE A VISION BOARD

Vision boards have exploded! They are having their moment in the cultural zeitgeist and with good reason. Having all of your dreams, goals and visions in front of you keeps them top of mind and studies have shown they help order your steps to be able to accomplish them. Plus creating vision boards is such a fun exercise. Invite a few friends over, pull out the old magazines and photos and collage your way to your dreams.

REDEFINE YOUR CAREER GOALS

Every year I outline where I would like to be, career-wise, by the end of the year. Am I fancying a promotion? What certifications do I want to have? How much freelance work can I handle? While some of your career plans are out of your control (hiring, raises, etc…) your plan for your career totally is. By having a plan you can make better career decisions to get you to your dream job.

REASSESS YOUR WARDROBE

September may be the start of the fashion new year, but every new year I take time to assess my style and what looks I need to retire and styles I’d like to try. This year I’ve been heavy on the black and bringing back the color (and the sexy) is high on my style priority list.  This is also a great time to retire old pieces that are not working. Donate them or give them away to friends. Let the clutter go!

CLEAN HOUSE. No Literally, CLEAN YOUR HOUSE

Spring cleaning has nothing on new year cleaning. Break out the Pledge and go to town on your baseboards, carpets and laundry. Start 2013 with a fresh feeling and scent. Growing up my mother always spent the first day of the New Year cooking black eyed peas and cleaning house.

START YOUR BLOG’S 2013 CALENDAR

With about a month left in 2012, it’s a good time to start working on your blog/site/business plans for 2013. Get ahead of monthly holidays, trends and map out your standard/evergreen content. Remember to create a cushion for breaking news and life events. No need to plan out a stringent plan but a loose layout will put you ahead of the game.

CONTEMPLATE A NEW HAIRSTYLE

Every year I say I’m going to cut my hair. And maybe 2013 will be the year I actually do it. Who knows? But it sure is fun to contemplate a new hairstyle, revamping my look and thinking about what life would be like with a pixie cut. Maybe this will the year you try bangs or go red!

These are just a few ways to get ready for the New Year’s arrival. Aside from decking your halls, stocking up on confetti and noisemakers, what other things are you doing to prepare for the new year? 

Do share!

Images (3, 6, 7, 8)

“Don’t waste your energy trying to educate or change opinions; go over, under, through, and opinions will change organically when you’re the boss. Or they won’t. Who cares? Do your thing, and don’t care if they like it.”
― Tina Fey

Jean-Pacome Dedieu Still Life Photography

If you’re like me, you’ve skipped the Black Friday hoopla, you’re heating up leftovers, watching crappy Reality TV and catching up on your web reading. Here are some cool links to add to your list.

Love this transformer jacket from stylish blogger Jessie Adore

Urban Romance takes us to school… vintage school that is.

The stage design in Austria is beyond words. Would love to see a play on on these sets.

I loved Justin Timberlake and NSync. This picture is hilarious!

The holidays don’t mean family for everyone. This writer’s case for spending the holidays alone is interesting

Totally looking forward to reading Grace: A Memoir. Even more so after this WSJ article on her. Love her quote:

“The most important part of a fashion photograph is the hair. Hair and shoes. I drive photographers mad because I say, “You’ve got to show the feet.” For me it gives you the character of the person. You can get away with a very ordinary dress if you have interesting shoes.” 

10 Things to do on Black Friday… instead of shopping. I’m fond of #1, #4 and #7

x Eat Up!

~ Frank Lloyd Wright

I’ve heard a lot about Chicago; some great, some not so great. It’s the home of the Blues, the Cubs, Kanye West, high crime rates, R.Kelly and Obama! When I found out I would be visiting the City of Wind for a work conference, I had lots of interest in getting to know the it firsthand. Was it really as cold as people say? Would I run into Lupe Fiasco? What was all the fuss about that silver bean?

I got into Chicago late Wednesday evening, checked into The James Hotel, which is a very nice hotel in the Magnificent Mile neighborhood and near the Razorfish Chicago office. I grabbed late-night sushi and sake with coworkers and got ready for the next day’s activities.

~ Obligatory Mirror Pic ~ 

Before the sightseeing adventures could begin work had to be attended to. The reason for the visit was a Social Media Summit to discuss the latest and greatest in the practice.

Razorfish Chicago is a pretty outstanding office, my favorite one so far (sorry New York & Philly). Neon walls, bright lights, lots of glass conference rooms. And did I mention… beer on tap. I’m not the biggest beer drinker but you have to admit that’s pretty awesome.

~ Whoop, there it is!  ~ 

Over the next two days there was a ton of exchange, idea sharing and thought leadership. Did I mention I love my job? Well I do. After long days in meetings, it was time for a little Chicago style food sharing. Deep dish pizza, anyone? I now fully understand why Chicagoans are wild about their pie!

~ Delizioso! ~ 

After more meetings, Friday finally winded down and the weekend was set to start. We transferred hotels to the sex-ay W Hotel Lakeshore!  How sparkly is this sign? Very posh!

We headed out on the town and hit up Wicker Park area for scrumptious tacos at Big Star and evening cocktails at Violet Hour, which is a clandestine undercover spot that doesn’t allow cell phone use and has hilarious house rules like: “No O-Bombs. No Jager-Bombs. No bombs of any kind.” and “Please do not bring anyone to The Violet Hour that you wouldn’t bring to your mother’s house for Sunday dinner.”  I love it!

With three cold Chicago nights under our belts, Saturday was officially dubbed the CHICAGO CRAM!

With one full day to sightsee, we decided to see as much of Chicago as we possibly could. I think we accomplished that and more. There must be some sort of award for the most frenzied, yet controlled tourism ever! We’d certainly win.

Dressing for city walking and cold temps is no easy feat. I think I managed well with dark skinnies, black & white striped shirt, leopard blazer (unpictured), bright green scarf, my Shelli Segal coat and comfortable suede boots.

First stop was brunch at the absolutely delectable Yolk, a top rated brunch in the city. It was jumping good!

~ Jaimie loves Yolk! ~ 

Next stop, the TOP of the WORLD! Well the top of Chicago at least! We hit up the John Hancock building and got a view of Chicago from the 96th floor. Insider tip, hit up the ladies’ restroom in lieu of going to the observatory. Backdoor tricks FTW! (Thanks Deanna) 

It was so surreal to see all of the immaculate buildings from so high up. Chicago truly has beautiful architecture and many throwbacks to a classier, jazzier age.

We came down from our high and decided to take an old school horse & carriage ride to get a quicker view of the Chi. Chicago has lots of luxury shopping, traditional hotels, cathedrals and amazing signage. Every storefront has its own unique flair. There was even a cow on the front of a building!

~ Say Cheese ~ 

Next we shot across town to Millennium Park. I didn’t know what to expect of the giant Cloud Gate sculpture except that it seemed pretty cool. Cool is an understatement! Millennium Park is beautiful, has so many different sections, great sculptures and lots of energy. There were about 3 different wedding parties taking pictures!

You’d think we’d be exhausted at this point but we kept the party going and headed to do an Architecture Boat Tour on Lake Michigan. As we rushed through throngs of people (the annual Lighting Parade coincided with our trip – what fate!) we prayed we wouldn’t miss our boat.

And guess what…. WE DID!  Bye Bye Boat.

All was not lost. With the lighting parade came a fireworks display and a later boat ride that ended with seeing the fireworks. On. The. Water. SCORE!

For me, the boat tour was the highlight of the trip. Coasting on Lake Michigan, learning all about the buildings, the companies that inhabit them and the history of the city. Chicago is truly lovely at night.

We parked on the lake and watched the fireworks. It was the cherry on the Chicago sundae. Dinner at the famous Ditka’s (the food was superb) for Jaimie’s birthday dinner and eventually the night ended at the legendary Wiener Circle. I couldn’t get good video because I was laughing entirely too much at the crazy characters behind the counter! But this clip from Conan will show you what WC is all about.

I played a hilarious game and won a T-shirt. Wiener Circle is truly hilarious place and a must visit when you’re in Chicago.

Exhausted from a long day, I conked out ready to head home.

Sunday with only a few hours to spare, we trekked to the Navy Pier, the top tourist attraction in Chicago. The Navy Pier has a giant Ferris Wheel and lots of arcade games.

~ We’re Mad for Chicago ~ 

All in all, Chicago is a pretty spectacular city. It’s like a modern day Pleasantville: clean streets, beautiful buildings and lots to do. Seeing the glorious facade of Chicago makes me want to delve deeper into the parts unseen. 

~ It’s safe to say I’m smitten with the Windy City ~

x Until next time, Summertime Chi!