This is not a shoe blog: Friday shoegasm

I admit it -- I was not down with the whole ankle boot revival. At least not the funky-shaped, ruffled, slouch, cuffed, convex heeled, Ziploc bag-looking ankle boots that seem to dismiss all the loveliness of granny boots for a shoe that just seems hard to wear, makes short legs look even shorter, and layered cold-weather clothes look even frumpier.

But I am also a big enough shoe whore to admit that I am coming around. Slowly. And to a point. I'm going to reserve my ankle boot-wearing for my favorite jeans and steer clear of piling them over thick tights or leggings. That's just me, though. If you have six-foot legs and can pull that look off, more power to you, sister.

I came to accept the ankle boot more fully when I rebelliously wore sandals last week and ended up with chilly little piggies that were repeatedly, inadvertently dunked in puddle after puddle on the way to my car. "I get it!", I screamed at Mother Nature, who I am convinced is up there somewhere sporting Crocs and holiday socks, "I will put the peep toes away!"

Since I'm not ready to go fully into knee-high boots just yet and while I wait impatiently for the slow-moving barge that is apparently crossing the Atlantic to deliver my new motorcycle boots, ankle boots it is. 

These distressed suede boots by Nine West feed my buckle fetish and are a refreshing change from the same old-same old of black leather. They also happen to match the big old grommeted belt I scored at a Girlfriends Garage Sale last weekend for 8 bucks. At just under $150, they are a bit spendy if you already have a closet full of boots, but I know I'd wear these so much that it would be worth the investment. One more bonus -- the platform will elevate you out of those pesky puddles. Score!

I haven't danced on a speaker in a long, long time. But if I get a chance again, I promise to hike up my Units dress, cover my forearms in rubber bracelets, and pull on these granny boots that have gotten a perfect little patent makeover. I love the red detail and almond-shaped toe (not such a fan of the stunting rounded toe, ladies...not such a fan). OK, OK...these I would wear with tights and the right dress.

I don't think I'd rock full-length boots in metallic leather at the Starbucks or preschool playground. But boots a third of the size? Suuuure. These bronze ankle boots have a sassy little tie that I like to think of as a shoe peek-a-boo when you sit down or cross your legs. Wearing these boots will also give you an opportunity to give all your silver jewelry a rest and let your shoe shine be your main accessory.

Now you: Any thoughts on ankle boots? Yes, no, maybe, already ordering some up?

Click to read more ...

Postcards from the past: One year and 44 boobs ago today

Ignore the nose chapped from being wiped incessantly for days and days. Avert your eyes from the bad $7 haircut that was ridiculously entrusted to that one other parent. No need to even give your attention to the look of slight confusion on the small child's face.

Instead, set your eyes upon the stickers that cover Lil E's little body. The ones he placed there proudly with help from my mother. The ones he cried real tears over when I gently peeled them off to wash the snot- and juice-stained shirt.

Yes, those stickers. The ones of tiny bras that came from a giant Victoria's Secret catalog that, much to the delight of my mother -- no, not my dad, who started reading Perez Hilton when I told him there were pictures of Britney Spears' hoo hoo on that site, my mother.  The stickers with photos of WonderBras and other boobtacular contraptions filled with water and decorated with little hearts and bows and nonsensical sentiments like "PINK", that the child's grandmother thought would be hilarious to use to cover the chest of the kid who referred to his own "tiny boobies" and "nippohhhhs" back then.

Ahh, family. My grandmother made angel food cake and knitted potscrubbers. Lil E's grandmother puts bra stickers over (what he now calls) "dimpohhhhs."

Fortunately, this stickering and the snickering that followed (OK, by all of us -- I am not righteous), did not scar the kid. He's forgotten all about it. Come to think of it, I'd venture to guess my mother has, too.

But not me. I may be even crueler than the grandmother. I'll hold on to this one for another twenty or thirty years especially for the wedding video.

Click to read more ...

This one's for you, Gloria

Today, Women Employed is on a mission to honor the amazing women who have inspired us. I love this campaign. There is nothing about it that incites any guilt or sadness or despair that the world will never, ever change. It is all about gratitude and empowerment and recognizing our interconnectedness to each other. We need more of that.

The only challenge was to slow my thoughts that raced through the many women who have inspired me, the many women who have hoisted me up on their shoulders through their books or lectures or kind interactions. I could write post after post about bell hooks,.Judy Blume, Margaret Mead, Julia Kristeva, Helene Cixous, my sixth grade teacher Mrs. Markewycz. And then there is Elizabeth Cady Stanton, who called to me from the pages of a very boring textbook in my very first Women's Studies class, took hold of me and has never let go. There have been so many women who have stepped into my daily life, by happenchance or some lovely and divine meeting, and have said something brilliant or reminded me of the possibilities or shown me with their lives how I may want to live. My grandmothers and mother are at the top of that list. Ann Christophersen, one of the owners of Women and Children First, is on it as well. They are in good company with the director of my graduate school program, who saw a spark in me and demanded I turn it into a raging fire, and a kind elderly lady I visited from church, who sent me handwritten cards from two blocks away. There are so many women to honor and they each deserve much, much more than a sentence or small thank you sent out to the universe.

Today, though, I choose Gloria Steinem. It's not a surprise, not a stretch, but it is the choice and the woman who would not leave me. When I was a little girl, playing Barbies in my room and dreaming up ways to dress sexy, my mother used to joke that she feared Gloria Steinem would burst through the door,  at any time, see me and take away her feminist card. Still, I wore my Ms. magazine t-shirt to kindergarten even though that year I also agreed to be Aaron Bilton's stewardess when he grew up to be a pilot. I went on to strut my stuff in tight Calvin Kleins and Sergio Valentes  and fill notebooks with bride drawings, but knew early on I would always keep my own name and might just become a mom without having a man in my life. I can't remember a time when I didn't identify as a feminist, can't remember ever feeling like it was my responsibility to stand up alongside other women.

A lot of people and feelings and words and ideas grew that in me. But it was Gloria Steinem who first made it all make intellectual sense, when it went from being just a feeling about what was right or how I wanted to live my life to a purpose, a calling, an academic and professional pursuit.

I've read so many of Gloria Steinem's articles, books, and speeches that I could not narrow down just one quote that reached out to me the most. And what I've loved about every single thing she's written is that she just says it, she just puts it out there in an accessible and still analytical, intelligent and straightforward way. I can untie theory with the best of them and am happy to Venn Diagram complex arguments, but Gloria Steinem's words just make it all make even more sense. She speaks my language.

Gloria Steinem still resonates in every issue of Ms. that I get. She still whispers to me every morning from a magnet on my refrigerator that says, "The truth will set you free. But first, it will piss you off." And isn't that the damn truth?

She's been criticized for being too mainstream by some, and too radical by others. I don' t hear any of that. I just see Gloria Steinem, standing tall and majestic, clear and strong, leading generation after generation down the path to equity. I like that image, and I like to see myself in the crowd she's walking in. And I'm pretty sure all those other women who've inspired me, are there as well.

Who will you choose to honor in the Women Employed campaign to acknowledge amazing women? 

Be sure to Tweet your choice with @womenemployed and add it to your Facebook status update.

Click to read more ...