Addictions
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.31.08, 05:39 PM)
Whoever said shopping was an addiction was right on target. While there aren't any actual drugs or stimulants involved (unless you count caffeine), I am 100% addicted. Let's relate this entry to Heather's below. While some people may claim to have up-to-date information on all things currently "En Vogue," few of us scour the pages of the namesake magazine, drooling over the ads and ripping pages to take on the next shopping excursion. I don't pretend to be a diva. I know I'm not and wouldn't want the title. No person that works retail wants to deal with the diva types, and I personally prefer those sales reps on my side!
Etiquette
Posted by Heather Burchfield
(01.31.08, 03:07 PM)
Let me just vent for a second. I apologize if this hurts anyone's feelings, but this is my opinion.
office stores - office depot/staples-- all of 'em!
Posted by Eve Harrington
(01.30.08, 2:04 PM)
Just a quick rant about the lack of service, knowledge and interest in helping customers that EVERYONE is sure to experience at any of our fine office stores in Nashville. It's like another pseudo-monopoly like Comcast, Verizon, AT & T....We are hostages. We must go to them. Thus they have no need to service us..You're guaranteed one long-ass wait if you go...Guaranteed. That's the only thing that's sure about these stores...Suffering...Go ahead and commiserate with your fellow line-waiters..It's the only way to survive the experience...Unity in suffering. And -- this could just as easily be about waiting for help with your phone at Verizon or AT & T...It's not that the salespeople are malicious, lazy or stupid..Usually, anyway..It's the lack of systems/process/procedures that makes these businesses suck.
Paying to Sweat
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.29.08, 12:06 PM)
It's an ongoing debate for me. Do I get a personal trainer at the gym, or do I workout on my own, hoping that what I'm doing and the way I do it, is correct. I've had a trainer in the past but just like hairstylists, a good one is hard to find. I've heard great things about some of the professionals at the Delta in Greenhills, though. Now it's just a question of need vs. want. Depending on your goals, the guys and gals that work there can pump you up or slim you down. I've been on my own for over a year and am curious to know what they would have me do differently.
Hibernation - Putting on the Winter Coat
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.25.08, 4:07 PM)
It's winter. By definition we know that means its cold and dreary. But this entire week I've really noticed the toll it's taken on people. A friend of mine has even gone to the tanning bed this week to get some rays and much needed vitamin D (if any can be found in the artificial kind of sun). We're all walking a bit slower, getting out of bed a little later, and cuddling on the couch to watch movies more often. I'm sure many people would agree that a little fake-baking could do me a world of good, at least in the short-term aesthetics department. I'm a pasty ghost of a girl right now, but my main objective wouldn't be vanity. I need a pick me up; even the liter of Mountain Dew I just inhaled can't shake the sloth that's attached itself to my back! I'll start tonight by indulging in some sugar. It won't work magic, but it will sure help the medicine go down.
Investments
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.24.08, 6:59 PM)
This whole week I've heard about changing 401k plans, recessions, and tax breaks for select people. I've wheeled and dealed when purchasing various items, and tried desperately to stockpile an ounce of money to keep for myself. Everyone has a different opinion on how you should use the money you earn, and right now it seems that no one person has the right answer. I'm confused...I should probably take a class and figure out a step by step method. Or is there one? I'm totally in the dark when it comes to this. Hopefully I chose the right investments and got the best deal!
Baby it's FREEZING Outside
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.21.08, 2:13 PM)
Just when the temperature gets lower than winter in Tennessee should ever get, I realize that every store in Nashville has put away their thick, cozy sweaters and replaced them with spring resort wear and bikinis! I love shopping for the new season in advance, but I need some sweaters to get me through this arctic tundra we've found ourselves in! As I sit here writing this I have on a sweater, heavy coat, and am sipping hot tea. For some reason our office has opted to keep the air conditioning on all winter; did I mention that one before? Either way, I guess I will be heading to the Last Call section of the Neiman Marcus website and having them shipped here quickly to avoid hypothermia.
Childhood Migration
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.17.08, 1:27 PM)
Lately I've been seeing ghosts. To preface that, this is not an "I see dead people" statement. This is a ghost of long past realization I have every time I go somewhere and spot a familiar face from long ago. Whether it be from early childhood, the dreaded middle school years, or high school and college, people from my hometown are slowly but surely moving to the area, forcing me to remember both pleasant memories, and those I hid under jagged rocks a long time ago. Is it bad that at times my first reaction is to run as fast as possible in the opposite direction? Probably. But in most cases it seems like home is getting closer instead of becoming a distant memory. Afterall, Nashville is a big town with a VERY small town feel, and that includes running into people you know while shopping for your weekly stock of groceries.
Viva Las Vegas
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.15.08, 1:49 PM)
Thursday evening I'm heading to Sin City. For the weekend I'll be basking in the neon lights, eating at world-renowned restaurants, and hearing the lovely music of shuffling cards and slot machines. I'm a bit timid when it comes to giving my money away, even if there's a chance I could get a little more as a result! All I can think of as I'm putting my dollar in the machine is, "There goes the new shoes I just spotted in Chloe". I can't wait to take in a Cirque du Soleil show (I was out of town when Cirque came to Nashville this past summer). There are a lot to choose from, but I'm sure whichever I pick will be a winner. After I attend the work meetings I'm actually there for, the real fun begins and I'll be let loose to explore the city. Hopefully the western part of the United States won't see the weather that's heading our way this weekend.
Latte Revelation
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.13.08, 4:23 PM)
While nothing in the world beats a great cup of 100% Kona coffee, the java at Fido is tough competition. Is it because it comes in big comforting mugs that you pick up with two hands? Maybe. It could also be the intricate designs the friendly employees seem to create on purpose when they make each creation (usually mine appears to be a lovely flower designed into my foam). Whatever it may be, one of my favorite things in the world is sitting in the warm cafe on Saturday mornings while gossiping and warming my hands on the mug filled with yummy goodness.
You stay classy, San Diego
Posted by Dave Alexander
(01.12.08, 01:47 PM)
(Warning: this is long. But if you read it, you'll understand why I couldn't spare any details) I'm sure everyone in Tennessee was as excited as I was the night we managed to knock off the Colt's backups and gain an entry into the NFL playoffs (err everyone except for the Ohio transplants whose 10-6 Browns team failed to make the playoffs... again). But I had an added bonus as I currently live in Los Angeles: I could make it to the game fairly easily and be back in my bed that night.
New Shows!
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.10.08, 8:43 PM)
Thank god new television shows are finally showing on TV, when storms are everywhere and the last place I want to be is outside! Now, from what I've heard the writers' strike is still going on, but at least SOMEONE is taking the time to write a few new scripts and entertain those of us that stay home at least once a week. On Thursday nights it's usually a habit of mine to grab something to eat on the way home and gaze zombie-like at the television...Ugly Betty followed directly by Grey's Anatomy. But seeing that Hollywood wants more money and can't seem to ever get enough (can any of us?), there has only been reruns for the last month or so. I completely forgot, needless to say and scrambled home to find everything half over. Oh well, there's always next week.
Make a Seat
Posted by Sinclair Kelly
(01.07.08, 4:32 PM)
The Kids on the Block invite anyone with an artistic eye and a generous heart to contribute a chair-themed work of art—an actual chair or a chair-inspired oeuvre—to the “Chair”ish the Kids event. The 12th annual juried auction of unique chairs benefiting Kids on the Block’s youth prevention programs isn’t until the spring, so you’ve got until March 7 to design a masterpiece. In past years, artists have created sterling silver ladder-backs, limestone fauteuils, handwoven hammocks—even a chair-shaped garden fountain welded from copper tubing. From Monet-inspired benches and photographs of Adirondack chairs to sequined rockers and needlepoint stools, the seating is unlimited, so to speak. Kids on the Block will gladly give you a chair to paint, upholster, découpage or otherwise embellish, and all contributors receive free admission to the party at Cheekwood on April 11. For information or to pick up a chair, call Alice Parkerson at The Kids on the Block, 279-0058, ext. 130. Kids on the Block is a youth prevention program that travels throughout Middle Tennessee educating children and adults on some of life’s tougher issues, using the ancient form of Bunraku puppetry. Last year, Kids on the Block served more than 40,000 children, thanks in part to the generosity and creativity of local artists who contributed artworks to “Chair”ish the Kids, the organization’s primary fundraiser.
Surprise!
Posted by Heather Burchfield
(01.07.08, 01:37 PM)
"As life becomes harder and more threatening, it also becomes richer, because the fewer expectations we have, the more good things of life become unexpected gifts that we accept with gratitude." – Etty Hillesum, Dutch Jewish writer known for her diaries and correspondence from Westerbork concentration camp I just love this quote, and I thought it was a good fit for what happened to me this past weekend. I decided at 4:45 Friday afternoon that I would make a flying trip to Oxford, Miss., where my best friend Hannah is still in graduate school. Friday was her birthday, and she had one of those weeks that make you want to crawl in a hole praying no one finds you. Hannah had no idea I was driving to see her. I got to town at 9:30 just before my friend Whitney was going to pick her up to go to the bar.
New Year's Resolutions
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.05.08, 8:54 AM)
Everyone has one. We all want to do something different this year, be better, eat right. I haven't made a resolution yet though, and don't plan to. Every year it's the same thing. I make a huge promise to myself and wind up breaking it within a month. Usually it has a lot to do with spending less, saving more...everything that will set myself up for dissapointment! So, this year I am promising myself instead of making a resolution. I haven't decided what that promise will be; I want to trust myself, afterall. In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy myself and see where that takes me. Hopefully not rack up more on the credit card, but see what new things Nashville can offer me. Maybe I'll attend the opening of a few more stores, try the newest local restaurants instead of sticking to the standbys, and try a new shade of lipstick. Hey, it's a start!
Cheesy
Posted by Mary Proctor
(01.04.08, 10:07 AM)
It came as a horrible shock this week that KRAFT has discontinued its garlic cheese roll! My gosh, the South will rise up in arms—or grits. I actually called them to confirm what my Harris Teeter manager had told me. "Yes, we have discontinued that item, due to low sales." Well, honey, you must be a Northerner—hated to come out and say Yankee—because how in the name of Aunt Bee, can you have a Thanksgiving or Christmas breakfast without the Southern staple of "GARLIC CHEESE GRITS CASSEROLE?" Tell me that, Mr. Kraft Foods! If you are as outraged as I am, call your congressman—or Kraft Foods at 1-800-634-1984—give them the bar code number-0 2199961678 7, and beg: I have found that screaming and threats "may be recorded"—that this policy be overturned before the next holiday season, even Easter. Egads, what is a girl to do? Velveeta may have to enter my kitchen as a possible substitute, but Christmas will never be the same without this Southern staple! Woe is me and the countless other kitchens that have relied on Kraft for its continued cheese. Should I write to Sargento?
I'm a Believer...in Whole Foods
Posted by Mandi Coleman
(01.02.08, 5:55 PM)
I'll admit it, I'm now a convert. I love everything about the new grocery store in Hill Center, from the huge seafood department to the wonderful smells coming from the prepared foods section. I can't even resist wandering down every isle in search of my new favorite, gotta have it item that I won't go a single day without. (I get on kicks like that to the bewilderment of those around me.) My favorite by far though, is the produce department. I've never seen so many mushrooms in my life, and there are even Emu eggs you can buy. While I will never be brave enough put that into my mouth, they make beautiful eye candy! The friendly girl that was working today must have memorized the store entirely. She knew the location of even the smallest item on my list and produced it within minutes. Love the store, love the selection, love the convenience.
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