Real Housewives of NYC: Which Camp Are You In?

I hate to admit it, but I love The Real Housewives of NYC. I think it is the best of the Real Housewives shows. The characters seem more real, and more...bitchy. OK, the other housewives are bitchy too, but the NYC ones rule supreme.

The NYC chicks have divided into two camps: the camp of LuAnne, Kelly, and Jill, and the other camp of Alex, Bethenny, Sonja, and Ramona. After watching many, many hours of this show, and seeing the camps really dividing, I have to say I would feel more comfortable with the Alex, Bethenny, Sonja and Ramona group. I could not stand being with LuAnne, Kelly, and Jill. LuAnne, may be Ok, but Kelly has become psychotic, and Jill is so codependent, it is ridiculous Kelly and Jill wake up. You are ridiculous!

I Need Some Really Good, Really Cool Sunglasses

I don't wear rain coats, and I don't carry umbrellas. I don't like to wear winter coats, and I usually don't wear Sunglasses. Get the picture? I tend not to bother with anything that is a bother.

However, I am rethinking sunglasses. There are a lot of cool pairs out there, and they make you look good. They are also good for your eyes. I didn't realize until recently that you can do damage to your eyes by being out in the sunlight without sunglasses. So I am going to go shopping soon. I think some Raybans are in order. Definitely something leopard to go with all of my animal print clothes. I am going to be at the pool a lot this summer, and probably doing some reading out in the sun, so I definitely need some sunglasses that cut out glare and all the UVA, UVB stuff too.

Here's to looking good and eye health too!

Subliminal Tapes--I Need Your Help!

About 15 years ago, I was desperately trying to figure out why I can't attact love. I am attractive, smart, kind, funny, but ambitious and independent. Why couldn't I attract love? I surmised it had something to do with the last two traits I mentioned. I don't like to be tied down and kept back, the way I see some other women in their marriages. I don't want to end up with a controlling partner, or contra, a partner who brings you down. I also figured it must have something to do with an invisible aura I have--I must be sending out "stay away" vibes and I can't change it.

So back then, I bought some subliminal tapes, called "Attracting Love." I listened to them a lot, like I was supposed to. One side had a speaking voice, the other just music. It was very calm, quiet music, but something in it made me cry at moments, or at least feel emotional. It was really touching my inner self.


Well, shortly after I met David, whom I thought might be the one. He wasn't, but he showed up like clockwork and was a good candidate. We dated for a while, until I didn't feel I could go any further with it.

So, many years later, I feel stuck again. I see older, less pretty women find boyfriends. Why can't I? Again, it must have to do with the vibes I am sending out. So yesterday, I ordered, "Attract Love" from Brain Sync. There is no voice on either track--just music. Today is my second day to listen to the music. I'll report back and let you know what happens. I am looking forward to some magic!

Online Education Is Good Way To Upgrade Skills

It is amazing how things have changed in the last decade. When online education first came on board, people were wary. Is this the new correspondence school route, people wondered?  No one wants those degrees that you can get out of the back of a comic book.

But now, online education is very respectable, and people are recognizing it as such. I am sure this is a byproduct of the internet and everyone's way of life. We pay bills online, expose your life online, why not get a degree online? Everyone is comfortable with it now. And not to mention that it makes getting a degree so much easier. You can go to class in your PJs, for example.

Some degrees are more amenable to the online format, such as a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA), Doctor of Education (Ed.D.),or Master of Public Health (MPH). I just got my J.D. (which is not really amenable to online education. I know some schools are offering it, but it is sstill not really respected.) But I have always wanted an MBA (good choice for online) and the master of public health is very interesting to me. I have always been interested in medicine, and a degree like that would be tremendously valuable now.

Anyway, it is great that online education is here to stay. So many people can better themselves now than in the past, when many would have to travel great distances to go to school.

Bel Canto--A Book You Can't Put Down

I love books that you can't put down. Ones you read far into the night and wake up with the book over your face, with the pages furled.  I can't find enough books like that, and when I do, I savor it like a fine wine.

 I heard author Ann Patchett speak once and was captivated by her style. And her subject matter. All of her books are so different, but all spellbinding--at least the ones I have read. I took Bel Canto to the beach and couldn't think about anything else for two days while I raced toward the end of the novel. Set in South America, it is about an opera singer, wealthy people, and some thugs. But it is also about relationships and how people can form the most unlikely alliances, even in a crisis.

An Unexpected Partner?

What would you do if you found yourself falling in love with a transgendered person, even if you are very straight? There was a very sweet article today on msnbc.com about a straight woman falling in love with a transgendered man. And it didn't matter to her.

I have thought the chances of that happening today is greater as more and more people have transgender surgery. I think it is wonderful for people to follow their heart, but I have to admit that I am not sure I could be so open minded as the author.

http://lifestyle.msn.com/relationships/article.aspx?cp-documentid=23686396&Gt1=32023