Here’s a random assortment of the Afrobella-related issues I’ve been meaning to address…
One Door Opens Where Another Door Closes —
Today at 1 p.m., New York Governor Designate David Paterson will be sworn in before the State Legislator, effectively ending Eliot Spitzer’s in-office shame spiral. Thus far, the result of this whole incident has been history-making — Paterson will be the first African-American governor of New York, and only the fourth African-American governor of a U.S. state in history. He is legally blind, and is also an unwavering Clinton supporter. In the whirlwind of scandal, life is about to change dramatically for him and his family, and the burdens of responsibility will be placed squarely on his capable, well-respected shoulders. Congratulations to Governor Paterson! Here’s hoping he’s steeled himself for a strong dose of overnight political celebrity, and the scrutiny that’s bound to come with that. He certainly seems to be the best man for the job right now.
Spring Shopping Spree
Having just turned one-year-closer-to-the-big-three-o, I’m having all kinds of swirling emotions about this new age I’ve found myself at. It’s all expressing itself as a deep burning need for a fabulous new wardrobe. Will all of my age crises manifest themselves this way? Lane Bryant hopes so!
I have such a love/hate relationship with the LB. One one hand, I completely agree with Too Fat For Fashion (love that blog!), LB seems to specialize in loud prints, muumuu shaped tent tops, and generally uninspiring dresses and shirts — the kind of thing I’ve sworn not to wear. But on the other hand, their wide leg pants (like these) are incredibly flattering, and make for a great, effortless day-to-evening wardrobe staple. (Has anyone tried the Secret Slimmer pants? Are they worth the money?) Lane Bryant does basics pretty decently, and these days, I’m all about the basics. Oh, and BTW, LB’s currently hosting the “Closet of Your Dreams†sweepstakes, and if you enter you could win a closet makeover by ClosetMaid (valued at $2,500), a Lane Bryant wardrobe (valued at $2,500), and help from a personal shopper. Click here for details.
Back to my fab new wardrobe — inspired by Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style (LOVE Tim Gunn!), I am on the hunt for my remixed version of the ten items on Tim Gunn’s essential shopping list. Classic dress pants, check. Basic black dress, check. Jeans, check, check, and check. Still looking for the perfect dark denim blazer (in my line of work, it’s the only kind of blazer I’d be guaranteed to regularly wear). But to summer up my wardrobe must-have list, I’m looking for a series of funky yet basic bright tops that I can dress up to the nines with accessories. My watchwords are bold, vibrant, and comfortable. Like this red lantern sleeved top from Target, or this bold yellow twisted top from Kiyonna. I just made my first order from Kiyonna, and I’ll keep you all posted on my results.
I just picked up this plum banded yoke tee from Old Navy… man, I hope rumors of Old Navy’s demise are greatly exaggerated. I heartily applaud Todd Oldham’s efforts to breathe life into the mall standard. Especially of late, I think Old Navy’s one of few mainstream lines that’s really thinking deeply about plus size fashion, and trying to cater to a market of full figured and fly mamas. I’m feeling this halter dress, and I treated myself to the printed trapeze top in chocolate tiger stripes. It’s going to look adorable with these new chocolate brown linen wide leg pants, that you see up above. I’m gonna have to get ’em, I think!
Beautiful Baby Girl!
Big congratulations to Halle Berry, she gave birth to a bouncing baby girl at 10:17 am on Sunday morning!
Halle was quite possibly the most gorgeous pregnant woman evah — loved her curly bob! Her baby is bound to be beyond gorgeous, and loved, and fussed over. Can’t wait to find out this beautiful baby’s name!
I’m not typically a celebrity-baby gusher, but I’ve had a special place in my heart for Halle Berry, ever since Boomerang. I swear, I’ve seen that movie like fifty times.
Update on a Past Ask Afrobella
A recent comment on a post from October ’07 — A Different Kind of Ask Afrobella, where I tried my best to answer Oretta’s question about dealing with unemployment — made me realize how deep this afrobella sisterhood thing goes. Longtime readers will remember Oretta’s story. To Wake Up, who just asked if I’d heard anything back from her… I sure did! Oretta wrote back after the post. Here’s what she said:
Hello Mrs. Bella ella ella,
I was so happy to hear from you. As I sit here this evening I can say that I thank you and Petal (BTW that is such a Caribbean name I personally know at least three Petals) soooooooooo much. This has been a great but kinda lonely journey and that is why I was so happy to read your response. I was beginning to fall into despair. Before I was laid off I was listening to The Secret and I was reminded of The Oprah Show. There was a young lady on the show that was fired and Oprah said to her that the only response that she should have told her boss is “Thank You”. Though I was not fired I will still say “Thank You†because this is a truly character building experience.
I love your blog because look at how many wonderful people commented on this topic. I know that there are many people that are out there and they are in jobs that they profusely dislike. And for a long time that was me until I found the job that I really liked and was laid off. This experience has taught me that you can’t put all of your eggs in one basket.
Again, I thank you for all the advice. I do start substitute teaching soon. I do journal and I know now that I will continue and be more purposeful in my writing.
Once more, I think that this is a great forum for intellectual women of color to get our points across and doing it in a way that we help one another.
P.S. Thanks for knowing so much about a lot……
Thank You,
Oretta
Isn’t that AWESOME? Made me so happy, and I apologize for not sharing it earlier. Thanks so much to all of you for offering insight and experience. We learn so much from each other, right? Which brings me to my last thought for today…
Thank you ALL so much for the birthday love!
Your copious and warm wishes overwhelmed me upon my return from Hippieville. It took me a solid week to read through all of the 95 comments. But finally I got around to catching up on Afrobella errands — mailed out those Mariah Carey DVDs today, bellas — so hang tight! And finally, I chose ten winners for the Creme of Nature giveaway!
They are…
RG
Lioness of the House
Rockstarbella
Dluvly~curls
berrybrowne
Sophisticated boom boom
LoisLane
Mzpastrychef
Lovelyjd
and
naturalglolady
Congratulations, bellas! I’ll be contacting you via e mail this week, but if you read this first, e mail me with your full name and mailing address to bella@afrobella.com, so I can get your info to the Creme of Nature peeps ASAP! And if you didn’t win this giveaway, don’t be discouraged, bellas! I’m working on some new giveaways, including yummy scented candles and some fabulous earrings soon, so keep reading, keep commenting, and keep entering!
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