Game On!

A few weeks ago, two friends told me about a new diet they were starting.

It's not really a "diet", though...

It's called The Game On! Diet, and unlike most weight loss programs, it focuses on much more than just diet and exercise.

Yes, you have to watch what you eat and get regular exercise.

You also have to drink a lot of water every day, and get lots of sleep.

(All very traditional diet-y things, I know.)

But, you also have to give up one bad habit, and start one good habit.  (I love that part!)

Basically, to play the game, you and your friends divide into teams (scores are averaged, so the teams don't have to be of equal size).

Then, you earn points for:

• eating 5 "fully sanctioned" meals per day (no snacking!)
• exercising for 20 minutes per day
• drinking 3 liters (!) of water per day
• sleeping a minimum of 7 hours per night
• practicing one new healthy habit, while giving up one bad habit
• being in contact with at least one member of your team and one member of the opposite team each day (trash talking is allowed, nay, encouraged!) 

You do get one day off from each rule (it doesn't have to be the same day), and you get one meal off per day.

(Nice!)

You can earn bonus points - 20% (!) for losing 1% of your body weight each week, and 10 point for simply turning in your scorecard (provided) to the designated scorekeeper on time every week (every little bit helps!).

There are also penalties, though - for snacking, trying to talk someone else into cheating, and for drinking too much (some drinking is allowed, thankfully, just not too much!).

At the end of four weeks, in addition to losing a bunch of weight, the team with the highest score wins!

(Wins what, I don't know.  You decide.  And make it something good!)

The beauty of this game is, it appeals to people's competitiveness (the subtitle is "Kick Your Friend's Butt While Shrinking Your Own").

However, if (like me) you're not especially competitive, you're still motivated by not wanting to let down your team.

My friends recently finished a three week version of the game, with truly astonishing results - one girl said she can fit into a size she hasn't worn in over 10 years!

And just today, she said that when she loses a few more pounds, we're going shopping at Trash Can Annie!

(Now that's motivating!)

If you want to play too, start by clicking here...

(A word of warning - the woman who wrote this book has a foul mouth!)

Other than that, good luck, and have fun!

One (Wo)man's "Trash"...

is another woman's "vintage".

During my recent trip to Chicago, I also went home to Davenport, Iowa for a few days.

After seeing my family (and eating at Rudy's!) the highlight of the trip was visiting Trash Can Annie.

Trash Can Annie isn't a person - it's shop, located in downtown Davenport, that sells "Women's, Men's and Children's clothing and accessories from the 1870s through the 1970s".

As noted in last year's article in the Quad City Times (photos by my brother!), Trash Can Annie has become a valuable resource for vintage clothing used in movies (such as Titanic and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Broadway shows, and as inspiration for designers from some of today's most popular fashion houses.

I first went to Trash Can Annie in high school (a lot of girls went there for unique dresses to wear to school dances).

I moved away after high school - first to college, then to Kansas City, Chicago, and now, New York.

I never forgot about Trash Can Annie, but somehow trips home were busy with family, friends, Rudy's...

So, I never made it back.

Until now.

And I am SO glad I finally did!

As soon as I walked in, Laura, Trash Can Annie's very lovely and extremely talented owner, gave me the lay of the land - explaining how the store was arranged, how to read the tags, and how to handle the merchandise (carefully!).

Then, she measured me.

(I know!)

It was awesome, though - armed with my measurements, I could quickly look at the tags and know if there was any hope that something would fit.

Knowing your measurements is so important when shopping for vintage clothing.  Due to vanity sizing, today's 4 would be about a vintage 12.  But, much like today, vintage sizes vary, depending on the designer and when the item was made.  However, a 28-inch waist is a 28-inch waist, regardless of what size is on the label.

So, I made my way around the store, picking up anything and everything that caught my eye, and might fit (with Laura always a step behind to quickly take it out of my arms and into the dressing room).

A lot of vintage clothing is tiny.  Women (and men) were smaller back then, before the days of processed food and super-sizing.  And, women wore girdles (at least) to make their bodies conform to the styles at the time.  (Luckily, we now have Spanx!)

Still, with Laura's help, I managed to find quite a few items...

This dress is, by far, my favorite (maybe ever!).  When I first saw it, I loved it, but it was extremely (by my relatively cheap standards) expensive.  So, I left it.  But, Laura (so clever!) brought it to me anyway, and I decided to just try it on, hoping (in a way) that it wouldn't fit.

But it did fit (and I'm glad).

This dress is stunning.

No, really.

I was hanging it up when a neighbor knocked at the door, asking me for an opinion on something.  So, I still had it in my arms when I walked over, and when one of her friends saw it, he actually said "That dress is stunning."

"Stunning"!

(I love that word!)

When I tried this dress on, Laura said it looked like it was made for me.  (It totally does!)

This is a wrap dress, and Laura also suggested that I switch out the silver hook & eye closure on the edge of the front panel (that I never even noticed), for a black hook & eye closure that was inside the dress.

I was like "Oh yeah, good idea, I'll totally do that", knowing there was no way I was going to do that.

Laura must've know it too, because when I finally came out of the dressing room, there she was, sewing it on.

(Didn't I tell you she's awesome?)

This is the last dress...

The picture is awful, but the dress is really cute. I wore it to work one day with a black cardigan and got A LOT of compliments.

(One girl said she wants to go to Davenport now, just to go to this store!)

It reminds me of the dress Julia Roberts wore to the polo match in Pretty Woman...

Finally, I found a cute hard case purse by Dover. 

I love these - they're so ladylike.  This one is a good size (not too small) and the interior is perfect (which is rare!).

Before I left, Laura wrote down my measurements - giving a copy to me and keeping a copy for herself.  Now, whenever I'll be in town, she can pull a few items for me in advance.

Seriously?

Awesome, right?

What I Read - 2011

Part Two of my "What I Read" series (read Part One here).

This is a list of all the books I read last year, along with my thoughts and opinions.  (But, don't take my word for it!)


An interesting book if you're at all interested in the newspaper industry or personality flaws.  Read my book report here.

Washington Square

A short book, about a love story (or is it?).

The 2nd book in the Millennium Trilogy.  Didn't love the 1st, didn't love the 2nd.  But, that's just me.

I took my friend Kerri (also an avid reader) to see this author speak at a Barnes & Noble on the Upper West Side (now closed, and sadly becoming a discount department store).  I didn't love Jane Eyre.  I just couldn't understand why she would fall in love with Mr. Rochester - he was such a jerk!  (Oh. Yeah.  Now I get it.)  This book about Charlotte Brontë was very interesting, though.

Thankfully, the last of the series.  (Don't listen to me, though - everyone else loved it.)

I love Charleston.  This is a cute little book telling the history of the city.

Duchess: The Story of Wallis Warfield Windsor
Such an interesting woman.

I thought I would love this book - Paris, piano...  But it is SO boring. (Sorry Thad Carhart.)

LOVED this book!  It totally cured me of any desire to live on a farm (SO much work!), but I loved it! Read my book report here.

Complete History of Jack the Ripper
Maybe I'm completely macabre, but I loved this book.  I mean, how did he do it?  And who was he?  What a great mystery.  (Gross, but great.)

I hated the ending, but LOVED every single word until then.  Read my book report here.

A semi-interesting story about "Love and Madness in the Gilded Age".

A modern classic, really.  All about greed and arrogance.  And so funny!

This is really a collection of short stories, all taking place within one town, and all featuring Olive in one way or another.  It's not a happy book, but it's SO good.

This book was the basis of the play (and subsequent movie) Chicago (which I loved!).  It's good...

After reading Grapes of Wrath, I went on a bit of a John Steinbeck bender.  This is a really sweet book about friendship.

A very different Steinbeck book, about WW2.  Disturbing.  (But what isn't disturbing about WW2?)

Ok, last Steinbeck (for now).  Sad, but a classic.

Not "high literature", but an interesting story.

Daisy Miller
Henry James might have written this to send a warning to free-spirited girls.

Part 2 of the Hunger Games trilogy.  

And, part 3.  I liked this series more than Twilight (ugh!), but less than Harry Potter.

Oddly written, which is interesting sometimes.

Siddhartha

Maybe Hermann Hesse's most famous book (it was the only one I'd really ever heard of).  It was good - I liked the "money doesn't buy happiness" theme.

Again, if you want to read any of these books too, just click on the image. 

(And let me know what you think!)