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I never post this kind of thing but I was really taken by this new version of Jewel's "Foolish Games" that she duets with Kelly Clarkson for her February greatest hits album. I had to share. It's hauntingly beautiful and I predict it will play on repeat in my car very soon.
Kelly Clarkson ft Jewel Foolish Games
I suppose I liked the song before, but I've always been kind of "eh" over Jewel. But Kelly Clarkson could sing me the friggin' phone book and I'd buy 18 copies.
I love this. I couldn't resist it.
Oh hi there, potentially male readers of this blog.
This entry is totally gonna be about BOOBS. "The girls" are not meant to describe my besties or the kids I volunteer with. Just BOOBS. But not really in a sexy way. I just thought I'd give you a heads up.
I am also suddenly and acutely aware of all the teens in my youth group who might read this.
Oh well - I wear a bra. If I didn't, I don't think I'd have much of a social life as I am quite well endowed up top. It would be rather unsightly. I don't think it's a matter of national security.
Speaking of unsightly, can I just ask -- Is anyone with a bigger bust rocking a bra without an underwire? If so, how is this accomplished? It's not that I'm a huge fan of wearing the wire, it's just that I am morally and ethically against chronic back pain and and my boobs sagging down to my navel.
Go on. Picture that. I'll wait.
And onto more pressing matters...
"Hey AJ," you wonder aloud, "where, pray tell, do you purchase your bras?"
Well, curious reader, I frequent a few websites that I keep bookmarked in my browser should the need for new underthings arise. Here in no particular order:
The names of these sites KILL ME. "Fresh Pair" kind of grosses me out. Why wouldn't they be fresh, I wonder? Also, I'd like to point out that Lane Bryant's current campaign touts WHO NEEDS CUPID WHEN YOU HAVE CACIQUE.
Let's pretend that ISN'T implying fat girls can't get laid and that fun lingerie should bring them comfort. OR that it might imply sexy lingerie WILL get you laid, but will NOT get you love. It's pretty cute and their latest line is pretty and girly. It's nice when you're busty and you don't have to wear something akin to a chastity belt.
I also wanted to make a recommendation to you. Get measured. Does anyone remember that episode of Oprah where she famously told the nation that most women are wearing the wrong bra size? She's not lying. Getting measured is great. Once you get over the strange old lady with a tape measure feeling you up, it's a life changer.
And lastly on this matter, I'd only continue to beg the designers of the world to MAKE SEXY BRAS. Just because I'm overweight and have a big chest, does not mean I want to hide myself away. In fact, I want to show them off, dammit. If you got 'em, flaunt 'em, right?
When You Got it, Flaunt it (The Producers)
"....Smells like God."
True story. Preach.
My friend gave me a package of Papa Ben's Mandelbroyt. All I knew about mandelbroyt (or mandel bread if you prefer) is that my great-grandmother used to bake it and that my dad likes it. So I looked up the company, "Papa Ben's Kitchen."
Let me tell you about Ben Lesser.
"Papa Ben" was born in Krakow, Poland in 1928. His father, Lazar, owned a chocolate company famous for their chocolate covered wafer cookies. Lazar shared his love of baking with his son, and during family holidays they made Mandelbroyt, which became the family tradition for special occasions.
His father's passion for baking, which was instilled in the family, allowed the family to survive outside the ghettos for a portion of WWII. Using the stone oven in their cottage, Ben and his father worked together to prepare the finest baked goods for family, friends and their surrounding village. But in September 1947, after the war tore apart his family, Papa Ben arrived in Brooklyn to reunite with his only surviving family member, his sister, Lola. Ben moved to Los Angeles with little money in his pocket, but with the determination and the excitement to succeed.
America gave Ben opportunities he never dreamed he'd have; an education and a successful career in the real estate business and he met the love of his life, Jean, and together they raised two beautiful daughters, Sherry and Gail.
With the expansion of his family, and inquisitive grandchildren wanting to know the family history, Ben rediscovered his long lost passion for baking. Sharing the best memories of his childhood, including the secret family recipes, he was able to heal the wounds of the past and bring hope to the future.
It's a really sad-but-lovely story and though it's rooted in a far different background, it reminds me a little of my grandmother and baking with her. I still love to bake and need to do it more often.
Papa Ben's Kitchen is also dedicated to the remembrance of the Holocaust. The Zachor Holocaust Remembrance Foundation is a non-profit organization founded by Ben Lesser, that supports Holocaust education, remembrance and tolerance of and for all people. The Foundation's mission is to ensure that the tragedies of the Holocaust will never be forgotten. As part of the commitment to this cause, a percentage of profits from Papa Ben's Kitchen are donated to the Zachor Holocaust Remembrance Foundation.
You guys, Holocaust rememberance day is in April but don't feel like you have to wait that long. Let this story touch you and contribute today. Or buy some mandelbroyt. Bottom line, that stuff is DELICIOUS.
If you had not heard the rumblings of my friends and family who know, I am about to embark on a new adventure. I have accepted an amazing position with a fantastic company.
As with any massive life change, I'm anxious. I'm not nervous or scared, though. I think 25 year old AJ would have been those things but I am far more self-assured and confident in my abilities at this point so it's really just a general anxiety combined with guilt about leaving the wonderful friends I've made in my current position.
I mean, how often do you get to work with such GREAT girls? Not often, trust me.
And to boost myself up a bit, I was googling for inspiring quotes about change (you all know how I love the quotes) when I struck quote GOLD via the mother of ALL positive change: Oprah. So I'm not just giving you a quote. I'm givng you a quote ALBUM. You're welcome.
Source: http://www.oprah.com/spirit/Quotes-About-Change-Motivational-Quotes/1
