Be still, my heart. Facebook ads strike again! This time, the t-shirt company of choice is Snorg Tees, which produces a variety of different slogan/branded tees. The one they decided to show me? Lil old me? The one that reads, "Bacon Makes Everything Better." And let the church say AMEN! I wrote here about how my husband has tried to abolish all bacon from my life. It has caused me much trauma and marital strife. I'm halfway considering buying this t-shirt in solidarity for the cause of bacon and I shall wear it around my house in protest. I need them to lower the price as it's against my religion to pay $18.95 + shipping + tax for a non-fashionable t-shirt. No matter how clever it may be. I'll wait for them to put it on sale.

 

Over the last few years, I've developed an obsessions of sorts. I'm one of those people who falls hard for the things I love. I stalk, I over-indulge, I study, and I meditate on whatever it is that has my affection. Right now it's all about desserty goodness. If you haven't been hiding under a mat, you are probably well aware of the massive resurgence of an old time classic: traditional frozen yogurt. Frozen yogurt, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I'm sure we all remember TCBY. In fact, TCBY shops can still be found in lowly airports and random suburbs. For the most part though, frozen yogurt has long taken a back seat to front runners like Ben & Jerry's, Baskin & Robbins, and my once personal favorite: Cold Stone Creamery.

That is until some clever business people decided to take a risk and resurrect the traditional frozen yogurt concept store and hip it up a bit. The result? A lactose intolerant's dream! Everywhere you look, hip, trendy frozen yogurt joints are popping up and they are buzzing with young and old alike, all coming to eat this healthy desserty treat.

Among the front runners of this craze are two popular "fro-yo" companies called Pinkberry and Red Mango. I *heart* these places so much it's almost unhealthy. Ah ha, but since it's frozen yogurt, it actually IS healthy, so there! What makes frozen yogurt such a hit is the versatility every customer has in being able to custom build their order with different fruit and dry toppings.

While some restaurants might be suffering, business is booming in the frozen yogurt industry. Copycat shops and Red Mango or Pinkberry look alikes are popping up everywhere you look. Red Mango is a worldwide phenomena and is likely in most major US cities. Pinkberry, on the other hand, is only in California and New York. If you are ever in either of those states, I highly recommend running, not walking to the nearest location and partaking in the goodness that is Pinkberry. You will not be disappointed!

My favorite fro-yo flavors are:

• Pomegranete
  
• Green Tea

My favorite toppings are:

• Strawberries
  
• Mangoes
  
• Yogurt Chips
  
• Cap'n Crunch
  
• Fruity Pebbles

(but not all at the same time)

 

I am a lover of high fashion. For me, New York Fashion Week is like the NBA playoffs. I live to see what designers are coming out with next and I love to see new looks walk up and down the runway. I won't lie though, creativity is extremely lacking among many designers. So I perked up when french designer Sophie Theallet made a bold choice and featured all dark-skinned models from various nationalities in the runway show for her Spring 2009 Ready to Wear collection. I'm not old enough to know if this has ever been done before but in my lifetime, I don't remember such a thing. It's pretty darn subversive and I love it!

Call it affirmative action on the runway or whatever, but her choice made her collection stand out and it instantly made her one of my new favorite designers to watch. So many designers opt to feature 25 Kate Moss look alikes every season. It's refreshing to see someone take a risk and do something different that isn't trite or gimmicky. The face of modeling has changed so much over the years, yet many designers collections don't often display that.

Theallet is one to watch!

 

If you haven't been introduced to BugMeNot.com, it's time to get with the program. It is a site I use at least 4-5 times a week and it's a brilliant concept. BugMeNot's tagline is "bypass compulsary registration." Email addresses are a hot commodity. Most major websites (especially news sites) salivate at the prospect of capturing your contact information so they can bug you from now until kingdom come. BugMeNot is a great little user generated tool that allows you instant access to dummy logins and passwords for most major (free) sites you may need to access (like nytimes.com or washingtonpost.com or your local news station's site and even popular messageboards and forums). It is golden, especially if you want to read an article on some random newspaper you will never EVER read again (like the Minneapolis Star). Who wants to register just to read one stinkin' article? It's a pain.

Over the last few years, the makers of BugMeNot.com launched a companion site called RetailMeNot.com. RetailMeNot is a shopper's dream. Instant access to all the latest discount codes and coupons for many major online retailers. I shop a lot on line and I never checkout my purchase without stopping at RetailMeNot for a quick scan on possible discount codes for free shipping or anywhere from 10-40% off at times. You can save a fortune with coupon codes. That's right; coupon clipping goes digital.

 

Somewhere along the line, I became a salad dressing snob. This pretty much rules out my chances of ever being a gangster, because according to some people, gangsters don't have favorite kinds of salad dressing. I'm not sure when I became the snob that I am, but I'm convinced there are few things in life more pretentious than being snobby about your salad dressing. Truly, it's obnoxious. To be completely honest, if I had to choose favorites, nothing beats good old olive oil and balsamic vinegar in my book. But since variety is the spice of life, the bevy of salad dressing options made available to us provide ample opportunity to liven up the average salad (and increase the caloric content).

I'm a huge fan of the Brianna's brand of all natural salad dressings. They don't claim to be organic, but they claim to be keep out a lot of the additives and preservatives common to many other dressings. When it comes to a lot of the more mainstream brands of salad dressing like Kraft, two thorough readings of the label leave me in wonder about if it's even real food. Much as I love me some traditional "Hidden Valley Ranch", I usually stay far away from the stuff.

When it comes to Brianna's brand though, I can't get enough. Their dressings are just fabulous. With names like Asiago Ceasar, Dijon Honey Mustard, and Ginger Mandarin it's hard to go wrong with any of their 12 choices of dressings. Right now I'm absolutely obsessed with the "Real French Vinaigrette," which has a tangy taste and is your traditional tart vinegarette (great on steamed artichokes), and their "Blush Wine Vinaigrette," which is more sweet and better suited to salads like Pear Gorgonzola, or anything with strawberries, dried cranberries, etc.

Yes I really did post about a brand of salad dressing. You will soon find out, I love to love food...even salad dressing. Deal. Now run, don't walk to your nearest grocery store and grab yourself a bottle.

 

(click image to enlarge)
I just love Alek Wek. Like most models, I sometimes don't care for the types of clothing she models, but she is a stunner nonetheless. I happened upon this photo today and just thought it was a stunning example of what happens when you wear the right color for your skin tone. It's amazing to me that someone else can put on this same bright purple dress and look drab and horrible, but on Alek's skin, it looks absolutely amazing.

One reason Alek stands out to me is not because she is a native of Sudan, but rather because she doesn't look like anyone else in the modeling industry right now...or ever. She's hardly a waif, she has exotic facial features and bone structure, and her skin is darker than any African American supermodel to ever make it big. I love that her very existence is redefining what beauty is. The reality is, for many of us dark-skinned women, there was a day when someone like Alek would never grace the cover of any magazine or the stage of a runway.

Let this be a lesson to us all. Find out what colors look good on you and buy clothing in that color in BULK! It does a world of difference.
(Image Credit: Larry Busacca/Getty Images)