Sunday This and That

Here we go again! The endless winter (aka the winter from hell) is moving back in. The current forecasts call for 5-10 inches of snow in our area. My experience this years translates that to 8-12. Oh joy! The first act, rain, has already started.

I really don't know how I'm going to shovel this time. After falling in the shower last week, walking is a challenge. Everyone says, "Find a teenager." There are no teenagers around here - at least no hungry teenagers. I'm afraid I'll be on my own again, shoveling a few inches at a time. Those snow boots I bought on sale at Macy's were a good investment. Too bad I didn't think to buy gloves as well.

I've been frustrated by our cloudy weather. I've got photos "in the can" for the next few days' features, but I've got way more new makeup than photos. I need a good dry day, with plenty of spare time, so that I can do a marathon photography session.

The Spring-Summer Clé de Peau color is on counters now. I've got the press release to share with you. I hope to do that tonight while I'm multitasking during the red carpet pre-show. I have new Clinique and Laura Mercier, and fragrances - stunning new fragrances - that I have to feature soon. It's too bad I can't take a vacation and catch up - on a sunny day, of course.

Because it's Sunday, I took time to read the news. Russia's invasion of Crimea wiped out any goodwill the country may have gained during the Olympics. While complicated, the majority of Ukraine citizens want democracy and greater ties with Europe. They threw Putin's buddy out of office, so Putin retaliated by occupying part of their country - the part closest to Russia - supposedly to protect it. I heard a protesting Ukranian woman in DC quoted as saying that the Ukraine destroyed its nuclear stockpile in return for protection provided by the West should it find itself in need of help. If that's true, our politicians can't cut and run from this one. Russia has declared war. What's next? At the very least, I think Putin should be suspended from the Group of Eight, isolating him from the legitimacy he craves. What do I want for this world? Peace and the right to choose without intimidation how we will be governed.

Of course, the big celebrity news this weekend revolves around the Academy Awards (not Robin Thicke, although his recent behavior has earned a petition for divorce). It's already a given that "DC will be cancelled" tomorrow. I expect to work from home, so I can stay up late watching the show, sleep a tiny bit longer tomorrow morning, and still get my work done while wide awake. See, I was able to think up one positive thing about the storm.

For me, the dazzling gowns, accessories, hair, and makeup are the lure of the show (and red carpet). I haven't seen most of the nominated movies, making it hard for me to find excitement in the predictions, such as, "Will Cate Blanchett win Best Actress"? Ellen Degeneres is always fun, so it should be a good show. I found an overview of the fashion trends we can expect to see. You can find it at ABC.

Beauty Event at Neiman Marcus ends today. What was the surprise hit? The orange bag. Last year, they couldn't give orange bags away. This year, it "sold out" first. Go figure. Many of the store employees seemed to have Beauty Event fatigue yesterday. Given impossible goals, and in some cases nothing new to sell, they just wanted it to end. I understand.

I think it's time to go stock up on takeout. There will be no restaurant visits for me tomorrow; I will have to eat out of my refrigerator. Hmm, Chinese? Italian? Mexican? I need to devote a few minutes to this "tough decision making."

Will you be watching the Academy Awards? Is there any particular celebrity you are looking forward to seeing?

Update: What do you know? They have changed our snow forecast to 8-12. I should change jobs.

Update #2: From Forbes...There is also the matter of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, in which Ukraine agreed to give up its nuclear weapons and Russia vowed to respect Ukraine’s territorial integrity. By violating the treaty, Putin is signaling that all agreements signed during Russia’s period of weakness in the 90’s are null and void.

Photo courtesy of NBC Washington