There are no right or wrong answers to the poll topic. I just like to hear what people have to say! No pressure.
What is your favorite invention?
I’m still thinking of my answer, though the internet is pretty high on my list. Other contenders: electric/ hybrid cars, high heels, cookies, cell phones, toothpaste … The list goes on and on.
I woke up Monday with the worst cough/cold and it’s not getting any better, but I thought I’d write a quick post to take my mind of things. On Saturday, Andy and I went to the Siren music festival at Coney Island. It’s a great festival. I’ve seen the Shins, the Liars, Stars, Tapes n’ Tapes …. This year wasn’t the best, but it’s kind of sad that it was the last. Supposedly they’re ripping up Coney Island to build a newer amusement park. How sad. There is so much history there in those rickety rides and that splinter-inducing boardwalk. Do we REALLY nead another Starbucks infested mega-mall? Ugh. Anyway, Here are a few highlights from possibly our last trip to Coney Island (well, except for when we go to Keyspan Park to see Daft Punk next month).
The Noisettes: A really good punk rock band from London. Tons of energy and the lead singer had great style.
Okay, I gotta go pop some vitamins and take a nap.
1. 
I know the Sex and the City movie isn’t “hot off the presses” news, but I see Cynthia Nixon in my neighborhood a lot, so it was on my mind. (And I thought that would make a funny post title. I’m lame, I know.) But, to be honest, is that going to be any good? The show was fantabulous, but it’s over. Everything that made the show great—cocktails, hot guys, fashion, gossip, hot guys—won’t be the same. We already know that Miranda has a baby (who will already be, what, 7 years old when the movie comes out?) And Charlotte has a kid, too? Right? They adopted a baby, didn’t they? There’s no way Samantha will have kids, but will she still be with her beyond gorgeous actor boyfriend? Will he be a huge star? And Carrie. I don’t think Big would ever want kids, but does she? Will that tear them apart? Is she a hugely successful writer? Thoughts, observations, comments. Please share.
2. HARRY POTTER. I’m afraid to leave my house when the book comes out, for fear that I’ll be trampled to death by psychotic fans! But it’s very exciting. (BTW, that Daniel Radcliffe is growing up to be quite the HOTTTIE.)
I’m sure you all know CountryGirl CityLife. She won my “Win a copy of Back Talk” contest a few weeks ago (and she gave the book a great review on Amazon, thanks!). She is a very talented designer (check out her stuff on etsy, I’m totally eying one of her Arm Candy bags). Whoops, I’m getting off track already. CGCL has been trying to instigate ROAKs—Random Acts Of Kindness. They can vary from smiling at people on the street, to helping old ladies get their big fugly carts across Broadway before the light turns red, or (and most excitingly) buying someone a random item off their Amazon Wishlist. Wasn’t I surprised to come home yesterday and have an Amazon package! Thank you CGCL. I can’t wait to read Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. And I will definitely be better about ROAKing.
5. 
TRAVIS!!! Andy and I went to see the band Travis on Sunday night at Irving Plaza and it was one of the BEST shows I’ve ever been to! They came out through the audience, wearing boxing gloves and those satin fighting robes, and high-fived us as they made their way to the stage. They had so much energy and they played all our favorite songs—they even threw bottled water out at the audience because we looked so thirsty! I love a live show with audience participation. It kicked ass. If you don’t already know/like their music, I highly suggest getting an album, probably The Man Who, but they’re all good.
[If anyone had a hard time linking to my site recently: sorry. My hubs is the President of my website, and apparently something weird happened (my technical term, not his).]
I just got back from Santa Fe, NM (my hometown) for a book signing of Back Talk. It was a blast. I felt like such a celebrity (and I got to wear one of my cute new BCBG dresses). 
I was so incredibly nervous to do a radio interview. Especially since one of the radio shows is hosted IN a local restaurant. People everywhere. No pressure (hah). It was less intimidating than TV, but scary nonetheless. I had to actually TALK about my book!! Good thing it’s a subject I know well. Both interviews were very successful. I found myself thinking “Wow, this book sounds really good”—is that totally conceited?
Anyway, I won’t bore you with too many details. But I want to thank everyone who’s ordered/bought a copy of Back Talk. I really hope you like it. In fact, if you do like it, I hope you’ll write a quick comment/review on Amazon. That’d be suh-weeeet!
And even better news in the land of Alex: I just finished my 2nd book! Yeehaw! I should totally celebrate…. some shopping perhaps? Maybe a day at the beach. I’ll cuddle with the new hubs and our kitties while I think about it.
I just finished the most fantabulously fun book by Stephanie Hale called Revenge of the Homecoming Queen, and I had to write a quick post about it. Now, I myself have never been much into the whole “homecoming” thing. It was kind of a joke at my school (or at least with my circle of friends), but Revenge lets you experience it vicariously—both the highs and the lows, of which there are many for the adorable heroine, Aspen Brooks. I’m telling you, you will fall in love with this girl immediately. She is one fabulously catty biatch! There is a little bit of all of us in Aspen—and by “us” I mean fashionistas, 
because Aspen has enough style to feed a small army. She loves Dooney & Bourke almost as much as I love oxygen, and her fashion sense plays a key role in the book.
The dialogue is witty and entertaining. It was actually kind of embarrassing because I read the whole book on the plane to Santa Fe (for my book signing, which I’ll post about next time!!) and I was laughing so much that I actually got a “look” from the woman next to me. Ooops!
Hale reels you in immediately with her dead-on portrayal of high school duh-rama. I craved the characters, and the obvious love story that I was just waiting to be unveiled. But then suddenly the plot twists, and it’s actually a mystery—quel surprise! In addition to loving the characters (her boyfriend sounds like an effing FOX!), I was loving the plot. Whodunit? Well, you’ll just have to read and find out.
I’m telling you, this book was Murder, She Wrote meets One Tree Hill.
…But in a good way.
Seriously, if you want a fun summer read (and you’ve already bought and read Back Talk, hehe) definitely pick up Revenge of the Homecoming Queen, by Steph Hale. It’s a lot of fun.
I used to work for a nationally syndicated daytime talk show. That’s where I got the idea to write Back Talk. I was a researcher, which means I combed through dozens of newspapers looking for over-the-top stories about self-made teen millionaires, prison escapees, people with bizarre diseases… the list goes on and on.
One of my all time favorite episodes to work on was the Time Warp show. We went back in time to 1984. Ask me any random trivia question about that year and I’ll have the answer. 
Seriously. I will. It was so much fun. I convinced tons of companies to ply us with goodies that we gave away to the audience. We got wayfarers from Ray Ban, and Cabbage Patch Kids, and 80′s movies on DVD…
We even had a musical guest. Do you remember that song “Let’s Hear It For The Boy” by Deniece Williams? (that link is to an awesome youtube video from the 80′s.) The song was in the movie Footloose. Well, Ms. Williams came on the show and performed it! It was the bomb (except she was no longer a hip 20-year-old pop star. She was … older. But it was still a fun performance, and I always do that song at Karaoke now!)
Anyway, in honor of my past life in TV production, I’ve chosen a few bizarre stories that I think should definitely make their way onto a talk show:
Like this one. Holy OH MY GOD. Did you see the story about the little girl who was DISEMBOWELED in a kiddie pool? Whoa. I almost gagged watching the video on CNN, but it’s kind of incredible. This little girl was swimming and I guess she sat on hte drain or something. Anyway her intestines were sucked out of her through the drain. Jesus Christ! Remind me not to go swimming anytime soon! Yikes.
Or this one. How much do you love your family? Would you, for instance, wrestle a rabid fox to the ground in order to protect them? I’d like to think I would, but seriously? A RABID FOX? I don’t know if I could handle that. But apparently some 5-year-old kid in North Carolina totally had it in him. I hope he doesn’t get rabies.
And from News of the Weird. This is the most ridiculous story ever. A young couple stole a car, but then they decided to stop and do it in the car on the side of the road. Like that isn’t dumb enough, they left the car idle, so it ran out of gas and the cops caught them. Oy vey is all I can say.
And just to throw in something a little more glam: 
what is up with Christina Ricci’s new ‘do? (It’s the pic on the right.) It doesn’t really suit the shape of her face. In general, she is super cute, but she kind of looks like a mushroom cap now.
Actually, wait… I might change my mind. Maybe it’s got a fun, retro vibe. I’m so fickle.
Woo hoo! It’s July first, and my novel came out today! I’m psyched.
…Okay, so it’s not actually *in* every bookstore. In fact, if you think of it and you’re at a bookstore, go up to the info desk (hey, sometimes the clerk is a totally hot bookworm-type) and ask them to stock it. That would ROCK!!
And guess what: I’ve chosen a winner to my apparently very confusing CONTEST!!! That’s right folks. I got some really hilarious, creative, and clever entries, but after much angsty deliberation, the winner is…. CountryGirlCityLife!!! 
CountryGirl CityLife (who posted in the comments as Jody) is one witty chick, as well as a talented designer, and she just won a signed copy of Back Talk. I chose CountryGirl CityLife’s entry because A) I adore Marc Jacobs, B) the iPhone is so hot (in a vomitous kind of way) and C) I love her description of Evan (who WAS the name of the love interest in Back Talk until I changed his name in revisions—spooky!). And thanks for tagging peeps to enter the contest.
I might have another contest soon… but don’t worry, it won’t be a Top 5 list. haha
What else, what else… I watched the most amazing Nature special on venom. I was just being lazy and watching Will & Grace reruns (it is too hot to do anything else) and I flipped to PBS. Wow. I was completely fascinated. The venom from a certain type of sea snail can be extracted and used as a painkiller. Did you know that? I didn’t. Oh, and guess how strong it is?—1000 times stronger than morphine. Holy shnikes! I think I’m going to start TiVoing more Nature shows.
And: can we just have a moment of thanks that turbans are out? I was so not into that look, and according to style.com the turban has been replaced by the babushka look/ cur-chief. To be honest, I’m probably not gonna rock the curchief either (I don’t really want to look like an 80 year old grandma, plus my hair’s too frizzy), but it’s not as stuffy as the turban, which basically just reminds me of old movie stars—not that old movie stars aren’t totally freakin’ awesome. Uh-oh, I’m starting to contradict myself.
And finally, what has happened to my love, Shia LaBeouf? I thought he was so adorable in Disturbia, but he looks a little slimy at the Transformers premiere. Speaking of which: who wants to see the Transformers movie? I’m torn. I used to watch the cartoon when I was little, but this new movie looks trashy and generic. I think I’ll save my $12 for the new HARRY POTTER! Oh yeah, baby.
