Trip to Target

Today I went to one of my favorite stores. I seriously would almost buy the whole store if I could. I love Target. I love the fact that I can find everything easily as soon as I walk in the door.

I love that I can buy things that look like they were expensive when they weren't. I love how they pair with designers and others to have modern designed products.

And I love how they give back to the community. In fact, I've bought several new Target items from the Goodwill, because they donate their left overs there. The Goodwill is also one of my favorite retail locations, but that deserves its own post.

I also recently saw the film "World's Largest" (a definite must see) and the town of Soap Lake, Washington received their dream of owning a very large lava lamp thanks to Target donating and shipping it to them from New York City. New Yorkers really need to stop and take a moment to be thankful for where they live. I know they like to whine about it, but they walk past things every day that small town Americans can only dream about having near them.

Oh and also, if I had to choose between Walmart and Target, I would pick Target hands down. I go to Walmart because it's open 24 hours and is in my town. I had to drive to a nearby city to get to Target. I always end up wandering around Walmart because I can't find what I need. For having such a large inventory, I have actually walked out of there with nothing because I couldn't find what I was looking for. Also, I end up spending way more time in there than I want to, wandering around, buying products that are on completely separate sides of the store, battling crowds and then finally when I get to the check out line I have to wait behind a ton of people or if not a ton of people, someone with a food stamp issue that is taking forever. Also, I hate to say it, but there is the stereotype of "Walmart People". It's there. I mean someone I know dressed up like a "Walmart Person" for Halloween.

Cambell's is Crystal Clear

I was very impressed recently with Campbell's Select Harvest labeling. They have the most clear, easy to understand labels. You definitely know what is in the can and what it is used for. They even explain that Tomato Puree is water and tomato paste and that the onions and garlic in the soup were dried. The natural flavoring is crab and yeast extract and then the label goes on to explain what Potassium Chloride is and what it is used for and to explain that Xanthan Gum and Locus Bean Gum are natural. In this world of food skepticism, yet lack of real cooking, it is so nice that Campbell's has stepped it up as far as letting people easily make informed decisions about what goes into their bodies.

Bilingual Berries

I have two clamshells of bilingual berries.

My raspberries went bad before I could eat them. I wonder if it has something to do with the fact they came all the way from Chile. Maybe it has nothing to do with that, but dang that's a long flight for little red raspberries, they have traveled more in their lifetime than I have in mine. They are named Red & Blue, it sounded pretty patriotic to me. One time I picked wild raspberries in New Hampshire. I guess at first glance I thought they maybe came from there, but then again the Chilean flag is also Red & Blue, so they are still some patriotic berries. The odd thing though is I would've expected Chilean raspberries to speak spanish, but they are actually fluent in French. I expected them to say that they are frambuesas, but in fact they claim to be framboises! With a little research of the berries. I found out that Chile is the largest exporter of fruit in the southern hemisphere, in fact I love that the Chilean fruit industry has such an easy to navigate, informative and aesthetically pleasing website. Literally, I could find in about two seconds anything I could possibly want to know and more than I care to know about Chilean fruit. Check it out! http://www.chileanfreshfruit.com/

The other clamshell is filled with blueberries. These berries are from Plant City, Florida. Not very far away. In fact, I've been there a few times for the Florida Strawberry Festival. While obviously not as famous as strawberries to the area, I wasn't surprised that other berries may be grown there. That's the positive part. Short trip blueberries, bringing back positive memories of the fair. The negative, they are named Poverty Ridge. Isn't that depressing. The poor berries are being called impoverished. Ok, maybe they are not impoverished, but where is this Poverty Ridge? Is this where these berries were grown? I'm all about being true to the land, but gosh... all I can think about with a name like that is poor little barefoot hungry children picking berries till their fingers bleed. Rename the ridge! Sunny Ridge, Merry Berry Ridge, Green Grass Ridge, Blue Skies, Bright Smiles and Blueberries Ridge. Something positive please! Also these berries speak French too. Maybe Poverty Ridge might sound better in French.

Thoughts from the Produce Aisle

Everyone knows you are suppose to eat your fruits and vegetables. My first real word as a child was "juice", of course that's the reason why I have 20/20 vision. Today I ran into a grand scheme in product placement, just as this past weekend I ran into people with grand schemes to influence social change.

"You Are What You Eat" - The phrase that inspired the memorable donut hips of the women who should've eaten a Nutri-Grain bar has already overtaken society with diets and gym wear, but now while I know this hasn't quite caught on mainstream... well it has in places filled with "Crunchy People", you are not only what you eat, but what your food is packaged in.

So we are "plastic"!

Not really a surprise here. I mean, what little girl didn't want to be Barbie when she grew up?

Swipe the plastic for plastic surgery, plastic bags, plastic bottles and all those plastic containers. Plastic convenience store stop in the red plastic convertible. Hey Ken! Do you want a coke? Hot blonde sashes into jiffy store, while metal pumping beef cake fills up the muscle car. Rumble rumble zoom zoom couple speeds off into the distance, a cloud of smoke and dust fills the air and chokes the short mousey brunette on the bicycle. A sweaty old man walking down the sidewalk in overalls turns his head down and brings a red handkerchief to his mouth. He must be homeless or something cause he's walking. She must be broke cause she's biking.

Somewhere far from the hot concrete is the smell of smoke. Not car exhaust, but the delicious smell of roasting peppers, corn and bananas. Bright colors pop into the landscape of blues and greens. There is plenty for everyone. Would you like to try it? Are you hungry? There's plenty. Five hours for fresh air and fresh food. Five hours of grey. But there is no wasting, but lot's of working. Working to grow together and grow food and grow color in the grey.

I came back to grey. I'm not that good. I guess I could be better. Everyone can better themselves. I have needs. I sustain myself, whether or not it is sustainable, I'm not sure. I go to the produce aisle. Color!! Del Monte Fruit Naturals called my name. I don't think fruit cups typically hang in the produce aisle. I think they try to appeal to lunch box packing mothers looking for convenience, plastic.

These things looked like little treasures for a fruit craving single. What! I can have a variety fruit and it won't go bad before I can eat it! I don't think to share, maybe I don't have enough of a tribe rooting for me to be able to share. I imagine the possibilities, it's overwhelming. I don't know which one to eat first. I start to question my compulsiveness later, I mean all that plastic, shouldn't I have just got fruit to cut up myself. The price. Did I spend too much? I never went down the aisle with the other fruit cups to compare.

It was too late. I made my way across cracked concrete to the real version of what that scaled down plastic convertible stood for and I forgot forks, I forgot decency. My primal self tore into the fruit cup. Juice dripping down my chin, down my front, down the folds of my dress. Sticky fingers grabbed instinctively for the colors.

I was what I ate. Juicy.

My Perfect Machine

Lately I've been very busy

Too busy

To blog

Too busy

To Journal

Almost

Too busy

To think

This time of busyness

And business, thankfully

Has been rather fulfilling

Which is good, because

If not, it would've been

Just full

Not Filling

Over running

Over run

Ran over

Not in a biblical

"Cup runith over" way

More like roadkill

Holidays were spent

With family

Time was spent

With friends

Nights were spent

At Work

And the best gifts

Are free

Or

Bought for yourself

Take my Mac Book Pro for example

Which got me thinking about

My Perfect Machine

My Perfect Machine

Would always stay charged

Run at the speed of light

Hold a lifetime of memory

And last forever

While looking Beautiful

Ok... Apple

Hear this.

If anyone could do this

For hardware

You could.... but

Software

Ok... I admit

I think Apple

Should stay out

Of software

I will also

Admit I am

A bit of an

Adobe snob

Because

I want to list

My software skills

On my resume

I want professional

Not amateur grade

If I make a movie

I want to think

That I could possibly

One day win the Cannes

Even if right now

I make low quality

Youtube videos

But for those times

Where I don't need

Professional

I love FREE

And Google

I remember

The first time

I found out about

Google

It was an article

In my 3rd grade

Math book

One with a hundred zeros

After it

Pretty cool

I thought Math was boring

I liked trivia

And sometimes the book

Might have a halfway

Decent picture in it

I was interested in art

And design

And construction

I wish someone had

Made the connection

I might've been better

If math was presented to me

Differently

If I had used math

As a tool

Not as a chore

My Perfect Machine

Includes a calculator

I don't do math

Because it does it for me

From a young age

I loved the calculator

I should've been taught

About computers

Instead of how to

Solve problems

That a tool can solve

Memorize information

That can be searched

How about solving problems

That no one has thought of

Inventing methods that

Have not been programmed

Utilizing tools to make

Something that did not exist

That is what humans are for

We cannot be programmed

A computer can not be creative

Another thing I like

Google is innovative

Something unexpected

All the time

And it's free

Earth, Maps, Documents, Sites, Art, ect..

So a neat summery of my rantings

My Perfect Machine does not exist really

It would be computer/silent airboat/plane.. I don't know

In the present

Apple hardware

With Adobe and Google software

Well, I can get that set up!

All-American Manufacturing, Not So All-American Style

Today my Aunt was very happy to see that I was wearing a previous Christmas gift she gave me a few years ago. I wore it because it is one of the few long-sleeved t-shirts I own. She loves it more than I do and in fact would’ve bought it for herself at the Metropolitan Opera House Gift Shop if they had one in her size. It has a fun screen print design, rather Art Nouveau. I enjoy Art Nouveau & Art Deco… I guess I prefer each one depending on if I’m in a more organic or a more geometric mood. It is rather comfortable and American Apparel. I find American Apparel rather interesting, I do admit that I did not know much about the brand until I moved to Miami. You can pull American Apparel in Miami. For being called American Apparel, it definitely has more of a specific urban international following than American.

I can’t imagine….. Hmm…

Well, I can imagine walking down my sweet little southern town decked in tight /short American Apparel.

In fact, I’ve almost been there, done that

When I decided to go shopping

In Spandex leggings

I mean they weren’t even liquid Spandex

I was getting all kinds of stares

Old ladies talking about me behind my back

I know they were jealous

I gathered bits & pieces

I wasn’t even in heels or anything

I just came from the gym

I was in tennis shoes

Maybe that’s the reason for the stares

People don’t go downtown without makeup

In Miami, people love leggings

And wear them all the time

Whatever shows off your butt better

Hahaha…. I remember a few talks we girls got

From a Georgia Peach from Buckhead

She tried to convince us that leggings are not pants

She wore them under skirts & dresses

Like you do tights

We were all shocked

What!

One of my classmates worked in the South Beach location

She wore American Apparel everyday

Must’ve got a discount

I think they are a bit pricey

Especially for starving artists

Unless the starving artist lives off his or her parents

In Miami, you also see American Apparel ads everywhere.

Great photography & composition

A little racy

But whatever

Grabs your attention

It’s interesting that they manufacture everything in L.A.

Good to have a company setting an example in textiles

No little kids working in sweat shops in Thailand

Loved their website too,

Very clean

Very descriptive

Very open about everything

Well, I guess I’d consider them pretty open anyway

In almost every sense of the word

Levi's from unbuttoned to fixing bony butt

I happen to be wearing Levi Strauss Jeans today

I also wore them yesterday

They are practical

They are still holding up

Even though my sister gave them to me

After she tired of years of wearing them

Or maybe her butt got even bigger

They've been practical since.. 1873 or something

Now days they are trying really hard to be sexy

They have the whole risqué "Unbuttoned" thing going on

I have a few of their ads on my Youtube playlist

I like Levi's "Dangerous Liaison"

History is sexy

Well, maybe I'm just nerdy enough to think history is sexy

Also, they never actually are able to to take off the pants

The mystery and frustration are sexy

But then there is Levi's 501 "Secrets and Lies"

I was kinda surprised that this came on T.V.

But then again it was 10:00 at night

"Secrets and Lies" I guess makes a good fantasy

Plenty of people have these types of fantasies

I suggest they don't attempt to fulfill them in real life

Being lied to and manipulated in real life isn't very sexy

Not a good example... not that you would follow it.

Mental and physical health are at risk... not a good idea.

I read that since Levi's has decided to take on sexy

That they've decided to try to make even make my flat butt sexy

Yes, I inherited my sister's jeans, because I have a bony butt

No junk is in my trunk. None.

She got the dance moves

And the butt

So Levi's has three different butt cuts

Called "Curve id"

For the flat, the curvy and the pear shaped.

Great idea... I'm tired of the saggin' flat back.

I'm sure someone else is tired of bustin' seams.

Well anyway, here is all 3 videos, Enjoy!