“I am not interested in money. I just want to be wonderful.”
Posthumous birthday wishes to the one and only Marilyn Monroe, who would’ve celebrated a centennial today. The media has long linked her to other modern starlets (some comparisons beyond laughable), yet none of those starlets have never come close to the permanent iconicness (IDAGF if that’s now a word) of MM.
In regards to her movies, I’ll always be down to watch All About Eve, Gentlemen Prefers Blondes,How To Marry A Millionaire, and Some Like It Hot, but Don’t Bother To Knock is an underrated fave of mine.
You know the more I think about it on this first day of Pride Month (which is a good time to come out with this, so to speak), the more I kinda feel like it’s…been more than 20 years of being Bisexual. The first time I was attracted to a woman was back in 1998, and, at the same time, I still liked guys. That same year was the first time I heard about bisexuality, thanks to a movie called Gia–a biopic about 1980s supermodel Gia Carangi, played by Angelina Jolie. Both women happened to be Bi. Though the biopic featured Gia’s relationships with women, the more I read about bisexuality, the more I felt like, “could that be me?”
The definition of being Bisexual has evolved beyond being attracted to just men and women, yet I still identify as one because my tastes have evolved as well. 😁 And twenty years ago this month, 21-year-old me looked at the mirror and declared to myself that I am Bi. (And then I went out on a date with the woman would become my first girlfriend.) I still refuse to pick a side.
Happy Pride Month, and Happy 20th BiVersary to me. You bet your ass I will be (as the youths are now saying) annoying with my Bi self this month. 🩷💜💙
It’s not every day I do back-to-back entries here on the same subject. But it happens to be the birthday today of the one true Kylie that’s still on top after all these years, so how about a post on some of her hits from way, way back? (Hey, it’s also Throwback Thursday!)
THE song that introduced me to her! I was only a kid, but whoever played the music at my birthday parties and family gatherings back then had pretty good taste because I remember hearing this. (And seeing the old folks at said family gatherings bust their hips to this 😆)
Her early 90s stuff gets so slept on, so I’m more than happy to boost them! Whoever said she never did a track with a rapper has never listened to “Shocked”.
And after seeing a bit of this on her Netflix docuseries, I had to include the full version here! Her and sister Dannii are pretty good here, and I’m always a sucker for campy 80s glamour.
TL;DR version: it’s great, could be longer, but watch it anyway you won’t regret it!
Almost a week ago, “Kylie”–a three-part documentary series detailing the life of pop superstar Kylie Minogue–debuted on Netflix. I didn’t catch it on debut night, or even the day after it debuted because busy. I finally had time to watch the first two parts last Friday, and I just finished the final part yesterday, and what a finale it was.
Today would’ve been the 100th birthday of jazz music legend Miles Davis, and, in honor of his centennial, here are some of my favorite songs of his.
A blueprint.
(a little note: this song gets a mention in my eBook The Playgirl😁)
An underrated track that was influenced during his time in France.
You can probably tell what my favorite album of his is 😄
Bonus clip: here’s Miles performing with the one and only Prince back in the late 80s!
To know that Miles has made songs with other legends like (among others) Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins (who had just passed away, RIP), and Prince in a span of five decades is wild. And while I’m aware Miles was a prick in life, damn if he didn’t produce some amazing cuts I’ve ever heard.
I really was pulling for Meg & Klay to go the distance. For all of her successes, she has also gone through so much hell, and was it too much to ask for her to have a decent man who would treat her right? I’m aware that Klay was a ho (for IG “models”, lmao) during his Warriors days, but I honestly thought he changed when he met Megan. I thought he would be that decent man for her. I was wrong. He’s still a ho, albeit the dumbest ho right now who cannot and will never win another ring, and will never have anyone better than Megan. Talk about a generational fumble. 🤦🏻♀️
Cindy Crawford wearing Gucci, on US Elle magazine, March 1996
I touched on this in a previous entry, but the fashions of Spring 1996 really deserve its own entry! Not only did the runways that season boast color and prints across the board, the consensus seemed to be easygoing, natural, yet chic and modern. This was not fast fashion soaked in muted neutrals and mid quality (at best), nor was it frumpy, dumpy, or cheap-looking. Then again, unlike the past couple of years, 1996 was a pretty good year, if you ask me. (More about this later.) And pretty good times, coupled with an economy on the rise, call for pretty good fashion.
Versace Ready-to-Wear (RTW), Spring 1996
(Amber Valetta was practically the face of spring ’96 fashion!)
Chanel RTW, spring 1996
(Also, Yasmeen Ghauri had THE body for all the clothes then!)
Calvin Klein RTW, spring 1996
Todd Oldham RTW Spring 1996
Versus by Versace, spring 1996
Oscar de la Renta, Spring 1996
Valentino RTW, spring 1996
Ellen Tracy, spring 1996
Gucci RTW, Spring 1996
(This look above, by the way, is something I’ve tried to replicate for reals. I got plenty of black tops; it was trying to find a skirt that looked similar that was a challenge. Why are there so many frilly beige tradwife on the prairie-looking ass maxi skirts around?! Only until I went to a Bloomingdales did I find it–and on clearance! I paid around $25 for a colorful silk (?) A-line skirt that originally went for around $100. No thigh-high slit on the side, but it still works.)
The many geek chic looks of Prada RTW, spring 1996
Prior to spring 1996, there had been retro revivals in the previous collections, from the disco glamour of fall 1994, to Hollywood’s golden age for spring 1995, and 60’s mod style for fall 1995. Though the 90s arrived during the grunge era of the early 90s, I feel like the decade finally found its own glamour that spring.
The colors, the craftsmanship, the effortless chic…simply gorgeous and timeless. Give me all of it!
Note: the ad campaign pics were pulled from this website. Bookmark it if you’re a lover of 90s fashion ads/editorials like me!
I may have saved a life five years ago, but 35 years ago, someone saved mine. It happened 35 years ago this Spring–unsure what exact month but you can’t blame me as I was only 6 when it happened. What I do remember is: I was in the Philippines at some beach resort my family and I were staying at, and I was running around like unrestrained six-year-olds would. I’m not sure what got me into the pool; I don’t recall being pushed or knocked into it. Somehow, I do remember falling down and down, unaware I was sinking into the deep end. And then someone got ahold of me and brought me back up. When I returned to surface, I saw my parents and relatives surrounding me, making sure I was OK. I wasn’t in a state to where I needed to be revived via CPR or go to the hospital, but I was definitely disoriented from it all. And, as far as I know, I didn’t sustain any neurological or health issues from the incident (thankfully).
That someone who saved me from drowning was my cousin. I’ll always be thankful for her, and while I haven’t seen her in almost 30 years, I hope she’s doing well.
All this said, I still have not made the efforts to learn how to swim since then. You’d think my parents would’ve enrolled me in swimming lessons right after that, but nope. (And young me probably would’ve noped out of those swimming lessons then because I was scared of drowning again!) I’d be the girl who would either hang out in the jacuzzi or in the shallow end of the pool while watching others play Marco Polo in the deep end. Other things held me back: weight issues, money issues, lack of time, still scared of drowning…Now, it’s just trying to find some free time in my schedule. I guess I got another goal to achieve by or before I turn 50 (the other goal being having little to no debt): learning how to swim.
