A reader who left a comment regarding a previous post, explained how she deals with rude cell phone behavior by handing the offender a citation.  I was duly intrigued enough to search and found them here:

 

Though it's so amusing to think about using these, I can't say I'd recommend actually doing it...I wouldn't want to be accountable for the response it might provoke in return (there are a lot of crazy people out there these days!).  But it sure is fun to dream about. 

I can only imagine the havoc my fashionista sister would wreak if she had this pad:

 

On a recent visit to The Peninsula Beverly Hills, the concierge told me that a regular guest recently commissioned the hotel’s interior and floral designers to recreate the hotel’s luxe style in her own house. No doubt her interiors are brimming with The Peninsula’s signature monogrammed pillowcases, floral-strewn headboards and valance boxes, muted palettes, and white orchids, which has me thinking about hotel design style that I’d like to bring home (in addition to the hotel pencils and notepads that I collect to stock my writing table and to serve as a kitsch-free memento of my travels), on a smaller scale, of course.

January is nearly over and I can't believe I'm still dealing with the remnants of the holidays. Sure my tree has been down for weeks and the ornaments safely packed away, but I continue to find a Christmas card here, a piece of ribbon there. Thankfully I finally finished the last of the sugar cookies this weekend. Yes, there is no absolutely no more excuse left to prevent me from keeping my new year's resolution to lose 10 pounds....

I always have a dilemma figuring out what to do with all the holiday cards at the end of the season. I have a well-known love for beautiful paper, and how can one so callously throw all those photo cards with pictures of friends' precious children in the recycling bin? I usually can't bring myself to do it, so I put them all in a box to reconsider again next Christmas, but there are always a few that are so fabulous, or elegant, or adorable that they make it onto my inspiration board to look at throughout the year. 

Lately I've been thinking how sometimes even the smallest exchanges with total strangers can make--or break--my mood.  Let's start with the ugly.  Today I ran into a quick mart to pick up a bottle of water.  As so often seems to be the case these days, the clerk was talking with someone on her cell phone.  I handed her my money, and she returned my change without bothering to look up.  I say she returned my change...she actually scattered it across the counter!  As I scooped it up (and as she continued chatting away to her friend),  I said to her "that was really rude," and she replied that I was the rude one. Don't ask me how she came to that conclusion as she had never even made eye contact. But as I left, I was mumbling to myself about the decline of civility in customer service and thinking how much I would love to talk with her manager.  The sad thing is, however, for all I know she was the manager. I plotted my revenge plan of action for a good 30 minutes but ultimately decided to just let it go. 

On a lighter note, I saw a group of teenagers who were standing outside another store who were apparently conducting some sort of survey.  As I passed by, one of the girls called out to me to ask if I was a soccer mom.  I shook my head and and as I continued walking, heard one of her friends say, "couldn't you tell she looks too cool to be a soccer mom?" (Now, before I go and ruin someone else's day, let me just make it clear that I know many soccer moms who are way cooler than I am....). It was a small thing, for sure, but I have to confess I had a spring in my step the rest of the afternoon!  What unexpected compliment have you heard lately that made your day?

Okay, I realize the photo above has no relation to this post. But looking at this sunny yellow wallpaper by Clarence House is another little thing that elevates my mood, especially on a gray winter day like today. Room designed by Meg Braff; photo by Martin Sobey.

Dawn may not keep a flask in her desk drawer (at least that's what she claims in her last post) and I don't either.  But it has been a long week...and I need a drink...and it isn't going to be the kind you sip from a glass that looks like a plastic water bottle. One of my favorite spots in Birmingham is Highlands Bar & Grill, owned by chef Frank Stitt.  I go there for his stone-ground grits that melt in your mouth (the ultimate comfort food and better than any you've ever tasted), but a close second is the "Orange Thing," a drink that has become synonymous with the restaurant's bar and is just the antidote for the winter blahs.  Our market editor, Amanda Smith, went straight to the source to find out how to make it, so if you can't join me for a cocktail in Alabama tonight, I'm sending one over to you.  Happy weekend!

I’m a drinker. No it’s not what you’re thinking—I don’t keep a flask in my desk drawer, but I do try to drink eight glasses of water a day. My only problem is that I’m not big fan of drinking from plastic; I don’t like the way it tastes. Also, I have to admit I’m kind of lazy when it comes to emptying my recycle bin, so my office tends to be overflowing with bottles and cans. This year, I vowed to reduce, recycle, and keep a tidier office (still working on that last one). I found a great alternative to plastic at Rian Rae. This glass bottle cleverly mimics the shape of a plastic one and makes a stylish statement on my desk. Cheers!

I have always sorted through my e-mail in-box just like my mailbox at home, immediately recycling the junk and attending to the important things. Like everyone these days, I get hundreds if not thousands of e-mails a week.  Some I delete without even reading. Sorry, but the millionth time I get a slobbery puppy “screen cleaner” or the “forward this e-mail to 20 friends and see what happens…” (I know what happens, I annoy 20 friends and clutter their in-boxes.), they lose their appeal. My question is this: In today’s cyber etiquette are you required to RSVP to every e-vite received from strangers or well-meaning PR firms? I got one a couple of weeks ago for a boutique opening that, along with the particulars of the party, stated “MANDATORY RSVP.” It made me chuckle, and I dutifully declined. I would never dream of not responding to a written invitation or even an e-vite from a friend or colleague, but have never felt obligated to respond to a blanket invitation from a stranger, that is until now. I can’t promise that I won’t delete a few things sight unseen, but from now on, I’ll RSVP PDQ.

I’d love to say that I’m one of those genteel, eccentric, and slightly esoteric kinds of persons who proudly avoids all but the absolutely necessary forms of technology (sort of like my father, who would sooner read the encyclopedia word-for-word than Google anything). But I’m anything but. I live by email, the ATM, and The New York Times online. Still, I firmly believe there are quite a number of areas in which the “old-fashioned” way of doing things trumps the most current or convenient one (waiting in line for a bank teller notwithstanding).

Invitations would definitely fall into that category. I admit I just don’t get this evite phenomenon at all. In just the last month I’ve received electronic invites to a baby shower, an engagement party, and more than a few PR events—and I can honestly say I wasn’t thrilled about attending a single one of them (and that had nothing to do with the people or causes involved). It’s just that there is nothing like a beautiful or festive invitation in hand to get me excited about a party. I love to admire the paper, the design, and the printing. I’m reminded about the event every time I pass by the refrigerator I post them on. And if the invitation is truly special and the occasion has lived up to its billing, I tuck them into my inspiration board (really just a bulletin board) as a memento that I can savor long after the party is over. Perhaps something like this from Night Owl Paper Goods (whose letter pressing makes my heart race):

Or this, from Mrs. John L. Strong, the blueblood engraver, and an immediate signal that an elegant evening is sure to be had:

Or any of the literally thousands of stylish imprintables that can be purchased from a stationery store and run through a home computer.

In essence, I love invitations that do what invitations are supposed to do: not only provide the necessary details of where and when, but also set the tone and the mood of the affair; something that shows me that the hosts are going to expend a little energy to give their guests a good time. And I’m sorry, that just doesn’t come across on a computer screen.

So, the rule of thumb I plan to stick to? If it’s something SUPER casual or super last-minute, and I was merely going to make a few quick phone calls to the guest list, than an electronic invite is okay. But when I want to make the occasion truly memorable—and truly correct—than I'll put it down in writing (whether by hand, by engraver, or computer)…and spring for the stamps. It will be well worth the effort.