Tuesday, January 10, 2012

carry on, alexa chung.

Listening To: Calling You by Jeff Buckley
Also listening to: the falling rain. One of my most favorite sounds. 

Someone recently said to me, "I bet you and your friends have really smart conversations."

I didn't know how to respond. Because the question was well-intentioned; it wasn't sarcastic at all. And don't get me wrong; I would certainly classify my friends as smart. And they're not just smart but assertive and easy-going and very funny. And they're all crazy pretty. I'm not just saying that so they'll buy me coffee either - in the words of Derek Zoolander, they're all really, really ridiculously good looking. But I'm also confident that our typical conversations aren't the sort that make people envy our brilliance or even want to eavesdrop. (Even though I'm confident that, if they do eavesdrop, folks will wish they had girlfriends as cool as mine.)


For example. 

Recently, while waiting for our movie to start, my bffSarah and I sipped some java at Starbucks and conversed. Smart-like. By which I mean: we were lamenting the loss of our favorite purple puffy chairs. The purple puffy chairs used to be caddy-cornered there in The Buck, situated perfectly for conversing. Whichever one of us got there first would run for the purple puffy chairs and claim them. They were our favorite place to chit-chat and scheme and solve the world's problems. Alas, the purple chairs have been done away with in favor of boring tables. Tables are no good for problem solving. What will the world do with out us fixing its problems?!


Table-talk consisted of Muppets and Ziploc bags and holiday catalogs and other exciting topics. (See what I mean?) For some reason, I started talking about the Madewell Holiday catalog. I don't know why this came up. But I don't really know how 90% of our conversation topics come up, so no biggie.

Full disclosure: I've never actually bought clothes from Madewell. I guess I get the catalog because I've bought accessories there. They have cool pieces at a good price point; stuff that looks just a little more quality than Urban. More like what you hope to find in an old antique/thrift store. Except I never find cool jewelry at antique stores. (I only find gigantic rings with Shriner insignia.)

This year's Madewell Holiday catalog is especially fun for two reasons. 1.) Because it contains the llama sweater:


Which is kind of awesome. (If you have a strange sense of humor, which I most definitely do.) Priced at $90, it's approximately $87.99 more than I would pay for such a piece, but it's still fun. And it made me laugh so I pinned it. (I don't think I understand The Pinterest correctly ...) The llama love sweater is already sold out on Madewell, so don't get your hopes up. *fingers crossed for Alpaca Hoodie in the Spring 2012 ...*

But it wasn't just the llama sweater that made me fistpump the air for The Madewell Holiday catalog. Which brings me to 2.) As you probably know, Madewell has been featuring none other than .... Alexa Chung. And I am an ardent fan of Alexa Chung, but not necessarily because of her style.


Her style is rad, don't get me wrong.


But Alexa Chung holds a special place in my heart because of her stint on, of all places ... The Golden Globes.

Before last year's Golden Globes, I didn't know much about Alexa Chung. I'm mostly pop-culture deficient. I'd never seen her on TV before. She's popular on fashion blogs and the like, so I knew who she was. But I didn't really know what she did besides wear cool clothes and be pretty. (She does television and contributes to British Vogue, in case you too live under a rock.) However. She forever endeared herself to me when she did fashion commentary on the pre-show/red carpet.

Her commentary is awesome. Behold:



"And your shiny shoes. Is that for any particular reason?" 

Her interviews were exceptional. Like an ongoing (very funny) SNL skit. The shiny-shoes question was my favorite, because that's like a question I'd ask. It still makes me laugh.

I especially like that she makes it just awkward enough for whoever she's interviewing that it's fun for me to watch. ("You're presenting for best foreign film. Who do you hope wins?" *crickets*) For the record, I think she was purposely being a little bit cheeky about the whole thing. And I can't blame her.

I guess, when it comes to commentary on clothes ... there's only so much you can say at an event like that. Tim Gunn would have had much to say, and said it all elegantly, of course. But mostly, when you've got two minutes to talk to actors about "who" they're wearing (when, let's face it, Rachel Zoe and Brad probably picked the clothes and texted to remind the celebs "who" it was) ... there's really not much interviewing to be done. Might as well talk about shiny shoes, I guess. So kudos to her for having fun with it.

("Who do you hope to bump into on the red carpet?"
"I don't know who's here? Clare Danes. I hope she wins."
*nods* "Thank you very much for talking to me. Cheers." 
... that whole exchange is so absurdly funny to me.)

So anyway. Awards season is approaching and I'm getting excited. First, I'm excited because Dad and I always wager Dairy Queen Blizzards over who correctly picks the most winners (Oscars, not Golden Globes). We're very fancy that way. But I also get excited because I start to hope that maybe, just maybe, Alexa Chung will do red carpet reporting again. Bring on the shiny shoes! *fingers crossed*


I said all this to Sarah. And then I think I got back to talking about the Muppets. About how Kermit and Miss Piggy were really inspirational, because YES, they've have had their ups and downs, and yes they come from different corners of Old McDonald's farm, but if they can make it, anybody can make it! Here's to the frog and pig! Cheers! ...

... And that's the kind of smart conversations I have with my friends. It's truly amazing that they keep hanging out with me. 


Inspired by Alexa Chung, here's my question to you: which celebrity would you be most excited to run into on a red carpet? I would pick Kate DiCamillo or JK Rowling but they probably don't hang out on red carpets that aren't for their movies. If we're talking about movie-star celebrities ... I guess I'd go with Dolly Parton, Carol Burnette, or Tina Fey. Or John Schneider, the original Bo Duke. Obviously. Also, Taye Digs. If I ran into Taye Digs, even if the "run in" was a slight shoulder brush in a gas station as we passed each other in the candy aisle ... I'd brag about it every day for the rest of my life. See you in the comments!

13 comments:

  1. I'm developing a bit of a crush on Robert, I'm afraid. His interviews crack me up. Like that...that was brilliant. The interviews about Twlight/with Kristen Stewart are my favorites. He's so sarcastic and awkward and I just want to hug him.

    I think it would be fantastic to meet Aziz Ansarie. Parks & Rec, yeah? Or Donald Glover from Community...both people who make me laugh. And, ok, (fangirl moment) Logan Lerman. He's going to make an amazing Charlie in the Perks movie.

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  2. Elisha, I agree! The llamas are adorable.

    Katie, Robert IS great in interviews! He is so candid and funny. It's a very charming kind of funny too. Like, I chuckle in some celeb interviews. But his interviews honest-to-goodness make me laugh. Did you see him on Ellen this year before B. Dawn came out? Hilarious. I think he'll do some great work. He comes off very sweet and cool. He's crush-worthy for sure.

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  3. Also! Is Emma Watson the other lead in Perks? That's some really great casting!!

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  4. If we're talking modern celebrities, then maybe Johnny Depp, though it's cliche to say. Or John Stamos, because I've never quite gotten over my Uncle Jesse crush.

    Or Dick Van Dyke, Andy Griffith, or Debbie Reynolds.

    If I can cheat and include movie stars who have passed away, then: Cary Grant, Audrey Hepburn, Gene Kelly, Jimmy Stewart, Judy Garland, and Lucille Ball. :)

    ~Kristin

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  5. Did you know Alexa had a talk show for awhile a few years back? Maybe on MTV but I can't quite remember. I wonder if you could find some episodes on YouTube.

    I love her style. And I wish I could afford Madewell. :)

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  6. I feel as though I have unfortunately had the same dilemma in my life with my friends. A group of my friends and I used to meet for coffee and a Bible/book study every Saturday morning. We always ran to get the big table in the corner of Caribou that could accommodate our big group. After a while, they moved it into the middle of the shop, making it awkward to talk about anything with people wandering and sitting around us. And while my friends and I could have very deep and intellectual conversations, at 9 AM this was not always so.

    As for a red carpet, I would have to agree with Taye Diggs. And probably Rupert Grint & Matthew Lewis as well. I would hope that I would not turn into a blubbering fool when trying to compose a coherent sentence around either of them.

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  7. oh gosh! there are so many celebs i'd love to meet. i've already been lucky enough to meet, hug, and talk to the incredible jon foreman from switchfoot (not to mention gotten to see the band in concert five times in the past three years). i'd love to meet rob pattinson and kristen stewart, because i think they're hilarious and awkward and sarcastic and the kind of people i like to hang out with. miranda kerr and ashley benson are givens, because those two are my main girlcrushes and i adore them beyond belief. and of course i'd want to meet tim tebow--i've been a fan of him since before he won his heisman, and i just adore him. lastly would be darren criss. he's adorable and nerdy and talented and hilarious. what's not to love? (except the show he's on, anyway.)

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  8. Logan Lerman, I would pass out. SERIOUSLY. Him or like you, J.K. Rowling or Emma Thompson.
    LF

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  9. I laughed at this post because my bffJill and I just went to Starbucks for our weekly date :)


    I would love to meet Emma Watson(she's my age, incredibly talented, and has a grrrreeeat sense of style.)or Kate Middleton (!!!), or what's his name that plays Merlin (on the BBC original, Syfy takeover of 'Merlin'. Colin Morgan! That's it! I'd also love to meet Brooke Fraser, Stella McCartney, or Helena Bonham Carter. :)

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  10. I've tried to avoid it, but I'm crushing on Rob Pattinson too. He still seems just as awkward as he was back when Twilight first came out. I love that he hasn't gotten too cool for school.
    I'd love to run into Amy Poehler and Tina Fey on the red carpet. That would be the BEST table to sit at if I ever went to the Golden Globes!

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