This week’s work outfits, with some side notes thrown in!

Jeans- Seven for All Mankind; Top- J.Crew; Vest- J.Crew; Flats- Tory Burch; Necklace- Kate Spade. Side note: I’m obsessed with down vests and wish I had one in every color. And also that the marshmallow look were in.

Skirt- J.Crew; Sweater- J.Crew; Tights- Target; Boots- J.Crew; Bangles- Kate Spade. Side note: I actually bought that skirt at Plato’s Closet when I was there selling some stuff last week. For six bucks. Yesss.

Jeans- Abercrombie & Fitch; Sweater- J.Crew; Scarf- bought off an NYC street vendor; Flats- Tory Burch. Side: I get a little annoyed with myself every time I type that my jeans are from A&F, because I can’t stand the a) smell, b) music, and c) wall pornography in the store. But their jeans are freaking awesome. 

Cords- J.Crew; Shirt- Madewell; Loafers- J.Crew; Headband- Goody. Side note: I’ve had those loafers since I was 15. I bought them my sophomore year of high school and wore them pretty much every day, and they’re still in great condition. 

Jeans- Citizens of Humanity; T-shirt- Gap; Blazer- J.Crew; Flats- Steve Madden; Necklace- Forever 21. Side note: I cannot freaking wait for spring and warm-weather dressing. My hot pink jacket today was blatantly inappropriate for mid-winter, but I do. not. care. Thursday is supposed to get up to 63 degrees!

 What’s the most embarrassing thing in your closet? The best deal?

So yesterday morning while driving to work I turned on the radio and came across an interesting conversation on one of the trashy morning radio shows (for anyone in Philly, it was Q102, Elvis Duran).

The segment was about a recent study that gave both males and females the same menu, then asked them to pick what they’d like to order. Apparently, men tend to shy away from terms like “yogurt,” “fresh” or “white wine” when it comes to food, even if it’s not a main component of the meal- say, a yogurt sauce on a spicy dish, or seafood in a white wine sauce. Instead, if something has the words “hearty” or “gravy” in the description, they’ll go for it.

It got me to thinking, and I realized that in my experience, those generalizations are often true. There are always exceptions and I have no problem with this scenario myself, but when was the last time you saw a group of guys all ordering a salad with strawberries and fancy goat cheese for their entree, dressing on the side? Even if a man eats healthfully or is watching his weight, his choices will typically be markedly different from those of a woman with similar goals.  It’s a shame that so much of what we eat is influenced by social cues, and gender is a huge part of it. I’m not making an argument for or against anything here, I just think it’s kind of funny. In the end it’s all just food, right? So why do I think of my brother when I’m cooking a meat-heavy lasagna, and not one of my burger-loving female friends?

One listener called in and made a really great point: a lot of this comes down to advertising. Think about Yoplait commercials; they always feature a young, attractive woman in pastel clothing, usually eating her yogurt like it’s the time of her life. They never show a group of men spooning out of their little cups while watching the Super Bowl. It goes both ways, too- ever notice how commercials for things like Bagel Bites or  Chunky Campbell’s usually feature young guys? The irony is that in my experience men actually prefer women who will eat a full meal without whining about calories. It’s like girls are expected to stop having an appetite at 12, but men are expected to keep stuffing their faces with junk. Neither approach is rational. And for the record, both the Yoplait Chocolate Mousse yogurt and Bagel Bites are delicious.

So that’s my random diatribe for the day.

What are your thoughts on the girl food v. guy food issue? And what’s one “manly” food you absolutely love?

In early January, I said I was going to start doing reviews whenever I saw a new movie; ironically, I made that decision before my longest movie-going break in awhile. Last night, though, my friend Jillian and I went to see The Vow. I didn’t have high hopes going in, but being a twenty-something female, I’m genetically programmed to need to see anything that includes Channing Tatum, Rachel McAdams and lots of cheesy lines about love.

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In case you’re a bit discriminatory with your movie choices, The Vow tells the story of a young married couple, Paige and Leo, whose perfect nuptial bliss is interrupted when Paige loses her recent memory in a car crash. She wakes up from a coma remembering nothing from the past four years, which happens to be the time frame in which she stopped talking to her parents, ditched law school, became a hipster and met Leo. The movie basically chronicles Leo trying to win Paige back. Complicated.

The verdict? Meh. Like I said, I set the bar pretty low for this one, and in some ways, it did pleasantly surprise me. The first half of the movie was pretty funny and romantic- lots of deadpan sarcasm and loving glances from a shirtless Channing Tatum. Can’t complain. I really liked that the couple was kinda weird; that’s what makes relationships fun, and I think a lot of chick flicks gloss over the goofy stuff. However, the movie took a pretty bad nosedive in the last half hour, becoming insanely cliched and boring. The ending isn’t hard to predict, but I felt like the buildup could have been a little more interesting. The Vow does get major props for being based on a true story, though. I’m a sucker for real-life fairy tales!

So, overall? Go see it with a girl friend if you’re in need of a chick flick outing, but don’t get too psyched. And I wouldn’t advise bringing your male significant other unless you’re ready to go see Ghost Rider in return…

Have you seen The Vow? What’s your favorite “chick flick”? If you need to ask me what mine is, then you’ve somehow overlooked my passion for for shipwrecks and Leonardo DiCaprio.