STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Elle · Hermes

ST'er of the Week: Laken1!

theotherjess · Chanel

-Have any other funny stories about the real laken? She cracks me up.

-What has been your favorite vacation place?

-If you were a cereal, what would you be?

-Something that never fails to make you smile? Laugh? Cry?

-Favorite song with ridiculous lyrics?

-Commercial you love? One you LOATHE?

lsubatgirl · Gucci

What brought you to the great state of texas?

How did you meet your husband?

What do you miss most about louisiana?

Favorite restaurant?

Favorite recipe to make (please share )?

NCshopper · Hermes

Yay for Laken1!!! Here are my questions:

What would be your dream job?

What's been your biggest challenge in life?

Any New Years resolutions?

What's your favorite color?

Favorite pizza topping?

Favorite piece of jewelry?

What are your cats names? IIRC, you have a few cats and there's some sort of story behind them.

What's one of your biggest pet peeves?

laken1 · Hermes

Awww, cool! I actually start my new job this week - tues & thursday but I'll be at home, so ask away!

*How long have you and your husband been married?
We got married July 2004 - so 1 1/2 year

*What is your degree/what was your job before you became 'gainfully unemployed'?
My degree is in accounting and I worked in banks since I was in college so I worked my way up to being a Small Business loan officer. I analyzed financial statements & made loans up to $5 million.

*Favorite movies?
Prelude to a Kiss, Ever After, Top Gun (until Tom went INSANE on me), Shawshank Redemption, Princess Brice, all of the Jurrasic Parks but I still love #1 the most. The most recent addition is March of the Penguins

*What's one thing you've always dreamed of being/doing, but haven't told anyone about 'cause you feel silly?
I'd love to be a writer. I have told my husband, but that's about it. I have written some articles to submit to magazines but I'm just too chicken. I know I need grammar help so I think I need to take an adult english class before I do anything.

*I recall you saying you and hubby had decided not to have children? How did you come to that conclusion?
True. We both had stepchildren in our first marriages. I know everyone says it's not the same when it's yours, but we also know the harsh realities of day to day life with pre-adolescent & teenagers. Also, I swear, I think I'm just too selfish. I really think I'd resent having to share my time / money / husband with a child & I just think it's better to admit it than to have a kid & hope my heart changes. I've seen too many bad mothers that truly shouldn't have had kids but did to fulfill some selfish need & it just screws up the kids. And this way I can spoil my nieces to death & maybe help my sister with their college, etc. And then send them home. Also, everyone tells me that when you are ready you will know & at 33 I still don't feel it, so I'm going with that feeling.***ETA - I wanted to add too that I have the highest respect for good mothers. I know it is the hardest job on earth & I applaud those of you who decide that path & are such great mothers. I can tell that you are!

*What's a day like in the life of Laken? (this is purely selfish - I want to know how much you do/don't accomplish in a day because I'm a lazy ass)
Oh, I'm sure I won't make you feel any better. Maybe I'll tell you a week because day to day it's about the same. Monday - Friday I get up around 7 when my hubby leaves, turn on the tube, eat breakfast, put clothes on to wash, etc. I clean up my kitchen then I sporadically watch Regis & kelly then The View while to other house / chores. I usually to 4 mystery shops at a grocery chain each week, so throw that in somewhere. I typically go out to a different store or to Target & run errands on one day (Wed) then I do groceries, etc Friday. I also sell a bunch of crap on ebay, although not lately, so that keeps me busy too. I try to do something artsy once a week, either I decoupage or paint in my house or something like that, or knit. Something fun just for me. Now I'm working walking into each day, or at least 3 days. I try to cook every day, so when my hubby gets home we eat supper & watch tv or play PS2. Lame, i know. But we try to do fun stuff when it's just us, so I do my "chores" while he's at work. Not sure how all this will change with the new job stuff, but we'll see.

*If you had to eat one food or type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Mexican for sure.

-- Edited by laken1 at 23:02, 2006-01-09

laken1 · Hermes

*Have any other funny stories about the real laken? She cracks me up.
Not yet this week, but I'll let you know! She cracks me up too - she is a mess!

*What has been your favorite vacation place?
I know lots of people hate it, but i loved loved love Jamaica. But my favorite place that I actually get to visit often is still Destin, FL - I've never had a bad time there EVER & I also met my hubby there, so it wins hands down.

*If you were a cereal, what would you be?
hmmm, Lucky Charms? Little bit of everything!

*Something that never fails to make you smile? Cry?
Smile - I know this is gonna be gross, but it's true - when I wake up in the morning & my hubby grins at me & tells me good morning, it just makes my day!
Cry - seeing other people I love & care about cry - I have to commiserate.

Favorite song with ridiculous lyrics?
Has to be Kid Rock - Ya' Keep on. I don't want to offend anyone, so I won't put them on here

*Commercial you love? I love that Vegas commercial where the girls tell everyone their name is Marsha & Jan, Charlotte & Samantha, Lucy & ethel, then they meet the guys that tell their names are Norm & Cliff.
One you LOATHE? That Cheerios commercial where they karaoke.

laken1 · Hermes

*What brought you to the great state of texas?
My hubby lived here when I met him!

*How did you meet your husband?
His dad was the attorney for the bank where I worked. I was going a girl's trip to Destin & his dad took him on an annual golf trip & we were going to be there at the same time. So his dad said why didn't we meet up for drinks - cause we did that all the time time anyway. So we did & I met him & thought he was GREAT, but he was married. I remember thinking what a great guy he was, too bad he was married, all the good ones are taken, yada yada. Well, little did I know, he was unhappily married. So 6 months later when he was going through his divorce he found me & emailed me & the rest is history!

*What do you miss most about louisiana?
So many things. The food. My family. My circle of friends / contacts / associates. But that is a double edged sword too! I couldn't go to the grocery there without seeing anyone I knew, here i'm very anonymous & there is something freeing about that as well.

*Favorite restaurant? in BR, just so you know, Mike Anderson Seafood! But here mexician is Mi Cocina.

*Favorite recipe to make (please share

)? Oddly enough, it is your chicken cordon bleu here lately - I'm making it tomorrow. Otherwise it's tater tot casserole - so awful, but so good!

laken1 · Hermes

*What would be your dream job?
Well, other than a writer as I said above, I have one job I really think I'd enjoy. I met this girl & she arranged conventions for groups (like the drycleaning association that I always went to with my ex). She basically did their quarterly newsletters & was in charge of the convention each year, and they paid her about $30,000. She did this for 3 groups so it was pretty lucrative. I've tried a few times to figure out how to do that, but gave up pretty easily. But I think I'd like that.

*What's been your biggest challenge in life?
I have thought a lot about this one - I would have to say getting over caring what other people think about me. I'm a huge people pleaser so it's really hard for me. In the past I think I've made choices that weren't necessarily in my best interest to impress others & I still struggle with guilt over that. So now I try to make choices that are best of me regardless of what everyone else thinks. It really struggle with this because it feels selfish, but that's why it's a challenge I guess!

*Any New Years resolutions?
I really hate to call them resolutions, because I never stick with resolutions, but there are definately changes I want to make in my life this year. I want to get my house in order - it's a rent house so I haven't spent as much time as I should getting it like I want it - I feel like we have a lot of clutter & I am determined to make it more "me" this year with as minimal expense as possible. I want to learn to sew. I am going to get healthy / lose weight / incorporate exercise for real. I want to plan a girl day with my MIL every 6 weeks or so. She doesn't drive so obviously she relys heavily on her hubby to take her everywhere she wants to go - doesn't have any freedom on her own. So we talk about doing this but never do, so I want to plan it. Or we could craft, she has every manner of crafting tool / thing so I think I could learn a lot from her. And that ties into another "resolution" I made - to explore my artsy side.

*What's your favorite color?
pink or red

*Favorite pizza topping?
There is a place in BR where you can get pepperoni, whole roasted garlic, and portabello mushrooms - yum. I still miss it. Otherwise I like an all meat pizza. So awful!

*Favorite piece of jewelry?
My new wedding ring that my hubby gave me for Christmas. It was his grandmothers, then his mother's, so I feel fortunate to have it.

*What are your cats names? IIRC, you have a few cats and there's some sort of story behind them.
Chicken - he was my DH's cat when I got here - he named him because that is when the Cow Chicken cartoon was out & one of the other kittens had markings like a cow. Now Cow is no where around & Chicken is stuck - but it fit him because he really is a scaredy cat.
Bijoux - this was the name of one of the lions at the MGM Grand where we stayed in Vegas when we got married & we got her a month later
Zeus - we thought she was a boy, and she was the first kitty to come out so we thought she'd be the leader. Turns out she was a girl runt, but we couldn't change her name!

*What's one of your biggest pet peeves?
People that try to push their political / religious views on me (others in general). I'm open to discussion & I have been known to change my views on a subject, but that is what is great about this country - we can think different things & still co-exist.

-- Edited by laken1 at 09:10, 2006-01-10

small fry · Chanel

yeah for laken

do you like to read? if so what books are your fav.?

if you had a chance to do anything you always dreamed what would it be?(no llimitations)

when you were in La did you gamble on the boats? if so what was the largerst amount ?

if you could live anywhere where would it be?

what do you like to do for fun?

fav. music?

laken1 · Hermes

*do you like to read? if so what books are your fav.?
I love to read. I am such a trashy reader though. What I tend to do is read one book of an author & if i like it I read everything they have ever written. I like a good sappy story like Danielle Steele or Nicholas Sparks, but I really like murder mysteries. My most recent author was Jonathan Kellerman. I keep saying I'm going to read the classics but I get really bored. On vacation I read The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith, so I can see him being my new author of the day!

*if you had a chance to do anything you always dreamed what would it be?(no llimitations)
I really really want to travel internationally. I am extremely interested in going to Tibet / India - I'd love to have enough money to go whereever I wanted just to experience different places & cultures. Maybe one day....

*when you were in La did you gamble on the boats? if so what was the largerst amount ?
I actually have a good story about this. When I was in college & really really broke, like rolling quarters for gas broke, some of my friends & I went to the MS gulf coast to the newest casino there. And I lost $60. I remember at the end of the day thinking "I could have bought a new outfit" & I never gambled again. I do gamble a little if I go to Vegas, but not more than the free drinks would cost! But the boats that were in BR are really sad - it's obviously people that don't need to be throwing their money away, so I rarely went to those.

*if you could live anywhere where would it be?
ON THE BEACH. I wish I could find a beach where hurricanes didn't hit. LOL - but I always say when I win the lottery that you can find me at the beach house.

*what do you like to do for fun?
I like to go to garage / estate sales, I have a fun knitting circle where we knit & drink wine that I enjoy, I like to shop, obviously. I like to head off to new stores & in Dallas I have a huge variety. I am such a nerd, but I like to play video games.

*fav. music?
I like pretty much everything but extremely heavy metal or country, but my fav is disco. I should have been born sooner!

lsubatgirl · Gucci

laken1 wrote:

*Favorite recipe to make (please share )? Oddly enough, it is your chicken cordon bleu here lately - I'm making it tomorrow. Otherwise it's tater tot casserole - so awful, but so good!

haha. I find that beating the chicken is a favorite of mine too. A great way to get out frustrations. I bought all the ingredients a few months ago to make it but just haven't gotten around to it. Maybe this week I will.

shopgirl82 · Chanel

what were you like in college? did you always have a bf? were you artsy?

what's your favorite place to go to in Destin? (my family has a place there, so i go all the time)

i know that you just started WW, what are some feelings about it so far? is it harder than you thought? easier? are the meetings easy to sit through, hard to sit through?

since you watch the view, who's your favorite? who's your least favorite? do you think that barbara and joy like each other?

do you like kelly ripa?

who do you think dresses better, elizabeth hasselback from the view, or kelly ripa?

ok, sorry they are lame questions.

laken1 · Hermes

*what were you like in college? did you always have a bf? were you artsy?
I ALWAYS had a bf. and i dated people that were much older than me & lived off campus, so i totally missed the real college experience. I also worked so if I wasn't at class I was at work so no hanging on campus at the quad or anything. And i was completely not artsy. I was an accounting major so I was a major numbers girl, analytical, not at all artsy. That's new!

*what's your favorite place to go to in Destin? (my family has a place there, so i go all the time)
Well, when i went with my girlfriends we stayed whereever was cheap, but always went out dancing at Famous Door (something else now) & Sky Bar. But this time I stayed with my inlaws & they always stay at San Destin Resort, so needless to say that was WAY nicer.

lucky you to always have access!

*i know that you just started WW, what are some feelings about it so far? is it harder than you thought? easier? are the meetings easy to sit through, hard to sit through?
well, I think it's pretty easy but I'm uber focused too. I've done lots of research & know what is good & bad & I got a ton of snacks - but silly me, i really didn't plan meals beyond sandwiches & frozen dinners. I usually cook every night so thank goodness my hubby is understanding, but as he put it, i forgot that he needs to eat as well! So I planned my dinners this week & i'll let you know how that goes. I did the program before so I kind of knew what to expect so maybe that's why it was easier. I think the meetings are OK, but here they don't do the things I need, such as recipes & food ideas, it's more "informative" which is ok i guess but I find boring.

*since you watch the view, who's your favorite? who's your least favorite? do you think that barbara and joy like each other?
My fav is Meredith - least favorite is probably Joy - I just think she's really rude sometimes! And I like Star a lot more than other people do. I never thought about if joy & barbara like each other - I'll have to pay attention!

*do you like kelly ripa?
I LOVE her.

*who do you think dresses better, elizabeth hasselback from the view, or kelly ripa?
I have to say Kelly because i feel like she dresses well for her body & always has on pretty wrap dresses or something romantic - like I think she wears DVF every day even though I know she doesn't. And I do like the way Elizabeth dresses, but sometimes I just don't get her outfits.

ok, sorry they are lame questions
Not lame - those were fun questions!

relrel · Marc Jacobs

way to go laken1!

couple quicks ones...im supposed to be writing a paper...on photochemical smog of all things.

are you afraid of anything?

do you remember your dreams? if so, do you have one that has stuck with you that you remember?

is that your cat in your avatar? if so, which one? im gonna guess zeus based on your previous answer about cats.

just a couple of fun, pick one without thinking about...

lion, witch, or wardrobe?

lion, tiger, or lyger?

jeans, sweats, or skirt?

barefoot or shoes?

north america or south america?

(ps...how cool a story you have about you and your dh! not something that is quite repeatable to the grandkids till they're older but its a great story...you must have really made an impression. )

small fry · Chanel

Laken1 wrote :*if you could live anywhere where would it be?
ON THE BEACH. I wish I could find a beach where hurricanes didn't hit. LOL - but I always say when I win the lottery that you can find me at the beach house.

oh can I come with you I love the beach as well, I love corpus Christi for that reason

laken1 · Hermes

*are you afraid of anything?
Spiders, snakes, and now that I live in TX, geckos. Although my husband says they are our friends. i'd prefer them to be friendly outside. (they get in A LOT)

*do you remember your dreams? if so, do you have one that has stuck with you that you remember?
Sometimes I can the next day, but I don't remember any specifically so I have to say no.

*is that your cat in your avatar? if so, which one? im gonna guess zeus based on your previous answer about cats.
yes, that is Zeus. She is the sweetest kitty in the whole wide world.

just a couple of fun, pick one without thinking about...

lion, witch, or wardrobe?
lion

lion, tiger, or lyger?
lion

jeans, sweats, or skirt?
jeans

barefoot or shoes?
barefoot

north america or south america?
North america