Sundays in the "Grocer" with George...

Sundays are usually my day to catch up. Catch up on emails to friends, time with my husband, and taking care of housework. One chore that always comes due on Sundays is grocery shopping. As promised in my last post, I’m featuring what I wear on my day to day activities.Today we’re off to a photo shoot at the grocery store. I just got a new wool plaid vest in a super deal. It was one of the purchases where you say to yourself “I don’t know what I’ll wear with this, but for this price I need this garment.” I tried to channel Alexander Mcqueen (who I love!)with this outfit. His Fall ’09 line showed what some began to call “a Sweeny Todd “ with butchers jackets and long trench coats with lots of hats. In his Spring ’09 line (yeah, I’m looking ahead already) a lot of rolled trousers and jeans are coming. I put together what I think to be a pretty good “mash-up” from one of my favorite designers. The trench coat was actually my grandfathers and made it’s way from England sometime around 1950.

16 facts about kissing

1. An act of kissing puts 29 facial muscles in motion. In other words, kissing can be used as an effective exercise to prevent the development of wrinkles.

2. Lovers swap saliva containing various substances e.g. fats, mineral salts, proteins while kissing. According to latest studies, the exchange of the above substances can give a boost to the production of antibodies which are made specifically to deal with the antigens associated with different diseases as they are encountered.

3. As a rule, 66 percent of people keep their eyes closed while kissing. The rest take pleasure in watching the emotions run the gamut on the faces of their partners.

4. According to U.S. statistics, an American woman would kiss an average of 80 men before she gets married.

5. A quick romantic kiss will burn about 2-3 calories, whereas French kiss (an openmouthed kiss with tongue contact) will obliterate more than 5 calories.

6. Sensitivity of the lips is 200 times higher than that of the fingers.

7. It is thought that men who kiss their wives goodbye before going to work live five years longer than those who just slam the door. Men of the latter category are said to be more prone to traffic accidents.

8. Smooching passionately for 90 seconds will elevate blood pressure and cause the pulse rate to go racing. It will also increase the level of hormones in the blood, thus reducing life by one minute.

9. French kiss is called a “juncture of souls” in France. Not only the lips do the job, the tongues come into play too. The passionate French invented another variety of the soul kiss in which only the tongues are employed.

10. Contrary to a popular belief, the Eskimos do not merely rub their noses against each other in a display of love and affection. The lips open up a bit once the olfactory organs of the kissing partners meet. Then the Eskimos take a deep breath and send the air out while holding their lips closed. After savoring the scent of each other, the partners press noses against each other’s cheeks and freeze for a minute of two.

Latest Fashion News

Burberry Prorsum Spring 2010 Collection

Beigh color is one of the trendiest at the moment and military motives are still fresh, so the Burberry has concentrated most of the spring 2010 outfits on this particular colour. According to Bailey, spring 2010 is the season of the belt at Burberry, and that meant cinched waists on a pastel palette of dresses and skirts—think lavender, pale pink and mint green—all twisted, pleated and draped. Bailey changed or transformed traditional Burberry pieces into new and unexpected shapes with texture, adding a fresh sculptural quality to his collection. Even the classic beige trench received an update for spring—looking ultra modern with gathered puffed-up shoulders, ruched sleeves, and a knotted hem in back.

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Spanish Lady Glitters in Gray

The Spanish beauty, Penelope Cruz to be exact, was seen at the Calvin Klein Collection and LAND event in Los Angeles. For this event, Penelope shined in a Calvin Klein glittering gray dress covered up with a long goregeous white coat-also by CK. She added more touch of glam by wearing Chopard jewelry and platform pumps. The whole outfit created a classy, mature look. Such an elegance is highly presentable these days, as it has always been and Penelope is a Master when it comes to looking classy and with style. Take a look yourselfs and see if you could challenge Penelope in how to hit the carpet in an elegant way :)

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Fergie Plays it the Gorgeous Way

And she's on again! Fergie just cannot stop looking great! This glamorous singer looks just amazing. Fergie joined Duhamel on the red carpet, looking sophisticated in a sexy strapless black Michael Kors number.

I love the way the dress just suits her. The mini black skirt just matches her perfectly slim body. The whole waist-band gives the touch of sex-appeal and the shoes gives such classy and elegant look. Keep it up, Fergie!

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Fancy Shopping with Liv Tyler

When it comes to shopping, we all try to put on some comfy shoes and clothes before we hit the shops. I sometimes find it hard to not only feel good and comfortable while travelling from shop to shop, but also to look gorgeous. And I guess Liv Tyler has no problem with finding a perfect outfit. When it comes to shopping, she simply puts on a bunch of clothes and they just work their magic with a blink of an eye! Not only she looks gorgeous but such a taste in clothes can only mean one thing- Liv has gone shopping!

This Missy was seen lately Leaving the G-Star shop in Los Angeles in a slinky stretch skirt with an oversize T-Shirt and a black blazer, along with black leggings, a cable knit beanie and some booties for her comfort.
Yap, some of us just has it in them. Shopping is their natural thing so they know exactly what to wear. Maybe we should consider taking an advice from the proffessionals, Hm??

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Modern Girl Style is under Website Construction!

Modern Girl Style is en route back to blogger because it a far superior blogging service than typepad. As I make this journey single-handedly and with something like 500 posts to hand cut and paste, please know that this is all for a better and much improved blog. Thanks for the patience!

The Life Outside... Kinda...

Last night my husband and I went out to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants to celebrate our first week of marriage and my survival of my research talk at the end of a long week in which I had too much work to do and not enough sleep.  I wore my favorite Fluevogs.¹

1. Skirt -J. Crew (thrifted and remixed)

Turtleneck - Target (remixed)

Tights - HUE (remixed)

Boots - John Fluevog (remixed)

Ring - boutique in Salamanca, Spain

One of my dissertation supervisors also happened to be dining at the same restaurant with his wife and daughter last night.  It was nice to see him and get to chat for a few minutes.  He wanted to know how the talk I gave yesterday afternoon went.  Then, this morning, I went to meet some stylish friends of the academic persuasion for brunch, and my other adviser was breakfasting there with his partner and her son.  Since it was so crowded, we ended up in the same long booth for about twenty minutes.  It just goes to show you that we academic types are everywhere -- at the gym, at tiny little Italian bistros, at the local bookstore, at hip brunch places that serve organic food, and at the grocery store.

What are you up to this weekend?  Any chance you'll run into your advisor?  Your students?  Your boss?

Controversial magazine covers through time

Time Magazine, April 8, 1966: Is God Dead? This cover has been called the most controversial of all time. The related article concerned the "death of god movement" that had sprung up in the 1960's. The cover and article enraged readers. Time Magazine, January 2, 1939: Hitler as Man of the Year This cover featured an elaborate illustration of Hitler playing "his hymn of hate in a desecrated cathedral while victims dangle on a St. Catherine's wheel while the Nazi hierarchy looks on." Baron Rudolph Charles von Ripper was a Catholic that fled Hitler's Germany, and the artist of this disturbing piece. By 1938, Hitler had firmly seized power in Germany, taken over Austria and Czechoslovakia, and had been given a free hand in Eastern Europe by the English prime minister of the time, Neville Chamberlain. Time has had to defend this choice throughout history, and at the time defended it by stating that the "Man of the Year" was a title bestowed on the person who had most influenced events of the previous year. Life, November 26, 1965: War In Vietnam Paul Schutzers captured this arresting image of a VietCong prisoner being taken prisoner by American forces during the Vietnam War. Photography and news coverage like this helped to turn the American public against the Vietnam war. While Schutzers was one of LIFE's best photographers, he was killed on assignment during the Six-Day War of 1967 between Israel and its neighbouring states of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. Esquire, April 1968: The Passion of Ali This smart rendition of Muhammad Ali was created to illustrate his martyrdom to his cause after he refused to join the US military due to his religious beliefs and was subsequently stripped of his heavyweight boxing title. The piece was done after the same manner as "The Martyrdom of St. Sebastian", a popular theme through medieval art but most recognizable in the painting by Andrea Mantegna. Esquire, May 1969: The Drowning of Andy Warhol Another triumph of Esquire's former visionary Art Director, George Lois, this picture combined two separate shots of a soup can and Warhol. In the first ten years of his employment at Esquire, circulation was boosted from 500,000 to 2 million, a figure for which his covers were partially responsible. This shot references Warhol's famous "soup can" exhibits that symbolized the American avant-garde art movement. Playboy, October 1971: First Playboy African-American Woman This cover was the first Playboy cover to feature an African-American woman. The model is Darine Stern and the photographer was Richard Fegley. National Lampoon, January 1973: If You Don't Buy This Magazine… While this cover didn't do much more than make people laugh when it came out despite its violent overtones, Ronald G. Harris' famous cover shot definitely raised a few eyebrows in pre-Photoshop days. National Lampoon, January 1973: If You Don't Buy This Magazine… While this cover didn't do much more than make people laugh when it came out despite its violent overtones, Ronald G. Harris' famous cover shot definitely raised a few eyebrows in pre-Photoshop days. Rolling Stone, January 22, 1981: John Lennon and Yoko Ono Annie Leibovitz took this shot just hours before John Lennon was shot outside of his apartment building, the Dakota, in New York City on December 8, 1980. Leibovitz originally wanted to take the shot of Lennon alone but he insisted that his wife be in the pictures. This cover was named the most popular magazine cover of the past 40 years by the American Society of Magazine Publishers. Vanity Fair, August 1991: Demi Moore, Pregnant and Nude This cover was shot by celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz and was decried as shameful and disgusting when it was released. Some stores sent back the issue, or only sold it with a brown paper covering the "offensive" image. It has spawned countless celebrity nude pregnancy shots done in the same fashion, and helped to launch Demi Moore's career into the stratosphere. Vanity Fair, August 1993: K.D. Lang and Cindy Crawford The cover was meant to be as controversial as the country star's career. According to the cover story, Lang got more grief from the country music industry over her decision to join PETA than her decision to come out as a lesbian. Time Magazine, June 27, 1994: OJ Mug Shot Controversy In 1994, OJ Simpson was accused of murdering his wife, Nicole. In 1995, he was acquitted after a long and highly publicized trial. The photo used on the cover of Time Magazine was manipulated to make OJ look darker in skin tone and more menacing. For comparison, see the Newsweek cover which uses the original shot without any alteration. The Economist, September 10, 1994: The Camel-Humping Issue Obvious Black Eyed Peas references aside, this cover drew some fire for the UK-based magazine. The cover was printed for the North American market only. Time, April 14 1997: Ellen's Coming-Out Issue Time's cover and exclusive story left no doubt in the minds of all Americans that Ellen was, in fact, gay. Even in 1997, coming out could be perilous for a star's career. While it may now seem like a mere bump in the road due to Ellen's stunning success, at the time TV outlets in rural America pulled her show. Wired, June 1997: 101 Ways to Save Apple When this magazine went to press, Steve Jobs had just rejoined Apple through Apple's acquisition of his NeXT Software Inc. While the cover was a bit more pessimistic than the story it was meant to illustrate, it remains one of the top magazine covers of all time. We don't think anyone would try to give Jobs advice today, but back then Mac fans would have done anything they could to help the ailing corporation. Time, Dec 21, 1998: Devil Horns on Clinton This was one of several magazine covers that featured Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky scandal. In 1995, Lewinsky was an intern at the White House during Clinton's presidency, and they had an intimate affair. The scandal broke when Lewinsky confided in a colleague in January of 1998. The scandal eventually resulted in Clinton's impeachment. The top of the letter "M" in the Time masthead appear to be resting on the top of Clinton's head as horns. The devil horns were written off by Time as an accident of masthead placement rather than a deliberate act. Esquire Magazine, December 2000: The Crotch Shot This shot of Clinton was said to be inspired by the Lincoln Memorial, but was interpreted as an obvious reference to the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Like the Obama couple satire in the New Yorker seen further down, this cover drew fire from both sides of the political fence. The New Yorker, Sept. 24, 2001: Twin Towers in Silhouette This cover was a graphical as well as an editorial success. The magazine succeeded in creating a fitting and classic memorial to the victims of the tragedy and the buildings themselves in true upscale New Yorker fashion. Covers editor Franoise Mouly created a testament to the Twin Towers that drew on the inspiration of Ad Reinhardt's black-on-black paintings. Entertainment Weekly, May 2 2003: Dixie Chicks The Dixie Chicks set off a firestorm when they criticized then-president George W. Bush for invading Iraq on the grounds that Iraq was manufacturing weapons of mass destruction. The Dixie Chicks used their weapons of mass distraction on this provocative cover. Seventeen, May 2003: Sarah Michelle Gellar's Zombie Arm This horrendously manipulated stock photo of Sarah Michelle Gellar made the mag send an expensive purse by way of apology. Gellar returned the purse since she didn't wear leather. While the practice of using stock photos for covers is common, flagrant abuse of Photoshop is something that the art department and editor usually catch before print time. Rolling Stone, January 2006: The Passion of Kanye West Rolling Stone tipped a thorny hat to Esquire's portrayal of Ali with this 2006 cover. It isn't known if the cover was meant to be a joke about the singer's ego, but most people found it very funny. Religious fans of the magazine didn't find it as hilarious, and the odd cover story that went with it in which the singer admits to a porn addiction just made the whole thing awkward. The tone of the cover feels current in light of the singer's recent mike-grabbing moment at the 2009 VMA's. Baby Talk, August 2006 While this image seems benign to most people who have been involved with a baby in one fashion or another, the cover was decried as obscene. Even though moms made up the target demographic, a survey of 4000 of them turned up the fact that 25% had a negative response. One mother actually shredded the magazine so that her 13-year old son couldn't see it. Not that he likely noticed; he was probably on the computer downloading porn watching tips from Kanye. Texas Monthly, January 2007: Dick Cheney Cover Issue Building on the famous 1973 Lampoon cover, Texas Monthly took a jab at the Vice-President's hunting accident where he shot a colleague in the face. This cover won the 2007 Best Cover Line of the Year Award from the Magazine Publishers of America. Time, August 29, 2007: Devil Horns on Billy Graham The blogosphere was rife with rumours about this cover. This was probably not intentional. Time Magazine has claimed that all of its "Devil Horn" covers through the ages are mere coincidences. For a defense of the Time Magazine position, this blog post has a list of Time Magazine covers that have devil horns but no potential hidden meaning. Accident of their masthead design, or subtle editorial statement? You decide… Golfweek, January 19, 2008: The Noose that Hung an Editor This cover was born out of the comments of a golf anchorman, Kelly Tlighman, that fellow players should "lynch (Tiger Woods) in a back alley" and the subsequent feature story that was published in that edition of Golfweek. PGA Tour director Tim Finchem had this to say about it: "Clearly, what Kelly said was inappropriate and unfortunate, and she obviously regrets her choice of words, but we consider Golfweek's imagery of a swinging noose on its cover to be outrageous and irresponsible". A day after the cover was published, the editor was let go. People Magazine, March 2008: Brangelina Twins This cover and photo shoot sacrificed People's editorial soul for a first shot at the Brangelina twins. Instead of their usual journalistic even-handed approach, they seemingly acquiesced to the couple's need for nothing but positive coverage in order to get a scoop on the rest of the world with the first baby pictures. While People magazine denied these charges as "categorically false", the coverage was nevertheless very rosy-cheeked in tone. Vogue, April 2008: King Kong Cover This cover of model Gisele Bundchen and sports star Lebron James was considered to be a racist portrayal of "King Kong". Images that portray black males as threatening "reinforce the criminalization of black men," said Damion Thomas, assistant professor in the Department of Kinesiology at University of Maryland. The cover was supposed to showcase two stars with excellent bodies, in keeping with the "Shape" theme of the issue. The New Yorker, July 21, 2008: The Obama Couple Satire This cover by famous New Yorker cartoonist Barry Blitt was heavily criticized by both the McCain and Obama camps during the 2008 US election. While the piece was meant to be a satire of allegations lobbed at the couple by their detractors, its inopportune appearance during a campaign didn't have Obama's supporters laughing as hard as the magazine intended. OK Magazine, June 2009: Michael Jackson Death Photo Fans were upset over the magazine's decision to publish this photo. Sarah Ivens, editorial director, said that the cover decision was made since they wanted to stand out from all of the tribute covers that were dominating the stands that week. Jackson died on June 25, 2009 after being given a cocktail of drugs by his physician.

Guest Lecturing: City Chic Madrid

I'm guest lecturing today over at The Glamourous Grad Student on Madrid.  It's my European home, and it will always have a special place in my heart.  Please go check it out, and if you haven't already been reading A.'s blog, do so!  She is a darling and super smart.

One of the reasons that I miss Madrid so much is that I made such amazing friends there.  My friend C., who is a very smart economist, and I would get together for a cup of coffee or a glass of wine and  just laugh and laugh -- or make insane plans to go to Italy for nine days and actually follow through on them.  My Spanish got about a million times better because of my friendship with him.

We would also completely unintentionally do things like wear a shirt and hat that matched each other.

But enough nostalgia.... Go read my piece for the city chic series!

my morning.......