Seriously?

There are certain things we stop congratulating ourselves for in adulthood: reading a chapter book, distinguishing between print and cursive, and using the potty to name a few. So why is it that this crop of children's (OK, I'll give you "young adult") books have come out, taken the adult world by storm and all of a sudden everyone's proud of themselves for reading.

Harry Potter. I'm sure it is "way different from those other fantasy novels," but since when is anything written in 20-point font acceptable reading matter for grownups? It's not. There are plenty of folks who just want to be a part of whatever's big at the time, but then do we need to boast about it? "I read a book [written for eight-year-olds] IN TWO WEEKS FLAT!" Seriously? Get a life.

And now Twilight. If my practically un-researched assumptions are correct, this one's about an underclassmen living out her "bad boy" fantasies with one who happens to be a vampire. I'm pretty sure high school protagonists are best suited for middle school readers. Remember Sweet Valley High and The Babysitter's Club? Even the Babysitters Little Sister Series was tailored to like 7 year olds. Why? Because you can't sell the rest of us on how awesome high school is. We've been there. And we know that the bad boy plays out more like a depressing after-school special involving an "apartment" above your parents' garage and making weed butter to melt over ramen noodles.

Maybe it's because so many of us stop reading when the requisite summer book lists stop coming from English teachers, but we never let go of the "reading level" we're handed in grade school. Oh wait, that can't be it. You read Shakespeare and Richard Wright and the Odyssey in highschool. So... I can't think of a single reason for this crap. Let's be done with it.

Why am I actually mad? Because blithering idiots become millionaires on the sales of a single book (that sucks). You know who you are, people. Stop buying into the hype and make me some ramen.

In the Clouds

Magazines are biting it and blogs are taking over the world, right? Well now a team of publishing devotees wants to bring to books what blogs brought to the web. User-managed, small press magazines, for us by us (and I'm not talking about that heedious ghetto gear, FUBU). Now anyone with a computer can have a magazine and MagCloud will print, bind, ship to "subscribers," and send you the money (that you've deemed your mag will cost). The best part? At just under $.20 a page, it's actually accessible. I really hope this company takes off and we start seeing well-made mags for social groups, protests, community newsletters and anyone else wanting a voice.

Sure there's the whole tree-killing aspect of physical publishing, but what other harm is there? These self-made mags won't need to subsist on advertising dollars so it's safe to assume they'll be devoid of content that favors big spenders. (How many D&G spreads do we really need to see in every magazine, right?).

Do you think this is good for publishing or bad? Do you think it's blogging for the "real" journalists who won't let print die, or is it just another way to get words out?

Either way, I'm a fan. Look forward to "3 Pages on Why Laura Rules Magazine" any day now. I'll sell it to you at cost for 60 cents.

What's your sign?

I'm a gemini, which means I'm fickle and always want to be (and have) the best. So sue me. Or, shoe me with a pair of the Dolce Vita Aries Flat Sandals. I know I've been anti the open-toed boot look, because it's kind of silly. But this pair is way more sandally and spring-friendly; something about the casual slouch and luxe suede seems so...perfect.

Picture them with leggings and a denim mini, or no leggings and a light, bright summer dress. They come in a few colors so if you're boring and stick to basics (like me) you'll love the black pair which was the start of all this lusting. And the reason for this. If you're a bold leo, reach for the "turchese," (pictured) and sad sags can brace yourselves with the beige option. Need a little more glitz? I don't know which star sign I'd condone this for, but there's a metallic silver pair, too.

The $125 price tag isn't insane, but you can bet I've been looking for these pretties to pop up at DSW.

What's your verdict: to boot, or not to boot?

Simpsons Chic

I know there are a bajilliondy fashion blogs out there, and I don't want to bore you. But holy handbags, this spread from Harper's Bazaar in 2007 is unbelievable. They place the Simpsons in high fashion to show the looks of the time.

Homer as Karl Lagerfeld? Marge in Chanel Haute Couture?

There's really nothing else I can say about this. Please look at the whole spread on notcouture.com, my all-time fave site of all time.