I'm Impressed, Ivanka! + True Blood Chatter

I think I'm probably stating the obvious when I say that most celebrity fashion lines are usually a joke.  The Olsen Twins and Nicole Richie aside, most model/actresses don't actually design the items with their names on them, and merely look over the finished products to make sure the line doesn't contain anything they'd be embarrassed to wear.  That said, I was not paying much attention to Ivanka Trump's foray into career-minded footwear until I stumbled across these babies on Polyvore:

Ivanka shoes 1 by cardiganjunkie featuring wedge heels

Ivanka shoes 2 by cardiganjunkie featuring ankle strap sandals

Ivanka branched out, y'all!  I was expecting to see sensible round toe pumps, and definitely not aqua chevron wedge sandals.  At this point, I don't care who designed these... I want some.  The price is a little high for me ($100-150) but there are currently 732 pairs on eBay.  Someone just created a new saved search...

And now for the reason why about 10 of you clicked through from Blogger:

We have now spent 1/4 of True Blood Season 5 waiting for something really big to happen. 

We get that Tara doesn't want to be a vampire, and we've seen her run around angry for 3 episodes now.  Sookie and Lala chase her around, and now we are to believe she's going to die in a tanning bed.  Obviously Pam is going to save her and be a responsible maker, and I hope that is the start of something entertaining. 

Speaking of Pam, I love the scene where she was made.  I think that her forcing Eric to turn her was really genius of the writers, and it adds a new layer of interest to their relationship and hers with Tara (probably).  Also, that kimono was gorgeous - too bad it got all bloody.  However, I think it was far too much of a coincidence that Bill and Lorena just happened to be there eating some whores.

Jason and his teacher getting it on when he was a student explains SO much.  I hope he gets a chance to have a decent story arc and be more than comic relief or a victim, because up until now I don't think anyone ever really thought he was capable of actual feelings.  Here's hoping he and Hoyt patch things up before Hoyt cuts his wrists and listens to some emo.

I don't know about y'all, but it seems like Salome is the mole within the Authority but they make it a little too obvious so I am skeptical.  I think Nora's confession was probably genuine, but how Salome realized that Bill and Eric are true mainstreamers based on sex is beyond me.

Terry's story line doesn't seem to fit with the others, but maybe it will tie together in the end?  And why must we introduce the faeries?  There is enough going on, Alan Ball!

I really liked the scene at the very end with Sookie and Alcide.  It was well done, even though her southern drawl faded out when she got really emotional.  On real southern people (this one, anyway), the opposite seems to hold true.

So, what did you think?!

Gorjana Wish List + True Blood Reaction

Good morning!  I hope you all had a great weekend.  I spent mine with family and completely away from the internet.  It was great!

When I was packing to go away, I realized that the vast majority of my trips involve me wearing my Gorjana earrings and rings because they're so versatile and classic.  I got curious about what else is available, since I am always looking for new things I shouldn't be buying, and was thrilled to see that the line has grown immensely since I last checked. 

Here are some of my favorites.  I should just call this "Haley's Birthday List":

gorjana 1 by cardiganjunkie featuring leather jewelry

The line has even grown to include bags, belts and sandals!

gorjana 2 by cardiganjunkie featuring leather jewelry

And now for True Blood:

Vampire Tara is nuts, and I wonder if it's because she was shot in the head before she was turned?  I don't remember Jessica going that crazy when she was made/born but that statement at the end made me think perhaps her usual angry self is still there.  Hopefully Sookie and Lala get more to do next week, because there wasn't much of them in this episode.

I love the whole vampire religious extremist concept, and really enjoy how Alan Ball weaves social themes into a show about vampires, faeries and werewolves.  I'm sure Eric and Bill will be out Russel hunting next week, but I hope it doesn't become a repeat of season 3 in that regard.

I think the werewolf storyline is gonna get crazy, and I'm pumped to see Alcide fight it out with the rest of them and deal with Emma the wolf puppy.  Hopefully Luna comes to her senses, though.  Sam is the best thing that's ever happened to her.

Also, I love Steve Newlin the dancing vampire.  Much more than angry Hoyt, who is boring, and skanky Jessica.  It seems like this episode was a lot of setting up for later, so hopefully next week brings more action!

True Blood Recap: Episode 1

Good morning!  I hope you all had a great weekend.  Mine was wonderful, and I got to see my sister finish her second half marathon, which she ran to raise money for K9s for Wounded Warriors, an organization that turns rescued dogs into service dogs for injured veterans.  I'm pretty proud of her, and hope some other people discover what great work the group is doing.

And now, for the real topic of the blog post today, where it becomes even more obvious what I nerd I am.

Warning, if you haven't yet watched the True Blood premiere, you'll want to stop reading.  I've decided that since few things entertain me more than being an HBO geek, I shall start sharing my thoughts on each True Blood episode for the 9 of you who will want to read it.  Is this blog traffic suicide?  Perhaps.  Do I care?  Nope!

Here we go!

I love me some Eric (I mean, Ike Applebaum), and I hope this whole screwing his sister Nora in a freight container not 24 hours after wanting to be with Sookie forever is some sort of tactic to keep himself safe.  However, he probably hasn't faced much rejection since the year 900 so I doubt he knows how to deal with it.  That said, I did enjoy the scenery, and now we know that Eric wears black briefs under those jeans.  Bill seemed to just be along for the ride in this episode, and I hope he gets a good story arc this year.  Obviously The Authority will be one of the main villains this season, and I'm interested to see how Russell plays into it all because he cracks me up.

I just wanted to jump into the TV and give Lala a hug this week.  Poor guy has been through a lot, and on top of that he had to scoop Debbie brains off the floor instead of grieving.  I hope he has a purpose this year, and the disappearance of Jesus is not another ominous event.  But this is True Blood, and it probably is. 

I loved Sookie's admission that she chose to kill Debbie, and I hope she struggles with it and does more than stomp around trying to save people this year and have some feelings (and perhaps more gratuitous Eric hookups as part of her ominous promise to reunite him and Pam).  I wanted her to tell Alcide what happened, but I'm sure he'll find out in a much more dramatic way later and perhaps save her from TARA THE VAMPIRE!  I had a feeling that would happen in an episode called "Turn, Turn, Turn" and I loved that Pam did it, and that she wore a lemon yellow Walmart sweatsuit with butterflies on it.  I wholeheartedly agree that nothing screams team spirit like fashion sacrifices and dirt in your bra.

The whole werewolf/Sam faceoff looks promising, and I was happy to see Alcide stride in to save the day while Marcus' parents ATE HIS BODY!  Wtf mate?  I liked seeing Sam refuse to sell Alcide out, and I hope they continue their partnership but not let Sam get hurt anymore.

 Can you imagine being Jason Stackhouse and being propositioned by three people (well, one person and two vampires) in 8 hours? I love that Steve Newlin is some sort of country club fabulous vampire, but I hope he doesn't get a storyline of his own because it sounds like we'll have plenty to keep up with and Jason can be part of Jessica's college party girl experience and save Sookie from something.  I also hope Hoyt gets some screen time with his crazy mother, and I can't wait to see why he's wearing eyeliner in the trailer for this season!

I am super pumped to see Noel from Felicity (I know his name is Scott Foley but he will forever be a dreamy RA to me) on the show, and I am really interested to see what drove Terry to crazy.  The slew of fires sounds like foreshadowing to something bad, and maybe it will be Andy's chance at redemption to save him after caving to corruption.  He and Holly are cute, though. 

So, what did you think?!  Is it what you hoped, or do you sense some shark-jumping on the horizon?  Tell me!