Diva Bugs Talks Shopping With Kristi Yamaguchi

Hi Darlings:

Here is the second part of the interview with Kristi Yamaguchi where we delve a little more on her thoughts about fashion. The first part of the interview was on her partnership with the American Lung Association for the Faces of Influenza project. We've often wondered about the role fashion plays in her life and now we know.

1.) How did it feel to go from figure skating to Dancing with the Stars? Was the decision based on the ability to add more accessories to your stage wear? :)

I do have to say I love crystals and sparkly costumes, although learning how to dance was my biggest draw to the show. You would think that as a figure skater I would have had it easier learning the dance moves, but it’s totally different movement in the legs. I was on Advil the entire time! But it was great learning to dance, and my partner Mark Ballas was amazing.

2.) What was your favorite DWTS costume? How did it look? Why did you like it?

It’s so hard to pick my favorite with all the great costumes there were! But I loved the first outfit I danced in – the dress was gold and covered in crystals, and I had on opera length gloves. I felt very elegant.

3.) What is your favorite online or “brick and mortar” store?
Nordstrom is great – especially because they carry shoes in a size five! Nordstrom’s and Zappos.com are the only places I can find shoes that fit me.

4.) Is there a favorite item of clothing or accessory that you could wear every day or with anything? Why? How long have you owned it?

I gravitate toward cashmere sweaters, especially in the winter. They’re comfortable but still make an outfit look put together. I have had my favorite sweater for over 10 years. They never go out of style.

5.) How has your fashion changed with becoming a mom?
I look for things that are machine-washable and require very little ironing! But I do like to keep up with the trends.

6.) What is a typical day like for you?
I don’t think there is a typical day. But when I’m home, my focus is on being a mom and spending time with my two daughters.

7.) Are you a jeans or khaki or slacks girl?
Definitely jeans – I have a pair for every occasion.

Thanks Kristi!

Diva Bugs Talks Shopping and Influenza with Kristi Yamaguchi (Part. 1)

Hi Darlings,

Kristi Yamaguchi has partnered with the American Lung Association for the Faces of Influenza project to bring more awareness to the regular flu and the need to make sure you and your loved ones get the flu shot.

Please take a moment to read about some great advice on why we should all get the flu shot and why Kristi is working with the American Lung Association to help spread the word.

Since Kristi is also last year's winner of Dancing With the Stars we would be remissed not to ask about her style secrets! I am sure like me you love the costumes on DWTS! Please come back by the end of the week to find out what Kristi has to say about fashion.

Hope you are all fabulous.


1.) What made you get involved with the Faces of Influenza project?

I‘ve been a strong proponent of getting a flu shot since my skating days. It helped me to stay healthy during competition, which ran right through the flu season.

I’ve been involved with the American Lung Association’s Faces of Influenza campaign for four years now. The program encourages Americans to see themselves and their loved ones among the many “faces” of influenza – people who fall into one or more groups recommended for annual vaccination by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

My doctor has always stressed the importance of annual flu vaccination to maintain my health, as an athlete. But now as a mother, I realize my whole family needs to be immunized, and that’s a responsibility that I take seriously.

Through this program, I’ve worked with families who have lost loved ones to the disease and its complications. As a mother, their stories really hit home and their tragic experiences are a reminder that seasonal influenza is serious. I’m proud to work with the American Lung Association to spread the word about the importance of annual vaccination. It’s a simple way to help protect your loved ones from the disease.

2.) Do you have any special tricks of avoiding the flu that you would like to share?

I do anything I can to help keep my daughters from getting sick, so I also make sure they are vaccinated against seasonal influenza every year. The CDC estimates that seasonal influenza alone causes 36,000 deaths and 200,000 hospitalizations every year, and vaccination is the best protection against the virus.

Actually, when my daughter Emma was born, my doctor gave me a flu vaccination before I left the hospital to help prevent spreading this serious disease to my newborn infant. Since then, I make sure we all get vaccinated every year. This includes my husband, my two daughters and even the grandparents in our family.

3.) As a kid skating did you ever worry about getting sick? Has the flu ever hindered your ability to compete?

My mother started taking me to get my flu shot when I was training for the Olympics. One of my friends got influenza and unfortunately wasn’t able to compete because of it. My mom wanted to do everything she could to help me stay healthy, especially as flu season runs right through skating season, and I’ve been getting my flu shot every year since. I haven’t had influenza since I was young and I credit that to getting vaccinated every year. As you can see, getting vaccinated is a bit of a family tradition now!

4.) I have asthma, like many Americans and I also have a fear about the flu shot and its side effects, like many people I know…how would you convince someone like me to get the flu shot this year?

Your decision to get the flu shot is one that should be made with your doctor. But because you have asthma, you are at risk for developing serious complications from influenza. Complications can worsen symptoms of asthma, like wheezing, and can make breathing even more difficult.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends people with asthma get vaccinated every year. In fact, according to the American Lung Association, if 100 percent of people with asthma received the influenza vaccine, up to 156,000 hospitalizations could be prevented each year.

There are more than 250 million Americans recommended for annual vaccination because they are in high-risk groups. I would recommend you visit the American Lung Association’s Faces of Influenza program Web site, http://www.facesofinfluenza.org/, to learn about why vaccination is so important.

5.) Not related to your campaign, but how have you handled being a mother in the age of H1N1?

The best way to help avoid getting the flu is to get the flu shot! The recent outbreak of H1N1 is a strong reminder that influenza is a serious disease. As a mom, my family is my number one priority, and I just took my girls to get vaccinated against H1N1.

Hugs.

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Hugs Divas

A Watch Story

Forgetting your cell phone is the most annoying experience! It becomes an eye opener to your overdependence on that one piece of equipment. It contains all your phone numbers (who memorizes those anymore), is the only on the go way to verbally communicate (germ infested public phones are a No No!) and what better way to ignore overtures or just annoying people in general. Not to mention, you can’t tell the time so you are continuously aggravated with thoughts of being late even when you have nowhere to be, you can’t text or call anyone and you just feel out of the loop.

When I forgot my phone at the hotel during a recent trip out of town, I finally realized after a frustrating day of feeling discombobulated that it was time to start wearing a watch again. Why? I just thought I would have been less paranoid if I was just able to tell time when I got the whim. And loosing the phone made me pay attention to watches so I began to realize it was a shame I did not wear one. And when I thought WWOD (what would Oprah do) I realize that she would wear one and that was it for me.

Personally I think the cell phone is the proverbial video that killed the radio star i.e. the watch. Watch sales have never been the same since cell phones arrived as the cool accessory on the scene. Look at what happened to pay phones. Either way my growing dependence on my cell phone made having a watch less and less important. Back in the day, I used to be a watch lover. I remember getting a Mickey Mouse watch with a black leather band for my ninth birthday. That was my grown up moment and the only thing I wore on my wrist. Throughout the years I have always kept a watch nearby. After all they were a must have for standardized tests to say the least. But it has become easier to slip on a bangle or two to make a look than a watch which provided less variation in a wardrobe.

So after that disastrous weekend I felt it was time to take the plunge. I had noticed that some celebs including Oprah wearing their timepiece on their wrist and was now ever more curious. The right watch can make even the dowdiest outfit seem high end. I’ve also noticed ironically that the watch is the staple for a man in general but the appeal is lost to many women. It has not been easy finding a picture of a woman, not in politics wearing a watch, but a man is never dressed without one. For example, President Barack Obama wears a watch always however, for Michelle Obama sometimes you see it sometimes you don’t. Is it that we view watches merely as an interchangeable accessory and one of our many wrist adornment choices while men are limited in their choices so the relevance of the watch to their wardrobes is greater?

When I decided to purchase a watch, I realized it could not just be any watch. Did I want a strong timepiece or a thin and more feminine bracelet? Did I want a “don’t rock the boat” leather band or a stand out powerful metal band and face? Should I choose show off gold or earth silver? Should it be a square or round face? One thing I knew for sure was that there would be no “bling” on my timepiece. I felt like I had to place similar focus as I would for a diamond ring. I started off with the usual online mass retail sites like Overstock.com, Macys.com, and Amazon.com and soon realized that a watch held more stylistic importance than a bangle as it was seen as part of your personality like a pair of eye glasses so I had to choose well and in person.

After a lengthy (few weeks) search online I decided that it had to be a Fossil gold-toned square metal face and band with a least 35 mm face. I came close many times to purchasing my fav online but hesitated since there were too many question marks in my mind. So, on a recent trip to the Fossil store I finally found the watch I knew only by a number and brief description. In person the oversized look was “a don’t” as it swallowed my wrist. I was not impressed and felt like trying on the watch was like deciding to go back to wearing glasses but realizing at the last minute that my contacts make me look better in pictures. The look just seemed out of place probably because the relevance was deemed since I now was careful to not forget my cell phone. Maybe next time…

Picture Credit

The Hole-In-The-Wall Experience

We arrived at the row house and ambled cautiously across the wooden planks that led to the basement. At the appropriate intervals we crouched as if literally entering into the bowels of an ominous cavern and not into a restaurant as we expected. Surprisingly, the dark room that was Thai X-ing revealed a hodge-podge of randomly hoarded artifacts like chemistry lab vials, statues, books, pictures as well as a collection of warm notes and rave reviews framed with essays announcing that amid the unusual decor a fabulous meal awaited us later that evening.


This was our latest “hole-in-the-wall” adventure at a location we had least expected - someone else’s home or so it appeared. One, I had discovered randomly just driving around the District and being Anthony Bourdain curious while looking for new adventures. This was an undiscerning trait necessary to find good food in inconspicuous urban places. Places that I have come to realize serve the best dining treats because the focus is the mission of eating well and not locale or fashion statement.
When the meal began we felt the experience reminiscent of the soup-nazi in Manhattan, a hole-in-the-wall made famous by the Seinfeld series. A brash but skillful chef with a personality is always a welcome. Nevertheless, when Taw, the chef who turned out to be more skillful than brash, brought out the beef salad appetizer our minds were filled with the following adjectives...Amazing! Fresh! Yummy! Basil!Wow! Marvelous! Exploding flavors like fireworks went off in our mouths too quickly to mark their origins. We were delighted. We thanked the chef who was visibly still busy at work in the kitchen dancing around like a ballerina during her solo piece. He was focused and jumping from sink to stove shaking, pouring, tasting. He stopped to let us know he was pleased and that the beef salad is his signature dish. From start to finish, we had never had a Thai meal so good and the extra touch of serving the meal on the banana leaves added to the authentic Thai feel.


What makes this and other such places good hole-in-the-wall eateries? This is such a personal question and for many people the answer varies. To answer, I reminisce on the other such locations I have come to look towards for appetizing reprieve - Quick Pita in Georgetown, the Amsterdam Falafel shop in Adams Morgan, and Chix on 11th and U Street. The traits that unite these places are simple adherence and attention to traditional cooking and uniquely flavorful tastes, fresh, good, healthy and inexpensive. Quick pita serves Middle Eastern fare that is comfort and oozing in garlic but flavorful and tasty. Chix has succulent Peruvian rotisserie chicken with a vegan take on side dishes such as their black bean hummus and pasta and cheese that provide one of a kind treats side-by-side treats. And the Falafel shop serves up a fantastic array of vegetarian dressings for the simple falafel balls fried just right. Good food well done without any pretense and enjoyable especially by me a meat lover.


A lot of folks are surprised at finding good, cheap eats in DC that are not fusion, gourmet but just plain ole traditional and well done. Others are not surprised at the existence of these places but just refuse to step into them because of various prejudices and presumed social faux pas. Or since people like me sometimes hesitate to share their finds maybe they never know where to look.


Every city has great off the beaten path choices. Some are well known and others not so much. Definitely make sure before you eat any where that it is relatively clean and sanitary and certified by the health department. But most importantly don’t judge a place by its raggedy old couch.


What other hole in the walls have you found in the District or the metro area?

Baltimore - Charm City?

Hi Darlings:

They are worlds in contrast with similarities only historically defined by negative realities of crime, drugs and poverty except the magical wand of gentrification seems to not have provided the present prosperity and economic growth to Baltimore that we enjoy in the District. For many Washingtonians, Baltimore City is defined by television shows like the Wire which portray a city without the charm of a small town but rather one surviving on the charms of street hustlers and drug dealers. Although I have never watched the Wire, reading and noting the truth in the plot line was enough for me to create a self-imposed boundary of visiting only the Inner Harbor and no where beyond whenever I decided to venture northward to Baltimore.

This seeming snobbery was and still is a common practice for many other Washingtonians, as well. We’ve been afraid that the city, rampant with more murders and crime than our own would be too violent for us to stomach. Not wanting to get hurt by stray bullets, some or rather many of us fear for our lives, so we choose not to explore more of the city.

However, just as we grew to dislike Baltimore because of a TV show, many of us recently fell in love with the city because of the movie “He’s Not That Into You”. I can recall the jaws of six of my friends spilling forth their contents as they dropped to the floor of the movie theater upon finding out that the city featured in the movie was Baltimore. We wondered whether the “potentially” happening (onscreen) singles scene actually exists in reality. From then on, we were on a mission to find out whether or not there was some charm to the city and contemplated where we should dig to locate it.

With the specific goal of visiting Baltimore more often (It helped that I started dating someone who lived there), I can say after a few months of hanging out in the city there are many charming places to visit and explore. Areas like Patterson Park add an unexpected dimension to the city. Representative of a mid-Atlantic Central Park, this area is pristine and contains a duck pond, an unusual pagoda and endless space for city dwellers to live and play as well as hold community focused events like the recent Polish festival. There are restaurants like those in Canton’s Square with unique personalities and some with amateurish décor with old soul character, instead of a modern, contemporary, monotonic matching of Pier 1 Imports purchases. The coffee shops like Patterson Perk and High Grounds Coffee are the opposite version of big box coffee shops like Starbucks and offer used books amid locally roasted coffee. I am not sure there is another city in the Washington DC metro area with more coffee roasters. And yes, big city gals, free WIFI is provided!

The city is definitely worth visiting even if the blue lights are still present and foreboding. The reality is many neighbors don't have these lights and are worth exploring.

What are you experiences visiting Baltimore?

Halle Berry (the original version) ... is Baack!

Hi Darlings:

Halle is back!!! Thank goodness... Hand me a pair of scissors it's time to go short again!


Hugs and besos.

Am I back...

Hi Darlings:

It's been so long and yet it seems like we've been so close but still too far away. I've thought about this blog a lot during the last few months. I've seen fantastic "Diva Bugs" in random places like B'more and have taken pictures with hopes of sharing with you. I've had great adventures which I figured you would enjoy hearing the scintillating dets, but alas my fingers refused to do the typing. And then again there is always the fantastic urge to comment on the ridiculous and extravagant world of the celebs and those of reality tv but I haven't. I even refrained from mentioning how I think that Michelle Obama's thick, clip-in-the-front belts and the onslaught of bubble dresses are sneaking the 80's back into our stratosphere and that we must protest! but I stopped my fingers...after all despite this handicap Michelle is diva divine...we aspire.

So, tune in ... whenever and I hope we are able to once again have a fantastic time sharing and laughing.



Hugs and besos.