I’ll admit that pink isn’t usually my wardrobe color of choice. Yet, I must say that this season’s color palette has me intrigued.

Garments in bright, fruity hues have graced several runways this season, and hot pink seems to be on the forefront of budding spring trends. Does the shocking shade frighten you? It doesn’t have to.

Whether you plan to don the color head-to-toe or just in simple accent pieces, the Spring 2008 Ready-to-Wear looks below may give you the inspiration you need. Who knows? You just might re-think the pink.

Costume National

Blumarine

Emilio Pucci

I have some sort of strange affliction that frequently causes me to try to cram as many things as possible into a trip. It usually turns what could have been a fun and relaxing vacation into a hectic, stressful mess. This time was an exception and a refreshing change of pace. I left Berlin Saturday morning and landed in Glasgow in less than 2 hours. Bird #1: Supposedly, I am of Scottish descent, therefore Scotland was on my list of places to see before I die.

Bird #2: A good friend of mine from high school, Erin, moved to Scotland about 7 years ago. Erin and her husband, Richard, live on the west coast of Scotland in a village called West Kilbride. It’s a really beautiful place. I took this picture just around the corner from their house. You can see the coast and one of the many small islands. We had amazing weather and it was the perfect (needed) change of scenery for me. I hadn’t seen Erin since about a year before she moved away, so we had lots to catch up on. She’s a musician (check out her MySpace page) and it was fun getting to know Richard. I love it when people I care about end up with cool people. We had a great time. On Saturday they took me for a walk on the coast, we had dinner in a little local pub (I had hagus and tried some fish and chips), and afterwards we watched Nacho Libre…”eets da best!”

On Sunday, we drove to nearby Fairlie and wandered through a sheep farm. There are no trespassing laws in Scotland, so it’s common for people to hike wherever they want. Richard and Erin said that the weather was only that nice a few days out of the year, so I guess my timing was pretty good. It must have been 70 degrees and I even got a little sunburn. Here’s another picture I took on our hike. Afterwards, we went to a BBQ at their friends’ house and then it was time for Bird #3: Andrew Bird…

Andrew Bird is one of the greatest musicians on the planet (and possibly in outer space if they have songs there). He plays violin, guitar, other instruments, whistles, sings, often doing three of these at the same time. He performed a solo show in a little tiny venue (maybe 250 people) in Glasgow Sunday night. Erin, Richard, and I got there early and took over one of the few small tables up against the stage. Meg, John Smith, and I had seen Andrew Bird perform with his band last fall and this was quite the contrast. He played songs that he’d recorded just last week for his upcoming album, some old favorites, and even a song with lyrics derived from a letter that his friend found on the street. If you have small children, you may already know him as Dr. Stringz from Noggin Television, otherwise, check out Mr. Bird right here. The song is about the cycle of life…or more specifically the 26 chickens that he couldn’t protect from raccoons on his farm and the sparrows that make nests in his chimney with the feathers they left behind.

www.blacksburgbrewing.com

I have lost sight of hope. Ironic that I’d try to offer a blog all about hope, encouragement, love, and truth but I’ve given up. It’s the greatest heartache for me, and I don’t know where to go from here but I thought I’d let you know. I had this incredibly naive idea that this world wanted to change and that there wasn’t enough hope to go around. I thought this world needed some inspiration and a nudge forward, but I was wrong. There are plenty of people that thrive on tragedies, seek drama, and embrace ignorance. I had this grand idea that maybe I could be part of the flow that changes the world. That I could prove light is greater than darkness, that warmth is greater than cold, that love was greater than hate. But I’ll be honest. I don’t know if it is anymore. Everything I’ve ever believed in is slipping through my desperately clenched fingers hoping the fickle sand won’t discover its escape through the failures and imperfections of my hands.

Having placed before you on a splintered platter all my insecurities, all my heartaches and desperation–I believe wholeheartedly there is beauty in the breakdown. There is this breathtaking oddity in giving up because there is beauty in redemptive love. Not just any kind of love found in romance novels and glamorized films we’re so ravaged by today, and not just any kind of hope that has a pretty idea with a pretty label. But, redemptive love.

This love embraces all of the hatred, all of the tragedies, all of the rapists, murderers, prostitutes, drug abusers, and gamblers. It embraces all of Hilter’s heinous crimes, all of the holocaust victims, all of the KKK members, all of the crusaders, all of the terrorists. And above all this love madly grasped onto me. This love admits everything is wrong with this world, yet declares it is everything worth saving. This love comprehends the reality of hate and the reality of its devastation, but this love also trusts there is the purest kind of grace that exists within it. In all of the oyster’s scarred and repulsive shell there lies beneath a jewel most valuable. In all of our tragedy of April 16th, lost loved ones emerge as heroes forever valiant to this campus and this nation.

Redemptive love takes everything but perfection. Though I have given up and have been beaten down to the very fiber of my soul–I am being redeemed. I don’t have hope things might get better one day, but I have hope that there still lies goodness within heartache, and strength in brokenness. A love that doesn’t want anything else, but you. In all your failures, your cracked mirrors, your torn sneakers, your hidden nitelite.

May this undervalued love flow through you as amazing grace flowed through the slave owner that cried those words. May you see disappointment does not wait at the other end of giving up, but redemption that promises an undignified embrace. May you know that true hope is not settling for less, but believing there is goodness in life that surpasses enough. Hope doesn’t come from any source, but it is the cause that has always been. In light’s presence darkness simply cannot exist–the lighthouse shatters the infection of the darkened sky. In the presence of warmth cold simply cannot not exist—heat nurtures and heals the bitter frozen fingertips. Redemption simply cannot exist without love—I could not have hoped for strength in my despair without learning how to forgive the father that abandoned me when I was 5. May you realize redemptive love has always been the heart that gave life meaning and in hope life flourished.

There’s a little bit of controversy in Florida right now about a proposed Christian license plate. The license plate says, “I believe,” and features a cross and a stained glass window. I don’t see a problem with this. The plate’s sponsor argues that if you can have plates promoting your belief or enthusiasm about every other thing, such as colleges, why not this? And why not? The ACLU has to complain as usual, but I can’t see the basis for this. The state isn’t promoting the Christian faith by making that license plate. 

They could just print other license plates as well at the request of other religious groups. If Muslims or Jews want to have a special license plate, I say go ahead and make more license plates.  These are vanity plates. What difference does it make if people want to pay more to get a license plate with their faith printed on it?  

And while they are at it, if atheists want their own license plates, why not make some for them too? The government should not endorse any particular religion – but that doesn’t mean that government has to act like religion doesn’t exist. As long as all faiths are treated equally, there’s nothing wrong with religious license plates.  

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/24/license.plate.ap/index.html

One thing that always puts a smile on my face are the adorable bundle of joys pudgy cute things tend to be. On my gloomy days I always check out this cuteoverload website that has a plethora of goodies. Don’t be ashamed to bookmark the site, it never fails to turn that frown up side down. Even the toughest macho dudes’ hearts will melt looking at those cute things. But be careful where you are when you look at it. There are bound to be unexpected and uncontrollable gasps, “awwww”s, and pouting to come out of your mouths!

This past week’s reality update is all about one thing: THE BLINDSIDE OF OZZY. Poor guy. Never saw it coming.

The move that the last couple vote-offs have been trying to make was finally made. Parvati and Cirie decided that they weren’t going to be able to beat Ozzy if they allowed him to keep going, especially if he had the Hidden Immunity Idol.

The two Favorites joined up with Jason and the Fans to make a move against Ozzie and it worked. Although Ozzy had a feeling that playing the Immunity Idol might be the right move, he decided against it and hoped his alliance would hold. Instead, Ozzy became the second Survivor in the last two seasons to get voted off without playing the Hidden Immunity Idol.

Now, Parvati and Cirie have put themselves in quite the precarious position as their former alliance has been betrayed and their new alliance has them in the minority with the Fans.

The preview for the next episode has talk about an all-female alliance, which would be stupid for any Favorite to join, as they need James and Erik (the only Fan of any value) to keep themselves afloat until all the other Fans are eliminated.

Just to keep you up-to-date on your other reality shows, Ryan got eliminated from Top Chef and Kristy Lee finally got knocked out of American Idol.

Reality Quote of the Week: Survivor Micronesia: James: “I thought I was the dumbest Survivor ever.” Right before having his alliance crumble around him… again.