Must Mode

I was watching my regular Thursday night programming - Ugly Betty - last night, and they were putting together ideas for the annual “Must Mode” list for their January publication; it is a list of the must have items or must do things for 2007. I decided to make my own list of things I must have / do / can’t live without…

1. A fabulous pair of Puma’s. I really think that my footwear collection (all 5 pairs of shoes I own) MUST include a fabulous pair of Puma’s. My first pair of Puma’s I bought was in 7th grade and I thought I was da bomb. They were your traditional blue suede shoes with the signature white stripe along the sides. They were the biggest shoes in the world, but I loved them to death. I went without a pair of Puma’s for many years until I did my study abroad in Paris, where everyone and their dog had a pair on their feet. I succumbed to pressure and bought another pair of blue and white Puma’s, but these were the hip and trendy Euro shoes that hadn’t made it to the States yet. I have owned a pair of sleek and trendy Euro Puma’s ever since.

2. Bumble & Bumble hair products: Made in New York City, these hair products are probably the best I have ever used. Not overly potent, great hold, and creatively designed packaging, make these products a must have for me.

3. Chapstick Lip Moisturizer: The BEST Chapstick on the face of the PLANET. If it were a real person, I think I’d marry it and produce millions of little Chapsticks. It’s practically one with my body… my lips ar so silky and soft because of it.

4. iTunes/iPod: This is really a no brainer. Everyone loves this and I really don’t know what I’d do without it. Always a must have for me.

5. Something between my knees when I’m sleeping: And no I’m not talking about a man… I’m not that much of a skeeze. If my knees are touching, I have the hardest time getting comfy. So whether it’s a pillow, comforter, Matt’s leg, whatever – I need something between my knees.

6. Chamomile tea with lemon and honey: I used to drink this when I had a sore throat and sometimes I would drink it a little while before a choir concert… it always makes me feel better inside and helps soothe my throat. I haven’t had it for a while, but I am going to rekindle that obsession now that I have a cold.

7. PARIS: France, not the Hilton. It is my goal to make it back to Paris at some point next year. If you ever find yourself in Paris, again FRANCE not the Hilton, it is a MUST to go to this quaint little bakery where the workers dress in what appears to be Chanel (it is Paris after all…) on Rue Daguerre. It was near the Denfert Rochereau metro stop and they made the BEST chasse-aux-pommes. Apple filled pastries that were like heaven on earth. Also, there is a Vietnamese restaurant at 178 Rue Daguerre right across the street from my school that makes the best Pho Soup… to die for.

8. An Ella Fitzgerald CD: Any CD of hers will do, really. Her sexy, sultry voice makes anything feel a million times classier. I still love her renditions of any Christmas song, and I love her Moonlight in Vermont.

9. Chicago: What in this city wouldn’t make it on a MUST list? I didn’t get out there but once this year, and that was a bad experience, so it is a goal of mine to visit again. From the Magnificent Mile to Boystown to Oprah, you need to get there if you have never been. And while you’re there – at the very least, get some caramel corn from Garret’s on Michigan Avenue, have lunch at the Signature Room atop the Hancock Tower, and catch a Cub’s game at Wrigley Field.

10. Take a road trip with a loved one: Talk about a great way to get to know someone or to see if you’re compatible. And a perfect road trip would be to #9! Nothing says “Let’s see how long we can tolerate each other” better than cramming you and a lover or family member in a car with luggage and hundreds of miles of road ahead. I haven’t heard enough road tripping stories this year and I think they need to make a come back. Maybe Matt and I will take a road trip sometime… and hopefully live to tell about it.