Rebecca A. Foster

The great thing about YouTube? Not having to actually purchase old-school guilty pleasure songs like this one. (Except, I do that too.) So fun to dance to. And I'll never forget my friend Spanky coming to pick me up in a big gold caddy, MTV Yo Raps in the CD player. In case you didn't know, a lot of room to dance in the front seat of a caddy. What else could I do? YO MTV RAPS, kids. Who does that? Spanky, that's who. And here's one I feel NO guilt about. Love LL Cool J. And one more. Okay, I'm done. You get the idea. And speaking of old school, this issue is in my permanent collection. Love the clean, simple lines of this dress. I couldn't pull it off, but she looks amazing in it. Still one of my all-time favorites.

Is anything better than a man's sweet, too-big-for-you, spicy-scent-of-him, worn-in old t-shirt to curl up in? Best ever.

"Happy birthday, my darling sweetness. I find you so charming and lovely, it breaks my heart we can't be together *kiss*" (Wait...you couldn't hear it? Weird.)

Winter is good for one thing I've decided: stockings. I love over-the-knee and thigh-high versions, fun to wear and pair well with skirts, which I also love. (My friend C. got me these black and red striped ones in Australia; very warm, plus I look like a poisonous snake to boot, who wouldn't want that?) I'm always on the lookout for new pairs and sockdreams.com is a treasure trove of stocking funliness. (Yes, I made that word up. You can do that you know.) They have funny, sexy, sheer, thick and wooly, crazy, and pretty stockings of all lengths and styles. I'm taking a picture of my legs to commemorate my marathon training, so trying to determine my favorite photo-finish stockings. Pretty sure I'm going with unfinished fishnets (left) or plain stockings (right, both website model pics), since I have a cute dark denim corset with garter attachments. A black skirt/garters, pale stockings and my kitty-cat shoes would especially make a statement, that statement being ...

1. Schick Intuition razor: FloJo bought me one last time she was in town; any new gadget, she has tried it and gives me stuff she thinks I'll like, what a good friend. She was spot on with this one, it shaves everywhere, over every curve, super-close and smooth with no irritation. Bless the designer who came up with this one, the engineering just works. More expensive, but less than laser treatments and this is your skin, eh? Worth it. 2. Trim brand eyelash curler: they sell this brand at Walgreen's, half the price of the Revlon etc. brands and a tighter curl to boot. And forget those expensive self-heating ones, just blast your hairdryer at this one for 10 seconds or so before using, lashes stay curled until they get wet. Sometimes the old way really is better. Just don't burn your eyelids. 3. The Body Shop liquid eyeliner: some people are afraid of liquid eyeliner, but the crispness and longevity are worth getting it down. This brand has a great applicator and a dark bro...

This book is by Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, who also wrote On Death and Dying . On Grief and Grieving discusses the five stages of grief by telling the stories of those who have experienced them. Some of the stories will feel familiar. Some of them will be eye-opening. Some of them will make you cry, because you will see yourself in the stories. I have been re-reading this book due to emotional and physical stress I feel about upcoming important-to-us holidays and celebrations that, for the first time, my dad will not be a part of. It makes me cry, hard, but has been a great source of comfort. It tells me my feelings are normal. A few weeks ago, I had a dream my father was dead. I didn't see him dead, but in the dream I knew he was dead. This was the first time I had dreamt this way. Usually I dream he is alive or that it was a mistake we thought he died, he has actually been alive this whole time. It has been almost a year since my father died. He is the person I was closest to on thi...

If there is any snow/rain/slush in Central Park for Susan's wedding pictures, I'm going to be sad I didn't buy these cherry red wellies and carry my dress shoes until needed. Plus how great would they look with jeans or a cute spring dress and raincoat? Very practical girl I'm turning into; no toes in sight. They make them in all kinds of great colors , too. UPDATE: I bought blue ones.  And FYI a size smaller than I normally wear, they run big. www.wellie-boots.com, $98.00

I love World War II pin-up girl art, so I got a kick out of these hand towels I found while shopping online for indie artist Christmas gifts for my friends. Too pricey for me to justify buying, but cute. And she has some other great items, including unique laptop satchels and Guinness and Pabst beer can rings. You gotta see 'em to believe 'em. Another great indie artist find: these fun luggage tags. The blue, pink and orange ones are on my various bags right now. Towels, shanalogic.com, $20 each (laptop satchels $80, rings $40) Luggage tags, pamelabarsky.com, $12 for the set

I came across this photo on a photography website . Gorgeous color and symmetry. I aspire to take something this good. Places I'd love to visit and take pictures of architecture: The Czech Republic and Cambodia. (And Scotland, Ireland and Iceland, but for different types of pictures.) And back to the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, with a better camera. One of the most breathtaking buildings I've been inside of. (And yes, I find buildings breathtaking. I'm a nerd.) This photographer got a great shot . This is one of my favorite building pictures I have taken myself, Parliament in Ottawa. Lucky shot getting the moon/Venus? in there, but I like the city peeking out in the corner as well. (Slightly blurry, I didn't have my tripod yet.) (Click pictures for a larger versions.)

Washington Heights in northern Manhattan-- I stayed with my cousin when he lived there, on 181st St. On a blog I read, someone said "COME TO WASHINGTON HEIGHTS. It's the happiest place on earth. Seriously, it's like Sesame Street, but all the muppets have weed.*" And that cracked me up, pretty much my new favorite description for WH: Sesame Street on drugs. It's a bit crazy up there, but I love it. Last time I was there, I walked from Amsterdam Ave to the George Washington Bridge (not a long walk) on 181st. I took some pictures of the GW bridge from the Washington Heights side and when I go back to NYC later this month, I was going to take pictures from the bridge itself of the Manhattan view (there's a pedestrian walkway). But then I read it's illegal to take pictures from the bridge. Homeland Security violation. Crushed. *thanks to this person for giving me permission to quote her.

I have terrible taste in music. My main criteria is whether I can sing it, dance it, or drive fast to it. Pretty low standards. I have this song on my iPod running playlist and it always gives me a little burst of energy. Suck it, music snobs, I know it's bad. I love it. (Warning: Brits are excellent wordsmiths, bad music video makers.) Also, it makes me want to wear silver hot pants and shake my booty. Is that so wrong?

For my birthday later this month, I'm spending a few hours at a Japanese spa. I've booked an hour and a half hot stone massage, a facial and a pedicure, courtesy of a gift certificate I received for Christmas. What I love about the spa: the comfy robes, soothing music, teas to drink, my awesome massage guy (wonderful strong hands), the steam room and sauna, and the Japanese tea garden where you can sit and relax between treatments. Sometimes I feel bad about spending that much money (especially not my own) on trivial expenditures. Don't really need those things. But last year on my birthday is when my dad's doctor told us it appeared the cancer had spread to the outside of his lungs and could start to choke off the arteries within days. (It was 20 days. He fought 'til the end.) It was a horrible day. The year before I spent my birthday with him in his hospital room, then took a red-eye home to San Antonio. I cried the whole flight. I felt so alone and sad. Two no...

I have a serious thing for men's hands. Nicely shaped fingers, big palms, skin a bit roughened with use, there's just something about strong, masculine hands that catches my eye and makes me drool inside. And some men know just how to touch a woman in non-sexual ways that makes her want to explore exactly those things. I don't know if they learn it somewhere or just inherent, but knowing one is a gift. Knowing one with beautiful hands is a treasure. A man's hand in the small of my back? Melts me. Lightly guiding me through a crowd or doorway, helping me avoid an obstacle I don't quite see, a reassuring touch when I feel uncertain about what's going on around me. The tactile equivalent of Lloyd Dobler pointing out the glass. A small caress of the thumb and I might feel it up my spine. Tingly all the way. Such a small gesture. Such a lasting impression. A woman doesn't forget a man who knows how to touch. And she doesn't overlook the small, first hints th...

I hate doing dishes so I cook directly on foil in the oven as often as possible. I love corn tortillas with olive oil baked at 375 until crispy, sprinkled with shredded cheddar cheese for the last few minutes of baking, then topped with pico de gallo or tomatoes with hot sauce before eating. I noticed the little bits of shredded cheese that fell onto the foil were deliciously crispy and flavorful and because I have extremely sophisticated cooking habits, I now throw an extra little pile of shredded cheese directly onto the foil. Peels right up in a thin sheet of cheesy bliss that melts in your mouth. Yum-my.