Let's Debate

It's on for the GOP tonight!

I was thinking, on my way to work this morning, that the whole 2016 Presidential race is in the toilet. No really, I'm so disappointed with all of the candidates. All of them from both parties.

Let's take the Republicans:
Trump: The man with a double digit lead is a bully! I get that he's talking tough and people really like that, but let's talk temperament for a second. This guy continues to insult and belittle his opponents (like a grade school tyrant)-and it seems to be working for him-but can we afford for him to piss off Putin and call him a loser? He can talk the talk, but just because he runs a billion dollar corporation bearing his name does that really mean he can walk the walk on a global level? Politically? He's a loose cannon.

Carson: The media is calling Carson's recent surge in the polls "Trump-esque". Is Ben Carson the kinder, gentler Trump? Or is his recent surge due to the fact that The Donald's name calling game has turned off former supporters who find Ben more presidential? Trump better watch it. Carson's got God on his side, just saying, and if, after a great performance tonight, he emerges as the front runner it would be interesting to see how Trump handles that. Not well is my bet.

Fiorina: Carly, Carly, Carly. I recently read that she compared Trump's inappropriate comment about her face to the grade school bully who is mean and pulls your hair but secretly really likes you. Uh, no Carly. Make no mistake, Trump wanted to insult you and bring you down. I have to give her kudos for turning that ugly comment into political gold. A web new ad by Carly's camp said this about Fiorina:
"Ladies, look at this face and look at all of your faces, the face of leadership," Fiorina says. "This is the face of a 61-year-old woman. I am proud of every year and every wrinkle."

Bush: Ughhh..I seriously think that the ONLY interesting thing about Jeb is that he speaks Spanish. He is so vanilla that I'm asleep already...please somebody wake me because the man has yet to wake any of us up. It's do or die for him tonight. He can't play mediocre or rest on his family's laurels because Trump will squash him. I'm not sure he has the chops to go up against Trump. He is over matched.

Walker, Kasich, Christie, Cruz, Rubio, Huckabee and Paul: The only ones I want to talk about are Christie and Rubio. Christie, I like, but his offensive attack on Paul at the last debate did him no favors. In my opinion it made him look angry instead of strong. And Rubio? He needs to be noticed. He's intelligent and articulate, but if eloquence is his only Presidential attribute he will continue to get lost in the water with these sharks. The rest have no chance. Zero.

As for the Democrats, I'm supremely disappointed in Hillary. She literally had a cake walk back into the White House and now all she has is cake on her face. What the HELL happened? I'm calling that a choke of EPIC proportions. I'm not sure she can come back, but I hope she does because the Dem's are loosing the race against the fiery Republicans.

Tonight should be interesting...I can't wait to see who Trump insults and I'm guessing I'm not the only one. It doesn't make for great politics, but it sure does make for great TV.

Tuesday Tidbits

• From the "Wait a minute, what?" files: El Chapo Guzman, Mexican drug Kingpin, allegedly threatened Donald Trump via Twitter by Tweeting, “Keep screwing [with us] and I’m going to make you eat your fuc*ing words you lousy white fa**ot,”  Now that would be scary enough, but the unbelievable thing is that El Chapo just recently escaped from PRISON. What the hell? Now escaped convicts are safely tweeting threats? What is the world coming to? Hello Mr. Trump! A bona fide dangerous drug lord, allegedly threatening The Donald via social media. Trump better become accustomed to sleeping with one eye open.

• Ray Donovan Season 3 on Showtime: Best. Show. Ever. The first episode of Season 3 aired on Sunday night and it was AWESOME! I was skeptical because most great new shows sort of start to loose their luster by the 3rd season. The story lines get ridiculous and suddenly it's jumped shark and ratings drop. But this Sunday's Ray Donovan  Episode 1 didn't disappoint, so I'm looking for a great ride down the Ray Donovan rabbit hole this season...

• And speaking of jumping shark: Get this, a great white shark beached itself on a Chatham, MA beach yesterday. A seven foot, juvenile male great white beached itself trying to get a seagull. Witnesses reported that the shark got stranded at low tide and found itself flailing around on dry land where it couldn't swim at all. Beachgoers came to the shark's aid and tried to keep it alive by dumping buckets of water over it in intervals. Once authorities arrived on scene, the shark was towed back to the water about an hour later. Some stated that they thought the shark was dead because it had not moved after it's initial stranding, but once it was towed into the ocean, it flapped it's fins and swam away. Now let's hope that great white learned his lesson and doesn't come back for more.

• Tanorexic: I have a new obsession. Who knew self tan products could be so stunningly GORGEOUS? And simple. Seriously? The new St Tropez self tan products I have in my store, The Candy Bar are by far the easiest and best way to have a natural golden tan without the damaging UVA/UVB rays. The lotions and mousses make application a snap! They are virtually streak-free and since self tan is not an exact science, if you do see a mistake-all that's needed is a re-application over the rare streak to correct it. I'm telling you-I may never be "white" skinned again. I am loving this stuff. 

• Home is where the heart is: Right now I am so enjoying my gorgeous yard. My Guy has seriously done an amazing job landscaping that yard to perfection. He has, year by year, tweaked and pruned and planted so many gorgeous things and it's truly a spectacle to behold. I just had a really nice weekend at the fire pit with friends and it amazes us when we look back at pictures of how the yard used tolook. My Guy has the greenest of thumbs, and for sure he as the greenest of grass. I'm proud to call it my home, but I'm especially proud of him. Sometimes the grass isn't always greener on the other side of the fence. 

Playing The Trump Card

Does anyone really think that The Donald has a chance in the presidential race? I gotta give the guy kudos though. He's got balls...He's for sure blunt, rough and no nonsense. The crap that comes out of his mouth is unbelievable but he says it like he thinks he sees it. And that's really the problem here-it's Donald's world and we just live in it according to him. Don't get me wrong-I like Trump. I think he's a likable character-and that's exactly what he is-a character.

But this time the stakes are high. Probably the highest he's ever had to endure and I'm not sure the world is ready for Donald to be in charge of us all. His recent comments about Mexico have illustrated that running the country is all together different than running a company. Like he can't just fire Greece-as much as he'd like to-and you certainly can't run a campaign that's based on bashing Mexico and a building a wall. You just can't fire Russia and the Middle East, that's not the way it works but I'm not sure Mr. Trump understands that.

What he will understand is the fallout of his thoughtless outbursts. NBC, Univision and now Macy's are all cutting ties with Trump. Do you think he's kicking himself for putting his foot in his mouth? I think not. I imagine Donald Trump loves being in the press regardless of whether it's for good or bad. A consummate showman, he probably believes he coined the phrase, "There is no such thing as bad publicity". But this isn't his boardroom anymore. This is a global boardroom and Trump doesn't get to make the rules. I doubt he would survive in an environment that he can't control completely.

I get why he's running though.

Trump thinks the world is based on "The Art of The Deal", and since he wrote the book, quite literally, his ego must lead him to conclude that he could be the Commander in Chief of the US simply because he never met a deal he couldn't manipulate to his advantage. At 69, Trump probably believes it's now or never and why not him? He's got the money, resources and time to make a run at it but that's about all it's going to be. A run-and at the rate he's going at today it's going to be over before it even started.

Yes Mr. Trump, this is the country of opportunity and if you want to run for President you have the freedom to do so! What you can't do is shoot your mouth off and make derogatory public statements about others without pissing off a nation. This time you aren't dealing with the likes of a Rosie O'Donnell that you can publicly shame and bully. It's not like you can tweet at Putin that he's a fat loser without becoming the biggest loser yourself.

This ain't no reality show, it's reality.

January Doldrum

I hate January.

It's not even the tons of snow and dangerously freezing weather that we have been hit with lately. It's the time of the year when everything feels...stagnant. The holidays are over, its time to get back into the groove of things and its always a time for re-evaluation. And who really wants to do that? We always seem to be in a holding pattern in January; holding out for spring and waiting for the new year to begin or holding out for something more.

I read recently that Jan 6th is the most depressing day of the year. "Blue Monday", as it has been dubbed, is said to bring on terrible depression in some. With winter's dark and shortened days, the excitement of the holidays now come and gone and those additional pounds and bills piling up, it's easy to see why January is a least favorite month among people. In the beauty industry, it's the month to focus on Health and Wellness which goes along with the New Year and the New You philosophy. That's a positive way to look at things, but then there's the reality that says January sucks. Plain and simple.

A British Protein drink Maker claims that they analyzed over 2 million tweets over three years for negative language and concluded the Jan 6th date. Scientists do NOT agree.

“There is simply no science to support that statement,” says Dr. Gail Saltz, a psychiatrist and TODAY contributor. “The idea that you can cull negative words from tweets and then from that conclude that it is the most depressing day of the year sounds absurd from a science standpoint.”

Either way, I have concluded that January is the red headed step-child of the calendar year. With it's miserable weather and insincere "fresh new outlook" mentality, January can go pound sand for all I care. Bring on the ground hog, the Super Bowl, Valentines day and much more hopeful time of year because love cures all! Sorry January but you're time has come.

Just Like Donald Trump says, "January, you're fired."

The Art Of The Deal

I wish I were this guy today.

I'm in the process of making a deal and my business "green" is showing. I'm taking a big risk here and I'm negotiating with some serious sharks. Do they smell blood in the water? It all boils down to this: risk vs. reward. Can I risk it? Will the reward be great? Or not so great?

My gut tells me this is it. This is the one. What would The Donald say? What advice would he give little Miss Greeny?

 “I like thinking big. I always have. To me it’s very simple: if you’re going to be thinking anyway, you might as well think big.” Donald Trump.


Think big? That's what my dad keeps saying. And if I'm worried about the risk, then I shouldn't be at the table with the sharks. I may be green, but one thing I know about me is that I am tenacious. Is this a crisis or is this an opportunity? It's a challenge and I have never been one to turn my back on a challenge.

One thing is for sure.

This is going to be one hell of a ride.

You're Hired!

It was down to the final two. Holly and Brett. Brett and Holly.
Who would best the other and take home Donald Trump's Celebrity Apprentice crown.??

Who was left but one tough mother and a reinvented creative rocker, both vying for a quarter of a million in cash for their named charity. It was a long, hard-fought season with this bunch of celebs and it was not without drama.

Highlights:

• Cindy Lauper: She was the biggest celeb in the bunch, as her name always translated into easy $$. The women on her team complained about her unorganized and "weird" ways of completing a task, but the truth is, every thing she touched turned to gold. I think she might have gone the distance if she hadn't tried to be "the nice one".
• The boardroom: Always the best part of the hour and a half episode. This group had the art of "bus-throwing-under" down to an Olympic sport. It was always juicy in there. Sometimes you could see that The Donald, himself, was not sure who to fire, but inevitably someone always showed their true colors and Mr. Trump went right for the jugular.
• The Trump Children: Never too far from their dad's shadow, something tells me that's exactly where they want to be. Ivanka and Donald Jr. were the eyes and ears for Mr. Trump's celebrities and they did not disappoint. The Donald raised his children well. Both are articulate, charming, tough, corporate and in control...and neither is hard to look at. In a world where over privileged, moneyed celebrity children line the walls of drug rehabs, Trump successfully instilled the family business ethic in his two oldest. You have to give him kudos for that.
• Comraderie: It was heartwarming to see the likes of disgraced ex-Govenor Rod Blagojevich bonding with former Pro Wrestler Bill Goldberg and MLB super-star Daryl Strawberry. It seemed like the men's team, Rock Solid, formed some lasting relationships with each other.
• Brett Michaels: Much like Cindy Lauper, Michaels unique creative genius coupled with a "every man" charm worked in his favor and highlighted the reason the Poison front man has staying power in the industry. You couldn't not like this guy. Then, Michaels was hospitalized with a serious, life threatening brain hemorrhage, and the fans of Michaels waited and watched for days as the prognosis could have gone either way. Michaels recovered, despite the odds, and was expected to make a full recovery. Then last week, he suffered a "warning stroke" putting his appearance at the live finale in jeopardy. But Brett Michaels is one tough cookie and against doctors orders he literally put his life at risk to appear in the boardroom one last time.

Congrats to you Brett!! WAY. TO. GO!
Now go home and get some rest and take care of yourself!!

The world can wait for your next move.