arizona road trip.

jillian and i got the chance to go out to arizona this weekend to visit abby.

abby lives in minnesota but she was in az visiting her parents.
it was awesome to get to see ehr (after a year) and catch up.

we did touristy things in scottsdale.
like shop in stores that sell small cacti and cow boy boot necklaces.
we also went to the hippy gypsy store.
and we saw a man on his horse playing the guitar.

we did some other random things like going to the sugar bowl ice cream shop twice in the same day. and going out to dinner with her family. and hanging out with her sister who is basically abby's twin.

but the best part really was getting to see abby.
i miss her.
and i don't have any pictures with her. those are all on jillian's new camera.

how they reel you in.

i love making lists.
i love going on amazon and seeing what they recommend i buy based on my purchases and stuff.
and then i add the books to a wish list.
i have some extensive wish lists. all organized and whatnot.
everything is so personalized, "daily recommendations for you" or "more music from your previously purchased artists"
and you know, whatever system they have totally works. becuase everything the reccomend it totally up my alley, usually.

so my newest favorite list making site is ebay. i recentally became a big fan of "watching" auctions.
curranally i am watching 53. i like watching things. im not comitting to anything. i can just take a passive seat back (is that a real phrase) and watch the progress of some shoes, makep, jewlery, purses, books, movie, random trinkets, art....

i am verry unfocused in my ebay watching, but thats part of the fun.

so this is my ebay purse that i got last week for like 3dollarsyeah for photobooth's bad quality but super duper convienence.

there are somethings i know i could really get into.

so i stay away.
kinda like there are lots of tv shows that i know i could get addicted to.
so i don't watch them.

online shopping is one of my pastimes.
i really don't buy that much stuff. so i guess its more of online window shopping.
i just add lots of purses and bags and accessories and clothes to my shopping bag and i never buy the stuff. i have also been really into looking at makeup online lately. there are some great sites out there with super good deals. but of course i don't know what the products are actually like because i never buy anything.


but tonight i bid on a bag on ebay. and i won it for $2.50 plus $4 for shipping and handling.
so im excited to get that in the mail.


it was a good weekend. with a slight period of emo today.
field trip, disneyland twice, oak glen, brother's show, good food, great friends.
now its back to school

i reject knock-offs.

i really do not accept fake designer bags at all.
i just do not see the point in paying for a design that you know is stolen.

"According to the International Chamber of Commerce, counterfeiting makes up five to seven percent of global trade, or $450 to $500 billion. While any name brand is at risk for counterfeiting, the most commonly ripped-off labels include Louis Vuitton, Kate Spade, Christian Dior, Prada, Gucci and Burberry."

selling these bags is illegal (its trademark counterfeiting)
but guess what- buying the bags is also illegal. (just to clarify its not illegal to buy coach "style" bags that have a "g" instead of a "c" this is artistic interpretation) but i still don't see the point.
and my dislike is not really about the fake handbags, its about the child labor. there is no way to regualae te how the bags are manufactured.

this might sound harsh but buy buying these bags you are supporting organized crime and child labor. you are also stealing fro the designers who have worked hard to build up their brand.


when researching this issue i found this cool site. bag borrow or steal is sweet you can rent luxury bags for as low as $15 a week. so if having the brand name stuff is important to you but you cant shell out lots of money check this out before even thinking about buying a knock off bag.

and before this year i didn't even realize what an issue these knock-off bags are. i was reading an article in news week (i think thats where) about child trafficking and counterfeit bags. and now i just want to go up to people who are carrying fake bags and tell them that some starving child with horrible working conditions probably made their bag. but i know thats rude. so blogging seemed to be the perfect outlet for this rant.