Saving the World, One Plastic Bag at a Time

If there's one bandwagon to jump on, its the re-usable bag one! I'm totally hooked on these. If you're like me, then you have tons of plastic bags laying around. I recall seeing Target, Forever 21, and Macy's plastic bags in my room as I left this morning. I'm still getting used to remembering to bring my re-usable bags with me, hence those plastic bags currently in my room.

Well, in my quest to save the world, I came across some merchandise in Macy's back in December. They were really cute so I started to look more closely at them. At the time, I was buying Christmas gifts so I thought the make-up-sized bag would be perfect for my girls. And then I noticed the tag said "featuring artwork by Kanye West." I started looking at other ones and there were some by Heidi Klum, David Bowie, Giorgio Armani and Gwen Stefani.

Here's a tid-bit of what the tag said:
The signed artwork reproduced on this garment is the original work of the celebrity artist and has been donated for the exclusive use of the Whatever It Takes campaign, which has so far raised over $1,500,000 for charitable projects worldwide.

How cool is that? These celebrities actually drew out these designs! I wanted to research more about what Whatever It Takes.org is all about and found out this organization is based in the UK. Which got me thinking, "Why are they selling things here?" Then I saw they are trying to tackle key global issues, such as poverty alleviation, environmental conservation, and the protection of children. These celebrities contribute their designs to the items sold from Whatever It Takes.org and the sales of their products go to the celebrities' charities of choice.

This organization supports tons of causes around the world, not just in the UK. A few that I picked out from the list are:

• CARE International - works in more than 70 countries around the world tackling poverty where ever the need is greatest. It has impacted 45 million people worldwide


• LIFEbeat - the US music industry's charitable organization, dedicated to reaching America's youth with the message of HIV/AIDS prevention.


• St. Judes Children's Hospital - discoveries made here have completely changed how the world treats children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases.


• Sharon Osbourne Colon Cancer Program - works to improve the lives of patients and their loved ones by providing at-home help, childcare, transporation, access to support groups and patient care srvices offered within Cedar-Sinai Medical Center.

Check out a full list of causes and their charity report here: http://www.whateverittakes.org/causes.php

Well, when I was at Macy's looking at the Whatever It Takes.org merchandise, I came across a bag that contains four reusuable bags! I didn't buy it at the time because I was Christmas shopping and told myself not to buy anything for myself. Well, ever since then, I've regreted it because the bags were really cute! I started looking online for them, but the Whatever It Takes.org is based in the UK and the prices were listed in pounds. I'm always a little scared to buy something that's not in dollars. And the website didn't have the bags I wanted. I searched in other places and saw other people who were like me and discovered this organization in places like Urban Outfitters. Well, long story short, I found my bags! I got the ones designed by Lucy Lui.

What I like about them, besides the fact that they are loud and colorful, is that they roll up and are secured by a button so they are only about 3 inches big, which means they are easy to carry!

Ode To A Cupcake

This week, even though it is a short one, has been oh so uber hectic. The sucky thing about it is that it's not over yet. Today marks my busiest and longest day thus far.

It started off at 5 AM when my alarm clock goes off. I usually don't wake up that early (or shall i say...I NEVER wake up that early), but I had an uber early meeting. Let me take this opportunity to thank my collegues in Boston for scheduling it. I actually didn't wake up exactly at 5 AM, so I had to call-in to the meeting from my car (thank you renee for the bluetooth, it came in handy!). Getting into work when no one is here actually made me feel good. I won't be doing that often, but at least I got to experience it once, hah! So moving on. You would think that because I came in early, I would leave early. That's not the case, my friend. I actually have to stay later than usual! And not only that, I have class tonight and will have to sit there for four straight hours.

So knowing that my day is not even close to being over, I decided to take a mid-day Starbucks break. I needed some caffine in my body, like ASAP. (Oh, did I mention my 'coffee only once a week new year's resolution' is totally over?) So me and my friend from work head over to our fave Starbucks spot and we are in line. Then I hear her say, "Red Velvet Cupcake!" *Gasp...I know! I look into the pastry section, and like a ray of light shining on it....I see it. Two red velvet cupcakes. (pause for dramatic effect)

It was perfect, one for each of us. It's amazing that this little cupcake changed my whole outlook on my day. It doesn't beat Marita's though (if you don't know about Marita's then you are certainly missing out). But it did hit the spot. Mmm...cupcake.

Are You Ready for Some Football?

I'd like to send out my congratulations to the 2008 AFC Conference Champions, the Pittsburgh Steelers!

Hines, honey, we need a speedy recovery from you! As some of you know, he injured his knee on a reception in the first quarter and wasn't able to play for the rest of the game.

Tomlin also reports that Ryan Clark and Patrick Bailey should be fine. Clark, you gave us a scare, but glad you were able to walk off the field. Unfortunately, Raven's McGahee had to be carried off on a stretcher after colliding with Clark.

I may be biased because I have a major crush on him, but my MVP award goes to Troy Polamalu. He was absolutely amazing! ESPN said it best:

"With Troy Polamalu ending any chance Baltimore had for a comeback with a 40-yard interception return, the Steelers bullied their rivals 23-14 on Sunday to reach their seventh Super Bowl."

And check out my man here doin whatever it takes to get the job done. But yeah, I do have one request for my beloved Troy. Please shave that beard. Maybe its something your doing for this season, but after you win the superbowl...please shave it off.

Congratulations again and see you guys on February 1st! If (and when) they win the Superbowl, they will hold the record for most Superbowl victories! Here's to win #6!