Showing posts with label NYC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NYC. Show all posts

Sunday, March 1, 2015

A Puffy Coat for Every Woman - Freedom From Winter

Forget burning bras, if you are a modern woman, you will be wearing a puffy coat this winter. In another prolonged and arctic winter season in the northeast, the fashion conscious women of New York City are donning the silhouette of penguins instead of the figure slimming outline of a wool pea coat. Forget looking cute and sexy and embrace the always dependable feeling of warmth in a spacious puffy coat.

When I bought my puffy coat last year, it was at the behest of my husband who was simply tired of hearing me complain how cold I was while outside. I tried on many, many coats but they all made me look huge. Like I weighed an additional 100 pounds huge. Looking in the dressing room mirror I couldn't shake the image in front of me. To add weight and volume to my figure, and fork over hundreds of dollars to do it, was hard to rationalize. But I did it. I even bought a size larger so I could wear a sweater and scarf underneath comfortably. Now I can commute without fearing frostbite and I can take up more room in the subway and not feel squished. The puffy coat is for women what man spreading is for men. An added bonus is my husband is saved from my whining. I had no idea it could be so simple. A puffy coat. 


A colleague of mine, who can be quite the jokester, commented "Now that's some coat" about my puffy coat. I could sense his obvious jealousy disguised as a mild-mannered observation. My response, "Yes it is and I'm never cold." He recovered graciously and I was satisfied when he folded his arms tight across his body as we parted ways on the sidewalk on another blustery frozen night. Was it really 11 degrees out? I slowly walked to the subway station, not feeling the bite of cold.

My fellow commuters share my joy of the puffy coat. The happiness of their daily grind is visible on their rosy faces now that they don't battle frostbite every morning. One commuter friend in particular boasted that she frequently only wears a blouse under her coat. I even overheard a random woman on an elevator today bragging to her companion about how incredible her puffy coat is. That she finally gave up her former scrimpy but cute coat and bought the puffy coat she could never imagine wearing but she was in fact proudly wearing. I could totally relate. She went on the say that she was more than happy to go out in the frigid temps with her new found freedom.

I love my puffy coat so much and talked about it quite frequently that my mother decided to buy a puffy coat and she lives in Texas, where puffy coats are not a common site. She's not cold though. She's not complaining about that. She's not thinking about how cold she's going to be on her errands or outdoor excursions. Now she can think about her career, her local government, her dreams! The puffy coat is quite possibly changing the world one woman at a time.

There probably is some actual science out there to prove that you can function at higher intelligence levels if your body isn't fighting to stay warm, but I'm just going off instinct. Just think of the possibilities a puffy coat can do! As more women see other women wearing puffy coats and see they aren't chattering their teeth looking miserably cold, huge pockets of society will improve, women will be happier and therefore men will be happier and families and neighborhoods and towns and states and on and on!

My enthusiasm for puffy coats cannot be contained. It has changed my winter seasons for the better. 



Sunday, December 7, 2014

View from Rockefeller Center - Top of the Rock

A MUST on your list of sights to see in NYC. Go at sunset and you hopefully will see a beautiful setting sun like this. There are 360 views: Central Park, New Jersey, Lower Manhattan (in view), Queens and Brooklyn. I highly recommend the tour too. Lots of interesting architectural and historical info about Rockefeller Center.

Sunday, November 30, 2014

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Monday, September 1, 2014

Katie's House

Katie DeProspo, 82, a Bronx resident for 63 years, is a victim of elderly abuse. Her tenants stopped paying rent two years ago. What was once a secure source of income has become a nightmare. Not only is Ms. DeProspo facing foreclosure, her tenants refused paying rent and became confrontational causing Ms. DeProspo to collapse and require a pacemaker and walker. 

I've started a campaign to help with her expenses and create awareness of her situation. She needs legal assistance to go through NYC housing courts. To find out more, please click the link below. 


Katie DeProspo shows a pile of  overdue bills that have stacked up.
Katie DeProspo sits in her kitchen, the only room with air conditioning. 
Religious mementos and photographs of her late husband adorn her kitchen.

A friend and Ms. DeProspo admire a portrait drawing of Katie from her youth. 


Katie DeProspo and mini poodle Lily



Katie DeProspo and Lily hug.

Katie DeProspo greets visitors at the door. 

Her home health aid checks on Ms. DeProspo as her children playfully hide from Lily.

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Mermaid Parade, Coney Island, NYC

First time to attend the Mermaid Parade in Coney Island. It did not disappoint. Sunny, mild weather made the day ultra enjoyable. So many NYers in good spirits, despite the swelling crowds all along the boardwalk and Stillwell Ave. On the boardwalk or in the parade, there were sights everywhere you looked. Color, glitter, fish scales and sea shells. So much spunk and creativity on display, it's not hard to appreciate what this parade represents: a parade for artists and creative folk.   













Sunday, July 7, 2013

Iris Apfel NYC Fashion Tour

Iris Apfel is a visiting professor at the University of Texas at Austin for the fashion department. Recently she was in NYC taking her selected students on a fashion tour of some famous brands. It was a sincere honor to work with the team at UT, my alma mater, during their whirlwind NYC visit. Here are a few snapshots from the tour.

Iris and a student try on some apparel at a NYC boutique

Long time friends Bill Cunningham and Iris Apfel at the New York Times Magazine offices

Monday, February 11, 2013

Blizzard NYC 2013

New York City with lots of snow! After the storm Friday, Saturday gave way to sunshine and beautiful powdery snow. 
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Walking in the Bronx
Bronx streets
Clearing skies in the Bronx 
Sunshine in Central Park
Snow covered Ramble in Central Park
People everywhere to see the snow in Central Park