In rich people news...

When you are wealthy enough to not have to worry about saving your money, and searching for bargains is more of a "fun activity" than an actual way of life, you are what us regular people would call, "rich". When you are "rich", I have been told one of the things you can do with your gobs and gobs of cash is to go to auctions and spend money on frivolous items like class American movie memorabilia, or baseball cards. Apparently there are a lot more of these "rich" people than I thought (and not all of them are celebrities), as a bunch of them did just that this week! It seems that a rare Honus Wagner baseball card that had been previously owned by Wayne Gretsky, was auctioned off for $2.3 million. For that much, you would have thought that there was a more famous baeball player on the card, because I have never heard of this guy. Apparently the reason why the card is so rare is because the cards were originally sold with tobacco, and Honus Wagner was against tobacco usage, even way back in the day.

That's pretty respectable, gotta say.


The other auction that made news this week featured Audrey Hepburn's infamous black gown from the opening of the classic movie Breakfast at Tiffany's. About $800,000 from the proceeds of the auction are being donated to help build schools in India.

That's pretty respectable too, gotta say.

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Excitement!

The (seemingly) long-awaited 2 hour premiere of cycle 8 of America's Next Top Model airs tonight at 8 on the CW network. As is my custom, I've studied the pics of the new contestants, and picked out my favorite girls, and they are as follows in descending order: Brittany, Samantha, and Jael. As a long -time fan of Top Model, I've watched since the very first cycle, getting numerous friends addicted to it along the way, though I have to admit that I have gotten worse at predicting finalists and the eventual winner as they have gone on. I also have become more of a fan of Tyra Banks, though many have seemed to dislike her more now that she is more than just a pretty face. In any case, I know I will be glued to my screen tonight, and I'm sure millions more fans like me will be doing the same!

*******SPOILER ALERT*************

A big heads up--this year, the girls will going to Australia for their international destination. Let's see if they can handle being fierce in the land down under!

Someone was bound to get him sooner or later

Over-famed blogger Perez Hilton is known for his cutting comments on celebrities of all sorts, coupled with pictures that sport paintworks style special effects, often making it appear as if celebrities have urine running down their leg, or coke dripping from their nose. Other, more subtle posts feature pictures with words scribbled over them, outing closeted celebrities, or just plain calling them names. He often makes it clear who his favorites are, as you will never find a disparaging post on his namesake, Paris Hilton, or “saint” Angelina Jolie, as he likewise makes up unflattering names for those not on his good side. Now one such celebrity is suing him for posting topless photos on his site. It seems that Universal City Studios Productions LLLP, on behalf of Jennifer Aniston, or as referred to on the site, “Maniston”, announced last week that they are suing Mario Lavandeira, otherwise known as Perez Hilton, for posting the photos taken from scenes that were edited out from the final version of the movie The Breakup. Read the full story here.

Hmm, that can't be good

Well now, I am no stock market expert, I don't own any stocks in anything, and I would have to say that my collective knowledge of the stock market would probably be equal to the average person's awareness of the cultural mores of Djibouti--yeah, that's about zero. In any case, its been widely reported today that the Dow plunged by more than 500 points in one day, though it did regain some ground before the bell, closing down at 3.29 percent, signaling the worst day for the market since September 11th. All that stuff I just said might make it seem like I know what I am talking about, but again, I don't, so your best bet would be to read the article on Yahoo through the above link.

By the way, if you were interested, I do know that Djibouti is a country located on the northeastern coast of Africa, right above Ethiopia. They are one of 35 countries where scouting exists, and they have a number of fish that have appeared on their postage stamps.

See that, I just gave you a new wrinkle in your brain.

You are welcome.

Flashback

Penelope Cruz landed herself on many best dressed lists at the Oscars this year in a beautiful and elegant blush colored Atelier Versace dress with a fitted bodice and oversized mermaid train with ruffles. While I thought the dress, and the actress in it, looked amazing, I couldn't help but be reminded of a dress Sarah Jessica Parker wore in the series finale of Sex and the City in 2004, which was also Versace couture.

Penelope's 2007 Oscar gown

Is Versace becoming too predictable?

Carrie Bradshaw's 2004 farewell

Some more Oscar fashions for you...

Not all of the best dressed peeps were Oscar winners, or presenters, or even guests at the actual event. Post-Oscar parties are a big deal in Hollywood, and going means that you might not necessarily have the goods to win the coveted award, but you're hot enough to trot into the biggest parties of the year. Below are my VicPicks for best Oscar party dresses.

Madonna in Dolce and Gabbana at the Vanity Fair party

Ellen Pompeo in Alexander McQueen at the Vanity Fair party


Victoria Beckham in Azzedine Alaïaat the Elton John AIDS Foundation party

Oscar Fashion Report

The 79th Annual Academy Awards were last night, and though on the whole it was rather eventless, as no one streaked or made brash political statements, no one showed up wearing anything unbearable to look at, and the host, first-timer Ellen DeGeneres was funny yet classy and unassuming, the biggest thing was how long the show actually went on for. Coming in at roughly 3 hours and 50 minutes, perhaps its a good thing that there were no major fashion disasters, as having to look at one for that long might permanently burn bad fashion into our brain.

Among the trends, navy was a common color, as Maggie Gyllenhal in Proenza Schouler, Reese Witherspoon in Nina Ricci, Jody Foster in Vera Wang, Emily Bunt in Calvin Klein, and Ellen's girlfriend, Portia De Rossi in Zac Posen, all wore it. There were a lot of strapless dresses with mermaid trains, as well as the Grecian-inspired one shoulder look. American Idol loser/Academy Award winner Jennifer Hudson was disappointing in a brown Oscar de la Renta with pockets (which, in my opinion, have no business doing anything on an evening gown). Nicole Kidman struck an always impressively statuesque pose in bright red Balenciaga, but her demure facial expressions are becoming more awkward with the more Botox she uses, and it makes me sad. Anne Hathaway, who recently compared herself to Lindsay Lohan , seemed to learn little from her experiences shooting The Devil Wears Prada, and wore an ill-fitting white brocade strapless Valentino dress with an obnoxiously oversized bow on the bodice. Cameron Diaz could have done better in her white off-the-shoulder Valentino number, but Kirsten Dunst looked dreadful in a confusing silver short-sleeved Chanel Couture dress with feathered bottom.

For my top picks, I actually am going to be on the uneventful side as well, as I enjoyed Nicole's daring red dress, and as blue is my favorite color, I have to say that I liked Reese's and Emily's dresses as well. While some had her on their worst dressed list, I actually liked Gwyneth Paltrow's brick colored short sleeve Zac Posen number, with side-swept stick-straight hair (similar to Nicole Kidman's). Additionally, I thought Kate Winslet's seafoam green Valentino number and Isla Fisher (aka, Borat's girlfriend) looked wonderful as a red-head in an emerald dress by Monique Lhuillier. Cate Blanchette, in a silver one-shouldered Armani Privé dress, kept to her word, and played dress up yet again in an elegant and tasteful way.

I'd like to also give special props to the, ahem, older women at the event, as I felt that both Diane Keaton, a presenter for Best Picture, and Helen Mirren in Christian Lacroix, a winner for Best Actress, looked stunningly beautiful--a coup for women in Hollywood who refuse to do anything but age gracefully! Bravo!


Addendum: When you can't find it out yourself, you just have to find the right People to ask. As per the question posted here, I put in a question at People.com and they answered:

I have been searching everywhere for this! I thought that Diane Keaton looked absolutely beautiful presenting Best Picture, particularly in light of her past fashion faux-pas on the red carpet, but what designer was she wearing this year? – Victoria, CT

Keaton, who copresented the award for Best Picture with Jack Nicholson, wore a belted, long-sleeved Ralph Lauren gown. She dressed up the basic black dress with a sparkly large pendant by Neil Lane Jewelry.

FREE SAMPLE ALERT!

In case you were one of the two people in the world who didn't watch the Oscars last night, during one of the commercial breaks, the winner of the Dove Cream Oil commercial contest was announced. I entered the contest and didn't win (obviously), so because I'm a little bitter, I don't have the name of the girl who won or her comercial here for you. What I do have is a link to get a free sample of the product the commercial was for. Enjoy.

Britney Spears interview 1999

Remembering Britney, as Baby Tries Rehab, One More Time...

I am not now nor have I ever been much of a fan or the former Mousketeer. While you will find some of her songs on my iTunes, that's only because I happened to have a lot of the Now CD compilations. No matter what your like or dislike for Britney, however, it is terribly sad to have to witness the unraveling of a fellow human being in front of everyone's eyes. In tribute, this Friday's VicPick video is of Britney circa 1999, on the Rosie O'Donnell Show, when Brit was about 17. Its hard to believe she was ever that young and innocent--but not that much. Rosie even remarks at one point, "You're a levelheaded young girl and I hope you stay that way and I think you will." At this point, it seems that the most anyone can hope for is for her to get the help she needs and clean herself up so that she can take care of her babies.

Rewards programs

Retail rewards programs are great for frequent shoppers of stores, particularly if you can join these programs for free. Rewards programs are based on the basic premise that you can earn points for spending money at a certain store. These points are able to be "cashed in" for rewards of certain amounts, that can be redeemed very much like gift certificates. Even if you aren't a frequent shopper at certain stores, sometimes you can earn rewards just by signing up or providing certain information. These bonuses are fun to use, particularly if you're itching for a little spending, but don't have that much cash to blow! Below are some rewards programs that I have used.

~ Famous Footwear rewards program I actually just found out about this program yesterday. It looks like you can earn $5 just for joining.


~Best Buy Rewards I joined this program a month ago. You get a card and you earn a point for every dollar spent.


~Staples Rewards I've been a member of this awhile, and it can be hard to earn rewards as the minimum points limit is kind of high, but it can be useful if you know you have big purchases coming up.


~Best of Bob's Rewards A great program that gives you ten rewards bucks just for signing up!

If you can use these rewards programs wisely, they can be very useful, and may actually provide you with some actual rewards. This week alone, I spent my ten dollars in bonus bucks at Bob's, and got a rewards check from Staples in the mail.

Trying to improve literacy in America

Honestly, I am not trying to create fillers here, but I am coming across a ton of articles on finances, taxes, and savings, and all of it seems like it can be very useful, so I'm posting links and summaries of them all here!

Tricks to Soften the Pain of Saving--Its not always easy to save your money, a discussion on how to go about it.

The 8 Qualities of a Wealthy Woman--The amazing Suze Orman talks about qualities that she herself possesses.

How To: File Taxes for Free--An important tip for the upcoming tax season.

Lazy Day

Due to some new freelance work and some other projects that I need to get done, I'm going to be a little lazy with the site this week. Hopefully, you all will bear with me as when I do have more free time again, I have a bunch of great things to post about! In the meantime, here are some interesting articles on finances.

Fear Can Cost You Money--Famous financial analyst and writer Robert Kiyosaki discusses points on why he believes the rich keep getting richer in America.


To Get Rich, Just Follow the Instructions--Former host of Win Ben Stein's Money, Ben Stein, talks about the common sense ways you can keep your financial house stable and in the green.

Some more useful reading

Smart Tax Strategies for Younger Workers--Everyone dreads tax season, as the stress can be overwhelming when it comes to making sure you get all the appropriate paperwork done. However, for young people new to the workforce, there is an added frustration that comes along with the new experiences. This article has some great tips just in time for tax season.

Protecting Yourself When You're Self-Employed--As more and more workers are venturing into self-employment, its important to know the risks and to prepare yourself with as many resources and good, reliable information you can get your hands on. This article, by finance wiz Suze Orman, is a good starting point.

How I got my brains

Some may credit genetics, others, a deeply intellectual academic upbringing, still others may call it the luck of the draw. I now know that my intelligence comes from the caocao bean. That's right, chocolate has made me smart, and I now have the science to prove it! A recent study (funded by candy maker Mars) shows that an ingredient in coacoa can help boost blood flow to the brain for hours. Like another recent study that found a diet that included regular amounts of dark chocolate can help boost good cholesterol, thereby boosting heart health, it seems that science is finally proving the stuff that I've known for quite some time.

CHOCOLATE IS GOOD STUFF!!!

Celebrity Looks for Less: Special Edition Britney Spears' new haircut

While she might not be done figuring out how much her divorce is going to cost her, and she might not know how to keep her bar tab low, but it seems America's former favorite pop princess has figured out a great way to save on haircuts, expensive shampoos and styling products, hairstylists, and extensions. Witness, Britney's own personal tribute to Sinead O'Connor, in all of its hairless glory. It seems Miss Spears was spotted this weekend at a tattoo parlor in the San Fernando Valley with her head completely shaved, where she spent over an hour getting two small tattoos on her wrist. You can read about how she lost her locks here.

MMMM, yummy, reading

Five Ways to Watch TV on Your PC--They're either cheap or free, try it!

Warren Buffett heads list of top 2006 donors--When you don't have to worry about saving your money any more, this is what some people do with it.

Why Women Have Fewer Babies--Some of the reasons may surprise you, and some of them have to do with finances.

Rethinking Retirement Savings (or Not)--Do Americans save too much for retirement?

SNL -- Weekend Update iPhone Special

The Friday VicPick video: oooooo, iPhone...

As I mentioned here a few weeks ago, Apple has debuted a new iPod, that boasts of all the features you can find in a cellular phone and mp3 player, in one fancy-ass phone. In honor of that, SNL had the following skit in the same week. Enjoy!