I LOVE: TRACEE ELLIS ROSS.

To this day I mourn the end of the show Girlfriends. Heralded the "African American Sex and The City" by many, Girlfriends was a landmark show that depicted the lives of four successful and intelligent African American women in L.A. For 8 seasons we watched the trials and tribulations of these women as they dealt with romance, female bonding, career advancement, and familial drama. One of my favorite actors in the series was Tracee Ellis Ross who played Joan Clayton, a beautiful yet charmingly goofy lawyer turned restaurant owner searching for her soul mate. Throughout the series Ross' character's style evolved greatly and eventually established her as the fashionista of the show. Despite the end of the series, Tracee Ellis Ross' refreshing sense of style continues to lives on whether she's pairing a feminine floral dress with tough gladiator heels, channeling Prada Spring/Summer 2008, or looking elegant in a sleek body hugging strapless dress. Joan Clayton would definitely be proud.

NAIL NEWS.

I am beginning to experience nail polish withdrawal. The last nail polish I bought was Rouge Noir and that was in March i.e. an eternity ago. Chanel has come out with a few new polishes recently but they have been either a weak variation of the color Vamp or completely lackluster. However, I think I have finally found my next high. In October, Chanel will release a new polish called Jade which was featured in the Fall/Winter 2009 ready-to-wear show. I fell in love with this pistachio green when I first saw it in the spring and can hardly wait to see it shine on my own nails.

MAC also has an exciting nail polish release coming up this month. Manicurist Jin Soon Choi has collaborated with MAC on a line of polishes that will be released on August 27th. Out of the six shades my eyes are set on Dry Martini which is a "khaki olive green" and Rich Dark Delicious which is a "rich blackened brown." I am excited to try these earthier shades because they are vastly different from the other colors I have in my collection and they fulfill my need for fresh, eye catching polishes for Fall.

I certainly won't be mourning the end of summer with the upcoming releases of these beautiful polishes.

SELF IMPROVEMENT.

Summer is quickly coming to a close and sadly I feel as if I am still in the same place I was only a few months before. I had so many ambitions for this long hiatus from academia but I inevitably succumbed to my tragic flaw: laziness. To me, laziness is not just an undesirable quality, it is a siren who's song consistently lures me into the treacherous, jagged rocks of unproductiveness. Everyone around me seems to be finding ways to be productive whether it's an amazing internship, summer classes, or working towards a healthier self. As I witness all of this motivation and drive I ask myself why is it so hard for me to incorporate productivity into my own life? I realized that one of the mistakes I was making is waiting for the right time to jump start this productivity, I continuously wait for milestones such as summer, or the start of a new semester instead of beginning my self improvement immediately. So today, not tomorrow or next semester, year, or summer, I will post a list of productive goals as an initial step towards self improvement.

1. Exercise 3 times a week - I'd like to become active, because even though I am naturally skinny the fact that I get winded climbing up the stairs in my house is frightening. I plan on doing free yoga at Yoga To the People and utilizing the gym at my school.

2. Drink at least 5 glasses of water a day - Water is one of the few beverages that I drink but I constantly find myself dehydrated throughout the day because I don't drink enough. Water is one of the most vital parts of any healthy diet and an increased intake of water is my first step towards a healthier me.

3. Start reading again - I used to be an avid reader before college but the enormous amount of reading that I am assigned in college has turned me off from this activity. I would like to be able to be focused enough to read again in order to excel academically and to be able to enjoy reading leisurely again.

4. Become organized - I need to learn how to organize and manage space, time, and school work. My first task will be my surroundings because the constant chaos and disorganization of my room is an infertile environment for getting any tasks done. Part of my goal of becoming organized includes developing better work and study habits because my current habits are haphazard and do not allow me to work at my full potential.

5. Review French - I began learning French last semester and within the last 3 months I have begun to forget a substantial amount of the knowledge I have acquired. I need to review my notes because one day I'd like to pick up a copy of French Vogue and be able to read from cover to cover instead of just gazing at the beautiful pictures.

6. Focus - The most important goal that I have is to remain motivated in myself. It is extremely easy for me to get distracted when I am feeling unmotivated. I not only need to increase my drive to succeed I also need to learn to focus my attention on important aspects of life and resist the temptation of wasting my days doing my usual lazy activities. Once I have obtained my desired level of focus I need to work on mantaining this focus in order to lead a productive life.

Wish me luck as I embark on this journey of self improvement!