This isn't derogatory: I’m a big fan of DEWOTs. When I’m DEWOTting – whether it’s blogsurfing or online shopping, or real world shopping or people-watching, or whatever – the front half of my brain goes ‘ooo looky shiny things!’ and the back half of my brain is free to wander around my subconscious and digest ideas and come up with solutions to my current projects. I find frequent DEWOTing essential to the writing process: I write in intense bursts, then go and look at something on the internet or stare out the window for awhile or kiss the baby or whatever, so the back of my brain can digest what I’ve just done and what I need to change or do next. As an old creative director of mine once said: "Just think about it deeply, then forget it... then an idea will jump up in your face."*
I don’t often go to other author / writing blogs much in my online DEWOTting. I can’t sort out what to do with a character when I’m reading about another author’s issues with his characters, or whatever. It’s just distracting, too much noise. So instead, I go to fashion or interior design or restaurant blogs, or to a couple of random little blogs that are just doing their own thang in the most awesome way, like that person at a party who's dancing alone in the corner and having the best time out of everyone.
Like sighsandwhispers.
Its raison d’etre is posting advertorials and fashion editorials from old fashion magazines. Most of them from the 70s, but sometimes they’re from other decades too. This women is passionate about her retro magazines - in fact, the word 'retro' is demeaning and gimmicky. It's more like she's unearthing little gems from the past. She's a fashion/media historian. I actually love sighsandwhispers so much that it’s one of the very few blogs that I subscribe to by email and open every day, rather than just skim on Flipboard**. Here are some of my favourite posts.
Apparently these were the sexiest men of 1979. Godammnit, I love me some Burt.
When this one arrived I smacked the desk, I was laughing so hard.
Is it just me, or is the mo-and-chest-hair combination DEEPLY sexually alluring? Just me? Just... okay then. (Cough.)
"What would you little maniacs like to do first?" I would like you to CONDITION YOUR GODDAMN HAIR KELLY. JEEZ.
*Okay, this was Don Draper. But you get my point.
**By the way, Flipboard has utterly transformed my blogtime, as rather than have to remember a blog or use stupid Google reader or whatever or bother to go to the site and scroll and click and blah blah blah, I can just flip back and forth, on my iPad, as though the blog were a magazine. SO much easier and more enjoyable. Best App ever. Now, Flipboard limits the number of sites you can read on it, which is annoying at first but actually brilliant as it helps you streamline. I regularly discard blogs when they start boring me or if they get the wrong its/it’s too often, or if they're not updating often enough to keep me interested... (The irony! From she who updates like once a fortnight... What can I say? I’m a Flippocrite. BOOM! Thank you! I'm here all week! Try the veal!) Anyway. My current favourites are: Something Navy, LeFashion, Habitually Chic, Chapman Interiors, Cup of Joe, My Baby Sleep Guide, IntoTheGloss and of course SighsAndWhispers. And the websites I have on Flipboard and also read like a magazine, just in case you’re wondering, are Fashionista, Refinery29, WhoWhatWear, The Hollywood Reporter, and New York Magazine. And a couple of others I am almost sure I’m going to discard today as they’re boring me. If anyone has any suggestions for blogs and sites I might like, by the way, bring it on. Ooo, and if you like all of those sites, get The Collection app from the NYTimes, too, just because it’s awesome. Hmm. Okay. That is all. Longest asterisked point ever.
Playgirls' Sexiest Men list editors obviously didn't see that whole murderous turn OJ did years later, of course...
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