TresSugar

Dear Poll: Are You Easy to Get Ahold Of?

DearSugar — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 13:00:00 PDT

In this day and age, where most of us carry a BlackBerry, a cell phone, an iPhone, or maybe even all three, it's easier than ever to get ahold of people. My mom, for instance, always has her phone with her, no matter the day or the time. Then there's my BFF, who is notorious for never answering her phone and lagging on her email responses. While I understand the need to disconnect every once in a while, I love knowing that I can always rely on certain people in my life to answer my call or return my text. Where do you fall on the accessibility spectrum? Are you one that always has your phone out on the table, just in case, or do you prefer to remain a little out of touch?

Source

FABTV: Stereo MC's "Connected"

FabSugar — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 12:22:22 PDT

Here is a song that is groovy, baby. You'll remember this one. Though the Stereo MC's came and went, this song stayed with me. It's soulful and dance-inducing; it's the type of song I don't mind getting stuck in my head. It also happens to have a trance-like quality to it, so if you need to zone out for three minutes and 46 seconds, feel free. I do want to point out all the denim in the video, from baggy pants and the denim shirt-wearing lead singer to the funky backup singers and their Fab denim vests. I'm feeling the denim connection . . .

The How-To Lounge: Coping with Excessive E-mail

DearSugar — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 10:00:00 PDT

In this technical day and age, e-mail is a part of our everyday life. We are so married to our e-mail that every new phone has the ability to be wireless so everyone can stay connected even if they are away from their desks. But with so many e-mails inundating your inbox, it's hard to keep your head screwed on straight. Below are some tips to help you stay afloat when your e-mail inbox is overflowing with messages.

Click here to

According to new research, the average Outlook business user receives 470 e-mails a week and spends 15 hours dealing with them. Predictions state that by 2009, workers will spend 41 percent of their time reading and responding to e-mails -- so when are you supposed to do your day job?
It's pretty clear that we all receive entirely too much e-mail, so take the appropriate steps to weed out unnecessary messages. Take your name off distribution mailing lists from stores, news updates, concert updates, etc.
If you haven't already, have your IT department set up a spam block so you don't get bogged down with junk mail
Limit the number of e-mail accounts you have active. It's recommended to have one business account and one personal account. The more accounts you have, the more spam and junk mail you will receive
Create a method when going through your e-mails. Some people think it's easier to flag important messages and deal with them later while others like to read each e-mail only once, deal with it, and delete it or file it away, never to be looked at again. Whatever system works for you, stick to it. Organization is key
When it comes to e-mail etiquette, less is more. You're not alone if you feel overwhelmed by your inbox, so try to send the least amount of e-mails as possible, and be respectful of who you CC
Many times people respond back to a rhetorical e-mail just to confirm to you that they received it. If you don't need the confirmation, add a notation at the bottom of the message, NRN, standing for No Response Needed
The e-mails are going to keep coming, so trying to constantly stay on top of them is close to impossible. Give yourself a break, turn off your BlackBerry every once in a while, turn your out of office on if you need the silence in order to get your work done, and when you go on vacation, go on vacation!

I hope these tips are helpful, and like always, if you have any other suggestions, please share them in the comments below! Source

Whitney's Chris D'Elia Is Back With More Relationship Advice

Annie Scudder — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 11:00:09 PST

Single and looking for eligible, normal guys? Don't move to LA, says Chris D'Elia, who plays a lovable and hilarious boyfriend on NBC's Whitney. That's some of the advice the standup comedian dished out in response to our readers' questions. Yesterday he addressed your Valentine's Day dilemmas, and today's he's back to tackle general dating and love debacles.

Is it fair to barter TV shows with my fiancé? As in, two hours of The Bachelor equals half of a football game?

Chris: Look, I don't like football, but if I did and I wanted to watch it, then I would expect to have to sit and watch something like The Bachelor, and I would try my best to get into it, or at least find why she liked it. The other alternative is like, "OK, I want to watch football you want to watch The Bachelor, then let's agree on something else." But then neither of you get to watch what you want to. For The Bachelor, I'd want to watch Dexter.

Where do normal men hang out in LA? If you can solve this mystery (preferably with a chart that includes days of the week, locations, and "type" of guy) I guarantee you could sell it for millions in addition to making this single lady very happy.

Chris: I don't think that's a fair question. I think people move to LA because they're not normal.

What's the best way to suggest to any man that he needs to get some new clothes?

Chris: The worst thing you could do is beat around the bush, or side step it. You got to just say it. But I had an ex, and she was like "you got to get Converse," and she kept saying it - "get Converse." I was finally like, "OK, I'll get a pair of Converse." And I got a pair of Converse. I got those regular Chuck Taylor ones, but I literally got every single color of the Converse, and I wore them all the time. And a year later, she was like "All you wear is Converse." So you have to be careful with that, you'll create a monster.

Why do men need their man caves?

Chris: I think that men think they need their man caves. They don't really do. They think they want them, and then the second they do get them and they have alone time and time away from the girl, and the girl is really cool with giving them alone time, then that's when they, or at least I, start to think, "So, why are you so cool with me being alone? What's wrong with me that you don't want to be with me every second."

How can I ask my husband to do housework without sounding like a task master?

Chris: Don't make a list. Don't pin anything up on the fridge. I'm a dude, obviously, and when I'm not in a relationship, I don't do any of that stuff. I don't do laundry until I want to. But if I live with a girl, you have to do it when she wants to or when we want to, which sucks. That totally messes up my day. So just come out and just say it. Just have a good attitude about it and don't wait until you get frustrated.

How would you describe your perfect woman and how could she attract your attention?

Chris: Tweet at me. That gets my attention. The number one thing is, you have to have a good attitude. Find the humor and the fun in things that aren't even fun. The two things that turn me off completely are negativity and if a girl's cheap. I mean, I'll pay for everything, but if a girl just mentions it, that's a turn off. That and DON'T WEAR FLIP-FLOPS. It's terrible. I mean come on. Put something on your feet. What if you have to run away? You're dead.

I'm moving in with my boyfriend next month and it's the first time I'm living with a man. What should I prepare for? Get the answer and much more advice from Chris below!

Johnny Depp Partied With McCartney and Springsteen Post-Grammys

Allie Merriam — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 06:20:09 PST

Sam Claflin Reveals Musical Connection to Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson

Molly Goodson — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 11:48:22 PST

Sam Claflin is one of Kristen Stewart's two leading men in the upcoming Snow White and the Huntsman, which hits theaters June 1. We stopped by the London set of SWATH in October to sit down with the cast and crew and learn a little bit more about the highly anticipated dark retelling of a classic fairy tale. Sam, who plays Prince William in the film, is relatively new to the big screen after making his debut in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides last year. While on the SWATH set, Sam shared this cute story about having the same taste in music as Kristen and a connection they made through a favorite singer:

Kristen [Stewart] has just starred in

Kristen Stewart Talks Badass Fairy Tales, Bella Swan, and Her New Leading Man on Snow White Set Visit

Molly Goodson — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 10:01:00 PST

Last October, we were so excited to pay a visit to the set of Snow White and the Huntsman outside London. We got a sneak peek into the amazing world Kristen Stewart and her costars, including Chris Hemsworth, Sam Claflin, Charlize Theron, and more, inhabited while shooting the action-packed fairy-tale movie. We have tons to come from our day poking around the remarkable set and learning about everything from the costumes to the fight scenes. While we were there, we even got to see the aftermath of Kristen accidentally actually punching Chris Hemsworth in the face filming a scene. Check out our chat with Kristen and stay tuned for lots from the set:

Is there something you admire about Snow White?

Yes. It’s strange playing a character that you actually could never truly embody. Her spirit affects people. . . I can’t have Snow White’s effect on people. I can’t actually be completely selfless because nobody is. You can only really play a character like that in a fairy tale and play it with an awful load of integrity. She’s very fully formed, but very farfetched-from-the-reality-that-we-live-in type of person. She also is strong in a very different way than you’d expect. Strength, yeah, but also gusto. I mean, she’s strong. She can kick ass. It hurts very much to do so and so it’s not like you’re watching her go take down a kingdom. You’re not watching going, "Yeah! Kill him!" Really it’s more like you’re watching someone having to do something that doesn’t just go against your sensibilities or that you agree with. It’s gutting. It’s physically gutting, literally. A million reasons, but she’s special.

Do you like that she’s not like your prissy fairy tale?

Yeah, because that’s just a very surface, though she is prissy sometimes. That’s the other thing. It takes her the whole movie basically to become who I’m talking about now. I’m really sort of talking in retrospect. It’s strange. It’s a total identity movie. It’s all about not finding yourself, but actually just being OK with who you always have been and not being ashamed of being the only one who sees the light. It’s an enormous burden and she’s so stunted. She was put away when she was 7 years old and your mother and your father were killed basically right in front of you. We’re not doing the version of a fairy tale that wouldn’t deal with all of those things, where you just sort of skim over all those things, and it's like all of these things are actually really important to the characters. She literally bleeds for her land and her people, and that’s just such a cool concept for me because it’s other people caring about people. It’s very simple, but it’s so common. Every day all the time you see people not caring about each other, and this is just about that.

She learns to be a leader or she’s born a leader inside, do you think?

She’s definitely a born leader. I mean, it’s literally pumping through those veins, but it’s been taken from her. She’s been so stolen from.

To read the rest of the interview, including her thoughts on Bella vs. Snow White and what it was like to punch Chris just

read more. Is it helping you get into the character's mindset to wear those cool costumes? Absolutely. If you look down and something doesn’t feel like you would definitely be wearing it, or if you go to grab your knife and it flops around or - basically [Colleen Atwood] thinks about every detail. It’s so wearable. I also have puffy sleeves. Somehow she manages to make puffy sleeves look butch. I was always expecting to personally wind up in a - basically what I’m wearing underneath it, like that little blue dress, which is just thin and wispy. I was really happy that she’s got something heavy on - a bit of armor before she actually finds her own armor. How did you feel the first time you put on the armor? Did you feel more badass? Yeah. That’s the first thing you want to [pound your chest]. Also, my armor doesn’t have a huge top on it. All the guys, unfortunately, they [raise their arms] and they hit themselves in the head. I can run around in mine. Somehow the armor on the men - unless they’re on horseback and they look amazing, but there’s also something kind of dainty about it, too, like pointy toes. It fits a woman’s body better, I feel. I don’t know, the guys running around suddenly look like little toys - slightly feminine little toys. Both Snow White and Bella had traumatizing experiences in the woods - being led out to die or have her heart broken - compare those two experiences? Well, it’s funny. I think [Snow White] genuinely lacks that innate fear of death that we all have. She’s got a serious, fierce survival - not skills, but insights. But she isn’t afraid of anything. What’s harder is to have dreams and hopes that you lived your whole life sort of be just shattered in front of you. So I think probably it’s totally impossible to compare the two. And I know that doesn’t make sense, but I kind of can’t compare. Can you compare the movies in general? Are there similarities at all? Bella and Snow White both come to find that they’re leaders. I mean, that’s definitely a similarity. They’re different. They’re very, very, very, different people. Also, I guess in a very sort of righteous way as well it’s all very like - everyone’s telling them “no” and both of them I guess see the light. Both of them are sort of a little more intuitive and spiritually, for whatever reason, connected and their gut is always sort of dead right. What about working with Chris surprised you? Did you have any preconceptions of him? Before I met him, I was like, "gosh, so charming." You know what I mean? Like he’s so ridiculously, seemingly nice. Movie-star caliber nice. But he really actually just is. But then again, it’s strange working - cause I mean it’s not a secret. It was completely different part before. It was totally like a rethought. So when he came in it was like "Wow! This is f*cking interesting!" I mean, it was like they really elevated it. Chris is an amazing, nice guy and also [has] great instincts and he can roll with everything on set. He’s really relaxed, whereas I’m always like, "oh my god!" I use my anxiety to do this and he’s always sort of like - he’s a good energy for me. I really like working with him. You actually punched Chris filming a scene and gave him a black eye? It’s actually a very confidence building experience. I don’t like punching anyone. So, you know, when you dream and your hand just slides right down their face, it doesn’t do that in real life. It really works. God, that really made me feel horrible, though. I mean, like instantly hot tears and I was like "oops!" We were watching it. It looks - it’ll be in the movie. Favorite fairy tale as a kid? I honestly don’t - somebody asked this the other day. I wasn’t here til the end of fairy tales. I really liked The Jungle Book. I was obsessed with The Jungle Book. Chris said Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. He is obsessed with Lord of the Rings and he was always like humming Enya as we were trudging up the mountain. I was saying basically, "You should make a remake of Lord of the Rings. Why are you doing this? . . . We’re doing Snow White and the Huntsman, Chris!" Photos courtesy of Universal Pictures

6 Ways To Be Your Own Best Valentine

YourTango — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 04:00:17 PST

We're happy to present this excerpt from one of our favorite sites, YourTango.

Once again, February 14th is right around the corner. And this year, for whatever reason, you don't have a Valentine to call your own. You may be single or separated, divorced or widowed. Unfortunately, so many of us who find ourselves in this situation fall into feelings of deep inadequacy and despair. We tell ourselves: "I'm not good enough; something's wrong with me; I'll never find someone." The reasons why we're "alone" don't matter. What matters is learning how to address these feelings so that you embrace Valentine's Day 2012, feeling the fullness of love rather than the black hole of emptiness and lack.

Here are six proven ways for you to be your own best Valentine this year:

Avoid the black hole! You may be tempted to judge or blame yourself because you are alone. Don't do it! Say to yourself, as often as necessary, what your deepest wisdom knows to be true: "I am lovable and connected to everyone, forever." You don't have to believe it for this to work! Cherish the daily miracles that might easily be missed - the smile of a stranger, the movement of a child, a lovely connection with a service person.
Buy yourself the most beautiful Valentine's Day Card several days before the "big day." Then spend some time writing a heartfelt note to yourself and literally mail it to your own address. When the card arrives in your mailbox, enjoy opening it and reading it on Valentine's Day. Inhale your message, feeling its beauty in your heart. Then let that radiate to your whole body.

Get the other ideas when you finish reading the rest of the story on YourTango: 6 Ways To Be Your Own Best Valentine

Written by Dr. Lynda Klau for YourTango.

5 Things to Know About Joy Williams of Grammy-Winning Duo The Civil Wars

Tara Sharp — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 18:48:00 PST

If you didn't know who Joy Williams was before tonight, we guarantee you will be hearing a lot more about her in the months to come. Joy's one half of folk duo The Civil Wars with Johnny Depp lookalike John Paul White, and the first-time nominees won two Grammys tonight: best folk album and best country duo/group performance for their 2011 album Barton Hollow. They are also one of the performing groups to hit the Grammy stage tonight! Here are five things you should know about this woman who rocks (including her Taylor Swift and Adele connection!):

Hailing from Santa Cruz, CA, Joy was 17 when she signed a recording contract with Reunion Records, balancing a singing career with finishing up high school. She began her career as a contemporary Christian music artist before leaving Reunion and founding Sensibility Music with her husband. Then one of her first songs on her own label, "Charmed Life," appeared on the season finale of Grey's Anatomy in 2009.
Joy's been married since 2004, and it's not to her Civil Wars partner. Joy's happily paired up with her manager and Sensibility Music cofounder Nate Yetton.
In 2009, Joy formed The Civil Wars with John Paul White, whom she met at a songwriting session in 2008. Their first studio album, Barton Hollow, was released in 2011 and debuted at No. 1 on iTunes's album sales chart and at No. 12 on the Billboard 200. The band even opened for Adele's 2011 North American and UK concert tour.
Joy, 29, and her husband are expecting their first child in June. Joy announced the pregnancy on Twitter Friday, saying, "My baby bump & I will see you on the red carpet."
Fellow singing starlet Taylor Swift gave Joy and The Civil Wars a helping hand when she included the band's song "Poison and Wine" on her official iTunes playlist, saying, "I think this is my favorite duet. It's exquisite." And now Joy and Taylor have a song together for The Hunger Games soundtrack called "Safe and Sound." The music video debuts tomorrow!

Check out photos of Joy and The Civil Wars at the Grammys now!

Shutterbug: How to Photograph Your Family at Home

Rebecca M Gruber — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 05:48:14 PST

Grab your camera and get ready to shoot! After baby's born, many mamas fashion themselves into the family photographer, but how much do you really know about capturing the perfect shot? With DSLR cameras on the top of many moms' wish lists, I turned to an expert to get a crash course in recording a family's daily activities - and doing it well! Fort Collins, CO-based Jennifer Little started Sugar Photography (no relation) with the goal of capturing the connection between people and their moments. Keep reading to see her tips for doing the same on your own, as well as beautiful examples of her work!

All photos courtesy of: Jennifer Little | Sugar Photography