PopSugar

Registry Roundup: Services

CasaSugar — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 14:00:12 -0700

When it comes time to register for your wedding, instead of signing up for a $1600 gravy boat that you'll use only once a year, why not register for some services for your home that you can enjoy year-round? Collecting essential home furnishings here and there isn't so painful, but when it comes to writing a check to your landscaper, housekeeper, movers, etc., you'll wish you'd asked for it as a nuptial gift. So, I've rounded up some great services that'll make your married life a whole lot easier (and affordable). To learn where to register for them, check out this post. Had you thought about hiring an energy auditor for your home to reduce your environmental footprint, not to mention your monthly utility bills? Could your closets use some organization now that they'll be home for two wardrobes? Will you and your future better-half be moving to a new home? Do you envision a weekly housekeeper in your new life? Take a look at the widget below for some fab, registry-worthy services. We also have a downloadable wedding registry you can use, and for a look at all of our wedding coverage, check out IDoSugar.

Source

Money Talk: If a Meal Is Comped Should You Still Tip?

Savvy Community — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:45:31 -0800

This sticky tip etiquette question comes from Angelica, part of our Money Talk group.

I had brunch with a pal recently at a fairly upscale new restaurant and the entire experience was a bust. We had just worked out and were starving so we put in our order as soon as we sat down. Unfortunately, there was a mix-up over who our server was and we ended up waiting over an hour for our food. When we realized how long it had been and finally caught a waiter, my friend politely reminded her when we'd ordered and the waiter said our meal was next up. That was a lie because they served two tables ahead of us, and when our food did arrive (about 15 minutes later!), my friend's order was wrong. Ultimately, the manager came by the table to apologize and let us know our bill would be comped. When we were finished with our very long brunch, I wanted to leave a tip because I was impressed they were gracious about their mistake, but my friend didn't like the idea of rewarding them after the wait and messed up order. We settled on what was probably a 10 percent tip after agreeing it was kind of them to comp the meal. Do you think we should have left a tip for good measure, or do you think it was unnecessary considering the service?

Join our Money Talk group and dish your awkward money and finance experiences, learnings, and tales! Have a post you want to see featured on SavvySugar? Private message me here to pitch your ideas. I can't wait to hear them.

Online Services to Help You Plan Your Wedding Shower

GeekSugar — Tue, 12 May 2009 09:02:58 -0700

Wedding season continues on the Sugar network with parties, showers and everything in between. And now that I've provided you with some ways to geek out at your wedding reception, here are some useful sites and services that will help you get the ball rollin' on your wedding shower parties.

View Slideshow ›

Front Page: The Nation Remembers 9/11 Eight Years Later

TresSugar — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 08:00:26 -0700

The country mourns the eighth anniversary of 9/11 with a moment of silence and a day of service. - AP
Meanwhile, the Pakistani Army announces the capture of a key Taliban leader. - New York Times
Abuse of prescription drugs such as Oxycontin has dropped since 2007. - USA Today
South Carolina Republicans call for Gov. Mark Sandford to resign. - CNN
Police search for missing Yale student Annie Le, set to wed this weekend. - Newsday

Morning Links - DJ AM Memorial Service Held Last Night

PopSugar — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 09:30:00 -0700

Family and friends, including Lindsay and Nicole, celebrate DJ AM's life with a memorial service last night in LA - Us Weekly
Michael Jackson laid to rest yesterday in a private ceremony - Celebitchy
Tyra Banks is being sued by a former employee - ICYDK
Khloe Kardashian has a new boyfriend - Fox Pop Tarts
Michael Lohan apologizes to Samantha - Lifeline Live
Keanu Reeves to take a paternity test in contested case - Wonderwall
Oprah issues Chris Brown a smackdown - PopEater
Zooey Deschanel doing ballet to get fit for her wedding - I'm Not Obsessed

Filmmaker Mitch McCabe Shares Her Thoughts on the Anti-Aging Obsession

BellaSugar — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:05:59 -0700

Tonight, do yourself a favor and watch Mitch McCabe's excellent documentary, Youth Knows No Pain. (It airs tonight at 9 p.m. on HBO, and it is great.) The film explores our societal obsession with looking forever young, but what makes it all the more interesting is McCabe's own backstory as the daughter of a plastic surgeon. Through interviews with cosmetic surgeons, Botox babes, and her own introspection, she's created a smart, fascinating, poignant, and funny film. Set your TiVo already, and read on as McCabe discusses her take on our age-phobic society in this interview.

It seems like 10 or 20 years ago women in their 20s weren’t so concerned about aging. Now a lot are - we even see 26-year-old Julia Allison go for fillers in the film. Why do you think there’s been that shift?
One thing Julia was talking about is that women’s fertility decreases after 25, and just from a biological standpoint, there’s an expiration date - biologically and therefore in terms of attractiveness. My Buddhist friend, we’d argue about the subject matter of the film and say attractiveness is only meant to attract a mate, your importance is supposed to come from the inside. So once your breeding days are over, of course your attractiveness is supposed to fade out. It wasn’t supposed to be important in the first place. Not that Julia Allison is a Buddhist, but she's speaking the truth of what happens out there. I mean, do we see women in their 30s and 40s being cast in many different roles out there? No. If women try to date on the Internet and post their real age, can they get as many dates as a woman who’s 28? No. If you really listen to a man who’s maybe had a couple drinks, he might be more honest about his views on older women.

For the full interview, read more.

Details about Sophie Dahl's Wedding Revealed

FabSugarUK — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 01:30:19 -0700

Sophie Dahl has been busy building a career off the catwalk lately writing several books, including a cookbook and subsequently landing a cookery show. However, she has still managed to find time to arrange her upcoming nuptials to singer Jamie Cullum as they plan to marry next July. Jamie's professional commitments have meant things have been postponed from January, but a Summer wedding is surely more fun anyway?

The pair look likely to wed at Hunton Park’s Queen Anne mansion house with a relatively low key affair. Sophie wants no expense spared with silver service and Bentleys to transport the wedding party.

The couple are regularly discussed for their difference in height as she is 5'11" whilst he is just 5'4", but Sophie dismisses this as an issue. "We happen to be two people who met, fell madly in love and will probably produce fairly average-sized children, hopefully with his more elegant feet, not mine."

Katie Takes Alex to Pal's Wedding Ahead of NY Marathon

PopSugarUK — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 02:00:00 -0700

Katie Price took Alex Reid to her friends' wedding yesterday, and cosied up to her new boyfriend at the Mayfair Hotel in London after the ceremony. Although reports suggest she is getting ready to dump Alex, Kate kept the cage fighter by her side as she left for the service in her tiara and dressing gown (having caused speculation when she tried on the bridesmaid dress). Kate is reportedly keen to quell any negative reports about her relationship with Alex, and is apparently consulting lawyers following Peter Andre's accusation that Junior caught the new couple in bed together. She is also focusing on the future, and after completing the London Marathon she has set herself a new goal, tweeting: "woo i can confirm im doing the New York marathon november 4th for charity start training next week".

To see more pictures of Kate and Alex, just read more.

View 10 Photos ›

Justin Palmer/Anthony Clarke/Mark Miilan/BigPicturesPhoto.com

Hump Day: Is My Boyfriend a Sex Addict?

TresSugar — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 09:00:00 -0700

Welcome to Hump Day, TrèsSugar's new sex advice column! Are you confused about sex? Do you have trouble having an orgasm? Is there something you'd like to try but you're worried it's too weird? Send your questions to TrèsSugar, and our friend Dr. Charlie Glickman from Good Vibrations will offer his sound advice!

Today's Question:

I’ve been dating my boyfriend for six months, and I’ve started feeling funny about the quality of our sex. At the beginning, sex was fantastic between us. We both have high sex drives, are creative in bed, and I think we both felt that we’d found our sexual soul mate.

Lately though, I’m feeling more and more objectified by him. He texts overly sexual things to me. (That’s fine, but how about an “I miss you!” every once in a while!) He wants to do rougher things, and although I don’t mind that and even find it a turn on, I'm beginning to feel less like a partner to him and more like an object. I know he’s really into porn, he masturbates a lot, has had lots of casual flings in the past and I’m beginning to wonder if he’s a sex addict.

What are the signs? What should I do? I care about him, but I am feeling suspicious that he no longer sees me as an equal, and I wonder if, with his insatiable appetite, he might even cheat on me. I know he’s done it in the past. Help! To hear what Dr. Glickman has to say, read more.

Dr. Glickman's Answer:

First thing - good for you for listening to your intuition and your feelings on this. A lot of people ignore or don’t listen to those early warning signs, and that often leads to a worse situation. It’s important to pay attention to them when they first show up and I’m glad you did.

I hear the term “sex addict” used a lot. To be honest, there isn’t any consensus among therapists or sexologists about what it means and there is still a lot of debate about whether someone can be addicted to sex in the way that someone can be addicted to drugs, with all of the physiological effects that can have. At the same time, it seems pretty clear to me that some people have sexual compulsions that they have difficulty controlling or working with.

Now, maybe most people outside the sexology or therapy worlds don’t really care about the difference between sex addiction and compulsion. But I think it’s important to not throw the “addict” label at people (not that I’m suggesting that you’re doing that) because it can be really triggering. In my experience, it tends to create a lot of shame and judgment on top of whatever difficult feelings someone may have because of their actions. Of course, if someone wants to use the word to describe themselves, that’s fine. It’s about self-definition, after all.

Leaving aside the question of whether your boyfriend is a sex addict, I think that the place to start is the fact that you’re not getting what you want. From what you say, it sounds like you enjoy some of the same things, which can be helpful. But if you want sweetness and loving moments mixed in with the rough and tumble, that’s a totally fine thing to ask for. Have you spoken with him about that? If so, has he been open to hearing that? And what have the two of you agreed to do? If you haven’t raised this topic with him, why is that? What could make it easier for you to talk with him about it?

Along those lines, what about the non-sexual parts of your relationship? Are you getting your needs and desires met? Does this pattern extend into those realms, too? If he’s open to talking with you and finding ways to support your relationship, great! That’s a good starting point for working through how things are for your sexual connection. But if he’s not open to that in other arenas, that’s probably a good reason to reconsider whether being “sexual soul mates” is enough of a foundation for a relationship.

Assuming that you two are both willing to work on this together, there are a few directions that you could take things.

One of the challenges that can arise when someone explores some of their sexual desires is that it can cause a disconnection from their partner, especially if they go through a phase of wanting to focus on a particular set of fantasies to the exclusion of other ways of being sexual. I’ve seen people fall into those patterns when exploring many different sexual practices, although it seems to be especially likely when rougher sex is on the menu. I’m not aware of any research on the topic, but my sense is that for some people, the heightened intensity of the interaction can make it easy to get lost in the fantasy and hard to stay present and focused on the real life person they’re with. So finding ways to connect in other ways, such as sweet text messages or more romantic sex can be a big help.

You might want to take a vacation from the rougher sex for a while, at least until you can reconnect in other ways. Being able to ask for the types of connection that work for you can be a big help. I like the book The Five Love Languages for that. The author describes five basic ways of giving and receiving love and care (words of affirmation, quality time, gifts, acts of service, and physical touch). He also talks about how we tend to have our preferred method and that we often get into conflict because we’re using different languages, not because we don’t care for our partners. It’s a good read, although I personally don’t care for his biblical approach and had to filter that out. You can get the basic idea on this page of his website without getting into his particular religious perspective, if that works better for you.

It could also be worth talking with your boyfriend about why he wants to have rough sex. For that matter, you might also get a lot out of exploring what your motivations are, too. There are many different reasons people enjoy any type of sex and having a clear understanding of what yours and his are could be really helpful for both of you. If you’re clear about what you want to get out of it, you’ll be much more likely to be able to create the connection that you desire. If you go that route, I strongly suggest not having that conversation during or after sex. Set some time aside for it when you’re both feeling relaxed and ready.

Finally, if none of that works for you and things don’t change, or if he’s not open to talking about it, that may be a sign that things really aren’t going to change. Take a good look at the situation and listen to your feelings. (It sounds like you’ve already been doing that.) I think that whether your boyfriend is a sex addict is less important than whether he’s able and willing to sit down with you and talk about your relationship, and whether the two of you are able to engage in the give-and-take that all successful relationships need.

(Remember, if you have questions for Dr. Glickman, send them to TrèsSugar and we'll pass them along!)

Church of England Reaches Out to Those "Living in Sin"

TresSugar — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:00:00 -0700

Accepting that modern couples may be turned off by traditionally rigid morals, the Church of England is making an effort to welcome families who have had children out of wedlock.

Today, the Church unveiled a new "hatch and match" service that offers a two-for-one wedding and baptism ceremony. Now couples can get married and have their children baptized all in one day!

But not everyone is happy by the Church's effort to stay relevant. Some argue that it condones having children before marriage, while another member of the faith said: "It's a shame that what should be a bride's day now stands to be hijacked by screaming kids."

The Church hopes the new offering will atone for the tradition of shunning unmarried mothers by welcoming them back into the Church without judgment. Now let's just see if the women (and their partners and children) will take the offer.

Source: Flickr User Cornell University Library