I arrived in Juneau, Alaska about 17 hours after I left the Boston area. I must confess that I did expect most people to be baseball hat and flannel wearing men with pickup trucks and maybe that’s not far off though this is also Subaru country. But, city folk need to admit that often times we associate a simple life with simple minds. There are plenty of smart, educated thinkers that choose to live in a place where a simple life is possible, where one’s health, family, and lifestyle trump work or bigger picture goals.

Alaska is a place where many make a home for themselves because it allows for a simple, relatively safe life. True, some may come here because they are running away from something, and others may just end up here for work, but, those that choose to make this home usually do so because it’s a winter wonderland of sorts that enables one to take advantage of Mother Nature and outdoor sports year-round.

People around here hike in the winter, ski both downhill and cross country, and snowshoe, among other things. There are many more miles of hiking trails than there are roads in Juneau. There’s also a decent art scene and good government jobs, with pensions and possibly even no FICA. Plus there’s the annual payment one gets for living here, which was reportedly about $1500 last year. Oh, and there’s the cheap wild Alaskan salmon.

For most that’s not enough to leave the Lower 48, but there’s something alluring about Alaska. There’s a kind of peace here that can be found in the mountains all around you, the snow covered trees, the drive-thru coffee shacks, the glacier. I never thought I’d find myself saying this, but I’d like to come back to Alaska in the summer and explore more – walk some trails at the glacier, go on a fishing trip, take a helo (helicopter) to a dog sledding ride, go to Ketchikan, Sitka, and Anchorage, and maybe even leave the Southeast.

For now, here’s a list of observations from a day in Juneau.

1. The must have gear here includes: a rain jacket and XtraTuf Boots. Monday morning I was in Rainbow, the local health food grocery store, and I asked an employee “what are those boots called again?” To which she responded, “you’re new to Juneau, eh?” Yup. “They’re called XtraTuf. They’re really warm and comfortable, though Bogs are warmer but Tuffboots have better traction.” Nuff said.

2. People are proud to live in Alaska. Overall it seems to be a choice but for those who landed here for work. Most locals are welcoming and it seems easier to meet people here than in a bigger city, but be careful of putting down their town.

3. People seem to talk about their retirement funds, even when they are only about 30. Maybe that’s because many have government jobs and know it’s an option to retire earlier than most Americans. Maybe it’s also because unlike us city folk, they know how to relax.

4. People seem concerned not only with their own wellbeing but seem proud to live in a state that’s financially in the black and where the environment is important. Apparently all electricity in Juneau is sourced from hydro power from dams but the power often goes out. People seem so used to power outages that they know where the candles and flashlights are and are rarely phased, even if it’s due to an avalanche warning.

5. Most people seem trusting and friendly. It’s a bit bizarre at first after a year in Boston and seven in NYC, but Juneau residents seem quite genuine. I was at the post office and a woman with a baby in her sling offered me a stamp after the machine failed to work for me. I was here not even two days and my friend’s friends lent me their car and any gear I needed to borrow. People see folks they know in the grocery stores and around town. Some don’t always lock their doors. It’s nice to see there are places like this but it’s not averse to crime, no town or city is. It happens everywhere and proof of that is the Department of Corrections office I passed today, and the hobos and addicts that hang down on Franklin near the soup kitchen.

6. One thing Juneau residents have in common is a near obsession with Alaska Airlines miles. Juneau is part of what is referred to as Southeast Alaska, or as my Barrow-based cousin said, the rainforest. The point is, if one lives in Anchorage, there are a number of airlines that fly to the lower 48 and outside of the U.S. But, in the Southeast region, which includes Juneau, Ketchikan, Petersburg, Sitka, and a few other spots, which might be stops on a flight dubbed the “Milk Run,” one is dependent on AA –Alaska Airlines. So deep is this dependency on miles to make those much needed occasional escapes that some often count how many minutes it takes to get their luggage at baggage claim because AA will give you 2500 miles if you have to wait more than 20 minutes.

Sure, Juneau is isolated and small at just 31,000-strong but it has character. There’s a warm vibe from many I’ve met that explains to me why some would feel a suburb of 80,000 is an undesirable place to live. Suburbia is just a temporary respite from the everyday chaos that is the conventional American existence. It’s only when forced outside thickly settled areas that one can truly relax, if they let themselves. Then again I’m just a woman on holiday.

Frustrated to near tears the other night I rang Verizon Wireless and asked if I could upgrade three weeks early. The nice southern belle on the phone got manager approval to do so and recommended, after I asked about size, the 16GB iPhone. I was thinking even if it wasn’t big enough, I’d have a lot of music stored not locally, but on the cloud. The next day I had buyer’s remorse. I’m American, I want more. I’m a Babson student, I want to consume more data!

The next day I went to the Verizon Wireless store hoping that delivering an unopened Fedex box would result in them waiving the “restocking” fee. No such luck. I asked when the 32GB would ship. In about two weeks he said. I’m leaving in one week for a two-week holiday. “What about the 64GB,” chimes mom. “Any day now.” OK, I’ll do that. He starts processing. Then he asks me why I want so much space. “Apart from being American,” I ask. Well, am I just going to put my music library on the mysterious Cloud? Is it unlimited because we all know Apple and Amazon are getting us hooked on Web-based storage only to charge us later?

No, he responds, they give you 5GB now and after that you are charged a fee. Well, I respond, I have 15GB in my iTunes library so ask me again why I want 64GB! But that’s not the real reason. Right now our phones are 1) a phone, 2) an MP3 player 3) a camera/videocamera, 4) a social networking device, and 5) an email tool. We also use our smartphones to 6) shop, 7) pay bills, and yes 8 ) online date, perhaps even while in the bathroom at work. Sexy I know but it’s true. If we do all of that with one device, it’s not a smartphone, it’s a mini computer. And that’s just in 2011. What about 2012? 2013? 2014? By then our phone will be our 9) WALLET too.

So, Mr. Verizon, why do I want more space? Because I want excess capacity because I’ve had no idea what tools I’ll be using on Monday, let alone 18 months from now. But when those tools surface I don’t want to have to buy more space to use them.

Publisher Taschen is hosting Spanish Film Director Pedro Almodovar on Monday November 14 for a book signing. The man behind Women on the Verge and Volver has a new book out, The Pedro Almodovar Archives, complete with more than 600 images and a film strip from Volver.

©Stephane Kossmann

Paper Magazine Publisher and Editor in Chief Kim Hastreiter will host a Q&A with Almodovar on Monday from 7-8 p.m. To RSVP for the event at the Taschen store in SoHo (107 Greene St.), email store-ny@taschen.com

Click here for more info.

The UK’s Matthew Newman has created a product for those paranoid folks like myself that check their oven and door multiple times a day to make sure the former is off and the latter is locked. Newman’s company, ELS, developed a product called Firetext, which with the help of a Lithium battery and a GSM module, can text users when their smoke detector goes off.

The Britain-based company sells the product for GBP90. The alarm will text up to four mobile numbers and the battery will keep it going for two to four years during average use, with a minimum number of “continuous activations” around 36.

The company has already joined forces with a local UK fire square and the Alzheimer’s Society to test the product.

Click here for more information.

When we hear a song with lyrics that remind us of the late Amy Winehouse and pop’s it girl Adele we can’t help but compare. Even more, when said singer, in this case Paloma Faith, has hair that reminds one of Tori Amos, and sometimes embodies Lily Allen’s street style, we tend to compare even more. But one can’t really compare Ms. Faith to anyone. She seems a hodgepodge of many current personalities and yet she’s got a vibe all her own, with a hint of retro.

The bottom line, though, is that music for the lay person is about auditory aesthetics and she does the trick. My guess is she will top the charts if not this year, early next. Otherwise you wouldn’t see it on Trendcetera.

And one more track. Her debut album resulted in five singles. At this rate, she’ll be competing with Gaga and Nicki Minaj for crazy costumes next year. To think we were shocked by Bjork’s swan outfit…

Click here for more information on Paloma Faith

By the time I got to NYC in 2004, Limelight, the subject of a new movie from Magnolia Pictures, had already been shut down. The new inhabitant of the former church turned nightclub space was Avalon. After volunteering for GLAAD, I met one of my best friends, my best friend in NYC. We bonded over a newfound love of swag. He introduced me to Avalon, Sunday nights to be specific. He was living in Murray Hill and I about 13 blocks south on the border of Gramercy. It was a perfect walk over to Avalon on Sixth Avenue, and its location explains partially why it drew such a crowd when Limelight was still alive and kicking. 

Picture courtesy of Magnolia Films

The location on the edge of the West Village, smack in the middle of Chelsea and just a few blocks from the infamous Chelsea Hotel on West 23rd made for the perfect meeting spot for an eclectic mix of people. Before the local politicans starting fighting the “drug wars” and sterilizing Manhattan, Limelight was the place to be. Even though Avalon was fun and engaging, it was definitely more sane. Still clubbing was originally not meant solely to get smashed, but to dance and find a mate, for the night, if nothing more, though I was nearly invisible on Sunday nights for a perfectly logical reason–I am a woman. Still it wasn’t half bad watching a room full of chiseled Chelsea boys collectively remove their shirts halfway into the evening, around 1 a.m., and bop around to House music.  

Alas Avalon too is a thing of the past. The edifice and its changing inhabitants are a sign of the times–it’s now home to an upscale mall. From drugs to fashion, we always spend it somewhere. It’s just not the same though is it a bit safer. Though we long for the mom and pop stores, a bit more of the grunge, we too must admit that with sterilization came a safer city. To indulge in a bit of nostalgia, check out the trailer.
 

Limelight will be released on September 23. Click here to find a theater near you.

Adapted from the book I don’t Know How She Does It by Allison Pearson, the movie by the same name is the latest film starring Sex and the City Star Sarah Jessica Parker. It’s all about the balance working parents strive for in modern society. The mother who works outside the home too, as I like to say, has hard choices. She is still expected to be there for her kids, while working a full-time job, and help around the house, while working men can usually get by washing a few dishes and making it to one soccer game a week.

Even those with help usually still do more than the men. Perhaps the most fitting part of the trailer is when she says that when they can’t sleep at night, moms make lists. I don’t have kids and I make lists all the time; I have a grocery list, a homework list, a work to-do list, a travel wishlist, and a goals wishlist, short-term and long-term. So this creates a common issue moms and future moms can relate to–anyone really, with too much to do.

Some say SJP can only swing romantic comedies or possibly even a dramedy, so long as it’s based in New York City. No matter your opinion of SJP’s talent or lack thereof, the important part of the movie is that SJP will help box office sales for a movie whose message is a common issue-how do working moms juggle it all?

According to IMDB, it will be released September 16.

Hospitality giant Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide revealed a”digital extension” to their Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) loyalty program by employing location-based social networking program foursquare. Guests can earn Starpoints^(R) and Free Resort Night Awards for foursquare activity at Starwood hotels and resorts in almost 100 nations by linking their SPG and foursquare accounts here.

Now through the end of July, members can earn a bonus 250 Starpoints when they confirm a reservation on foursquare. In addition, a promotion throughout May will entitle one winner to a Free Resort Night Award. Check-ins via the social media application will also serve as an entry into the company’s grand prize giveaway, a five-night resort getaway plus airfare. Additional bonus opportunities will be revealed for August.

Click here for more details on the program

Most people do not need another reason to shop and Trendcetera advocates smart shopping over impulse buys. That said, we all fall prey to the occasional urge for a shopping binge and hopefully those are reasonable spending sprees. Spring fever is here and Target is luring us once again, this time with a collection from resort lifestyle brand Calypso St. Barth, a unit of private equity firm Solera Capital. Here are our picks from the collection. 

This necklace comes in the sea colored range and a combination of red and coral colors. Both would spice up a classic pairing of jeans, a crisp white oxford, and wedges or pumps.

Among the collection categories are dresses, swimwear, cover-ups, scarves, beaded jewelry for women, and dresses, tunics, maxi skirts and rompers for young girls and toddlers. Among the adorable options for girls is the bathing suit featured below.

This ottoman is made of a synthetic material and comes in silver and gold. It’s an irresistible option that would work anywhere from a dorm room to a boho chic living room.

Similarly, this option would accommodate a girls’ luncheon at home, with tea and scones, or cake and port.

The glasses and plates within the collection are also a great budget option for starter apartments or to use as BBQ dishes. The same could be true of the colorful cups and the candle votives pictured below, which would add ambiance and style to the standard summer backyard party.

Happy shopping, but remember, shop for what you need, not what you want. Retail therapy may provide instant gratification, but savings offer lasting peace of mind.