Voices: Lifestyle Recipe 2005
The last week of any given year has got to be the most desperately uninspiring week on the calendar. No one schedules anything significant to intentionally occur in the midst of holiday purgatory. Almost everything we're given to read, hear and watch is a summary of what's been. Frankly, it bores me.
Goodbye 2004 and good riddance: I've been ready for 2005 since Election Day.
To celebrate this blank slate and fresh start, I'd like to raise my champagne glass in a toast to all that's yet to come. Here are a few of the emerging lifestyle trends that have recently risen to surface of my crystal ball.
Dinner Parties - Home entertaining is so old school it's retro cool. Young hipster singles and couples can go all out when the invites are exclusive to six or eight random friends and acquaintances. The guest list is as important as the menu -- cocktails (Pomegranate Cosmo anyone?) and elaborate hors d'oeuvres followed by an almost shockingly simple main course and decadent dessert. Close the evening with a series of intimate, but innocent games or your favorite obscure entertainment.
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Downtown Living - Locally and in cities across the country that are on a similar path as Scranton, it's time to stop talking about moving downtown it and actually start doing it. The shops and restaurants have been opening at a rapid pace and building owners have been upgrading and converting spaces into apartments in good faith. In 2005, we will see the hip ones who asked for it, carry the momentum forward and follow through.
Ethnic Everything - Perhaps in response to the globalization ideology bound and determined to turn the rest of the world into a carbon copy of the United States, the fashionable here in America will respond by celebrating the international flavors of the world in everything from food and fabrics to design and music.
Extreme Weather - OK this one is a long shot, but not exactly unlikely. As certain powers that be continue to deny the existence of global warming, proof of its danger will continue to hit people around the world over the head.
Freak Folk - Heard of Devendra Banhar yet? If not, you will. The 23-year-old musician is like the spiritual leader of this ecstatic, yet slightly absurd movement that's energizing entire sections of New York City and young people across the country. Music critics are eating out of his hand and entertainments journalists are writing about him and his peers like everyone else has ceased to exist. Check out younggodrecords.com to hear music samples for more information.
Cate Blanchett - A random choice perhaps, but the actress did have a kick-ass year. Everyone's already talking about her performance as Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator, but she won't really be able to reap the rewards until 2005.
Homemade - Arts and crafts aren't just for Martha Stewart anymore, though the fun thing is, you don't even have to make the stuff yourself. Thousands of artisans are selling cool and quirky creations -- accessories in particular -- on their own Web sites or those that sell the products of multiple artists. Clothing designers (www.beqiclothing.com, www.modemerr.com) are posting prototypes of their unique and relatively inexpensive creations and then make requested garments to order. Look out -- DIY is going mainstream.
Natural Remedies - People are pissed at the pharmaceutical companies for so many reasons now that change is inevitable. To fight back, we'll try to punish the abusive entities any we can. Can that prescription possibly be replaced with a cheaper, earth-produced alternative? Then it will be. Say farewell to the anti-depressant fad.
Wal-Mart Backlash - The superstore's reign is over. So many people have begun to complain about the labor practices and community closeouts of the world's largest company that it's going to have an effect. All but the diehards will soon think twice about where they want their dollar to be counted.
Whole Grains - The low-carb fad may be waning, but I'm guessing bleached, processed wheat products have suffered a potentially irreversible blow. Nutritionists have long urged us to stop consuming them - it's time obesity-stricken America to answer the call. Tip: Try Quinoa if you haven't already. It's a bit odd, but the Aztec supergrain is all the rage for a reason.
-- alicia grega-pikul, 30 december 2004
Send email to: apikul@timesshamrock.com.
