Patterned Kneesocks: Barbie

I love pumpkin spice lattes and boots as much as the next person, but for me fall is all about my anniversary of moving to New York City and the beginning of my life without cable television, or any television at all. And look, I'm still alive to tell the story!

Four years ago this October, I moved to the Upper East Side of Manhattan with one of my college friends. We both got jobs at the same time, achieving a goal we both had to move to NYC after graduation. Not surprisingly, our salaries were entry level, making it hard to survive financially in the city. So, I was faced with choosing between my two loves: food or the Kardashians.

I mean, I seriously should be the 6th sister, my name does start with a "K"
Photo from vibe.com

I chose food. Our first year in New York we had an old boxy TV but no cable. Then, we moved downtown and never plugged the TV back in (gotta love tiny NYC apartments). I remember in the beginning when I would mention that I did not have cable or a TV, people would look at me like I was a freak of nature. But in the past few weeks I've heard a few people say they do not have TVs and no one else in the conversation seems to think it's strange. Also, some of my friends have cancelled their cable subscription. Finally, I'm fitting in!

To be fair, I might be a cord cutter, but I still watch TV. Here's why and how I've survived these past 4 years:

1. I didn't grow up really watching TV. Not because my parents didn't let me, but because in our first house the TV was in the basement and I was afraid to go down there. I'm fairly certain that is where it all started. Once we moved, I had already discovered how much I loved playing with Barbies and using my imagination, so TV seemed boring. I then became a competitive swimmer in middle school and swam all the way through college which meant I had swim practice every day during prime time viewing hours. All of my friends were swimmers, so they missed out on TV as well, causing me to think it was normal to not watch TV.

2. The CW put all of their shows online, and since the only show I ever fell in love with was 'Gossip Girl' I really had no reason to pay for cable. Now that Chuck and Blair ended up together and all is right in the world, I can move on with my life.

For this photo and more C & B click here

3. My parents live in Philadelphia, only about 2 hours away and barely use their DVR so I just load up all of the shows I want to watch and go home once a month to binge view.

4. Netflix... the perfect way to binge watch anything that you know will suit your interest. House of Cards has currently distracted me from all of my schoolwork. I've been telling myself it is giving me inspiration for my thesis on political communications strategies, but we all know that's a lie.

Find out why you'll love it as much as me

5. Shady websites where you can stream episodes of Mad Men. I really could only do this my first 2 years in Manhattan, now I have to use #3 because I don't have the patience or effort to find and load these sites.

6. The gym... I legitimately cannot workout on a machine without a TV because I get so bored. I'd like to thank E! for replaying the Kardashians all the time so I can keep up with my favorite all-American family.

Over a year ago I started babysitting for a family that my cousins put me in touch with. The kids were great, and I thought it would be awesome to be able to watch their TV after the kids went to bed. As it turns out, the TV wasn't that great. First, TVs have become a lot more complicated in the past 4 years and I have a hard time finding the shows on DVR or On Demand and finagling all the remotes. Try explaining to a 3 and 5 year old that you "don't know" how to use the TV. They look at me like I'm an alien or lying to them. Then, I discovered I really have no interest in surfing channels or just watching TV to pass the time. Good thing I have that thesis to work on!

I still get comments from people who ask how I survive without cable, but I'm more concerned as to how I would survive without food. I'm still a true believer that TV rots your brain, and even if I won the lottery next week, I'm not sure I would get cable. It's just something I've learned to live without.

I had an unhealthy obsession with Barbie as a child. To the point I continued to play with Barbies long after my friends had stopped, and I would hide my Barbies when my friends would come over so they wouldn’t know.

There are a few reasons I think I was possessed by the hot pink wearing blonde. First, I had a wild imagination as a kid. I never was interested in TV, but with Barbies I could create my own stories for their lives and entertain myself for hours. Secondly, my best friend since pre-school, Kari, also had this addiction so I had someone fueling the fire. Third, I loved and still love the color pink. Fourth, I could never get bored! Barbie always had a new car or a new job, the story kept changing. And lastly, my mom had built me a house for Barbie and a school for Barbie. There was just no reason to stop.

Eventually, I did get bored with Barbie. Probably around middle school. But, when you love something you never truly let it go. My mother continued to buy me collectible Barbies, which I keep in the box. I always was interested in what Barbies my younger cousin had, and then digital marketing came around, allowing me to keep up with Barbie’s life (in an age appropriate manner) all over again.

November 2012 Birthday Gift from mom: Election Barbie with brown hair and green eyes, just like yours truly

Barbie and Ken got back together in a huge Valentine’s Day campaign in 2011. Naturally, my mom bought me the limited edition dolls. This was when I first discovered Barbie was back, and in my opinion, better than ever.

Photo from make. see. do. eat. blog

Fast forward to today when I have a more collectible Barbies and the Barbie Twitter handle is the only non-human on my “pals” Twitter list composed of my friends. Yes, that is correct. Her tweets are just that great.

The genius behind Barbie’s online success is that it’s not pushing a product, it’s bringing to life a person or perhaps even a celebrity, which pulls fans in. She tells you about her dates with Ken, selling her dream house, shopping with her sisters and asks for help deciding which outfits to wear. Mattel didn’t choose to promote products or reasons to buy the dolls, they chose to make a human connection with their consumers.

I could rave about Barbie’s digital marketing strategy forever. But instead, I’ll show you: