Last year, an acquaintance of mine quit his job to backpack across Asia.  He kept a journal of his experiences, and when he got home, he sent it to a friend in publishing.  In January, I’ll be attending his book release party.  All he wanted was to take a break from politics and help some people by volunteering in their communities, and somewhere along the way, he discovered his passion and his calling.

Did I mention he’s 42?  It’s never too late to discover what you are really passionate about doing.

1) The majority of Americans believe that a woman should have their first child at 25.  Whoops?  After all, raising a baby while making $29k per year and working a 60+ hour week would have been ideal.

Maybe we could stop asking the American public to participate in inane surveys and let individual women decide at what age they want to have a baby?  Just a thought.  (Also, don’t miss the article’s revelations about how demographics shape opinion on the matter.)

2) Sometimes, I see something that reminds me that there are people in this world who have vast sums of wealth and absolutely zero sense.  In other words, to buy this, you need more money than brains.

3) Did you go shopping for Black Friday?  The WSJ has the straight skinny on why many of your “good deals” are really a scam.  Hint: The product was made to be profitable at the allegedly reduced price.

4) I have a great navy and white striped dress, but the long sleeves limit how much wear it gets.  This T by Alexander Wang dress with stripes of different widths is perfect for resort wear, the spring and the summer.  Need something under-$100?  This Michael Kors dress is a bit unique, but still a great basic.

5) Ever hear about the lady who spilled McDonald’s coffee on her lap and became a millionaire?  Learn the truth about the lawsuit that spawned a thousand jokes, confirming that you cannot trust a blurb on the nightly news to provide the whole story.

6) If your holiday soirees are more on the casual side of cocktail, Madewell has some really adorable dresses right now.  This Twinklelight Shiftdress really caught my eye.  I also like this more relaxed Night Lace Sheath dress.  And this Silk Cinema Dress could be worn to a party or to work depending on the shoes and accessories.  (Madewell is running a sale with code FEAST25 for 25%-off.)

7) District Sparkle has a helpful tutorial on how to stack bracelets that will help you build an “arm party” like a pro.

8) Love Diane von Furstenberg’s designs?  The Outnet has a large collection of DvF pieces on sale right now.  This navy boucle coat is unbelievably chic, and this encrusted handbag is totally clutch (oh, puns).  But my favorite piece in the collection is this pumpkin orange Bentley dress for just $128 with sizes xs to l still available.

9) This guy live-tweeted his neighbors break-up.  It’s invasive and disrespectful, and totally hilarious.

10) In other sale news, Club Monaco has 30%-off already reduced merchandise (code THANKS30).  The sale allowed me to grab the Roxanne sweater in a pale pink and grey color block, and this striped Merino sweater with leather patches on the elbows, for a song.

11) Prepare to be amazed by the stick-on speaker that allows you to silence ambient noise entering your home from the outside.  You can also customize it to filter out car horns and sirens, but allow birds chirping and light breezes.  I need this to be for sale soon, as does every urban-dweller in America.

12) My obsession with skinny rings continues, but I’m quickly running out of finger space.  The solution: midi-rings.  Why let all the surface area above the second knuckle go to waste?

I adore this layered chevron ring from Arme De L’Amour, and this Jules Smith ring that mixes silver and gold to create a truly versatile piece.  In the under-$25 category, I found this Gorjana wave ring and this $6 hammered rose gold band from Nordstrom.  Can’t pick just one?  Bauble Bar allows you to select two choices for $34.

13) Lastly, a friend gave me this Cilantro-Orange scented room diffuser as a hostess gift.  My apartment has never smelled better.  It has just the right mix of clean citrus and herbal notes.