Kickin’ It

{Wearing: High waisted retro-inspired bikini: The Orchid Boutique. Shoes: Vintage Jeffrey Campbell via Bib Tuck. Glasses: c/o Woodzee Claudia Pear Wood White Dip. Accessories: The Shop at The Standard Spa Miami Beach. Photographed by Erin Newberg at The Standard Spa Miami Beach.}

Is it just me or is Mercury in permanent retrograde? I know that voodoo ended on June 11 and isn’t supposed to start back up again until September 17, but that’s all allegedly because I’ve got a retrograde monkey, who is not only on my back, he’s sitting on my head covering my eyes and ears and basically flinging shit at me from all angles, still. Between Verizon charging me for not returning a phone they said I didn’t have to to a damn Sunpass that keeps getting jacked out of my car, to employment, unemployment, back to employment, flat tires, a busted ac smack in the middle of summer, Bal Harbour’s obsession with red light ticket cameras, 26,562 unread e-mails in my inbox, blah, blah, blah—you get the bigger picture.

As much as I’d like to climb back into bed, throw the covers over my head and hide (which I’m willing to admit I did for more than a few days (see Snapchat for frequent hideouts in the internest)), I’ve decided to instead throw on my biggest pair of heels and kick back at the shit storm that’s serving it to me. It’s not pretty, but it’s gotta be done. In the summer. In this heat. Lord, give me strength and some ass-kickin’ platforms.

Speaking of heels, I threw on these Jeffrey Campbell bad boys, which clock in over 6-inches tall, for this little shoot at the Standard Spa in Miami Beach with my soul sista Erin Newberg. While wearing them I was asked by a guy if I “could walk in those things.” My reply: ‘Honey, I’m 5’1. I was born with heels on.’ “So do it,” he dared me, “with no bent knees.” Challenge accepted and executed. With a good pair of heels and a sense of determination, a girl can tackle the world.

Remember that, Mercury. Retrograde, renegade or otherwise.