I've gotten a few emails from book readers asking where they can see JabeBabe: A Heightened Life, the fantastic film about a 6'2" woman that I gush about in the book.

The fabulous Janet Merewether 6'0", the Aussie filmmaker responsible for the film, just let me know that her film is finally available for order worldwide. It's a bit steep internationally ($44), but that's still less than movie night popcorn for three...

 Or, you can always catch it digitally through Amazon.com, here.

My New Year's resolution is to help tall ladies worldwide find the clothes that make them feel good. Affordably. I don't need to tell you that this can be a tall order--which is why Im thrilled to tell you that I'm partnering with the best tall clothing store in the universe, Long Tall Sally.

I've never been much of a clothes horse. But Long Tall Sally just came to America, and since receiving my first box of clothes last week, it's become clear that my lack of fashionista status was only because I didnt have any. I immediately made my roommate do a photoshoot of my favorites:

I'm madly in love with this dress. I may never take it off long enough to wear anything else. Its one of those comfortable, cant-go-wrong dresses: it works with a cardigan for meetings, fancy shoes for parties, and, um, wine stains (on New Years they miraculously blended). Genius.

Though Long Tall Sally refers to this as the Sophy Feather Shrug, it will forever be my Ploof (sometimes pronounced, floof). It dresses up anything. Jeans, formal dress, whatever. If you only have one formal accessory, make it this. 

I'm wearing this outfit as I type. About the green corduroys: I was worried about ordering pants online, given that I can be anywhere from a size 4 (if I dont breathe) to a 12 (if lasagna has been around recently). Also, I like to touch clothes before I by them. But the whole process, I have to say, was a lot more fun than store changing rooms, which usually turn into a mass grave of too-short pants and tears. I ordered piles of clothes in all sizes, tried 'em on, and sent back the third that didnt fit (gratis!), done. And the whole process took an hour total.

Link: www.longtallsally.com

My facial expression here is so weird here that I wouldnt want it to overshadow the tunic. Which is cute.

Lets face it: us tall folk have been experiencing a centuries-long epidemic of freezing wrists. It frankly never occurred to me that faux-fur was an option, because it seems to be the domain of the squat. No more: It's so cozy!

Mabel cannot be found in the Long Tall Sally catalog. She is, however, equally smitten.

Questions? Comments? Clothing fantasies? Feel free to email at arianne[at]ariannecohen.com.

I always feel like Im not doing much--and then I visit the newsstand and note that I'm all over it. This month includes a cover story in Popular Science that I worked on for a year, after having my chemical exposure levels tested last year (spoiler alert: Im full of chemicals, and so are you), a feature in Womans Day on how to get ready for the holidays Ari-style, the story of my trip to Istanbul in Budget Travel (spoiler alert: it was fun), and a cover story in New York Magazine on the Sex Diaries. Enjoy!

The Tall Book was supposed to be about tall folks. It really was. And it is indeed a book about tall life and tall culture and everything you ever need to know to be, raise or love a healthy, happy tall person.

But it's also a book about success. Why? Height is easily quantifiable--unlike, say, ethnicity, religion, parenting or your feelings (I believe they're calling it "self-esteem" these days).
Which means that statistically, it's easy to track why tall people succeed in some areas (work) and fail in others (gymnastics, dating while tall and female). You can basically look at tall statistics, and clearly see what behaviors correlate with success and failure. There's a lot that can be learned from watching tall folk--so much so that I think there should be a new university field: Tall Studies.

In the meantime, Penelope Trunk over at The Brazen Careerist just put up a great post about why tall folks succeed in the workplace, and what anyone can learn from it:

http://blog.penelopetrunk.com/2009/06/16/how-to-be-a-tall-person-at-work/

I attended a high school swimming reunion today, an all-day orgy of reminiscing and photosnapping with 400 guests. All was going swimmingly until a lovely friend pointed a camera at me and said, "Can you squat down or something?"

For the record: Nope.

I'm tall, and your photographs might indicate as much. Ask me again and I'll stand on my tip toes.

However, there were a few photographs in which I wanted to meld in--mainly in the group shots with former teammates, where sticking out would be attention-grabbing and obnoxious--and for this, there are a few good tricks:

Step Back. Pose with everyone else. Then take a giant step backward, away from the camera, so that you're standing behind them. In the photograph, it'll look like you're standing in line with everyone else, and at approximately the same height.

Also, stand up straight. Super straight. It sounds counter-intuitive, but nothing looks taller than a slouching tall person.

Lastly, when in photos with petite types, place their bodies partially in front of yours, to avoid Double  Wide syndrome--no need to appear double the girth of everyone else in the photo, even if that's the case due to your lovely tall-person waist.

What are the products that you really wish were sized differently? (I know I know, airplane seats. Besides airplane seats people.) Is there something that you just feel isn't made for tall people? This can be anything--the seating at Starbucks. The elliptical trainer at your gym. Kitchen appliances that don't fit longer fingers. The seating on your city's public transportation.

We're making a list of companies to contact over at the Tall Activisim page, so please email in your ideas.

Shoot an email to arianne@ariannecohen.com, with the Subject Line "Tall Products," and we'll make a little list here.

Sometimes it's awkward being tall. Such as when it comes time to hug/kiss/otherwise-greet folks that are much smaller. This is particularly true when you're a tall woman (me!) hugging a much shorter man, and you fear smothering them in your cleavage.

I learned a secret while researching the book: Do it first. If you throw your arms out for a hug, you're deciding that there's going to be a hug, and which way the arms are going to go. If it's someone you don't want to hug (such as the opposite gender), clasp your hands behind your back and lean in for a cheek kiss. If you want to shake hands, throw your hand out for a shake. In short: Just do it, and do it first.

This strategy was a breakthrough for me. I wish someone had told me twenty years ago. Would've saved me some incredible awkwardness, like the time I was leaning in to cheek-peck my much-shorter New York Magazine editor goodbye, and he suddenly turned and I kissed him on the mouth. 

In doing The Tall Book, I came up with a theory on why tall folks don't always know what fashions flatter them. There are indeed a few stylists out there who specialize in dressing tall, normally-proportioned bodies. One of the ongoing sagas of this project was trying to connect with some.

Because fashion people are HARDER TO GET AHOLD OF THAN CELEBRITIES. I spent three months leaving messages for one such stylist. I left messages on her personal answering machine, with her assistant, with her managing company, with her two agents, and at her office. She thought the book was a great idea! She scheduled a phone interview! She canceled, she rescheduled, she canceled. Repeat. The book went to press, fashion-free. This is why tall people dont know what to wear.