"Hi Dolly, hello, horsey, how's my girl?" Julie Lynn Cialini coos to a horse she has only just met. We're walking along Michigan Avenue in Chicago, and she charged right up and kissed the carriage-pulling nag on the nose while Dolly's driver shivered with cold -- or perhaps envy. Miss February is de
...finitely a soft touch when it comes to animals. When modeling jobs take her away from her Rochester, New York home - and her five cats - she takes on surrogate pets. In Milan she supplied food every day for a homeless pooch; in Miami Beach she adopted a cat. "I get upset when I'm in Miami because there are so many strays," she says. "Someday, when my career takes off, I want to try to make things better for animals." Miss February loves another canine species - the underdog. Her own life has been a triumph over tough times. Her parents divorced when she was nine, and Julie and her two sisters were raised by their mother. "Mom did a great job, but she had to work hard. She took out a second mortgage on the house just to raise us," she recalls. School was no joy, either. "My high school was clannish," Julie says. "Either you were somebody or you were nobody. It brought me down, because I was never part of the crowd." Ah, but living well - and looking good - are the best revenge. "I started filling out after high school," she says. "I was so skinny back then." Last year, when she went to her five-year reunion, "I got all decked out, looked just about the best I could and all eyes were on me." The recognition was gratifying. "I like to be the center of attention," she admits. "That's why I love modeling so much. It makes me feel good about myself." These days Julie has a reason to feel good. The jobs are coming fast and furious. And now there's the pictorial before you. "I'm really excited about being Miss February," she says. "I hope I can be everybody's Valentine Day present." Great, Julie - just skip the wrapping.
