The real world

I hope everyone had a relaxing and refreshing break!  For those that are students, you are still enjoying your break.  Me, I gotta go back to my internship.  For whatever reason Austin Electric, Time Warner Cable or my landlord will not accept "But it's winter break!" for an excuse for truant payments.  Scrooges.

Anyway, now that my cord and I have been reunited, here are a few pictures.  Really, only a few.  I'm not the taking-pictures-all-the-time kinda lady.  I usually don't remember to bring my camera anywhere.  And when I do remember, I forget I have it.  Or if I have it and I remember then I don't have any batteries.  Or if I do have it, remember it, and it has batteries, I just don't take any damn pictures.

This is Ed and I before heading to a family gathering.  My mom got me the floral blouse and striped cardigan and when I opened it I said "This would look great together!"  My mother and Ed looked at me like I was crazy and Ed said "But you can't mix patterns..."  Oh contraire, good sir.

My mom also got Ed that shirt.  And yes, he always looks that annoyed in front of a camera.  You should see his driver's license picture, good lord.

The next day we went to Ann Arbor to visit my bestest bud Carrie.  She is quite stylish and I've always been envious of her hair.

Carrie knows how to work a good pair of boots.  If there's anyone I know who can so effortlessly mix function and fashion, it's this here lady.

Another outfit.  No ocassion, really, but as you can see Michigan brings out the plaid, vests, and black cord pants.

Ed noticed that I'm never so matchy-matchy.  It wasn't on purpose; I hadn't showered, my hair was kind of gross and this was the only hat I brought.

And finally, my coat!  I love this coat so much.  The only thing that I really miss about cold weather is getting to sport this everyday.  I got it at a vintage store in Traverse City, Michigan for $35.  It is 100% wool and very warm (and scratchy).  Ed actually had to TALK ME INTO buying it because I thought it was too expensive.  You know you have a keeper when he encourages you to buy affordable vintage.

Please pay no attention to the missing bottom button.

We were on our way to a party, hence the beers. 

I spent most of the rest of my days in pajamas.  I did a good job remixing what I had and I do feel bad that I didn't get a picture of what I wore on Christmas because it was cute.

How did everyone else's holiday packing work out?

The agenda

My dad sent me a text this morning saying "I haven't heard from you all week!" and I remembered that yes, I'm on vacation and I haven't been talking to anyone.

While I've been taking pictures here and there, I forgot the damn camera cord in Austin so no pictures on the blog until I get back.  Suffice to say, there has been a few days where I haven't changed out of pajamas; Scrabble like crazy; reading, movies, bowling and pizza.  Perfect holiday.

Happy and safe holidays!

Packing light

This week Ed and I are leaving the mild temperatures of central Texas and heading to southeast Michigan.  Why on earth would we do such a thing?  Well, Ed's family is there.  And he's an only child.  And its his first time living more than an hour away from his parents.  And if we don't come, his mother might implode.

Also, we miss snow!  I know, I know.  If you knew me in Michigan, you know I never stopped complaining about the snow.  But I really do miss it; it doesn't feel like Christmas (or hell, even WINTER) without a little frost on the ground.  So we're unpacking our cold-weather clothes, leaving Gus with a friend, and heading to the Great White North.

I love to travel, y'all.  I love packing, especially; mostly, planning my outfits.  I'm a packing light kinda gal.  Most of my travel adventures have included flying stand-by (what up free flights on Delta! Thanks, Dad!) and if you've ever flown stand-by, you know that you must never check your bags.  You don't know what flight you're going to get on, if at all, so its best to have your stuff with you, lest it ends up God knows where (and I'm flying Delta anyway, if you know what I'm saying...).  Thus, I'm used to packing light.  And when you travel light, its imperative that you're organized.  Ah, my specialty.

Even though we're only going for 9 days, I wanted to only take enough clothes to last me 4.  That means, I'll wear everything twice.  I made note of any "special occasion days" (like a get-together with Ed's extended family) and then made a plan for my outfits, which I'll pack.  Two dresses, two tops, two bottoms and a few accessories should do it (that's a 6 for 9, for those of you keeping score).  I'm totally comfortable wearing clothes more than one without washing them, but if push comes to shove, we can do laundry at Ed's parent's house.

What do I use to stuff it all in?  Behold, The Duffle:

I got this L. L. Bean Adventure Duffle (in navy) for my Bat Mitzvah and it is the absolute best gift I have ever received.  I have taken this sucker EVERYWHERE with me: from summer camp to Israel to Australia, this bag has seen it all.  It is very spacious and even packed to the brim it fits snugly into the overhead compartment.  For a short trip like ours I can fit both of our clothes, shoes, toiletries, accessories, winter coats, gifts AND have room left over to bring back gifts for ourselves.  Seriously, GO GET THIS BAG.  Here, I'll make it super easy for you. GO! (And then come back.)  Plus, the shoulder strap makes it easy for me to carry it like a messenger bag.

We'll each have our own backpacks for plane activities which fit under the seat and TAH DAH, all set to go.  We've packed light!

Do you have any packing light tips?

Time flies

Oh lordy, there is something about having nothing to do that makes a girl busy.  Once finals were said and done, there was quite an upswing in social events.  So I haven't been on the ole Internet in a while. 

Ok, 30 for 30 recap.  First, let me say that I had fun.  I was so much more creative than I normally am; too often I go for tried and true outfits and don't really challenge myself or push the boundaries of my closet and this was a good excuse to go for something new.  This was undoubtebly the biggest lesson I learned: I am creative and dressing can be fun, if you just put a little extra thought into it.

More lessons: its ok to not love every outfit every day; people really don't notice if you wear the same 30 things all month long; nothing freshens up an outfit like a belt or vest; and, as with most things in life, less can definitely be more.  Also, I'm not cut out to be a style blogger.  Some days this felt like a chore.  I'm still deciding what I want to do with this blog from here on out and welcome any suggestions.

The whole "no shopping" provision of the exercise was no trouble at all.  While I do enjoy thrift shopping, this time of year affords no expendable income, so I probably wouldn't have done any shopping anyway.  In fact, 5 days later, I still haven't stepped foot into Savers.

In sum, I kind of want to do a 30 for 30 all the time, I most certainly want to keep up with picture posts, though not exclusively of me doing goofy poses, and I (and my closet) am more creative than I thought.

An excellent way to start winter break.

Mission accomplished

Day 30!!

To celebrate: plaid shirt and a dress.  Plaid and a dress, yessir.

To think, just last week I was sure this dress was going to end up in the Goodwill pile, certain I'd never think of any way to wear it without it being a frumpy nothing dress and today it's in my top 5 favorites.

Tomorrow I'll recap.  Tonight, I sleep (and dream about wearing other pants! And shoes!  And cardigans!)

Titles of brochures at the gynocologist's office

• "Fibrocystic Breasts: A Non-Disease"
• "The Woman Inside"

Seriously, I couldn't make these up.

Rethinking

Tomorrow is the last day!  Really, I know I've said it before, but this really was fun.  I'll save the "what I learned" bit for tomorrow, but really, I'm sad these are the last few outfits of the challenge.

Sunday's outfit was the Finishing Final Papers outfit.  I knew it would be; those vests, man, they can only bring good things.

See how thoughtful I am?  So full of thought, I am.

I actually kind of hate what I'm wearing today.  The pants sit too low for the shirt to look right tucked in, but the shirt is weird un-tucked.  I thought I could pull it off with the purple belt, but no.  Today is a one picture kind of day.

A boring outfit leads to a boring topic.  Let's chat for a moment about the weather, shall we?  Though I just moved to Austin (5 months ago...) from Michigan, I did actually grow up in Texas.  In fact, I used to spend all summer at a camp in central Texas in like 100 degree heat.  When I became a counselor we would spend our free nights in jeans. JEANS!  I can't believe I ever did it.  Texas weather, you be crazy.  Can you see what I wore this week alone?  It was warm enough to bare my legs for at least 3 days in a row and then today? BAM. Cool enough to make even this Michigan-acclimated gal shiver.  It was a cool crisp fall day in December, folks.  Texas, get yo' facts straight!

Stay calm and carry on

When I just wrote that post, I typed "clam" instead of "calm" twice.  I think that about sums it up.

Does this outfit say "I'm finishing both of my final papers today?"  I sure hope it does.  I didn't finish them, of course, but hey, are you calling my outfit a liar?

 Yes, it was another warm day here at Uncomfortably Settled Central. (Does that work? I'm gonna go with it for a bit longer.)  My friends in Michigan have snow and I have to admit, I'm a bit jealous.  Don't get me wrong, a sunny 70 degree day is nothing to complain about.  But who am I kidding, I love to complain.  70 degrees in December is wrong!

There were people coming around the corner and I feel weird being seen taking pictures so I crouched.  Yup, not weird at all.

Keep clam, everyone!

Day late, dollar short

Yesterday This week has been rough.  Between a minor family emergency, finals, not getting the job I was really hoping to get and just general holiday anxieties, it took me a long, long time to get out of bed yesterday.  I don't talk about it much, but I've been working through anxiety and depression for most of my life and when it rains, well, it pours.

I was feeling ugly and useless and wanted to quit the challenge.  I hated all of my clothes and knew that I wouldn't feel good in anything I put on.  Nevertheless, my endlessly patient and supportive boyfriend gave me the kick in the butt I needed.  I got dressed, we went on a walk, and had ourselves a date.

I promise I'm feeling good in this picture! It was late, a long day, and taking the picture was an afterthought.

 

This is basically my uniform: a dress and a vest (or cardigan).  Easy and put together.  The best idea when you're feeling uncreative.  And no! Your eyes aren't fooling you.  Despite a week of temperatures in the 40s, yesterday was warm enough to go bare-legged here in Central Texas, even at 11pm, when we got home from our date.

I missed a day of posting, but I'll get around to it.  All of my final papers are due on Monday, so on Tuesday I'll be an uberproductive posting machine.

Happy weekend!

Emo Superman*

A few months before I left Ann Arbor, Ed's former roommate told me that I'd make a good cartoon.  She's an artist, particularly one interested in character illustration, so I definitely took this as a compliment.  A librarian who fights crime, one unconstitutional Patriot Act Information request at a time.  I'd be an adorable cartoon!

Maybe its the double stripes or the chunky boots or the wide purple belt, but I think this is the outfit Cartoon Rebecca would wear.

Lil, if you're reading this, let's make this happen, shall we?

*Ed wants me to mention that "Emo Superman" is the name of that last pose.  He coined it.  He's very clever.