About Those Things...

Well, your comments on the last post are pretty much the greatest thing ever. 

Don't you all feel so unburdened from sharing your Things?  I certainly do.  And as I noted, every time I read a new comment, I realized yet another Thing that I have, like the brittle toenails and the fair, ultra-sensitive skin and the invisible eyebrows and eyelashes.  It's a wonder, we're all walking around with our Things, all self-conscious about them, yet I am 100% certain that if I met any of you, I would not notice your Thing.  So we should all make peace with our weird-ass bodies and get over it.

In other comment-related news, after much perusal and consideration, I ordered the Ogio Road Trip in Sand Floral, as recommended by Carolyn.  I found it at Zappo's and ordered it yesterday and it arrived today.  (Along with a new pair of work shoes that I threw in for good measure.)  It looks like it's going to fit the bill very nicely for work/gym functionality.  It's compact but roomy and has all sorts of neato pockets and sleeves and flaps.  And I think it is suuuuper cute, with the flirty embroidered flowers and the satin lining and padding. 

I mean, it pushes the bounds of business attire a bit -- when I go to court or to an Important Meeting, I'll probably swap it out for something a little sleeker, maybe not my staid Coach leather briefcase (which I have mostly abandoned because it weighs about 40 pounds, empty, and my right shoulder gets crunched down to hip-level when I carry it), but rather the bag I've been carrying for a while now, which is from this awesome store on Mott Street and is nylon with zippy outer pockets and also has embroidered flowers on it so it has that feminine touch, but it's gray and subtle and therefore passable for worky things.

Well. This is awfully girlie of me, chattering away about bags and shoes!  I am so UN-girlie, as you've gathered by now; but for some reason, I do enjoy bags and shoes.  Not like designer handbags and Jimmy Choos or anything (not that there's anything wrong with those, but they're not me); I have carried the same weekend tote for six years now, and I bought it on the street for twenty bucks and it is NOTHING special or even cute, and I don't believe I have ever spent more than $120 for a pair of shoes (in fact, usually the most expensive shoes I buy are running shoes, not exactly paragons of cuteness and glamour).  But I love Mary Janes of virtually any kind, and t-straps or spectators or anything retro-looking in the shoe category, and I love slightly funky, yet functional, shoulder bag sorts of things, as discussed herein, above.  I don't go out and comb the stores for bags and shoes, but if I'm out wandering through the halls of retail, those are the things toward which I gravitate, and I certainly enjoy clicking around on Zappo's and its ilk. 

As far as other girlie things go, makeup for me is a non-issue -- I kind of like looking at makeup at Sephora or the drugstore, but I quickly become overwhelmed by it and usually rush out of the store in a mild panic from the exposure to so many choices and shades and tools.  I only use three makeup items 95% of the time (Benefit Dr. Feelgood as a de-shiner, Cover Girl mascara in the purple tube on my wussy lashes, and Cover Girl Lipslicks in Daring on my kisser (thanks, Holly, for bringing Daring to the attention of the Internets!)).  So I don't really need anything else and therefore have trouble bringing myself to spend money for more.

Lotions and body washes, on the other hand, are fun.  Lately, I have liked Dove's Go Fresh wash in the lemongrass/citrus scent (slightly exfoliating!) and Dove's Cream Oil stuff in rosewood/cocoa butter (makes your skin CRAZY soft!).  And, given the chance, I will buy out a Fresh store, because everything just smells sooooo goooood, plus all the pretty, pretty packaging, oooooooh, shiny! 

I am definitely NOT girlie when it comes to my hair; a good deal of the time, I can't be bothered to blow it dry, and even when I do, it ends up being pulled back in a pony tail or twisted up in some kind of clip (not like a banana clip or anything; I'm not that bad).  And I go wayyyyy too long without getting it cut.  Generally, I am a Hair Failure. 

I don't read women's fashion/beauty magazines because they make me anxious; I always feel like I am falling short of some great standard of womanhood with my unimaginative clothes and my limp/frizzy hair and my three makeup products.  Who needs that?  Even the home-oriented magazines put me a little on edge; I feel like I should be out hunting for the perfect floor lamp or arranging flowers on our coffee table or hanging a spotlight to enhance our collection of twee midcentury modern pottery.  Eh.

Maybe I've veered a little too far into the realism territory and made myself out to be a Thing-ridden, unkempt, unfeminine schlub, which isn't quite true.  I guess the point is, I know what works for me; I am practical and slightly lazy; and while sometimes (like when I'm sitting next to some freaking knockout woman on the subway with perfect clothes and perfect hair and makeup) I think I could stand to put just a bit more effort into my appearance (because while I'm no Naomi Watts or anything, I am sure I could look something more like fabulous if I put in the time and energy), all in all I'm fine with the system I've got, the one that takes minimal effort and makes me decently presentable. 

And, you know, draws at least some attention away from all my Things.

Comments

[blakspring]

this is such a great topic. i'm always embarrassed about my disgusting chewed up fingernails and surrounding finger skin, and my muffintop reaches 4-months-pregnant proportions the moment i eat anything. i'm always sucking in my gut at weddings and things where i'm actually wearing a dress. but i figure everyone plucks their nipples so what's the big deal, right?
i went to sephora several months ago, at the age of 32, to have them show me how to do make-up. the poor woman spent at least 90 minutes with me and i still can't do it right.
sorry for babbling but this is very cathartic. and your last paragraph, it's like you read my mind - "practical and slightly lazy" - exactly.

[Allison]

A BANANA CLIP. A great loss to the fashion industry when those went out of vogue. Man, I loved me a good banana clip. They work so well with curly hair.

One of my co-workers still wears them.

[Shelly]

I LOVE makeup--LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT. I recently discovered our local beauty school will TINT eyelashes......I'm ADDICTED. Although my lashes aren't FABULOUS as I'd like to think they are with mascara, they look pretty good--and no mascara time....WOO HOO....I've got photos on my blog of the lash tint...

They tint brows, too, not that I need THAT.....with my latest brow fiasco --(that is actually what I blogged about, not my lashes.....my lashes just got caught in the photos)

anyway, I love purses, and HATE shoes...I mean, I like shoes, but due to one of my THINGS, which is short(size 6) square feet, that are very wide with a high instep. This makes shoes nearly IMPOSSIBLE for me to purchase----and being on a limited budget, I can't spend lots of $$ on shoes.

Back to purses.......OMG, Love them......and bags too...even the free canvas jobs people give away at events.....I LOVE them.....still don't spend alot of money on them, but I gravitate to all purses.

Anyway, for those of you that have a 'thing' of light brows and lashes, try tinting...it's temporary (2-3 weeks depending on how vigorously you clean them and with what products)...I highly recommend.

[nonsoccermom]

I, too, am a Hair Failure. My hair is incredibly high-maintenance, thick and wavy in some places but straight in others, which really just translates to big mess. I almost always have it pulled back and it makes me feel so lazy! Glad I'm not the only one. :)

[H]

I missed the Thing post here (but saw Emily's and am dying to know what hers is in case I have the same one and I don't know about it.) I just read the comments and feel so much better about my Things because they're pretty much the same as everyone else's. I'm going through a hair crisis now and THIS post got my attention. I'm 45 but my real hair has been totally white (with a touch of gray) since my mid-30's. I've finally tired of the time and expense it takes to keep up my auburn color so I'm trying the Jamie Lee Curtis look. I've started the transition and while I'm excited to minimize my hair maintenance, I'm afraid of looking like I'm 60. Also, I am not really manly but am not super feminine (plain and practical is how I'd describe my fashion style) so I'm a bit afraid of people thinking I look too masculine. I may not like the white/gray and short hair but I figure I have to try or I'll rip out my hair in frustration!

[Carolyn J.]

I hate all Americans because you guys have Zappos, and I don't.