One true correct

Today on Facebook, a friend of mine posted, "Every religion thinks it's the one true correct religion. Assuming there is one, they can't all be right."

She herself is not religious, and she is not the first person I've heard say this — or the hundredth. I think it's a pretty common perception about religion. I didn't say anything on Facebook, because I'm not interested in shaming people or getting into a battle about it.

But in case I have readers who deeply believe that to be true — it's not.

Some religious people (including a handful I've met) think their religion is the one true correct one. I've met some of those folks.

But I don't.

Almost none of the religious people I know think that.

Most of the religious people I know think their religion is the one that works best for them, right now. Many, many of the religious people I know have shifted religions, embrace folks of other religions or no religion or something in-between.

And there are lots of religions that are pretty explicit that that religion itself does not exclude other religions or religious doctrines, even among its own followers.

Like I said, not looking for a fight on this — just correcting a misperception I see a lot. Be careful of words like "every" and "all."

In other news, it's 35° here. Feels like June.

I'd wave a white flag, but you'd never see it

Sorry I keep talking about the weather.

This winter is KILLING me; it's led to car issues and house issues and travel issues and a weeks-long bug that I am finally over. I have never been so ready for spring.

Temperature when I checked it this morning: 9°.

That is 20 degrees warmer than it was that time yesterday.

We have had one day in February during which the temperature rose above freezing at any point.

And should you dare to walk outside at all, you're walking in a maze: at least butt-high snowbanks on either side, often more like waist-high or higher. There's no "just cutting across" What's underfoot is mostly snow (the consistency of sand or granulated sugar) over ice, with unexpected patches of pavement just to ensure maximum unevenness.

Here's one of the better weather-related jokes making the rounds on Facebook:

And up here, we have it so much better than Boston.

If you sometimes consider donating any money to a shelter in the northeastern U.S., or speaking up when you see someone who is likely homeless being kicked out of your favorite coffee shop or bagel place or art gallery — this seems like a good time for that.

Stay warm, friends.

Cold snap

This morning I brought RI to work because otherwise, he'd have had to walk, and it was -11° outside, and that is unreasonable. But it still meant I was awake and outside at 6:50 in the morning in -11° weather. I am so sick of this winter I could punch it.

Related: Thinking of changing my name to brrrrgrrrl.

How's the weather up there?

Woman leaving a building ahead of me yesterday, brightly: Oh, look! It's snowing! We needed it, really.

Six at one blow

I've already written the last two posts of the month, and have decided to give up on this particular month of gratitude at midnight, so this is the last post I'll write, and it'll just be a bulleted list of things to cover days 23-28.

I am thankful for:

• My family and their support
• Leftovers
• Stories
• Pie for breakfast
• Snow days
• A few days without college students in this college town

Striking a hoard

Two possibly relevant pieces of information before we begin our story:

• The expected high today where I live is 43 degrees.
• I am really, really not into hickeys. Don't want to give them, don't want to receive them, never have, for reasons probably both good and less-good. We'll plumb those depths another time.

Now that that's out of the way...

Last night, I was just sitting around, watching Hoarders, maybe a little judgmentally, like everyone who watches Hoarders.

And then, it was time for bed.

So I got up and immediately tripped on a pile of clutter in my own home (because hubris. Or karma. Or both.).

Fortunately, I did not break my laptop, which I was holding at the time.

But I did land both painfully and awkwardly, collarbone first, on the railing to my treadmill.

All of which is to say, thank goodness that it is appropriate to wear this turtleneck (technically, cowlneck), because bruisey:

Stormy weather

Today, my workplace was closed due to snow.

The highlights:

• As I am part of the "emergency communications team" at said workplace, I got up at 5:15 a.m. to share the word. Which mostly went fine.
• At about 6:15 a.m., after attempting to record the outgoing message for the switchboard about one million times, I texted my neighbor and subsequently went to her house in my pajamas to try again on her landline. That went better.
• I watched a few episodes of Dexter. Big revelation: A date that is featured sort of casually but repeatedly on that show is my exact date of birth. So that's fun.
• I videochatted with my sister and niece and nephew, which included tours of both houses, a puppet show, and my nephew's enjoyment of a toy drill for just slightly too short a time for me to come up with "that looks boring" as a clever thing to say. Those kids are very very very amused by seeing me upside down or sideways.
• I ventured out to the convenience store .6 miles away from my house on foot, both because I needed the exercise and because my driveway wasn't plowed yet. It took almost an hour round-trip because of the snow.
• My sweet friends had a temperature-solstice pot luck over the weekend that I was very excited about but then was too sick to attend, with the result that I have an excess of my favorite summer dish, which means peach cobbler, which is seriously summer in a bowl and good for the spirits of the snowbound.
• I watched Breaking Away. Golly, that's a good cast and a beautiful movie.

So, pretty much of a win overall.

How's your day going?

Video killed all other interests

So, I have watched a lot of movies lately.

A lot.

Here is a nearly complete list of the three and a half weeks that started with my Reel Quandary and ends with last night, in roughly reverse chronological order.

• Reel Injun
• Ayn Rand & the Prophecy of Atlas Shrugged*
• The Doom Generation
• Mommie Dearest
• Electrick Children
• Purple Rain
• Fame
• Valley of the Dolls
• Salinger
• Death Race 2000
• Born in Flames
• The Hot Flashes
• Dirty Girl
• Albert Nobbs
• The Van**
• Seven
• The Conversation
• Tabloid
• Matchstick Men
• Better off Dead
• Imitation of Life
• Jay and Silent Bob Go Down Under
• Young Adult
• Indecent Proposal
• We Were Here
• Sharknado***
• Rid of Me
• An Unmarried Woman
• The Wolves of Kromer
• Trading Places

Some of that volume of viewing is due to my determination to cut down the Netflix list. Some of it is due to the fact that, right at Sharknado time, I got a new and amazingly better TV. And some of it is no doubt due to the fact that it's freezing out. Like, really, really cold.

In any case, there are a lot of great, great movies in that mix, but it seems silly to try to talk about them all. So: What are you watching that I should add to the list? And what of what I've seen do you want to hear more about?


* Didn't finish: Too pro-Rand
** Didn't finish: Too rapey
*** Didn't finish: Insufficiently awesome effects for my new TV

Several thousand words on the state of my deck

Note: On the Facebook page, I mentioned a little while back that I had a folder full of drafts I never finished: More than 60 of 'em, in fact. I'm going through that folder now, deleting what's not worth it, posting what might entertain you. This gem dates back to February 2011; I'm skipping around some, chronologically. 

Notes from 2013: That was the winter the ice fell off the roof and smashed the deck furniture, which I'd foolishly left out before the first snowfall, and then had never had little enough snow or ice to retrieve it.
And that pretty pyramid in the middle picture? That's my grill. Note the depth of the snow.

Sending hope for peace on earth

I had hoped to spend this solstice morning on a sunrise hike, as I did at the summer solstice (note: winter solstice sunrise is WAY LATER than summer solstice sunrise). However, the weather was not interested in cooperating with me.

I did get up early on this shortest day of the year, which meant I got to see the beautiful blanket of snow that had fallen overnight before it turned to rain and washed away.

Now I'll go shopping and chuck the ingredients I'll buy into the Crock-Pot to prepare for the solstice pot luck I'll attend tonight. Before I leave for work today, I'll have done about as much solstice preparation as Advent/Christmas preparation, despite being a Christian.

That preparation included helping the friends hosting tonight's pot luck string popcorn for their solstice tree, and appreciating watching their young son place a Charles Darwin puppet atop the tree. I was reminded at the time of Dar Williams's "The Christians and the Pagans," and at least one of you was, too, when I posted about it on Facebook.

And yeah, I've shared this one before, but it seemed like time to share it again.

Here is the story of the hurricane...

I was going to maybe post some foliage pictures today. I also considered telling you about my great weekend. Instead, Frankenstorm is coming, and I thought it might be fun to liveblog until the power goes out. Right?

2:44 Here's where things stand:

• Frankenstorm (Hurricane Sandy plus a cold front) is headed this way.
• In anticipation, the college I work at has been closed for the day.
• The worst of the storm is supposed to be 2-9 p.m.
• So far, we're getting what would in other circumstances be described as a light shower.
• A year ago, Hurricane Irene was also predicted to be devastating. It was, about 20 miles west. Horrible. Here in my town, we only ever got showers.
• I am attempting neither to over- nor under-react. So: 
• My phone is charged.
• My bathtub is filled with water.
• I know where at least one lantern and at least one candle are located.
• The windows are closed, and so is the garage door.
• I have perhaps naively put some of Beth's Salsa Chicken in the crock pot, which will either mean I have delicious food later or a bunch of half-cooked spicy bacteria I have to throw away because the power went out.

Now I should be cleaning house before I lose the lights, because it's a mess and I'm home and who knows who'll have to come stay in my hillside haven.

Instead, I am starting to watch a movie I initially attempted to explain to you but am now so appalled that I'm about to watch that I'll only tell you about it if I think you should watch it. Sorry, everyone.

3:02 p.m. Oh, also, Joe Biden was supposed to come to the college today. So really, we've just traded one liveblogging opportunity for another. Stay safe, Brett. No pics, Alexis — there's nothing interesting enough to take pics of yet.

3:27 p.m. Still no real wind to speak of. It is raining harder. This movie is terrible. How often do you want updates, and concerning storm, or household activities, or both?It is possible I have bowling tonight, but for now, we're playing it by ear.

3:34 p.m. Raining even a little harder. I'm turning this movie off. If you would also like to avoid it, it's Albert Fish, about a real-life Depression-era child murderer and cannibal. It's at least as bad as that sounds.

3:42 p.m. Movie's off. Extreme Couponing is on. I'm not saying I have great taste in movies and TV; I'm just saying if I'm going to watch crap, I'd prefer it not to make me sick to my stomach. Possibly related: That salsa chicken smells amazing.

3:55 p.m. My mechanic friend just called to ask if he could park his limo and possibly some other cars in my higher-elevation-than-his-shop driveway. hells yes, I say. Also: It is possible that the reason it seems unwindy to me is that the window I am looking out its the one on the side of my house least likely to get wind. When my craving for a Pepsi Throwback gets so bad I need to indulge it, I'll get up and look out a different window and let you know.

4:06 p.m. Pepsi Throwback obtained, but not without incident: I might have spilled a bunch of ice on the floor. Not a lot of wind on any side of the house. I'm considering a fire in the fireplace. Also, a person whose day can be in part described with "she calls the store manager for a routine check on coupon policies" have different routines than mine.

4:25 p.m. Here's the thing about bowling: Even if it's OK when I leave the house at 6:15, if it's not OK when I'm done bowling at 8:30 or 9, I'm stuck at the bowling alley for who knows how long. We should just not go, right? But I love my queer bowling. Sigh.

4:36 p.m. I got bored with Extreme Couponing and also discovered that there was a whole season of Important Things with Demetri Martin I hadn't seen. Everyone should always be watching that show. Unrelated but potentially useful: If you need to find an emergency shelter from the storm, you can text FEMA.

4:57 p.m. Commenter Emily (fun side note: many many of my friends are named Emily. I a little bit wonder which one that is) has requested the recipe for salsa chicken. I assume and hope it's OK to share, but I'd rather check with Beth first. Another fun side note: If you are my IRL persona's Facebook friend (that doesn't sound healthy), you can look at my "notes" and find a whole long one full of awesome Crock Pot recipes.

5:06 p.m. Permission granted! Also, the wind's picking up.

4 boneless chicken breasts
large jar of salsa
can black beans
corn (frozen or canned), however much you want
Put the boneless chicken breasts in your crockpot. Even frozen.
Dump in one large jar of salsa.
Drain and rinse one can of black beans and dump in crockpot.
Turn your crockpot on and leave it there all day. Come back 10 hours later and open the crockpot. Shred up the chicken. Add the corn. Stir it up good.
Serve in bowls with sides of shredded Mexican cheeses and sour cream. Eat with tortillas or tortilla chips. (You could eat it in taco shells, too.)

5:37 p.m. We should really make a decision about bowling.

5:57 p.m. The bowling teammates and I have decided not to bowl. It feels like a smart choice. Especially since, as I was on the phone with one of said teammates:

• we realized there were two other opportunities to hang out in the next two days, and
• the wind picked up. It's starting to feel like a hurricane.

Also, are you impressed by how many times I have managed to type "bowling" and not typed "blowing," especially in the middle of a wind-based storm? I sort of am. Off to call Yankee Lanes.

6:26 p.m. Sorry for these long gaps between posts; I am running out of things to say, a little, except to individuals, which is why I seem to have moved somewhat to gchat and Facebook chat. If I say anything hilarious in either of those media, I will try to repost here. Meanwhile, I am finally going to eat some of that salsa chicken. And maybe start a fire in the fireplace. Or make some lemonade. Or make some lemonade and then turn it into whiskey lemonade. And keep it away from the computer.

7:16 p.m. Wind does not seem to have gotten worse and may have died down. Rain seems neither better nor worse. I am drinking lemonade from a cup with a lid. The salsa chicken is fantastic. If you wonder how much corn is "however much you want" from that recipe above, in my case, it's a lot. A whole lot.

7:35 p.m. I have very few regrets in this life; even most of my bad decisions have gotten me other places I want to be, have helped me learn and grow. But I do kind of wish I'd gone bowling.

7:37 p.m. I'm going to challenge myself. I think I can clean the whole sunroom, have it presentable for guests, in 15 minutes. What do you think? Also, I initially wrote "...have it resentable for guests..." Well, you know what? If you're a guest, and you actually resent my cleaning efforts, you can go to hell, buddy. Right to hell. Sometimes blogging is a procrastination tool. OK. Really going to clean for 15 minutes now.

8:07 p.m. Fifteen minutes was not enough, but 25 minutes was enough to clean the sunroom AND talk about the imminent cancellation of someone else's Halloween party to which I was not invited AND go to the bathroom AND put on pajamas. So, not bad.

8:32 p.m. Local schools are closed tomorrow; still no word on whether I have work. But the rain seems to be getting stronger; I'll be surprised if the worst of the storm is really past us by 9. Are any of you still reading? Comment to keep me (and each other) company.

8:41 p.m. I have a special guest star coming!

8:45 p.m. The guest star has arrived. We are now watching Important Things with Demetri Martin together. This promises to be way more entertaining for me than for you, I think. He is the same guest star as we had for the first debate.

8:49 p.m. ... Except now we are out of episodes. We are going back to watching the last episode of the first season. It's on time. Hahahahahaha.

9:03 p.m. The college is closed until noon tomorrow. So, that's cool.

10:24 p.m. OMG you guys. I am so sorry, I didn't forget about you. But Special Guest Star and i started talking about feminism and stuff and then we started watching Hot In Cleveland which you really should be watching. Still have power, still have a few Fritos (though SGS is making a dent in that), and the storm may actually be winding down.

10:57 p.m. SGS and I think but are not sure the rain has stopped.

Pointy

It's been a busy time around here, resulting in me attempting to write a handful of bullet-point, scattershot posts of whimsical thoughts and failing at even that by the time I get to about the second bullet point. Why so busy? Glad you asked.

• At work, there are a bunch of big, time-sensitive projects, and we're down three staff (in a roughly 14-person office). That means I'm working lots of extra time, which, for me, in unsustainable. I work a 12-hour day, come in the next morning and can't focus because my brain is fried, don't get much done in the early part of the day, have to stay late, wake up early and do a little work then, come in and can't focus.... You get the picture. I am hopeful that by the end of tomorrow, I'll be done with the crunch and able to focus on work at work, rest and play when not at work.
• I'm also doing a little volunteer work for my church. The volunteer work is in my professional field, which means when I'm too fried to work, I'm also too fried to volunteer.
• Outside of work, I'm stage managing a staged reading. Lots of fun, but it's two rehearsals a week with an hour round-trip commute.
• My car's broken. I've got a crack mechanic working on it now, but meanwhile, I've been on foot off-and-on for about a week and a half.
• I don't need a lot of social time, generally, but I do need some, because my work is largely unsocial and I live by myself. Trying to squeeze that in is one more thing.
• It's still beautiful up here, weatherwise. I want to be outside in it every minute I can before that gets less practical.
• When I'm stressed and busy like this, I tend to most easily cut back on both spiritual practices and physical exercise, which is unacceptable, because while those also take time and focus, they (along with aforementioned social time) are also what enable me to handle the rest of it. So, trying to make time for those.
• Oh, dishes and laundry and figuring out how to fix the front hall light fixture and showering and, you know, stuff.

Fallen asleep yet? OK, for all three of you who are still out there, you get the reward of the bullet-point-or-two from each of those unfinished posts. Woohoo!

• My left calf is significantly bigger than my right.
• Nonetheless, I found boots that fit, and I love them more than at least a couple of my friends. Not you, obviously — you're my favorite. Though the boots were cheaper than you. Wait, now we're getting into a weird place.
• The movie Brazil is less entertaining to me now than it was in 1987 — possibly because I was less aware in 1987, possibly because so much of what we could call "dystopian" then we just have to call "real" now. Or possibly because I don't like all things British — including Terry Gilliam — as much as it seems like I would.
• I know I'm in the minority, but there are few household chores that I find more satisfying than cleaning the bathroom.
• Two of my latest Pandora stations have been "Call Me Maybe" and "You Can Call Me Al." I bet you'd get something interesting if you mixed those two stations.
• Most of the "Bridezilla" phenomenon is a self-perpetuating media invention, and it makes me sad and we won't get into every nuance of feminist theory that applies here (though if any of you would like to, you need to let me know, stat). But here's one thought: How much of it is due to the weird but apparently prevalent idea that every bride-to-be needs to go on a diet before her wedding and is therefore starving and cranky and semidelirious?
• Since I wrote this post and have been, as I said above, on foot a little more often, I have worn a backpack with a shortish skirt three times. The result is, of course, that I am constantly checking my butt, which I am sure makes me look much more normal/self-aware/classy than those women I was judging.

So, how are you?

Fashion (blog) Week part 4: me

And at last, we bring Fashion (blog) Week to an end with my experience.


*Indicates events that I thought were happening when I planned my outfit, but did not.
** Indicates events that I did not know were happening when I planned my outfit, but that happened anyway.


Fashion (blog) Week part 1
Fashion (blog) Week part 2
Fashion (blog) Week part 3

Monday:

• What's the weather? High 80; low 61; isolated thunderstorms
• What's on your schedule? Cookout at my parents' house, lots of playtime with my young niece and nephew, possibly a trip to the lake*, nap**, bowling
• What's your inspiration? I'm not sure I understand the "inspiration" part of this. Casual effortlessness with a certain artsy early-60s j'ne sais quois?
• What's the outfit plan? Cuffed loose jeans, flip flops, sleeveless flowered blouse; swimsuit; running shoes and a pair of socks in case a walk is called for; bowling shoes later.
• How'd it work out?  Just fine, thanks. I don't remember the last time I got ready so quickly and didn't hate what I was wearing. Awesome.

Tuesday:

• What's the weather? High 79; low 63; isolated thunderstorms
• What's on your schedule? Morning workout; work with one internal meeting; a chiropractic appointment (midday); possibly drinks after work*; drinks and dinner to meet a friend's long-distance significant other in flash-flooding-type storms**
• What's your inspiration? Er — brown, I guess.
• What's the outfit plan? Workout clothes; khakis, brown peeptoe wedges, brown sleeveless sweater
• How'd it work out? Not bad, though I did add a white short-sleeved cardigan at the last minute because I chickened out of wearing a sleeveless shirt with nothing over it to work. And changed into jeans pre-drinks and dinner.

Wednesday:

• What's the weather? High 78; low 55; partly cloudy
• What's on your schedule? Morning workout*; work; bowling lesson; softball game (watching, not playing) in the evening*; yoga class**
• What's your inspiration? Summer, or also a desire to be simultaneously work-appropriate and casual enough for a softball game.
• What's the outfit plan? Workout clothes; green capris (or pedal pushers? I'm not sure I know the difference.), black peeptoes, short sleeved flower print shirt; short-sleeved black cardigan
• How'd it work out? Swell. The rain cancelled the softball game, but this outfit was a combination I don't use often, and I liked it. And it was good to have the workout clothes at-the-ready for the yoga class; there have been times in my life I'd have skipped the class because trying to pull together a clean workout outfit would have been tricky.

Thursday: 

• What's the weather? High 75; low 49; partly cloudy
• What's on your schedule? Morning workout; work, one internal meeting, possibly a long day writing the internal campus newsletter; lunch with a friend**
• What's your inspiration? Comfort and ease — the gray dress is jersey knit, and I could sleep in it if I had to. I'm not going to. Probably.
• What's the outfit plan? Workout clothes; gray dress, black peeptoes. 
• How'd it work out?  Super, and I did not, in fact, have to sleep in the gray dress. I didn't even have to work that late.

Friday:

• What's the weather? High 74; low 54; partly cloudy
• What's on your schedule? Morning workout; work; pedicure with a  friend**; "This American Life — Live"**
• What's your inspiration? Fun summer! Summer fun!
• What's the outfit plan? Workout clothes; blue denim dress, fun tan sandals, gray cardigan
• How'd it work out? Mostly great, though the temperature dropped suddenly during the late afternoon, so I had to run home and change out of my adorable dress and into jeans — which was not a problem, except that it left me having to pick a shirt on my own, with no planning, for the first time since Sunday night. I did fine. An olive green lace-neck t-shirt with the jeans, gray cardigan, and sandals worked out great. And it didn't take me an hour of changing outfits, either. I think I was just more confident in my ability to get dressed by this point — at least to get dressed for sitting in a dark theater.

So, overall, what did you learn?

• No kidding, Sunday night, this was painful and took me a very long time.
• Monday morning, on the other hand, was awesome, as I rolled out of bed and into clothes.
• If I lay out workout clothes for every day, I feel bad about not wearing them, and therefore am more likely to work out.
• I wear a lot of neutral clothing.
• My plans change a lot between Sunday and Friday.
• My friends and I have different sources for weather reports.
• What ikat is.

Will you keep up with the system?

• I'd like to try. It seems unlikely. But the workout factor alone would be worth it.

What were the best and worst parts?

• Best: The workout motivation; who knew that clothes were what was standing in my way there?
• Worst: I dunno. I'm a little sore from all the working out. Kidding — Sunday night was definitely the worst part. I have confidence it'd get better if I did it regularly.

Fashion (blog) week Part 3: The Reuniter

Today's guest post comes from my colleague and friend The Reuniter, so named because she tried this experiment during one of the busiest weeks of her year — the week leading up to Reunion Weekend at the college. Throw in Memorial Day and some crazy weather, and — well, I'll let her tell you.

[Note: I intended to publish this on Wednesday. I was all done reading it and formatting it and whatnot, and was just about to hit publish, when lightning struck my house and fried my router. True Story.]

Fashion (blog) week Part 1
Fashion (blog) week Part 2

Monday

• What's the weather? Sunny & 75.
• What's the schedule? Driving home from a wedding in Darien, CT.
• What's your inspiration? Comfort for the car and layers, since my co-traveler and I often prefer different temperatures.
• What's the outfit plan? Black cotton dress, gray flip flops, and a brown 3/4 length cardigan for breakfast and the 4-hour drive, followed by my pajamas.
• How'd it work? It was perfect!

Tuesday

• What's the weather? 80 with possible thunderstorms (ended up with torrential rain and a tornado warning). 
• What's the schedule? Follow up from the extra-long weekend, prep for Reunion weekend, and tying LED candles in paper lanterns. An after-hours work meeting (which got canceled when the tornado warnings seemed guaranteed). 
• What's your inspiration? Comfort for a long day and cool for hot temperatures. 
• What's the outfit plan? Navy blue Old Navy knee length dress, new long multi-colored Lia Sophia necklace for some drama and brown flat sandals. 
• How'd it work? It was a great outfit for the work day, but I was a little chilly once the rain hit that evening. 

Wednesday

• What's the weather? 75 and sunny. 
• What's the schedule? Reunion meetings, website updates, a little spray painting and happy hour with some coworkers who are leaving (I ended up not being able to make it for drinks). 
• What's your inspiration? New linen pants and my best chance to wear heels this week. 
• What's the outfit plan? Linen pants, indigo cap-sleeve blouse, brown pumps and gold jewelry. 
• How'd it work? After experiencing an unexpected detour on the way to work due to flooding, it felt great to be pulled together. 

Thursday

• What's the weather? Sunny and warm. 
• What's the schedule? Decorating for our Friday night event, climbing ladders to hang hooks, and picking up helium tanks, balloons, plants, etc. 
• What's your inspiration? Simple and classic. 
• What's the outfit plan? V-neck black cotton dress with empire waist and aqua cardigan, triple-strand blue bead and pearl necklace and aqua earrings with peep-toe flats. 
• How'd it work? I probably didn't think the whole ladder and dress thing through well enough, but it still worked out well. 

Friday

• What's the weather? A little cooler (70) and sunny. 
• What's the schedule? Decorating golf carts, hanging paper lanterns and lantern lights, setting up music playlists, and mapping sandwich board locations. 
• What's your inspiration? Outfit 1: running around campus, quick changes, and flexibility. Outfit 2: more formal and youthful. 
• What's the outfit plan? Outfit 1: white corduroy skirt, teal dress t-shirt, short pearl necklace and black flip flops. Outfit 2: Blue ikat print dress (with pockets), brown pumps, coral short-sleeve dolman cardigan.  
• How'd it work? The first outfit was perfect for running around, especially when I lost my keys and had to scour campus to find them (they turned up on the back of a golf cart). The dress in outfit 2 was a great choice. It was perfect for the weather and event, and the pockets were a great asset for holding a variety of items. I actually ended up with a 3rd outfit. The temperature dropped, so, following my work event, I changed into jeans and a purple tank top for a night out on the town. I changed into flats for walking around and kept the coral cardigan on. 

So, overall, what did you learn? Will you keep up with the system? What were the best and worst parts? I learned that figuring out what to wear is always a little tough for me. Even when planning ahead, picking out what to wear was a challenge. I think factoring in our laundry schedule added a level of complexity, as I was planning for the end of the week (maybe that means I need to expand my wardrobe :). I did find that planning ahead made it quicker for me to get ready in the mornings, which is something I am always looking for. Also, I tried a few combinations that I haven't before, since I was not rushing. I was also more likely to wear jewelry, which adds a little color and style. I think that I will try the system again. If I can get into the habit, maybe it won’t seem like such an effort. Plus, next time I will try not to give it a go during a crazy, unpredictable work week!

Fashion (blog) week Part 2: The Yogini

Many thanks to my friend and colleague, known hereafter as the yogini (or TY) for participating in this experiment and writing today's post! This is the first blog post she's ever written. I think you will agree it doesn't show.

Fashion (blog) week Part 1

Monday: 5/28/12

• What's the weather? Beautiful – 75 and sunny 
• What's on your schedule? Taking a boat ride, sun bathing, a possible dip in the lake, and visiting with family 
• What's your inspiration? The sun goddess 
• What's the outfit plan? Bathing suit – nothing more, nothing less…well, it could be less, you never know with me. 
• How'd it work out? Perfectly, except for the horrible sun burn on my back from not wearing a cover up. I need to get into official summer mode and be a bit more prepared. 

Tuesday: 5/29/12

• What's the weather? Sunny – 80 with a chance of rain (as per the weather forecast the weekend before. Turns out we had a massive thunderstorm with a tornado warning!) 
• What's on your schedule? Work at the office, then off to Spofford for a breath work session at the Power of Breath Institute 
• What's your inspiration? My sister’s good taste in clothing. 
• What's the outfit plan? Off white lace top with an emerald green skirt, brown belt and brown shoes. Plus an awesome locket necklace my sis let me borrow…and not surprisingly, I still have it. ☺ Then I changed into yoga clothes for the breath work session- my favorite type of clothing to be in. 
• How'd it work out? Fantastic. I thought I was not going to be comfortable all day with a lace shirt on a sunburned back, but it was actually OK. Yoga clothes and sandals, however, did not prove to be a good choice in torrential rain. 

Wednesday: 5/30/12

• What's the weather? Beautiful again – 75 and sunny 
• What's on your schedule? Work at the office, then teaching yoga at the KSC gym, followed by a Kundalani yoga workshop. 
• What's your inspiration? Be comfortable, it will be a long day! 
• What's the outfit plan? A floral dress with an off white shrug and brown shoes, and later, yoga clothes . Did I mention I love wearing yoga clothes? 
• How'd it work out? Great, the dress was very comfortable and I got lots of compliments on it which always brightens my day. I wore my favorite lotus flower tank top to yoga and I just love the way it fits my body. It allows for plenty of room to breathe and move, while discreetly covering the parts of my body that make me feel insecure. 

Thursday: 5/31/12

• What's the weather? Sunny and 75 
• What's on your schedule? Work at the office, and then over to my dear friends house for a girl’s night/clothing swap. 
• What's your inspiration? To wear something that makes me happy. 
• What's the outfit plan? I had planned to wear a black skirt with a black and white striped top, but when I got dressed I decided it was all wrong. I went against my pre-planning idea, and changed into a color block dress with a black shrug. 
• How'd it work out? I love my color block dress (teal, royal blue and black) only the straps are a bit too big and I need to shorten them. They were always falling down and that became a bit annoying. My girlfriends loved the dress however, and thought it flattered my body very nicely. Thanks again to my sis for picking out this dress for me! She does have a great eye for what works. 

Friday: 6/1/12

• What's the weather? A bit cooler – 65 to 70 
• What's on your schedule? Work at the office during the day and reunion festivities at night. 
• What's your inspiration? I want to be comfortable and look snazzy. 
• What's the outfit plan? I had planned a cute skirt and top outfit, but my plans were interrupted this morning by a skunk attack as I was trying to leave my house! I did not get directly sprayed, but there was that gross skunk odor in my house, and I had to re-shower and change. Already late for work, I changed into a gauzy top (found at the clothing swap the night before!) with cream colored capris – comfortable, but definitely not snazzy. I did bring another change of clothes for the reunion kick-off later that evening. 
• How'd it work out? It was not what I had planned, but the outfit served its purpose – I had clothes on. The skirt and top that I changed into were a bit too casual for the evening, but overall I did not smell like skunk so that was a plus. 

So, overall, what did you learn? Will you keep up with the system? What were the best and worst parts? The system has its advantages for sure. There is no doubt I saved loads of time in the morning, but it was hard to stick with my plan. Each morning I still had the desire to stand in front of my closet, aimlessly starting at all the colorful clothes on hangers, and waste away precious morning time. I think I will give the system another go, and see if I can make this a habit. If you are like me, you wake up, get ready, and get to work within 30 minutes – with a 20 minute commute mind you. If I can make this system work, I can save the aimlessly-starting-at-the-closet routine for Sunday morning. I would recommend everyone give it a go!

April

Oh, for crying out loud.

Inspiring

I realize I'm (again) in danger of turning this into a blog about TV and weather, but really, we've had a zillion inches of snow up here. There's nothing else to talk about.

Now Netflix thinks I might want to watch "Inspiring Movies." I can only assume this is because I watched The Aggressives on demand twice in two days. (Side note: If you've seen The Aggressives and want to discuss it, let me know. I very much want to discuss it.)

It has a list of 50, in fact, to recommend to me. Here are the top 16:

• Stuart Little 3: Call of the Wild
• Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All by Myself
• 3 Ninjas: Kick Back
• Knucklehead
• Pay It Forward
• Free Willy 4: Escape from Pirate's Cove
• Racing Stripes
• The Pianist
• More Than a Game
• Saints and Soldiers
• Here on Earth
• Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price
• Bring It On Again
• Forever Strong
• La Bamba
• Over the Top

Um, what?

Brrrr...

This is for friend and frequent commenter Joe, who said "I want the occasional fall/early winter weather report from New England. ... Describe your surroundings as part of your posts, whether it's the joy you get from the changing hues of the leaves, or the pissah that it is to shovel snow before Thanksgiving."

Now, he said that back in early November, but we are still just a month into winter, so here's your thousand words:




Yes, folks, that's 24 degrees below zero.

Kate Gosselin = Murphy Brown + Maude + Liz Lemon, all in one!

People from warmer places may not know that it can get too cold to snow. But it does. And we've been in a cycle up here: snowing a lot, really cold, snowing a lot, really cold... you get the pattern.

The result is obviously me watching a lot of crappy TV via Netflix.

Netflix's weirdness in recommendations is well-documented, but lately, it's decided I would like "Reality TV Featuring a Strong Female Lead."

How do you suppose Netflix defines that?

In order (with my descriptions and comment in italics):

• "Say Yes to the Dress" (Season 5) A show about young brides to be blowing all the money in the universe on a dress they will wear once, often arguing with their mothers, sisters, and best friends about it. The image on the cover is of a man holding a dress. Go sisterhood!
• "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" (Season 3) I have neither seen this show nor heard a lot of chatter about it, so maybe I shouldn't judge, but it's about Paris Hilton's ex-friend (or makeup artist?) and her sisters, right? Who are pretty and also Bruce Jenner's stepdaughters? Or something?
  
• "Laguna Beach" (Season 1) Rich seemingly fake high school kids are mean to each other, except it's sort of reality, somehow.
  
• "The Hills" (Season 1) The same rich seemingly fake kids get jobs, ish, and continue to be mean.
  
• "Meerkat Manor" (Season 1) My understanding is that this show is literally about meerkats. I guess this is why they say "strong female lead" and not "strong woman lead."
• "Jon & Kate Plus Ei8ht" (Seasons 1 and 2) Unlike many people, I do not judge Jon & Kate for having a lot of children. I do judge them for being unpleasant, and I judge TLC for using an 8 in place of a g.
• "Curl Girls" Lesbian surfers. This is literally the only show on this list I might watch. Oh, who are we kidding? I absolutely will watch this.
• "Transamerican Love Story" Every elimination dating reality show, with a twist! Phenomenal transwoman Calpurnia Adams is the bachelorette! I will not watch this just because I want to keep loving Calpurnia. Also, spellcheck does not recognize "transwoman," "Calpurnia," or "bachelorette."
• "First Comes Love" Every plan-a-wedding-fast reality show, with a twist! The couples are the same sex as each other! Which means, presumably, not every episode even has a woman in it.

What are you watching to stay warm?

Let it slow

There's a lull between two snowstorms up here right now. It is a perfect day to snuggle under blankets, to sit beside a fire, to drink from the oversized mugs bzh gave me when I moved here three years ago, to put both giant Crock Pots to work and freeze the leftovers.

Round One of Crock Pottery will be recipes from friends who responded to the call on Facebook.

Round Two will be from you. So, share. What are your favorite slow-cooker recipes?