Almost Cut My Hair

Were it up to me, it would be Halloween year round. For someone that more or less has been dressing strange her entire life, you wouldn't think the holiday would be all that appealing, but that's where holiday-specific clothing comes in. I succumbed to this hoodie partly because it was made of a super-soft material, but mostly because of the black cats,. I don't plan to pack it away after Halloween. My skin is so dry and rough, anything that feels good next to it is welcome. 

We had a few cool days where it was possible to wear trousers without wanting to die, but we've since been plunged right back into the heat. Before that happened, I put together an outfit on the assumption that both camouflage and animal prints function as wardrobe neutrals. I must say, I was delighted with how it came together. Don't worry-I haven't joined the army. I'm certain they wouldn't have me even at the most desperate. 

 In my mind I could probably throw someone across a room, but in actual hand-to-hand fighting I'd likely lose. Maybe. It would depend how angry I was and how many cups of tea I'd had that morning. I still regret not punching the neo nazi at the Cheese Castle. 

Getting the last few wears in for the white accessories before autumn. I don't subscribe to the rule of not wearing white after labour day, but realistically, by September I want to wear more autumnal shades even if the weather is still blazing hot. Most years it stays warm here into October. 

Dan went to school for the first time this year today for his ID photo, picking up materials, etc. They have the first full day on Wednesday. My husband's office is planning to return in the middle of September but with cases rising so quickly now, I suspect they'll keep working remotely. They're data people-no one really needs to be in the office though I understand why they would want to be. Hell, I want him to go back. I'm looking forward to the possibility of cleaning without having to work around one or both of them. Anyway, Dan was excited and he has a busy year of AP (Advanced Placement) classes and extracurricular activities. He interned this summer with NOISE a local media outlet and will probably continue working with them during the year. He's also starting his third year on the school paper.

The driving school didn't go well last summer, so I'm not pushing him to go for a test. When he's ready, he'll do it. Not everyone is suited to driving. That means I'm doing the school run again this year, but I don't mind. Having a reason to get up, dressed, and out the door is good for me, especially after spending the better part of last year at home. I just found out I qualify for a third dose of vaccine because I am taking medications that suppress my immune system. That's welcome news. I'm still wearing N95 masks when out in public, and I don't really give (as the American saying goes) "A rat's ass" whether anyone likes it or not. 

The carton of forgotten clothes from Dan's room is still yielding interesting items. I remember buying this dress in the early 2000s, shortly after moving to Nebraska. September will be twenty years that we've been here. Twelve of those years were spent on a farm in rural Nebraska which is a different experience to living in Omaha. I'm very happy in the city, but I don't know that I would have wanted to go through a pandemic surrounded by people that don't accept science as real. We have those types in the city too, just not in such great numbers.

But good dress, right? The strapless bra could be better. I just bought it a month ago and it is already too big. This is getting to be such a damn pain in the behind (well, actually the esophagus and guts but yeah) but eventually it will get straightened out. I really hope I don't need a hospital anytime soon because they're filled up again with covid patients. Bloody fools. Plenty of vaccines and masks that the rest of the world is forced to do without and we're...sigh. I live next door to a medical college and this week the students are all back on campus. I admire their determination because after seeing that much illness and death only to be faced with people insisting it isn't real-I couldn't do it. Our state has stopped reporting the cases from across the state because they think by denying it maybe it will just go away?! Douglas County (where I live) still posts a daily tally of cases on the health department website with details about whether people were vaccinated, age, etc. It makes it hard for schools and businesses to do the right thing for safety if they don't have any actual data to look at. Argh. I really hope I don't get sick enough to need the hospital again. 

Sorry about the rant-here, have some cake. 

Cooking for both Mr. ETB's and Danny's dietary restrictions has been challenging, but I came up with a cake that was sugar free and low carb for Mr. ETB and dairy free for Danny. I don't have much experience baking with almond flour but the few things I've made have been well received. There are good quality sugar replacements today that taste like sugar and won't spike blood glucose levels. Lily's is a brand of sugar free chocolate that he enjoys and says he would eat whether he needed suagrless or not. That's good to know. So far no one was had any intestinal effects from the artificial sweetener. The margarine is a vegan store-brand that seems to hold up nicely in baking. Sometimes I just use vegetable shortening. Anyway, this was successful (Obviously I didn't try it) and they both enjoyed having a bit of a treat. It was really bothering me because I'm a good baker and I couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong. I've also experimented with coconut flour, which seems promising. Oat milk and coconut milk make acceptable replacements for cream in most cases. It does feel a bit like learning to cook all over again, but we're getting there. I don't typically bake much in the summer anyway. 

Mirror selfies like the kids do? Sure, why not? Should probably dust the mirror though.

It was late in the day and the skirt creased a bit. This is another vintage Lily Pulitzer from the 60s. It really isn't my usual kind of thing but in the heat of summer they're comfortable to wear. 

I'm a little embarrassed to admit this dress had been in my mending pile since the last time I wore it in August of 2017. Here's how I wore it then-pretty much the same.

The dress is by Mexican designer Paco Silva who made resort wear in the 80s. 

The dress is made from the loveliest, heavyweight linen and sequins are sewn on well and don't shed. That's always a surprise. The print is a subtle pink colour that doesn't scream, but gets the message across. Now that I've made the very small five minute repair of mending a seam, I hope to wear it a bit more often. A dress like this will easily stretch into autumn and work again in spring. I don't remember where I found it, but if I had to guess I'd say Hand Me Ups as it is nicer than the typical Goodwill piece. 

Before I dance off, I'll show you my latest idea of a hairstyle-the 90s staple, the Claw Clip. I mean, if I was wearing scunchiers it was only a matter of time before I embraced the claw. My hair is very thin, but I found some good ones that don't slip through my hair. What's next I wonder, an Alice band perhaps? Time will tell. In honour of David Crosby turning 80 (!!!) I almost cut my hair the other day, but I didn't and now I'm gonna let my freak flag fly (in a plastic claw clip). Who the hell ever thought David Crosby would make it to 80?