Kicked in the Teeth Again

 UPDATE: The bastard has been extracted. They even let me keep it. Maybe I'll hang it on the Christmas tree

Some of that's gauze, not entirely swelling. Came out in pieces. Hip hip hooray. Thanks for everyone's well wishes. The next few days will be rough, but hopefully now that it is out my sinuses and hearing will sort out. Never underestimate the power of a root canaled molar gone wrong. The surgeon was interesting-he gave me "Country Veterinarian" vibes, but he did the job so who cares? I chose to be awake for it because I'm a control freak and want to know what they're doing! The whole thing took maybe ten minutes. 

OK, I'm off to sleep and hoping over the counter pain meds will do the trick because the stronger stuff always makes me sick. 

Thanks for everyone's well wishes.

 

 Thanks everyone for indulging my bad poetry! I always thought I was here to make people laugh, but it turns out my role is produce cringe. Who knew? Hey, that's a nice wall, think I'll just go hit my head against it until things feel right again.

Yeah, well that didn't help but it is a decidedly different experience from a migraine so there's that. Variety is good, I'm told. Shall we just leap into outfits? Good!

This dress had a broken fabric loop at the neck where three buttons fasten. It was a repair that took less than a minute. It continues to shock me how lazy people are. Honestly, the high-low hemline isn't something I like, particularly with a sheer fabric that requires a slip. It took a bit of effort working out a length that would keep it from being see-through and not be visible through the mermaid like hem. I worked it out, but I'm tempted to cut that nonsense tail off and hem the thing to a reasonable length. 

Such a good print. 

Went with cloisonné accessories.

 Better look at that hem. It doesn't really add anything. If I'd noticed it in the shop the dress would have been left there. Oh well, that's what scissors are for.

The handbag was my mother's. As far as I could tell she never used it as a handbag, and it was filled with loose photos and postcards when I took it some thirty years ago. That makes sense, thinking back. Pastels dominated my mother's wardrobe, so a blue and orange bag while nice, would have been rarely used. I tend to use the bag more in summer, though I couldn't resist a perfect match with this dress. 

Staying with blue and orange for a bit, there's this wild blazer.

Jones New York did some oddball stuff in the early 2000s that stood out from their typical office appropriate offerings. It is much shinier and silkier in person. Think I'll try wearing it over a red sweater dress next time. The piece has potential even if I'm less than thrilled with what I did here.

Skirt is Star CCC that I purchased in the early 90s. Blouse is Pendleton Country Casuals from the 80s. Belt is Oroton. Shoes are from the 80s.

 

What's cooking?

Breaded tofu cutlets with a secret ingredient-a packet of Ranch dressing. For people outside the US, Ranch is a salad dressing flavour available ready made or powdered in a packet like I used here. It is a buttermilk/dill/paprika/onion blend that's quite beloved in the Midwest.I mixed the packet in with the breadcrumbs and baked the cutlets on an oiled sheet in a hot 400 degree F oven for about 30 minutes each side. Can't remember the last time I used Ranch to dress a salad, but I use it for everything from baking bread (great in a rye bread) to seasoning popcorn. The store's own brand is just as good as the Hidden Valley original, and that's what I buy. 

A frustratingly small amount of leftover curry became a fritata. Had a canister of fried onions and used them as a topping rather than cheese.

We don't waste food.

The cauliflower curry as originally presented. 

Both the cake and election went better than expected.

More a bread than cake as it is yeast risen, the tradition goes back to the early days of the country when election day would be an occasion to see your neighbours. It is heavy with brandy which might account for some of the popularity. Mine's made with sugar substitute and wholegrain flour so the diabetic could have some. Dan said it wasn't noticeable and he happily ate it as well. Once stale, I turned what was left into a bread pudding (as I'd done with the stale barmbrack from Halloween). 

These photos are going back a couple weeks, but I'm hoping no one will mind. That tooth has decided to resist antibiotic treatment and there's a three month wait to have it pulled. I'm going to call the dentist Monday morning and see if she can lean on any oral surgeons she knows to extract it sooner. It has been a bad weekend of face swelling and head pain but strangely enough, nothing from the tooth itself. Anyway, blogging is a nice distraction. I'll just plough through with a photo heavy post.

As I type I am not dressed and am in bed beneath a mountain of blankets wearing leggings, a sweater, and a fluffy bathrobe. But when I was getting dressed? Well, here's one.

Can't really go wrong with a wool skirt and cashmere sweater.

 Some 80s pieces here with an ultrasuede jacket and a very sheer polyester dress that required a full slip beneath.

 

A velvet and embroidery brooch to match a velvet and embroidery bag. I do love when accessories match.

This is a Guess Dress from the 90s. It is a LOT of dress.

I can't help but think it would be better on a taller person.

I doubt I'm going to grow at this point, but I've kept the dress because I like the print. I could try heels, I suppose.

Copper jewelry seemed like the right choice.

More true vintage, this time from the 70s.

The culottes are a bit large. When Dan was little he would pull his trousers up and run around yelling, "Old Man Pants!" Why do old men wear their trousers so high up anyway?!

Vintage earrings were a gift from my grandmother when I was sixteen. They've lost a bit of the plating, which I should look into having re-done. I've worn them quite a lot over the years.

Stupidly expensive retail, but I thrifted them for a few dollars at Goodwill. They don't work with most of my wardrobe, but I think they did here. My first impulse with culottes is always tall boots, but my second is clogs.

Yeah, I can't read that anymore and I've forgotten the maker, but I looked them up at the time of purchase. Including it here because someone always asks. Maybe the maker's mark is familiar to those in the know.

I did not make this cardigan, but someone did, with great care and detail. I'm always a bit dismayed when I see such beautiful hand made items in a thrift store. A lot of time and love went into it.

It is a very warm cardigan paired with a cashmere sweater.

The house does get cold during the day, but if I dress warmly and move around it isn't unbearable. I feel strange running the heat just for myself, but if it gets below 63 F (17.2 C) I will run the heat for a bit. I'm not suffering from some mental issue of feeling I don't deserve heat when others are suffering (probably) but this house has central forced air heat, and it all goes up to the third floor even if I close vents. That's not much use if I'm downstairs. Anyway, once everyone is home in the evening and doing things on all three floors, or sleeping upstairs, it makes more sense to run. It isn't like I'm risking hypothermia, and it wouldn't kill me to wear a coat and hat indoors. I have no qualms about running the air conditioning for myself, but heat is wasteful? Yeah, I don't know either😀.

Layers do wonders. It is unusual for Nebraska to be this cold, this early. We're expected to get back to more reasonable temperatures soon, but I can't think of another autumn in my 21 years here when I needed cashmere sweaters and my parka. Most years, there's perhaps one or two days all season that get cold enough for the heavy gear. Oh well, I suppose it is nice to wear some otherwise neglected items (how's that for putting a positive spin on things)?

70s cardigan with a 60s Jantzen wool sweater beneath,

Another cold day.

Some very bright corduroys.

Vintage label

An old vintage scarf and bag

Cold night sleeping attire with silly poses

There's a story about how I acquired this sweater involving a boat ride to Nantucket in rough seas on a freezing March day. No, I didn't want to go. Yes, I was cold. This sweater was the first thing I bought (after a hot drink) when we arrived. That's the short version. Thirty years on I'm still slightly annoyed. Haven't been on a boat since. My old man? He sat there with a bag of popcorn and a newspaper like it was a pleasure cruise in the tropics! The ride back was just as bad, but I had a warm sweater. It wasn't a short trip either-at least a couple hours from the Cape in the days before the high-speed ferry. Somewhere I have a photo of myself wearing the sweater on Nantucket looking absolutely miserable (I was). I'll have to look for it for a future post.

Moving along...

Faux fur, velvet dress worn as a duster, double knit skirt, cashmere sweater, wool shawl, velvet boots.

That's a lot of texture.

Another coat

View of my tiny kitchen

The outfit beneath

Back to the heavy sweaters

Vintage Gitano denim skirt

School teacher chic

Too much boobage beneath the knit. Darker under layer next time!

More layers

Another heavy wool sweater

Turkey from @Bethwaltz (Thank you, Beth!)

My one and only Liberty scarf. I don't know why they're so rare in our thrift stores?

Tapestry cross-body bag. I wonder, why was the body bag was upset?

Har har har.

Very old Liz Claiborne necklace. I bought it new, never liked it that much, but there are times when it is perfect, like here and it keeps surviving culls.

Blue leather boots from the 80s. They're comfortable, and I'm so glad I bought them. I was going to pass, but then thought blue boots are somewhat difficult to find. I think they cost under ten dollars.

I bought Snoots (snakeskin boots) but they're not real snakeskin, so I guess that makes them Fakeskin. Whatever. I liked how they looked with this skirt.

I had this bag (and matching accessories) in the 80s. Mine was a draw string bucket bag. I don't make a habit of re-buying things I owned decades ago, but I loved the handbag then, and am happy to have a version of it back in my life. I suspect this is a much later piece, but I don't care.

Better look at the faux tortoise buckle on the faux ostrich belt.

My poppy for Armistice/Veterans/Remembrance Day. It is a real poppy pressed under glass. Can't remember where I picked it up, but it was long ago.  

This hat from the previous post is something I made at least fifteen years ago. It Cthulhu, one of Lovecraft's characters. Anyway, it gets some strange looks from people but occasionally someone gets it.

Oh look, a stylish crossing guard.

That's a faux fur headband, not a hat. 

And that's about it for catching up. I'm sort of dreading what's ahead to deal with as it is going to be bad no matter what. The timing couldn't be worse with the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday and most people having Friday off as well. Anyway, if you're in the US I hope you have a nice holiday if you celebrate, and I hope to be back soon. 

Take care.