It took me a while to get around to wearing this new pink sweater from my Loft haul because the weather would not cooperate. But it's finally cooled down enough for me to sport this cotton/viscose/nylon/wool blend sweater.
*Dusky pink pullover sweater (Loft), $24.75/wear
Brown leaf skirt (thrifted, Talbots), $0.71/wear
Brown tights
Brown pointy-toed flats by Frye, $5.29/wear
White polka dot scarf (Target), $1.78/wear
Outfit total: $32.58/wear
As you can see, it has a more relaxed fit, which I'm digging in combination with a pencil skirt. (The somewhat flared bottom works well with someone well-endowed with hips.) I like the differing textures--the smooth arms and the waffle-knit body. I surprised myself quite a bit by gravitating toward this dusky pink color, which is not an obvious choice for me. But the teal and turquoise were too close to the cobalt and aqua sweaters I already have, and I am well set for black and grey as well. I have been wanting a navy sweater, and thinking about it, I should have bought that one too, but for whatever reason, this pink one is what I gravitated toward. I can already tell it will be quite versatile, so no regrets...except maybe regret that I didn't also pick up the navy one.
This lovely photo (including orange leaves like my skirt) was taken last month on the grounds of a museum where my mom, Robert, and I went birding. I had left my camera in the car, so after we were done with our bird walk, I grabbed my camera and went back to take this photo, thankfully avoiding the giant spider web that blocked one area of the boardwalk. Seeing the result, I think my extra effort was worth it.
In other news...Today was a cluster fuck at work, in which I realized a colleague had gone into my folder on the shared drive and screwed up the files I need for a project that has to be finished by Friday. ARGH. I have requested a backup of the files from last Friday, which I hope will be prior to the ruining, and with any luck I will get them in the morning. But I've now lost a day of work. For this, I need an extra dose of bunny.
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| Screwing up your coworker's files makes sad mini lop even sadder. |
In unrelated news...Tam sends this article with the ultimate Trader Joe's shopping hack. Amusing, but in my experience, not applicable to TJ's in my area. I haven't had any of the bad things listed in the article occur. Is shopping at TJ's an unpleasant experience in other parts of the country? Is it in yours? Despite that disconnect, I do think it's a helpful reminder that many TJ's products are available in identical or very similar forms in other stores. Also, yes, food is not magically healthier because it is sold at Trader Joe's, halo effects to the contrary.
My major issue with Trader Joe's is that they do not sell pumpkin doughnuts, even seasonally. On a visit a couple months ago, they had (I am probably under-reporting here) 50 different things that were pumpkin flavored, but no doughnuts. So disappointing. This would be more problematic if I were a regular doughnut eater, of course. But I was seriously shocked that they didn't offer pumpkin doughnuts during a period when huge banners and signs were hanging all over the store celebrating the Pumpkin Season. A pumpkin season without pumpkin doughnuts is utterly nonsensical.
My other issue with Trader Joe's (and to a lesser extent, Whole Foods) is that I do not want the clerk to ask me a bunch of questions about what I'm doing for the weekend, etc. I'm sure many people read this as friendly and engaging, but I'm like, Ergh, now I am expected to make small talk with yet another random stranger? I have become proficient at making small talk with people in my apartment building and people I don't know in the elevator at work. I struggle with hair dressers (because the experience takes so long). But I am just fine if my relationship with the person ringing up my groceries is purely transactional! For example, I find the usual routine of "Hi" and "Paper of plastic?" and "Here you go (hands receipt)" that I get with the average Target clerk to be just right.
10 comments:
Loved that article. We used to try to go there but two different stores had nightmare parking. As in you couldn't park. Then in NYC? That line just to get in the store is real! Screw that. The best groceries in NY were ordered online and delivered anyway. We haven't tried the TJ's near us now. But I get put off by the plastic wrapped produce too. We prefer Whole Foods, although the cost difference is remarkable. 😕
Interesting, Jen--I wonder if it's a coastal thing. One advantage of flyover country: short lines at Trader Joe's :)
I also enjoyed that article; I really liked the writing style. Our Trader Joe's was like that during the first week that the first one opened. Now they are very pleasant and no more crowded than any other store (all of them are somewhat crowded on Sunday afternoons). I have heard they are crazy crowded in NYC.
Ours have NEVER been crowded in my experience. Though the one close to home is busier than the one near work.
I still have not actually been to one.
So more support for the flyover hypothesis.
Tam--GASP! The first we went to IIRC was while we were on vacation in Arizona and needed to stop for a few groceries, and that was the store we saw. We were familiar with the brand by reputation (e.g., 2 buck chuck).
Robin and I also first went to one in Arizona. Robin was there for driving lessons at a race-track thingy and TWO of the restaurants we went to were closed (one for the whole time we were there). And then I remembered they had some Trader Joe's and so we got some frozen dinners there and microwaved them at the hotel. We had to seek one out.
Then second time was when I was visiting my sister in Indianapolis. (We also went to a Penzy's, and it turns out there's a Penzy's right in Austin.) (We like to look up well-reviewed places when we travel.)
I wasn't really impressed either time, but now there are quite a few things I really like from there. I especially like that no TJ-brand things have any hydrogenated vegetable oil or growth hormones in them. There is something to be said for mostly going to stores that are handy, though.
I used to favor their almond butter, back when I was blissfully unaware of the kidney stones I was developing by eating nuts. Now we (read: Robert) mostly stops there for my grass-fed ground beef, which is cheaper there than at Target.
Nowhere I've lived has had a Trader Joe's until now. Even now, I live in this weird "hole" in the city, where there are a bunch of Trader Joe's 9 to 10 miles away, in various directions. The same is true of Whole Foods and Unitarian churches.
Is it just me or do those things seem to go together?
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