Tufted Puffins in the Wild

#NatureTwinning Part 70

Ever since the first time I wore this "chambray blue" knit top with my chambray blazer, I basically don't want to wear either piece any other way.  They are just a perfect combination.

Wednesday, 5/23/18

Paired with these neutrals, the coral red skirt really pops.

OCPW: $12.19

Tuesday, 7/17/18

I decided to try the Chambray Duo with navy pants for a very understated backdrop for this fancy bit of sparkle I bought at Loft.

OCPW: $12.17

Another perfect pairing--two tufted puffins, looking silly and awesome out of the water.

Although the "Wild" of the post title refers to a section of the St Louis Zoo, it so happens that Robert and I have seen actual wild tufted puffins--on our first pelagic birding trip!  This was the 14 hour trip in the Pacific Ocean that we took out of Westport, WA in August 2003.  Robert struggled rather desperately with seasickness for the entire trip (and I had the time of my life), but we saw SO MANY great sea birds.  When I analyzed the data back in 2011, that pelagic trip was my #3 top site for life birds at 18 species.  Only Hornsby Bend and Town Lake in Austin had gained me more life birds, and that was over a lot of different trips.  18 new species in 14 hours is damn good!

St Louis Zoo

In other news...Speaking of birds, I enjoyed this brief (2.5 minute) video about the haunting call (i.e., "the wail") of common loons on their North Woods summer territories (scroll to the bottom of the post for the video).  I still remember how startled Robert and I were when we heard it for the first time here in Minnesota.  The common loon makes for a very nice state bird.

From dnr.mn.state.us

Ibis at Simmons Aviary

#NatureTwinning Part 69

Pink and navy are a terrific summer color combination.  Here are two outfits featuring a navy sleeveless blouse and a pink polka dot cardigan.  I like that the sleeveless quality ensures no awkward bunching under the cardigan arm, but the blouse has a bit of a flounce along the edge of the armhole so if you take off the cardigan, you're not wearing a tank top or something at work.  Of course, people at my workplace are quite happy to wear tank tops and worse in the summer, and the HR people we share a floor with really lead the way.  For example, one woman was wearing a sundress (the kind that is basically a strapless dress but with tiny straps over the shoulder) and flip flops.  Sigh.

Tuesday, 5/22/18

Long pants that suit the spring weather and a floral scarf for some pattern mixing.

OCPW: $15.47

Monday, 7/16/18

With capri pants and a necklace for warm weather.  It was 82 freaking degrees in my office when I got to work (it can get quite bad over the weekend while the A/C is turned off, but this is the hottest indoor day yet) so I ended up dumping the cardigan within about 5 minutes.  I'm not sure that I put it on again for the rest of the day.  But it looked nice as I drove to work, walked across the parking lot, and took the elevator up to my office, right?

OCPW: $10.21

This ibis is rocking the bright pink with specks of white very well.  The Simmons Aviary at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha was pretty terrific--an exhibit where you can "see more than 500 birds in the world's second largest free-flight aviary."  This made me curious about where the world's largest free flight aviary is, and came across this discussion.  It appears that Simmons might actually be third (as of 2016), behind the ones at Birds of Eden in South Africa (5.7 acres) and Jurong Bird Park in Singapore (4.9 acres).  Both of those zoos sound like fabulous places to visit.  Maybe someday.

Henry Doorly Zoo

In other news...I enjoyed this (not overly technical) article about What's Going on in Your Child's Brain When You Read to Them based on a recent neuroscience study in which four year old kids' brains were scanned with a functional MRI machine while they were presented with an audio story (no pictures), the illustrated pages of a storybook with an audio voiceover (the condition that mimics a child being read to from a book), or an animated cartoon.  The storybook with voiceover condition led to the highest levels of connectivity among the visual perception, imagery, default mode (used for internal reflection), and language networks of the brain.

The takeaway:

In an ideal world, you would always be there to read to your child. The results of this small, preliminary study also suggest that, when parents do turn to electronic devices for young children, they should gravitate toward the most stripped-down version of a narrated, illustrated ebook, as opposed to either audio-only or animation.

Featherfin Squeaker

#NatureTwinning Part 68

I didn't purchase these two items with the idea that I'd wear them together, but I guess that became an obvious formula--a slightly oversized peplum top and semi-skinny capri pants.  That much volume on top relative to the bottom might not work for some people, but I think it looks fine on me.

*Dark aqua peplum top (Lands End), $16.99
* Black polished capris (Kohls), $19.99

Thursday, 5/24/18

Today's two outfits are a nice demonstration of early summer versus mid summer dressing.  The top and pants are the same, but I've added a blazer to the early summer version (which helps de-puff this rather volumetric shirt)...

OCPW: $23.90

Wednesday, 7/11/18

...and I've added just a scarf (tied low so it's not too warm) to the mid summer version.  A loose, all-cotton shirt is probably the most perfect thing for me to wear to work during the hot season (when it's routinely 76-78 F in my office).

OCPW: $11.57

Is the featherfin squeaker a great name or what?  This is a type of catfish that can swim upside down at will.  It is called squeaker "because they can produce a squeaking sound as a warning to both predators and competitors during spawning time.  The speaking is accomplished by rubbing the spines of its pectoral fins into grooves on its shoulders."  The featherfin part of the name is due to its dorsal fin that "develops lacy extensions on the adults."  Of course, this guy is keeping his featherfin down in an attempt to fool us.

Newport Aquarium

In other news...Tam sent this article on a EQ perennial favorite topic--that "follow your passion" is bad career advice.  This one gets extra points for tying it to new psychological research showing that when people have the idea that their interests are "fixed" (existent from birth, for a person to discover), they more easily lose interest in things and have a more limited view of potentially compatible career areas than people who subscribe to the idea that interests are something that can be developed over time.

If this growth mind-set vs. fixed mind-set contrast sounds familiar, extra points to you--the research comes from the same psychologist who has published so much on growth and fixed intelligence mind-sets.

Orange Zinnias

#NatureTwinning Part 67

Today's outfits feature my thrifted navy/coral/green floral pleated skirt, which is probably my current Very Favorite Skirt, a new light coral t-shirt, and my big-ass crystal bib necklace.  I'm pretty surprised to find that I had worn these core 3 items together within just over a month from each other, but I clearly thought it was a winning combination.  What do you think?

*Coral short-sleeved T (JCP), $6.80

Friday, 6/1/18

A casual Friday version in calmer colors: a denim shirt/"jacket" in honor of Friday and rather sedate (by my standards) medium blue flats let the bright t-shirt peaking out the front pop.

OCPW: $13.18

Monday, 7/9/18

A full-on, wake-up-it's-Monday version with additional bright colors: an aqua cardigan and orange flats that balance the t-shirt and, to my eye, make the dark patterned skirt stand out by contrast.

OCPW: $6.02

It's nice when I actually know the flowers in the photo and don't have to try my luck with an image search of dubious accuracy.  I love the variety of shades of pink/coral/peach/yellow in this photo.  I have usually seen bright orange or yellow zinnias, but these softer pastels are very lovely.

Missouri Botanical Garden

In other news...Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham is not the usual young adult fiction I gravitate toward.  It's a novel about the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921 with dual storylines--one set in the present with a mixed race girl narrator (and her asexual male friend, which you basically never see in fiction) and the other a tale of the events of 1921 as seen by a white teenage guy who gets more caught up by things than he wanted.

I will not state that this book was perfect in its handling of this material (I'm not sure what perfect would look like in any case), but the story was more compelling than I would have expected.

One thing I learned is that the Greenwood area of Tulsa was known as "Black Wall Street" (prior to the race riot) because it had such a high concentration of black-owned businesses and was arguably the most economically prosperous black community in the country.

Maybe Globe Thistle

#NatureTwinning Part 66

This loose sleeveless blouse with a tie-neck and a small peplum at the bottom was hard to resist for $10.  I'd actually ordered it several months before (at a somewhat higher price) but it sold out.  So when I saw it back up on the JCP website, I tried it again.  Sleeveless is perfect for wearing under a long-sleeved cardigan in the warm (not yet hot) season, and also works extremely well with a short-sleeved cardigan later on...as demonstrated in these two outfits.

*Black/aqua/pink floral sleeveless blouse (JCP), $9.79

Wednesday, 5/30/18

My absolute first instinct was to pair it with this dark teal cardigan that has rather tight sleeves (hence it is best suited to a sleeveless shirt) so I don't wear it as much as I'd like these days.  But with a sleeveless bottom layer, it was very comfortable as well as dramatic and took center scene worn with a black knit pencil skirt.

OCPW: $13.18

Wednesday, 6/20/18

This outfit has a bit more going on with the gold/purple medallion necklace and leopard print shoes.  The subtle dark heathered print on the purple skirt was a nice print mix with the bold, watercolor-looking floral pattern.

OCPW: $10.91

"Maybe globe thistle" was as close as I could come to identifying this silky/spiky pom-pom-headed purple-blue flower.

Los Angeles Arboretum

In other news...I had to wait about 2.5 months for my hold on Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman as an e-book from my library to come through, but it was well worth the wait.  When I started reading this book, I really didn't want to put it down...which is actually a very rare experience for me.

It was a pleasure to read a book with a "quirky" female protagonist where quirky means "socially rigid recluse dressed in elderly librarian cast-offs, obsessed with cryptic crosswords and vodka, and with a tendency to make unintentionally hilarious observations" rather than Manic Pixie Dream Girl or some other stereotype.  (I mean, I like Zooey Deschanel in New Girl a lot, but it's nice to have some variety, you know?)

Here is a good review.  I was surprised to learn that the author started writing after turning 40, producing 3 chapters of the book to submit to a competition for unpublished female writers and finishing the book in the evenings and lunch breaks around her office job.

Orange Flower Close Up

#NatureTwinning Part 65

I have to say, this bright coral orange blazer is not the most obvious color for me to wear, but I like it.  I haven't worn the blazer as much as I should because I wasn't really fond of the orange + black Halloween combination that was my default.  But now that I've added a bunch more navy to my closet, it's a lot easier to wear.  In these outfits, I paired it with leopard print shoes (which is, as they say, functionally a neutral).

Monday, 5/21/18

Color Coordination 101: Wear a blouse with a print, then pull out two of the colors from the print to wear for your bottoms and topper.  Add simple jewelry and you're done.

OCPW: $14.42

Friday, 7/6/18

This outfit was dead simple, but I like how the blazer stands out against a backdrop of navy, and the gold necklace really shines.

OCPW: 10.19

Google Images returned the appallingly incorrect identification for this flower--calendula (marigold).  It doesn't look anything like that, with multiple layers of narrow leaves.

Indianapolis Zoo

In other news...I wore the second outfit above on the Friday that we celebrated/mourned the last day in our office for our (hugely over-qualified) admin, who is moving with his fiancee to new jobs in North Carolina.  It's been weeks since our assistant director (my manager) left, and it's been hard without him at times, but to function for any length of time without an admin will be really hard!  I hope that our department head will be able to get the job posted soon.  We've been lucky to have someone recently who was able to do all the admin tasks plus help out with other tasks, so it's going to take some effort on our part of recalibrate our expectations.

But the good news is that we finally have a start date for the new assistant director, August 13!

Mysterious Little Blue Bird

#NatureTwinning Part 64: Denim shirt

I see blog posts that suggest wearing a denim jacket in all kinds of summer situations that make me wonder, Where the hell do you people live?  Because after May, a denim jacket is just too warm for me.  (Of course, it doesn't help that my office is routinely 76+ degrees in the summer.)  But this 3/4 sleeve denim shirt (with pearl buttons that always remind me of my Granddad's western-style dress shirts that he wore square dancing, in a good way) is light-weight enough to be a great substitute.  I'm so committed to it as functionally a denim jacket that I've moved it to the Jackets/Blazers section of my wardrobe Excel file, people.

Friday, 5/18/18

I wasn't crazy about the (high) crew neck Ts compared to the V necks that I ordered from Kohls and ended up returning all of them, I think, except this one.  I just loved the large but delicate looking floral design on a chambray blue background.

(Confession: I haven't actually returned them yet.  They are in a box, along with two other boxes, in my hallway, waiting to be returned.  I suck.)

*Light blue/pink floral T (Kohls), $4.99

OCPW: $8.70

Friday, 6/22/18

I would have paid quite a bit more than $3 for this top.  It's sleeveless, so it works well as a summer layering piece for work, but it's also sufficiently non-skimpy to be a stand-alone piece on the weekend.  The rest of it is long and loose without looking totally shapeless.  Plus it's got stripes and a cute peplum.  I would have bought one in every color for $3 each...I mean, if that were how thrift stores worked.

*Light blue and white striped sleeveless peplum top (thrifted, Target), $2.99

OCPW: $9.36

Another little bird that has defied identification.  It's such an unusual soft blue-green-grey color.

Cincinnati Zoo

In other news...So I've discovered...well, *realized*...that my computer is ancient.  Too ancient to play Fallout 4.  My video card is 1k, but Fallout 4 requires 2k and recommends 4k.  Oops.  But I have determined that Fallout: New Vegas is sufficiently old (2010) that it will play on my machine.  I was very disappointed at first that I couldn't play Fallout 4--which I've been kind of watching Robert play for a couple weeks.

But then I decided that since I do want to play Fallout NV (which I've owned since February 2016!) at some point because it the consensus is that it is the best storyline in the Fallout series (and more on the role-playing-game end of the role-playing-game vs. first-person-shooter continuum), it's probably better to play it first, then the more visually-sophisticated Fallout 4, rather than the other way around.  But it's going to take me another week or so of not seeing Fallout 4's graphics to start playing Fallout NV and not find it visually undesirable.

I'm probably going to need to buy another computer in a bit, but I'm OK with waiting until after I finish Fallout NV (which will take months).

And if I find the older graphics difficult to handle, I can play it on Robert's 2 year old gaming laptop with a mod that brings it up to 4k graphics.  I have no idea how they do these things, but it looks pretty good!

Spotted Hyena at Rivers Edge

#NatureTwinning Part 63--Beige Cardigan and Brown Jeans

For my own amusement, and because I am so far behind on my outfits, I am going to try posting outfits that share items together for a while, rather than continuing to post chronologically.  I like it when other people post "3 Outfits with a Red Sweater" or whatever, and although they are often purposely attempting to show the versatility of a single item, I'm curious to see how different (or similar) my outfits are, and which iterations worked best.

Tuesday, 5/15/18

Loved the red/brown/beige combination, and this scarf makes me happy.

*Beige short-sleeved open weave cardigan (thrifted, Target), $3.74

OCPW: $13.71

Thursday, 6/26/18

I liked the brown top + brown jeans pseudo-jumpsuit combination here, but (1) I'm not always happy with the lighter cardigan on a darker base (whereas in the previous outfit, the red shirt functioned more like a "bright" than a "dark") and (2) I decided at the last minute to wear this scarf that I haven't worn a lot and seeing the photo, I can understand why--I just flat do not like this scarf.  It's too skimpy and the colors are just not great to work with.  I'm tired of trying to find some magical combination that makes me enjoy it.  (I had such a magical combination like 6 years ago, but I do not see that happening again.)  Adios, scarf!

OCPW: 13.28

A hyena gives a master class in wearing brown and beige.

St Louis Zoo

In other news...On the subject of hyenas, I just finished reading the first book in the new Philip Pullman Book of Dust trilogy, La Belle Sauvage.  It's been so long ago that I read the Dark Materials trilogy (apparently there was a 17 year gap between the end of that series and the start of this one!) that I basically don't remember who Lyra (who appears in this book as a baby) even was.  So although I was already familiar with some aspects of the world--daemons, alethiometers, Mrs. Coulter--it wasn't like everything was ringing the bells like it would for someone with a better memory for the previous books.

But even standing sorta alone, the book was enjoyable, if perhaps not as enjoyable as I recall His Dark Materials being...even though a lot of the action took place on a boat (canoe) and I of course found the protagonist (an 11 year old boy) very likable.  That said, I'll still be looking for the next one in the series.

What do hyenas have to do with anything?  One of the characters has a (very disturbing) hyena daemon.

One moment that I absolutely adored, however, was when the boy hero's sidekick asks him "What's that?" and (recognizing it from a book he's read or something) he responds "A mausoleum."  But because he's never heard that word said aloud, he's only read it, he pronounces it to rhyme with linoleum.

I asked Robert if he remembers any words he mispronounced as a child from encountering it first in books and he offered up two fabulous examples:
(1) Chaos pronounced to rhyme with mouse
(2) Misled pronounced like "mizzled"

I know I must have done this too, but I don't have any specific ones I remember.  However, I do know that as an adult I have mispronounced Russian names from literary titles--both Karenina and Karamazov, I'm sure of.

How about you?

It Feels Wrong

...to be a month behind on posting outfits.  Do I persevere?  OK

#NatureTwinning Part 62

Chilean Wine Palm--Thursday, 5/10/18

The idea was that the aqua pants would pick up the subtle lighter blue color in the center of the flowers.  Maybe that was too subtle.

Outfit cost per wear (OCPW): $11.54

There was nothing subtle about the myriad palm trees we encountered in Los Angeles, though.

Los Angeles Arboretum

In other news...The findings of a recent study on the effectiveness of PreK programs surprised me and the economist conducting the research, as reported here.  (Caveat: I was unable to get the link to the entire paper to work for me, so I'm going with what was reported.)

A lot of people favor using PreK money to target the most needy (low income) students, as that group of kids enters kindergarten with an academic deficit compared to higher income students that is extremely difficult to make up.  (A lot of these kids just fall farther and farther behind their higher income peers as the years go on.)  Universal PreK programs don't seem to be necessary because students from the middle class and up don't need the boost academically, and extending paid PreK to all these students would be very expensive.  This logic makes sense to me.

But a new study that compares the outcomes for low income students in states with targeted programs to low income students in states with universal programs suggests that the universal approach might be better.  Controlling for the other demographic factors that you expect, etc., she finds that universal programs increase reading ability for low income kids but targeted programs do not.  (Universal programs have a positive but not statistically significant effect for math ability while targeted programs show no effect.)  Critically, she finds that the universal programs are also more cost effective than targeted programs, even though they are much more expensive, because the academic gains for low income students are so much greater in the universal programs.

These outcomes surprise me--especially the cost-benefit analysis--but they are in keeping with other things I've read about the beneficial effects for black students attending non-segregated schools.  In both cases, disadvantaged students do better when they are in programs with a significant number of more advantaged students than when they are in programs with only/mostly other disadvantaged students.

In the PreK case, it also makes sense that the greater benefit of higher income peers would occur for reading, since students in a class together would interact using language (not math), and it's well-known that students from low income households have less exposure to words overall and advanced vocabulary in particular than higher income students.

I think it's also worth considering whether higher income/white parents are more effective at placing pressure on teachers/schools to do their jobs well and ensuring that schools/classrooms are well resourced (e.g., through PTA organizations that supplement public funds, through political pressure, or more informally).  There are probably other effects I'm not thinking of right now.

Do the results of this study sound reasonable to you?  Any thoughts on what might driving the results?