Data Fix

OK, these late-winter outfits are starting to look crazy given the warm weather recently (though today it only reached 50 F), so let's push on through this!

#NatureTwinning Part 50

Roseate Spoonbills at Simmons Aviary--Monday, 4/2/18

I actually enjoy wearing a white skirt more during tights season than I do the more traditionally appropriate Memorial Day to Labor Day period.  (This may be because I like a degree of contrast that my pale legs do not offer.)  I bought this one from Walmart.com, where they have a strange selection of apparel, often sized like you see for the Chinese market (size up, then size up again).  But for $6.00, I can ignore the label.

I bought these magnificent burgundy/maroon tights during a lucky tights-shopping spree at our Pokemon Go mall.  The end of the season is a good time to snatch them up on discount, and I was happy that multiple stores had a better-than-usual selection of larger-size tights.  (Often, you can only get black, or they don't have ones that will work for women on the tall side, or whatever stupid limitation.)  Seeing this tights + ankle boots combination is kind of making me eager for fall, when I can wear it again.

*White skirt (Walmart), $6.00

Outfit cost per wear (OCPW): $13.99

It was fun to see these spoonbills, which I associate with the waters of the Texas coast, hanging out on a roof.

Henry Doorly Zoo

Decorative Cabbages--Tuesday, 4/3/18

OK, I recognize that the "mint" of this scarf and the "mint" of this vest are really not at all the same color, but I was fine with that.  I was also mixing up stripes, floral, and leopard print.

OCPW: $10.45

Looking at these cabbages made me wonder at Google: Are decorative cabbages....edible, it auto-completed--yes, I guess that's a common question.  The answer?  They are edible, though they are more bitter than the kinds we tend to eat.  They are, in fact, the same species as edible cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli, Brassica oleracea.  To which I say, Wait, cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli are the same species?  Apparently this species includes kale, Brussel sprouts, collard greens, and kohlrabi (among others) as well!  It took only a couple thousand years of artificial selection for people to develop all these varied plants from the original wild cabbage. 

I wondered whether this shared history would mean that these veggies have similar oxalate levels.  Looks like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts are all fairly low in oxalate.  Collard greens and kale are a bit higher (though still a ton lower than spinach aka The Kidney Stone Maker).  So these are all veggies I could happily eat, though I think I will leave their bitter decorative brethren to beautify zoo landscaping.

Indianapolis Zoo

Baby Giraffe Tongue--Wednesday, 4/4/18

I'm amused by how this salmon-pink skirt, against the light brown + beige background of clothing and carpet, looks like a bit like it time traveled from the 1980s, when neon reigned supreme.

Plus: scarf with overhand knot revisited.  Still liking it.

OCPW: $8.96

No pink in this photo!  The baby giraffe's tongue is that strange purplish-black some animals have as protection from sunburn.

Cincinnati Zoo

In other news...It was interesting to read how central data science is to the Stitch Fix business model.  Also a bit depressing to see how difficult it was for the founder to find venture capitalists to support her business due to their general apathy for retail and women's fashion.  Also sad?  The CEO is kind of proud that 35% of data scientists and 32% of engineers at the firm are women--yes, the numbers are still that low at a company that sells women's clothing.