The Space Between My Peers

I’ve been tagged by Vyque of Fasshonaburu.  Here’s what I’m supposed to do:

* Link the person who tagged you - check.
* Mention the rules in your blog - check.
* Tell about six unspectacular quirks of your’s - see below.
* Tag a new set of six following bloggers by linking them:

1. Janel at Pearls
2. Damselfly at Growing a Life
3. Jennifer S at Family Musings
4. The Queen of The Duchy of Burgundy Carrots
5. Polly, the Chick in the Country
6. My sister, just because I am really interested in what her quirks are.

* Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged - check

Six unspectacular quirks o’ mine:

1. My big insecurity in life is the possibility that there will not be a place for me.  Wedding receptions can induce panic.
2. (My hero says) when I get nervous, I put on more makeup.
3. I really admire women who are so naturally beautiful they don’t have to wear makeup, and every now and again I pretend I am one.  he hee.
4. I like change.  And not just the coinage kind. 
5. Instead of getting more comfortable with things, the more I perform certain types of tasks, the more afraid I am of messing them up. 
6. I have music picked out for my funeral.  Listen here.  I like the Jars of Clay version, but was interested to find an Emmylou Harris YouTube (small world since I have her haircut)

   When I go, don’t cry for me
   In my Father’s arms I’ll be
   The wounds this world left on my soul
   Will all be healed and I’ll be whole.
   Sun and moon will be replaced
   With the light of Jesus’ face
   And I will not be ashamed
   For my Savior knows my name.

   It don’t matter where you bury me,
   I’ll be home and I’ll be free.
   It don’t matter where I lay,
   All my tears be washed away.

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Recently received via email:

What do you get for the bride taking the plunge in today’s flailing economy? Brides are less consumed with blenders and toasters, and more concerned with cash. Brides-to-be don’t have time to run from store to store creating registry lists, and those buying for the couple probably don’t have the time to go to five different stores the soon-to-be newlyweds are registered at.

MyRegistry.com saves time for all involved in wedding registry. The site allows users to create one all-inclusive registry, you can include items from any store in the world and compile everything in one, organized registry. Those buying for the couple who feel that perhaps a cash gift would be more sensible than another ten-speed blender can deposit a cash gift on the website, a feature that sets MyRegistry apart from the competition.

Link to MyRegistry.com FAQs

Myself? I always give the same gift. And I’m embarrassed to say I’ve been paying more for it.

Any NT’ers reading? Wannabes? I know bonnie makes kefir and drinks it with coffee. This spring I have become mistress to a batch of grains, continued experimenting with soaking flour, and resumed sprouting. Next up: fermented vegetables. How’d you like to receive a jar of peppery, fermented pickles as a wedding gift?  LOL

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Does God speak to you through your car radio? Strange question, but it’s amazing how often some random program can get me thinking. Like the program I heard on Moody radio (listen here), about the book Making Peace With Your Thighs: Get Off the Scales and Get On with Your Life.

A couple of thoughts:

1. Dressing your body as a shape, rather than a collection of parts, is a practical way of thinking holistically about your body.
2. Men aren’t attracted to stick women, but rather by confidence.
3. The biggest “mood disrupter” among women? Gaining weight!

I will add to that last one, though, for me, the biggest mood disrupter, or the thing that most often puts me in a bad mood, is being left out. How about you?

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I’m home. Leaving Trieste Tuesday morning (April the 8th) around 6:30 am and arriving in Spokane Tuesday evening around 9:30 pm combined with the 9 hour time difference had us traveling for 24 hours straight, the vast majority of which was daylight!

On the return trip I wore the same comfy black slacks and slip-on flats, but I paired them with a very light cotton button-up shirt over a tank and a cashmere cardigan which I was able to take off and roll up and store in my carry-on if need be. It was just the thing.

Concerning jet lag, I have very little experience in the finer points of adjusting. Going to Italy didn’t prove to be any kind of problem (the espresso?), but I’m told coming this direction is much worse. I tried unsuccessfully yesterday afternoon to take a nap and found I was fine until about 8 pm (I think the daylight makes far more difference than I realized). Tonight I will try to go to bed when it gets dark.

What other tips do you have to offer?

More pics coming soon.

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I think I’m Italian.  That is, there are alot of things about the life and culture here that I prefer, not the least of which is their style.  But I digress.  The real reason for this post is just personal.  I’m having a great time, but today I started to get homesick. 

No doubt it would be worse if my daughter hadn’t been able to come with me.  No doubt it would be better if I hadn’t accidentally hit the capslock key when I was trying to log in to facebook, persisting too many times, and ended up getting locked out.  I’m not certain I will be able to conquer that beast before I get back to Spokane. 

Facebook friends, if you see this “note”, pop on over to the blog (betweenmypeers.com) and say ‘hi’!

So, what is this melancholy we call homesickness?  How do you experience it?

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It’s snowy! I’m half-packed (not half-baked!) and I’m heading to MOPS wearing a variation of this outfit, which sweater I thought was long put away for the season. But fair isle and sequins somehow seem appropriate today.

Recently I’ve been surprised to see alot of ladies running around in fun rain-type boots. In my mind they are always uncomfortable; are the new styles better? My younger daughter has been looking for years for the kind with the little handles to pull them on, too bad so many cute things only come in little kids sizes. But these come in women’s and are only $19.99 at Target. They would have been perfect for this snowy spring day.

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I picked them up yesterday; each and every family member visibly relaxed when I tried them on for them. After I at least pluck my eyebrows, I’ll try to get someone to shoot me in them.

In the meantime, here is a picture:

They look sort of pinkish here, but they aren’t. They really are just black and white.

Any thoughts on why they look normal on me?

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Let’s start with the bad news:

• there’s been a death in the family (my hero’s grandfather).
• the trench doesn’t want to iron. I’m not giving up yet, but it’s not looking good (labeling says ‘do not iron, do not dry clean’). Suggestions?
• I have an abundance of work to do yet on my taxes, and some complications to work through.

The good news:

• $1 Monday at Value Village: I found a pair of black pants. For a ministry I’m involved in, I need black pants at least a half-dozen times per year. And now that I have decided on a black and white palette for spring black pants are more of a “must-have” for my wardrobe, as they are for many of the rest of you. These are Eddie Bauer, fit very nicely, and are super-soft cotton.
• my new glasses are done. That should help alot with the reading necessary to complete the “bad news” paperwork.
• I’m going to Portland Fashion Week in October. I’ll stay with my sister. Anybody else planning on being there?

Okay, and since I need to get back to work on all the myriad things I must do before leaving next week, I’ll close with a quote from denim designer Michelle Siwy:

I think with the way information is processed these days, trends are staying longer and overlapping, which is causing people to just be unique individuals because they are no longer afraid or intimidated to try.

Read the entire Coutorture interview here.

I completely agree. And this is absolutely good news.  Once upon a time there may have been a more defined fashion cycle, but now there is so much information available to everyone. Fashion heroes are less trendsetters than they are just those who have discovered what works for them (their idiom) and are willing to stick to it ruthlessly. I’m not there yet.

What about you? Is there a new look you are a little afraid to try? Alternatively, is there a saturated look to which you feel both drawn and repulsed?

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Color the next couple of weeks frantic.  The time has finally arrived for my Italy trip.

What makes this the time to de-lurk?  Since this blog is set up that I have to approve your first comment, if I am not able to log on for a few days first-time commenters may end up with their comments languishing in the approval queue.

This is a conversation, why not jump in now?

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Freshly off my hunt for the new (reading/computer) glasses, I had lunch with a friend, a small retail shop operator. If her shop didn’t exist, people would have no one local to help them understand what to buy or to teach them skills in this particular arena.

Similarly, there is no eyewear shop locally that surpasses the one I ordered through in both stylish selection and the knowledge necessary to fit a pair of glasses on a person’s face and into their lifestyle.

When I found the frames I wanted, I made my buying decision without asking the price. Price wasn’t the point. I had received help that is almost unheard of these days, with a level of expertise that has virtually disappeared. What is the peace of mind of being done shopping and the confidence that my choice supports my goals worth to me?

I suppose I may be stepping on some well-manicured toes when I say that it would not only be unethical but absolutely foolish of me to have written down the style number of those frames and gone home and bought them online more cheaply. If our local retailers provide a service, we should be compensating them for that service. If we don’t, we may come to find that service unavailable at any price. Or we will be forced to replace their service with highly paid consultants.

Thinking about what I value enough to pay for above the lowest possible price reminds me of the idea, from the 1993 book The Overworked American by Juliet Schor, that we in America don’t get to take the whole month of August off like the Europeans do because in recent history we have traded our increased productivity for money and consumerism rather than leisure.

So my question to you is this: for you, what values trump frugality?

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