It's Raining Min

I came down with bronchitis right after Christmas.

2010-01-08T08:45:00.001-08:00

So my week and a half off wasn't the productive event that I had planned. OTOH, I did lose 7-8 pounds while I was sick, and now, building on my post-holiday momentum, I have lost 10 pounds total. It is my goal to lose 30 pounds by Easter. I already have my Easter suit and my Easter shoes (a pair of vintage red/white spectators pumps). The suit has been hanging in my closet for the last three years. I'm really hopeful that I can finally wear it this year, because it's an incredibly hot little suit that I got at Janice Ann's, and red is a good color for me.

I will just need to find a fabulous hat to go with it.

2010-01-03T13:09:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year, everyone!!!!

It's almost time.

2009-12-22T15:16:00.001-08:00

My extended, forced Christmas vacation, during which I am banned from the office until January 4, 2010, starts in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Christmas is kicking my ass. Again.

2009-12-21T06:52:00.000-08:00

Saturday, I worked in the bookstore, then I had to go to K-Mart and buy another Crockpot, because I forgot and left all my others ones at the office. That's okay, though. I can always use another Crockpot. Then I came home to cook, because my book group women were gathering for our annual Christmas party that same night, and it's a major food and gift extravanganza. I made a Greek terrine, chicken and rice soup, and homemade chocolate sandwich cookies with vanilla cream.

I didn't get home from the party, until after 2:30 a.m.

Then I dragged my sorry butt out of bed on Sunday morning and made it to the 11:00 a.m. service. I stuck around to work in the bookstore for a little while, then I came home and finally got my Christmas tree up. It isn't one of my prettiest trees, but, by this point, I ain't picky.Then I headed back out to meet my other women friends for dinner and gift giving. It was very nice, and I ate my weight in fried pickles, a fact for which I will certainly pay today. I begged off driving around to see the Christmas lights, because I have entirely too much to do tonight. I stopped by K-Mart on the way home and bought a gift card for my mailman and a couple of Christmas movies.

I came home and messed with the tree some more, stuffed assorted stockings, set out my Fitz and Floyd Santas, addressed Twelfth Night invitations, wrote thank you notes, and otherwise tried to get a handle on my remaing list of Christmas tasks. I have a party tonight, and I don't expect to be back from it until around midnight. I have to find time to take Mike's gift to him, and I have scads of packages to wrap on Tuesday night. God only knows when I'm going to have time to bake.

I'll be so glad when Christmas is over, and I can finally start to enjoy the holiday.

I love almost everything...

2009-12-09T08:36:00.000-08:00

...in Zac Posen's new pre-fall collection.

http://projectrungay.blogspot.com/2009/12/zac-posen-pre-fall-2010.html

Except the cats. Not crazy about the cats.

I'm off to Knox-Vegas.

2009-11-25T10:31:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

I am preparing to do something gauche.

2009-11-23T12:12:00.000-08:00

I am going to go Christmas shopping in my own house. I bought tons of stuff at the after-Christmas sales last year, and I have baskets of never-used bath and beauty products, shelves of never-read books, boxes of never-brewed Gevalia coffee, and a bunch of wooden doodads that Daddy made for me while he was practicing his lathing skills. Plus, I have stockpiled baking ingredients--3 different kinds of flour, chocolate chips, butterskotch chips, Heath bar chips, peanut butter chips, peanut buttter, Nutella, butter, margarine, and spices. I could put together a dozen gift bags and never break a sweat. (I also have a closet full of unused gift bags, tags, ribbons, bows, and decorative boxes.)

So, I'm going to do it. And if that makes me a tacky sort of person, so be it. There's a recession going on, you know.

Now, sing with me...

I'll be gauche for Christmas.
You can count on me.
I have stuff
That's good enough
For presents under the tree.

Free Books!

2009-11-20T08:48:00.000-08:00

Simon and Schuster UK is giving away free books again, and there's a big honkin' bunch of them to choose from. Go here and select one for your very own self.

I hate Facebook so, so much.

2009-11-19T09:02:00.000-08:00

Here's my latest email exchange:

Hi,
We were unable to find an account associated with the email address you
submitted your question from.

If you have a Facebook account that is associated with a different email
address, please email us from that email address and copy and paste this email
into the new email, so that we may confirm your account ownership for security
purposes. Please include your name and date of birth (month/day/year).

If your issue has since been resolved, no further action is needed on your part.

If you're experiencing other issues with your Facebook account, please visit
http://www.facebook.com/help.php

Thanks,
The Facebook Team
************************************************

Facebook Team:
I don't know how that is possible, since I signed up with that address, and you sent me both a confirmation email (see below):

Hey (my name),

You recently registered for Facebook. To complete your Facebook registration,
follow this link:

(link deleted)

Facebook helps you communicate and stay in touch with all of your friends. Once
you join Facebook, you'll be able to share photos, plan events, and more.

Thanks,
The Facebook Team

And a welcome email (see below):

Hi (my name),
Your account has been created — now it will be easier than ever to share and connect with your friends.
Here are three ways for you to get the most out of it:
Find Friends
Find people you know on Facebook using our simple tools.
Upload a Profile Photo
Personalize your profile and help your friends recognize you.
Edit Your Profile
Describe personal interests, contact information, and affiliations.

If you have any questions, reference our New User Guide.
Thanks,
The Facebook Team Sign in to Facebook and start connecting
Get Started

...to that very same email address, which is (my email address). Plus, I keep getting invitations to add Facebook friends at that very same email address.

So obviously, the problem is on your end. And I've been to http://www.facebook.com/help.php several times, and it's pretty much useless for dealing with my issue.

BTW, this is me:

(Facebook link)

My birthdate is October 6, 1960. Please fix this, because I'm getting pretty damn frustrated dealing with the issue.

Okay, okay.

2009-11-18T15:55:00.001-08:00

There is one fun thing about Facebook. You can set the language option to English-Pirate. Avast there, ye scurvy social networkers!

I have a Facebook account now.

2009-11-18T15:10:00.000-08:00

And I loathe it with the heat of a thousand suns. I set it up this morning, and when I tried to log back in this evening, it wouldn't recognize my password or my email address, which means that it won't let me reset my password, and I'm pretty ticked off. Fortunately, I kept my confirmation email, and I was able to get back into my account through the link in it. But with each passing minute, I despise Facebook more and more. The format is annoying, I cannot get it to upload pictures beyond the userpic, the FAQ is useless, and I resent having to sign up for the damn thing in order to participate in the Cultural Arts Committee.

BTW, if you couldn't hear it, I just stamped my foot like a five year old.

Happy Veterans Day

2009-11-11T07:53:00.001-08:00

To all the veterans of the United States armed forces, including my father, who served in the Navy in the late 50's. We honor your service.

I just keep shopping.

2009-11-05T10:06:00.000-08:00

I went to Peeble's last night to buy a basic skirt and a basic pair of trousers. I came home with a basic skirt, a basic pair of trousers, and three dresses. But they are totally amazing dresses.

One is a short, very mod little empire frock in a black/purple wooly paisley. It will look cute with tights and some of my new pointy-toed flats.

Another one is a knee-length, black/white A-line sweater dress that looks a lot more expensive than it is. It will look fantastic with black boots, chunky black/white bangles, and one of my many fabulous black hats.

The third one is a red sweater chemise with an oversized cowl neckline, and I bought it, because it reminds me of a fabulous red sweater dress that I had in college. In fact, I think I can trace the birth of my signature style, if I can be said to have a signature style, to that sweater dress.

I grew up in a house where pretty clothes were valued. My mother loved pretty clothes, and my father was a clothes horse. It didn't hurt that they were both very attractive, slender, dark-haired, dark-eyed people, and therefore could wear pretty much anything well. I was always a chubby kid, but I picked up my love of pretty clothes from my parents.

We were fairly poor when I was a little girl, at best lower-lower-middle class, and we lived in a rented four-room house until I was 11, while my parents saved for a house. But my mother could sew, and she sewed for me and for herself, so I always had nice clothes, even if they weren't store-bought. Then my mother went to work for a wholesaler when I was in middle school, and suddenly, we had access to fashionable (if not designer) clothes at wholesale prices.

By the time I was in college, I had a fantastic little wardrobe, and I dressed up for school, which is where the red sweater dress comes in. It was an A-line dress with a fitted turtleneck, and I wore it alone (I was so much thinner then) or with a blue/red/green plaid blazer and a matching plaid tam. When I wore all three pieces together, people oohed and aahed and told me I looked like I had stepped out of Vogue Magazine. And that's all it took. Red has been a signature color in my fall/winter wardrobe every year since I was 19 years old. :-) And, of course, hats...

I have shopped again.

2009-11-04T14:05:00.001-08:00

Another pair of low-heeled shoes.

Apparently, these are from JLo's collection. Who knew?

The process of buying new shoes has begun.

2009-11-03T10:21:00.000-08:00

My first three purchases:

Penny <3 Kenny (only in dark brown, instead of black)

Nine West

White Mountain, and an incredibly comfortable pair of shoes, if I do say so myself.

Sigh.

2009-10-28T15:31:00.000-07:00

I'm going to have to buy some new shoes with low heels. I simply cannot continue to do 2 and 3 hours presentations in my heels. My knees will not put up with it.

Just in time for Halloween...Vampires! In love!

2009-10-27T09:40:00.000-07:00

Book Love Affair is giving away a copy of "Immortal: Love Stories With a Bite", which is a collection of vampire love stories by various urban fantasy and paranormal romance authors. If you're interested in that kind of thing--and who isn't?--then go to Book Love affair to enter.

http://www.bookloveaffair.com/2009/10/giveaway-p-c-cast.html

Okay, okay.

2009-10-20T12:31:00.001-07:00

So I bought one last hat for my birthday...a vintage Mr. Charles pillbox. But I only paid eleven bucks for it, including shipping. It was a steal!

Book Review

2009-10-14T15:29:00.001-07:00

I don't often do book reviews, but I'm going to do one now.

Isn't that a fabulous cover? Now, you all know me...I have a thing for good cover art. I have been known, on many an occasion, to judge a book almost entirely by its cover. And so it was that, after my science fiction book group finished discussing our September selection at Borders, the group spread out to browse through the store. And what do I see on the New Releases table but this book. I mean, the cover practically leaped out at me, wrapped a brawny arm around my neck, pulled me close, and breathed menacingly in my ear, "Buy me, woman!" But I'm not quite that easy, so I took a moment to read the cover caption:

A novel of vampires, werewolves, and parasols.

Parasols?! And I was tempted, oh, so very tempted, but still I resisted. Then I read the blurb on the back:

First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette. Where to go from there? From bad to worse, apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire--and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and a werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate.

With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe that Alexia is responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening in London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful, or just embarassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?

At that point, I was a goner. I ran gleefully through Borders, with the book clutched in my hot little hand, to show my sci fi friends what a treasure I had found. And then I went home and read it. Not all at once, you understand, but almost immediately, which rarely ever happens with the books I buy anymore.

So, how was the book, Min? It was, in a word, delightful. Alexia is a stubbornly intelligent, but ever so proper (when it's called for) young woman with a devoted friend (whose dreadful taste in hats is a running gag), a mostly appalling family (her stepfather isn't so bad), and a reluctant werewolf suitor (whose beta may well be the most intriguing character in the whole book), all out of the best traditions of Austen and Heyer. Except for the werewolf part. It's a sweet little romance and a Victorian adventure story and a goofy comedy of manners and a proto-urban fantasy, all rolled up into one charming little book, and I absolutely loved it. I don't want to give too much more away and spoil the fun, but suffice it to say, I will be buying the sequel, "Changeless", as soon as it hits the shelves of the local bookstore.

Well, pooh.

2009-10-12T14:59:00.000-07:00

I got overbid on my beautiful blue and green Jack McConnell hat. OTOH, I did win this lovely red and black Jack McConnell hat from the same seller and for just a little more than half of the final bid for the other hat.

So yay, me!

I have once again changed my blog header and color scheme.

2009-10-08T09:03:00.000-07:00

It feels more seasonal like this. :-) The header image is taken from a digital collage by Jennifer Gordon.

See this hat?

2009-10-08T08:46:00.000-07:00

This hat is a Jack McConnell. I don't own a Jack McConnell.
This hat is royal blue. I cannot resist the color royal blue.
This hat is for sale on Ebay. I have bid on it, I am winning it, and I am determined to own it.

Sing with me!

2009-10-06T13:13:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday to me!
Happy birthday to me!
Happy birthday, dear Mi-in!
Happy birthday to me!

And it's been a fantabulous birthday, so far.

Hatty Awards

2009-10-01T14:11:00.001-07:00

Jane, aka glorioushats, brought this to my attention, and so I share it with you all. There is such a thing as the Hatty Awards, and you, my hat-making and hat-wearing flist, are eligible to enter. Check it out:

Hatty Awards

Free Books!

2009-09-30T13:56:00.000-07:00

And I'm the one giving them away! In honor of my 49th birthday on October 6, I am giving away books that I have culled from my shelves, mostly duplicates that I have purchased over the years. If you'd like to be included, head over to my LiveJournal and enter.

Here!