This is a short post to say, no hunting in vintage places this weekend. We were school shopping, since it starts August 5. Soaking up the last joys of summer, and getting things in order for school. I hate this, because i miss her so much while she is there, but she loves it, and she should. She is a good student.
Her shoes of choice this week were Converse, black and white classics...she looks down at her feet and smiles and squeals "Converse!" intermittently throughout the day...not that she doesn't have other colors, but something very exciting about Black and White...?
The only insights I gained this weekend were that I still love clothing and shoes way too much, I still always want the most expensive things available, and I still can only buy them in small spurts. But I bet I appreciate quality more than the mass who can buy whatever they want. I love good fabric and construction, and I love detail. This has a price tag, but I don't mind paying it if it is good. It does bother me to go to certain overly perfumed stores, that make cookie cutter clothes to clone our youth, along with hefty price tags for things I could whip up in 15 min. C'mon, why not hire some real talent? Ironically, I find that Target T's and tank tops are just as good or better quality than the name brand stores. I am just saying, I have had less shrinkage, and fading on those two items. I won't give them a mass endorsement though, I love certain things and am shocked they could contract such good items at a discount store, but I likewise wonder why they even bother with other stuff. I had to learn all about Target, Old Navy and Goodwill, while in Montana. That is basically all we had. (Not even a Gap, AE, or Banana Republic within 2 hrs-I don't take the passes as fast as you natives) They did have a wonderful store there, Dragonfly Dry Goods, but I would always get that feeling of "I want it all!" and end up with nothing. Decision, decisions, decisions.
Ho-hum...another day of shopping..now we are all finished. Hope you are ready as well, and be sure to be practical yet fun in your shoe choices, whether they be Blue Suede, or Black Canvas, or Brown suede. Feet and shoes are very important! Too much comfort can look like you don't care, and I know you do. Too much color and you look like a crazy cat lady without any cats..(something my daughter recently said to me, that cause a bit of hysterical laughing) but right in between, and it is an "Aaaah" moment.
Not too deep today, but that is what I have...by the way, don't step on My Blue Suede Shoes!
Friday, July 30, 2010
Friday, July 23, 2010
Brown Suede Shoes
They are not as "rare," but they are more stable. Today, during my vintage hunt, I wasn't looking for shoes. I was looking for mid-century modern antiques-you know, the kind everyone had when I was a kid, that we all thought was ugly? They are now antiques. Does that mean I am antique? Just wondering.
Anyways, I was meandering about, and my eyes caught a pair of brown suede shoes, low tops. This is what I was searching for when I found the blue ones. I was looking them over and realized they were the same exact style and brand as the blue ones! What is it, "Unload the short boot week?" Did I miss something here? Am I really THAT antique? The last Fall fashion update I tapped into in the Fall said short boots are "in". Wow. Good for me. I found my costume piece, and I can also be in style! However, I couldn't stop wondering about the "odds" of ME finding those particular boots, in my particular size. I had to go in at just the right moment, walk around just the right corner, look at them in just the right way; odds are pretty high against this when you are ADD!
So, who cares? I do. Yes, I know, my loony side is manifesting yet again. I can hear you thinking, and wishing you could ask: "What do you think, that it was another 'kiss from God'?" Yes! How did you know? I stood there dumbstruck, pondering the significance of Brown Suede Shoes. (You know- everything is tied together somehow, our Great Awesome God did it that way for a reason, so why not ask the question?) I get it that this is not "normal". I am choosing to be okay with that, which is why I now have Blue Suede Shoes. So NOW, I've added a pair of brown suede shoes to my collection, which I may share in a photo format.
If Blue Suede Shoes are representative of my "coming out" at 48, then what do the brown ones mean? I am pondering this, and everything about brown exudes practicality, purpose, versatility, safety and security. The Blue Suede Shoes were like new; the brown ones are very worn (just what I needed for the costume, BTW!), which further testifies to the "practicality" theory, and the safety aspect. Really, when you wear Blue Suede Shoes, you get ribbed over it..you've gotta love ribbing when you step out in anything unique or "out-of-the-box" in apparel or accessories of any kind. Believe me I know. It takes more guts to mix them with $250 jeans, and a Target T-shirt, but if you know how to "style" yourself, it works! My oldest daughter recently attended a red carpet event in Beverly Hills, in a .50-cent estate sale "nighty." Stepping out of a Rolls Royce, she was mobbed by the paparazzi, was asked hundreds of times who designed her dress, and she had the last laugh. A testament to styling...Good style comes from within! Not a price tag! (Okay, I confess that quality construction and fabric is also important, but that too is practical, and Target has some of it.)
So getting back to the "meaning" of my finding two pairs of shoes in the same color, in which Blue Suede was likened to a "Kiss from God". I feel like while I am allowing the world to finally see the real me, it is still a practical workable choice. It is really okay to be myself, and is actually more practical, liberating and truthful. If we use all our energy worrying about what others think, it robs us of time, energy and resources for other more meaningful ventures. Just managing what you think others will think is a time-consuming and monumental task, not to mention the actual material accumulation of stuff needed to uphold the image! We all have important personal contributions to make to this world, why waste time, money and energy trying so hard to please an ever-changing demand from others? And~if I want to be in different shoes for a day, I can always dress up like Johnny Depp, and make people wonder.
Step out and have a wonderful, liberating day of greatness, and if you dare, buy yourself some Blue Suede Shoes!! (Thanks Elvis, for your awesome interpretation of Carl Perkin's song!)
Anyways, I was meandering about, and my eyes caught a pair of brown suede shoes, low tops. This is what I was searching for when I found the blue ones. I was looking them over and realized they were the same exact style and brand as the blue ones! What is it, "Unload the short boot week?" Did I miss something here? Am I really THAT antique? The last Fall fashion update I tapped into in the Fall said short boots are "in". Wow. Good for me. I found my costume piece, and I can also be in style! However, I couldn't stop wondering about the "odds" of ME finding those particular boots, in my particular size. I had to go in at just the right moment, walk around just the right corner, look at them in just the right way; odds are pretty high against this when you are ADD!
So, who cares? I do. Yes, I know, my loony side is manifesting yet again. I can hear you thinking, and wishing you could ask: "What do you think, that it was another 'kiss from God'?" Yes! How did you know? I stood there dumbstruck, pondering the significance of Brown Suede Shoes. (You know- everything is tied together somehow, our Great Awesome God did it that way for a reason, so why not ask the question?) I get it that this is not "normal". I am choosing to be okay with that, which is why I now have Blue Suede Shoes. So NOW, I've added a pair of brown suede shoes to my collection, which I may share in a photo format.
If Blue Suede Shoes are representative of my "coming out" at 48, then what do the brown ones mean? I am pondering this, and everything about brown exudes practicality, purpose, versatility, safety and security. The Blue Suede Shoes were like new; the brown ones are very worn (just what I needed for the costume, BTW!), which further testifies to the "practicality" theory, and the safety aspect. Really, when you wear Blue Suede Shoes, you get ribbed over it..you've gotta love ribbing when you step out in anything unique or "out-of-the-box" in apparel or accessories of any kind. Believe me I know. It takes more guts to mix them with $250 jeans, and a Target T-shirt, but if you know how to "style" yourself, it works! My oldest daughter recently attended a red carpet event in Beverly Hills, in a .50-cent estate sale "nighty." Stepping out of a Rolls Royce, she was mobbed by the paparazzi, was asked hundreds of times who designed her dress, and she had the last laugh. A testament to styling...Good style comes from within! Not a price tag! (Okay, I confess that quality construction and fabric is also important, but that too is practical, and Target has some of it.)
So getting back to the "meaning" of my finding two pairs of shoes in the same color, in which Blue Suede was likened to a "Kiss from God". I feel like while I am allowing the world to finally see the real me, it is still a practical workable choice. It is really okay to be myself, and is actually more practical, liberating and truthful. If we use all our energy worrying about what others think, it robs us of time, energy and resources for other more meaningful ventures. Just managing what you think others will think is a time-consuming and monumental task, not to mention the actual material accumulation of stuff needed to uphold the image! We all have important personal contributions to make to this world, why waste time, money and energy trying so hard to please an ever-changing demand from others? And~if I want to be in different shoes for a day, I can always dress up like Johnny Depp, and make people wonder.
Step out and have a wonderful, liberating day of greatness, and if you dare, buy yourself some Blue Suede Shoes!! (Thanks Elvis, for your awesome interpretation of Carl Perkin's song!)
Monday, July 19, 2010
Good Word to Live By...
19-21What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn't work. So I quit being a "law man" so that I could be God's man. Christ's life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not "mine," but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.
Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God's grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.
Ephesians 2:19-21, The Message Bible.
Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God's grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.
Ephesians 2:19-21, The Message Bible.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Welcome!
Welcome to my blog! I am excited about this new venture that was inspired by a recent purchase of my Blue Suede Shoes! These Blue Suede Shoes are truly symbolic to me, since I have wanted a pair since childhood, when I heard Elvis sing, "Blue Suede Shoes." I didn't want just any Blue Suede Shoes, but they had to be delightfully outdated, previously worn, and a perfect fit. This is no easy task believe me. I have spent years in various states and two foreign countries looking. Finding these shoes is symbolic for me, like a kiss from God; there they were enticing me to try them on. The moment I had slipped my feet into them, I was "...All Shook Up!" It had been over 31 years since the desire hit me to acquire my first pair of Blue Suede Shoes, and there they were! It is not just about the shoe, but it is the symbolism they embody. They symbolize my life-long quest to learn to just "be" and not fight it. They are about self-acceptance, and learning to love who you are regardless of the infringements of society. They are about establishing me in a shameless, self-loving way. You don't know me if you never knew I wanted Blue Suede Shoes! So, do anything, but don't step on my Blue Suede Shoes!
Ever heard these Cliche's?
"If the shoe fits, wear it."
"You've got some big shoes to fill..."
"The shoe is on the other foot."
"Don't judge someone until you walk a mile in their shoes."
"If I were in your shoes."
"Goody two-shoes."
"I felt bad because I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet."
"Walk a mile in my shoes."
"It will be hard to try and fill his shoes."
If you really consider these phrases, you see that each of them refers to the deeper meaning of a person. They encompass fitting in where you belong, whether or not you follow in another's footsteps, or forge your own. They cover having compassion and empathy on what someone else is going through, and being able to validate THEIR feelings as human, no matter how they got there. Some refer to being thankful for the blessings you have. One cries out for mercy from others' criticism, and beseeching them for understanding by saying "walk a mile in my shoes." There is even one that embodies unsolicited advice! There is also the jealousy-based jeer at someone else's virtue, or maybe it is an indictment against a pious and judgmental person. Point being, shoes have significant symbolism in most cultures, as do feet. But we won't go there today. I will talk about the feet that we put into our shoes another day.
Be sure to click on the "the song that started it all" and look at the lyrics of "Blue Suede Shoes".
Ever heard these Cliche's?
"If the shoe fits, wear it."
"You've got some big shoes to fill..."
"The shoe is on the other foot."
"Don't judge someone until you walk a mile in their shoes."
"If I were in your shoes."
"Goody two-shoes.""I felt bad because I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet."
"Walk a mile in my shoes."
"It will be hard to try and fill his shoes."
If you really consider these phrases, you see that each of them refers to the deeper meaning of a person. They encompass fitting in where you belong, whether or not you follow in another's footsteps, or forge your own. They cover having compassion and empathy on what someone else is going through, and being able to validate THEIR feelings as human, no matter how they got there. Some refer to being thankful for the blessings you have. One cries out for mercy from others' criticism, and beseeching them for understanding by saying "walk a mile in my shoes." There is even one that embodies unsolicited advice! There is also the jealousy-based jeer at someone else's virtue, or maybe it is an indictment against a pious and judgmental person. Point being, shoes have significant symbolism in most cultures, as do feet. But we won't go there today. I will talk about the feet that we put into our shoes another day.
Be sure to click on the "the song that started it all" and look at the lyrics of "Blue Suede Shoes".
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)