Darleen

went out thrift shopping two days ago- summer is drawing to an end and I felt the need to go back to school shopping.

I went a little crazy and ended up buying five sweaters and four button down shirts and one blanket. (for the impressive price of $9.50) I fell in love with the cool floral pattern on one dress, and being inspired by New Dress A Day, decided to throw it into my (rather tall) pile of purchases.

so, here it is in all of its pre altering glory. complete with some monstrously large shoulder pads. (I have such good tastes in clothing.)
I took a pair of scissors to the dress and went wild. First went the protective football gear attached to the shoulders, then the lace from the neckline, then seven inches from the bottom, then half the sleeves, then the other half of the sleeves when I decided to go the sleeveless route. I took a scoop out of the back, removing the top button, and making it ever so slightly more possible to breathe. altered the front neckline as well and sewed my first button hole. (write it in the baby book- this is a big accomplishment.)

and, ta-da! no more of that three quarter length sleeve nonsense or six inches below the kneecap skirt shenanigans. just a new dress to spend the last few days of summer lounging about in.

While I was pinning up the arm holes, my home phone started ringing and somebody started asking for Darleen- a wrong number, but a good name. I wouldn't be a very good crazy person if I didn't try to name this project with clever alliteration. so, I give you the Darleen dress. (I'm just so clever!) started as a prairie dress, ended like a prairie mess. can't deny or pretend like I don't love it.

winning and losing

you win some and you lose some.

won:
a delicious lemon pie
14 new (used) books for $3.50
a new running companion (and somebody to watch a very potter sequel with)
an ebay auction for series 1-4 of Doctor Who + the complete specials
a delicious milkshake made from the remains of failed meringue batter


lost:
battle with a garden hose
$5 in my pocket in New York
3 egg whites in an attempt to make meringue
15 minutes spent listening to an irritated man trying to buy an old copy of Les Mis

on the topic of winning and losing, I suppose I should mention that I also lost my evening to ants. in my pantry. which was unnerving and more creepy crawly than I would have liked. but, like my dad said, it could have always been worse. The ants could have been spiders. or crickets. or roaches. or tiny raptors.

while my dad and I tend to agree on a lot of things, I disagree with his opinions on having a raptor infestation in our pantry. I've always wanted a pet that could fit into my pencil case. I'd name it Nellie. we would have been the best of friends.

Missed Connections

dear frankie valli-
you told me that you were geeking out over my mighty morphing power rangers t-shirt. I don't know if I thanked you for making my day, so here it goes: thanks. also, you were really rather wonderful and I can't remember if I told you that, but I sincerely hope I did.
-girl with the power rangers t-shirt