You would think that after spending the past 17 months exercising and dropping 94 lbs I would really look forward to shopping for clothes. Not so! Especially not for Dan's wedding.
Oh, it began with some excitement - anyone that knows me knows I love to shop - but all it took was going through the dresses available at one store to realize that things hadn't really changed between the size 28/30 me to the 16/18 me. I'm still carrying 45lbs too much and realistically that will not just disappear in the next few months. All the dresses I looked at are designed for the size 2/4 figure and then they just make them bigger to fit the larger sizes. Needless to say, it's alot like pressing the zoom button - the picture enlarges but it looses something in the end.
Today my friend, Doreen, and I went dress shopping again. It's the end of February and all the stores tell me it is really pushing it to try to order a dress in my size and expect to get it by a June 12 wedding. Of course there is no such thing as buying one off the rack! The interesting thing is how they expect you to 'try on ' dresses that are at least three sizes too small and make a decision which one looks best on you. I actually had a saleswoman today tell me 'just put your arms through it so you can see how it will look." My arms didn't FIT in it and how could I see how it looked when it was just a bunch of material hanging in front of me? But they expect me to not only do that but to then fork out $500-$800 for a custom fitted dress that I have never even seen on myself.
To add insult to injury, these 'mother of the bride/groom' dresses are so matronly it's appalling! Who decided that bolero jackets were chic and looked good on middle aged women, especially those with any bustline to speak of? And where do they find the lace for some of those things - rejects from the tablecloth factories? Really, people, how many women wearing large size dresses look good with the flappy arms swinging around in sleeveless and, worse still, strapless dresses?
The highlight of the day was meeting the owner of Sydney's Closet, a store specializing in bridal and prom dresses in sizes 14 - 44. She was busy and we didn't have an appointment but she found the time to bring out a number of dresses for me to try on and even brought out a new design that is not in production yet. This original design was the best I've seen yet and she asked our opinions on changes to make to the dress to make it better before the final design goes to production. She is the first person I have met in any of these specialty stores that is interested in making formal clothes that fit and flatter the larger figure.
Since that dress is not in production there is very little chance that I could get it for the wedding so I am back to square one. It's frustration and depressing. 17 months of exercising 6 days/week and eating right, losing all that weight, and going from the high of being proud of my accomplishments to the low of being the fat girl that can't find anything nice to wear. Really stinks but it is what it is. I'll just keep looking.
BTW, Doreen is a saint. She spent the entire day with me, at four different stores, and offered to go again next week!
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Today
Well, the snow storm of the past two days was a dud according to most. Predictions of 3-6 inches turned to rain, mix and 2 - 4 inches, which actually resulted in rain, slush, and 1-2 inches here in Eureka.
Now that is not a big deal to most people but I live in a house that has Mt. McKinley as a driveway (well, maybe not that steep). Every time we get any precipitation with temps around or below 32 my driveway glazes. If the snow accumulates that just adds to the problem. What does that mean? It means even the 4 wheel drive won't always make it to the rear garage or down to the street without sliding to the ditch. Needless to say, I keep a supply of salt in the car and in the garage.
Today, even though we only got about 1.5 inches, I dressed in the warm clothes and headed out with my trusty snow shovel in hand to tackle the beast. It's either that or be stuck in the house til the big melt arrives. Because I have a really difficult time doing mindless work - ok, physical work - I plugged in the iPod and began thinking about what was going on in my mind at that moment.
Calimari, our cat of 11 years, has been acting pretty strange lately and twice has disappeared for 24 hours. She took off Thursday night, during the rain and was not home this morning when I went out to shovel. I was worried that she might not come back home and realized I was not ready to deal with the loss of another pet. How would I tell Darcy?
My mind immediately took be to a conversation with God. Not one of those, 'if you do this for me I'll do something for you' discussions, just a discourse on why and how I would work through it with His help. I came to the conclusion that I had absolutely no control over the situation and she would come home if that was meant to be. Knowing the control was in God's hands not mine just eased my mind.
Ok, by now the snow shoveling was getting tedious and I was sweating. As I said, physical labor is not my forte. But the driveway had to be cleared so all of the Greenville students could make it up for the Super Bowl party tomorrow so I slaved on.
About that time I saw my neighbor drive off in his truck pulling a boat. Now why would you take out a boat in 32 weather? I suppose he was taking it to a storage area - there is one very close to our neighborhood. I put it out of my mind and started singing along with the Metallica song - good thing no one was close by.
Soon the neighbor drove back with just the truck - aha, I was right about the storage - and parked. Our houses are on over 3 acres so the buildings are not really very close together. In fact, because of the heavy woods surrounding us we only see the houses after all the leaves fall. Next thing I know I see movement near the end of my driveway. There was my neighbor - we have only met breifly twice- with shovel in hand and he climbed up the driveway and helped me clear it. We talked as we worked and learned a little more about each other's family and he told me if I ever needed anything during the week when Dave was gone to give them a call. Pretty awesome that in this time of 'keep to yourself' or 'don't bother me' there are still REAL neighbors and I'm lucky enough to have one just down the hill!
God does look out for us even when we least expect it.
BTW - when I got back up to the garage Calimari was purring in her bed!
Now that is not a big deal to most people but I live in a house that has Mt. McKinley as a driveway (well, maybe not that steep). Every time we get any precipitation with temps around or below 32 my driveway glazes. If the snow accumulates that just adds to the problem. What does that mean? It means even the 4 wheel drive won't always make it to the rear garage or down to the street without sliding to the ditch. Needless to say, I keep a supply of salt in the car and in the garage.
Today, even though we only got about 1.5 inches, I dressed in the warm clothes and headed out with my trusty snow shovel in hand to tackle the beast. It's either that or be stuck in the house til the big melt arrives. Because I have a really difficult time doing mindless work - ok, physical work - I plugged in the iPod and began thinking about what was going on in my mind at that moment.
Calimari, our cat of 11 years, has been acting pretty strange lately and twice has disappeared for 24 hours. She took off Thursday night, during the rain and was not home this morning when I went out to shovel. I was worried that she might not come back home and realized I was not ready to deal with the loss of another pet. How would I tell Darcy?
My mind immediately took be to a conversation with God. Not one of those, 'if you do this for me I'll do something for you' discussions, just a discourse on why and how I would work through it with His help. I came to the conclusion that I had absolutely no control over the situation and she would come home if that was meant to be. Knowing the control was in God's hands not mine just eased my mind.
Ok, by now the snow shoveling was getting tedious and I was sweating. As I said, physical labor is not my forte. But the driveway had to be cleared so all of the Greenville students could make it up for the Super Bowl party tomorrow so I slaved on.
About that time I saw my neighbor drive off in his truck pulling a boat. Now why would you take out a boat in 32 weather? I suppose he was taking it to a storage area - there is one very close to our neighborhood. I put it out of my mind and started singing along with the Metallica song - good thing no one was close by.
Soon the neighbor drove back with just the truck - aha, I was right about the storage - and parked. Our houses are on over 3 acres so the buildings are not really very close together. In fact, because of the heavy woods surrounding us we only see the houses after all the leaves fall. Next thing I know I see movement near the end of my driveway. There was my neighbor - we have only met breifly twice- with shovel in hand and he climbed up the driveway and helped me clear it. We talked as we worked and learned a little more about each other's family and he told me if I ever needed anything during the week when Dave was gone to give them a call. Pretty awesome that in this time of 'keep to yourself' or 'don't bother me' there are still REAL neighbors and I'm lucky enough to have one just down the hill!
God does look out for us even when we least expect it.
BTW - when I got back up to the garage Calimari was purring in her bed!
Welcome
After remaining lost and ignored for two years I decided to clean up my blog and start from scratch. Why, you ask? I'm not really sure. Maybe it's because I have things to say but no one specific to say them to. Maybe it's because I find myself looking for an outlet to share my thoughts with no one in particular. Maybe it's because subconsciously I always wanted to write.
Whatever the reason(s) here it is and here it begins anew.
Whatever the reason(s) here it is and here it begins anew.
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