M5523: Still Not Loving It

First things first — it's not my birthday. That's not until March. But I'm not having my next one anyway. Ever. ;-) Still, thanks for the good wishes just the same.

Next, I definitely don't have to worry about a short week, after leaving early yesterday afternoon. This morning, the traffic was non-existent so I was sitting at my desk and working at 8 AM. We had a working lunch meeting that went for 90 minutes, and I didn't leave for the day until nearly 6 PM. And I still have hours of stuff I left behind. It's really nice to be so busy, because it means that my time is well-spent and, more importantly, they trust me with all this stuff. I'm still glad it's Friday, though. ;-) I'm looking forward to sleeping in until 8 AM instead of 6 AM, with a cute little pooch snuggled in next to me since it's going to be downright FREEZING here overnight (in the 50s — our Florida thermometers are "vanity sized," so 50 = 30.) ;-)

So, the skirt. I tried it on after work while I still had on pantyhose and heels. Do you have any idea how hard it is to try on a skirt with a pinned-down waist facing while wearing pantyhose and NOT catching a pin in them? Trust me, don't try it. That smile is fake.

There's a poochy thing going on there at the tummy, and it's not just the tummy (or last night's dinner).

It's worse when my top is lifted up (so don't lift it up, Debbie, geez!).

It's better when I yank up the front waist. Sigh. That means it needs an adjustment and I'm not sure if I feel like ripping out the waist facing. It's also going to be too short if I hem it with a normal turn-up (not turnip). I'll have to face the hem.

Here's the back view, where all the style action is. I like it, but the seaming sorta points to the good china and I'm not sure about that look.

So, I'm not going to sew it anymore tonight.I've got my jeans on and I think I'll finish the book I've been reading and catch up on the DVR.

By the way, I finished Barack Obama's Dreams From My Father and loved it. I'm not political AT ALL, and neither is this book. But it does confirm what I've always felt about BO ever since I first heard him speak. He's intelligent, fair, open-minded, and a very good man. What you see is what you get. I found his perspective on being black in America and in Africa really interesting and thought-provoking. While this book is really more just BO's story than a racial anything, as a white woman, he made me think about things I never would've thought about on my own and I think (hope) I'm better for that.

The book I'm almost done reading right now is Michael Oher's book. Not The Blind Side, by another author and upon which the movie was based, but Oher's own recounting of his childhood struggles and successes — which does differ in a lot of respects from the movie.

I didn't intentionally pick two books on being a black child/man in America — it just happened. But I've found the differences and similarities quite interesting and I'm glad I read them sort of together. BO's book is much deeper, but MO's story as a child growing up in the projects and often in foster case, while a faster read, is well worth learning too. I would even say that MO had a lot more to overcome, since BO grew up in a much more privileged and stable environment. I highly recommend both books, and probably in the same order I've read them.