Things of Happiness: Girls with Cats.

What is it with pictures of girls and cats?


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It seems like there are a lot of them. I have tons of them in my flickr favorites! Not that there is anything wrong with boys and cats, but you know--I'm a girl, so I feel more of an affection there. It's a thing though, girls and cats. There is something there.

Kittens kittens everywhere
Kittens chewing on my hair
Kittens climbing up my jeans
Kittens hanging from the screens
There's a kitten on each shoulder
Will they do this when they're older?

Kittens fighting on the chairs
Kittens tumbling down the stairs
There's a kitten on my head
There's a kitten in the bread!
There's a kitten in my shoe
I don't believe we just have two!

-Helen Reese

Wintery.

I know this is being really over dramatic, but this is how I feel about last night and this morning's weather:



(I feel I should also say that I often, throughout my days, say that statement in a manner attempting to sound like Bernard Hill up there, but as of yet no one has gotten my rather obtuse reference.)

At this point most of the snow on the roads and sidewalks has melted, but it's only a matter of time before we're all waist-deep in the stuff. I was at least a little bit excited for it--a statement I'm sure I'll regret in a short while--and even ran a little bit in the snow as I dragged a shovel behind me to dig the car out.

I was also incredibly excited to wear my new ridiculous hat. It's probably the warmest thing ever, and I've learned that having a warm head makes standing in the cold bearable for infinitely longer than with cold ears and blowing hair, but mostly I love it for it's Dr. Zhivago-esque quality. The downside is it is totally enormous to a ridiculous degree, and if I am not careful I look like an electrocuted version of Garth Algar.



At the moment I'm quite happy to dress up for the weather, although I'm already frustrated with the feeling of pants-tucked-into-boots, but we shall see how long this lasts! I'm wearing my fancy coat, a Christmas present from my grandmother last year, because my two other coats are missing buttons (I eternally pull of buttons; I don't know what the deal is). It makes me feel very bright though, and mildly ridiculous with my huge hat, but somehow I feel alright about that anyway. I bought some real live winter boots today (wellies are lovely, but no matter what they lock the cold into my toes) and hopefully I will be releasing them into their natural habitat successfully in the coming months.

Stressful Dressings.

The leaves fell off the trees and I lost all interest in getting dressed. My hair is uncooperative, except right before bed, and I am uneasy and nonplussed at most of my wardrobe. I suppose it is because this change in weather (that drab, sad period after there are no leaves and it is cold but snow has yet to grace us with its presence) coincides with terribly busy work schedules and Really Scary School Things (term papers and thesis proposals).

On the other hand, something about the kinds of clothes I so adored a year ago doesn't appeal to me so much these days. I'm cannot lie: I'm way into pants (even though the above picture is evidence of something else) and blouses and slightly uniform-ish, boyfriend-y, bookish things. And, you know, that effortless French thing with the pants and the neat-o jackets and shoes and all that on the women popping up on street-style blogs. It's always kind of scared me because I figured it involved a lot of natural ability to put things that are kind of slouchy but tailored together with a body type that doesn't necessarily border on the curvy, but it's what my inspiration folder is full of these days.

I still want to wear the ruffle blouses, and lord knows I get my grubby little hands on plenty of them, but I also want to wear cuffed jeans or a men's gingham shirt, and perhaps ignore the skirt for a while. I don't know if I can deal with prim these days, even though I still love it.


Teen Vogue, via The Fashion Spot


APC Winter 09

Some days though, like today, I just toss on an old dress and a sweater and call it a day. I need a pair of flat oxfords. I found the perfect ones at Macy's, glorious things they were, so amazing that I could have cried. Then they sold out. They aren't even on the website anymore, and I pity myself. In the meantime I will have to pretend with some Bass penny loafers (once I exchange them for the correct size).

Photographs and White Dresses

We can catch buses and count our change and cross the roads and talk real sentences. But our innocence goes awfully deep, and our discreditable secret is that we don't know anything at all, and our horrid inner secret is that we don't care that we don't.
-Dylan Thomas


Édouard Boubat


Burberry Prorsum

Appled Days.

I bought a giant bag of apples at the co-op this week, and have been munching on them constantly. I like when they are small and fit in your pocket without appearing bizarrely bulbous. Food has been a kind of accessory lately--it seems my pockets are always filled with some kind of candy or snack that gives me something to do when standing about in the in-betweens (while also satiating my sweet-tooth, or serving as a neat-o snack between meals). Somehow I felt it was appropriate to eat an apple while wearing a white dress: Snow White-ish, if you will.


(A week and a half later, all the leaves are gone from the trees.)

As I'm sure you noticed--or maybe not, but you know--I've momentarily fallen back into an old uniform. White dress + black tights + cardigan = The Kater Uniform. These shoes are so high that I've scarcely worn them since I bought them last year, but I do love them to little bits. I've fallen out of practice for heel-walking since neither of my jobs really facilitate the wearing of heels, and it becomes harder and harder to be comfortable in them. For the first time in ages, I feel unsteady on them, oddly limited, and as though my uncoordinated abilities are magnified to the highest extent. A few home-heel-walking sessions are in order and must be penciled in these days (even if the impending doom of winter weather threatens to kill any semblance of civilized footwear).

Uniforms are weird things. I've posted about it before--way back when--and I don't mean the kind of uniform one would wear to school. The default, fool-proof outfit, is a weird thing. For a few weeks (although my scant posting doesn't offer much proof of the statement which is to follow) I've been wearing jeans and pants far more often than skirts or dresses! I'm not certain what this does to my reputation for it certainly makes it much more difficult for anyone to recognize me. A friend only weeks go described me to someone who was bound to see me at work as 'The girl who always wears dresses,' a rather inaccurate categorization these days since I've hardly bothered. I'm challenged by jeans, and pants. It sort of feels like making an outfit around them is much more difficult than with a dress. It involves more than one piece for one, but then when I wear an outfit that I consider successful that involves pants I feel a smug sense of pride.

I've also got to take back everything I ever thought that was horrid about distressed jeans. I'm not going to run around in anything shredded to within an inch of it's life--I don't think I'm edgy enough for that kind of thing-- but a little knee hole in the Wayne & Garth spirit seems oddly alright and fun. Except when it is very cold and the air goes inside your knee hole, and you are very uncomfortable.

Either way, these days I'm a little bit more alright with a bit more tarnish and decay encroaching on the world of primness.

(Also, on a separate note: I'm so sorry to everyone who has tagged me for memes and the like in the past few weeks months. I'm afraid I tend to just not have the time to fill them out, and I also forget and lose track very easily. I'm sorry a million times, and I truly appreciate it <33333)

Fall at Once.

Oh dear! Today I noticed that the trees were almost bare (granted, the ground was covered with a good coating of leaves) and that this last week or so has been just so lovely. The weather, despite a day of rain, was perfectly cooperative and ideally autumnal and the leaves suddenly seemed lush with color found both on the trees and the ground. I realized that I haven't posted in quite a while--it gets to the point where it feels so awkward and one does not know what to say! Thank you all so much for the caring and thoughtful comments, I so dearly appreciate it and it is so lovely of you! To make up for the extended absence, here are some snippets of what's been going on. Lots of leaves, adventures in jeans, boyfriends in elbow-patches, and Halloween (I went as the same as last year--there will be a proper post on this eventually--I just love large ridiculous hair!), going to the movies, and more leaves.

Away For a Little

Toast.

Brb.
I'll be back to posting in a week or so.
(Edit: I didn't post about it originally, because I don't quite like the feeling of being so personal sometimes, but I will be away for a while due to a family passing. Thank you all for your wishes <3)

Hello, October!

Hello October! You are my favorite, with your leaves and chilly winds and the best holiday ever, even better than my birthday.


(I don't know where this came from. Someone sent it to me and said, "This is you," and basically, it is. A cat, wearing a scarf, reading something, and drinking tea.)

October:
Knee Socks
Leaves
Cider Donuts
Apple Orchards
Plaid
Halloween
Cold Noses
Hot Chocolate
Scarves
Tweed
Corduroy
Being Creepy



"Oh," cried Marianne, "with what transporting sensations have I formerly seen them fall! How have I delighted as I walked to see them driven in showers about me by the wind! What feelings have they, the season, the air, altogether inspired! Now there is no one to regard them. They are seen only as a nuisance, swept hastily off, and driven as much as possible from the sight."

"It is not everyone," said Elinor, "who has your passion for dead leaves."
-Sense and Sensibility

I think I used this quote last year, but it is so perfect, that I do not care if I am guilty of repetition.


The Sartorialist

Edit 10/3:
Photobucket kicked itself, so we're trying something different now. Booo, fail!

The Dress You Never Wore.

I've had this dress for almost a decade. My aunt bought it for me, I think to possible wear to a Freshman semi-formal dance, or maybe for 8th grade graduation. Since I was a skinny twig with all elbows and knees and head, it didn't fit. Finally, in the past few years it has been snug enough to look right--even if I have to admit this is because of snacking on sweets and not form some other magical garment-fitting-into ability. I should have gotten a proper shot of the back, since it's way low and has two bows affixed near the zipper.

It's a huge quandary of a dress. It's so obviously vintage, so obviously of it's time, that I've always had a hard time with it. I hate getting too costumy or too obviously 50s or 60s with it, and yet it doesn't seem like there is much option. No matter what I was never able to get rid of this dress, and tonight I finally wore it out. It's too dressy for most situations, but there was a work occasion to wear it, and so out it came (mostly because the gorgeous satin numero I wanted to wear fit me--ten pounds ago, and I had to adjust accordingly).

I figured I might as well be sort of carelessly literal about it. So poof went the hair, some red lips--which did not last, because of snacking--and my favorite pair of uncomfortable shoes. I'm still not sure about it--it makes me feel so sort of, aware of my body, in a strange way, which I guess is a good thing. I mean, I guess clothes should make one aware of something like their own body, yes? There is a line I think, between being self conscious in a bad way and aware that I think I'm thinking of. Because clearly clothes are no good if they obliterate that sense, and yet if it's too obvious, it's equally miserable.

In any case, velvet dresses are lovely.

Falling About.

(In real life I buttoned the cardigan, which looked infinitely better, but I forgot.)

Last weekend, or maybe it was the one before (I lost count) I found myself facing a weekend with no work. With that in mind the boyfriend and I trudged down to NYC, a week earlier than Fashion Week (which I'm not really fashionable or confident enough for anyway--it was nice enough to see the tents up early and sort of ignored) and ran around like mad cats. I escaped with a few things from Anthropologie--this mildly insane bag that I'm not so certain I would have bought if it wasn't 9pm and trying to get back for a train. But it's quite nice, and sort of fall-ish. I also have to admit that I'm quite excited to see how loudly it clashes against my bright winter coats, or even the solid black ones. It's kind of hideous, but I think that is what makes it awesome.



Don't worry, of course I still keep fussing over totes (which I almost spelled as 'toats') since no matter what they seem to be best for me. I think I forgot to mention that I ended up with this one, even if I wanted to twigs on as well, as a lovely birthday present from the aforementioned boyfriend.

I also must apologize for the slowness in my blogging. Sadly we lost our little kitty this week, my baby girl, and I am a little heartbroken about her. It seems also that all of the tragic things happen in one week because we've also had some other terrible emergencies. I'll be back to blogging regularly ASAP, because nothing makes anyone feel quite as good (even just a little bit) or forget about being cat-less like a nice little outfit. I'm also, of course, inspired and excited by the weather, and I finally got my hands on that movie I posted about so long ago, and even though some of it isn't very good, it's a nice little film.

Baby