Tag Archives: shoes
July in Instagrams
JULY! It’s over already…funny how it takes a turn of the calendar to get you to realize that time marches on, and things move fast. I went to two very enjoyable barbeques, went to my cousin’s wedding (and saw my parents! yay!), hit up Renegade Craft Fair, worked a ton, and even managed to fit in a trip to ikea. Of course, I didn’t instagram any of that…
- I bought these shoes in Italy when I lived there. I finally decided to get rid of them – I never wear them any more, but was holding onto them because of the sentimental value. Of course, I have a ton of other things from that time that I am holding onto as well, so the shoes were not really necessary. I can say that these shoes were one of the catalysts that really got me interested in sneakers though.
- Showing my pride for my favorite country…USA! USA! USA!
- My room got a major deep cleaning…more on that later. Let’s just be impressed with how tidy everything is!
- Someone snagged me some flowers from a work event and left them on my desk. So pretty!
- The view of Oakland from BART. People complain about public transit all the time (myself included), but I still love a good long train ride. It gives you time to think and reflect, it gives you plenty of people to observe, and it gives you plenty of landscapes to inspire you. Not too shabby for a $5 bill.
- Cod and fagioli! I fashioned my own little recipe and it was delish. Sometimes I wish I had more people to cook for – making things like this take a good amount of time and when I’m only cooking for myself it doesn’t seem worth the effort on a regular basis.
- Apparently my penchant for sneakers has come full circle…snagged myself a pair of the new Nike Flyknit shoes!
- My neighborhood has FINALLY gotten a frozen yogurt shop! And they have the cutest branding!
April in Instagrams
I cannot believe that it is already MAY!!! Insane.
- I had some good food with a friend who wears rad t-shirts.
- I also had some good brews with more good friends at the Nikkei Student Union 10th anniversary event in Berkeley.
- I slept through the day for almost half of this month…when you add it up, I worked 6 overnighters and spent an additional 7 days recovering.
- Luckily I didn’t forget what the sunrise looks like.
- I spent a considerable amount of time waiting for trains to pull up to the platform. (It was also Earth Day in April – which reminded me that transit is annoying but I am also living up to one of my idealistic goals that I set in college – to support public transit whenever possible.)
- I also spent some time above ground – running along the embarcadero – which offered some great views.
- I tried to work out some more. Key word: tried.
- I went shoe shopping and had a difficult time deciding between these two shoes. (First world problems.)
- I started shopping for Mother’s Day (right around the corner!)
- I also took in some new sights in the Financial District.
- I also took up being a part-time vegan! (Food from Juicy Lucy’s.)
- Some vegan days were more desperate than others. (Almonds, dried apricots, and Rockstar are all vegan!)
All in all, I really can’t believe the month is already over. It went by faster than I realized, probably because I spent over a week sleeping during the day! April brought a good round of great weather AND my vitamin D treatment seems to be working now, so I experienced a lot less chronic fatigue this month (YAY!).
I found out that my older cousin (on my dad’s side) and my younger cousin (on my mom’s side) share an April birthday – I cannot believe that the younger cousin turned 18. His mama is my mom’s youngest sister, so she was the “cool young aunt” when I was growing up…this officially makes me feel old!
I also cleared a business-y hurdle (business registration) and plan to tackle a few more in the coming month. I spent some time discussing how ridiculous it all is with a friend who owns his own business in San Francisco.
In terms of my blog, Paper Gatti sponsored its first blog (dianapantz!) and through that Paper Gatti had its first giveaway (it’s open through tomorrow!! go enter it now! I’m giving away stuff before my shop is even open!). I also saw traffic go WAY up in response to my DIY canvas tutorial – exciting! I also completed another DIY project – a tshirt scarf – and completed a couple more afterwards as gifts.
May promises some fun times at a Giant’s game, and I have some fun times with friends lined up. Cinco de Mayo is coming up, as well as Bay To Breakers – both events bring some extra fun to the city. And don’t forget…mother’s day is in May as well!
A Confession
I spent forever putting together a post about a craft project that I recently completed…only to have the draft go missing on WordPress! Boo! I promise that I will re-write it very soon…instead I am going to confess something to you.
I kind of have a little problem. A lot of women have it….a lot of the men that I know have it as well. I don’t know how it got so out of control, but every once in a while when I take a step back and look at my life…I realize that reality is not matching up with what I think.
I wish I could say this is all of them, but this doesn't capture the two pairs of work shoes I currently have in rotation, about four pairs of boots, another pair of sneakers, a pair of heels from Cole Haan and several pairs that are "on loan" to my mom...
As you can see, my problem is about shoes. And having too many of them!! I have tons of friends who consider themselves “collectors” and I don’t think I am a part of that group. So I don’t even have a reason for owning this many pairs of shoes, other than that I am wayyyyy too much of a consumer and mildly materialistic. Sometimes I think about all the other things I could have done with the money I spend on shoes…but it usually doesn’t stop me from buying a new pair.
Sometimes I am embarrassed to realize that I am probably not all that good at living frugally. I mean really, who needs all these shoes? You can only wear one pair at a time!! Once upon a time in Italy, I managed to live with just a couple of pairs of shoes. I may have lusted over shoes in the window of Bata every.single.day that I was there, but I was able to live a full and happy existence nonetheless.
I have had a few crazy foot injuries (nothing serious per se, just very chronic problems) and when it comes to cushy shoes, I tricked myself into believing that a new pair of shoes with springy cushioning is a lot less expensive than a visit to a podiatrist and then an orthopedic surgeon (oh wait…that is a fact that I experienced firsthand) and that the “right” shoes will save a lot of pain and injury. But knowing the practical side to buying practical shoes doesn’t negate the part of me that likes pretty things…in my head it does, but in practice it (obviously) doesn’t.
And I don’t even wear heels (well 99% of the time). Imagine how many closet doors I would need to store them if I did!
Okay well now you know about my not-so-secret shoe problem. I think I need to talk myself into getting rid of a lot of my shoes (hello why do I need old worn-out runners? I DON’T.) and instituting a one-for-one rule: if i buy a new pair of shoes I get rid of an old pair. This seems fairly impossible though so I may need to re-think this.
On another note, can you believe that it is already THE END OF MARCH!!?! I have some BIG things planned for April, so have a great weekend and rest up for an epic month!
What I Wore: Casual Dinner
Jacket: f21 | Scarf: Zara | Crewneck top: Nike | Jeans: AE | Shoes: Nike SB | Purse: Kate Spade | Silver Bracelet: Wyoming Creative | Beaded Bracelet: Gifted from a friend.
I went to dinner with a friend, and I decided to “dress up” and “not wear sweatpants”. Go me! The secret to dressing up? SCARVES. I have so many scarves and I have to stop myself from buying more on the daily. I picked this one up at Zara for half off a few months ago. I love that the stripes are a dark blue-y grey, but the center is a cream color. I can wear it with greys or with browns or with yellow-y neutrals and pull either look off! (I should use better words to describe colors…forrealios. I still want to know how one gets a gig naming paint colors, because that seems AWESOME.)
But no seriously.
I was wearing sweatpants before I went to dinner last night, and I was sooooo tempted to just stay in them. I finally decided that I should have some standards and threw on the jeans, ha ha.
I had a fantastic time at dinner catching up with a friend from college. She gave me some great advice on how to deal with some of the obstacles that I am facing in my life, and I’m told that this little venture of mine inspires her as well. Insane. We finished off the evening with some boba, which I had been craving for a week now. Yays all around!
My Valentine’s Day Tradition
As a kid, my mom always bought me and my sister some sort footwear for Valentine’s day – a pair of shoes, some flip flops, or if I was really lucky a new pair of jellies. (I don’t know I wanted plastic shoes so badly, but I did!)
I like to think that she was trying to teach us that how we feel about ourselves doesn’t have to be directly tied to whether or not you have that special valentine “dude”. Or maybe my mom didn’t want more candy in the house where she might be tempted to eat some…and deal with me and my sister buzzing around on a sugar high!
I moved out of my parents’ house over six years ago, but my mama didn’t forget about me…I texted her a photo of these shoes last week when I was browsing at DSW, and she offered to buy them on the spot. Score!
Obviously, my feet are kind of big. My shoe size is the same as both of my grandmothers’ shoe sizes added up together!
I have been searching halfheartedly for a pair of leather boots in this color since Christmas but came up short…now that spring is here I thought an ankle boot might be cuter. The heel isn’t too high for me…I even walked to the grocery store in these the other day!
These shoes have started an avalanche of fashion items that I think I “need”. Boot cut jeans. Vintage mint green necklace. Peplum tops. Flowy tops. And yet, all the clothes that I currently own won’t fit into my dresser….
