It sure has been a while. Here I am ready a job interview. Fingers crossed this is my last one and that I actually get this job. But I thought it was a good opportunity to add a post here since I dressed up for it.
This is an understated outfit, especially for me. It is all black and only the kimono brings some color. Well the earrings and necklace also helped a little bit. I have to say that I really enjoy dressing up these days since it does not happen very often nowadays.
Well, I hope everyone is staying healthy and safe during this difficult time, but it looks like we are slowly going back to a semi normal life, stores are slowly opening back up, restaurants are also opening for dining in and more people are out and about.
Here we are, still in quarantine and not going many places. I had to take Lulu to the groomers and run some errands for my parents so I took advantage of the situation to dress up. I got a lot of compliments on this dress, I think the only thing that was missing was a matching mask. 🙂
I have actually considered making more masks so that I have more colors but really, I don’t think I should. My current favorite is the one with daisies which is so happy and it helps with our mood in this situation.
I have been meaning to share that in the past few months I have been a bit obsessed with this brand #Freepeople. I love how it makes me look and feel. It is hard to explain but I think it is the flowy of the shirts. Granted, a lot of their clothes might not always fit me because they don’t have a plus size collection but their large and x-large are great in the baggy styles they offer.
My only issue with the brand is that it is a bit pricey but I always check out the sales rack at #Macys and sometimes I get lucky. Other stores also sell the brand so it is all a matter of patience. For the record, I have not gone shopping lately since everything is shut down. These clothes are from way before the quarantine. These days, I get a chance to get dressed up nicer at least once a week for grocery shopping and errands for my parents. I am not going to lie, it is nice to get dressed in a nice way once in a while. I feel bad because I have so many beautiful summer dresses and I am afraid I won’t get to wear them all since we never leave the house. I have been wearing my athletic gear more since all I ever do is take Lulu for walks.
Well, my father’s immune system is somewhat compromised so my brother and I have to run his errands and buy his groceries. Saturday was my turn. On the bright side, it gave me the opportunity to dress up a little bit.
I want to tell you about these pants. I bought them a good 8 or 9 years ago and for the past 6 years they have not fit me so I saved them with the hope they would fit me one day again. During this quarantine, I have been looking for things to do, and up-cycling my pants was a great idea…
Here I am wearing pants I fixed using some of the African material I bought when I was in Ghana. The pants now fit nicely and I have pants that no one else in the world has. Coincidently I had this shirt that matched perfectly. Of course nobody can miss our newest accessory in the market. The mask… I did make this one out of a map fabric which represents my love for traveling.
I hope everyone is doing ok out there. To be very honest, it has not been easy for me. The anxiety and depression are getting stronger and stronger and it is getting harder and harder to fight these horrible feelings. I find that talking about it helps a little bit.
Lulu
Of course, Lulu has been helping me along. I have to get dressed everyday to take her on walks. Which, in turn prevents me from lying in bed all day. I have been taking some long walks with Lulu and my mom with whom I tried to speak French for practice.
Well, I am taking one day at a time, and I wanted to share my “new” pants with you. Take care and hang in there…
So, here we are, all stuck in our homes… some are still working, coming and going and worried about their families since they are more at risk of catching anything. Honestly, this feels like a weird surreal world that we one day woke up to and did not have time to prepare mentally for…
I, not only am going through the trauma of the COVID-19, but also the trauma of having lost my job even before this whole mess. As many of you read earlier, the university I work for is permanently closing at the end of this month. As many have posted on social media, the year 2020 is just not going well and it should be restarted to see if we get a better outcome.
I am not going to lie, all these things are not helping my anxiety and depression, I have been doing the best I can to stay busy and do productive things at home. I have started a shop on Etsy and have been fortunate enough to have wonderful friends and family who are supporting me and made some purchases.
On the job search side, today we got the news that our state will not open schools for this school year anymore and on top of it the money the schools were promised is not coming and their hiring should be put “on ice”. This is not good news for me because I am a teacher and that is the kinds of jobs I was looking for. It has become clear that I need to branch out and focus on those other jobs from now on.
So, I thought I would share some of the things I have been doing to keep me going during this crazy time, this quarantine.
I have been taking Lulu (our puppy) on long walks everyday
I have been working on learning French (now I have more time to dedicate to it)
I have been sewing
I have made some crafts
I have ‘pestered’ my kids to do their homework
I have been cleaning the house (not my favorite)
I have been doing the laundry (it never ends, ugh… 🙁 )
I have called and texted to check in on friends and family
Only when necessary, I have gone grocery shopping
I have cleaned out my room and got rid of a lot of stuff
I have switched out my closet
I have watched a lot of movies
I have watched a lot of TV
I have read good books
I have done my work during the day
I have even cut Lulu’s nails
The main thing is to give yourself a break… Some days I just don’t feel like doing much and I allow myself to take that day to just watch some TV and take it easy. Other days I feel more productive and get more things done. My new motto since the announcement that the university was closing is: “One day at a time” and I believe that is the only way to go through this.
What I sometimes think about is how we will have to tell our grandchildren about this and how we handled it. It will be interesting for sure. It might be a good idea to keep a journal of our frustrations and our successes during this time. It is easy to forget details of what happened.
Well, we are all going a bit nuts because we cannot leave the house…. Good thing my family lives in the same complex so we could have lunch together to celebrate my brother’s birthday. Great excuse to dress up!!! Love this dress/shirt I got at Maurices! The necklace from Ghana is a big statement too…
I just thought I would share this today since most of us are spending our days in sweats or pajamas…LOL…
While I am looking for a new job I decided to put my talents to good use. I have opened a store on Etsy and I would like you to help me spread the word. For now I have the reusable sandwich and snack bags and I plan on adding much more.
Tell your friends to check out my store every once in a while… These were fun to make and can be used for dog treats, your snacks and sandwiches and they are eco-friendly since you can use them over and over again…
Thank you for your help and for reading… I am still working on some new pictures for the blog with some different ideas for clothes…
So this has been a weird year already and it is only March. First the university where I have worked for the past 5 years informed us they were closing in April. I have been looking for a job ever since the announcement and I have had no luck.
To make things more complicated and interesting, we are now dealing with this crazy pandemic. We have been told to teach virtually for a month and I worry that won’t be enough. My kids are also home for a couple of weeks and it could be extended. This is just crazy!!! Schools and companies are certainly not going to worry about hiring now so I guess I will have to be patient and wait. Meanwhile I will try to get out in nature to get some pictures for the blog and work on some crafts too.
