Black Friday

In my eleven years living in the US, I have never once gone shopping the day after Thanksgiving. I dislike malls at the best of times, but why would anyone join a bazillion bargain-crazed shoppers when she could be at home eating leftover pie in her pajamas and ordering the exact same stuff online for less money? The mind, it boggles. I decided to get a start on my non-participation in Black Friday shopping last weekend. My Sunday was largely consumed with finishing a term paper but I managed to squeeze in couple of breaks that should help keep the retail economy going strong.

This skirt is going to be an important addition to my fall wardrobe. Add thick tights and my brown or black knee-high boots and I'll be warm and stylish. Nobody does the flippy skirts better than Boden. I couldn't decide between the ochre and the mulberry, so I ordered both and we'll see what they look like up close. Any thoughts, people?

From Boden it was on to Zappos just to look because we all know I don't need any more shoes. I headed straight to the Sofft page to see what was new. I can't tell you how much I love their shoes. So, so comfortable and pretty. I have, shall we say, rather large feet and have great difficulty shopping for shoes in any brick-and-mortar retail establishment not geared towards cross-dressers and drag queens. And while those ladies have a great deal of style, it's not really my style. In addition to the suede pump (color is caramel, even yummier in real life) I also purchased this pair of casual brown sneakers to replace an aging pair of lace-ups that are a standby of my fall wardrobe. I haven't taken them off since they arrived: they are unbelievable light and comfy and make my feet appear almost dainty. They look brown to me, but according to Zappos they are the color of "inner earth" trimmed in "pipe."

As I was contemplating all the places I will walk in my new comfy shoes, I was reminded of how I could have used them this time last year when I was trekking all over Edinburgh. Immediately, I head over to Amazon to buy the newest Alexander McCall Smith book. I have no idea how this man manages to churn out so many new tomes every year but I'm grateful he does. Part of my reason for going to Scotland was to stalk Isabel Dalhousie: I have a bit of history stalking fictional characters, but that's a story for another time. After adding the book to my cart, Amazon.com suggest I might like this CD. As it happens, I did. We Funky and Delightful girls do love our Pink Martini.

By this time I was feeling like I probably should be getting back to my assignment so I reluctantly closed Firefox and got back to work. A few additional breaks were needed later in the week, one resulting in a order from Superbuzzy even though I had promised myself I wouldn't buy any more fabric this year. It was just too good, I couldn't help myself. I also discovered A Little Hut which is where the flower cards came from. Holy, holy this woman has talent. I really want one of her cut paper silhouettes. She also has some very creative ideas for gift tags on her blog, definitely worth a look.

Happy shopping!