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DJ/Radio Producer-turned-Lawyer attempts to dress like a grown-up. Sometimes I comically fail. And I occasionally post fun stuff, like music videos, book-club reviews, or photos of beauty or oddity.
FYI: I was doing this entire blog from my Android phone, snatching moments out of my busy life for quick photos. But I hate auto-correct with a purple passion, so now I'm using the computer for most of the work. I am still using my phone for the photos, though. My photo sizes may be erratic, and the quality isn't stellar. I am not a professional blogger, and do not have time for lots of scenic poses with a great camera. I don't even own a great camera! However, I DO appreciate your continued feedback, even in the absence of photographic artistry.

Friday, November 30, 2012

A First for Me... NOT in a Good Way

I've been pretty frank about my frequent use of my back-up makeup kit that I keep in my office. I probably use it about half the time, so while I may show up with a bare face, it doesn't last long. Until today:

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I've been pretty sleep-deprived the last couple of nights, and didn't have time to shower again. Ugh! Fortunately, I have a Bumble and Bumble spray hair tonic which helps tame the frizz. But I got to the office intending to do my semi-stealthy cosmetics application. But I just didn't have the energy:

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Yep, me in all my bare-faced glory. Not a common sight-- I'm a "full warpaint" kind of girl.

I was really excited about my outfit for today's post... I'm styling the necklace Freeda just gave me in a way I've never tried. She suggested that I wear it over a button-down shirt, as she often sees in another blog (I guess I haven't seen that one yet). I was actually pretty happy with it, despite my lack of effort in the primping category today.

For once, I actually wore the flimsy belt that actually came with the shirt, because the red would have been "too much" with the huge necklace. My other slim black belt had a modern-looking silver-toned buckle. Not good.

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I really want to get some earring that go better with this necklace. Nothing I already have seems quite right. But here's the best I could do today:

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Black flats because this pair of pants is particularly short on me. If I ever get to shop for pants again, I'm NOT falling for buying "average" length again, trying to fave the ten bucks for tailoring. I will just suck it up, buy tall, and actually get them taken up to the correct length for me.

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I'm pretty wiped, so 'nighty-nite, kiddos!

Top: via Stein Mart
Necklace: gift from Freeda
Pants: Lane Bryant
Shoes: Nine West
Earrings: via consignment shop

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Book Club Night!

This one was long, but fun:

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I've always been fascinated with time travel, and even though I'm not a big Stephen King fan, I absolutely recommend "11/22/63"! This "no-spoilers review" on Amazon is dead on, IMHO!

And yes, I "cheated" by getting it on audio... but it's a "book" club, not a "reading" club, so I think I'm OK. It's my night to present the choices for the next selection, and I'm really excited to introduce some book I really love to the ladies in the club.

The meeting had a 1960's theme... there was "period" food and desserts, and a few of the ladies took cues from the time in their clothing choices. One look I love is the 3/4 sleeve jacket with long gloves. The gloves don't fit into my 2012 life, but a modern adaptation that works for me is long sleeves under 3/4 sleeves:

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I really like the pattern on the jacket:

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I got several compliments today... Hubby said I looked pretty when I got home, my friend noticed that my earrings matched:

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And opposing counsel complimented me on wearing pink shoes with the black-and-white outfit:

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Sweater: via Pip's in Corning, NY
Jacket: Charter Club via consignment shop. My Google search of the brand makes it look like it's a Macy's store brand. Does anybody know for sure?
Pants: Lane Bryant
Earrings: via consignment shop
Shoes: Aerosoles

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Mrs. Groder

I'm on Day 3 of wearing these pants... a new record! I usually wear pants two times before washing, usually two days in a row because I don't have much of a place to put "semi-clean" clothes. But for this week, I actually wore the same exact outfit Monday and Tuesday.

But only because I was at work for less than four hours on Monday. So the outfit was perfectly good for another day. I looked better on Monday, but didn't get a blog shot until Tuesday:

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Note to self: get bangs trimmed!

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I liked the idea of the beige-ish "pearls" in the hair flower with the ones in the jewelry set. I couldn't find the earrings to photograph them tonight, but they match the beige-ish "pearls" in the necklace:

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Wednesday was my true "groder" day. My phone, which doubles as my alarm clock, ran out of juice-- so I didn't wake up until I was already over two hours late for work! Even worse: my boss had to cover a court appearance when nobody could reach me! No time to shower... I hate that stale, unwashed feeling *shudder*.

I gave myself a quick pass with wipes, and I am soo glad I have backup grooming supplies in my desk. But I forgot that these reds don't match:

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Not easy to tell in this photo... shot in the mirror at work at about 8:30 this evening. Yep, I actually more than made up the time I missed this morning. I actually prefer to do my video conferences with my jailed clients after hours, so I don't get interrupted by other stuff.

My hair is cracking me up! Can you tell that I wore a wet ponytail yesterday?

I just grabbed basic earrings for the day... didn't exactly have time to get clever with accessories!

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Along with the pants, I also wore the same jacket and shoes all three days this week:

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Not winning any originality points this week, that's for sure! But I'm mostly clean, and dressed appropriately for work... I'm not expecting much from myself right now. I'm just going to concentrate on the basics right now. Hubby is still in a lot of pain, and can't help with much at the moment.

Between laid-up Hubby, tons of work, and a felony trial in less than two weeks... clever styling, sensible diet, and exercise have flown out the window! But I'm still going to try to blog as I can manage.

Sweaters: VanHeusen outlet
Jacket: VanHeusen outlet
Pants: Lane Bryant
Hair flower: via art fair in Hammondsport, NY
Hoop earrings: via JC Penney
Jewelry set: via Bon Ton
Shoes: Aerosoles

Sunday, November 25, 2012

Black Friday

I avoid shopping on that day like the plague! I usually stay in, but since I had Freeda and Kiddo with me for a couple of days, we went to the Corning Museum of Glass instead:

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Whoops! I forgot to take my tag off before getting blog shots... I really like Freeda's necklace, so I'm waiting for her to get bored with it and give it to me! Kiddo often benefits from this tendency of Freeda's as well.

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Wow, I don't normally see myself from that angle. Or this one:

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It has become clear that more time must be spent in the gym. Not merely to combat chub, but because Hubby's unexpectedly good result from his surgery was largely due to his excellent physical condition. He worked out at least twice a week, and was muscular and strong as an ox. I need to improve my condition to prepare myself as best I can as a hedge against disaster.

But in the meantime... here's something pretty to look at:

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After she arrived Wednesday night, Freeda tossed this over to me, and challenged me to style it:

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The first way is apparently how she has been seeing it on other blogs. To me, seems a bit of an awkward way to wear it. She wondered how women "with boobs" can wear it.... My first instinct was to wear this beauty closer to the neck, in a style vaguely reminiscent of a Renaissance piece. To make that work, I had to "engineer" a closer fastening:

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After Freeda and Kiddo left for the next leg of their road trip, I got into pajamas and settled in for a quiet night. Then Squeaky called me, needing help selecting paint colors. I love that sort of thing, and was happy for the chance to see my little Peanut:

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Top: via Stein Mart. Worn backwards
Sweater: via consignment shop
Pants: Lane Bryant
Necklace: no idea, Freeda gave it to me
Earrings: via consignment shop
Hair flower: Maurice's
Wore my Crocs again...
Peanut's dress: made by Gramma
Striped shirt: Isaac Mizrahi for Target via Goodwill
Earrings: Lia Sophia

Saturday, November 24, 2012

An Attitude of Gratitude

This Thanksgiving in particular, I have so much to be thankful for. We had a rather nasty scare with Hubby... without going into much detail, the odds were very strong that he would have been paralyzed. Or dead. He is neither!

Hubby is still in pain, has lost some functionality in his left hand, and his left leg is a touch awkward. He will definitely need physical therapy. But at the time that the ambulance was called, Hubby was paralyzed on his left side altogether. He got into the hospital a short time after symptoms appeared, and he had an amazing neurosurgeon get him into surgery quickly. The quick response time, coupled with his excellent physical conditioning, really saved him from a much more typical (and worse) outcome.

We have wonderful friends that called, facebooked, visited-- some even brought supplies to the hospital and home for us! Stinky has been very helpful, too. He insisted on staying with me rather than at his mom's so he could keep me company, and he has been a great comfort. Our boss has been monitoring Hubby's caseload so I don't get all that extra work dumped onto me. He even came to the hospital to visit!

Hubby is not allowed to work for awhile, which is a bit of a financial hit... but we can handle it. Luckily, November is a 3-paycheck month! The gas bill is ahead, and our rent is cheap. Looks like the pub bill is going to be virtually nonexistent, and we can likely get forbearance on the student loan payments.

Our usual holiday travel is impossible for Hubby to endure, so we are staying home this year. But some family came to us for Thanksgiving:

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Freeda's husband is in Afghanistan (I'm also thankful that he is safe and well!) so she decided to bring Kiddo out for a little road trip east:

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The artistic Kiddo has already been recruited to design a tattoo for Hubby, incorporating his new scarring. Which will be shown below... just giving a "heads-up" to the unusually squeamish.

We had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner... which we did not cook! Our local hangout pub puts on a free community turkey dinner every year for the holiday. So we decided to attend this year, since I do not have the energy to stage a dinner myself. Delicious food (of course!), and I got to have some fun with the pub owners' (our friends) daughter:

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Oh, yeah... Freeda challenged me to style this necklace that she's been having difficulty with. Then decided it looks better on me! There will be more postings of this big beautyt this week. The earrings:

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Hubby managed to sit up throughout dinner, leaning on the high booth back with a pillow behind his neck. But I had to take him and the pumpkin pie home, because his neck couldn't take the strain of sitting up any longer. I think he is over-optimistic on his return date to work.

Once the "sheer terror and panic" phase of his hospitalization was over, and I was to the point where I could observe the world around me again... I spotted a cute little sculpture garden in a courtyard at the hospital:

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It's such a random thing...

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...but cheery!

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The hospital staff were wonderful, and took such great care of my love. And of me... at about 3 a.m. or so that first awful night, there was no way I could drive home. I tried to sleep in the chair next to Hubby in ICU, but it was killing my back. One of the nurses unlocked an empty consult room with two short couches I used to make myself a little bed by pushing together. She brought me blankets, As I was lying there, sobbing my guts out... she put socks onto my bare feet for me.

I will do the breakdown now instead at the very end, like I usually do.

Top: via Macy's
Pants: Lane Bryant
Necklace: no clue on the source yet... Freeda?
Earrings: via M-I-L's purge
Yes, I wore Crocs. So sue me!

Last warning... if you are particularly squeamish, don't look:
.
.
.
.

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Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Brief hiatus

Hey, it's me, freeda.  Lawyerdoll's husband is having some fairly serious medical issues, so she won't be posting for a bit.  If you are one to pray, it would be appreciated.  Just wanted to let you know.  1. She hasn't jumped ship, and 2. your support means a lot.

Saturday, November 10, 2012

Take Two Thursday:

From the "Hairdo Hall of Fame"... the poor woman's "Florence Henderson":

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Don't even bother to make fun of it (talking to you, Freeda!) I know it's bad, but mid-styling I realized if I didn't leave the house pronto... I was going to be late to one of my less favorite courts!

Somehow, I got the bright idea Thursday morning that I would try a redo of a failed outfit. The culprit:

  Uploaded from the Photobucket Android App

It doesn't do the weird puffy thing at the hips without the belt, so that was a plus. I tried to keep the neckline straighter that the "look at my chest" pulling in the earlier pic. Safety pins to the rescue? But it pulls at the pins a bit... I wonder if a different placement would help?

I almost wore the belt again today, but spotted problems in time to stop myself. So I quickly replaced the gold earrings I was about to put on with silver:

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The shirt is too snug to wear as anything other than a layering piece. I keep trying combinations for it because I really like the soft fabric and the cool pattern:

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As for my exercise goals... failed again. This foot had better feel "normal" soon... I had to skip Zumba... I'm getting ticked!

Top: Ann Taylor via consignment shop
Sweater: Iman from HSN gift from Freeda
Earrings: World Market gift from Freeda
Pants: Lane Bryant
Shoes (not shown): Ariats, because I forgot they make my pants look too short... *sigh*

Thursday, November 8, 2012

So Busy, I Went Cross-Eyed!

Not to mention get a "decent" (hahahaha) blog shot taken. I was on my feet in court most of Wednesday, and had to work late to deal with some things that I needed peace and quiet. I'm a bit shocked that I at least snagged a quick mirror shot on my way out of the office... well past dark:

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I wore this outfit, or variations thereof, several times last year... so I suppose this is a "refresher". At least, I can use an old (better) photo to fill in the post somewhat. Same basics, different accessories:

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The ones worn this time around:

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And, of course:

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I don't feel too bad about skipping the gym to work late, because my foot still feels weird and a little sore from an injection on Monday. But I would prefer to get back on track soon!

Sweater: AB Studio via Freeda's purge pile
Jacket: VanHeusen outlet
Jewelry: via M-I-L's purge
Shoes: Aerosoles

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Election Day

In the U.S., anyway.... Hubby and I are very fortunate, because we work for a local government that essentially shuts down for Election Day. So I spent the bulk of the day on the couch, rewatching old "Tudors" episodes on Netflix while Hubby caught up on his beauty sleep.

Hubby thinks I'm obsessed with royalty... and I am interested in the topic, but not for the reasons many people are. As one born and bred in the U.S., I find the concept of rule by right of birth intriguing... particularly the machinations that are done to preserve power, or at least title. Who had a sense of responsibility to the People, the classical "Philosopher King". Who just wanted to figure out how much he could get away with before the People revolted, a "Machievellian"? Who was the power behind the throne?

Hey, I have a B.A. in Political Science and History... it's my field. Would you like fries with that?

Eventually, we roused ourselves and got ourselves presentable to go do our civic duty. I decided to go with a subtle version of the patriotic "Red, White and Blue" look I have seen others do so horribly:

Woman in gaudy USA clothing
pulled from Google Images. I will be good and link the source.

Be forewarned: Hubby took my photo. Yeah, we all know that it's not going to be particularly flattering... but here's my outfit:

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WTH was up with my hair in this pic??? *sigh* I knew I should have taken the extra few minutes and blow-dried it.

My necklace is actually two twisted together, to add a little change in texture and color. Does that make it a "melting pot"?

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At the last moment, I decided to wear "star" earrings to subtly pay tribute to the Flag. The earrings that I bought in Austria... tee-hee!

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I really don't wear these enough, and they are so pretty! I'm losing my love for French wires, and I am seriously considering overhauling most of my earring collection.

We dropped our cable awhile back, and just watch stuff on Netflix, Hulu, etc. on Xbox. So, rather than listen to the talking heads blather on all night, I have an election map up on the computer. It automatically updates every 30 seconds, and I'm trying hard to only check it occasionally!

The Presidential race is a real nail-biter, with one candidate ahead, then the other, over and over again. I will be so glad when the whole thing is over!

Sweater: Liz and Co. via consignment shop
Jacket: VanHeusen outlet
Jeans: Lane Bryant
Shoes (not shown): Ariats. I needed comfy shoes for standing in line.
Big necklace:  via JC Penney
Small necklace: gift
Earrings: via gift shop at the Stat Opera Haus, Vienna, Austria

Monday, November 5, 2012

I Am Lawyerdoll... and I Did NOT Approve These Messages!

What in the heck is "Yellow Moxie", and why is it inserting hyperlinks into my blog post from yesterday??? And why can't I edit them out??? I sure hope that doesn't become a regular feature... I like to insert hyperlinks occasionally for my own purposes, but I have never tried to "monetize" my blog.

Anyway, I finally tried out my crazy new necklace that I bought from a friend at a craft show. How it looks when all properly in place:

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I was really excited when I bought it. But I've been having some difficulty with it throughout the day:

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Um... yeah.... Aaand the best stuff was hidden when I was in court in the morning:

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Whoops- missed a button!

So, I really like the necklace, but my styling idea was a fail. Any suggestions? Seriously... I need help!

I grabbed plain silver hoops this morning, because I don't have any other earrings that go. Oh yeah... I wore shoes:

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No exercise today, I got a foot injection....

Dangit! I saw more unauthorized hyperlinks when I looked at my post in preview. How do I make this stop???

Sweater: Liz and Co. via consignment shop
Jacket: via consignment shop
Pants: Lane Bryant
Shoes: Aerosoles
Earrings: via Gold Mine in Bath, NY
Necklace: via craft fair in Corning, NY

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Busy Weekend

I've been so busy the last few days, I've hardly had time to catch my breath! Friday, I went to work, ran errands, then met up with a girlfriend for drinks. A decent blues band was playing at the hangout pub. Never did bother to change out of my work clothes:

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Me after too little sleep, a very long day, and two hard ciders! I really like these earrings I snagged from my Mother-in-Law's purge last year... I wear them quite a bit:

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Saturday, I took Stinky to the roller rink. I wore my usual skating outfit for that. The pic is not from today, but I really love my "Captain America" shirt, so I'm posting it again... because I'm a big child:

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Of course, my go-to clearance earrings match Cap and my skate wheels perfectly:

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Stinky and I absolutely agreed an the necessity of watching "Dr. Who" on Netflix before I left for my friends' Improv performance. My hair looks comical from the ponytail I sported while skating:

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Since the (intimate) audience got to call out scenarios, I managed to get a decent Sci-fi influence going for a couple of the skits. Yep... I had them looking for the TARDIS in the woods, and debating the virtues of Star Wars vs. Star Trek. I almost wet myself when my "middle-aged craft-crazy mom" friend was rapping about a paper cut!

I went rather "matchy-matchy", as you see:

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I will sob when these socks finally unravel, the tops have seen better days:

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And I still love this: Uploaded from the Photobucket Android App

Sunday was GTL day. Since this isn't "Jersey Shore"... it stands for Gym, The Doctor (Who, that is...), and Laundry. Didn't get around to the laundry, though....

I just re-wore my skating outfit to go lift weights, then took Stinky to the Pool at the Y. Wore my version of a swimsuit for that, though! At one point we, and several other kids, had three balls all going in different directions, just flying around in some sort of mutated water volleyball.

I'm worn out... I need to get back to work so I can rest!

Friday:
Sweater: Talbot's
Jacket: VanHeusen outlet
Pants: Puh-leeze... do I even need to SAY Lane Bryant?
Shoes (not shown): Ariats. Made my pants look "flooded". *sigh*
Earrings: via M-I-L

Saturday day:
Tee: Wal-Mart
Gym pants: Old Navy. NOT Lane Bryant. Shocker, I know....
Earrings: via Fashion Bug
Skates: Riedell via eBay

Saturday night:
Shell: Laura Ashley via Goodwill
Sweater: Old Navy
Jeans: Lane Bryant. Again.
Shoes: Bass outlet
Earrings: via World Market
Scarf: via random stare in Paris, France