by Diana on October 31, 2011
in Life
Warning: (I think) most of you guys read TCL for fun stories, recipes, and (perhaps one of two of you for) outfit posts. This post is random and rambling, so if you’re looking for the usual blog post here, you may want to skip this one.
I apologize for being a little MIA over the last several days. I’ve been feeling…overwhelmed…just with everyday life. I wrote the following when I was having a low moment last Monday morning. You know that feeling you get after spending a long period of time (weeks, even months, if not years) of running yourself into the ground resulting in you feeling so stressed and fatigued that you find yourself wanting to cry for no reason? I’ve hesitated posting this because it always seems to read much more dramatic than it actually is, but maybe I’m thinking about this too much? Hopefully, you don’t think I sound like too much of a drama queen…
Sometimes I wish I weren’t so stressed.
I wish I didn’t blog at midnight or 1 am because that’s the first time I’ve had all day to do it.
I wish I had more days with more than 1 hour of free time. Even when you’re doing mostly fun things, it can be stressful to not have any downtime.
I wish I didn’t leave my laundry in the dryer (or in the laundry basket in my living room) because I desperately need clean clothes but don’t have time to fold it once it’s done.
I wish I were better at saying “no”.
I wish I didn’t run around my house in between getting home and going to my next to-do, tossing things around like a tornado.
I wish my work weren’t so demanding.
I wish I had longer than 15 minutes of break time (yea that includes/is my lunch break) in my average work day.
I wish I didn’t cry at my desk at work.
I wish that I didn’t lay on the couch for just 15 or 30 minutes at the end of the day because it gave me a false sense of relaxing when I really should be heading straight to bed.
I wish there were more hours in the day. More days in the week. Or at least more days in a weekend.
But through all of this, I do my best to level set and reality check. I know there are many people struggling much worse than I am. I know this exhaustion is the sign of a gift because it means I have the ability to do (or at least try to do) all these things. It means I have a husband (and dog) to love, family to visit, friends who want to hang out with me, creative outlets, an exercise that is not a burden but a joy to do, the ability to teach Zumba, and a job…oh a job in this economy (no matter how stressful) is indeed a good thing. I have a lot to be thankful for, and I am.
The more straightforward solution to the stress is the one that hubby keeps suggesting – downsizing. But, exhausted as I am, I love everything too much to let anything go (ahh, so stubborn…I know). Some people have suggested that the blog is what’s taking up so much of my time, but I haven’t posted in a few days now and didn’t post a couple days before the poetry post. And you know what…I don’t feel any less stressed. In fact, after I published that poetry post, I actually felt…better. So, looks like the show will go on here on TCL.
Things are a little hectic right now, but I appreciate you coming along for the ride.
Thanks for reading,
Diana
Reader question #1: Do you ever feel overwhelmed by everyday life?
Reader question #2: Have something to get off your chest? Fill in the blank: Sometimes I wish________________.
This weekend, I attended my first ever poetry slam. It was one of the coolest things I’ve seen recently.
But since this blog has been a bit food sparse, let me show you some random eats photos before we get to the slam dets. Once again, a noodle bowl saves the day. This one served as lunch and was made completely with things I scavenged from around the kitchen – spelt soba noodles from my pantry and veggies from my freezer. Who needs time to go grocery shopping, right? jk
I also enjoyed my first pumpkin oats of the season.
I like candy corn around Halloween, peppermint around Christmas, but I like pumpkin around fall. And adding canned pumpkin to oats is one of the easiest ways I like to enjoy it.
This bowl was drizzled with maple syrup and topped with some sliced almonds. Yum!
Anywho, back to the slam. I was invited to the poetry slam with Slam Charlotte by my friend Talicha (click to check out her blog) who was competing in the event. Wondering what a “poetry slam” is? It’s basically a poetry competition where people perform their poems and are judged/scored. Higher scoring poets move on to next rounds of the competition till one winner is selected.
I actually used to write poetry when I was in school, just for fun (ok, as a creative outlet for deep feelings), so I was really looking forward to hearing from some new poets and seeing them perform live.
The event was kicked off by Jamaal St. John who was visiting from New York.
He shared a few poems, letters, and stories. The most memorable line from his performance was from his poem on loving thick girls where he said “a waist is a terrible thing to mind.”
Bluz is the current slam master, and he did a fabulous job keeping us entertained between the various performances and rounds. He’s also introduced me to my new favorite song, which I’d like to use for almost any occasion, but will most likely prove useful as an anthem to play during a particularly tough work day. I’ll have to share it with you guys some other time…or maybe just on my Facebook wall.
Of course, I was most excited to see my friend Talicha perform. She did a fantastic job, but did not end up winning this slam. Ahhh perhaps next time? 
By the way, I got to be a judge along with my friend Sarah. Apparently, they like to offer the newbies judging roles. I felt really unqualified, but they told us to just vote for whichever poem made us feel good, which seemed simple enough. It was a little nerve-wracking, but we had a good time.
Overall, the slam was so impressive. I’d quote more of the poets, but I’m afraid of butchering their words. Instead, I’ll just tell you that they covered a wide range of topics – from sad, to mad, to happy and everything in between. There were poems about sex, Alzheimer’s, a cell phone, a kidnapped child, a hair stylist, and love.
I think I see more poetry slams in my future (from the audience…not the stage).
Reader question #1: Who is your favorite poet?
Reader question #2: What is your favorite poem?
Apologies for being a bit MIA. It’s been a stressful week for me, but overall, I’m in good spirits.
The downs: This week has been extremely stressful at work. We’ve had some important projects get into full swing recently, and everyone on the team is a bit on the fritz. I’m still working with 17 Excel files and 5 databases open on my computer (yes, at one time). You knew I was a bit of a geek, right?
The ups: I’m getting back into the groove with Zumba. This was pretty much my second week of being back in the routine of things, and I’m more thankful than ever for my health. I’m hoping to continue my normal routine of Zumba about 3-4 times a week. I’m back to teaching 2 nights, and I’m loving it. Good health is such a blessing.
In outfit news, the work stress has me pulling more comfortable clothes to wear to the office. Take for example this slightly (ok, very) oversized gray sweater. Do you ever look at something in your closet and wonder why the heck you bought it? That’s what I’ve been thinking with this sweater. It’s pretty cute, comfortable, and machine washable/dryable (which I love for convenience purposes), and I even got it on mega-sale, but it’s just so darn big. I bought it in my normal size, but I think I should have gone down one. I like oversized sweaters that are meant to be oversized, but I think this one just looks a bit like it doesn’t fit.
I’ve also been questioning the sizes I purchase, just in the last couple months. My weight has fluctuated quite a bit over the last 10 years causing my size to range about 3-4 sizes, but while I tend to adjust my bottoms accordingly, I’ve tended to order the same size top. No clue why. I’ve started actually trying on one size smaller in tops just to see. As you know, the fit varies from style and brand, so it looks like I’m just going to have to be more careful and pay closer attention when I’m trying things on. This will suck for my new found love of online shopping. I really prefer trying things on, but I do love the convenience of online.
Ensemble:
Black pants: Banana Republic (scored on sale and extra mark down for about $30)
Sweater: Ann Taylor Loft
Scarf: Urban Outfitters
Nude Wedges: J Crew (also seen here)
Purse: Sigrid Olsen
Pearl Studs: family gift (from my college graduation!)
In home & yard news, here are the last flowers of 2011 for the Chic house backyard. They’re so tall and pretty. I think my neighbor called the purple ones “weeds”, but I’m enjoying them.
And I’m waiting for these leaves to start turning tan, gold, red, and orange. Can’t wait…I love fall.
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Thank you so much for reading! Hope you have a great rest of the week.
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Reader question #1: Do you purchase any type of clothes in the same size every time?
Reader question #2: Do you dress more comfortably when you know you’re going to have a stressful day at work?
Reader question #3: What color are the leaves in your yard?
Firstly, I wanted to say thanks to everyone for your thoughtful comments on the peanut butter post the other day. Those comments were some of the longest and most interesting recently, and I had a great time reading and responding to them. One of the comments even had me editing the post for clarity (thanks Rachael!). Click here to view the post.
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I recently ordered this gray leopard blouse (saw it in the store recently, but it’s sold out online) on sale from oldnavy.com. Even though we were just running errands on Saturday, I decided to take it out for a spin. The material is flowy, but not all that soft. However, overall, I think it’s pretty comfortable, and I like that it’s machine-washable and dryable.
I originally thought to wear this top with a pair of skinny black jeans, but that seemed too safe. My overall style tends to be on the simple/safe side, and though I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being simple, I’m currently working on being more a little more experimental every once in awhile. So, I decided to pair the shirt with some khaki shorts. Ooh, I know…so “daring”, but the shorts aren’t something I’d normally wear with this top. Not sure how I feel about the combo yet, but I’ll keep playing.
By the way, Hubby urged me to do most of my photos sans sunglasses. He said I looked like the terminator with them on. Nice. 
Ensemble:
Leopard print blouse: Old Navy
Layering tank top: The Limited
Shorts: J Crew
Suede booties: ASOS
Studded belt: J Crew
Bracelets: local boutique
In cooking news, I purchased some gorgeous purple potatoes from the store the other day and decided to turn them into breakfast potatoes this morning to go with an omelet. I tried out a new method for preparing my Stuff-Your-Face Breakfast Potatoes that would use one less pot and would be simpler overall to prepare. It was pretty much a fail and got a little messy, but I somehow managed to salvage the potatoes enough to make them edible. As for the omelet…it was pretty much my first time trying to make a real omelet. I usually just make scrambles. I watched a video on how to make the “perfect” omelet as I was making the omelet (I know, I should have watched it first)…only to get halfway through to learn that I was supposed to broil the omelet in the pan, which wouldn’t work for me since the pan I was using wasn’t oven-safe. Doh! The omelet was a near-fail but ended up being pretty tasty (though not photogenic). Ahh…kitchen fun on a Sunday. Hopefully, some of you have omelet-making tips for me that I can use next time. 
Reader question #1: Do you wear shorts with blouses?
Reader question #2: Have you had any recent kitchen failures you want to share?
Reader question #3: What are your tips for making the perfect omelet?
