Fashion Fast

DAY 285

As I was taking my Christmas tree down today, I was witness to the phenomenon of unusual (yet ongoing) eating habits of one of my cats, Curtis. He was taking pieces of tinsel and running to a corner, growling to scare off competitors (perhaps his older brother Buddy, or me I suppose) and being very secretive and mysterious. I had to chase and contain him to pull the tinsel out of his mouth. Minutes later, I would hear growling and realize he got another piece of tinsel (bright shiny object representing a mouse) and the process would start all over again. During all of this, Buddy kept his distance as "supervisor" and did not really get involved.

I finally got the tree out to the front porch where I will let it "transition" until March before it goes to live out in the backyard at "Compost Spa". Curtis went to find more mice (bright or shiny or crinkly or shrimp-flavored objects) and Buddy went to find a cozy spot on a bed somewhere upstairs.

So, I go to thinking about the put-away-tidy-up-return-to-normal feelings I always have in January and started thinking about how I was going to finish up the projects I started in December. I will finish re-organizing my office, complete the painting my bedroom and get back to work on world peace. I feel fairly ready for a new year...good to have most of my holiday decor down, rugs/curtains/floors washed, and the plastic up on the windows of my 1920's house. I have not had a Motivation Month since November, so I want to get that in place before too much January slips by. With 285 days of Nothing New so far, it is getting harder to think of new challenges.....I have settled on a clothing challenge - a "Fashion Fast" described in the NY Times Style Magazine on July 23, 2010 - details here:

http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/23/what-six-pieces-of-clothing-would-you-wear-for-a-month/

People chose 6 items of clothing to wear for one month (excluding undergarments and shoes) and learned some really interesting things...I've been marinating in this idea for a week now so here is my list of 6 items to wear January 9-February 9:

1 Blazer (gray/black)
1 Pair of jeans (black dressy)
1 White dress shirt
1 Sweater dress(long black)
1 Long sleeve t-shirt(black)
1 V-neck sweater(black)

I am allowing pj's, one workout outfit and two winter coats (a dress coat and a super warm casual jacket - it is after all winter in Rochester). I am also am going to accessorize freely - scarves, clip-on flowers and jewelry. This is going to be hard! I am going to stick to these six items. For reals. Easier for me than others in some ways because I am either working at home by myself or traveling and seeing different people every day. More challenging perhaps for someone who is in a workplace with the same people everyday...the coolest thing the NY Times "Fashion Fast-inistas" had to share was that other people never really noticed or cared. OK then.

I will keep you posted on this...Going to start painting!

Happy New Year! Have a Nothing New Day! Kristin