Discussions

In the last month: penpals. I’ve started writing paper letters and postcards in a surprisingly large chunk of my leisure time. I am not especially extroverted but going so long without much in the way of even casual human contact outside my immediate family is really wearing. Writing about everyday things in a way that is hopefully interesting to read has been a little bit of a creative outlet, and I’ve bought more stamps in the last 4 weeks than I have in the last 4 years, so I guess I’m finally pulling my weight to try to fund USPS, too. Some of the mail has been sent to family or friends who live far away and who I haven’t seen (and won’t see) for quite some time. Some has been sent to totally random people. I first signed up for the penpal exchange Rachel Syme is running on Twitter using the Elfster site, and then I enjoyed it so much I asked her to give me a couple more “bonus” names. Those are mostly people in the US (by my request, because postage is cheaper). Those are fun because you wind up exchanging more than one letter with people and develop a little bit of a relationship. Then a friend suggested Postcrossing.com, where it’s more like a one-time thing, not ongoing correspondence, and mostly postcards rather than letters. My matches through that site have been mostly international, and even when the pictures or messages on the postcards aren’t all that fascinating (there’s only so much you can write on the back of a postcard!) it’s fun to look at the globe with my kids and see all the places our letters are going to and from. I’ve also asked our church and a local nursing home if they know of people who would especially like to connect with a penpal, so we will see if I get any takers there.

Wool, especially short and long-sleeve t-shirts. The layer well under cardigans or blazers, you can get solid colors and dress them up with necklaces and scarves. My favorite long-sleeve shirts are Smart Wool 250 base layers, which are warm and come in lots of colors. I think I have 3 at this point, but would buy a couple more. If there’s nothing else I want at one of the REI member sales, I use the coupon to buy another one. Short sleeve, I haven’t found one I’m as happy with because the ligher weight knits can be a bit see through depending on the bra you wear under it–IME you have to wear one that matches your flesh tone. And the short sleeve Smart Wool tees are not as durable as the heavier knit of the 250s. Icebreakers are better. I wear them in very button down work environments and also to ski, hike, whatever. I prefer dresses and skirts to pants generally, but for pants I like a very slim fit almost legging-like trouser which has a ton of stretch. You can sprint for a bus, squat heavy file boxes, and meet a potential client. Some have patch pockets in back, but since they are essentially leggings you can plausibly pretend are not leggings, most don’t have pockets at all (which is fine with me, for my needs). When last I wore normal pants, I relied on Banana Republic pants in the Sloan fit. They run a ton of solid sales, so unless I was in a pinch for time I wouldn’t pay more than 60% of the tag price. For dresses and skirts, which I know you said you’re not as interested in, I agree it can be hard to find good, useful stuff. But since there’s less decision fatigue (1 dress v. 1 pants + 1 shirt, ughhhhh exhausting!) I do my best. My habit is to look through all the options on REI’s site, once for spring/summer and once for fall/winter, and out of 100 dresses there’s maybe only 1 or 2 I could wear to the office, but once I get them I wear them into the ground. Yes, with pockets. My motto generally is to be picky. For flats, I’m much pickier about finding non-ugly zero-drop shoes than necessarily requiring materials that can handle extraordinary wear and tear, but I have two pairs of Massimo Matteo loafers that I can happily walk for miles and miles in. They are mostly either suede or soft leather so they won’t survive the apocolypse, if that’s what you’re looking for. I also have found several boots with 2/2.5 inch heels that I think are great from a comfort/utility/style perspective, but if it’s not what you want, it’s not what you want, I get it.

In the last month: penpals. I’ve started writing paper letters and postcards in a surprisingly large chunk of my leisure time. I am not especially extroverted but going so long without much in the way of even casual human contact outside my immediate family is really wearing. Writing about everyday things in a way that is hopefully interesting to read has been a little bit of a creative outlet, and I’ve bought more stamps in the last 4 weeks than I have in the last 4 years, so I guess I’m finally pulling my weight to try to fund USPS, too. Some of the mail has been sent to family or friends who live far away and who I haven’t seen (and won’t see) for quite some time. Some has been sent to totally random people. I first signed up for the penpal exchange Rachel Syme is running on Twitter using the Elfster site, and then I enjoyed it so much I asked her to give me a couple more “bonus” names. Those are mostly people in the US (by my request, because postage is cheaper). Those are fun because you wind up exchanging more than one letter with people and develop a little bit of a relationship. Then a friend suggested Postcrossing.com, where it’s more like a one-time thing, not ongoing correspondence, and mostly postcards rather than letters. My matches through that site have been mostly international, and even when the pictures or messages on the postcards aren’t all that fascinating (there’s only so much you can write on the back of a postcard!) it’s fun to look at the globe with my kids and see all the places our letters are going to and from. I’ve also asked our church and a local nursing home if they know of people who would especially like to connect with a penpal, so we will see if I get any takers there.

Wool, especially short and long-sleeve t-shirts. The layer well under cardigans or blazers, you can get solid colors and dress them up with necklaces and scarves. My favorite long-sleeve shirts are Smart Wool 250 base layers, which are warm and come in lots of colors. I think I have 3 at this point, but would buy a couple more. If there’s nothing else I want at one of the REI member sales, I use the coupon to buy another one. Short sleeve, I haven’t found one I’m as happy with because the ligher weight knits can be a bit see through depending on the bra you wear under it–IME you have to wear one that matches your flesh tone. And the short sleeve Smart Wool tees are not as durable as the heavier knit of the 250s. Icebreakers are better. I wear them in very button down work environments and also to ski, hike, whatever. I prefer dresses and skirts to pants generally, but for pants I like a very slim fit almost legging-like trouser which has a ton of stretch. You can sprint for a bus, squat heavy file boxes, and meet a potential client. Some have patch pockets in back, but since they are essentially leggings you can plausibly pretend are not leggings, most don’t have pockets at all (which is fine with me, for my needs). When last I wore normal pants, I relied on Banana Republic pants in the Sloan fit. They run a ton of solid sales, so unless I was in a pinch for time I wouldn’t pay more than 60% of the tag price. For dresses and skirts, which I know you said you’re not as interested in, I agree it can be hard to find good, useful stuff. But since there’s less decision fatigue (1 dress v. 1 pants + 1 shirt, ughhhhh exhausting!) I do my best. My habit is to look through all the options on REI’s site, once for spring/summer and once for fall/winter, and out of 100 dresses there’s maybe only 1 or 2 I could wear to the office, but once I get them I wear them into the ground. Yes, with pockets. My motto generally is to be picky. For flats, I’m much pickier about finding non-ugly zero-drop shoes than necessarily requiring materials that can handle extraordinary wear and tear, but I have two pairs of Massimo Matteo loafers that I can happily walk for miles and miles in. They are mostly either suede or soft leather so they won’t survive the apocolypse, if that’s what you’re looking for. I also have found several boots with 2/2.5 inch heels that I think are great from a comfort/utility/style perspective, but if it’s not what you want, it’s not what you want, I get it.