Archive for purse
>Finally…
>
I’ve finally managed to get myself dressed and walk the dog. The poor animal was waiting so patiently for me to get my act together and I wasn’t doing it. It was with great joy that he saw me head to the bathroom to get ready and he stayed by the door, checking to make sure I really did. He always waits by the bathroom door and when I’m done, he sniffs me to make sure it’s really me. Then, when we went out, I needed four baggies to clean up after him, which I luckily had with me. Don’t tell me I’m not a responsible citizen.
I don’t know why I was such a slowpoke this morning. I got up at a decent hour. As a matter of fact, I got up too early and realized it before I could turn on the computer and finished sleeping on the sofa. I feel like taking a nap now, but that must be because it’s Sunday and a defense mechanism against boredom. After I write this, I’ll lay down on the sofa with my book and we’ll see what happens. I’m hoping it will intrigue me enough to keep me awake. It’s still Secret Scripture and I’m enjoying it. Sebastian Barry is one heck of a writer. He makes you believe that what you read is real and I must read more novels by him.
It’s almost noontime now and half the day is done. I think I will also draw or paint today or both. After I take that refreshing nap.
I am dressed in black leggings, a blue denim skirt and a black top with short sleeves. I am wearing multiple matching bracelets and a colorful necklace, but the necklace is making my neck itch, so I will have to take it off and put something else on. It’s probably not nickel free metal. It’s one I got from the woman I gave my earrings to. I’m always so sensitive to jewelry and I can’t wear silver necklaces or earrings at all, which is a shame, because there are some nice pieces of jewelry made with silver.
Which makes me think I have scarves to wear and I should get them out and see if I can wear one of them instead of a necklace. What a splendid idea. I had forgotten all about them. It is that time of year again to wear scarves. I have two or three of them and I think I have one that has purple in it, which would match the bracelets I am wearing now. I’ll go have a look…Yes, I’ve found it. It has purple and red in it, so it matches two sets of bracelets and several necklaces too, if I wanted to wear those, but I think just a scarf is enough. It feels good around my neck that was itching. Another fashion solution come about. Isn’t it nice when you forget about things temporarily? But I have a rash in my neck and I’ll have to put some ointment on it.
I must buy more scarves if I am to make a fashion statement this fall and winter. My friend Von wears them all the time. She must have a dozen of them. Lord, I can get so excited about a little thing like that. I feel like I ought to go out right now and buy a new one, but all the stores are closed. I’ll have to wait until tomorrow. I think I have just enough cash to get one and I know where to get it.
I get the same way with boots or purses or anything. I realize I like something very much and I immediately want more of it. More denim skirts and more purses and more boots. I realize I’ve been using the same purse now for a long time, so it’s time to get another purse out and I will do that next. It’s time to clean my purse out anyway, it’s a mess. I have two other good purses that I haven’t used in a while and it will be fun to pick out the one I will want to use. I’ll have to find a case to put my camera in, because the purse I’m using now has a little compartment for it. That shouldn’t be too much of a challenge, though.
I got those two other purses from the Exfactor when I was hypo manic and I could sweep him along in my enthusiasm and get him to buy me all the things I fell in love with, even if I was not with him. My excitement rubbed off on him and he got completely caught up in it. I remember being higher than I kite when he bought me those purses and feeling invincible. Maybe that’s why I’ve been reluctant to use them, because of those memories. The purses are great and look like tribal bags, as if they come from Africa. They are big and have lots of room to put all sorts of things in. Like my shopping if I go downtown and have money to spend.
I was wearing my jeans yesterday, but they seemed to be too big for me and at one point they started sliding down my hips, so that I looked like one of those kids who wear their jeans with the crotch between their knees. I made it home just on time before I looked completely ridiculous, but I can’t wear those jeans anymore. At home they kept sliding down and I kept hitching them up, so I took them off and replaced them with a skirt and leggings, which is much more sensible. I have to look in my closet to see if I have another pair of jeans that fit better. These I probably bought when I was heavier and I put them on when they came straight out of the wash and they were tight. I was kind of surprised that I had a pair of jeans in light denim that fit me. On top of that, they were stretch jeans too. I certainly didn’t need that.
The top I am wearing is very cute. It has a V-neck and little buttons down the middle and a bow that ties right at the bottom of the V. It has very small short sleeves and the top itself is long, it goes way past my hips. It’s the one I bought for 10 Euros in my favorite store, where I don’t hang out anymore due to a shortage of money. I’ll go there when the next paycheck comes and see if there is anything really cheap on sale. I do love a good deal and one must be had.
Well, now I’m gong to change purses and throw out everything that is junk from my old purse, including all the tobacco crumbs and cookie and nougat wrappers. It will be fun to see what’s all in there.
At least I will have spent part of my Sunday doing something pleasurable. Not to forget the hunt for the scarves.
Have a good day, all of you.
Ciao,
Nora
>Indulgence.
>Today I decided to devote the afternoon to me, so after the Exfactor came over to look at some paperwork that had me quite worried and which I will tell you about tomorrow, I decided to have an afternoon that was solely devoted to me.
The weather was great and there was not a cloud in the sky, so I hopped on my bike and rode it downtown, where I was smart enough to park it in the official bike parking underground. I didn’t want to be caught bikeless at the end of the afternoon for a second time and so did a lot of other people, because the underground parking was very full. I think there isn’t enough bike parking in his town and they are just going to have to make more of it.
Anyway, the first place I went to was the Hema department store and I leisurely walked around it for a while until I found a purse that just had to go home with me. It is black and has two zippered compartments up front, under the flap, where I can keep my wallet and my camera, so it is perfect. It has a long strap, so I can wear it across my chest and feel secure in the fact that nobody is going to rip it off my shoulder. After I paid for it, I moved down the counter and immediately transferred all my stuff from the old purse to the new one and I walked out of the store feeling quite perky.
Things I didn’t buy there were an electric water boiler, a thermal teapot and an on sale duvet cover. Savings…quite a bit.
I blew all the savings when I went to my favorite clothing store and right when I entered saw a multicolored top that just begged to have a purple long sleeved stretchT-shirt underneath it, which I found. Then I went to look at their jackets again, because I had a hunch that more of them would be on sale, and I was right. I tried on about 6 different ones, but ended up buying the one I tried on first, which is a brown leather jacket that was on sale for the price of a potato and an egg, so that had to go home with me also.
You see how these items of clothing call out to me from the racks on their hangers to be taken home by me, that is, if I find the one that is perfect. Once I find the one that is perfect, there is no sense in me hanging it back into its place, it is totally useless, because by that time I have bonded with the item and I find it impossible to let go of it. As a matter of fact, I’ll wear it out of the store and have the saleslady cut off the tags while I am wearing it, no matter how hard they are to reach. I figure she’s got to do a little bit of work to make that sale.
To celebrate my good fortune, I went to Café Monopole and sat on the terrace there. Here is a picture of it.
I had a cappuccino there with a chocolate and a cookie and a piece of rijstevlaai, which is something you will have to google yourself to see what it looks like. I only ate the filling, because of my gastric band, and that was more than enough. The cappuccino was delicious and I had a fun time watching the people walk by. For afters I had a glass of dry white wine and that went down quite easy too. I do so like sitting on terraces by myself, because I can determine how long I sit there and what I have to drink and how slowly I drink it. I have none of the awkwardness of a woman on her own and none is directed to me.
After that I started to wander around town a bit and took this picture of the fountain on the big square, although now on the picture it looks like a puny fountain, when in reality it has quite a bit of spray.
In the background you can see the Spanish Guard building, left over from when the Spanish ruled here back in the 16th century into the 17th century, until we kicked them out after the 80 Year War. One of my ancestors fought in it and luckily was on the right side. He was protestant. I am sure more of them did, but I don’t know about them, I only know for sure about this one because it is documented.
Then I came upon these carnavalesque figures and of course, I had to take numerous pictures of them, because they are not always decked out that colorfully and I don’t know for which occasion they were. Normally they are just in their bronze nakedness.
I will spare you the boredom of having to look at more than one of them, so we can move on to the next picture and that one has the oldest private dwelling of Maastricht on it and is now a café called In the Old Ostrich. It is the building on the corner where all the flags are waving for I know not what reason, except to be patriotic and jolly and happy.
You can see how we have such a café culture here, especially in the better seasons on the terraces, but even in the winter time when the weather allows it, we will sit outside with burners going to provide heat and big parasols to keep us from getting wet if it just drizzles.
Anyway, then I walked to Armor Square, which is just a little square that supports a few cafés and shops and restaurants. There’s the column with Armor standing on it. I don’t know the story behind it, just as I don’t know about a lot of Maastricht’s cultural history. Shame on me!
And here is a little side street that runs into it that I thought was just pretty and a little Mediterranean looking, especially with the green vine climbing up the side of the building.
Then I got into the expensive shopping area. You can tell, because of the lack of people walking around. They shop more discretely than the rest of us. Here is where I almost ran into André Rieu, the famous violinist and orchestra director and he smiled at me when he passed me, because he saw I had a camera in my hand and no doubt he thought I was going to ask if I could take his picture, but I didn’t, because I am not like that. I will never ask someone famous to pose for a picture, I find it highly embarrassing, both for me and for the famous person. So, I walk past them without barely a glance and I don’t look around. I walked past Harry Bellafonte that way too.
As a reward for my wandering around downtown I went to ‘t Pothuiske, where the Exfactor and I went in the wintertime and where I had hot chocolate. I sat at a small table outside.
I ordered a glass of wine and noticed the sign right by my table that announced they had 12 kinds of beer in barrels on tap. That’s quite something.
When I walked back to the underground bike parking, I ran into this swinging band and I could hear them from a distance. They were quite good and another one of those inexplicable things that happen in this town that I don’t have an explanation for. Things just happen, I don’t know why. There is always a party atmosphere. Music happens, bands happen. Clowns appear out of nowhere and stilt walkers and I don’t know why. It’s all a mystery to me.
Ciao…
Another Splendid Day 