Day 30: DONE!!! Yay!!

I am sooooo glad to be done with this! Wearing the same thirty items for the past month has really been wearing on me (no pun intended). It's been over a week since I wore my last outfit and I find myself gravitating back to these pieces even though I'm dying to wear ANYTHING else!


I think one of the biggest problems I have is that most of my items were "work" clothes so that I could get dressed quickly in the mornings. So after a month of wearing "work" clothes, all I want to wear are jeans, t-shirts, leggings, and mini-skirts. However, this poses a problem when I actually need to go to work. 


Speaking of work...I have a job again! Yayness! I'm teaching eighth grade Algebra and Science. The position is for the rest of the year (for sure). It's actually a bit of a bummer because the teacher I'm taking over for is really great. He's got a lot of the same teaching style that I do. I'm glad to have a job, but it would be great to pick his brain and collaborate on lesson planning since he's been teaching for five years.


Back to complaining.


I want to apologize for my radio silence. I've been at my new job for two weeks and they have been a crazy two weeks in deed. Week one was spent just trying to get the class going. The second week (this week) has been minimum days all week. Folks, I HATE minimum days. They are a nightmare for teaching because they throw off my whole rhythm and schedule. Not to mention that the kids are all antsy because they know that they're getting out early. Also, I'm helping to coach the eighth grade pentathlon team. Last year I coached seventh grade pentathlon. I don't know why I keep volunteering to do this. I feel like I'm completely lost and a terrible coach.  But the kids are having fun, and that's the most important part. Right? Or maybe I'm just a glutton for pain. Yep. That might be it too.

So, I don't think I'll be taking on the 30 For 30 again. The only time I might consider it is if I get 30 brand new pieces of clothing that can be remixed into several outfits. Then I might do it again so I can break in all those new clothes!


I am proud of myself for sticking it out though, even if I did hit a few bumps along the way.

Day 29: Sisterly Fun

 

The day after my new hair color and very long night of video games and hanging with the little sis. Mitsy's the dark haired one on the right, and she's totally awesome! Definitely the best sister ever! Unless you ask our brother, and then I'M the best sister ever! I kid, I kid. He's annoyed by us equally. ;) Mitsy and I should have more days like this.  Oh! And you should all congratulate her because she just got her driving permit! Yay! Can't wait until I can recruit her as a designated driver! Don't worry, Mom...it won't be anytime soon.

Day 28: Time for Change

Hubby didn't like the blond, so I decided to make it a girl day! I wanted (and Hubby wanted) to keep some of the blond highlights, so I needed a couple of extra hands to pull off this precision dye job.


I had my mom (left) and my sister (photographer) help me out with some temporary hair color and foils. 


On the under layers, we applied the temporary light brown color. I went with a temporary because I was worried about what kind of reaction my recently bleached locks would have to the dye.


On the top layers, we used a blond toning kit. I found it at Big Lots (I know; should've been a red flag...) and it's supposed to add darker blond tones to all over hair color.


The result is kind of a light brown with a few highlights. I miss my blond, but I'm also happy with this in-between color. I'll call this one: Mission Accomplished. The best was the quality time I got to spend with my mom and my sister. 


Lil Sis (Mitsy) ended up spending the night, and we had a ton of fun! We played Dance Central on the Kinect and got some hysterical video! I'd post it, but I'll get a lot more fun out of it if I wait until she has a boyfriend I can embarrass her in front of, ;)

Day 27: TARDIS necklace complete!

It's day 27 of 30 For 30. I'm itching to be done. I'm already fantasizing about all of the different outfits I'm going to wear! 


So until I can wear new outfits, I'll have to settle for new jewelery.


See? I finished it! It's not quite how I envisioned it, but what craft ever is?

It's a little bulky, but that's "in" right now, isn't it?

The image of the TARDIS is a little milky, and the hard glaze I put over it gave it a bubbly look instead of a glassy one.

On the up side, this means that if anyone actually recognizes it as the TARDIS, then they're a hard core Dr. Who fan. And that means we can be friends. :)

Here's the image and the pendant base after I cut the image out of its paper.


See the bubbliness I'm talking about?



A little bit of glue and a few hours later and...viola!!

My very own TARDIS jewelry. I think it'll go quite nicely with my time turner and Jedi pocket watch.

Day 25: Almost Done!

Shirt: WalMart; Pants: Target: Belt: Thrifted from Grandpa; Necklaces: vintage from mom; Bracelets: random collection

     Only five days left, and I'm sad to say that my creativity is SHOT. I've already planned out my last five outfits and they're pretty much rehashing of this outfit: slacks and a t-shirt. It's times like these when I realize the importance of accessorizing and feel like thanking my mom for letting me rifle through her jewelery boxes and permanently borrow my favorite items. Thank you, mommy; my outfits seem so much less blah because of you. <3
     Can I geek out on you for a moment? Thanks! I'm sooooooo in love with Dr. Who! The show...although I'm fairly certain I would enjoy any books, radio broadcasts, or comic books about my favorite Time Lord as well. Just when I think that the show is going to lose speed and I won't like it anymore, BAM! It's fantastic and exciting again! It's actually a perfect show for me because so much of it changes on a fairly regular basis. I'm already anticipating the next Doctor and what he will look like. I've also managed to convince myself that I would be a rather good assistant, given that I'm open minded and not likely to panic in the face of intergalactic catastrophe. But since travel by TARDIS is most likely not in my future, I'll have to find another way to make a personal connection. My plan is to make a necklace. I've got this lovely broken cameo brooch and it would be just adorable if I could etch a little TARDIS or sonic screw driver into it. I'll have to work out the details on it...I'll get back to you when I figure it out.
     Oh, and can somebody please tell me what's going on with Primeval! The last episode I saw, Danny came back and went chasing after his brother and I haven't seen another episode since! Was THAT the season finale??? I hope not, because I can't wait a whole year to get my Primeval fix! :( I want my dinosaur show back!
     Ok, done ranting about geekness. Happy Wednesday.

Day 24: Gettin' Close!

     Folks, I am so ready for this challenge to be over!! I want to wear my other clothes and not feel guilty about it! Not to mention that I am seriously beginning to worry about the well being of some of my thirty...I think my jeans are finally getting worn in...and then they won't be my "nice" jeans anymore! How do I like this outfit? Eh. It's ok. It feels boring, even though the sweater on its own is a lovely piece. The kids said I looked pretty...but what does a fourth grader know about fashion and style?
     Work was great, class was long, blah blah, same old Tuesday.
     For those of you who think I made a hideous mistake bleaching my hair {and I know you are out thee and were just too wimpy--I mean, nice--too nice to say so}, the blond won't be sticking around much longer. Reason number one: husband doesn't like my it. Reason number two {and there are only two reasons}: I absolutely do NOT have the time, money, or patience to be a full time blond. I just don't. I can already see my roots growing out {which is pretty cool because I can actually monitor my hair growth! Well, I think this is a neat, albeit tacky, side effect} and I know that the look is just going to go down hill from here. So, in a short amount of time {I'm not going to commit to an actual date yet, because I'm still having a bit of fun with my new hair color} I will be going back to a warm light brown. Don't worry, you'll get to see the results...even if they're terrible because I'm going to attempt to do this at home.

Day 22: Titles Are Stupid

 

I'm still struggling with getting home in enough time to take adequate pictures. Particularly ones where you don't have to bear witness to my disaster of a desk or put up with my nasty lighting. Of course, I might have been able to squeeze in some outdoor pics this afternoon had I not decided to take a nap instead. =D

It wasn't a rough day or a long day, but I actually did work. I got the call at 5 this morning {that's the life of a sub, guys} and thought I would be subbing for my friend who teaches 7th grade social studies. He's freakin' amazing teacher! I mean, he doesn't just teach medieval history, he LIVES it! I could sit in his room for hours and just stare at all his stuff. He builds his own medieval armor! But his teaching skills are also amazing. I really need to find another excuse to get him to teach me his system because everything in his room runs better than clockwork. So, I was pretty excited to sub for him today. He currently has a student teacher, but only for the last few periods of the day, so I would still get to teach.

This is also the school where my friends Megan teaches. Earlier this week, she told me how she would be out today and Monday and that it would be nice if I could sub for her. She has a TON of my old sixth graders. But, alas, our district no longer allows teachers to request specific subs {has to do with lay offs and seniority...blah blah}, and I wasn't able to take her class...until her scheduled sub canceled this morning and left Megan's class without a teacher. The secretary saw this as a perfect opportunity since I know most of Megan's class and know Megan's teaching style. So she switched me. And for the third day, I got to hang out with my kids. Since they actually had work to get done, though, I spent each period running around the room making sure everyone was on task and working correctly. Result: I'm pooped! I can't believe I even wrote this much! 

I'm not going to go back to watching Disney movies with Hubby {we're having a marathon of sorts that was inspired by our recent purchase of Bambi on BlueRay}. Happy Friday!

Days 20 and 21: Work and Play

      I don't know if I'm crazy about this outfit. Sometimes I think it works and other times I feel ridiculous. I was feeling adventurous by mixing the two prints. What do you think? Is it workable?

     I worked at my middle school again today. If you've ever played an instrument in school, you know what subject I "taught" today. I love music; I mean I LOVE it. I've had a few friends ask me why I don't teach it. And here's the truth: I have a great appreciation for music, but hardly any knowledge. I absolutely suck at music theory and can't direct to save my life. I'd love to teach choir and wouldn't mind taking the theory courses, but that won't change the fact that I can't play the piano. Friends, if you're going to lead a choir, you need to have some piano skills to your name. Trying to lead a warm-up without proper accompaniment is like trying to swim in a dry pool. I've tried to learn the piano many times in my life and it's just not in the cards for me {fingers are too short}. So subbing for the middle school band teacher was fun {got to hear lots of music} and frustrating {can't help the kids worth a lick!}. The best part? You guessed it! Got to see my kiddos again! The best was drum circle {yes, the school actually has a drum circle class! Isn't that awesome?}. One of my old students, who was always out of his seat, always talking, always goofing around, was asked to be the leader of the drum circle. Folks, I nearly cried when I saw that kid direct. He had focus and composure and leadership. I was so proud to see how he's grown! And that's what makes my job worth every second.

     Later that night, Marty and I went out to a dinner party.

 

I'm calling this Day 21 because...well, I'm wearing thin on these thirty items. I practically rip them off when I get home from work just so I can wear something different. The pictures are the most difficult though. These were taken after I got home. In the room with sucky lighting. Not even Zaphod can save me from the bane of indoor lighting...but he tries.

I'm really glad that I put this dress in my thirty. I've loved it since I found it on the rack last year and have used just about any excuse to wear it. I love the stripes on it and the ruffly skirt and the POCKETS!! My only regret is that I didn't also buy the dress with the blue skirt! Seriously, guys, this dress is amazing; just throw it on and it looks fabulous. I was a little worried about how it would look with my new hair, but I have to say I'm likin' the Courtney Love vibe I get from it. =D

Day 19: Feeling Flighty

     Maybe it's the monochromatic scheme or the flowy scarf that makes me feel like a flight attendant. Or maybe it's the blond hair and the cutesy smile. I think the blue sweater with the purple dress was a bad idea. The purple is too grape and just makes me look like a big ol' bruise...with blond hair.

     The kids thought I looked pretty today, though. Saw some more of my old students at my first middle school. I think their Snyder-Sense is coming back to them; some kids actually came to see me before school even started. It's adorable having students hunt me down. I did shock some of them though, and I told them it was payback for shocking me with all of their crazy hair changes and getting taller and older and wot not.
     I used to think that I was a high-heel hero. I am definitely NOT feeling that way because of this challenge! I picked four pairs of heels that are quite high and I'm starting to feel the pain in my feet and my back. I have never had this kind of dull pain in these areas and it's got to be from wearing the same heels for 19 days in a row and not giving myself a break with flats. I'm also starting to worry about the well-being of my shoes. These black ones, for instance, were starting to feel a little wobbly in the heel as I was flitting across campus. That would just suck if they broke. I've only had one pair of heels break on me, and they were my absolute favorite pair. They were my first pair of knee high boots. Black, with rubber heels and soles, and with just enough shine; I wore them almost every day and even under pants. But, alas, I had this bad habit of rocking back on my heels when I was bored, and one day, during my freshman year of college, *SNAP* and "Wha-wha-whoa!" *tumble and tears*. Lesson learned: Don't rock back on your heels if you value your shoes!

     GOOD NEWS!

   I got a response from Enrollment Services this afternoon! I'm officially enrolled and settled up at CSULB! Yay! I'm so glad that I went through all of that for this tiny peace of mind {I'm still not sure if that's the right "peace"}. I'm also extremely impressed at the speed of their decision since I was told last night that it would be two weeks. Thank You, Enrollment Services, for expediting my case; I truly appreciate it. Please ignore the massive amount of profanity directed at the university from me somewhere around mid-terms and finals. KThxBye! <3

Day 17: Awkward and Awesome

Shirt: Target; Skirt: H&M; Tights: Don't remember...mighta been Aardvark, though; Shoes: Wild Diva; Belt: Came with pants I no longer own; Jewelry: "vintage"

Awkward
*  Today's outfit
* Not getting called to work today
* Having to write a letter to the Department Chair begging to be let back into class
* Tripping in front of students and killing their interest in the math lesson
* Realizing that I make the same annoying facial expressions at the teacher that my students give to me: The raised eyebrows of surprise, the half frown of contemplation, the furrowed eyebrows of skepticism, etc.
* Going shopping with mom and sister and not being able to buy anything
* LA traffic
* Realizing that this mess with enrollment could have been avoided if I'd just turned around and went to the next window instead of waiting to pay at home online. :(
* Realizing that I've learned nothing new in my "methods" course, but only been reminded of my cool teaching tricks from last year.
* Observation hours.
* My glasses.

Awesome
* Cuddling on the couch with hubby to watch two movies this week
* Using Power Point to make a six piece hall pass template
* Catching up with colleagues and getting the dish on what's been happening at the middle schools
* Naps on the couch with husband
* "Vintage" jewelery shopping in my mom's room
* Looking at GranpaDad's cufflink's and remembering him with mom...Marty and GrandpaDad would have really liked each other.
* Tresseme dry shampoo...this stuff is my new best friend!<----Wait, maybe this is awkward?
* Remixing my dress as a vest and seeing the looks of surprise on my friends' faces when I tell them about it.
* Glue guns...just because they are.
* Getting an email from the Department Chair that she wrote me my letter and my begging was effective! Yayness!

Day 16: And I Don't Even Like Basketball...

Sweater: Gifted; Shirt/Pants: Target; Shoes: Guess; Belt: Thrifted

I'm not a Lakers or basketball fan at all! I've been avoiding this color combination for years!

       I absolutely hate how some color combinations have just been stolen from fashion and stereotyped. This is one of them; well, maybe only because I live in southern California. Purple and yellow and complimentary colors and are supposed to go well together. But every time I put them together all I can see is a giant Lakers logo! It drives me nuts! It's the same mental block that stops me from wearing red, white, and blue {patriotic...not that I don't love my country or anything...}, red and green {Xmas}, black and orange {Halloween}, or black and yellow {bumble bees...and those were both my high school and college colors}. Today I went for it though, because my only other option for an undershirt was lime green...I choose "Laker Fan" over "Barney Fan" any day.
       Speaking of basketball, I found myself some more hoops to jump through at CSULB today! Turns out, my sob story letter was not enough to convince Enrollment Services to reverse my dropped class. No, no. The head of Enrollment Services emailed me today to tell me that I need to complete yet another petition process and will be subjected to yet ANOTHER $10 fee. This petition process involves getting a bunch of signatures from hard to reach people and running around to all of their different locations. Luckily, the gal I spoke to at the college of education about this was very nice. I got all teary when I explained my predicament to her and she was very understanding and told me to just breathe and it would all be ok. She also told me that the person I needed to get a signature from was out all day in a meeting and to email her. So I composed one of the longest emails of my life explaining the massive error in communication that has occurred this semester over three lousy units. Actually, those three "lousy" units are quite important to me, but calling them a nasty name somehow makes me feel better about the whole situation.
       On the bright side, I was told that I look cute today and not a single person said anything to me about the Lakers. :)

Day 15: Color Blocking

Dress: Target; Sweater: F21; Boots: TJ Maxx

       This is what I wore out today...until I discovered that I would need to run around the CSULB campus for the better part of my day. You see, it was a lovely morning. I woke up and was not called in for work {boo, but it was still relaxing} so I promptly logged onto my computer to pay my tuition after finally getting all of my finances arranged properly. I paid {with a little sob} and went about my merry way. About an hour later I get an email telling me my bill for CSULB. Ok. Fine. It came just in time. Half an hour later I get a notice that I am delinquent on my tuition and that my class is being canceled. WHAT?!? You bill me and penalize me all in the same day? What the heck is going on? So, after a mini panic attack, I threw on my fake Uggs, comfy jeans, and a comfy shirt so I could quickly run across campus if needed.
       Now, if you've never been to the CSULB campus, then you don't know the importance of proper attire for traversing the campus. First off, the campus is built on a hill and so has many stairs and ramps. Second, the college of education {where I'm supposed to be enrolled} and enrollment services are on opposite side of the campus. This is roughly a five minute drive and a 15 minute walk. With this geography in mind, imagine being bounced back and forth between the college of education and enrollment services several times. This means a lot of walking, both uphill and downhill because the only parking near either office is metered parking.
       So, off I went. Luckily, I didn't need to go back and forth between the two offices. No. I only needed to wait 15 minutes in one line to talk to a man at a window who told me to go wait for 20 minutes in another line to talk to another man in a window. The second man in a window then explained to me that my best bet {after hearing my long sad sob story about being a graduate student and being given incorrect information about initial enrollment, yadda yadda} was to print out my receipt for tuition and write a letter petitioning to be reinstated in the course. At this point in the day, I didn't have time to go home to compose and print such items or the office would close. The second man at the window, who was actually quite nice...his name was Michael, kindly suggested that I go to the Horn Center on campus to print these items. Well! Let me tell you about the Horn Center! If you're a CSULB student and haven't been to the Horn Center, GO! It's awesome! It's a computer lab with a bajillion computers and a dozen printers! And you use your student ID to buy and release print jobs at ANY of the printers in the room! It's a procrastinator's dream location! So, I used this new found gold mine to print my receipt and compose my letter and print it all out in less than twenty minutes! I ran back to enrollment and gave my materials to Michael, who spoke to his supervisor and filed my petition with the head of enrollment services and told me.....that I would hear back from them in about a week and a half. Talk about anti-climactic!
       Enrollment drama aside, I was very happy with the outfit I mixed up today. Even better was that hubby though it was cute too. Actually, the word he used was hot and that's why I love him. In fact, he just now shared with me that he'd like to see me wear the outfit again sometime. He makes my heart melt. <3

    Oh, yeah! And I'm half way through the 30 For 30 Challenge! Yay! I'm going to be so excited to wear my other clothes! But, I do appreciate the challenge I'm being faced with and I'm excited to know that if I had to pack light for an extended period of time, I could still put together some killer outfits.

Check out all of my outfits for the challenge here!

Days 8, 9, & 10: Triple Whammy!

     











          Umm.....yeah. I've been busy. Like, too busy to snap photos and upload them to my blog with a short little description. But here are my outfits for the last three days!

         So, for the last three days I've been subbing in an 8th grade math and science class. It's been awesome! I love it! I got to play with my super cool toy, do a science demonstration, and teach some kids how to multiply and divide monomials. I've always had this fear of 8th graders. I've been afraid that they're just "too cool for school", if I may. When I was a high school AVID tutor, back when I was 18 and barely out of high school myself, I was tutoring a class of freshmen. This one kid, let's call him "Jack", had a pretty big attitude. On a good day, he was a great kid; someone I would have wanted to be friends with a few years earlier. But on his bad days, he was every parent's teenage nightmare. He was angsty and moody. And he was tall. Compared to me, he was a giant. So, this one day I'm in the classroom and he's having one of his days. He was not participating in tutorial at all. My very green inner teacher told me to push him just a little bit more. "Jack, have you come up with a question, yet? I told you we would be coming back to hear from you," was about the gist of my pushing. Jack didn't take it very well. I don't remember the exact words that I said, but he jumped out of his chair, stood what felt like a million feet tall, and screamed at me to leave him alone. I mean, he really screamed. I was terrified. He stomped out of the room and I didn't even turn to see where he was going. Then the teacher asked if I was ok. After the initial shock of feeling like a total screw up at my first quasi-teaching gig, I began to sink into a slow humiliation as I realized that every kid was looking at me and expecting me to cry or go home. Jack scared me, there was no denying that. The question I faced was: How are you going to react? I wanted to go home. I wanted to crawl in a hole and cry for a little while. I wanted a hug. I wanted to apologize to Jack for upsetting him -- because I don't like to upset people. But the kids would walk all over me for the rest of my career if I did any of those things. So, I swallowed my pride, slapped on a smile, and told the teacher that I was fine and would watch the class while she chased down Jack and notified administration. Freshmen aren't that far away from 8th graders. I've always been afraid that another adolescent is going to blow up at me like that. That they're going to figure out that they're actually taller than I am. A lot taller. That if they really wanted to, they could throw their weight around and do me some serious damage.
          However, no such thing occurred to me this week. Instead, I had a lot of fun talking and working with this class. In fact, the students were very well behaved and most of the students were able to both socialize and work at the same time. I love it when I see a kid accomplish this. It means they've finally figured out that they can live in harmony with school. Lesson learned? If I was offered a position to teach 8th grader, I would take it and take it without hesitation. :)
          Which is why I've been behind on my blog. When I'm having fun at work, I throw myself into it. I stay waaaay late after the bell, planning and preparing for the next lesson and activity. I read up on the material so I can continue my facade of knowing everything a kid could ever ask me. I build projects and gadgets and round up materials for fun and messy interactive activities. I'm in work mode from the time I get up to the time I go to bed and, if I'm really in bad shape, I dream about work. And that's been me for the last three days. Tomorrow I have a new class that I've had scheduled for a while now. I won't be as enthusiastic because I don't know them yet and don't know what I'll be teaching them, but I'll do my best to have fun with them while sneaking in their lessons.
        

Day 7: Just Call Me "MacGyver"

          I haven't been very creative during this challenge at all. For those of you who know me from way back, I used to be very creative with my clothes. Leaning on the eccentric side. I once wore a petticoat as a poncho. To school. But as I grew up and entered the working world, I had to dumb down my creativity and could no longer tuck, fold, pin, and stitch as I pleased. NO MORE! Do you recognize my sweater? It used to be a boyfriend cardigan. Well, it technically still is, it just doesn't look like it anymore. Friends, I wrestled with this thing for a lot longer than I wanted to. First, I tried to wrap it around like a kimono. It wasn't long enough to tie behind my back, so I was going to need to use two safety pins. Years of experience with safety pinning has taught me that if you safety pin a garment once too often...it will get a big nasty hole right where you don't want one. And then you'll be sad that you've lost your favorite item. Eventually I just said "Screw it! I'm going to tie it in the front with a knot and I don't care how it looks!" Well, as I crossed the two ends over each other I kind of liked what I got. There were no odd bulges in the front or back, and the two tails in front hung in a nice drapey kind of way. ::lightning bolt to brain:: "I have an adorable brooch I can use to secure this thing!" and then I had one little flap that wouldn't fit in the pin, but it had a button hole on it, and there was a button right next to it! Ta-Da! And I'm happy with the outfit. :)

I want to tell you a little bit about my jewelry. Most of it is classified as "vintage" jewelry because the actual explanation is much longer than that. I've had the majority of my costume jewelry since the time I was about nine or ten years old. This was a time in my life when a lot of my older relatives were dying. I was sad of course, but the silver lining was that I inherited a lot of their "stuff". {My family has hoarders on both sides and I am most definitely a hoarder. Hubby helps to keep it under control by talking me out of keeping things I don't need or use.} It was mostly women who were dying and the stuff I ended up with fell into the range of clothes, shoes, and jewelry {and one really cute doll carriage from my great-grandmother}. I kept most of it for playing dress-up until I got older and realized that I could work them into my wardrobe. The clothes and shoes eventually fell apart, but the jewelry survived the journey. Friends, I had a TON of this cheap costume jewelry. I've lost or broken a lot of it over the past fifteen years {yikes, that's a long time!}, but I still have a LOT. And that's where most of the jewelry {like the necklace I'm wearing today} comes from.
          Actually, the necklace I'm wearing lost its clasp several years ago and is being fastened by the clasp of the silver chain I'm also wearing. The best craft investment I have ever made was a package of jump-rings. Those suckers will fix ANY piece of jewelry and they're super easy to put on and take off!

Oh, yeah. It's Valentine's Day!

  Hubby got me a gold-dipped and preserved rose. <3

Aint he sweet?

 

It took me a while to figure out what to do with the lovely thing, but I eventually settled on displaying it in one of the vases we got for our wedding. As much as I wanted to wear it in my hair, I'm pretty sure I would have broken it. And that would have been sad for many people.

Thanks baby! I love you! Can't wait to see you tonight!

Day 6: I may have cheated

          Technically, this is day seven. However, I did not wear an outfit yesterday. I spent most of the day in bed or in my pajamas. Then, husband decides to take me out to dinner. He's sweet like that. Except, again, I am totally not hearing "Honey, I want to take you out on a date," and proceed to throw on jeans, random tee, and my fake Tom's {I've got a lot of knock off shoes...}. My hair was not washed, my make-up a day and a half old, and I threw on my black frame glasses.  I was not in date mode...again. So, now instead of being three days behind on 30X30 Challenge, I am now four days behind.
          In addition to feeling guilty about missing a day, I am also regretting not keeping a pair of skinny jeans in my 30. I have two pairs of slacks and my jeans and khakis are both flared. I foresee the use of pins in the near future to attain a skinny look.

30 For 30: Day 5

 

"Heads or Tails?" That's what I thought to myself this morning. Mostly because I thought the bow of my scarf-turned-belt looked like a tail.
          I stepped out of my fashion comfort zone with this outfit. No, it's not the purple tights. No, it's not the obnoxious plaid scarf-turned-belt. It's all the black. I'm not used to wearing so much of one color {unless it's a dress}. It felt wrong to pair a black skirt with a black tee. Not only that, but the effect it had without the tights or the scarf-turned-belt was so funeral-ish. But, what is this challenge for if not to push my the boundaries of my creativity?
         I did get a lot of compliments on the outfit this morning though {as I dropped off the last of the grading I had left as well as creating a print out of the scores for the permanent teacher to put in her gradebook...which I hope she does, because I spent a lot of time planning for those kids and grading their work}. To be fair, I think it was the tights that garnered all the attention. They are quite nice, don't you agree?
          I do have to apologize for the poor quality pictures {I know, I know; second time this week...} but I was experimenting....and the battery on my other camera ran out. So, I decided to improvise by using my Flip camera for video and then converting the video clips into stills. I assumed that since my video is in HD that the stills would turn out fairly nice. Clearly, there is something left to be desired in this process. But, they will suffice until my camera charges up or until I get my butt down to the repair shop for my Nikon CoolPix {which I adore and desperately want to have fixed!!!}
     As a closing thought, what do you prefer to know more about in my life? Do you like the fashion posts more or would you rather hear more of my tales and tips from the world of substitute teaching? Leave me a comment! I promise I won't hurt you!

30 For 30: Day 4

It was "jeans" day at work. I kid you not; every teacher I interacted with today was wearing jeans! It was awesome! It also made me feel less self conscious about wearing jeans to work. I listened to well to my student teaching supervisor's, who convinced me that it was blasphemous to wear jeans to the classroom. I still did and still do...but I feel insanely guilty about it!

 

          Here I am at day four, and the only thing that I've remixed is my shoes. :( I feel unaccomplished. I feel uncreative. I feel lazy. Or maybe that's just because I've been dragging a box and a half of teaching crap to and from work. Hopefully, it's giving me a little bit of a work out.

          Speaking of  work, I have work next week! I'm kind of excited about it. I was asked to do a four day assignment AND I got a call to work at my old school {my first school<3}. Even though it's not a long term job, it is full time work and that's always appreciated. And I'll get to show off my cool new toy {wireless tablet} to more kids. See why I like middle school? It's because I'm still at that emotionality.     

MOVING ON....

          Do you ever get a recommendation from someone to watch a show or a movie and their really excited about it, but you just never get around to watching it, then you finally get around to it (say, a couple of years later) only to start kicking yourself for not checking it out sooner? That's been the story of my life for the past two years. My friend Dan at my first teaching job was a total kindred spirit: he's into sci-fi and other quirky stuff like I am. He's recommended a lot of movies and TV shows to me since we met. Most of them I put off for several months, which means that I didn't watch them until after I was out of a job. At that point I would immediately fall in love with the movie or show and become extremely frustrated with myself for not watching it sooner so I could gush about it to Dan. Anyway, several people have recommended to me that I watch the new Dr. Who series. I had heard of the Doctor growing up {mostly on the sci-fi channel as references and viewing memorabilia in the sci-fi channel catalogue}, but I had never seen the show. Until now. Now that it is in it's fifth season. And. I. Love. It. It's heartbreaking to have to stop after watching three episodes in a row {each hour long episode}. How on Earth could I have NOT wanted to watch a show about a time traveler in a PHONE BOOTH???? I only watched Bill and Ted religiously and then their cartoon show on a regular basis! And he's English? And he changes form on a regular basis? And he fights evil in the pursuit of making the universe a better place? Naturally, I'm completely obsessed. To top things off even more, the last episode I watched last night had Giles from the Buffy series as an episode character. He was an evil alien posing as the principal of a school. There hasn't been a single dull episode and I adore the humor. It's English humor and that's my favorite kind. AND there was a Hitchhiker's {a book recommendation that I should have pursued a LOOOOOONG time ago as well}  reference in the season 2 premier. Obsessed. That's me.

30 For 30: Day 3

          I'm getting along all right with this remixing thing...although I haven't actually remixed anything yet! I'm glad that I wore this sweater though. I got it for Christmas and I wasn't sure about it. This is why I put it in my 30, so I could see it in many different lights instead of just letting it get lonely in my closet. And now, it's growing on me.
          Speaking of being grown on, I'm also surprised at how quickly I bonded with some of my students. There are some that I will miss very much. I hope I'll get to see them again. :) On the bright side {because if I don't look on the bright side I'll be a miserable person}, I get to sleep in on Friday! Only time will tell how much I'll actually get to sleep in, but it is relaxing to think that I might get to sleep in until 6:30 or 7:00.
          I also met the teacher I have been subbing for. We worked the class as a team today and will do so again tomorrow. I love team teaching, but it does have a better effect when you get to plan things out in advance. Tomorrow should be a smoother transition.
         ::Brain Shutting Down::
         ::Drama Levels Maxed Out::
         ::Need to consume junk food::now::
         (XP

30 For 30: Day 2

          Sorry the quality is so poor, but it was my long day today. The choice was to either take pics at work with my MacGyvered document camera (yes, you read that right) or to not take pics. So I took pics. But, here is outfit for day two; I like it, but it's not very interesting.
         In other news, it looks like I'll be losing my long term position. I was just notified this afternoon that the teacher I am subbing for (who hasn't been in all year) will be coming back tomorrow. I found this out in the middle of period four. Oh, and it is my responsibility to spend two days catching her up on all that has gone down while she's been out. Umm....I only got a one day run down and she's supposed to be a more valuable teacher than I am. Yes. I am bitter. I've only poured my heart and soul into this class in a determined effort to make right the fact that I am their FIFTH teacher this year. They should have only had one sub, and I don't care if it was me. I'm sure that their first long term sub was fine. I know that the one before me was great. I had a teacher die in the middle of the year when I was in seventh grade and I remember nothing that the replacement teacher taught us. Maybe I was just traumatized by the fact that my teacher died (even though I didn't like her).
          The good news is that I have LOTS of time to complete my observations for my methods class now! Yay! Yay? More good news is that I am absolutely in love with the new Panic! At the Disco single "The Ballad of Mona Lisa". It has a beautiful melancholy tone to appease my self pity but with an anthem like feel to pump me up for overcoming this disappointment. Stay tuned for another outfit tomorrow!

30 For 30!! AKA: I've lost my mind

          Thank you Adrienne for introducing me to the world of blogging and getting me involved in Kendi's "30 For 30 Challenge." If I my brain explodes, you'll all know why. I will now take on the task of maxing and matching the same 30 articles of clothing for 30 days while teaching full time, finishing up my math credential (which involves field work and a class that does not end until 10 pm), taking care of my house/wifely duties, and keeping up with my blog. I feel like I'm missing something...I'm sure it'll hit me eventually. Oh, and I'm down an entire box of jewelry to boot. >:P
          Even though I'm late, I'm still going through with my 30 For 30! So....here it is! Here is my wardrobe for the next 30 days as well as my outfit for Day 1!

 I know it's redundant, but  here's my outfit with a breakdown of its pieces. All the other pictures I took were horrible due to the fact that I leave home before sunrise and don't get home until dusk. I'm working way too hard for way too little money AND it's negatively impacting my blogging life-style!

I mostly wore this outfit as a vehicle for wearing the tights. I thought they were just so '90's! Or they at least reminded me of being a little girl again. This probably would have looked a lot better with black accessories instead of brown, but my brain was processing the tights as having a beige under-tone instead of a gray one. Oh well! Just means I get to wear them with again!