Tuesday, March 31, 2020

Life As We Know It

We are getting hit hard by the COVID 19 here in California. Actually, we don't expect the peak until April 25th, but the preparations have been underway for weeks. There is a lot of tension and anxiety and everyone is calling me constantly. But I can only do what I can do. So I guess that this sense of weirdness and uncertainty is going to last for several more weeks. I am also extremely worried about Doc going back to work on April 7th - I hope he can stay safe.

It's been a long time since I posted - when I get home, all I want to do is work out and relax. It's terrible that this blog seems like work to me, but that's how I feel right now. I have been trying to find non-COVID shows to watch, so I have become hooked on 90 Day Fiance - Before the 90 Days. It's addictive.

Well, I have a lot of outfits to show you, so let's get started. On March 9th,


These are some boucle tweed pull on pants from H&M. On top is a Joseph A sweater that my MIL gave me.


I wore my St John jacket a lot this month and last month. That was a good purchase.


On March 10th, I wore an outfit that has been ignored for a while. I got it years ago when my mom and I went up to the Napa Valley. There was an outlet mall there, and they had a Carole Little outlet.


So I got this embroidered sweater, the matching skirt (not today - comfy Reebok slacks) and the blue velvet blazer.




The next day, I decided that if I was going to wear this dress this year, I had better do it soon, because winter is almost over.


It's from Calvin Klein. The belt is Hermes.



On top, one of the cardigans that I got at Macy's one year after Christmas, when they were around $7.99. I got all three colors.


On March 13th, The same thought process as the day before. I wore this vintage wool sweater set before it got too warm. Unfortunately, I did a lot of running around that day, helping out all over the hospital, and I was way too warm.



On Monday, March 16th, after a weekend of getting constant calls and then finally giving up and going into the hospital on Sunday, I wore a very comfy dress.


The details are on the sleeves on this one.


Since I was all in black, I wore my red leather jacket on top.



On St Patrick's day, I completely forgot about the green stuff. I wore burgundy instead.



These slacks are from Mossimo ( before the fall of his empire). They are burgundy tweed with little hot pink flecks. The sweater used to be a favorite, but the elastic around the cuffs has stretched way out, so I may discard. Haven't decided yet.


On March 18th, I wore this cashmere dress from Ann Taylor. It was also too warm for the weather.



My fuchsia suede jacket is from Pamela McCoy.


The next day, I was smarter and wore something less fuzzy and wintery. Another Calvin Klein dress.



The Macy's cardigan makes another appearance. I seem to be reaching for things that are easy and comfy and most importantly, do not need ironing.


Case in point - this scuba dress from Sharagano. It has plaid ribbons on the trumpet sleeves and on the back of the neckline where it ties in a bow.




On March 24th, I decided to go vintage again. This ancient silk pleated midi skirt is from Casual Corner - they were around in the 70s when I was in high school.


Underneath, a V neck sweater from Mervyn's (another now-defunct retailer) and a suede jacket from Bebe.


On March 25th, I wore some old wool blend slacks from Ann Taylor and a vintage jacket from BB Bennett.


This mesh top is part of a two piece set that I bought for a wedding 10 years ago. Alas, the skirt has a stain on it. I will try to wash it before I get rid of it, but the top will stay, at any rate.




On March 26th, I wore a knit polo dress from Diane Von Furstenberg. This outfit is a mix of brands - DVF dress, Calvin Klein belt, Gucci shoes and a Bloomngdale's jacket.




By Friday, I was once again exhausted. I busted out one of the old lady pantsuits from Slinky Brand that I got when my mom was passing away in 2016. That was the last extremely stressful period of my life. Actually, this COVID thing is worse, if you can believe that.


The cute belt is Paloma Picasso, and I got it in Santa Barbara, on a trip long long ago (or so it seems).


You would think that I would be less exhausted after the weekend, but nope. I am sure that it's 90% mental exhaustion by this point.  I got this top in San Antonio, on another vacation. I hope that there will once again be vacations sometimes in the future.



 I wore it with black jeans. Now I remember why I don't wear jeans anymore. They were super tight in the morning, and then 3 hours later, they were falling down.



Today, more ancient stuff. This skirt is reversible - dots on one side and cherries on the other. It's a keeper - I don't believe that I have ever ironed it.


Two sweaters - the green one is INC and the red one is Joseph A.


This necklace is a find from EBay. About 5 years ago, there was a seller that had these statement necklaces in a variety of colors, so I got a couple of them.


I have been buying some little things around the house, mostly from EBay. I wanted to get some new light switch plate covers.

For the library/office, which is grey and black, I got black gingham with cherries.


For the main hallway, koi fish.



For the sun room, an octopus.


I had my roses trimmed in January. I didn't get many flowers for a while, but they are coming back into bloom.


This was March 15th - some coral roses and my favorite orange roses that smell so nice.


At the beginning of this entire mess, my coworkers got me a survival kit - Diet Snapples and candy.
It didn't stand a chance.


Some Pandi cuteness. She thinks she is all that because we are having a pandemic - she thinks it's named after her. Well, she is a dog.


A little sun bathing on her favorite pillow.



Last week, when it was raining, she made herself a nice tower of comforter.


 Only her head was sticking out.


I finally coaxed her out and got her to lay on my lap and provide some emotional support.



Then on March 29th, more roses bloomed. Here are the coral ones.


And check out my giant red American Beauties - the stems are so long !!


Compare the length of the stem to the scissors.



I picked a few pieces of decorative stock from the front yard - English lavender and white lace.


Here is the finished arrangement.



 I got my Birchbox:


From top to bottom :
1) LUNA Huile de Nuit Retinol by Sunday Riley.
2) Alterna Caviar Anti-Aging Replenishing Moisture CC Cream
3) Floss Beauty My New Favorite Brilliant A Levres clear lip gloss
4) Hero Cosmetics Mighty Patch invisible acne patches
5) Wander Beauty Double Date Li[ and Cheek combination lip color/blush in Rendezvous
6) Arrow Revive Radiant Skin Moisturizer



I liked the Ipsy pouch much more than the Birchbox pattern for this month.




Here's what i got:
1) Rael Beauty Hydration Refresh and Moisturize Vitamin C Facial Sheet Masks
2) Tarte Sea Quench Under Makeup Primer
3) Girlactik Precise Mistake Proof eye liner marker
4) Skone Cosmetics Brow Wand in Chocolate
5) Firma Beauty Elite B203 Concealer Brush
6) Curology Clean Sweep Cleanser



And that's all for now. we'll see how this goes as the COVID surge approaches California.