This morning

This morning, we witnessed the above. It's not visible from the pic, but the area surrounding the front of the bus was blocked so that it is hidden from public view. Le husb said that the barrier was put up because someone must have been injured. More info on the story here.

Life is fragile, peeps. Our time is limited. Tell those you love that you love them. Be kind.

Jeans

This post is inspired by this post by Sam of Financial Samurai, one of the blogs that I frequent. Click on the link, it is worth reading, I promise!

I love my jeans. True story: my Dad made that remark to me when I was little and I remember thinking: really? I love them that much for him to notice*? And then a few seconds later: what else do I love this much? I have always been a bit of a tomboy at heart, so my preference deviates towards the 'boyish' look (another word that I grew up with).
  
My collection of jeans has been with me through thick and thin. Recently, I did a mini overhaul and took off the pairs that didn't fit that well. Somewhat rather thankfully, most of them survived the weight loss that I had since I've decided to become a runner. Well, ok, only the low waisted ones did. I've since bought a few pairs of mid-rise ones in one or two sizes smaller.

And (small-ish voice) - there are some mid-rise ones that were too loose that I still hang on to. I know, I know, I am irrationally attached to my clothes.  

I hesitate to use the term investment when it comes to clothes, but if there's anything worth "investing" in, then for me, it would be (and has been) jeans. 

So, what's your favourite wardrobe item? Tell me via Twitter, okay! For more of my irrelevant musings, head over to my other blog. For random snapshots of the good moments in my life, peek at my instagram. Prepare to drool! You've been warned!

*My Dad is one of those people who cares about what I wear and how I look. I attribute a lot of my approach to looking good to him. Thanks Dad, you really are my inspiration!

Letting go

One thing that I openly struggle with in this life is this thing called... patience.

I think I was born with a severe patience deficit. I think my parents forgot to wish that I would grow up to be a patient person, but since they pretty much wished everything else, I guess I can try to live with this. They were also incredibly uncreative with my name, but that's another story, another day.

Ever since discovering that I dislike ballet flats with a passion, I have been vigorously evaluating my shoes. Le husb has been quietly telling me that our limited apartment is in no way, shape or form, capable of accommodating my ever growing shoe collection. [Side note: I do not, and have never, own 200 pairs of shoes at any one time. I do not have a problem.]

I have learned that in life I must pick my battles and this is one battle that I gladly win by actually losing. So, if you want my shoes, let me know please. As usual, chat via Twitter. More of me on instagram and my other blog.

Thank you for not judging

It dawned on me that the year 2013 was the year that I dressed incredibly terribly. So much so that I apologise to all the people who had to endure my terrible dressing on a daily basis. I don't have any reason (or more like excuse) that would justify this, ever; all that I can say is that, well, it happened.

(Does losing weight count?)

It rather ironic that I started this blog back in 2013.Perhaps on a sub-conscious level I sort of knew that I needed to dress better, despite my reluctance to admit it at the time. I realised that I must have been judged based on my terrible dressing sense. All I can say is, thank God for people who do not immediately write me off just because I wore something terrible. 

We live and learn. Thank you for being so kind.

If you want more of me, head over to my other blog, instagram and Twitter. Not in any particular order of excitement.

... in which I admit that I have an irrational obsession with hand bags

When it comes to hand bags. I have lost count as to the number of times I have not succumb to temptation. If money is no object, I am pretty sure I would have a whole wall in my walk-in closet devoted to this rapidly developing addiction. I have ceased trying to rationalise this obsession and admit that it is indeed irrational. Bless le husb's heart for putting up with my endless irrationalities.

Latest addition to the family is this china blue 11 inch satchel from the Leather Satchel company (not to be confused with the Cambridge Leather Satchel company). The colour is mesmerising in real life. The craftsmanship is impeccable. While it wasn't love at first sight online, it was truly love at first sight in real life.

And oh, did I mention that I have a soft spot for structured bags?

Let's chat via Twitter. Snap shots of my life is well documented on my instagram. My nerdy side tends to get out in my other blog. Have a nice weekend!

Why do we continue to buy things?

Curiosity ensues. How much people spend on their wardrobes is followed with how much does one donate/toss on a regular basis. What are these purged items. I have never seen any fashion blogger does a post on what gets tossed out, except for Debbie (but she's technically not a fashion blogger, she's more like a ... recovering shopaholic blogger, and her blog is aptly named so), although I get a feel every time they do a blog sale. I can only begin to imagine the volume of inflow and outflow they experience on a regular basis.

From reading minimalist blogs, I get a taste of how much people purge. Granted these are the people with a desire to own less, so it is very possible that they would purge more than the general population. Extreme as this may be, it does beg the question: why do we continue to buy things? Are we so powerless in the face of constant marketing that conditions us to buy, buy, buy without much thinking? What does that say about us as individuals and as a society?

And more importantly, why is it so hard to stop ourselves from buying things? When I put myself on shopping bans, I found it easier not to buy things because well, I was not buying things by default - I took away the choice. I noted then that the real battle is really about handling myself sans shopping ban. Not thinking about shopping is one thing, directing my thoughts towards other things related to wardrobe that's not shopping is another.

At the end of the day, my conclusion is this: shopping is a skill and most of us are not skilled in this department. This is why we buy so much - we have not learned how to buy well.

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We gotta connect through Twitter. Any comments and discussions, you can @drbelles me. For other stuff head over to my other blog where I talk about random musings in life. Take a peek of my instagram for snap shots of my daily life.

I hate ballet flats

[At the time of writing] This morning, I discovered that I hate ballet flats. I am not alone. I realised that they are perhaps one of the most deceiving pair of shoes. To me, they are not comfortable at all. At least heels would give you some sort of idea of how uncomfortable they would be, but ballet flats - uh oh, no. They are called flats, which makes me expect them to be comfortable, except, they are not, mainly because I could feel the ground when I walk in them. Plus they look hideous on my feet.

Why I did not realise this earlier still baffles me. Why I put up with the discomfort for so long is another baffling thing. Perhaps because I expect to suffer, to a certain degree, when it comes to fashion. But for someone who has said don't scrimp on shoes, albeit for health reasons... ironic much?

If I could walk around in heels all day long, I would. If I could run in them, I would too.

EDIT: ok, perhaps I was too quick in writing ballet flats off; perhaps I've been wearing terrible versions of these shoes. Perhaps another chance. Perhaps.
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I have decided to pack up my uncomfortable ballet flats. There are a couple of pairs or so that are gently worn. If you want them, please contact me via Twitter @drbelles. Or you can just call me, if you have my number. On a totally unrelated thing, I was told recently that I should rename my instagram as drool-fest. For non-drooling stuff, visit my other blog, it is very wordy though. Until then.