I am hard on my jeans — and I never seem to have more than one or two pairs in my wardrobe at a time because I have difficulty finding ones that fit. After discovering that my main pair is starting to develop some wear spots, I thought it might be time to shop for some new ones.

Timing is everything, they say, and as I was needing new jeans, Eddie Bauer was launching their winter sale with free shipping. So I cashed in a gift card and bought two pairs, as well as a cute red velvet blazer. Only one pair fits (the other is too big in the waist), but that’s good enough for me for the time being. The other will demand that I head out to the Virginia ‘burbs to hit a store at the über-mall Tysons Corner — which could be a fun excursion.

I haven’t bought so much Eddie Bauer gear at once in a decade, and I forget how much I love their clothes. It’s nice to be reminded of that kind of thing every once in a while. I look forward to seeing what it is that I pick up at the brick-and-mortar store.

Last week was Restaurant Week, a biannual tradition in D.C., when restaurants, during traditionally slow periods, extend special prices to their customers — $20.07 for a three-course lunch, $30.07 for a three-course dinner.

Rudi and I managed to partake of the festivities twice last week: (more…)

I have a longer post that I’m halfway through, but to assure my dad (and anyone else who thought I might have fallen off the edge again), I thought it might be a good idea to post something in the menatime before the search parties get sent out.

I did not spend this long weekend as productively or as enjoyably as I’d hoped to, although we did get out to a party last night. I also got a lot of sleep. Rudi installed a new light in the kitchen. We replenished the vegetarian-product section of the freezer. I made scones. And we’ve done a lot of organizing around the Burrow.

In fact, to celebrate the fact that we took three giant garbage bags and two shopping bags filled with clothing culled from our closets to Goodwill today, I’m sitting here in my new glasses and my new purple pjs (featuring adorable puppies wearing knitware).

Three beautiful things from the last week:

1. I bought a book to give as a Christmas present (I can’t share the title as the recipient and I haven’t exchanged gifts yet) without reading it, based solely on the reviews I’d read online from other bloggers. I reserved a copy from the library and picked it up last night and am relieved to report that the first two chapters point to this being a successful pick. I’m glad, or the guilt might have done me in!

2. Usually, at night, only Della and Jeremiah come in to sleep with us. Posey, our long-haired cat, tends not to join us in bed, preferring instead to sleep out in the living room. Last night, though, as we were hunkering down to sleep, she tentatively poked her way through the beaded curtain into the bedroom, clambered around the perimeter of the room, and finally nuzzled her way under the covers between me and Rudi. It’s highly unusual to get the whole family in bed with us at once, so this was an especially nice, cozy way to spend a chilly night.

3. I am notoriously bad about returning things. But in the last week, I’ve returned a bunch of things that I bought during the Christmas season and needed to take back to the stores for one reason or another (wrong size, wrong price, duplicate copies). It’s nice to have that all taken care of. Now if I could just get the rest of the Christmas presents wrapped and shipped out to their recipients….

It’s a good thing I’m not resolving to stop procrastinating in 2007 or else I’d be in trouble for not firming up my resolutions within the first few days of the new year. But instead, I’ve decided to concentrate on one major goal — and to break it up into three key pieces.

In 2007, I resolve to live more. I will try to avoid the tentative, safe steps I prefer to take and instead will bound bravely and boldly into the future. When I crash and burn I will not retreat to my rich interior landscape, but will hop back on my pogo stick and head back out.

In order to achieve such a lofty goal, I will:

• Attend a new public gathering every month, be it a local knitting group (I headed to my first Stitch and Bitch last week), a poetry reading, a bike ride, or a mass streak across the Mall. I’ve grown complacent with my social activities (not that I don’t love me some Dean folks). But it’s time to shake things up.
• Exercise once a week. I am prone to depression. I know this. I also know exercise can help to minimize its effects. You cannot live boldly if your mental health is poor. And it’s hard to do it if you’re too lethargic to get up off the couch. Plus, I’ve been meaning to check out the local yoga studios.
• Be a better friend. I resolved last year to be better about staying in touch with friends and failed miserably. So I’ll try it again this year. I miss my old friends desperately. And I’d like them to know that. So I’ll call or write or email once a month, too. And I’ll try to be better about arranging things with local friends, too, since I tend to be a bit hesitant about initiating gatherings or activities.

That’s it. It sure sounds simple when written out like that. Maybe I make it harder than it really is. I guess we’ll find out, won’t we?

Thanks, everyone, for your pre-dance support with helping me choose a dress. I did, in fact, opt for the red. That was my preference, as well, so it was great to get such a resounding response. You really know how to prop a girl up.

It was fun to see a crowd that I normally only see in jeans (and, occasionally, in business wear) all dressed up. Who knew we cleaned up so well? And, as one friend remarked, how many other places can you ride public transportation in your formal gowns and suits and not have people think it odd?

We all gathered for a pre-party over on Capitol Hill, where most of our group of friends attending the ball live. It was nice to be able to meet up with people ahead of time, so you (I) didn’t have to worry about getting to the event and wondering where everyone else was.

The ball was, well, not especially ball-like. It might have been better described as “A formal political function featuring Mayor Fenty with musical interludes provided by various local D.C. entertainers.” The music was good; it just wasn’t really anything you could dance to, at least until the final performer of the night took the stage. Someone performed the national anthem, for goodness sake!

The funniest part of the night came when we were waiting in a mass of humanity waiting to be allowed through the metal detectors into the ballroom. One friend wandered off in the other direction for a minute and called back on his cell phone to let us know there was another entrance. We scurried to the other end of the convention center to find absolutely no wait and no one manning the metal detectors. I set it off by carrying my purse through it, walked back through, expecting to be asked to leave it behind so I could go through unimpeded, and then realized that no one was even paying attention. I guess all the good security was working the original side.

But the food was good and the evening made for some terrific people watching — particularly seeing what the crowds were wearing. And the company was great. I think we’d all get dolled up and go out again, but it just might not be to a politician’s “dance.” I suggested bowling, but I think others might have been thinking more along the lines of a club or a meal. (Perhaps this just reflects my blue-collar-hometown upbringing. What can I say? Our town boasted no movie theater for a couple of decades but still maintains two bowling alleys!)

Unfortunately, I seem to be coming down with something, because I’m just wiped out. I was home shortly after midnight when I promptly fell asleep on the couch (complete with makeup and contacts). Yesterday I had a hard time dragging myself off the couch because I felt utterly drained and lethargic. Today I’m congested and achy, so I’m staying home in hopes of nipping whatever this is in the bud before it turns into something more serious. In fact, I’m going back to bed right now.