Little Black Cardigans

So the other day I was cleaning out my closet and hanging up clean clothes when I noticed something ridiculous. I do not have 1 black cardigan, not 2 or 3, I have 4! I have never realized this before today. I do wear black a lot...how depressing, must be the weather. So my first instinct was to get rid of a couple, but I honestly do wear them all. Meet the guilty subjects:

These pictures are pretty bad, but you still get the point. I just tossed them on my bed and snapped a picture with my phone--they really aren't so wrinkled when I wear them, I promise.

First up, the short-sleeved cardigan. This one is a must-have because I wear it over dressy tank tops to work in the warmer months.

Next, the 3/4 sleeve short cardigan. I really only wear this with one dress, but it goes perfectly with that dress and I don't like the dress with anything else.

Now we have the long-sleeve, casual cardigan that I often wear with jeans and oh, about every shirt I own. I'm kind of obsessed with this one and wear it way too much.

Finally, my long-sleeve dressy cardigan that I wear to work on days when the other black cardigan is dirty or was worn the day before. Ok, not entirely true...but I do wear it a lot.

So, there ya have it. I am not getting rid of any of these just yet...after all, I did just get rid of 150+ things, so I will justify keeping these items. The real issue here is probably that I need to add some color to my wardrobe and work on my fashion sense, but that's another post for another day!

Funeral Dress

The temperatures are back above 100 degrees here in Southern Oregon. This is really unheard of now that it is happening for the second time in one summer! My hope is that the weather is warming up in general and winter won’t be so cold either. :)

I have definitely noticed that the work culture is much more relaxed up here, at least in my office. This is true especially in terms of dress code and office conversations. Several people have told me that the liberal lifestyles of people around here come across as very unprofessional to people from the East Coast, where they generally have a much more conservative attitude towards work. I am beginning to think that professionalism is not common sense, like I once assumed. For some people, they must be told/taught how to act in a business environment. It is crazy to me that some people who never attended college have never learned about how to dress/talk/present oneself for a job interview, first day of work, business meeting, etc.

I cannot believe it has been almost a year since I left for Ireland! Wow—it is amazing to think back to my life then and what I was experiencing versus who and where I am today. I can’t help but see the many ways God was using that experience to teach and shape and prepare me to move out here. It is a great faith-building thing for me to think back 1, 2, 5 or however many years I can remember and think about what was worrying/troubling/scaring me at that time in my life. Then, I think about how God solved the problem or showed me a new way or took care of me and it just reassures me of how BIG my God is and how wonderfully he provides for me.

Today I got a new book called Boundaries. It’s about learning When to say Yes and How to say No, or at least that is what the cover says. Kory told me he has heard great things about it, so I am excited to see what it’s about. I definitely have trouble saying No, even to little things, so I’m hoping this will help me with that.

Someone told me that the dress I wore to work today would be a great funeral dress. I am not sure how to take that. Yes, it is black but I really think it was just a poor attempt at small talk. That is another skill that I have discovered many people are lacking. Silence is not the end of the world. It’s much better than making awkward comments about my appearance such as: “You aren’t wearing blue jeans today.” “My grandma made me a sweater that had the same colors as your blouse once. She is dead now.” “Your hair looks very nice today. Why?” or “The back of your head reminds me of my high school girlfriend.” I wish I could tell you I just made those up.