Two Hundredth Post

I have neglected this blog for far too long, and mostly out of anxiety over writing this, the 200th post. I knew it had to be good - no, not good - great, and the pressure was too much for me.

So, as usually happens, I have totally psyched myself out. And now I have no choice but to own up to the blogger's block and move past it. This is what this post will be, then. Not a great post at all. Just a place-marker.

So happy 200 posts to my blog. It's not easy to be 200-posts old. (Do you know what that is in dog years?) In the context of the internet and the so-called blogosphere, this blog has not been around very long. But I hope to keep it going until all of this blogging stuff becomes irrelevant and passe (that's pass-ay, in fact - I don't even know yet how to put accents in to this format). I hope you'll keep reading until I stop writing.

Happy (Belated) Birthday to Me!

Yesterday was my birthday and two days ago I threw a party for myself. We went all out with streamers, balloons, and even funny silver swirly decorations I found in the party store and couldn't resist. I also couldn't resist the special light-up margarita glass that had "Birthday Girl" written all over it (not literally, but what screams "It's my birthday!" if not a glowing pink margarita glass?)

And now all the hoop-la is over and I'm left here, one year older, with a first-year PhD. exam staring me in the face. It's a wee bit depressing.

Shoe Fetish

If there were ever a girl not to have such a fetish, I thought it was me. In fact, I distinctly remember opening a friend's closet in high school and failing to understand why she had 3 pairs of black strappy sandals. She insisted they were different, pointing out that one pair had three straps over the toe and one had two, while one pair had a silver buckle and another didn't.

I still tend to wear the same pair of shoes until they fall apart but I think I am beginning to appreciate the finer points of footwear. I couldn't resist buying these two pairs Friday at Payless. It's hard to feel guilty spending 35 bucks on two pairs of shoes, and surprisingly, last night I walked almost a mile all told in these babies pictured below without even the hint of a blister. I'll test the ones on top this afternoon.

They are Payless shoes after all, so the comfort level is always questionable. Still, I do think that Payless has dramatically improved the style and quality of its shoes from what they were a few years ago. And $15 is about all I can afford for shoes right now, so call me satisfied.