We Odd Folk

This is a Land's End dress from the collection which is available today.  This classic styling was comfortable for me in my twenties and frankly, works just fine now.  I can wear such a dress accessorized for a wedding, or for someone's graduation. I am still not sure why I need more than a few pretty dresses.

       

      I think my mother used to wonder if I were just a little odd.   My mother liked nothing more than shopping for shoes for literally hours.   I remember going with her on a shopping trip to New York City in the late seventies, and absolutely feeling faint because we walked so much in the summer heat as she was seeking the absolutely perfect shoe for some occasion.  My mother also loved the perfect dress.  She was very tall, and nice clothing did look very good on her. She liked the finest shops with new clothes, but she also enjoyed the upscale consignment shops, and these also added to her really exceptional closet.  When my mother passed, she left a collection of shoes for which Imelda Marcos would have been envious.  I am still consigning her clothes, and hats, and handbags   I am simply not this way.  I have my share of pretty dresses and a couple of pairs of nice shoes, but unless there is a special occasion, a wedding or something, the occasions for which these may be worn, are fewer and fewer.   I like comfortable shoes, and the last time a man much younger than I am, made an unwanted advance,  I told him that  "I have sweaters older than you !"  That statement would be absolutely true.   I like the clothing from the LL Bean and Land's End catalog, and if I can get it at a consignment shop, then that's all the better.  Some of the LL Bean clothing I have, I have had for many years, and much of it looks new. I actually have a new looking coat I bought before I was pregnant with my now grown daughter.   I like comfortable, clean, and good quality clothing.   I don't like things that are poorly made, or are too gimmicky.   I am lucky that my favorite clothing fit well in the closet of a college instructor.
               

I love these shoes.  They are so comfortable, and they work well with any pair of slacks.

Ladies coats from the LL Bean catalog.  These coats if cared for even reasonably well, will last many years, and look very good doing so.

                  I must be odd folk because I don't understand the obsession with clothing or with fashion.   There is so much to learn about on Earth.   Photography is a worthy obsession, be it digital or film.  One can spend a lifetime composing and seeking the perfect shots, and perfecting the perfect exposures.  My mother was also an exceptional cook, and unless you want chili soup with homemade bread and Baked Alaska for dessert, then I am not.  Raising animals can be a joyous endeavor, as can restoring cars or tractors.  I simply don't understand the obsession with covering onesself with colorful cloth unless they are also very comfortable.  I think I will continue with my own interests,  leave the clothing to the fashionistas,  and dress like Martha Stewart.