fitforafemme.com

Not entirely sure why I titled this post the way I did, but I enjoyed the way it rolled off the tongue, so let’s roll with it. ULTIMATE DISCLOSURE: This outfit was worn exactly one week ago, and just looking at it is making me long like mad for warmer weather. Of course more rain is headed our way, the loathsome weatherman says.

What gives, San Francisco? Why are you trying so hard to push me away? Is it because I love another place? Is it because I keep leaving you this year? Get over it. You’re being needy, clingy. It taxes me.

I love this simple cotton dress, purchased for a dollar or something like that at a thrift store weeks ago, and I love how pairing it with the cropped denim jacket makes it all look kind of soft and washed out. Practicality necessitated this recycled suede belt from H&M, which seemed all loved and worn when I bought it new recently, as well as my VERY well worn cowgirl boots. Throw in the oversized Lucite nugget necklace for a dash of fancy and that, my friends, is that. Just slap on some spurs and take me to the rodeo, already!

Remember how I promised make-up experiments and tell-alls? We’re going to discuss mascara and explore a few comparisons. GET READY, OK!? Here’s a teaser:

Have you missed me? The tomboy and I snuck off to Guerneville for a romantic Mother’s Day minibreak in a riverside cabin. We’ve loved Dawn Ranch Lodge since it was Fife’s and little has changed with the ownership – the grounds are still lovely, the meadow is still lush, the spot where M & I skinny-dipped at 1AM back in 2005 is as it ever was. Even the bonfire ring has endured!

We made the best of the storms we weren’t expecting by cozying up under the covers with a variety of movies to play on the laptop and procuring super indulgent, artisan cheese plates to-go from our new favorite place to eat in town, Boon Eat + Drink, all enjoyed while the rain played on the cabin’s tiny roof overhead. We also traded in our beach plans for a Mother’s Day rose garden tour and champagne tasting at Korbel (they have an organic brut and a reserve blanc de noir that I liked, plus their guest house is HAUNTED which is so exciting), and picked up desserts to nibble on in bed at night. It was a much-needed distraction from the fact that the petite is far, far away on a school trip and we had to spend Mother’s Day without her. I hope y’all were good to your mamas!

These photos, however, are from before the little trip. The weather wasn’t quite warm, but not quite cold, otherwise known as quintessential San Francisco. The solution? Leggings. Little jacket. Layers. I am still obviously in love with these nude pumps and nothing screams, “Actual temps be damned, it’s SPRING for heaven’s sake” like a perky, bright yellow floral.

Skirt, French Atmosphere
Sporty Black Tank
Bib Necklace, Buffalo Exchange
Denim Jacket, True Beauty
Leggings, Dance Boutique
Shades, Le Tigre
Nude Pumps, Madden Girl

You’re DYING to know what I’m reading, right? I had a gift certificate from CHRISTMAS to burn through at Border’s (seriously, it said Feliz Navidad on it), so I picked up the first issue of The Gentlewoman (leaving only one on the shelves), since Geometric Sleep raved so fondly about it. It’s fabulous. I’m not even through with it yet. I also grabbed Elle and my Vogue and W had just arrived in the mail, so I’m up to my eyeballs in ladymags. I also succumbed to this lesbian novel written in the early 80s, set in Lake Tahoe and with much acclaim on its back cover. Lucky for me, I scarcely had any opportunity to read this weekend, so I’ll have more to say about Curious Wine soon, I’m sure!

Hot damn, y’all, it’s Friday! A pretty one, too, at least here in San Francisco, which means I ought to be sipping sangria at Cafe Flore, not sitting here in my workout clothes after combining a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Boot Camp workout with one of Jillian Michaels 30-Day Shred sessions. (In case you’re wondering why in God’s name I’d do such an awful thing, it’s because I totally punked out on an awesome Bikram Yoga deal yesterday – 20 sessions for $20! I could faint! I hate wearing sports bras! Someone might accidentally sweat on me! It might smell really, really bad! I’d have to buy a yoga mat, and I have no idea where one does that! See?! SO HARD. If you have strong feelings about it, however, feel free to try and convince me – I might scoop up the next deal I see instead of losing my nerve like a chickenshit so-and-so!)

By the way, did you know Kim Kardashian has OnDemand Fitness videos? She’s kind of sad and apologizes a lot, and wears a ton of make-up AND a corset during workouts. Maybe it’s meant to be more like soft core porn than anything…uh…effective.

Choosing is hard!

In easier, breezier news, we’re headed to the charming wine country town of Healdsburg for some much-needed family time and a change of scenery this weekend. I haven’t seen my folks there in ages and I miss them terribly. It’s supposed to rain, but I’m holding out hope that the weather will continue to be kind to us!

PS. Not sure which loser setting my camera was on that it took such PALE pictures of me, with such insanely comic book blue-black hair, but I’ll try to avoid it in the future. For all our sakes.

Wednesday already! I have no idea how that happened, but I like it. I am at home drinking a champagne cocktail and devouring clearance Easter candy (Reese’s Peanut Butter Eggs, that’s how I roll) with the tomboy, who is catching up on her Ultimate Fighter show. Today I bought a soft white sundress with tiny yellow flowers all over it, and M got all excited and said I’d “look like a chick” when I wear it. Ha.

Despite the candy, M has pretty resolutely declared that we should no longer celebrate Easter, which is funny because we didn’t celebrate it, not really, to begin with. I’m not going to argue since it only served to interfere with my month-long birthday shenanigans. This outfit, by the way, was my little mellow Monday-is-my-birthday get-up. I wanted to wear a party dress, but toned down for a casual, sunny day – I spent the morning sleeping in, lingering over a delicious breakfast at home, then heading to Noe Valley for an extremely relaxing massage and Italian lunch. Also, I’m a total liar and that necklace is from an Isla Mujeres boutique, definitely not H&M. I am so in love with these earrings, too – the juxtaposition of the plain metals in a pretty shape that moves so gracefully just floors me. Who else here always buys a treasured bauble or two when visiting faraway lands?

Speaking of the world, it’s been backsliding too fast and too horribly for my taste, so I’ve been floating in this superficial space of watching weird shit like this:

Or of that one kid on some Asian version of American Idol singing Whitney Houston’s I Will Always Love You. Or of that other kid sobbing on and on about Justin Bieber. Beaver fever! I am still hoping someone throws an I’m Not Justin Bieber lesbian party here in San Francisco. With a photo booth. Ultragay!

Oh! Last but not least, on my trip I read this book…

Has anyone else read it? What did you think of it?

I disliked the sort of wan anti-feminist or at least whispery misogynist bits, they seemed to be written with bizarre purpose but read superfluously, to the story, anyway. The insistence that there’s some kind of literary mutual exclusivity was off-putting as well. Don’t tell me I’m only allowed to enjoy certain authors and not others, or that my liking one book means I can’t possibly like one radically different from it. Absurd!

Aside from that, I liked the story well enough and it was a fun read about a high school senior at an elite boys’ boarding school in the early 60s, where literati reigned the way Queen Bee & Co. do in present day Gossip Girl, with only slightly less petty malice and a whole lot of enviable pretty to drool over. The attention to detail fashion-wise amongst the students was kind of delicious in the way My Nerd Boyfriend is delicious. I zipped right through at least half of it in under three hours on the way over on the plane, and M scolded me to slow down or I’d have nothing else to read while we were in Mexico!

She was right. And wouldn’t you know, paperbacks at the Cancun airport were 180 pesos – appx. twice the US amount printed on the books themselves.

I settled on a $7 copy of Nylon, since none of the book titles were that tempting. More incentive to learn Spanish ASAP!

The above just blew your mind, I know, so here’s a clockwise from top left explanation:

• M reading the menu at Sparky’s. I was so adamant about pancakes, but we ended up splitting a massive chicken parm.
• M pouting over agonizing eye wear choices at the chic and friendly Eye Dare office.
• M demonstrated her best DeNiro squint and a delicious graham cracker.
• Boots the kitten comes when we call her over. So does Scab. And Pimp Gandalf, but not Blanket.
• Pretty damn good chicken parm for a 24-hour diner. Plus, cute gay waiter boys and singing patrons.
• The creepy doll that greets you at Sparky’s.
• Some street art/porn to keep the Valencia sidewalk extension project construction workers* motivated.
• The mystery palm that showed up overnight in our little garden. Weird!

This is the day we walked over 3 miles! I really, really love our meandering walks through the Mission and surrounding ‘hoods like Bernal, Noe and Castro. We pop in and out of cute shops and boutiques, we giggle, we eat, we drink, we cross a few items off of our To Do list, we people watch, we peruse real estate, we mussy-sikk, we’re RIDICULOUS. It’s just completely spontaneous, unplanned bliss, and neither of us cares much that we said we’d be here or there or “should” be somewhere else. It’s what the best weekends are made of!

What are your best weekends made of in your neighborhood? (Otherwise, let’s face it, we’d all say something absurd like BORA BORA!)

*I am sure this is not the official name of the project.
**My ankles don’t even BELONG to me, they’re so shockingly white. No, seriously. Look at them. What the hell?!

CONFESSION: Gah! Too busy, kittens, for a proper confession! So much excitement and busyness. Not only does FFAF have an exciting new partnership with a delicious new partner, I am party-planning for work and up to my ears in laundry. The latter is not so exciting, unless you consider that it contains FIVE NEW DRESSES I got earlier this week whilst thrifting, all for between $3-$8 apiece, all fabulous. Two remind me of French 1940s dresses, one is a ruffled black velvet number handmade of AWESOME, the Mad Men-esque sheath dress I keep teasing y’all about and one other that I can’t quite remember…hm. Basically, I’m assuring you that I’ll make up for this wan week very shortly.

Enjoy this entry and my soothing hallway in meantime, and have a fantastic weekend!

PS. Oh, and this song, which I am currently 84,000% obsessed with (as some of you may have noticed):

PPS. I got the name of this subject from a random book title generator, because I couldn’t think of one. Cheeky!

HISSYFIT CONFESSION: Last night M saunters in from her poker game at work, grinning even though she didn’t win, a bottle of Nicolas Feuillatte in hand (they give her one every year on her anniversary), talking about how she was invited at the last minute to a work excursion ON A YACHT for a CHAMPAGNE LUNCH during the first real BLUE ANGELS SHOW of FLEET WEEK on the bay. It was for everyone on the team of a specific project she wasn’t on, but had put in so much work on that they wanted to include her, which is super awesome. Not so awesome? She couldn’t take me with her, obviously! Pout, pout, pout.

No matter that I’d been geeking out on the air shows all day long and had pretty much memorized the schedule. Thursday, noon – practice. Friday, 2PM – practice, 3PM – show. Saturday…you get the picture. Anyway, I decided to put my big girl panties on and go with her today no matter what. My plan was to send her off and then find a nice spot on the wharf somewhere to watch all by lonesome. With a flask, preferably. M threatened to kill me if I let any hot tomboy pilots pick me up and take me for a ride, though, so there went that plan! (Pfft…whatever happened to Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell?)

Tune back in tomorrow for more pics and the rest of the story. Yes, I’m a tease. I know. But the tomboy just made a round of cosmos and it’s urgent. And guess what?! Sunday = cowgirls, go-carts and In & Out for a very special birthday girl’s celebrations. It’s going to be a good weekend, y’all. Have fun!