Shop, eat, shop, eat, shop, gym? ...shop?

I've realized that I enjoy getting groceries. I think it's because I missed having access to big groceries in New York. I like exploring and browsing products in the aisles and trying new food products.

Like they have this peach-mango tofu dessert at the ValuMart that I really like! And Oreo CAKESTERS are AMAZING. You must have one if you haven't yet. And I found that I love those pre-packaged Thai sauces, so I just add chopped veggies and meats, then I can make easy and delicious noodle and rice dishes!


(See full-size image here)

Also, while shopping in Kensington Market (which is a neighborhood known for bohemian, vintage, and produce shopping), I found the most adorable aprons! So I had to buy one for myself, so I can cook in style... even if I do live by myself, hah.

I do enjoy wearing fun clothes, for myself. I think some people misunderstand this. What I prefer to wear, tends to be over dressed for the usual everyday situation. If I had my way, I'd just wear flirty party dresses everyday, everywhere. And maybe pearls and a tiara. And I'd alternate boots with heels. (Okay, I still actually do that last part regularly.)

But in reality, I end up wearing jeans, tees, and sneakers most weekdays, because I usually don't like the extra attention that people give me when I dress up at work/school. Like I have to explain myself for looking nice! And it's annoying, even if they supposedly mean well. It's like this bizarro contradiction of my own vanity and modesty. Yes, I have some neuroses.

Also, people think that for some reason, wearing a dress is not as comfortable as wearing jeans and a shirt. Or that wearing a dress is more complicated! Unless you plan to be performing some athletic feat requiring you to flip around and flash your panties, this doesn't make any sense.

For one thing, a dress is in ONE piece. So I don't have to think about which top goes with which bottom. I just throw it on and voila! I look all tidy and nice. AND, dresses don't restrict your legs. This is a bigger issue for women, who vary so much in the waist/hip area. This is why trying on jeans is a pain in the ass –literally, whereas trying on dresses is more fun.

So anyway, now that I live solo in a new city, and it's summer (the BEST season for cute dresses), I feel inclined to play dress up even more than usual. Basically I am still playing dress-up and hair stuff, into my 30s and beyond. And now I can think of it as research for relating to girls' play in toys.

(photo by Mostlymaple)

Of course, with the allure of Oreo Cakesters and Torontonian foods, I haven't been getting any exercise to balance that out. And I feel that pudge getting in the way when I try on new pants. So today on the way home from boutique shopping... I joined the gym!!

Hath Hell frozen over??? Well, it's only for 6 weeks, because then I move back to that other city with the crazy school where I have absolutely no time for the gym or the people outside of school who I miss. Sniff. I just hope I make good use of the gym; it's actually in the building where I live, so I figure I have no excuse to avoid it. Except I have no gym shoes. Ooh! More excuses to go shopping!

Hmm. Maybe I should quit working for the corporate office types (even the casual ones) and become some kind of toy artist / illustrator. Then I really could wear party dresses and tiaras on a daily basis, and people wouldn't think I was crazy. Or they'd just accept I was crazy, because artists are allowed to be that way. Plus I'd have art openings where I'd have a reason to dress up! And I wouldn't have to deal with the demands of WalMart (which influences a lot of the mass-market toys) or working with the Commies in China, tainting our paints and plastics!

Then again, the life of an artist does not work well with the desires of a shop-a-holic. Doh!