Monday, weird day.

Mondays always feel a little weird to me. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Mondays. But when I wake up on a Monday, I immediately start thinking about all of the things I need to get accomplished in the week. And it's usually a lot. So, I start thinking, how am I going to get all of this done.

But somehow, when Friday rolls around, it all gets done. Typically, I get a few extra things done.

Yet, those Mondays really get me.

What about you? Are you a Monday person?

Target dress, Gap dress, Urban boots, F21 necklace

On a different note, I finally finished the second book of Hunger Games and am on to book three.

Also, did anyone see the latest "Project Runway"? I'm really digging the jacket Viktor Luna designed. It's on sale at Amazon. Too bad it's $400.

I'm thankful for...

...my brother.

My brother is two years older than me. And he's a pretty cool guy, even if he did just leave the lovely state of California to move back to South Carolina. (He was in SoCal, so it's a bit more understandable.)

He's a pretty stinking talented musician and composer.

He's incredibly smart.

He's got creativity oozing out of his pores.

He's a fierce friend (+ brother).

He's a lot of fun.

I love him lots, even thought he's much farther away--distance-wise--now that he was just a couple of months ago.

And I hope he stays safe as he leaves today for Wilmington, NC to help with disaster relief.

The end.

Gap dress & scarf, Urban boots, Target vest, F21 bangle and sunglasses, Old Navy earrings

And, just for reference, here's what my bro looks like. :)

Day Runner

All my adult life, I've tried to be a morning person. I even succeeded for nearly two years in graduate school. I would wake up around 6am, head to the school gym to workout and then use their shower facilities to get ready for the day. The nice thing was that my office was just across the quad and I could store my gym bag there.

Plus, getting to campus around 6:45am meant I always got the best parking spot in my lot.

But when I moved to San Francisco, something happened. Oh, sure, I still manage to get up early to head out for a run or early coffee meet-up with a friend, but something's changed. I can't quite get the pep in my step that I had during my graduate school years.

This really struck me Wednesday evening when, instead of heading straight home, I took an evening from the office and back. I felt great and ran for nearly five miles, which is a big accomplishment considering I'm still getting my running legs back. And I felt like I could keep going. I even ran without using my inhaler first. (Nerd alert!)

All that's to say that I never feel that way on a morning run. I have to psych myself out just so I can get out the door. And it's still a struggle.

No, I won't be giving up morning runs all together--sometimes, the schedule just doesn't let me run in the evening--but I will be taking more advantage of evening runs.

Also, to motivate myself in my continued running ventures, I bought these shorts. Yes, in the "sequin black" style.

What about you? Are you a morning person? Evening person? Couch person?

 Old Navy vest and jeans, Gap top and scarf, Minnetonka mocs

For Fall

This outfit looks like Fall, and I'm OK with that. And it's got me thinking about a few things I'm keeping my eye on for Fall 2011.

Target dress, Old Navy cardigan, Madden boots, F21 bracelets 

• Currently craving this fluorescent bag. Never thought I'd want a fluorescent satchel, but isn't this one cool?
• Wanting to try out tights with shorts. I know that a while ago, I gave up tights. But I'm willing to try them again, if I find the right kind. Maybe We Love Colors deserves a shot.
• Another strange trend to try: socks with heels. I'll keep you posted on that one.
• Lips: I want to wear lipstick on a semi-regular basis. Check out this gorgeous look.
• Penny loafers are the new oxfords.

Running legs

You know how sailors have to get their sea legs back? Well, this week I've been working on my running legs.

It's meant running four days this week so far. I'm taking a rest day today, and will do my long run either tomorrow or Sunday. It's always a little daunting thinking about how long 26.2 miles is. But I've done it before. I know I can do it again.

But it's been rough this week. It's like my body has to remember what it's like to get into a running groove. I guess I didn't think I would keep the momentum during about seven months of sporadic running. But it's still hard.

Don't you worry about me. I got this.

Also, why don't I wear this sweater more?

 Banana Republic sweater, Gap jeans, Old Navy necklace and bracelet, Target wedges

Smiling

On Wednesdays, Jessica of Monster Cakes does these adorable posts about things that make her smile. Little things, big things, whatever size. I know it won't be Wednesday when I post this, but I am composing on a Wednesday. It's close enough.

I think it's important to remember the things that make you happy, even if they're small. So, here we go. Here's my list.

I smile...

• When I make an off-handed comment in the morning before leaving for work how I wish I had some cash to buy coffee from Farm:Table on the way to work, and come to find that the hubs has left $5 on top of my cell phone.
• Grocery delivery.
• Coming up with a blog idea for work that I'm really excited about. (Credit and personal finance can be exciting!)
• Finding that, after mentioning it at happy hour on Friday, my coworker has left the DVDs of season one of "Game of Thrones" on my desk. (Has anyone watched it? But the hubs and multiple coworkers--all male--have recommended it.)
• Hunger Games. Seriously loving it.
• Waking up early to run two mornings in a row, and stopping at the end of a pier to admire this lovely city I call "home."
• Having a clean kitchen before I go to bed.
• Throwing together a shrimp salad for lunch on Sunday and then finding out that the hubs "really liked it." (His words! It's a big deal because, sadly, I'm no independent cook. I cling to my recipes like they're going to run away from me.)
• A planned trip to Target this weekend. (It excites this city girl a lot.)

There's obviously a lot more, but this is a start. Maybe next week I'll add some more. What makes you smile?

Also, this is the man behind the sneaky $5 drop:

Ain't he cute?

Relaxed

Loving this one, y'all. Cozy, swingy... just perfect for Friday. Even a Friday spent at work. Oh, what's that you say? No, today's not Friday. I'm just that behind in posting. This outfit is from last Friday.

 Gap dress, NY&Co sweater, Old Navy scarf & earrings, Madden boots, F21 bracelet

So, the other night I was pleading my case to the hubs for us to take a trip to Vegas for the Rock 'N Roll Marathon and a long weekend. I want to knock out another marathon this year. I want to go somewhere with my husband. But do you know how much Vegas would set us back? Probably at least $1,000 total. Trust me, I crunched the numbers, and that's on the low end.

$1,000 for four days and three nights in a place that, yeah, I want to visit someday, but probably won't even like that much. $1,000 that we'd be wiser leaving in our savings account.

After the husband and I talked it out--man, he is much better at money than I am--we decided on a compromise. I still get to do a marathon and go on a trip with my husband, but just a little closer to home.

On November 5, I'll be running the Stinson Beach Marathon in California. That's less than an hour away from our little apartment in San Francisco. Just to give you an idea of the cost difference, the Vegas marathon cost alone was $165. I paid $70 for the Stinson Beach race.

We may even end up camping for a night or two. Talk about a cheap alternative to a couple hundred buckeroos for one night at a Vegas hotel.

Now I just gotta get to trainin'! I ran/walked 9 miles on Sunday and it just about killed me. Time to get back into marathon shape!

Neglect

Banana Republic tank, Old Navy sweater (It's an open-weave one, not that you can tell with the photo adjustments I made), Silver Brand (yeah, I don't know either) jeans, Minnetonka mocs, F21 locket (someday maybe I'll show you what's inside the locket. If you're lucky)

I've been neglecting the blogs. Big time. Can I be excused because of work?

I'm typically pretty good at keeping up with what's going on in the land of style blogdom, but I'm sorry to say my blog-browsing sessions have been hit-and-miss lately. I don't know how to make up for it except that this evening I'll be reading and commenting like a good little blogger.

On an unrelated note, there's a helicopter buzzing (buzzing?) around above downtown San Francisco right now. It's because of this. Let's not get political, k? K.

On a serious note--Ha! Just kidding. This is totally not serious. But it is style-related, and isn't that what this blog is for?--let's talk about my jeans. Ladies and gents, these jeans were purchased sometime in probably during my freshman year of college. I picked them up while I was back at my folks' house. [Kind of] free jeans score!

Banner

The blog had a mini-makeover with a new banner that I'm not in love with. Honestly, though, I was tired of seeing my face on the top of the page. Weird, huh? By nature, style bloggers are a bit narcissistic. (I'll fess up to that.) But there was something about seeing three of my faces gracing the top of my blog that made me fee weird.

So I went in the opposite direction and used a photo of my feet. Makes sense, right? I think I'll experiment with some other designs before I settle on one, but it'll do for now.

 gifted top and jeans, Old Navy vest and scarf, Target flats and ring, gifted (from Sudan) earrings

Can we talk about my vest? Better yet, I'll talk, you decide whether or not to listen. :)

This is one of the new pieces from Old Navy. (Remember how much I said I loved their stuff right now?) I was saddened that I missed the Banana Republic vest that so many bloggers own. (I'd find a link, but I'm just too lazy to do so right now.) So imagine my excitement when I found this one in ON? (Go ahead. Imagine my excited face!)

It was a match made in olive drab, utilitarian heaven.

OK, enough vest talk.

You know what's nice? Getting down on my accordion has me bitten with the musical bud. As I type, my left-hand fingertips are a little numb from playing the guitar today. It's nice to strum again.

Play it.

I looked into accordion lessons, but they're a tad expensive. And since I'm only ever planning on being a hobbyist accordion player, I think I'll just rely on YouTube videos (like this one) and my own ear.

 Banana Republic top (hooray for 30% off of sale items!), gifted jeans, Madden boots, F21 earrings

OK, I know I really run the risk of embarrassing myself here, but I'm going to take that chance. Last night I took some time to learn a few bass notes and chords on the accordion and sat down with my trusty beginners' book. Here's the result of my 30-minute accordion (self) lesson (feel free to laugh):

Friday Goods

Yes, I'm a little behind on posting. This was from last Friday. But I'm assuming you'll forgive me.

Has anyone been in Old Navy lately? Because it is looking good! Really. The "Favorite Looks" section on OldNavy.com says it all: some really great looking pieces for late summer and fall. I can't wait to show you the pieces I snagged this weekend. (Don't worry, it was all in the budget!)

Speaking of Old Navy, yes, these photos were taken in the Market Street Old Navy fitting rooms. I'm a weird one. And you know what? Most of the outfit was Old Navy (stuff that I own and just happened to put together that day). Go figure!

ON dress, cardi & belt, Madden boots, earrings gifted (and from Sudan)

 Friday was also the day that I took my Nook for a spin in the sunshine. Look, it worked!

And then I finished "The Hunger Games, Book One" on Friday night. Aren't you proud of me for finally finishing a book?

***

I thought it'd be fun to show you that sometimes I get to write really fun stuff for work, like Saturday's post I did on fashion bloggers and how frugal they can be. Check it out here. I linked lots of my favorite style bloggers and had a lot of fun bringing them all together in this post!

And then other times I get to write about more difficult subjects, like this week's post on the U.S. credit downgrade. I know it sounds boring, but it's times like those that my studious self takes over and I dive into reading and researching all about a subject that, just a little while ago, wouldn't have crossed my mind as a bloggable topic. ("Bloggable"? Sure. It's a word.)

Give Up Giving Up

That's right. I'm not giving up nothin' this month (don't please excuse the double negative). Why? 'Cause it's my thing and I can do what I want. That's pretty much the only reason. I figure I shouldn't just arbitrarily give something up just for the sake of it, so I'm skipping it all together. Oh, sure, there are constantly things I'm trying to reform in my life (hello, pile of clothes on the floor), but those are on-going, and possibly always will be. So I don't feel so bad about skipping one half of this month's challenge.

As for the accordion playing, I pulled that big box of an instrument out this weekend and was relieved to find that I could (relatively) easily play the melody lines of every song out of my accordion book with ease. That's 'cause I learned to play the piano as a little tyke. 

I gotta say, whenever the hubs and I have little tykes of our own, I'm going to put them in piano lessons, at least until they have the basics, then they can do what they want. Having piano knowledge as a base for all of my musical endeavors has been invaluable to me, and I know it's been the same for my brother, too. (He took lessons as well, though was less-than-thrilled about it at the time. Now? He has a degree in sound design and is a pretty amazing musician and composes some beautiful stuff. Eventually maybe he'll let me share some of it on here.)

I'd say it's paid off for both of us rather well.

Gap blouse, Seven for All Mankind jeans, Banana Republic shoes, F21 bangles, belt & earrings 

So, the right hand won't be too hard to get used to on the accordion. But the left hand is another story. There are about a bazillion buttons (bass keys and chords) on the left side of the instrument. Although I can locate "C" because of the little divot in the button, the rest are rather difficult to figure out.

The good news? There was an accordion player at our church on Sunday (yeah, our music is pretty awesome) and I approached him about lessons. He doesn't give regular lessons, but he said he could do a session or two. I figure I just need someone to get me started, because this one might prove a bit difficult to maneuver on my own.

August's Give Up/Take On (and Reviewing July)

I thought you deserved to see this:

That's my mom. And what my mom's face looks like when I surprise her with a visit from San Francisco. Read all about it here. It was a nice visit, though a bit short. Hopefully next time my parents can fly to SF and we can show them around. They've visited once before, but it's been about two years.

And now I bet you're wondering how July's Give Up/Take On went, right? The "Give Up" part went fairly well. I've spent several mornings running and others just doing things around the house. So I'd say that's a moderate success.

But the "Take On" is another story. I kind of just forgot what my Take On was supposed to be. Granted, I have continued reading (I'm about 1/4 of the way through "The Neverending Story" and nearly 1/2 of the way through the first book in "The Hunger Games" series), but I haven't finished an entire book yet. Can I be excused because I'm also reading a third book for a book club? Yeah, this is pretty typical of me: starting books and taking a long time to finish them.

And now it's August already. Want to know what the plan is for this month? Let's take a look.

Give Up: Ugh. I have a couple of things in mind, but I'm feeling kind of lost, and I don't just want to go with anything. So I'm open to suggestions from you. Hopefully this weekend I'll make a final decision. So, go ahead. Comment. Tell me what I should give up for August (well, the rest of August anyway).

Take On: This:

Yes. That's an accordion. An old one. And it still works. My grandmother gave it to me since she doesn't play it anymore, and I finally brought it back to SF with me. So I'm hoping--with the guidance of my "My First Accordion Book"--to have a ditty or two figured out by the end of the month. I'm excited. And a bit intimidated. There are a lot of buttons on that accordion.