But…It Was on Sale…

A bargain is only a bargain…if…you need it! ~Bertha

I must admit…I’ve done it…it…being…buying something…that…I wasn’t shopping for…that…I have a questionable need for…simply because…it was there…and…it was…such a good deal…

Now…Bertha…has been quick to point out the fallacy of this…yes…that’s the same…Bertha…who wouldn’t pass up a shoe sale…on a dare…probably not even a double-dog dare…and…we all know…the power of the double-dog…

Anyway…when I proudly display my latest…good deal…she has started asking me…these…stupid…hmmm…I mean…these questions…

Do I need it…does it match anything I have…does it fit…do I love it…would I have bought it at full price…

Then…like a dog with a bone…she goes on…

What about the cost…how does the 50% I paid…fit into my budget…and…she reminds me…$200 worth of bargains…is still $200…even…if the receipt says I saved…$200…I still spent…$200…and…somehow…when it comes to my bank balance…that ain’t really saving…

She’s right of course…and…I’m busted…as I remember the arm loads of clearance clothes…still sporting tags…that I eventually gave away…because…they either never fit…well…I meant to lose weight…geez…or…I never found anything…just that shade…of…periwinkle…or…chartreuse…to pull it off…and that…oh…I can always wear it with black…doesn’t always get it either…

Bertha…says…it’s actually part of living my truth…asking myself the…questions…as she calls them…before I make a purchase…especially…an impulse purchase…and…if…the answers…are…no…then…putting it back on the rack…and…walking away…

I have a feeling…I’m going to be doing quite a bit of walking in the future…I wonder…will that count as exercise…hmmm…

Jane

True Confessions…of a Clothes Horse…

They say…confession is good for the soul…well then…my soul is gonna be better for this…so here goes…

It started the first day of first grade…I wore shorts…cute little lime green shorts with a matching plaid top that had a metallic thread…yes…I remember in that much detail…I also remember that all the other little girls had on dresses…

Thus started the…what am I gonna wear…obsession…maybe you know how it goes…

Ring…ring…you wanna go out with a bunch of us on Thursday?

Ah…um…sure…what’ll ya’ll be wearing?

And it’s a double edged sword…not only do I want to blend in…I want to look good…the only thing is…it doesn’t matter how many clothes I have hanging in my closet…I never seem to have exactly what I think I should wear…if I have the funds…I buy something new…but…quite often I go…feeling uncomfortable…ill at ease…because I don’t think I have on just the right thing…

If a mere evening out with friends puts me in a dizzy…imagine what major events do…a date…well…haven’t had to worry about that one in a while…but…it would definitely require a new outfit…a speaking engagement…always cries out for a new outfit…even if they’ve never seen me before…

So…I shouldn’t have been surprised when my friend Edie Galley asked to interview me for her radio show…that my first concern was…what should I wear…not…what am I gonna say…

Just for the record…the interview is done over the phone…no one…not one single person could see me…but…I was very authorish…in black leggings…long, black bubble top…and purple ballerina flats…silver jewelry completed the ensemble…my hair and makeup were nicely done…my legs were clean shaven…and my toenails were freshly painted…

Now…you may be thinking that this means I’m insecure…not sure I’m gonna fit in…and I believe you’d be right…you’re getting as smart as Bertha…who of course has something to say about this…

She says it’s another layer of living my truth…of feeling good about who I am…regardless of how I…or anyone else is dressed…it’s about buying clothes that I love…that speak to me…and just knowing that I’ll fit in wherever I do…and if I don’t…it’s not the clothes holding me back…

This one…is gonna take some more time in the contemplation chair…hmmm…wonder what I should wear…

Gotcha!

Jane