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My Christmas present from my father was a $300 to spend at a high end shop on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. With all that's going on, I was a bit shocked to receive such a generous present. This is especially true as he had me write and sign the Christmas gift for my brother, which was significantly less than $300. My dad said I had worked hard to get his affairs in order (my brother has contributed...not much) and he wanted me to have a nice outfit for work. He said that this store, hereafter referred to as Posh Store, was having a huge sale and I should be able to afford a nice outfit.
I said nothing, but I was quite skeptic on how well this expedition would turn out. Posh Store probably has trouser socks that begin at $200. I can't imagine finding an entire outfit unless I time warp back into 1975 or Posh Store is having a 95% sale. Also, after checking the online site, Posh Store does not appear to cater to the plus-sized crowd. I have zero desire to walk in and have someone greet me at the door with the information that there is nothing in my size (yes, this has happened to me before).
If there is one thing I learned during my drive down Wilshire Blvd is that Rodeo Drive, while not as bad as Manhattan or downtown Chicago, is a damn obstacle course. Pedestrians disobey traffic lights and cars seem to stop wherever they please. People do use their emergency lights, but I have a hard time believing that there are that many vehicles in a small area in need of service at the same time.
Next time, I'll go to the official web site (I just found out there is one) and look at the map ahead of time. Fortunately, I only had to drive around the block twice before I found the parking for the store.
The sales lady was perfectly nice, and her face did not twitch one bit when I mentioned my price limit. She did agree, albeit quite obliquely, when I stated that clothes would *not* be sold in my size. Sadly, even purses were not available to me. There were some deeply discounted shoes in my price range. However, the bright colors, non-conservative styles, and high heels screamed "sex me, daddy" and not "I am a mature, professional woman." This was interesting as the shoes on their online site really are quite different than what was offered in the store.
I ended up getting a fragrance set, which included a charm bracelet in addition to the 3.4 oz bottle of perfume. Total price? There was a special going on so I was able to get the fragrance set for less than $200.
Current Weight: 299 poundsThis Week's Weight Loss: 0 poundsLost To Date: 0 poundsPounds from Goal Weight: 159 poundsWeight loss goal for next weigh in: 3 pounds
Finally! After months of effort, this is the first week I have not gained weight. I missed my goal - I really dove into the garlic rolls at the holiday party - but I could not be happier. Woo hoo!
Current Weight: 296 pounds
This Week's Weight Loss: 0.5 pounds
Lost To Date: 0.5 pounds
Pounds from Goal Weight: 156 pounds
Weight loss goal for next weigh in: 3 pounds
The office Christmas Party and gift exchange was yesterday. I ended up leaving work early due to a power outage; it's hard to work in complete darkness. The owner sent us out of the office early; everyone decided to go the restaurant and sit in the bar...at least I thought that was the plan.
I was the first person there by about half an hour. Now, there's nothing that screams, "I am a loser with no friends," like sitting at a table in the bar by yourself and reading a book. This is what I would have ended updoing as I literally had nothing to do. Instead of heading in the bar, I sat by the window and gazed out longingly for my coworkers. I was just about ready to give up and go to the bar to see if I could find someone that did not mind me sitting at their table when Richard showed up.
He looked rather uncomfortable when he saw it was just me, but I ran over and grabbed him anyway so that he had no choice but to keep me company until everyone else arrived. I am aware that Richard is a (not out) gay male, and I got the feeling that he was afraid I would try and hit on him. I quickly steered the topic of conversation to safe topics like travel to make him feel comfortable.
After about an hour of me pulling out every travel anecdote I could think of, another colleague showed up with her partner. I breathed an internal sigh of relief and did mental cartwheels when sat down to join us. Thank goodness as my conversation topics would shortly have been tapped as dry as the Los Angeles River during drought center. Most of my coworkers showed up after that, and we went into our private room for the party.
We started off the evening with appetizers, wine, and the white elephant gift exchange. I was the only one that brought a gag gift. As predicted I got a laugh, but not as big a one as I had hoped. My gift was opened by the only other woman working in the office. I'm sure I would have gotten a much bigger chuckle had one of the guys opened it. Predictably, no one would trade with her.
Background: Our office, which is predominately male, has a white elephant gift exchange every year during the holidays. This is my first year with the company. Per Wikipedia, a white elephant gift exchange is a popular party game where gifts are exchanged that are typically inexpensive, humorous items or used items from home and sometimes, they are just plain trash; the term white elephant refers to a gift whose cost exceeds its usefulness.
I've participated in white elephants before. They're fun as long as people abid by the rules. I've been to parties where people get quite emotional when their gift is stolen. I caused a frenzy myself when I brought a back massager (it had been deeply discounted on sale) to the white elephant gift exchange.
I asked around to get a feel for how past white elephant were handled. It seems that about 20% of the gifts are gag gifts. The other presents are quite nice.
This year, I decided to bring a gag gift. I originally looked for a carved, wooden Jesus. I preferred one that either lit up and/or played Christmas music. I had no luck. I perused Nordstrom.com until I found something that would also deliver a laugh, a Bella Band. I cackled like Baba Yaga just ordering it.
I purchased a Bella Band for a pregnant friend of mine. She loved hers. However, my office is heavily male, and most of them are in their early to mid-twenties. Trust me, their significant others won't be using the Bella Band anytime soon.
Current Weight: 296.5 pounds
This Week's Weight Loss: 0 pounds
Lost To Date: 0 pounds
Pounds from Goal Weight: 156.5 pounds
Weight loss goal for next weigh in: 3 pounds
Current Weight: 295.5 pounds
This Week's Weight Loss: 0 pounds
Lost To Date: 0 pounds
Pounds from Goal Weight: 155.5 pounds
Weight loss goal for next weigh in: 3 pounds
My Christmas present from my father was a $300 to spend at a high end shop on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. With all that's going on, I was a bit shocked to receive such a generous present. This is especially true as he had me write and sign the Christmas gift for my brother, which was significantly less than $300. My dad said I had worked hard to get his affairs in order (my brother has contributed...not much) and he wanted me to have a nice outfit for work. He said that this store, hereafter referred to as Posh Store, was having a huge sale and I should be able to afford a nice outfit.
