Wrung out, strung out but coping in a familiar way

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My sanity is hanging on by a thin strand. This may be the last week for the deck project. Before you start rejoicing that you won’t have to put up with my deck rants, he has said this before. Many times before. Will this be the real ending? Not sure. Maybe for the big stuff. Stay tuned.

Hello darkness my old friend! After a week of frayed nerves, I reverted to an old, trusted friend – retail shopping. It isn’t like it used to be. Back in the “old days” department stores had wonderful displays that made you want to buy an outfit and strain your pocketbook. Now the merchandise is jammed together without a flair. There are no coordinating outfits or displays with beautiful things put together. Everything looks bland. Lots of geometric prints. Everything looks the same.

After quietly bemoaning that fact (starting to sound like my mom!) I pushed ahead and rooted through the clothes like a pig looking for truffles. Spoiler alert! No truffles. I did find two new tee shirts, both were mid to dark blue prints.

As I checked out, the clerk talked me into opening a credit card with the store. There were promises of huge savings. HUGE SAVINGS! Despite not being the avid shopper I once was, I decided to do it. It’s the closest department store. My former favorite bit the dust a few years back and I can’t buy clothing online. I also believe the salesperson gets a bonus for each card she opens. Technically I’m doing a good deed. Right?

It didn’t take long (my credit line is $800 which is fine). I had to show my driver’s license. The salesperson commented that I must like blue. The new tees were blue and I was wearing blue for my license picture (which isn’t a bad picture!).  I do like blue but I like shades of pink from blush to fuschia best.

Today’s treat will be a cookie mocha Frappuccino. No blue in that! Maybe next week I   will have the eulogy for the deck crew. Don’t hold your breath though.

It’s a Simon and Garfunkel kind of week!

59 thoughts on “Wrung out, strung out but coping in a familiar way”

  2. I hope the end is in sight just as much as you and the cats want it. You all will be lining up to wave goodbye soon. Then hopefully some wonderful weather to enjoy it. I’ve not bought any clothes in forever. I really don’t go anywhere but to the Park or grocery store to be honest and I just wear my comfortable sweats or lightweight pants (which are actually men’s because they are long enough and don’t make me look like I’m waiting for the floods). Years ago I bought sweatsuits for women in tall sizes from J.C. Penney, but these pants work fine for my long inseam – I am 5′ 9″ tall.

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  4. You are so right about the lack of effort at the store. Literally, no effort whatsoever is put into the display. This goes for the higher-end stores as well. I was in Saks, only because that was where I parked, and I had that experience. Glad you left with something!

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  5. I haven’t been in a store that really pleases me in such a long time. I almost forget what that feels like. I’d enjoy shopping once in awhile if I could find something unique that doesn’t already find resident in my closet. Good luck with the contractor this week, Kate. The end result will be worth it, but the going through it is not fun!

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    • That’s the other problem. When I shop, I realize that I have this or tried it and got tired of it. I’ve lived so long that clothing is all cycling back. I love some of the new fabrics but not so much the new prints. Somehow they remind me of the 70s.

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  6. Good grief! I haven’t been in a real store in such a long time. It doesn’t sound like I am missing much. At least catalogs and websites make an effort to show the clothes in an attractive manner. What has happened to real stores? You would think they would be putting in maximum effort right now trying to bring customers back.

    I do hope to offer you congratulations on the completion of your deck very soon. The photos you’ve posted make it look like it’s going to be a very pretty and relaxing place. I am also afraid I will be writing you in jail if your contractor strings you along much further.

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  7. I’m hardly the world’s most visual person, but even I’ve noticed that store displays really have gotten mundane. I shopped for a belt recently and they weren’t even hung on rack like the old days. I had to sift through boxes. – Marty

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  8. Everything looks the same.

    YES! I agree and find myself disinterested in clothes because of it. Not to mention I want to look like a grown-up woman, not Laura Ingalls running around in a floral prairie dress. Honestly, why?

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  9. Yeah, I like it when they have entire outfits put together on display. I never know how to put them together or accessorize them and that always helps. Now I hate shopping in stores and trying on clothes. It used to be such fun. I always feel like I’m too old to pull off most clothes. And I’m not that old.

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  10. “I pushed ahead and rooted through the clothes like a pig looking for truffles.” HA! That is priceless. I’ll never think of shopping the same way again….. I have difficulty trying to find things I like in stores too, but am a big fan of blue.

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  11. Good to hear you will soon be saying so long to the deck guy. The guys that are doing the repair and restoration on our building have been wonderful. They work 7 to 5 four days a week. They only take a one-hour lunch break. It has been in the upper nineties so it is miserable to be out there working.
    I don’t do much clothes shopping anymore. Since I retired I just wear the same old comfy stuff. When I do shop it is usually online
    Looking forward to pictures of the completed deck!.

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    • Your workers sound wonderful. My crew (and often it’s a one man crew) starts anywhere from 8:15 to 9 and leaves between noon and 2. It’s not super hot here either. He has a second job he does in the afternoons. That’s new. He didn’t have that last time he did a project for us. His personal life had an upheaval and my project is suffering the repercussions.

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  14. My local Target, which used to be a fun place to poke around, was a jumbled mess the last time I was in. I don’t know if they just didn’t have enough workers to keep everything neat, or if a small bomb had gone off earlier. I have purchased more online lately and I like that I don’t need to be concerned with current in-store inventory (do you notice how the smalls and mediums are the first to go in the stores?).

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    • Yes! I usually go into a store and if I see something I like, I’ll try the large (because that’s the smallest they have) to get a feel for the sizing. Then I go home and order an x-small on-line. For the most part, that’s been working. I end up buying from stores that carry a wide range of sizes (at least on-line).

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  16. I did the same at the one and only clothes store in town… I was as happy as a pig in the mud, because I always got 20% with my card… and! then! the! store! closed! aaarrrgh… that’s something what happens only to me… sigh…

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  17. I hate shopping for clothes and shoes as you may recall from some of my posts. Glad you found something you liked though. My retail therapy sadly is sweet stuff, and at the moment Lidl are doing a great line in fruit pastilles and midget gems, the latter of which are only 29p for a 200g pack!!
    Hope the decking does get finished this time.

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  18. We don’t have any department stores in our little town but there are some “medium size” places I can shop. Frankly since we don’t do much of anything needing “real” clothes (haha) I get a lot of summery top and tees from Walmart. When I need something other than that level of casual I do order online. But only from a couple of places that I am comfortable with the sizing. I am thrilled to hear your bottomless pit deck project just might be DONE. I hope we don’t all jinx it by being happy that it’s practically finished. You’ve been BEYOND patient!

    Hugs, Pam

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    • Yes, he told me today he doesn’t have to go to his afternoon job today and tomorrow so he was hoping to finish. I knew he was working a second job. You can’t live on 4 to 5 hours work a day. Not with kids.

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  19. I dread clothes shopping now. I always loved it and it’s just a big chore. How many shorts, shirts and flip flops can you buy and change it up?! I am glad you found some tees. I think a cookie mocha frappuccino is a great reason to get out in my little go fast car and turn the radio UP! Sending positive vibes that your frayed nerves are going to be much better soon!

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    • I’m having a good day today but then I have hope. You know how fragile that is. The deck is far enough along that I can see how it will look and I absolutely love it. We are not “allowed” to roof over a deck but we can do a pergola. Over the pergola we are putting a clear acrylic top so it protects us and our furniture from the rain. It also diffuses the sun. I’m over the moon about it. If when they all leave, I can’t see progress, I will sink into the abyss again.

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  21. I was just thinking the other day that I hate all the displays in grocery stores, because they take up so much space that actual shoppers can’t pass each other. Maybe all the retail folks moved to the markets?

    Your deck guy needs to be decked.

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  22. Congrats on your shopping success, and I applaud that salesperson for talking you into a credit card. There’s not a salesperson alive who could talk me into a credit card. I always thank them sincerely for their offer because I know they are doing their job and hoping to get that commission. I remember vividly the days of having a card for each store and each gas station. Now, I have two. I use one, and one is a backup if someone doesn’t take the first one. Happy mocha drinking while you contemplate the real end of the deck project. I hope for your sake it is this week.

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    • I don’t have many specialty credit cards but I do have one from LL Bean and Target. They offer rewards and discounts so it makes it worth while for me. I have an old one from Macy’s from my working days when I bought clothes regularly. Haven’t used it in years. It is good to have a back-up. My main card was involved in a big hack several years ago and I couldn’t use it until it was replaced. I don’t walk around with a lot of cash so having a back up was great. Most of the store cards these days can be used anywhere. It is a great Frappuccino day!

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  24. I hate clothes shopping! I can’t remember ever liking clothes shopping! I tend to go through the racks in thrift stores. I look online, but the prices are not what I want to pay. Congrats on your new tee-shirts!

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    • When I was young I loved clothing and shoe shopping. Sometimes I went into NYC to shop the garment district. It was almost a hobby. I was disciplined though. I didn’t overspend. I got great deals on the latest styles.

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