Hand-Me-Downs

Via

Have you seen these awesome photos by Quzop of grandparents and their grandchildren switching clothes? I personally love the ones, like above, where the kid actually looks cooler after the switch!

I have never shared clothes with my grandmothers, though I have gotten some amazing costume jewelry from them and from my surrogate grandmother. But my cousin wears my grandpa's old clothes and in high school, my best friend wore a pair of bell-bottoms that were my dad's from the seventies!! And if you count Goodwill, most of my clothes are hand-me-downs!

Happy weekend, E.

Here and There

Love this guy :)

Hi all. It's been a crazy work week (flying 25 people into South Bend in February? The world just LAUGHS at you). So here are just a few interesting things I've found during my recuperative trolling sessions.

You know intercultural communication is my JAM - so you'll know I loved reading this translated list of advice for Japanese travelers going to America. My favorite is the reflection on how long we spend in grocery store lines - and what a good opportunity that is to make friends! Sounds very Midwestern, to me.

Today, I had to look professional. So I threw on a blazer. Job done. The brand is Gibson, and I found it at Nordstrom Rack during this weekend. One of my matrons of honor bought the same thing, and damn if it didn't look cute on both of us. And just to further push home the magic of this blazer: me = 5'5", curvy, big boobs, she= 6'2", tall and slender. I have never really found blazers that didn't need tailoring before this one. Now I really want this version, in hunter green.



After taking medical ethics in college, I'm always interested in breaking news on legal battles over the body. This story is crazy - does a pregnant woman have the right to move, with her unborn child, away from the father? Does it matter if the father is an Olympian or if they had only a brief, non-committal relationship? Yes, to all, btw. Also, this week, Belgium passed legislation allowing child euthanasia. I've always found Europe's view on euthanasia of the terminally ill fairly progressive, and humane, but this feels extreme (and so sad).

This is another interesting read - why volunteering in the developing world, as a white person, may not be such a good idea (for the countries in need). We all like to think that all help is good, if it's well-intentioned, but is that really true?


I'm having a huge Cream of Wheat love affair right now. I like this idea of an Indian rice pudding substitute. I'm thinking of trying this recipe, without the rose water. Normally, I only need about a teaspoon of brown sugar to make it sweet enough.

That's all folks! Have a good weekend :)

Listen to Your Fear

You know that fear you have, that maybe when you peek down that dim stairwell, someone will be lurking there in the dark?

Oh, yeah ... that just happened to me.

Yep, I was taking the stairs down to the basement at work - as you know, I like to walk an extra set of stairs when I get up to use the restroom, and I go to the basement because it's quiet and I can walk quickly without anyone getting in my way . As I started walking down, I glanced downward and saw movement - then someone's bare feet as they tried to hid themselves in the shadows of the stairwell. Um, no thanks. I quickly did an about-face and hustled back to my office where I promptly called the police. They had a 3-man search team in here in just a few minutes flat and found nothing - guess whomever it was got their shoes on quick and got out of there.

Ironically, we had just spent this morning in security training, so I knew exactly what to do: trust my instincts, get away, and call security.

I hate to think why someone might have been hiding down there. It's cold out, so it could certainly be someone trying to get warm. On the opposite extreme, it could be someone who knows a few women like walking down there and usually no one else is around. Probably not, but you never know.

Just want to say to all my female friends and readers - don't be ashamed to be cautious or report something that feels fishy. It does not mean we are unempowered or weak if we run away from something that feels dangerous. The officer today pointed out that our hunches and gut feelings are there to keep us safe - use them! Also, if you haven't, do this - you'll feel so much more empowered and strong, I promise.