dressing thin (lyn)

When I buy a new piece of clothing, I save it for some good reason to wear it.   Sometimes, the  savings goes on too long.  For example, right now, sitting in my drawers/closets, are:

• a Karla Colletto bathing suit I bought last spring and haven’t worn
• a Postcard winter coat that I bought last April
• a Prada trench coat I bought in November 2006 (and then gained weight quickly after)
• a Jil Sander navy skirt and pant suit that I bought in March of 2006, just before I lost my job

Alexander is the exact opposite.  As soon as he gets something new, he wears it immediately.  Even if all he’s doing is sitting around the house and reading.

This past August, I bought a pair of washed black, size 28, Current Elliott “leggings” at Maxwells.  They are tight with a low rise. Today I wear them for the first time, and wonder what has taken me so long.  They are surprisingly comfortable and look great.

I remember how painful it was to get dressed when I was heavy.  No pant looked good on, so I wore mostly skirts.  And if I did wear pants, as soon as I got home, I changed into more comfortable elastic-waisted sweats. I had no go-to jeans.  They all looked bad.  But the most discouraging thing was to go through several sweaters and t-shirts and find that none of them looked good on.  Even some coats were un-wearable.  I couldn’t even buy new boots as they wouldn’t go over my calves. It was all very distressing.

As silly as it sounds, I love getting dressed now.  Everything fits.  Everything looks good.  And I feel so much younger.

This morning I wake up and put on my Current Elliott pants, short Ugg boots, and a white T, then head over to the local farmer’s market.  At 9am, it’s already busy.  I buy eggs, but hesitate as they are $4/dozen.  “These are fresh from the farm.  Trust me, once you try them you will never go back to store-bought.”  I’m sold.  I next buy some granny smith apples,  and a big bottle of fresh apple cider for Alexander along with a loaf of peasant bread for his grilled mozzarella sandwiches.  But then, while I’m at the vendor who sells the fresh breads, I can’t resist also buying a cinnamon twirl and an apple tart (one each for both me and Alexander).   I would have bought an apple pie, too, were it not for this conversation.


“I wish you had the nutritional content on the packaging.” (Note: These are homemade pies.)

“Well we do have the ingredients.”

“No, I need the nutritional content.”

“Why, do you count calories?”

“Not exactly; I count the points.  I’m on Weight Watchers.”
“Oh, I see.  Well, in that case, this is what I think you should do.  Don’t buy it.”

As I'm sitting with my coffee and cinnamon pastry, I need to remember how much I like these Current Elliott pants.  Either that, or remember how good the cinnamon buns were on the Cape and how horrid I looked after a summer of eating them. Here's proof.

Me in December 2008:

And me a few minutes ago: