I wasn't going to apply for a press credential for this year's California Women's Conference... even though the 2008 event was one of the most inspirational gatherings I've ever attended.
But my ongoing issues with health and home have made me even flakier this year than usual. I had decided to stop RSVPing "yes"... because there's a high likelihood that I will cancel at the last minute.
But then the folks at Lean Cuisine asked me if I would be interested in attending the Conference as their guest. I told them I would love to -- but also warned that there was a possibility that I'd be going to the hospital this week instead.
Fortunately, my UFE is happening next Wednesday... so I was free to get out and party tonight!
But then came a new dilemma: What should I wear?
I know it's ironic to be going to a women's conference that's all about empowering and breaking out of the box... and the one thing I'm concerned with is wardrobe...so I'm contradictory that way.
You may recall that I had to throw out my entire wardrobe 18 months ago after losing 56 pounds. I spent a lot of time shopping for conference clothes that fit before attending BlogHer and the Democratic National Convention... items that have served me well for the last year.
But I only purchased enough of this stuff to last me a couple of days... and everyone has seen me wear them. Multiple times.
So I rationalized that this was a perfect excuse reason to get a little retail therapy in before I go into the hospital. I hightailed it down to Westfield Topanga Plaza, which has everything from Target and Sears to Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus.
I intended to pick up a few things at Target... but somehow, I found myself at Nordstrom, which is one of the few department stores where you have sales people who actually try to sell stuff to you.
"But those are VERY casual," she sniffed, pointing to the black jeans and tunic-y sweater I'd pulled off the rack, which are about five steps above my usual uniform of blue jeans and t-shirts. I dunno. Maybe business casual has gone upscale since I was last in the workforce... but this was as formal as I wanted to go.
The saleswoman suggested I try on a pair of knit black skinny jeans. They fit... but even after losing all that weight, I have short, heavy legs... and something that form-fitting just doesn't do it for me. I ended up with a nice pair of black cords, a pretty lace blouse and the sweater I'd picked out for myself in the first place.
Maybe I would have found something as nice at Target... but after a year of belt-pulling and home renovation angst, it felt really nice to pretend I didn't care and enjoy the Nordstrom experience.
I'm glad I did, because some of the other bloggers attending the conference with me are like, fashionistas and beauty experts: Esther Tseng of e*starLA.com, Bren Lee Gomez of Hello! Pretty, Tara Settembre and Adri Butler, who highlights fashions at Things I Love Almost as Much as You.
So last night, I decided to do something about my grubby nails. I got out the file and the cuticle remover and then my daughter convinced me to borrow some of her nail polish. THAT was a huge mistake, as the stuff chipped almost as soon as I started typing this morning. So just now, I removed it all... only to discover that my fingers were turning GREEN.
The culprit was the non-acetone, protein enriched polish remover my daughter had told me "sucked." Now I know why: the remover residue on my fingers was taking the ink off the cotton ball packaging... so the more I tried to clean, the greener my fingers became. No wonder I don't bother with manicures (until I'm faced with a social situation where I'm afraid I'll make a bad impression).
Thank goodness I also get to hang out with some people who already accept me as I am: Jill, Marsha and Elizabeth of Silicon Valley and Los Angeles Moms Blog (where I'll be posting most of my reports of the conference).
UPDATE: I have since met the other bloggers and everyone's really, really nice. The opening session offered inspiration from Jillian Michaels and Paula Deen (yes, and both were REALLY inspiring). It's off to a good start.
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