In Denial

This is what being in denial about classes starting on Monday looks like, for me. I am thinking about my research, laundry, cleaning my house. I already sent my Monday classes' syllabi to the printing office yesterday, and I won't think about them anymore. Syllabuses are funny things. You can always make them better, find a more interesting reading, find some error, etc. But at some point, you just have to commit to your syllabus and move on. And it's not easy. Despite some frustrations I've had since returning and realizing that it's butt in gear time, I've resolved that I will not let the semester get me down. My life is too great in general to let a few class/administrative annoyances to distract me from what's good. Who's with me? (Insert job instead of semester if it's relevant).
I thought I'd share some pictures of Frankfurt, as part of my denial that I'm moving back into professor mode.

Rödelheim S-Bahn station

das Weingut

Castle I

Castle II (home of the robber knights, said our friend)

Rad at the Niederwalddenkmal

Honeymooners admiring Germania

Shirt: Rodarte for Target

Skirt: Muji
Pearls: via eBay
Shoes: Naturalizer

Greetings from Frankfurt

Frankfurt is an underrated city. I fell in love with Berlin back in 2005, but Berlin is like the crush I had on the dirty punky left wing boy with the eyebrow studs and stinky hoodie when I was 19. Frankfurt is like that less obviously exciting dude that you'd introduce to your mum, who is still bohemian and but can clean up nice and hold a job. Blokey and I have been enjoying our quasi-escape from New York/fake honeymoon. We return tomorrow, but first we'll squeeze in a few more experiences. (There was talk of running through wine country over at In Professorial Fashion this weekend. We may have spent 36 hazy hours in German wine country over the weekend, gawking at castles from the river and buying bottles and bottles of local wine for then an €7 a pop. I usually don't drink but I pretended to be as awesome as D-Med and A-Dubs for a day or two).
I don't have much to offer style-wise, except to say that being in Europe for a week has made me more comfortable with capsule style dressing. Our awesome hosts have well edited closets but still very well defined styles, and wearing the same thing multiple times in a week is no big deal. I didn't stick to my 6 items, but I have been overwearing the stripey shirt and black boots from Monday's outfit over and over again.
Finally, Blokey has learned some German (danke and Sheiße, which are very important), is a big fan of the windows, Turkish snack stands, the transit system, and the bread, but remains skeptical of the German shelf toilet. You really have to see it to believe it.
We arrive back in NY tomorrow morning, and start teaching soon. I highly recommend a European-just-before-the-semester-starts-getaway. We'll be waking up at 4 AM for the next week.
Bis später!

Conference bound

Conference bound, originally uploaded by Cohabitating_Closet.

Thanks for all the great comments, bloggy buddies! I am frankly happy that anyone reads my little thoughts on style in cyberspace, and always flattered. Blokey has happily agreed to joint custody of the vest. I noticed that it is a simple design and I am thinking about trying to make different versions, one for spring/summer as well (the corduroy was a bit warm yesterday).
I slept only a couple hours after a day of teaching because I have to catch a cab soon, to catch a plane to Chicago (again), so I can actively participate in one of the biggest professional conferences in our discipline (but not THE conference). Americans tend to dress up more formally at conferences than Europeans (I was the most overdressed person at a conference in London once), so I take a "European approach" to dressing for conferences. As in, I'll probably replace the sweater with a blazer, add taller shoes and call it "conference ready." I'm not there to get a job, and I'm confident enough in my abilities that I don't think I need to look like some kind of Washington bureaucrat to be taken seriously (although there are differing opinions on this. Some have counselled me to be formal at conferences because of my age/gender, but I usually still do my own Rad thing. I went uber conservative for the job interview, but since I do unconventional research, so why not?)
Oh, and by the way, the evaluation of my teaching went swimmingly. But then again, my colleague is very supportive and nice (he was my first year mentor). His only critique was that I talked too fast. I am aware of this. I am trying to slow it down.

Tunic/dress: H&M (2008)
Leggings: Target
Belt: Not Just Vintage
Cardigan: Loft
Flats: Ecco

Life as a draft

Black and blue (and grey), originally uploaded by Cohabitating_Closet.

In graduate school, my very famous advisor once told us that we need to approach scholarly writing understanding that "everything is a draft," and that things are never "done", they are must "due." This was great advice (and probably explains why my dissertation, publicly available, feels so "drafty.") Like many academics, I need writing motivation and there's nothing like a due date to get me to produce. A group of us in g-school adapted the motto that "life is a draft." There's no finality or need to get obsessed with perfectionism, because we're always learning, evolving, etc.
I thought that this "due date" might work with sewing. As you might remember, I made (drafted?) this 1958 quasi-shirt waist dress in magenta-ish silk/satin crepe (or taffeta? Or shantung?) and it needed fitting work. I did end up getting a bunch of fit books from the library but I was too impatient to fix the top, so I pulled out seams and decided to turn the skirt into a stand along piece, and fiddle with fitting on the top separately. I have a wedding to attend this weekend (Chicago suburbs, maybe I can meet Anne to go to the fair?), so I thought I'd wear it there. It gave me 10 days to create some kind of finished waist seam, and I wanted to add pockets and belt loops. But I should have consulted my new (in 1980 something) Reader's Digest complete guide to sewing instead of veering off into Rad-self-teaching category. Oops.
The invisible zipper and pockets were fine, but the belt loops- why didn't I study my own belt looped clothes. I ran out of steam last night, and decided to wear something else. I am not discouraged, but I think I've learned that sewing should not be treated like academic writing. Sometimes, things are just not done.

The loops are too big and crooked. I'll fix them next time.

(How I imagined the outfit, minus the emo cow hair. It still needs significant hemming)

I am still pretty happy with my progress. That invisible zipper kicked my butt but I ended up victorious in the end (maybe not exactly).
Hope that you have a lovely weekend!

Scarf: originally from discount store (MPLS), DIY into circle scarf
Scoop neck tee: Uniqlo
Black cardigan: Uniqlo
Skirt: DIY, Built by Wendy Pattern, fabric from Modeani
Socks: Target
Shoes: Aerosoles

This Flight Toinght

flight to Chicago, originally uploaded by Cohabitating_Closet.

Blokey and I are flying out to Chicago for a short weekend trip. Exciting things are scheduled to occur. I wanted to wear this red polyester secretary dress that I finally got back from the cleaners today to meet Anne and some other lovely ladies (and gents), but the weather is lousy here and there. Plus I still feel a bit sicky, so this is my version of sweat pants: jersey skirt from American Apparel (from a clothing swap) and a comfy tunic top. I like how without a belt it looks kind of like a dropped waist/flapper dress, but I added the belt so the boots would work better. We found this odd lounge area by the waiting area in the terminal. (Marine Air Terminal in LaGuardia, which only Delta flies out of, is a very odd, tiny and retro airport terminal). While I am not 100% recovered, I am very happy to be feeling better and I have a big smile for the photographer (I made him take a couple shots

Also, I am pleased and thrilled to have been given a blog award by the gorgeous and stylish The Waves of No Signposts in the Sea. I've blogged before, but not sought to be part of an active blogging community, so I am surprised (but happy) that someone with such a wonderful blog and more experience found my humble efforts noteworthy.

sweater tunic: Uniqlo
cognac belt: thrifted (Beacon's Closet),
scarf: vintage, Collecther
skirt: swap
purple tights: Target
boots: Born, via Ebay

Back to the vitamin water, white bread, and airport naps. Happy Weekend!

Happy Fat Tuesday!

Cohabitating Closet is heading to New Orleans for a nerd-tastic professional conference in the wee hours of Fat Tuesday. (If I complain about my job, please remind me about the many perks, including the snow days and relative wardrobe flexibility). I'm not a particularly religious person, but I do like traditions and any conventions in which people act like crazies. I will try to take photos of the Bourbon St. fashions (as well as my "profesh" wear) while I am there. I am also deeply interested in getting crawfish. I went to Mississippi on one of the service spring breaks back in college and had a crawdad bender.

Last year, a coworker from Louisiana brought in a King Cake. I got the slice with the baby. Lucky me:

festiveness amidst rather unfortunate fake wood tables

The colors of Mardi Gras are Purple, Green, and Gold. As a self-professed color phobic (what, grey isn't a color?), I hope to get some inspiration while I am in the Big Easy. It's my first trip. Wish me luck!