Accomplishing Escapism

Lately it feels like I'm tired all of the time.  Last weekend, I woke up early, went to the gym, did some errands, and sat on the couch for a moment... And then slept for, like, six hours.  I'm always getting sleepy at work, and I've really been ready for bed tonight since about, oh, nine p.m.  I really, really hope I'm not getting sick, because being sick for the holidays is AWFUL.

I finished my Christmas shopping today, so I feel both in debt and accomplished.  A new tea store opened in the big mall in my area; it is called Teavana and it is FABULOUS.  They had seven or eight teas brewing that you could try, and they were all delicious - they stock so many teas they hand you a little catalog while you wait in line to look at all their flavors.  They'll even blend you stuff if you're looking for a really particular flavor.  They're a bit expensive for every day purchasing, but I'd definitely go back for more exciting teas.

I was also pleased to learn that Pixar has collected all of their animated shorts into one DVD.  I'm quite fond of the shorts they play before their films, especially For the Birds (I can't seem to remember which film it played in front of, but Wikipedia is telling me it was Monsters, Inc.).

Since I moved back from Iowa, the mattress I was sleeping on has occupied the garage.  It is a lovely, serviceable double that I've slept on for most of the past eight years or so, and I was thrilled when my mother said I could take it to school with me.  Of course, when I did, my parents promptly bought a queen sized bedframe and mattress to put in my room, so that people could continue to use it as a guest room.  This is the bed I've been sleeping on since I got home, since I obviously can't have two mattresses in one room.

I am in love with this bed.

It's squishy but not uncomfortably so, it's big, it's wonderful, I sleep soundly on it.  Now that I'm moving out in a couple of weeks, I'd started resigning myself to transferring back to the double and readjusting my sleep habits accordingly, and frankly it was making me sad to know I wouldn't get to sleep on this mattress anymore.

But yesterday I received wonderful news: my parents sold the beach house they owned part of!  And we get to bring back all the furniture we had there!  And by the way, Martha, do you want the queen mattress up there?  No?  Well, how about the one in your room now, and we'll just replace that one with the beach house mattress?

So I'm incredibly pleased, even though the room I'm moving into is not big and the mattress will likely take up 90% of my floor space.  I love this bed and I get to keep it.

Continuing to enjoy Netflix.  I watched Cthulhu the other day (made recently, not the old black and white one or the one from the eighties) and I have mixed feelings about it.  It is very Lovecraftian, and it has a decidedly amateurish feel to the camerawork, which I think might actually be beneficial to the effect.  I dunno.  It's short, so at least if you don't like it, it doesn't last very long.

Priceless, on the other hand, is lovely and charming and satisfying.  A very solid French romance with Audrey Tautou, who I think is gorgeous.

IKEA tomorrow, for to buy shelving.  I love buying housewares.

 I'm in California visiting with my lovely friend Gina, and we spent today shopping.  Only apparently California malls don't actually contain real stores - they have all been replaced with designer stores that charge more for a dress than I make in a month.

How is it that we, as a people (because God knows I do this too), have decided that it's not only acceptable but desirable to spend ludicrous amounts of money on clothing, simply because of the name on the label?  It's appalling that, on waltzing into, say, the Armani Exchange, one can find a shirt on sale for $200, and call it a great deal.  $200 for a shirt is not a great deal.  It is highway robbery, only worse because we submit to it with our eyes open our wallets at the ready.  And I don't want to hear about how designer clothes are so much more with the quality than, oh, a shirt I'd get at Old Navy.  A ribbed tank top is a ribbed tank top, whether you're paying $7 for it at Old Navy or $50 for it at Abercrombie & Fitch.

I don't know why this bugs me so much.  I'm tired of looking at beautiful things I can't afford just because someone, somewhere is loose enough with their money that they decided $1500 was a fair price for a babydoll dress.  If enough people decided enough was enough, that we would no longer shell out God knows how much money for clothes, maybe the hierarchy of labels would even out.  Or maybe not.  I dunno.

I did score some pretty awesome underwear at the Victoria's Secret sale.  Used my Angel card for the first time, too.  Wasn't a bad day, all in all.