So December ended up being insane. I had two shoots and one of them was pretty big but I didn't mind all of the work that went into it because it was a rare opportunity to be really creative and I got to work with some friends I hadn't seen in a really long time and I love love love when I get to do wardrobe styling. We finished up right before Christmas so I was grateful Brett and I did most of our Christmas shopping early. And by that I mean most of it was done by him and most of it was done online. It's how we do.
The only dumb thing about the shoot was that I didn't listen to the very kind and wise people who told me I could go ahead and do returns after the Holidays. Instead I chose to go up to Fashion Place mall on New Years Eve and do a few returns. As one will do on a major Holiday, run to Salt Lake for a quick errand. So here's me at H&M along with you, probably, because I'm certain that the entire state of Utah was there buying something to wear for the occasion. I am in line with three...no exaggeration...three huge bags of returns from H&M and two from Express. I'm one thousand degrees Fahrenheit in my hat and puffer coat while waiting in line and my arms are tired from the load, so I set down the Express bags and my hat and coat and scoot them along with my foot as the line moves. It's like a little mobile camp site. It takes three years to get to the register. I pull everything out and create a huge stack on the counter and the shop girl takes a deep breath before diving in. I can just feel the hatred searing at me from everyone in my line. I can feel daggers being glared at my neck. So I turn and apologize. There are two girls behind me that I am instantly afraid of. They are not smiling and have many tattoos and piercings. They do not like to be cheerful. They find happy annoying. They hate blonde Utah-mom me and everything I stand for I just know it.
About 20 minutes in I turn and apologize again. I see that the girl on the right has a tank top on a hangar. 'A' tank top. One. And she's in line behind moi, super shopper of the year. So I tell her how bad I feel and she does not crack a smile and neither does her friend but they do say something along the lines of, "It's Ok." I immediately feel worse. About another ten minutes pass and I think of this blog. I realize this could be a good opportunity to do something nice so I get out my planner and I pass her a ten spot. I tell her that the absolute LEAST I can do is pick up the tab for her tank top. She cracks a smile. (Yessss.) She says, "You really don't have to do that." But she is smiling. And I say, "I know but I really want to," and then being the dork I am I say, "Meeeeeeeery Chriiiiisssstmas!" and everyone is immediately embarrassed for me so I turn back around hoping we can all pretend that didn't just happen. Another twenty minutes pass and I turn to the people in the line at the register to my right. I ask if they'd be alright with letting the trapped girls go ahead of them since they have one measly item and have been waiting for a reeeeealy long time. They cheerfully agree and seem super nice about it. Once they move over, the girl says that I can have my ten back since they aren't stuck behind me and I don't have to buy her tank top out of guilt anymore. And for a second I consider taking it back. But I say that I want them to keep it and that they earned it and I mean it. I really want this girl in this moment to know that I am glad that they were cool. I am glad they are going to go out that night having had something nice happen to them to kick off their New Year and I am glad that when she wears her tank maybe she'll think about the nice lady who kicked in to help pay for it. I like that thought.
This is around the time when I suddenly feel worse than before because behind me now in line is a very very beautiful and very very pregnant red-head who is waiting WITH HER TODDLER SON. I'm that person. There is a special place in hell for me. I profusely apologize. I focus. I can only do my best to try and help the cashier move through my returns as quickly as possible. I can finally see the light at the end of this return tunnel. When I turn back around to check in with her I see that she is gone and I feel relieved because I assume that someone must have taken pity on her and let her go before them. Now behind me are a couple of happy-go-lucky guys who are not in any kind of a rush. We finally wrap it up and I thank the cashier for all her hard work and thank the guys behind me for being patient and decide that it would be selfish to try and do any more returns. I am about to call it quits but Express is empty so I know I won't ruin any one else's night by doing my huge return. Unless you count the store manager who's sales totals I jacked by doing a return at his store with merchandise I bought downtown. But let's not.
I count that as my first kind deed of 2013. It wasn't technically 2013 but it took place the first week of the New Year so it counts, yeah? I also helped my dear friend Carina. Many of you know her as @Jet_set. I found out via Instagram that she had had surgery and since she had been so kind as to bring me a big Oreo shake when I was in the ICU I knew I had to return the favor somehow. So I brought over some stew and rolls. I also had a Director friend you may know from his Liken movies, Dennis Agle, ask if his pug obsessed daughter could come visit Nigel and Rosie. I was kind of reticent, we all had not been feeling well, the house was a mess, the dogs stunk. I thought of making excuses, but I thought of this blog and put my excuses aside. Dennis had also been really cool to me when I was in the ICU and had brought over to our house a collection of every movie he had ever made. Seriously, how cool is that? So I adjusted my attitude and decided to can all the negativity. His daughter Alex came over with a friend and is, without hyperbole, the cutest 20 year old on this entire planet. She could have her own show on Nickelodeon, she's that level of cute. And it was so fun to just have people come and snuggle the pugs and love and appreciate them and listen to my stories about them. It brightened my whole day and I was so glad she came over. It made me really miss pop-ins.
I also did something that may seem small, but for me was huge, because I did a favor for my Mom. You see, I try not to as often as possible. She is always getting other people to do her work for her and it has always made me uncomfortable. She would call my husband, when I was in my first marriage, and ask him to come put her luggage in her car. He'd drive across town to pick up her suitcase and put it in her friggin trunk. When she had a friend of hers come and clean our house it made me feel like she was putting on airs and I would always help them clean. It actually ended up being an amazing thing since Niki and I ended up building a good relationship and shared a lot of deep things while doing dishes together. Anyway, my mother doesn't really ask for favors as much as she tells you what you're going to do and so when she said, "Go home and search for some houses for me on the Internet." I said, "Sure. And if you also get on and search as well then we can cover more ground. You know, if we split up." Later that night I was in bed and about to go to sleep and I remembered that I told her I would help her. And I thought of this blog and so I got out my iPad and I searched until 12:30am and wrote down all of the MLS numbers. The next day we went and looked at a house we both just loved. She ended up renting the house she's originally wanted for months now, so it was all for nothing. But...but I did it and I feel so much better about keeping my word and not flaking out.
Speaking of not flaking out I spent one of my days off sewing for Kids on the Move so I have not forgotten about them for one second. I still have a few more days of sewing ahead of me before that project is complete and I have a day off tomorrow so I have some sewing planned. I can't wait to post some pics of that service project once it's done. I'm hoping it will be as cute as I think it will be. I'm also hoping I can figure out a way to download pics onto here now that our computer has crashed...
Hmmmm.
The only dumb thing about the shoot was that I didn't listen to the very kind and wise people who told me I could go ahead and do returns after the Holidays. Instead I chose to go up to Fashion Place mall on New Years Eve and do a few returns. As one will do on a major Holiday, run to Salt Lake for a quick errand. So here's me at H&M along with you, probably, because I'm certain that the entire state of Utah was there buying something to wear for the occasion. I am in line with three...no exaggeration...three huge bags of returns from H&M and two from Express. I'm one thousand degrees Fahrenheit in my hat and puffer coat while waiting in line and my arms are tired from the load, so I set down the Express bags and my hat and coat and scoot them along with my foot as the line moves. It's like a little mobile camp site. It takes three years to get to the register. I pull everything out and create a huge stack on the counter and the shop girl takes a deep breath before diving in. I can just feel the hatred searing at me from everyone in my line. I can feel daggers being glared at my neck. So I turn and apologize. There are two girls behind me that I am instantly afraid of. They are not smiling and have many tattoos and piercings. They do not like to be cheerful. They find happy annoying. They hate blonde Utah-mom me and everything I stand for I just know it.
About 20 minutes in I turn and apologize again. I see that the girl on the right has a tank top on a hangar. 'A' tank top. One. And she's in line behind moi, super shopper of the year. So I tell her how bad I feel and she does not crack a smile and neither does her friend but they do say something along the lines of, "It's Ok." I immediately feel worse. About another ten minutes pass and I think of this blog. I realize this could be a good opportunity to do something nice so I get out my planner and I pass her a ten spot. I tell her that the absolute LEAST I can do is pick up the tab for her tank top. She cracks a smile. (Yessss.) She says, "You really don't have to do that." But she is smiling. And I say, "I know but I really want to," and then being the dork I am I say, "Meeeeeeeery Chriiiiisssstmas!" and everyone is immediately embarrassed for me so I turn back around hoping we can all pretend that didn't just happen. Another twenty minutes pass and I turn to the people in the line at the register to my right. I ask if they'd be alright with letting the trapped girls go ahead of them since they have one measly item and have been waiting for a reeeeealy long time. They cheerfully agree and seem super nice about it. Once they move over, the girl says that I can have my ten back since they aren't stuck behind me and I don't have to buy her tank top out of guilt anymore. And for a second I consider taking it back. But I say that I want them to keep it and that they earned it and I mean it. I really want this girl in this moment to know that I am glad that they were cool. I am glad they are going to go out that night having had something nice happen to them to kick off their New Year and I am glad that when she wears her tank maybe she'll think about the nice lady who kicked in to help pay for it. I like that thought.
This is around the time when I suddenly feel worse than before because behind me now in line is a very very beautiful and very very pregnant red-head who is waiting WITH HER TODDLER SON. I'm that person. There is a special place in hell for me. I profusely apologize. I focus. I can only do my best to try and help the cashier move through my returns as quickly as possible. I can finally see the light at the end of this return tunnel. When I turn back around to check in with her I see that she is gone and I feel relieved because I assume that someone must have taken pity on her and let her go before them. Now behind me are a couple of happy-go-lucky guys who are not in any kind of a rush. We finally wrap it up and I thank the cashier for all her hard work and thank the guys behind me for being patient and decide that it would be selfish to try and do any more returns. I am about to call it quits but Express is empty so I know I won't ruin any one else's night by doing my huge return. Unless you count the store manager who's sales totals I jacked by doing a return at his store with merchandise I bought downtown. But let's not.
I count that as my first kind deed of 2013. It wasn't technically 2013 but it took place the first week of the New Year so it counts, yeah? I also helped my dear friend Carina. Many of you know her as @Jet_set. I found out via Instagram that she had had surgery and since she had been so kind as to bring me a big Oreo shake when I was in the ICU I knew I had to return the favor somehow. So I brought over some stew and rolls. I also had a Director friend you may know from his Liken movies, Dennis Agle, ask if his pug obsessed daughter could come visit Nigel and Rosie. I was kind of reticent, we all had not been feeling well, the house was a mess, the dogs stunk. I thought of making excuses, but I thought of this blog and put my excuses aside. Dennis had also been really cool to me when I was in the ICU and had brought over to our house a collection of every movie he had ever made. Seriously, how cool is that? So I adjusted my attitude and decided to can all the negativity. His daughter Alex came over with a friend and is, without hyperbole, the cutest 20 year old on this entire planet. She could have her own show on Nickelodeon, she's that level of cute. And it was so fun to just have people come and snuggle the pugs and love and appreciate them and listen to my stories about them. It brightened my whole day and I was so glad she came over. It made me really miss pop-ins.
I also did something that may seem small, but for me was huge, because I did a favor for my Mom. You see, I try not to as often as possible. She is always getting other people to do her work for her and it has always made me uncomfortable. She would call my husband, when I was in my first marriage, and ask him to come put her luggage in her car. He'd drive across town to pick up her suitcase and put it in her friggin trunk. When she had a friend of hers come and clean our house it made me feel like she was putting on airs and I would always help them clean. It actually ended up being an amazing thing since Niki and I ended up building a good relationship and shared a lot of deep things while doing dishes together. Anyway, my mother doesn't really ask for favors as much as she tells you what you're going to do and so when she said, "Go home and search for some houses for me on the Internet." I said, "Sure. And if you also get on and search as well then we can cover more ground. You know, if we split up." Later that night I was in bed and about to go to sleep and I remembered that I told her I would help her. And I thought of this blog and so I got out my iPad and I searched until 12:30am and wrote down all of the MLS numbers. The next day we went and looked at a house we both just loved. She ended up renting the house she's originally wanted for months now, so it was all for nothing. But...but I did it and I feel so much better about keeping my word and not flaking out.
Speaking of not flaking out I spent one of my days off sewing for Kids on the Move so I have not forgotten about them for one second. I still have a few more days of sewing ahead of me before that project is complete and I have a day off tomorrow so I have some sewing planned. I can't wait to post some pics of that service project once it's done. I'm hoping it will be as cute as I think it will be. I'm also hoping I can figure out a way to download pics onto here now that our computer has crashed...
Hmmmm.
