Mmmm, Leftovers: WT Week 7

Okay, I still need to do weeks 5 and 6, but in the service of not falling further behind, here are this week's tasks. A link to Dr. Wende's list is here.

So (my rephrased versions of) the tasks are
1. To take stock of leftover items, which in my case are computer bags and backpacks, saris and other fancy dress items, bridesmaid dresses, etc.
2. To dispose of, mend, and store said items as necessary.
3. Make a master shopping list. That one's getting easier.

Here's my working list.

• new black mary jane type shoes
• new sandals
• new sneakers
• new undergarments
• a denim skirt
• 2-3 new v-neck plain t-shirts (and one old shirt needs to leave for each one that comes in)
• another pair of pants, either jeans or something khaki-esque
• a big bag for toting around all the stuff that I seem to think is essential
• a lightweight raincoat/trench coat

I've actually started to make some headway on the list. This weekend I bought almost exactly the mary janes I had in mind (and then some -- I got such a deal, and I'll post pictures later this week). I've identified the kind of sneaker I want, and today I think I saw the sandals I'd like. I wanted to go try them on, but my toenails need painting, and I didn't want to expose my chipped blue polish to the entire store (and the extraordinarily dapper salesman). Which is silly, I know. But I'll go back once I'm repainted.

4. The fourth task is a tricky one:

Name one positive thing you intend to do for your image/self-image/look and one negative thing you vow NOT to keep doing

I always find this kind of thing a little difficult. But here goes. Positive: I'm going to try not to leave the house without a little makeup. I tend to rush out of the house without it if I'm running behind (which I usually am), but I feel more pulled together with it, so there you go. Negative: this is actually related to something I've been working on, but not blogging about. Fat Acceptance/Health at Every Size. (You can read more about it at Kate Harding's excellent blog here). I am working very hard to become happier with my body at its current size, but I find that I have been holding very tenaciously to what Kate calls the "Fantasy of Being Thin."(excellent essay here). I'm not quite ready to let that fantasy go yet, but I'm also coming to realize that there's no reason to put my life on hold until I reach a certain pant size. So my negative thing that I am going to not keep doing is making excuses for not treating myself well because I am not thin. No "I shouldn't buy nice clothes/nice shoes/get a nice hair cut/manicure/pedicure/have any fun/feel good about myself until I lose a few pounds." I deserve to have these things or do these things now. Sometimes I get into this rut where I think "oh I'm so fat, it doesn't matter what I do to my appearance, so I won't even try." I don't expect that I'll be able to stop this 100%, but I hope that the next time I find myself using my size as an excuse for not living it up, I'll reject that negative thinking.