print a book from digital photos

My photos aren't high quality enough to be printed, but this service looks pretty cool.

can't find anything at the drug store

The organization baffles me. I walked all around 2 stores looking for wet tissues, and couldn't find them in either. Oh well, it's not exactly a pressing need.

I'm a little appalled at how long my shopping list is, and how little is actual necessities, like daily sustenance. In fact, none of it is necessities.

Somewhere, a capitalist is laughing at me.

What a fascinating world we live in.

limiting purchases

I came up with a long shopping list of things, but I wonder how much of it I really need. It occurred to me that my dress shoes aren't quite the shape which would benefit from shoe trees, since the leather over the toes and front of the foot is pretty horizontal. So I can cross that off my shopping list.

I think leather cleaner, conditioner, and waterproofer would still be beneficial, and I can use those on all my leather shoes. That's 3 pairs of shoes with me.

Rationalization is a powerful thing.

I give up on making charcoal water filters by hand. I need an activated carbon/charcoal, which looks a little difficult to obtain. According to Consumer Reports, Brita is 400% as expensive as Innova but only 5% more effective. It's 300% as expensive as Glacier Pure but only 10% more effective. Time for a Chinese factory startup? Let's make some higher quality activated charcoal and package it nicely, and charge less!


I strolled into work with a white streak of sunblock under my
eye, and clean hair that just looked bad. A pity, because my head was feeling very refreshed. I have to look in the mirror before I go to work.

resoled, shoe trees

I got my shoes reheeled for the first time ever. 1890yen. One web site recommended attaching a thin sole - it apparently doubles the life of the shoe. Aside from the heel, the sole of my shoe is holding up very well though, so I don't think I need it.

I'm now shopping for a set of shoe trees (I only have one pair of shoes that might actually benefit from it), leather cleaner, leather conditioner, and waterproofer. I have a bottle somewhere in MD or CA, but I won't be finding it anytime soon.

I bet my mother never conditioned her leather couch. Funny how nice things require maintenance. I don't think she ever polished the wood furniture either. I polished it once, but after 20 years of no care, I don't know how much of a difference it makes.

shoes

I was investigating proper leather shoe care, and eventually started looking at Franco Sarto shoes. I found these sandals which look really cute. Of course, I would want to get the black sandals, and of course, I don't need black sandals. I was actually looking for another pair of dress shoes for work, but couldn't find any which would be wearable year-round and look good with skirts. Not that I wear skirts often, but I've only got sandals to go with my skirts at the moment, which doesn't work so well in the winter. I could just buy another pair of the same shoes I have, but on one hand, that's boring. On the other hand, they're really comfortable. Very iffy. I'll have to shop around. No real hurry though. But those 'Dynamo' sandals I linked above are really cute. The heel might be 2 inches and under. Hard to tell, although I have a feeling that they're 2 3/4". Oh well. 2 inches is the highest I'm willing to go.

frivolity

It'd be pretty cool to look this good.

E!online has some pretty interesting celebrity photos in their fashion police feature. Kind of fascinating how much money you can spend to look bad.

I bought a "Makeup Manual" from the bookstore today. It's in Japanese but has many pictures. It's kind of interesting.

shaving, fixing my suit

I just noticed that my favorite suit (from Ann Taylor, mentioned in my last post) has come apart slightly at one of the sleeve hems. I'll have to get it mended. I need to find a good seamstress/tailor, as I can't sew straight. I can get my pants and skirts altered if they do a good job. I think there was a shop in Shimokitazawa, but I don't know their hours.

Has anyone used that Australian product Nads? I've seen the infomercials, but being wary of infomercials, I'm only partially convinced that the product works. Laf, I shouldn't be convinced at all, since it is an infomercial. Anyway, if you've tried it, let me know. I've decided that getting cut by my shaver sucks and I'm never going to risk it again. Also, daily maintenance is impossible, but once every 6 weeks is doable. So waxing/sugaring/etc. are all open for consideration. Bleach would work but I'd rather stay away from strong chemicals. Don't need to increase the junk going into my drinking water.

Ooh, I love the web. I found a forum discussing Nads. Rather funny quote:

I'm not fond of regular wax. Sugaring I like, generally. Though I've given up using it on my legs because I'm not flexible enough, and I'm on the verge of ditching my underarms because *GEEZ*, the pain... but it works well elsewhere. ;) Sugaring cleans up fast and generally works well.

But yeah, it's definitely overpriced. And I'm not entirely sure how they got away with claiming that the hair eventually wouldn't come back... I still haven't ever met anyone for whom that was true.

Totally sympathize regarding the pain. Haha. I never even thought of waxing my underarms. Hrm.. nope, still can't conceive of it.

Sounds like waxing is the cheapest solution. Doubt I can find salons which can do sugaring or threading here. But maybe I can.

ann taylor, clothes

I love this silk shirt I got from Ann Taylor. Probably worth the $70.

Too bad the $50 cotton shirt I got from there hasn't been holding up so well - the dye faded from a spot on the collar, and it's impossible to iron smooth. The black pants turned out too be too long, and I don't like unlined dress pants that much. Next time I'll stick to lined pants.

Still, the black pinstriped suit I got is brilliant - lined, comfortable and fits perfectly. I wear the jeans the time. Overall, I like Ann Taylor.

My Benetton suit has its good points and bad points. Bad points being that the waist is too big for me, although it fits elsewhere. I need to get the waist altered. Also, the skirt got caught on something and a thread was pulled out, which I'm not sure how to fix. I'll have to check ehow. The material is great, though, and I don't have to worry about staining it.

My A.V.V. suit fits wonderfully and is lovely for the summer, but the color is a light beige which is really easy to mark up. I'll stick to dark colors from now on. It was quite a bargain though - my cheapest suit at $130 or so total.

My Franco Sarto loafers are great dress shoes. I walk around a lot all day and they're always comfortable. Sure, my New Balance sneakers are more comfortable, but I can't really wear them with a suit. I need some waterproof dress shoes for the rainy season though.

I love buying undershirts from Uniqlo. They have these nice fast-drying v-necked shirts for 1000 yen (about $10). I think I'll go buy another one. This one is really comfortable. Hard to beat! They fit nicely and are well made. Old Navy is such a joke.