no boots for me*

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A few days ago, I placed an online order at Ann Taylor for these:

While I do already have a pair of tall high-heel boots, they’re a few years old and starting to show their age. Also, I’m guessing with the original price of $228, these would have been much nicer. These are dressier, too, so I would still wear both until the old ones wear out completely.

They were marked down substantially and I applied a coupon to bring the final cost to $66 after tax. Amazing deal, right?

Well, it was too good to be true. I just got an email today telling me there was an “incident” with my order. The boots were sold out before my order was fulfilled.

Boo! Isn’t online shopping inventory updated in real time? I’ve definitely had things sell out before I could place my order on a few occasions.

The note said my order was shipped without the boots. I really hope that was a mistake from a standard form-letter response, because that would mean there is an empty box in the mail for me. At least I got free shipping.

They didn’t even offer a discount when they were “apologizing for the inconvenience” of screwing up my order. This has happened once before at Piperlime.com (again with the shoes!), and they sent a coupon.

I always have coupons, but it still would have been the nice thing to do.

I have quite the order history with them!

* Well, there should be some ankle boots in the mail from a recent Ann Taylor LOFT order. That one has already shipped, and I received no “order incident” messages, so I’m assuming the boots are in the box.

it’s snowing!

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snow!

Well, maybe just a dusting …

snow!

OK, fine. A single snow cloud sneezed on my back deck.

snow?

And in the hour or so it’s been since I took these photos, most of it has blown away.

That’s a good thing — tomorrow morning will be my first run of the season in truly cold weather. I’ll be much happier without snow on the ground!

a few of my favorite things

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I was inspired by Gretchen to share some of the items I’m loving right now. Also, I didn’t have anything else to blog about tonight!

sea mistSunsilk Sea Mist from the Waves of Envy line.

My hair is naturally curly, but the curls don’t behave well on their own. If left to air dry without any hair products, I’m left with a fluffy, frizzy mess.

For years I’ve been playing around with different products, and I’ve learned I need to use a gel/cream/mousse of some sort first, followed by a spray to keep the frizz away. The problem that always resulted, though, was crunchy or sticky hair.

The Sea Mist gives my curls definition, without the crunchy/sticky feeling. I do still like to put something else in first for some hold, but it can stand alone. And it’s cheap!

cheese crunchiesTrader Joe’s Baked Cheese Crunchies.

Uh oh — we’re almost out! Last time we went to Trader Joe’s, we picked up three bags. I know I ate the first two. My husband had this last bag in the basement (aka his playroom) so I had to go downstairs to retrieve it.

Me: I need to borrow the cheese crunchies.

Him: You can take them upstairs before I finish it.

Me: I’m not planning on eating them. I just need to take a photo.

(I couldn’t finish that sentence without laughing.)

laptopMy new laptop.
(Well, I bought it a month or so ago.)

Now I can blog / shop / attempt to make Google Reader stop saying I have 1000+ unread items while spending some quality time with the DVR!

new real personal record!

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As opposed to that fake one a couple weeks ago.

I ran a 10K on Sunday. It was a challenging course; one I’ve done many times before. In fact, just a week prior we did a test run.

The weekend before the race was a humid, rainy day. Not the best conditions to run a hilly course! But we did it, and I felt pretty good. We took a few walk breaks, and ended up finishing just over an hour.

My running buddy was thrilled since she hadn’t been that fast in a while. We planned to run the race together as well. Her 10K record for this course went back to 2004, 59:22. My best time for this course was in 2005, at 59:09.

My fastest 10K ever, also in 2005, was 57:36. I joked with her that we wouldn’t be trying to beat that one. We’d both have been quite happy under an hour.

I used to consistently finish 10Ks under the 60-minute mark. But the last time I did that was June 2006, at 59:54.

That was a month before I started running with orthotic inserts to try to help with knee and foot problems I’d been having.

I have been blaming the orthotics on my slightly slower pace, but I didn’t fully believe it. Maybe I was just getting slower as I got older?

Maybe it has just taken over two years for my body to adjust.

That recent 5K would probably have broken a record, had the course been long enough. I finished a 5-mile race earlier this month about 35 seconds slower than my fastest from 2005, but 4-5 minutes faster than my 5-mile runs since then.

And the 10K on Sunday?

57:26.

I beat my previous record by 10 seconds!

running skirt review: skirtsports “gymgirl”

running skirts

SkirtSports’ GymGirl is one of my favorites.

skirtsports gymgirl

This style would make a good starter skirt for any ladies worried about running in a skirt. They are a bit longer than most others I’ve tried, and have shorts underneath for a little more coverage. Before I tried this skirt, I was concerned about the attached shorts instead of briefs. My first skirt (which I suppose I should review one of these days) has shorts, and it just isn’t that comfortable.

SkirtSports version, however, felt fantastic from the first time I tried it on. The mesh shorts are breathable, soft and stretchy. The lighter colors are a bit sheer, so I wouldn’t recommend them for yoga, but I wouldn’t hesitate to do a downward dog in my black skirt (not pictured, since it’s pretty much the same. Just in all black).

I love this skirt so much I’ll even show you what’s underneath!

skirtsports under skirt

The shorts don’t ride up and are comfortable for long and short runs. During a 16-mile run I did have to pull them down a tiny bit. That’s understandable — on those really long runs you’re going to be adjusting just about anything you’re wearing!

My black skirt is a newer version with two pockets instead of one in the others. Both versions have a buttonhole on the side for your headphones so you can stow your mp3 player in the pocket. The black one also added some stretchy grip tape to the shorts, I guess to hold them in place better. I thought the others were fine without it!

skirtsports gymgirl snowflake

I love this Snowflake version (no longer available on their site, but Sierra Trading Post still has some). Yes, it is very shiny like it appears. It isn’t really skirt weather during the holiday season around here, but I’ll find a way. I’ve seen COOLMAX tights somewhere. I did run in it once last week when we had some mild weather. Even though I don’t believe in decorating for the holidays until after Thanksgiving, I allowed myself to dress festive. There might not be another opportunity to run with bare legs until the spring!

skirtsports bikegirlI’m going to sneak one more skirt here that isn’t a running skirt — it’s a bike skirt!

BikeGirl is basically the same skirt with a built-in chamois and silicone grips to hold the shorts in place. I used this a lot over the summer.

It’s comfortable and cute. One time when I was riding, a woman opened her car window to ask about it while stopped at a light!

Skirts are growing in popularity. In the past year since I’ve made the switch, I’m seeing more skirted women each race.

What are you waiting for? Join us!