Sources:
All remixed:

• Necklace – World Market
• Fuschia top – BR Outlet
• Brown woven belt – F21
• Skinnies – thrifted
• Bangle – Big Lots
• Boots – Dillards
• Gray sweater – Merona, thrifted

Endnotes:

If gray and yellow is worthy of its own term – grellow - then I think gray and fuschia likewise deserves its own neologism – gruschia? I love how the gray and the fuschia play off each other, and to finish the look, I added bits of brown. My first instinct would have been to wear black accessories with gray, but I think the brown is less expected and more interesting. After I got dressed, I realized that I had unintentionally recreated this look of E’s from last winter. Thanks for the subconscious inspiration, E!

10 November 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

As for NaNoWriMo, it’s definitely getting hard. This week, I’ve made quite a bit of progress in my research and my running, which is wonderful, but it’s left me pretty tired and uninspired at the end of the day with little creative juices for my novel. Last night, in an attempt to squeeze out just one scene, I decided to write the “reunion” part between my two main character. This is the best I could do:

Casey walked in the door and immediately spotted Sam in the back of the coffee shop. He was sitting in their usual seats, two mugs of coffee placed on the table in front of him, looking nervous and sheepish and delighted all at once.
“I wasn’t sure you’d come” he said.
“Of course I’d come.”
“Why of course? But thanks. I appreciate it. You look great.”
“Thanks, you do too.”
“This dialogue sucks.”
“Yes, I know, I can’t believe she can’t think of anything else to have us say while we’re having this all important decisive final meeting.”
“My thoughts precisely, let’s get out of hear and have this conversation in private.”
“Sounds good to me.”

So yeah, I’m definitely at the part where I feel like I’ve bitten off more than I can chew. S.

10 November 2009 , originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

All remixed except mohair sweater wrap:

• Mohair sweater wrap – Blue Onion Marketplace
• Purple tank – BR Outlet
• Maroon long sleeved top – a.n.a., thrifted
• Jeans – Old Navy Flirt jean
• Gray wedges – Report, via Solestruck.com
• Necklace - Anthropologie

Endnotes:

This week is coming to a close and I’m almost 10,000 words into a novel I had no conception of writing until about a week ago. As always, I’ve found the online blogger community of fellow writers to be extremely supportive and encouraging and it has made being part of this process so much fun. Andrea has just posted a fabulous round-up of NaNoWriMo related posts from all the different bloggers participating this year and taking part in the A Cat of Impossible Colour NaNoWriMo support group.

Anthropologie Necklace, originally uploaded by academichic.

Yesterday I wanted a really comfortable and cozy outfit since I was spending the majority of the day at home in front of a computer. I pulled out the mohair version of this Wonder Wrap that we received from Blue Onion Marketplace. I think I like the mohair one even more, it’s very soft and cozy and just like wearing a blanket without looking like it. I tied it similarly to how I’d tied the gray jersey one before and it was great for sitting at my computer with my mug of tea and writing away. (I later wore this to a class, and it was great for sitting in a chilly lecture hall and taking notes as well.)  Thanks, Blue Onion Marketplace, for my NaNoWriMoWrap! (I know, I need to lay of the NaNoWriMoNeologisms, but it’s just so much fun…). S.

5 November 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

All remixed:

• Brown patterned dress – Banana Republic
• Gray tank – Filene’s basement
• Blue cardi - H&M
• Blue scarf – TJMaxx
• Brown woven belt – F21
• Black tights – grocery store
• Boots – Dillards
• Earrings – gift from the As

Endnotes:

Yesterday’s outfit turned out to be a pretty perfect NaNoWriMo one, although my main thought when putting it together was that I hadn’t worn blue and brown together in a while and that needed remedying. Blue and brown is a wonderful color combination and seems to work in any season, don’t you think?

Brown and Blues, originally uploaded by academichic.

After mixing some blues with a good dose of brown, throwing a bit of gray in for good measure, and finishing with a pop of red in the earrings, I was set to start writing for the day.

We all know that boots and a scarf are a perfect cold-day remedy, but I’m now adding a jersey dress to that list as well. I think my perfect writing uniform for a cool fall day (if we’re taking pajamas off the list here) would include a comfortable pair of boots, a cozy pashmina scarf, and a soft pajama-ish textured jersey dress. Thus equipped, I was able to hit my day’s word count and spare time for some pesky dissertation work. Thanks, outfit!

Earrings detail, originally uploaded by academichic.

And on a related note, I’ve recently come across this wonderful post by writer Natalie Whipple on Tips for First Drafting. If you’re NaNoing along, you might also find it useful. I find her entire blog, Between Fact and Fiction, to be extremely charming and full of lovely advice and insights into the craft of writing. So if writing’s your thing, be sure to check it out! S.

Sources:
All remixed:

• Black dress – Target
• Black belt – Banana Republic
• Silver clutch – Charlotte Russe, thrifted
• Black tights – Grocery store
• Gray wedges – Report “Calico”, via Solestruck.com
• Ripple shawl – Blue Onion Marketplace
• Earrings – side walk sale, my wedding earrings

Endnotes:

So it doesn’t quite have the same ring as Superbowl Sunday or Ice Cream Sundae, but it does describe what I did yesterday and it is as exciting to me as football and ice cream might be to others.

We’re officially off! National Novel Writing Month began yesterday and if you’re participating then you’re likely sharing my nervousness and excitement as you begin your novel. Thank you to the lovely Andrea for putting a little NaNo support group together and encouraging everyone to share their first paragraph on her post. I’d also love to hear from any of you who are partaking in this –  I invite you to NaNoWriMo obsess away in the comments section of this post! (And if you want to add me to your writing buddies, my NaNoWriMo name is Academic Abandon.)

Wedding Earrings, originally uploaded by academichic.

As for my outfit yesterday, I did not wear this to write but I did wear this to the Opera after my required word count was met. One of the things I love about being in Germany is being able to get 6 Euro tickets to attend the Opera! No joke, attending the Opera here can be cheaper than going out for two beers and by far more chic!

I told you I’d likely keep wearing this same black dress over and over, and so I did. This time around I went for a more dramatic effect with black tights, a black velvet belt, and a POP of color (that’s how loud it was) with this red-orange ripple scarf from Blue Onion Marketplace. Sorry about the poor image quality, but I snapped this just on my way out and the lighting in my room is horrible. So you can just pretend to be seeing this outfit with this background and then you get the idea. How else would you style this LBD other than with a pashmina scarf and a belt? S.

Ripple Shawl detail, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

Black cropped jacket – thrifted, remixed
Striped top – J.Crew, remixed
Black skirt – ON, thrifted, remixed
Pink tights – my mom’s from the 80s
Boots – Banana Republic, remixed

Endnotes:
This week, while perusing the blogosphere, I found out about NaNoWriMo on Madame Owl’s site. For those of you who, like me, have never heard of this before, it’s National Novel Writing Month. Except that it’s quite international and participants from all over the world join the fun (or madness – depending on how you look at it). The goal is to write a 50,000 word novel in one month.

Well, as if writing a dissertation wasn’t enough, I decided rather impulsively (this is a pattern for me) to sign myself up! But I have good (to me) reasons for this:

As an academic, I am NEVER told: “Make no mistake: You will be writing a lot of crap. And that’s a good thing.” This from the official NaNoWriMo website. Also from the project’s ‘rules’: “Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It’s all about quantity, not quality.”

I have been shamelessly seduced by the idea of writing something for the sake of quantity and mass output at a time in my life when every word is weighed and scrutinized and quality and succinct writing is key. (Here I’m referring to my dissertation proposal, over which I have been laboring since this summer, and which can be described as the antithesis to the NaNoWriMo project).

I have also decided to embark on this writing marathon, because I liked what writer and blogger Andrea wrote about this process: “One of Nanowrimo’s many benefits is that it prepares you for a steady, productive writing life, and reinforces the fact that doing some writing every day will eventually produce a novel.” I like to think that this steady daily writing will also reinforce the fact that someday I will produce a dissertation.

I am also curious to see how simultaneously working on a work of fiction and one of fact, research, and theory will influence either writing process and whether I can come out sane at the end of the month. Who knows? Maybe I’ll discover a hidden passion or I will be damn glad to return to “just” my dissertation when November is over. And whatever happens, no one has to see this “novel” but myself, there is no NaNoWriMo reading committee waiting at the end, no degree riding on this, and no hope of tenure or a decent job attached to the pressure. Sounds like a cinch.

I will not be blogging about this here or disclosing my story, but I wanted to let you know about this because it will surely affect my state of mind over the next month and might even be reflected in my outfits (what’s a go-to crazy writer uniform?) I am also hoping that I might entice some of you to be impulsive and to join me on this crazy journey…right…are you with me….? Let’s Go NaNoWriMo!

Proportions, originally uploaded by academichic.

And a last note on today’s outfit – it was an exercise in proportions as well as in colors. One of my favorite color combinations is neutrals with a pop, especially a pop of pink! And whenever I wear this swingy cropped jacket, I look to pair it with a more fitted and structured bottom section. I also only recently came around to wearing cropped jackets since I am short-waisted and thought they would stump my torso even more. I have discovered, however, that cropped jackets work for us short-waisted ladies as well when worn with a longer – elongating! – top underneath. If the underneath layer hits about mid-hip, it created the illusion of a longer waist, allowing the cropped jacket to indeed appear cropped. Sounds simple, right? S.

Ok, now once more, let’s go NaNoWriMo! S.

Pink!, originally uploaded by academichic.