Writing a blog is hard work! It's fun and rewarding, but there's more to writing it than meets the eye. And for a person like me who obsesses and worries about every little thing and has a perfectionist streak a mile long and can find more things to procrastinate about than you ever dreamed possible, it can be the biggest time suck around -- even bigger than Facebook (I bet you didn't think that was possible) -- and keep me from doing something important (like my taxes -- hey, I still have 24 hours before they're due, it's early yet!).
Take this post, for example. I've been agonizing over it for over a week. Nothing I wrote was good enough or interesting enough to satisfy me. Well, I finally decided that enough was enough, and that I needed to take a page from Nike's book, and just do it (and for the record -- I have hated that slogan with a passion ever since it came out!).
shirt -- Once 1 Again (thrifted)
jeans -- Delia*s
belt -- Dockers (thrifted)
shoes -- Dansko (outlet)
Once again (haha -- do you see who made my shirt?), I did the jumble of necklaces around the neck. I edited said necklaces once I saw my first few pictures. Since my pictures are taken at the end of the day, it can be somewhat horrifying to find out that I was walking around all day long with what, in effect, was actually a piece of toilet paper stuck to my shoe!
I also played around with the tucked-in vs the untucked look but this time, I actually think the tucked-in version was better. You can see how awful the tucked-in version was here.
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I did kind of like this -- for a jeans look, that is. It was really comfortable, and I think I looked "nice" even though it didn't have the "wow" factor that I was aiming for. Dressing up jeans is hard!
The top was a much prettier sparkly copper color than what is showing -- I tried to pull out the color by taking a close-up picture, but I still don't think that I got the color all that right. And for a change, I also had an easy time of deciding what shoes to wear -- my sparkling Danskos were almost a perfect match!
I bet you're wondering why I hated that Nike slogan so much. The Center for Applied Research, a consulting company in Philadelphia, PA, and Boston, MA, said it pretty succinctly, "Nike responded to [Reebok] by releasing a tough, take-no prisoners ad campaign that practically shamed people into exercising." I never thought that people should be shamed into exercising or, for that matter, into doing anything. Sometimes you "can't" just do it (whatever "it" may be), and I thought the slogan and the ad campaign minimized people's struggles. That ad was a trigger point for me whenever I saw it.
And this is being said by a girl (woman) whose first pair of real running shoes were a pair of white Nikes (with a red swoosh) from Rockaway Sporting Goods in Denville, NJ. I got them way back in 1973, when there were not a whole lot of girls in NJ who ran cross country. We had to run in the boy's JV races because there were no girl's teams to compete against.
I had very conflicted feelings about those shoes. My parents bought them for me, and they were a real treat -- it was one of the first things that I remember getting that I really really wanted, price be d*mned. But I also remember feeling strange about them. Nobody else on my team had such expensive shoes, and why did I think I deserved them?
blazer -- Old Navy (thrifted)
Did you know the following:
- Nike is the Greek goddess of victory, and is one of the most commonly portrayed figures on Greek coins.
- In 1945, Bell Laboratories developed Project Nike, an anti-aircraft missile system contracted by the U.S. Army.
- Ever since the 1928 Summer Olympics, Nike is on the face of every medal. She holds a palm frond in her right hand and a winner’s crown in her left.
Do you remember the Nike slogan?
Did you like it?
Did you like it?
And are your taxes done?
Yes, yes and no! I filed an extension. I have a different experience with the "just do it" slogan. For me, I used it as a means of encouragement. When I feel lazy or a little tired and I start over-thinking whether I should or shouldn't, will I get home too late? Are the trails still muddy or dry? Etc... I tell myself to just do it. Just get out there and start running, I can take it easy, I can turn around if I'm indeed too tired, but I need to stop thinking and start doing.
ReplyDeleteI totally understand how you interpreted it, I had never considered that viewpoint before. It's always interesting to hear another interpretation!
:) f
The House in the Clouds
You always have something of value to say, and your blog inspires and makes me re-thing my views daily. As for the "just do it", I feel a bit like the poster above, it's a way to motivate people that may be stuck with a case of inertia. I do a fair about of motivational interviewing in my day job, and its funny the barriers that people have to lifestyle change and how something as simple as "playing a different tape in your head", can really turn things around.
ReplyDeleteWe use an accountant, so fortunately my taxes have been done for a while. I hate doing taxes!
ReplyDeleteI like the top tucked in.
I do remember the Nike's slogan. My mom was a big Nike shoe fan, though not a running enthusiast. When I went into a middle school that had physical education (most elementary schools were cutting out recess), I bought a pair of Nikes. I ended up wearing them once or twice and wearing my Chuck Taylors everyday.
ReplyDeleteI have to report tax info for my FAFSA so mine have been done since early February, thankfully!
We have the two kids to be in college this fall/must do early for FAFSA thing going on, too. I always enjoy your posts; I love your sense of humor. I saw your name and blog (and mine too!) on Terri's Perfect Blog post!
ReplyDeleteSparkly Danskos!? That's why your clogs always look so much better than mine.
ReplyDeleteI was gifted a pair of Nike's around the same time that you got yours...because I had gained a lot of weight my first year at college and this was to encourage me to begin running on an indoor track in the winter. Result: lots of old guys stalking me. It's a shame that people made you feel bad for the shoes. My middle daughter was a distance runner and shoes are important!
@Fabienne -- Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment. After breaking down in tears when I was trying to do mine, I ended up filing an extension too. so depressing.
ReplyDelete@northeastchic -- awww, thank you!
@Rebecca -- you are so lucky!
@Megan Mae -- why was your mom a fan of Nikes? And yes, I am jealous of you!
@Debbie -- it was a huge thrill to see my name on Terri's post!
@Terri -- the Dansko outlet has all sorts of clogs that I haven't seen in the stores (and they're like half price too!) It was me who made me feel bad! That is just part of me -- never felt very deserving of things.
I love this top on you - fabulous color.
ReplyDeleteI have an affinity for Nike because they are an Oregon company, I grew up running and only ever wore Nike's, and our state track meets were held in Eugene - Track City, USA.
I don't think much about the "Just Do It" slogan except to think that it's a brilliant bit of advertising in that it's so well known. Love it or hate it, you know it and you know it's Nike.