Itchy

 These are my show shoes. I haven't worn them in over a year. I haven't been on stage in over a year.  I'm itchy. Suddenly. To get on stage. To perform. To teach. To dance. To be in company with people that I care about. To be in company with people who are passionate about things that I'm also passionate about.  

I'm itchy.

So I wore my show shoes on a 4-mile walk. They weren't comfortable after a while, but they're so cool looking, I really didn't care. Wearing them eased my itch.

I'm also itchy to go thrifting. Like, in a store. 

There are 2 parts to this - first, I have been in a pandemic rut, second, I'm done with my flannel shirt stage.  

It's been Jeans, t-shirts, and flannel shirts for a while now.  I was testing my gender presentation a little, and hey, it felt good, and flannel is still cozy, and I will always love t-shirts - especially quirky or vintage t-shirts.  And jeans.  Always.

But I'm itchy.  I'm itchy to be seen in a more feminine, and still quirky way.  I want to thrift. In a store.  But I'm not fully vaccinated yet and Steve's not vaccinated at all yet, so that's out.

Enter E-bay.  

Dangerous waters those.

So far, I've watched about a hundred wool items (because I AM committed to moving toward fewer and more sustainable items). I've unwatched about 90 wool items. I've rewatched 50 wool items. And I've purchased 5 wool items including 1 shirt, 1 sweater (below), 2 dresses, and (fingers crossed that I win) a pair of purple socks). My commitment to myself is that if I get a new piece, I will donate a piece.  Unfortunately, I took 3 bags to Goodwill today, and I didn't leave myself much to donate.

That's a good indication that I need to take eBay off my phone, and stop looking at it every 5 minutes.  Honestly, you'd think it was cocaine grains in a shag carpet. Or something.

So, yeah. I'm itchy. I'm ready to get back out in the world, but I know me. When I'm itchy like this, I take on more than I can handle, and I end up burned out pretty quickly, so I guess it's a good thing that pandemia is still in effect. I can wear my show shoes on long walks, and with a modicum of control, I can browse the wool items at eBay - watching, unwatching, and rewatching. I just can't buy anything else.

The #100daydresschallenge is around the corner (my Wool& Willow hasn't arrived yet), and I'm sure that will help scratch the itch too.  We'll see.

Here's one of my eBay finds.  It's an IBEX 100% Merino wool open-front sweater.  I freaking LOVE IT.

*I've include Inkkas (the show shoes) and Ibex in my Links to things I like