NB: This is not Dallas, Texas. I've been scanning photos I took in Little Walsingham, home of the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in North Norfolk, in 1996, when I was there with my husband and the then-2-year-old Texasgirl. This is one of those photos, a shot down the road to the shrine, showing the village pump in the left foreground. I'm amassing them to accompany the lecture I'm giving on Wednesday at the Abbey, on the three medieval/early-modern poems most closely associated with Walsingham.
Of course today I'm not off to Walsingham, but to Dallas, Texas, to see 3/4 of the progeny. I'm all packed and ready to go, with the following items in my carry-on:
*Wool& Marine Blue Fiona
*Wool& Black Heather Audrey
*NPL Chocolate Brown Leila
*Blue rayon shrug cardigan
*Cream cashmere shrug cardigan with crystals
*Magenta cashmere/rabbit-hair blazer cardigan
*Birk Papillios
*Earth Shoe Mary Janes
I think that's it. I'm gone today, tomorrow, and Sunday --- only there one full day. I'm probably over-packed even so, but my pack is a lot lighter and emptier than it was for my previous jaunt. I should have no trouble fitting it under the seat on the plane.
Here's what I'm wearing to travel (an exact repeat of what I wore out to the pub last night):
*Wool& Fiona dress (M) in Teal, bought November 2022, last worn yesterday. Total wears this year to date: 20
*Secondhand bamboo/cotton leggings, bought fall 2021, last worn last night. Redyed by me in the summer of 2023, much loved. A good layer for going in and out of air conditioning/being on airplanes, when the weather isn't cold but you don't want to be too bare.
*Thrifted Loft jean jacket, bought I forget how many years ago, last worn last night.
*Secondhand Birk Mayaris, default shoes.
I thought about wearing a linen dress to travel, but this just felt good. These Fiona dresses are the absolute best.
I have in fact put up both my Willow dresses for sale. Looking back over my photos, I just thought . . . as much as I've loved them, they're not doing anything for me, especially since I've lost weight. I'd rather wear all my dresses with defined waists, and/or my linen dresses --- which also have defined waists, though some of them are loose.
My Wisteria Willow sold almost immediately. I'd listed it at a deep discount because of the very faint bleach stain, and somebody snapped it right up. My Poshmark closet is on vacation hold right now, but I'm hoping that the right person will come along and offer me my asking price on the teal Willow, as they did for my blue Maggie dress last month.
That leaves me with one swing dress, my good old Aegean Teal Maggie. Because it's a Small, it doesn't swamp me as the other dresses had started to do. It works well as an under-layer with linen dresses and skirts, especially in the winter, and I'm glad to hang onto it. Part of me is sad to let those other dresses go, but I think I'm going to be glad of the tightened focus in my closet. It's pretty clear to me what dresses I like to wear and feel best in.
Feeling pretty good about it all, really. And looking forward to seeing my offspring this evening. They light up my world, all the time.