View from my other window, here at the hotel. Lexington is so beautiful, here in the springtime. I really hate to have to leave.
Lovely reading last night at VMI, and pretty well attended. One of our Substack readers had driven up from Raleigh and joined us for dinner, which was lots of fun, including a faculty fiction writer and the Virginia Poet Laureate, Mattie Quesenberry Smith (who is marvelous --- I'd love to know her more). I met more of a family whose oldest daughter, in DC, is a friend of my friend Tessa's --- their son is at VMI, and their youngest daughter is coming to Belmont Abbey in the fall. So my whole week has been a trail of this particular family --- who are very nice, and I look forward to catching up with them again in North Carolina.
Came home, watched an episode of Vera to unwind, and just about fell asleep during it. I had had coffee in the afternoon and was afraid I wouldn't sleep, but nope: I dropped right off and slept straight through until 8 this morning. My sleep has been mostly very good lately, a trend I think I attribute to the creatine I started taking a couple of weeks ago. I don't take a lot, because it can mess with your digestion, and it's also been linked, in some studies, to hair loss, which I do not want at all. But basically a generous pinch in my coffee in the morning has been good for energy during the day, and it's the only new thing I can correlate with this sudden onset of better sleep.
So I'm up and fresh this morning, drinking a second cup of coffee (with creatine) and slowly winding myself into action. Checkout is at 11; it's not quite 9:30 now, so I'm doodling about, packing a bit, reading and writing.
Temperatures are much warmer today, with a high of 82F here. It's currently in the 50s, but already climbing. Still some rain in the forecast, but I think a drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway is indicated anyway. I may have to get off and back on to get around closures from last September's hurricane, but it'll be worth it to drive the beautiful mountains in quiet, instead of making my way back down the interstate.
Wearing:
*Secondhand Wool& Sierra dress (S) in Washed Navy, bought fall 2024, last worn April 1. Wears in 2025: 9
*Thrifted Chico's linen button short, bought December 2023, second year of wear
*Secondhand Birkenstock Mayari sandals, second year of wear
Travel capsule reflections:
I really didn't need to pack that Mama dress. I guess I might have worn it, but it was one dress too many. I didn't reach for it largely because it was too warm on the one evening when I really might have worn it, the first night in Lexington when I met Steve and Annie for dinner. It reads a little too cottagecore-granola-casual, I think, for something like a campus visit, where I'm wanting to present as professional, which is why I didn't choose it for the day yesterday, but opted for my Fiona instead.
No harm done, no needed real estate wasted in my backpack, but as much as I love that dress, it seems less versatile and adaptable than many others. I have worn it for readings --- it was a good choice last fall, when the weather was hot but I wanted not to feel like summer. And it does have kind of an Emily Dickinson vibe that is sometimes just what I want. But when I want to feel a little polished, it's not the dress I reach for, which is fine, but good to remember for this kind of travel.
I did end up taking off my scarf before I started reading last night, because it was bugging me. So my look was more this:
I really liked the drape of my beige silk cardigan and the way it echoed without repeating the darker beige tights. It also didn't compete with the orange tone of my shoes the way the pink cardigan might have.
One of the cork wedges of these Mary shoes is starting to disintegrate --- it's packed now, but I'll try to get a photo at some point. I think I'm going to just fill it in with some super glue or Shoe Goo and kind of paint over it, to keep it from falling apart further, at least for the time being, until I figure out whether I can send it to be repaired, and how much that would be. It's just kind of a divot, halfway up the inner side of the wedge, that began as a fracture and has kept getting bigger.
Hm, have just read that they don't repair Papillio models. GOOD TO KNOW. WISH I HAD KNOWN THAT BEFORE I BOUGHT THESE. But I have also learned that there are cork sealants that may work to seal and repair cracks, so I'll try that.
Repairs at the US affiliate that deals with Birkenstocks run to just over $100, which is pricey, but less than the cost of a new pair of Birkenstocks. I buy mine used and don't pay anything like that for a new-to-me pair, but then I do buy them with the idea that I'll wear them a long time and will repair rather than tossing them. I guess you have to weigh when it is feasible to repair something, and for how long you can do that before the shoes become unwearable, or the cost/benefit ratio isn't tilted your way.
Anyway, I did wear those shoes in comfort all day yesterday, hiking around the VMI post/campus (much hilliness), up and down the streets in Lexington, up and down the stairs in VMI buildings and in my hotel. As dressier shoes go, they're still great. I'd own another pair of these for sure. Now that I know about cork sealants, I wish I'd bought some . . . last year, when I first noticed this little crack.
And now I had better get myself packed up and on the road.