Free stuff vs clothes....

Regulars will know that I am not big on 'new clothes'. I have a bank account with a debit card which is kind of a black hole.

I just keep handing the card over and do a sharp inhalation of breath as the machine asks for my pin and then exhale with relief when it goes through.  At some point the card stops working, I work some more (or if I'm lucky the husband might contribute), pay it all off and so it begins again.

That's the closest that I have got to debt, I know I am lucky.

Some people are living with student debts (too old for that), multiple credit cards (too disorganised to ever consider a credit card), negative equity or God forbid the Wonga style loans with 1600% APR.  I can't imagine what that must feel like and I do wonder if the blog-world contributes to the feeling that we should be shop, shop, shopping all of the time, buying a lifestyle rather than living it.

I was reading some of my blog favourites and even the ones who used to blog about the small things, the lovely little bits of their lives that are nothing to do with shopping and 'stuff' seem to be gravitating towards only material things and shopping.

And I am as guilty as anyone, I have been marking the passing of time with a quick photo in the morning of my outfit and not really bothering to photograph all of the beautiful things that I see during the day.

This blog started as a means of getting 'Boutique Bootcamp' as the number one Google ranking in natural search and then turned into an interactive diary with a social outlet for chatting to interesting people.  But now it is just a catalogue of what's in my wardrobe.

This is where I am a bit torn, I do like the 'clothes posts' from other people and I suppose we are defined (to a degree) by what's on our backs, so to an extent 'the outfit' gives us a snapshot allowing us to make a quick decision as to whether they are a potential blog companion.
But when it is just the clothes, I think I am going to hold back and not write the post.

I don't want to contribute to someone buying anything ever (not that I would flatter myself thinking anyone would go for my outfits, generally they are a cautionary tale). I still can't quite understand why we all read about each other's lives, but we do,  and shouldn't we make an effort to show that the best stuff, money can't buy?

It was Sian from Blond Polka Dots, that set my mind thinking about this, I loved the images of the deserted beach where she lives, it calmed my soul and made me realise how beautiful the UK is.  I liked her cardigans, but I was more minded to hop on a train and visit the coast, than I was to shop at Hush.

I would love to hear your thoughts (and for a final little bit of irony, I bought the T shirt from my-wardrobe, first piece of 'new/non-sale' clothing for years, on removing the 'my-tag', making it non-refundable, I tore a massive hole in it. Someone is trying to tell me something!)

Some non-shopping stuff from the Summer...this was one of those photos that where I wasn't sure if I was in it, so am hedging my bets with a weird facial expression.
The BIG news (and reason for the pic) is Miss B could be up the duff, either real or phantom, she is showing all the signs. Since she is clearly a tart we don't know who is to blame and await the outcome with interest, if any one would be interested in a Shih Tzu/mystery cross please let me know!

We have invested in some outdoor woodburners to keep the bar b q-ing season a little longer.  The rationale being that it is quite romantic and a couple of stoves are still cheaper than a single night out at a restaurant so if we get 8 extra evenings outside it is a worthwhile investment.

The veg patch was never a thing of beauty, totally my fault since all I planted were some potatoes that had been under the sink too long and had started to grow shoots.  After 10 weeks in the ground this is what we got.......

It was quite exciting hunting them out as they seem to grow totally randomly in the ground, not directly under the leaves.  And the odd thing is they came out like this, I didn't wash them, the soil was so dry in the hot weather that it just dusted off.

And the best bit of the Summer, was all of the friends that the kids made on holiday, we have been on 'Bonjour' terms for years, but this Summer something happened, they started talking to each other, playing beach games and the older ones went out on boats and went CLUBBING....God I feel old!