Insomnia

I have Delayed Sleep-Phase Disorder, which is a fancy way of saying I should have been an owl as I am pretty much nocturnal, so I have historically been pretty rubbish at falling asleep (but good at sleeping the morning away once I do). 

The routine of full time work is much more conducive to "normal" sleep patterns than uni (as is the fact that my work doesn't generally come home with me like assignments and study obviously would), so I've had more success with my sleep over the past few months. But lately I seem to have traded one sleep disorder for another and right now I am suffering from what can only be described as insomnia. 

I woke up super early this morning and couldn't get back to sleep, so it's no surprise I came home exhausted (the post-work cocktails may have contributed...) and was fast asleep by ten. What is a surprise is that at one thirty I was wide awake. Grrr. 

On the bright side, these sleepless nights give me lots more time to think about interesting things. Let's discuss. 

Thrift. I scored a couple of good work dresses (Cue and David Lawrence, both black, one in need of some alterations) from Vincenzo's at Miranda not long ago, and when I went back the other day I found a sequinned Country Road cardi that I am looking forward to wearing. I also have my eye on a big mirror from Hurstville Vincenzo's ($10!!) so I can turn my chest of drawers into a dressing table. 

Travel. Long-time readers will know all about my friend Meg (50% of long-time readers are my friend Meg - hello!). She's gone to Russia! How fabulous! My Mum and Nana are in England right now (hello if you are reading!) and my sister (who does not read my blog, ouch) is about to go to Thailand with her beau. I want to go on holidays too! Where shall I go, Reader? How can I get rich quick to finance it?

Tapas. Lately I'm consumed with this idea of making tapas at home. But not like buying lots of fancy ingredients to make complicated authentic recipes - I just want to whip up my own version with whatever's lying around. Patatas Bravas would be easy but apart from that all I can think of is to cook everything in garlic and olive oil. Which is pretty much how I roll with savoury cooking.

This post was brought to you by the letter T and the number 45, which is about how many hours I've been tossing and turning for. 

Dinner Party

Ben invited us over for dinner the other night. 

Momz handled the cocktails but Ben cooked everything. 

It was all delicious. 

Everyone dressed up. Jim and I came straight from work but at least we were matching. 

I remain committed to thrift: my purple wrap dress is from The Smith Family in Rockdale. I think Jim bought the tie at Myer, la di da.

It was a lovely evening, thank you for having us Ben!

What Is Up With These Photos

In an effort to work out why my photos are turning out so dodgy lately I'm going to upload a bunch of different ones. So bear with me while we take a little trip down memory lane.

Boots

I am trying very hard right now to recommit to Thrift. We drifted apart for a while but I'm ready to settle down now and get serious about saving my money. 

In pursuit of this I recently gave up my search for a new pair of boots and had the broken heel on my old Court Couture "Pearly" boots fixed. It cost $17.50 and the guy even polished them for me, they came up a treat!

On one hand it seems crazy to spend that much money on two tiny pieces of rubber, especially when the boots were only $69 in the shop. On the other, it is still cheaper and less wasteful than buying a brand new pair - and anyway, I couldn't find any that weren't miles too big around the calves. 

Does anyone else have this problem? I'm not confused with intentionally slouchy boots either - I'm talking about smart fitted boots that are so loose I look like a toddler in Daddy's wellies. I am certain I don't have abnormally skinny calves so why is this always the case?

Anyway I am delighted to have some boots in rotation again!

I celebrated by wearing them with fleece tights and my Plus Size Top dress last night to eat pho at The Meridian in Hurstville. 

It wasn't as good as the pho in Vietnam, but I liked it anyway. It got me thinking about whether it is necessarily better for food to be "authentic"...

In other thrift news here's what I wore to work on Wednesday: a black wrap dress purchased from Dotti in 2005 for $60. 

It was a lot for me to spend on a dress when I was 15 (it's a lot for me to spend on a dress now!) but I wanted something nice to wear on a date. The boyfriend wasn't much chop but the dress turned out to be The One. I can wear it anywhere, with anything, it's as comfy as all get out and it's still standing - and fitting! - after eight years. What's not to love?

Today for work I wore a Barbie watch my Dad bought for me in Europe circa 1997 and this jade bangle James's parents gave me for my 21st. It's from Hong Kong. 

A wise woman once said that the only thing separating us from the animals is our ability to accessorise. I'm inclined to agree.