I think about YLF and all you fab women every day. It's not that I'm embarrassed, but I haven't felt the point in posting here, even commenting, partly out of being in a busier summer groove but mostly because my outfits this summer are completely horrendous. I'm not even trying. I slap on a T-shirt, I wear the same two pair of jeans or some shorts, I have two or three pairs of sneakers I'm using. I did wear my cute Giveable flats a few weeks ago...what happened? I haven't broken in my nice patent red mary janes. Blah blah, you get the idea.

And I don't really care that much. I feel grubby and sweaty half the time, I'm walking and sitting in sailboats and running out to the garden and I just have let it all fall by the wayside (style). That said, I could still use some t-shirts and I haven't even made a half-hearted effort to log onto a website and order them online. Pathetic, right? I am just feeling kind of divorced from looking stylish. I don't want to pick up anything at all well-made or workhorse-y for now also because I want to start Suz's weight-loss regimen next month and don't want to be throwing my money away...

Life's pretty good. Summer is very special in New England and we tend to appreciate it and try and run out and grab as much sunshine and good weather as possible. My shoulder has come a long way--I'm still doing PT but have gotten back more range of motion than my doc had expected (at least it seems that way) and I won't give up. Next up is joining a kettle bells (weights) class in my neighborhood. I found a teacher who seems great and who says it's a very rehabilitative fitness routine. He also recommended his acupuncturist who has been successful in treating sports injuries. So all these good things are landing in my lap, and I'm feeling mostly positive. I'm really looking forward to joining the weight loss protocol in July. (One health downside is for some reason my asthma, which had been dormant for a long time, has come back fairly strong--I have no idea why. But it's definitely manageable. I don't need an inhaler; it's just that I feel it when I climb stairs, etc. Blah.)

Husband is also improving steadily with his achilles tendon injury, but in his case that means he way overestimates his ability to jump back into various activities he was doing pre-injury. I think I really need to police him! Or rat on him to his doctor. But of course I'm happy that he's coming along.

With my writing, I have had some major coaching, learned and had breakthroughs at a recent conference, and I am now solidly on a new and promising track with my novel, so that's thrilling on the one hand, but I feel guilty about spending time online...I'm feeling this sense of urgency to start treating my novel as a real project and not something I pick up and put down and let myself succumb to frustration over. I have a huge range of emotions over this but overall I am feeling very confident at the moment. And I mention this precisely because the more people I tell, the more accountability I feel.

So I've decided to let my sub-par summer self off the hook, but I will be looking forward to fall, hopefully in a slightly smaller version of myself, when all my packed-away boots and jackets can come back out, hopefully to be joined by even fabber new wardrobe additions.

As I said above, I miss everyone's posts, and simply feel overwhelmed at the moment and unable to follow the day-to-day triumphs, shenanigans, K/Rs and what not. BUT that doesn't mean I don't wonder what new, fabulous item Claire picked up for $1.25, or what's the latest mint-condition couture item Shannon discovered at a thrift store, or how Una's or Rae's latest iteration of UWP is coming along....you get the idea (and sorry I can't mention all of you by name!)

And possibly I am coming off as manic or basically just crazy throwing this onto the forum (especially on the 3.5 hours of sleep I got last night!) But I just wanted to drop by and say hi!

Y'all look great, by the way. Hope everyone has a lovely summer, whether chic or slovenly. I'll try to judiciously drop by more often.