Braces (with pics!)
Yesterday was Rachel Day, a day off from work. We get our birthdays off, and my boss insisted I take Friday off instead of Monday, for a little three day weekend action. This worked very well for me because I was getting my braces on Thursday, and if they were anything like the spacers, all I would be very whiny and in pain for Friday and absolutely of no comfort to my coworkers. So Friday was Rachel Day, supposed to be filled with gum-numbing cocktails, matinees, clothes shopping (or at least trying them on and taking cute pictures in the dressing room), and art museum visits.

But the day did not end up entirely fun-filled. But first, pictures!



Now for a close up...


Aww, see, I'm still cute. Right? RIGHT?!


About $100 worth of stuff I picked up in an effort to keep my braces and teeth squeaky clean:


It's taking about half an hour for me to floss, and it hurts. So I bought a Waterpik (using my cash, not the charity's). I also picked up some plaque dye and small tooth brushes. I really wanted to find a small, soft-bristled, portable toothbrush set, but I could not find one that had soft bristles while I was out. I'll have to jerry rig my own.

What it feels like
It's like my mouth is suddenly full of nails. I can't even purse my lips anymore. I'm having to relearn everything, talking, eating, cleaning, smiling. The pain is not as bad as I was fearing it would be. The spacers were definitely worse than this. And the nice thing is, because these are Damon braces, I don't have to see the orthodontist again until May. I'm told Damons work faster, better, and less painfully than normal braces, and for that I am glad that my ortho could recommend them for my case.

One of the worst parts is the chapping. My lips chap like crazy now because I don't lick them or purse them, and they are pushed out, a little more exposed than normal. I also can't apply "hard" chapsticks anymore because the pressure of applying them hurts. The only one that has really worked so far is my one stick of Badger Balm, but Burt's Bees and Chapstick have both fallen short. I am trying some lanolin-based Blistex, but it's a bit runny and has unneeded SPF (which is useles because it contains no oxides or avebenzone to protect against the majority of UVA rays). I could not find any Badger Balm, not even at the Hippy Mart (and I say that lovingly) yesterday. Le sigh.

Eating has become dull. I won't be able to eat my favorite foods for two years. No thin mints, white cheddar popcorn, or flattened dried bananas. It's killer. I still have some thin mints in need of a good home...

This was part of the reason that the Rachel Day matinee was cancelled. What fun is a movie without popcorn? What will I nosh in the theatre? Everything they sell at the concession stand is verboten! Not to mention, they were showing only the Watchmen and Che Part 1, neither of which sparked any interest in me.

So onward with the story of Rachel Day!
It was a late start because the soup I was having for breakfast slowly became the soup I was having for lunch as it took me an hour to re-learn how to eat soup, being painfully aware of every wire and bump in my mouth.

Once out the door, I was saddened to realize that it was going to be a Rainy Day, which normally I love, but having lost my favorite and only Emily the Strange cat-ear umbrella (it broke) some time ago, I had nothing to keep the rain off as I would go walking around town. So I made up my mind to aquire a new umbrella at last and hopped a bus into Chapel Hill.

My first stop was the little art museum, where they were having a showing of art depicting the industrial revolution, the rise and fall of the coal, steel, and steam industries. While I was pottering about, a band called Invisible from Greensboro was tuning up. They used all sorts of stuff, like trash and found instruments, to make their music, all of it automated from control panels and keyboard. It was very interesting to watch, and made a nice soundtrack for the viewing.

After that I purchased a clear dome umbrella and a USB-powered battery charger for the CD-player Joe got for my commute. Sometimes it runs out of juice, and I don't keep extra batteries in the car because of extreme temperatures. This way I shall never run dry again!

But mark my words, that was the victory of the day. I could not eat anything because it all looked hard, and when I tried to get some frozen yogurt once at Chill, the machine broke and I was charged full price for half a serving. At the time I didn't mind as I was in good humor, but as the day wore on, I became increasingly more angry about it. But there was nothing to do about it but never to go back to that establishment.

Then I endeavored to try on clothes, something I have always wanted to do in the fashionable establishments on Franklin Street. But there would be no happiness in this, either.

One store, Fine Feathers, I went into had some blouses of great quality. Room for my boobs, flat seems, tailored fit, everything you could ask for in a dress blouse. The price tag was $175. Now, mind you everything in that store cost in excess of that amount, and the rest of the stores I will write about are similarly expensive. But the kicker was when I looked at the tag and it said "Made in China" among many other expressions assuring me, the consumer, that it was made under the supervision of a master tailor and used only the finest European cloth.

I looked at other tags. All of the garments were made in China.

Look, I can understand paying a lot of money for a really well made blouse, one made with flat seams, the kind Target doesn't carry. But when the manufacturer is outsourcing to China, you know they are getting this stuff done for a pittance, and it's supporting China's shit human rights. When I see a "Made in China" tag, I don't think "quality," I think, "the designer wanted to make a lot of extra money by shortchanging his customers and the entirity of human decency." I find it very insulting to charge so much for what I'm sure cost as much to make as an America Apparel t-shirt. There, I've said it. It's a rip off. And I don't care if the Pinup Couture line at PinupGirlClothing.com doesn't have flat seams and the other "hallmarks of a quality garment," but at least they make their wares in the States, and I can rest assured knowing that their workers had rights.

And so ended my girlish notions about "quality tailoring."

The last store I visited didn't carry anythign over an 8. I even tried a few pencil skirts, but if the tight fit didn't turn me off, the $300 "Made in China" price tag did.

I couldn't find a black pencil skirt to save my life, and I do need one for warmer weather, as it will let me wear quite a few things year round.

So I gave up. It wasn't even fun to try on the clothes without the intention of purchase because they didn't fit right. Usually I love doing that. The photo of me on my about page was taken in an Express fitting room. I don't even own that top!

Then I bought a pile of groceries and oral hygeine supplies (see above photo) to take home, but as I waddled to the bus stop, I realized that because it's Spring Break and the college kids have gone home, the buses shut down early, and I Would have to walk home with about 25 pounds of bags. I was soggy and heartbroken. Luckily, Joe was on his way home as well, so I got a cup of tea and waited for him to pick me up on his way home. Crisis averted. Walking a mile home in the rain with too many bags would have been very unpleasant.

Thus ended Rachel Day. The best parts: the museum and the Waterpik!