{"id":3737,"date":"2011-09-17T05:45:43","date_gmt":"2011-09-17T09:45:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging.communify.me\/newvinegrowing\/?p=3737"},"modified":"2019-06-07T13:40:24","modified_gmt":"2019-06-07T17:40:24","slug":"on-embracing-your-fabulosity-even-when-its-impractical","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.communify.me\/newvinegrowing\/on-embracing-your-fabulosity-even-when-its-impractical\/","title":{"rendered":"On embracing your fabulosity, even when it's impractical"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you have not read The Bloggess, you are missing out on some of the best writing I’ve found online.
\nHer genius post “And that\u2019s why you should learn to pick your battles<\/a>,”\u00a0 follows the kind of mundane argument most married people can relate to, except that most married people don’t buy a five-foot metal chicken to make a point. I give this piece my highest praise: I laughed so hard I snorted. More than once.
\nI was re-reading the tale of Beyonce the spite chicken when I happened upon another Bloggess post<\/a>, also about making an unnecessary purchase but with entirely different motives.<\/p>\n

My friend (\u00a0Sunny<\/a><\/strong>) is an artist. \u00a0She writes<\/a><\/strong> and paints<\/a><\/strong> and makes beautiful, whimsical dresses<\/a><\/strong> out of found objects and magic. \u00a0One of my favorite dresses of hers is the red poppy dress<\/a><\/strong> and I wanted it the first time I saw it but I knew I\u2019d never get it. \u00a0For one thing, it\u2019s not sensible. \u00a0It\u2019s impractical. \u00a0It\u2019s bright red and vibrant and shocking and \u201cinappropriate for a woman my age.\u201d And I have no shoes to go with it. \u00a0And I have no place to wear it.
\nAnd I want it.<\/em>
\nI want, just onc<\/em>e, to wear a bright red, strapless ball gown with no apologies. \u00a0I want to be shocking, and vivid and wear a dress as intensely amazing as the person I so want to be. \u00a0And the more I thought about it the more I realized how often we deny ourselves that red dress and all the other capricious, ridiculous, overindulgent and silly things that we desperately want but never let ourselves have because they are simply \u201cnot sensible.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Here I will embrace my girlie-girl 100 percent and tell you I nearly cried when I read this — not because I think shopping is the most noble pursuit, but because of the denial and self judgment that sounds so familiar in not buying the dress.
\nIf you don’t have the money, I salute self restraint in sticking to your budget so you can spend your earnings on things that matter most. A ball gown surely is not one of life’s necessities.
\nBut if you can afford something yet deny yourself because you’re worried what people will think or because you don’t believe you’re worth it, I don’t think that’s really about money — it’s a question of embracing who you are enough to do what makes you happy, regardless of other people’s opinions.
\nEarlier this year I wrote a blog post headlined Feel the fear and do it anyway<\/a>, about not living life with my foot on the brakes. I also shared a guest post from Christine Kane with the headline Six reasons to stop explaining yourself<\/a>, about why it’s a waste of time and energy to convince people you’re on the right path.
\nThe Bloggess seems to be saying something similar, the dress being a symbol of living life boldly and owning who she is regardless of whether it’s impractical and silly. So I love that she got her red dress, then invited others to wear it. Here’s her impassioned call to action:<\/p>\n

today, think about what it is you need and were too embarrassed to ask for. \u00a0And then go fucking do it.<\/em> Wear a ball gown to the grocery store. \u00a0Invite the neighbors to have a picnic on the front lawn. \u00a0Get that novel out of your sock drawer and publish it yourself. \u00a0Stand on a bus stop bench and belt out a song for the waiting strangers. \u00a0Find a playground swing and remember how it felt to fly. \u00a0Find your red dress. <\/strong> And wear the hell out of it.<\/em>
\n

\"\"<\/a>
The Bloggess in her bright red, vibrant, shocking dress that is \u201cinappropriate for a woman my age\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Photograph by Karen Walrond<\/a><\/em>, used with her permission.<\/em>\u00a0 Click here for her whole set. <\/a>Permission also granted by the brilliant Bloggess Jenny, whose recent post about getting in a fight with the TV series Portlandia over a tote bag on Zazzle<\/a> is another fabulous read. <\/em><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you have not read The Bloggess, you are missing out on some of the best writing I’ve found online. Her genius post “And that\u2019s why you should learn to pick your battles,”\u00a0 follows the kind of mundane argument most married people can relate to, except that most married people don’t buy a five-foot metal chicken to make a point.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":11551,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[58],"tags":[294,1237,1628,2535,2617],"yoast_head":"\nOn embracing your fabulosity, even when it's impractical - Newvine Growing<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.communify.me\/newvinegrowing\/on-embracing-your-fabulosity-even-when-its-impractical\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"On embracing your fabulosity, even when it's impractical - Newvine Growing\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If you have not read The Bloggess, you are missing out on some of the best writing I’ve found online. 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