Julia Child Costume by the Numbers
1 - Number of stores within 30 minutes at which I am willing to buy items for a Julia Child costume
2 - Number of items needed for costume - one plain blue collared shirt, one plain straight navy blue or black skirt
0 - Number of plain blue collared shirts available in the girls’ section of the PX
0 - Number of plain blue collared shirts available in the boys’ section of the PX
1 - Number of blue collared shirts purchased that approximate what Julia Child might have worn had she been an 10-year-old skate rat boy
1 - Number of Marty’s fingerprints that appear to be on the camera lens
5 - Number of searches on the internet attempting to determine what “Destricto or enablis” is supposed to mean
0 - Number of answers found from internet searches
3 - Number of blue markers needed to finish the “L’ecole des Trois Gourmandes” patch
10 - Number of minutes spent deciding how to attach said patch. Since Marty may be a 10-year-old skate rat boy himself one day, I decided rather than glue it or trot out the sewing machine, I would just loosely stitch it so it could be easily removed.
2 - Number of times I sewed the shirt to itself
1 - Number of times I sewed the shirt to my pants
14 - Number of times I quietly cursed Aislinn’s teacher while repeatedly stitching, pulling out stitches, and restitching
1 - Number of pictures I took of the finished shirt, after I saw the fingerprint and cleaned off the lens
1 - Number of pictures taken with the clean lens that did not seem any less fingerprinted
1 - Number of pictures of bags of onions that I took to see if it was the camera or the shirt causing the crazy lines (note to Erin, we will be bringing back those books on CD)
1 - Number of pictures I took of the finished shirt from above to see if it was the camera or shirt causing the crazy lines
0 - Percent interest I have in continuing to sort out the source of the crazy lines
Moving on:
0 - Number of skirts of any kind available in the girls’ section
0 - Number of black or navy straight skirts available in the juniors’ section for less than $26
8 - Number of rounds of the girls/juniors section I made looking for anything that might work
1 - Number of nonsleazy skirts I finally found on the sale rack that might fit a 9-year-old twig
50 - Percent off both items I finally bought for the costume
19 - Total number of dollars spent on the Julia Child costume
24 - Ounces of wine it may take me to put the Julia Child costume saga behind me
sewed it to your pants? ok. that’s a good one.
[Reply]
Shannon replied on March 12th, 2009:
I was using my leg to keep myself from sewing the shirt together again. I was also distracted by an in-depth discussion that Marty and I were having about Mario Party.
[Reply]
Comment on 03.11.09 @ 3:59 pm
Laura Ingalls Wilder - a flowered dress borrowed from a babysitter, my brown boots, black tights, and a white apron from Station 7’s kitchen, accessorized by a basket of fake wild flowers from the Salvation Army. I cannot begin to describe the ordeal I went through (including a trip through hell on earth - Walmart) to come up with that gem.
[Reply]
Shannon replied on March 12th, 2009:
Lauren had to be a skunk for her class musical, and the music teacher sent not one, but two skunk costumes for her to choose from. That will always rank as one of my very favorite school memories.
Oh, and pictures, please.
[Reply]
Comment on 03.12.09 @ 8:08 pm