Acclimated

It was rainy and cold for a few days last week. And by "cold" I mean "the insolent weather refused to reach 70 degrees for the high."

And I was peeved.

There are certain California Things that I find creeping into my life. I think or do these California Things without being fully aware of them. Like how fresh avocado makes everything taste better. Or being miffed that October had the audacity to bring with it temps in the sixties. As if! Yeah, I know it's fall and all, but it shouldn't be that cold until November, at least!

The weather when I was back East was a big change for me. I was baffled by the cloud cover -- there were days I didn't need my sunglasses! And it rained! Not just watering-the-grass sort of rain, but honest-to-goodness storms with thunder that woke me from a deep sleep and lightening that crackled, the likes of which I haven't experienced since moving to California.

But even more telling than my inability to comprehend conditions with greater than 30% relative humidity, is how I dress. I have lots of stylish, attractive black/gray/navy clothes, and I wear them often. But I also wear colors, real colors. In addition to the color palette, I aim to be a bit more "edgy" on the days I don't have to be Conservative Professional Suit-Wearer.

Never was this difference more apparent than when I walked down the streets of DC, surrounded by a sea of people in drab business attire, me wearing crisp white pants, a bright pink screen-printed t-shirt* and an olive blazer. Despite the compliments I received, it was definitely a "Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore" moment. I almost felt guilty, walking through the building, like my clothes were too loud, too colorful, too happy for the serious business at hand.

Eighteen months here and I kvetch about the "cold" weather (while deep down being happy that it actually felt like fall for a few days) and I wear bright colors, even for somber occasions like work. They're subtle changes, and not likely to hurt anyone, but they're changes nonetheless. Changes I hadn't counted on. I mean, soon I'll think that California can rightfully dictate national environmental policy! But the silver lining is that I am comfortable, happy even, out here. I don't look forward to touching down at the Sacramento airport with the same anticipation I do landing at O'Hare or National, but it is familiar and I take comfort in that.

*I own, like, six t-shirts that don't get worn to the gym. This one was purchased specifically for this outfit.

Obviously this picture was not intended to showcase my outfit. The corresponding dialog was something like, "No, really, I'm sure the camera works just fine, no need to take a test shot of *blinding flash*...me." But, hey -- check out those perfectly shaped eyebrows! You don't achieve results like that naturally.