Tag: Joy

Life Musings

This is how I love..

Crystal Fleming

I come home after a very long day of teaching back-to-back classes, followed by mentoring a black women’s student group.  My commute is 45 minutes.  When I look at the clock, it’s well past 9 pm.

Weary, I make my way up the stairs. My eyelids are heavy.  I’m starving – and running on fumes.

And then, to my great delight, I find:

– a clean apartment

– my favorite satin pj’s arranged on my bed, waiting for me to slip into their luxurious embrace

– a gourmet dinner, ready to pop in the microwave: homemade mango sticky brown rice with organic sirloin stirfried with onions, bok choy and garlic in a wickedly decadent teriyaki glaze

– my favorite trashy, mindless Monday TV show (90210) recorded on the DVR, waiting to be played

And now I recline by candlelight, blissed out, nibbling on one of my favorite goodies — milk chocolate studded with almonds. All of this, courtesy of Crystal-of-Sunday-Past.. thoughtful gestures of my prior self to my current self. 

There will be a foot massage happening any moment, then some aromatherapy, conscious breathing, a little Mooji and reflection on the day ahead.  A good night’s rest and an early morning that will start with meditation, perfectly brewed keurig coffee, a workout session, hydromassage and sauna before heading to the office.

God, I love myself..

Poppin' Tags

What $25 Can Get You at the Thrift Store

Crystal Fleming

I remember those days, so far gone now, when I would spend $25 on a single item and think that I was getting a good deal. I cringe now recalling my years as a struggling graduate student when I would, near-empty-bank-account-notwithstanding, spend several hundred dollars a few times a year on clothes. Sometimes I would go to a store, spend $200 and only have a few items to show for it. I also recall, quite vividly, the tightness in my chest and general feeling of dread as I would watch the cash register ca-ching its way onward and upward. Shopping was a stressful affair and any feelings of euphoria I thought I felt were fleeting and certainly not worth the trouble.

Talk about night and day. Thrifting has put the joy, playfulness and sexy back into shopping for me. Whereas in times past, I would feel overwhelmed by the prices or the limited prospects of finding something flattering in my size, now I feel transported through the 7 heavens as I walk through the garden of abundance that is my thrift store knowing full well that I can and will find every thing my heart desires . . . and pay almost nothing for it.

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Brief intermission while I get on my knees to praise God for bringing me to THE store: Thank you, Jesus . . .

* * *

Alright. Now what can $25 get you at my store? 15 items. FIFTEEN. That’s an average of $1.67 per item.  Estimated value: $300+  Let us slowly and soberly examine the contents of a recent haul:

 

Perhaps the most unusual and interesting find was the red, vintage Gunn Trigère dress I snagged for a dollar.