(no) Indian Summer

I'm a summer person.  This is likely no surprise to readers, since my blog shows that I live at the beach, love going to the beach, drive a convertible, love wearing shorts and flipflops, and love sitting on my screened porch.  I should live in southern CA where the weather is like summer all year round.

One of the great things about living in the mid-Atlantic region is Indian Summer.  Its not unusual for us to have sunny skies and temperatures in the 70s well into Oct, of which I take full advantage.  I actually have a memory of sitting out on the beach the 1st Sun in Nov some years back, but I can't find it in my blog.  I continue wearing shorts and flipflops and driving with the top down as long as I possibly can, squeezing out the final minutes of Indian Summer every year.

But this year I feel like we're being cheated with no Indian Summer.  The month of Sept was cooler than usual and we've had rain and/or overcast skies much more than usual.  Now here we are in the 1st week of Oct and we've had cool temps, wind, and rain from Hurricane Joaquin for the last week.  Today it was in the 50s when I got dressed for work, although its supposed to go up to 66 today.  I had to wear long pants and socks and closed shoes to work - its depressing!  

I'm definitely NOT 1 of those people who gets excited about fall.  To me, fall simply means the end of summer, a reality I try to avoid as long as possible.  I don't even like shopping for fall clothes, since I find the colors almost as depressing as the passage of summer.

The 10-day forecast does show daytime temps creeping up into the low 70s during the day, but its just not the same as a good old fashioned Indian Summer.

HA!!!

Just after Labor Day I expressed my dismay at how many people kept saying that summer was over. The summer tourist season may end at Labor Day, but technically today, Sept 22, is the last day of summer. And although the summer may be over tomorrow, here in the mid-Atlantic region there is still plenty of summer weather left.

Today the temperature reached 90 degrees! Everyone was back to wearing shorts and flip flops (except me, but that's a whole 'nother story), and driving with their convertible tops down. (That was me.) I wanted to offer a great big collective "HA!!!" to all the people who have been trying to rush us into fall for the last 2 weeks.

Its supposed to be warm (mid-to-upper 80s) the rest of the week and this weekend, which is just fine with me. Although the calendar may say its fall tomorrow, I am always enjoying summer or looking forward to summer.

Crush du Jour: Romulo Arentes Neto

Fashion hurts

The weekend before last I played several games of beach volleyball and had a great time. The next day I began experiencing pain in my legs. It felt like sore muscles so I immediately chalked it up to running around in the sand playing volleyball and popped a few ibuprofen.

The following day I had pain again so I mentioned it to my trainer when I was at my personal trainer appointment. He had me do some intense stretching exercises that seemed to help, temporarily. I took ibuprofen again the next day and everything seemed to be alright.

This past weekend I didn't play volleyball but I started feeling pain in my legs again. This led me to change my conclusion about the source of the pain. Now I think its from wearing flip flops so much.

See, when I was 14 I had to go to a podiatrist because of chronic foot/leg pain. It was determined that my having very little arch in my feet caused the bones to grow out of alignment. I was given custom-fitted orthotics to wear in my shoes which provided arch support and inner heal elevation and I never had the foot or leg pain again.

However, this spring I taught myself how to wear flip flops because I wanted to be fashionable. This probably wouldn't have been a big deal for most people with sufficient arches, or people who wear closed shoes everyday to work. But I've been wearing flip flops everyday, all day long, since the spring and I think my legs are finally telling me that fashion hurts.

After returning from the beach last Sat I began wearing closed, lace-up shoes with my orthotics inside. I immediately found some relief from the leg pain, bolstering my belief that the flip flops were the culprit. Sun, Mon, and Tues I again wore shoes with orthotics and didn't need to take the ibuprofen. But today, my 4th day of wearing shoes and orthotics, my legs are hurting again enough that I had to take ibuprofen.

I'm at a loss. I really thought the shoes and orthotics were the answer until today. Now I'm not sure WHAT is causing the leg pain. I'm going to avoid flip flops through the rest of this week and see how I feel. If I'm still having pain next week I'm making a doctor's appointment.

Crush du Jour: Brett Favre

Flip flops

My world of summertime footwear has just opened up. I taught myself to wear flip flops.

Yes, I say 'taught' myself to wear flip flops because I haven't been able to wear them in the past. I just couldn't be comfortable with that piece between my toes. It hurt!

But all the cool kids wear flip flops, leaving me feeling slightly less than cool.

Don't you think guys in flip flops are sexy?
I know I do!

So, for years I have worn sandals, like this pair of Sketchers I've had for years:

They're super comfy but I try not to get them wet since they're made with a leather-like top. I wear them when I know I'm going to be doing a good bit of walking.

And I've also worn slides, like these that disappeared at the beach one day.

Then a year or 2 ago I also found a pair of (imitation) Crocs to be oh-so-comfortable and versatile.

They're great for the beach because they can be wet or dry, and they don't throw sand up the back of your legs like flip flops do. And before you go hatin' on Crocs because their 'ugly', take a look at this sexy guy in Crocs:

I'm just sayin'.

But a few weeks ago Old Navy was having a big sale. Their solid color flip flops (normally $3.50) were just $1.00. I figured I'd give them a try, since they were only a buck, so I got a pair in red.

The 1st few times I wore them the piece between my toes was hurting that sensitive area. But I found that wearing them around the house (as opposed to going on a long walk) helped me get used to them. Now I can wear them all day long with no discomfort.

I'm SO GLAD I taught myself to wear flip flops! Not only can I flip with the cool kids and sexy guys now, but my world of summer footwear has opened up dramatically.

Crush du Jour: Jordi Molla