I'm making an offer they WILL refuse....

A couple months ago, I posted an entry about my house hunting experience. It's been a while since my last update only because I've been super busy. My school is currently going through the accreditation process, I'm only weeks away from completing my master's degree, I've had a photo shoot, and I've been rehearsing and performing with my dance troupe. Yes, I have a lot on my plate. Despite the stress, everything is going smoothly. Thus, I haven't really been out searching for a house. Only in the last two weeks have I been actively looking. Here's what I've learned.

Stay on the west side
I been driving through neighborhoods with houses for sale. Whenever I see bars on the windows, unkempt lawns, and narrow streets filled with parked cars, that just tells me that most of these houses are filled with renters. They have no pride in maintaining a nice property. No thank you! Any place east of El Camino Real is a toilet (yes, Demian, was right about that).

Cape Cod should stay on the east coast
I know the purpose of this design style is to withstand stormy weather. The whole neighborhood is Cape Cod which tells me the weather is horrible year round. Regardless, not all the houses along the coast are built this way. So why this neighborhood? The garage space is practically non existent. A carport has more room for my truck. Another negative is the angular structure of the rooftop; it cuts into much needed height clearance and closet space. I have a ton of vintage clothing. I need the closet space. And I'm a tall lady. I can't constantly duck under the door frame.

Trust your instincts
I usually apply this logic to my vintage shopping. When I try on a dress and I don't get that, "OH MY GAWD!" reaction, I leave it on the rack. You have to love it before you buy it. Same thing with home buying. Don't settle. If it doesn't feel right, pass on it.

All things considered, I did find a house that I do like. So I made an offer on it. I know I won't get it because I'm bidding on the low end, and it is still a seller's market. I told my realtor that I'm quite positive I won't get it, but going through the process is a good learning experience. At the very least, it's good to know that I've already been pre-approved for a home loan. Most realtors and lenders won't even look at you without one. So I feel good knowing that I'm at least in good standing. We'll see what happens.

Dead can dance - Zombie Prom 2013

The Verdi Club has held five annual Zombie Proms. The club dresses itself as a haunted mansion with a ghostly ballroom. Slim Jenkins provides the musical entertainment with their "voodoo swing" style of music. DJ (Undead) Jeff keeps the dancers cutting a rug with Halloween (or just scary) themed music from big band jazz to rock n roll. I prefer to get an early start of the Zombie Prom so that I can can get enough dancing in. As the night continues, it gets more crowded with precious dance floor space disappearing by the minute.

It's always a fun time seeing the creativity people put into their costumes. It's usually just your typical costume that is zombified. Some of the make-up and dress are so well done, it's hard to recognize people. Often times I'd gasp in surprise shouting, "I didn't recognize you!" before giving a big hug. I have dressed as the following: 

• zombie 80s prom queen
• zombie queen of hearts
• zombie gypsy
• zombie chorus girl

Considering that this year's theme was Haunted Hollywood AND our dance troupe were performing, it was only appropriate to be a zombified chorus girl dance troupe.

Being part of the act definitely has its perks. Free entry, free dinner, free drinks. It is also a great way to promote ourselves since we now have gigs booked through February (having confirmed a few shows at Zombie prom).

Anyhow, the photos below are a few random shots before and during the zombie prom. Enjoy!

Vintage Purchases! Alameda Vintage Fashion Fair, Fall 2013

After several seasons at the O'Club, this fall's Vintage Fashion Fair moved to a new location. The Rock Wall Wine Company. I missed the O'Club because of its elegance, but Rock Wall was much bigger with better lighting and fitting rooms. There were also more distributors, including new ones. As I do at each season's sale, I always find something I like. Staying true to my favorite eras, I purchased a 1930s evening dress and pumps.

After examining all my vintage clothing, I noticed that I'm a little light on the day dresses. I have very few; most are evening or cocktail dresses. As of today, it's time to shift my focus to day dresses, light colored handbags, gloves and maybe some jewelry.  But first, a break from vintage shopping. I think I'll take November off.

Ciao for now.

Why reading is important!

I decided to start the day with the titular statement and taped 2 receipts to the whiteboard in my classroom. I asked each student to read through them carefully and let me know what you find. I was actually surprised that very few students figured it out.

Can you???

 

tick

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Hopefully you've already figured it out, but if you haven't, then you'd just shelled out $75. If you're a passive reader, maybe $45.

The whole idea was to demonstrate the importance of reading carefully. It can save you money just as it did for me today. Last night, after my dance rehearsal, I found a ticket on my windshield. I was floored because, "damn, the parking police work pretty fast!" Then,  I read through it thoroughly. First I checked that it was indeed my license plate number. Then I observed the time ticket was issued: 20:58. Whoa! What a minute, that's 8:58. I had at least 40 minutes left on my receipt when the parking police wrote up the ticket.

SFMTA has some sort of quota to meet each week, and issuing parking tickets is the city's money maker. They expect people to just fork over the cash without ever inspecting the ticket because that's what people do. They hate to read. SFMTA knows people will only scan for the fine amount and write out a check. Notice how the actual violation is written in tiny print versus the larger, bolder dollar amount and due dates. My students just laughed and said, "Yeah, I've donated quite a bit of money to the city of San Francisco, but you're right. No one reads the tickets. They just pay."

So let this be a lesson to you all. READ every little detail.

Oh and before I end this...I called to contest the fine, and they voided the parking ticket.

Car hops and Vintage Shops

I didn't expect to go vintage shopping today since the second weekend of any month is pretty slow. My friend invited me over to Alameda to do some vintage hunting at boutiques along Park Street. Generally, I don't like to shop and brick & mortar stores; there's no room for haggling, but I opted to give it a try.

When we got to Park St., I was pleasantly surprised to find a classic car show in progress. I'm a Chevy girl so I was more in awe of the vintage and classic Chevrolets. Usually I see 50s, but there was an abundance of 1920s-40s autos. My tastes in classic autos have changed a bit. Though I still love the 56 Bel Air 2-door hardtop, I really love the 19teens, 20s, 30s autos and trucks. I'm actually considering perhaps investing in an auto from the earlier decades. AND, I'd prefer it to be a functioning rust bucket. As beautiful as those cars at the show are, I can appreciate a muted paint job. Let the car reflect its age.

The first shop we ventured was Juniper Tree. The prices were decent with a huge inventory. Most of it was 50s and 60s (a lot), but among the mix were a few 30s and 40s clothing. I spied a pink eyelet dress from the late 1930s. For $38? Heck yeah I bought it.

My friend found a hat that he thought would be perfect for me. I have so many hats already, but when he had me try it on, I handed it to the shop clerk to add to my purchase. What I like most about the hat is the swirl and netting. Very film noirish.

The next shop we explored was the Rocket Reuse Bookstore. It was a bookstore and vintage clothing shop in one. I didn't find anything there, but I loved its artistic take on the vintage era.

Another good vintage shopping weekend. Next weekend will be a busy one. 2 days of Alameda Vintage Fashion Fair, the F-line Frolic, Stanford Theatre, Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Festival and the 49er game. Whew!

Vintage Purchases: Weekend of October 4th

I missed last month's Alameda Antique Faire in favor of the Art Deco Festival and Camp Hollywood Swing Dance Festival in Southern California. This month, I made sure to attend pending the 49er schedule. Thankfully, it was a night game so I was able to pull a double header today.

I spent the morning at Alameda and made 3 incredible purchases; all true 1930s vintage. The first was a dress with gorgeous button detail. It also doesn't have any sleeve, yet has a cape to drape over the arms. It was a popular style during that time (at least among the upper class who didn't feel the effects of the Great Depression.

I also purchased my second pair of 1930s oxfords which are very similar to another pair I purchased earlier in the year. I also bought a pair of peep toe pumps that are perforated with a cute bow adornment.

I had some great scores today, and I'm definitely looking forward to the Vintage Fashion Fair in two weeks.

I would have loved to shop all day, but I had to cut the venture short so that I could attend the 49er game at Candlestick. It was a great game with our 49ers rolling over the Texans 34-3. It was a good day, indeed.