Outfit of the Day - July 31

Day two on the job! New York & Company has a dress code of black and/or white. As you may know — and as you'll soon figure out — my closet already consists mainly of blacks, grays, whites, tans, creams and navies (neutrals go with everything, including each other!), so in theory, dressing for work shouldn't be a problem for me. I have my entire closet to choose from.

But some rules are easier to follow when you don't know they exist. I had the hardest time choosing my outfit today because I really really really wanted to pair a yellow blouse with a red skirt, and I couldn't. 

In NY&Co's defense, the main thing stopping me was the lack of a yellow blouse.

Sweater: New York & Company. Jeans: American Eagle (via Goodwill).

Gold chain necklace: Charming Charlie. Gemstone bead necklace: unknown.
Brown basket-weave flats: Target. Leather and bronze-studded watch: Charming Charlie.

Renewing the Mind

A few months ago I was walking down the street with one of my friends when he made a disparaging remark about God. "Hey!" I protested, slightly offended. "What?" He returned in apparent surprise. "You're an atheist too."

"No, I'm not!" I replied, shocked that he would think so. 

But he too seemed shocked. "What?! But like all of your friends are and you never talk about it or anything."

He had me there. And I felt terrible.

I was raised in church. My father is a pastor of a Missionary Baptist church and has been for as long as I can remember. And for 18 and a half years, I went to church three times per week — Sunday morning, Sunday night and Wednesday night — unless I was severely feverish or actively vomiting. I accepted Jesus as my savior when I was nine, and I believed the Bible because I had always been taught that it was God's divine Word. 

But like so many other young "christians" — by name, if not by action — when I want away to college, church fell by the wayside. I would attend worship services on occasional visits back home, but in Phoenix, it wasn't part of my routine. None of the churches in the immediate vicinity were conservative enough to fit with what I believed, and I made only a minimal effort to look for a congregation beyond walking distance and accessible by public transportation. And because church was no longer a priority, neither was independent study. You know the drill: Kid moves away, Kid stops going to church, classes and extracurriculars pile up and the last thing Kid wants to do after reading 250 pages of text for an upper-division history class is read more text.

Until, of course, Kid is accused of being an atheist.

My friend was right: I usually don't talk about my religious beliefs very often. I'm a journalism major attending classes on a campus that consists mainly of journalism majors, all of whom are taught to keep their personal views and beliefs tucked away so as not to alienate any potential audience or negatively color the public's opinion of otherwise solid reporting. But Jesus told his disciples during his Sermon on the Mount, 

Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 5:13-16)

Let's just go ahead and say that city on a hill is my daily life, and the light the city gives off is the image I project as I go about my affairs. The city's light cannot be hid, because every decision I make and action I perform leaves an impression on somebody. The key is to leave an impression — or let my city's light shine in such a way — that people look and say, "Wow. That must be God at work."

I know this, in theory. But there's something missing between that theoretical knowledge and actually putting it into action when my friend assumes I believe there is no God. Until now, that missing piece has been a desire to make God a real, honest priority. 

Paul wrote in Romans 12:1-2,

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

If I am to truly emit a "light" that glorifies God, I must first set aside regular time to "renew my mind" through studying His Word ... something I have never actually done. Like all relationships, a relationship with God takes effort. You don't get results if you're not really trying. And my friend's assumption was a wake-up call that I haven't been trying at all.

How about you? Have you let yourself veer away from regular study? How did you get back on track? I'd love to hear your stories. Comment below or feel free to shoot me a message.

Outfit of the Day - July 30

I suppose now is as good a time as any to announce that I have a new job! Starting today, I am a sales associate at New York & Company. My mother has shopped there for years, and I started shopping there a couple years ago when I moved to Phoenix and realized I needed some professional clothing for reporting and internships and such.

A note to fellow retail newbies: Never wear heels on your first day working retail. These shoes are usually super comfortable, but after a day of climbing ladders and carrying armloads of clothing, it may be a week or so before I can stand to wear these shoes again. 

Also note that mid-afternoon in late July in Phoenix is the wrong time to take off your heels and walk home barefoot.

Black t-shirt: Tilly's. Khaki pencil skirt: Target.

Gold chain necklace: Charming Charlie. Black patent pumps: Payless Shoe Source.
Watch: Charming Charlie. Large CZ stud earrings: Gift. Small CZ studs: HTC Piercing.

Outfit of the Day - July 27

This is how I look on weekends, guys! Or at least it's how I looked this weekend when I packed up my laptop and sociology textbook and went to the city library for a few hours for some peace and quiet.

I'd like to pretend that I'm always running around in a pencil skirt and heels and makeup doing important adult jobs that require lots of meetings and such, but the truth is I'm still a college student first and foremost. And college students have homework. And sometimes you just have to throw on the cutoffs in order to think properly. Come on...it's Phoenix in July. Everyone is entitled to cutoffs now and again.

Also to no makeup. Even if you're like me and normally only wear mascara and eyeliner, an afternoon walk to the library half a mile away is enough to make you sweat it all off.

Racerback camouflage tank: BBB Fashion. Jeans: Aeropostale (DIY cutoffs).
Canvas boat shoes: Old Navy. Leather handbag: The Sak (via Amazon.com). 

Hmm...these babies could use a wash.
It's a no-makeup day.

Outfit of the Day - July 26

My internship doesn't usually require me to go into the office on Fridays, but today I had to go in for a few hours to finish up work on a story. I'm already not a morning person, but add the fact that it was a weekend and a day that I'm not used to going into the office, and I didn't want to put on clothes at all this morning.

Enter the jersey knit dress. It's soft and comfortable, like my pajamas, but can be dressed up so that no one will ever know I chose it only because I wished I were still in bed ... and because it's only one piece to pick out and put on. (Take that, Friday!) 

Jersey knit t-shirt dress: Target. 

Bronze multi-strand chain necklace: Charming Charlie.
Leather and bronze-studded watch: Charming Charlie. Brown basket-weave flats: Target.

Outfit of the Day - July 25

Is anyone else bothered by how cold offices become during the summer? Phoenix summers can be unspeakably hot, but extreme temperatures outside shouldn't call for the opposite extreme inside. My desk sits right under the ceiling vent, so I am always on the chilly side at my internship. Add the dampness from this morning's rain, and I was downright cold all day. 

Luckily for me, a cold office means I get to continue to wear my favorite boots and scarves all summer. I knew today would involve running all over the place for interviews, and these boots — fondly known as my "get things done" boots — let me move about quickly. 

Jeans: BBB Fashion. T-Shirt: unknown. Infinity scarf: Target.
Belt: Target. Boots: JC Penney. 

Watch: Charming Charlie. "Faith" bracelet: Charming Charlie. Painted bracelet: gift.