'til you drop

One of the most fun things about getting ready to go abroad is the incredible amount of shopping that I must do.

It works like this: my mother has decided that since I'm leaving for six months, this is an opportune time for me to get rid of clothes, shoes, belts - basically anything and everything - that I don't need... Apparently, it doesn't matter that I spent Summer 2005 trying to complete this very task.

The new twist is that she gives me various gift cards (which have been oh-so-popular this holiday season) that I am free to spend to "update my wardrobe". ["Gift card sales were expected to hit more than $18 billion this holiday season — 6.6 percent higher than a year earlier" says an article in The Ithaca Journal.] I am A-okay with this part.

The must-get item for this week is comfortable walking shoes. I now direct your attention to the photo to the above left.

I found these boots at The Maxx (which apparently doesn't have its own website - probably the only thing around that doesn't have a website - but is an offshoot of TJ Maxx and sells only accessories and shoes). They were on sale for $40 and looked like just the thing a young, chic European female would own... Plus they are a step up from my other shoes which my sister is modeling in the picture on the right.

And yes, they don't look like the comfortable-est (I know it's not a word) of shoes, but I guess I'll just have to work on that next week.