Double Up — OOTD (Outfit Of The Day)

A co-worker's recent lament: "Winter clothes are exponentially cuter than summer stuff, and we get such a short time to wear them."

True dat.

Still, I wouldn't ever want to deal with shoveling snow or black ice or, well, any of the yucky things that happen below 40 degrees.

My solution — which works to use more of my winter things in our shortened time period — has been to pile it on. I love that J Crew hoodie-beneath-the-blazer thing, but I'm not such a fan of blazers. So, voila, hoodie under a cream denim jacket.

Outfit: J Crew jacket; Haute Hippie silk-cashmere blend hoodie; YFB long-sleeve tee; Tag jeans (they're new! soooo soft) and Simple "Satire" sneaks.

Layers and Dressy Uggs

This whole climate change thing is killing my ability to dress.

It's hot, it's cold. What's a girl who goes out and about in public supposed to do?

Layer.

My magical denim vest (Now it's a jacket! Presto chango — snip, snip! Now it's a sleeveless vest!) adds the right amount of warmth in between this racer-back dress and knit moto jacket.

The crowning touch, though, is these tricked-out Uggs.

Earlier, (here) I'd mildly bemoaned their lack of 'zzaz. Well, those 2 Riders bootstraps went on sale, and, as I always tell my husband, I was right. The straps do add just the right amount of polish and edge to the old girls. Gussied up with the chains, they look like Fryes.

The bootstraps are impressive, quite well made. You can't tell from the photo (hey, my photog is 10!), but the silver chains almost look like they're actual rope. They have a matte finish, which makes them look more expensive than the gold version.

Outfit: Splendid moto jacket; hacked up Gap jacket; Daftbird dress; Forever XXI silver necklaces; Uggs.

Wuv....Twue Wuv....

An actual exchange between Middle Child (9) and Youngest Child (a very wise 6):

MC: "When you get married, do you keep the same husband for the whole time?"
Me: "Well, not always....."
YC (in an irritated voice): "NO! Sometimes people grow apart."

Great googly-moogly.

So, of course I asked him where he got that from, and he'd remembered hearing it at a recent wedding we'd attended. Another reminder to watch what I say — those little boogers soak up everything.

Photo: That would be hubby and me on our April 1 wedding day. We haven't grown apart. It's been 15 years.

Rainy Day Friday Shoe Haiku

Rain, rain come today
I am ready with mah boots!
Splish, splash — no wet feet.

Women's Femme Power Rain boots ($8.74). I know, I know. I live in the desert, do I really need rain boots?

Heck, yeah!

They are WONDER WOMAN boots. They aren't even $9. And, on those two days a year that it does really pour, I always wish I had something to keep my tootsies dry. I really hate wet feet.

Stuff I Just Don't Get...Melissa Shoes

OK, so there's no denying that Melissa shoes are pretty darn cute.

But, here's the thing — they're plastic. Oh, excuse me, they're MELFLEX, a trademarked plastic that "offers improved elasticity, impermeability, and resistance to water." The stuff is apparently also hypoallergenic, odorless and recyclable.

Cool, but they're still PLASTIC.

I'm not going to pay more than $100 — which most Melissa shoes cost — for Jellies. Remember those from the '80s? And, I'm sorry, but I remember the main problem with those regular plastic kicks was a horrible sweating issue. Didn't see anything about MELFLEX preventing your tootsies from sweatin' and slidin'.

A Healing Heart

It's been a few weeks since the terrible tragedy outside a local Safeway that killed six people and gravely injured Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Those of us who live in Tucson are still kind of shell-shocked, trying to come to terms with what happened.

One of the great things about this community, though, is how badly people want to help in any way possible. A way to show love and support — and to channel grief — is through art. So a local artists' cooperative and gallery are planning an art auction to benefit different victims' funds. The event is called A Piece of Peace.

One of the pieces already on sale is this sweet gem by Michelle Spanyard of Banana Seat Jewelry. I've been wearing it daily since I bought it Friday at Bohemia, one of Giffords' (and my) favorite places to shop. It sells for $68 and also comes in a square. A portion of the proceeds go to the Gabe Zimmerman Memorial Fund through Child and Family Resources.

Watch This

I've tried to rely on my crappy cellphone for the time, but I really don't like to. Mostly because it's really hard to find it — my cellphone, that is. Not the time.

That said, I'm kinda getting tired of wearing watches. But, I have this pathological need to know what time it is — and the timepiece must have an actual clock face. Digital doesn't cut it. I need some context, some sense of what has come before and what will come after.

Clip-on watches could be the ticket.

This basic Avon clip-on watch ($13) should arrive any day this week. But this Tokyo Bay DJ robot ($16) is kinda irresistible.