Every Word Is Like An Unnecessary Stain

I built today's outfit around my new-to-me vintage barrettes. One is a pair of creepy red-eyed monkeys and the other is a pair of leaping horses (naturally because I'm a clothes "horse"). My blue hair has been making me resist wearing most of my red pieces, but after I bought these barrettes I decided to just go bold with the color contrast and get some wear out of one of my prettiest lightweight blouses before autumn rolls in. I wore this outfit while I was in New York, but never managed to get a picture of it so I had a good excuse to put it on again when I got back to Pennsylvania--it is a ridiculously comfortable outfit to wear, perhaps especially the shoes. The skirt has a couple of stains I can't get rid of and usually makes me a bit self-conscious to wear it, but no one else ever seems to notice the stains as I always receive compliments on this skirt. I think that is such a true statement for so many things--we always notice our imperfect skin or messy hair or awkwardness before anyone else. Even just last week I found myself apologizing if I came off as "standoffish" or quiet after newly meeting a blogger I had been reading for months, only for her to say she didn't notice either behavior at our first introduction. So all the awkwardness was imagined on my end...or created post-introduction by my unnecessary apology! Perhaps the best thing to do is stop assuming the worst parts of ourselves are glaringly obvious. We are often our own worst critics.