Anthropologie Rant and Law School Miscellany

My Dear Readers (if there are any of you out there),

Why do I choose today to write after an oh-so-long hiatus? I suppose the whim caught me for a moment, and I decided to capitalize on it, rather than continuing to watch a Youtube video on how to spin flax fibers into thread, I might as well write about what’s on my mind.

Backing up for a second, the reason why I was watching this video was that I was reading the blog of Goldenmeans, who is a fellow Anthro-lover. As I read her blog, I thought about how many other other fashion-lovers seem to take significant time out of their day to write about clothes and learn about clothing/fabrics/designers in general and decided that I should put in more effort to do the same.

The reason I was reading the blog in the first place was that I just bought a new top from the Anthropologie that opened up this summer in Harvard Square and was flipping through the October catalog that I threw in the bag right before I left the store.

A romantic, silk and cotton blouse replete with floral embroidery

I suppose it’s ironic that I took their catalog on my way out, but as any Anthro-obsessed girl will tell you, their catalogs are works of art–true fashion photography. The usual experience: Upon opening a catalog with bated breath, one silently prepares for the marvelous sights to behold. I have said this before, but I’ll say it again, the way I would describe Anthropologie’s marketing strategy is to make women feel nostalgic for places to which they have never been and experiences that they have never had.

Just as an example, the first half of the October catalog juxtaposes a minimalistic art studio filled with subdued, neutral tones, and lavish, decaying Greek statues and reliefs. The blond model’s hairstyle (and there is usually only one model per setting), is braided and gathered loosely in the style of an ancient Greek noblewoman, with wisps of hair escaping gently from behind the ears. The model chooses to grace the viewer with her languorous, blue-eyed gaze in only half of the photos. Each photo is lit perfectly with natural light (and probably in part with some white light-bulbs that imitate natural light). As I have just illustrated, one does not even need to begin to describe the actual clothes the model is wearing to make someone living a rather ordinary, suburban life long to peer into the fantasy world in which the model lives.

Anyway, Goldenmeans, like many other women interested in fashion, does the whole outfit-of-the-day (OOTD) thing, and it’s been a casual pastime of mine over the past several years to look at the outfits people post on various websites, particularly Chictopia, where I have an account. Since Goldenmeans wears and reviews a lot of Anthro clothing, I quite enjoyed perusing her blog entries, even though her body type is quite different from mine. She looks to be about my age, but she is definitely curvier and darker-skinned.

Backing up from the blog, the reason I was looking up blogs about Anthro clothes in particular tonight was that I was somewhat frustrated after my purchase at Anthropologie. Although I love the romantic, cream-colored, short-sleeved blouse I bought, it was expensive, very expensive, for a cheapo like me: $98. I mean c’mon Anthro, I’m not made of money!

The issue is not even that a basic, short-sleeved blouse, however adorable and elegant, is that expensive. I get that Anthro caters to a particular demographic. The issue is that I have been a loyal Anthro customer for over four years now, and I know for a fact that price inflation is rampant with this store, with pricing increasing much faster than the rate of inflation. One fateful night during my freshman year of college, I made my first Anthropologie purchase online. The mesh green tie-back top I bought was $68. Sure, it was a summer top and a little more lightweight than the one I just bought, but there was an abundance of tops for $68 on the site. (Just as a side-note, Anthro loves prices ending with the number “8.” I wonder if this has anything to do with marketing research showing that customers are too jaded with prices that end in “9” and have woken up to the fact that ending prices with “9” is just a simple ploy to not have to change the tens place on the price-tag.) Today, a quick perusal of Anthro’s site reveals that the prevailing price of most short-sleeved blouses is $98. Yes, dig deeper and you’ll find a few $78 and even a couple of $68 tops, but these blouses are a lot simpler and less attractive than the average, $98 blouse. The price point goes up from there up to a whopping $368 for a rather simple looking blue blouse.

Fine, if I’m going to make an argument, I might as well get quantitative about it. A quick analysis of all of the clothes under the category of “blouses” reveals that of the 72 blouses, the cheapest blouse checks in at $58, and there is only one of those. Next, there are 4 blouses at $68. These are followed by 9 blouses at $78 and 11 blouses at $88. Next, there is a plurality of 17 blouses for $98, which is roughly 24% of the blouses. These tops are the standard embellished, embroidered, or appliqued blouses that your average Anthro-lover would gravitate towards because it is the maximum price at which she will seriously consider buying the blouse and can justify to herself that the blouse is worth it. After that price point, the number of blouses at any one price shrinks dramatically. There is a $20 jump to the next price, with 4 blouses at $118, but then there are 8 at $128. This price could be the next stop sign for women with some more money and higher price tolerance because this is followed by merely 3 at $148, 2 each at $168 and $178, and from there, 2 or 3 each up to the two most expensive blouses that come in at $258 and $368, respectively.

The $368 blouse. A close-up reveals that the rather plain-looking blue fabric actually has many detailed designs on it. But overall, this blouse does not strike me as very special.

If I were casually browsing the clothing racks, I don’t think there is anything particularly special about the two most expensive blouses that would make me guess that they are so much more expensive than the others. I think anyone who would buy such blouses at that price clearly has money to throw away. I definitely see a big shift between the way the clothes look between the $88 to $98 range and perhaps another slight jump from the $128 to $148 range, but beyond that, they all look the same to me. I hypothesize that main reason the clothes get so much more expensive after $148 is probably because of the particular brand name, rather than the craftsmanship of the blouse itself. For example, the $368 one is an Anna Sui blouse. Her Anthropologie clothes are always more expensive than other clothes of the same appeal, which just goes to show what a popular brand name can do for you. Oh God, law school thoughts are suddenly entering my head. I am reminded of the case Wood v. Lady Duff-Gordon, which starts with “The defendant styles herself ‘a creator of fashions.’ Her favor helps a sale.” Eff, do I have to Bluebook the citation now? (Hell no.)

So the point of this segment of this blog entry is pretty much to explain why I was watching the Youtube video, which was because I was reading the blog, which was because I was browsing the Anthro catalog feeling frustrated at the prices, which was because I made a new Anthro purchase, which was because I was out and about in Harvard Square looking for board games at a store I found on Google Maps called Games People Play. I didn’t end up buying the games because they were overpriced, yet I ended up buying a $98 blouse. Oh, the irony.

Anyway, while we’re on the subject on Harvard Square. I wanted to add my secondary purpose for this entry, which is to tell you a bit about my life in law school so far. For now, I want to list the main reasons why the location is nothing short of awesome:

1. I live across the street from a supermarket! I can get fresh ingredients right before I cook, instead of planning what I want to eat weeks ahead of time, hitching a ride to the store, stocking up, and letting some food go bad inevitably.
2. The campus (thank you thank you thank you) is FLAT.
3. Because of 2., I can ride a bike to class in 5 minutes!
4. The law school buildings are all within a 1 or 2 minute walk of each other! No departing one building 15 minutes before my next class to make sure I’m not late.
5. Although I have not yet taken advantage of it, there’s a beach volleyball court right outside the law school dining hall.
6. The law school has its own gym. And oh yea, membership is free.
7. There is a pub in the basement of a school building, a concert hall that looks like a church. Irony and coolness.
8. There are so many squares where you can shop around here. There are probably 10 within biking distance.
9. Harvard Square actually has establishments like a movie theater, a yoga studio, toy shops, Crate and Barrel, multiple book stores, Staples, Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, and a plethora of restaurants, unlike C-town, which pretty much only has the latter.
10. Public transportation: there are T stops within walking distance. The T can bring me anywhere in Boston.
11. Boston, a major and historic city.

Langdell Law Library, which contains the largest law collection in the States.

I will bring you lots more about law school life in general once I have more a concrete feel for what this semester is going to be like. I understand that I’m already five weeks in, but somehow, I still feel like I’ve only gotten my feet wet, and I don’t know what things are going to be like a month from now. Perhaps I feel this way because I still don’t know who my good friends are going to be, how busy I will really be, and because the great fear of final exams has not yet descended upon us 1Ls.

Suffice it to say my general impression so far is that law school is not nearly as bad as people have made it out to be. I feel like I can handle the reading, and I don’t feel like I’m “drowning.” I don’t feel like the military analogies apply (yet). No one in my section has clearly stood out as a gunner (the law school term for a douchey know-it-all), and people still have time for extracurricular activities.

The infamous Professor Kingston

On the other hand, things haven’t been perfect either. It turns out that my apartment is next door to a clinic for recovering heroine addicts. No joke. Not even a little bit. (I wish it were.) I wouldn’t care, except that the people who go to this place enjoy loitering and smoking outside sometimes, and I don’t care to hear their conversations when I’m studying, or worse, sleeping.

I also don’t feel right now like I’m necessarily going to perform better than average on the exams. This is a scary thought for someone who has never really had that problem. I guess this is also how I felt when I first started my undergraduate career, but somehow it seems more pronounced this time. People here are in it for their careers. People here did something amazing to be here. Some people here are brilliant. Of course, I am very happy too that my peers seem highly intelligent and insightful because this is exactly the type of environment that breeds scholars, leaders, and history-makers, etc., etc. I have enjoyed hearing enlightening debates in class and having discussions about economics, law, politics, and science outside of class. However, it is nerve-wracking, too, to feel like I’m not in control of the situation because I’m not at the top of my game. I won’t elaborate excessively on this point because I’m speculating a lot, while it’s still early, and letting 1L nerves get to me.

Every now and then, I try to keep things in perspective by thinking about where exactly I am in my life. My thought process goes something like this.

I was nervous when I first got to high school. The first day of school, I forgot to put in my contact lenses and wore my really old, somewhat useless, glasses instead. I also forgot to put on makeup. I couldn’t see the board. I realized that I didn’t have any classes with my best middle school friends. In the end, I turned out just fine.

I was nervous when I first arrived at college. The day I moved in was my birthday. My parents and I had a big fight. I had to pretend everything was fine for all the new people I was meeting. I started a long-distance relationship. The friends I made during my first semester didn’t end up being my good friends for the rest of college. Some things sucked, but other things didn’t. I turned out just fine.

When I first got to Shanghai for my semester abroad, I was very sick. I was going to the other side of the world, and I was weak, feverish, with swollen lymph nodes and gastrointestinal issues that I’d rather not remember. I had to visit a foreign hospital 6 times. At the same time that I was worried about my health, I was afraid of being a burden on my new friends, of being that girl, the sick girl. But slowly, I got better, I made some good friends and one best friend, and I had the fantastic semester that I had been planning for over a year. In the end, I was fine.

To borrow and abuse some legalese, although my past success is no guarantee of my future success, it rightly creates a reasonable expectation of continued success. In short, if my track record means anything, I think I will also be fine in law school.

Cornily yours,
Your little 1L

Just a Saturday in November

I haven’t updated this blog in too long! I really did have a lot I wanted to say here and there throughout the summer and during the beginning of my senior year, but every time I wanted to write, a voice in the back of my mind told me that this was a way of procrastinating when I had other, more important things to do. After September 26th when I took the LSAT, however, I have had fewer excuses not to write. And so I am back from my blogging hiatus.

Ideally, I’d like people to read my blog and learn about my experiences, but more than anything, I’m blogging for myself. As someone who kept a diary surprisingly consistently for 8 years while growing up, I have missed writing down my thoughts for my future self and saving the memories I am making forever. From now on, even if I don’t have much time to write a lot, I will at least write a short update about what is happening in my life. One thing I have come to realize is that writing something impressive is not nearly as important as writing something at all. If I hold onto my thoughts for too long, more often than not I forget many things that would have been worth jotting down, however briefly.

So what’s happened since this summer?

I started my senior year of college. I got the stomach flu the Tuesday before the Saturday LSAT and ended up in the ER of the local hospital on Thursday. Although I was weak and worn, I decided to take the LSAT anyway. As I had expected, the logic games section was my hardest section, but overall, I felt about as good as I did on the practice tests. Interestingly, what I had dreaded materialized when I turned to the first page of the test and it was the logic games, but that section turned out to be fairly easy compared to the practice ones, and it boosted my confidence about the rest of the test instead of dampening it. When I got to the second logic games section, I realized that the first one had to have been the experimental section, but at least I got a little more practice on the LG before doing that section because of the experimental section.

I received a 171 on the LSAT. I was aiming for a 172, but because I was sick, a 171 is acceptable. I can only wonder what my score would have been if I hadn’t been sick, since I didn’t study during the last 3 days before the test.

I submitted all of my law school applications between October 25th and October 28th. I was extremely happy to finally be done with that part of my life. On November 4th, I received an acceptance email from Duke Law, so at least I know for a fact now that I’m going to law schoo! Woohoo!

Since receiving my acceptance, I have definitely let myself procrastinate on my work more than I have in past years. Friends still insist that I work abnormally hard, but I really wouldn’t say so. Last night, I went rock climbing, played ultimate frisbee, and got free food from my school’s “Battle of the Late Night Foods.” Today, I spent two hours getting dinner with my suitemates from sophomore year, and then spent another hour watching Cinderella II and III (don’t ask, I stumbled upon them on youtube). By the looks of it, I probably won’t get anything done tonight either.

One constant source of procrastination through my college years has been online shopping or window shopping. In fact, I have started putting together an Anthropologie Christmas wishlist. I adore several of their current online items, but I’m also very aware that Anthro is getting pricier every year. I remember days when many blouses could be found for $68, but now most of the blouses are hovering around the $98 to $118 range. Some of this increase may be attributed to inflation or changes in the fabric used in the winter collection, but the prices are beginning to move entirely out of what I can afford! And yet, many of their items are so temptingly and deliciously covetable. I practically drooled over the following items:

Angora Anthropologie skirt with nylon lining.

Isn’t this skirt gorgeous? Not only does it evoke the grace and elegance of a sophisticate with its painted and appliqued floral design and slate-blue background, it is also warm for the winter, and the reviews indicate that it is of high quality.

A cozy, shapely, one-of-a-kind sweater.

This sweater looks perfect for chilly nights, with or without an overcoat. The tapered sleeves are fitted at the forearm to keep cold air out, while the eye-catching floral design adds greater appeal to the already shapely cut. The wooden buttons and wide collar are also cute details that make this sweater unique.

A delicate, feminine top to wear under a cardigan.

This top epitomizes understated elegance with its feminine, soft, pink hue and lovely draping. This would look great with dangling crystal earrings with gold studs, a soft gray cardigan, and wide-leg trousers or jeans.

This piece juxtaposes several neutral, earthy tones in order to confer upon its wearer an unassuming aura of peace, oneness with nature, and dignity–all while keeping her warm and cozy. Not only is it attractive, this cardigan is also versatile. It can be worn with jeans and flats, or with a skirt and tights in the fall, winter, or early spring.

The above are just a few of the many pieces (13) that I have added to my wishlist. They’re all pricey, but I feel like I deserve a little reward for finishing my Fulbright and law school applications and getting into Duke. I honestly haven’t celebrated any of these accomplishments properly. I’m finding myself to be a bit of a homebody, going out very few times this semester, but what can I say–I’m not a drinker and it’s too cold to venture willingly outside after hours. My idea of a relaxing night is having a deep, personal conversation catching up with a friend one-on-one, relaxing with half a glass of wine, and reading a captivating novel in bed until I feel my lids becoming heavy. Perhaps this makes me lame. Perhaps this makes me too old for my age. But, that’s just who I am.

What else should I quickly get into this entry before going to bed? The freshman are looking younger than ever before. I’ve been told that I couldn’t pass for 18 (oh no, am I looking old already?!), and I have been dreaming more than ever of my future in law school. As much as I can’t wait for law school, one of the things I’m looking forward to the most is living in the same house/apartment for three years. As a homebody, I enjoy being able to fully unpack and decorate my living area. However, since I have been moving to a different location on campus every year as a undergraduate, I haven’t fulfilled my need to nest. Although it might be a bit premature to say all of this will happen, I can’t wait to live with my bf, make the new apartment truly homey, and adopt kittens after this year!

That’s one thing I’ve been realizing about myself, over and over–no matter what’s happening at present, I’m always looking forward to the future. This has been true almost as far back as I can remember. In middle school, it was remaking myself at my new school in CT and developing physically (I was always the shortest, skinniest kid in my grade until 6th grade). In high school, I was looking forward to getting my driver’s license, making my own money, and going off to college. In college, it was getting to know all these new people, taking exciting classes, and studying abroad. Now, it’s going to law school and the things I mentioned before. And I’m already looking forward to having my own house and raising beautiful children 5-10 years into the future. I’ve even started a word document for things to remember when raising my kids.

Pretty much, my outlook on life in the past 10 years has been that life keeps getting better and better. I like that about myself. Let’s hope this continues.

Vasovagal Syncope and Other More Pronounceable Happenings.

So WordPress randomly causes Firefox to shut down for me sometimes. Just thought I’d throw that out there, since it just happened to me for the third time just now. I’m using Internet Explorer for blogging from now on. It’s just too annoying dealing with it.

Anyway, I’ve had so much to write in the past couple of weeks, but I’ve been too lazy to write them all down. (I have, at least, jotted down in a Word doc about what I should write about when I get around to it.) Anyway, I am writing now because I wanted to let you know that I fainted for the first time this past Wednesday.

My left lymph node in my neck has been swollen now for what’s going on the third week, with no explanation in sight. The first time I went to the doctor’s for it, she said it was probably related to a peridontal infection, although she didn’t see anything wrong in my mouth. She prescribed antibiotics. A week later, the swelling had not gone down, and I still had no other symptoms. So this past Wednesday, I went back. The doctor said the next step was to take a blood test. She already knew I didn’t like shots (a few weeks ago I had grudgingly gotten 3 shots during one visit in preparation for my trip abroad), but she also knew I could handle it. So she drew 15 ml of blood while I looked away. When she withdrew the needle, I suddenly felt extremely woozy. She asked, “How do you feel?” I said, “I feel a little light-headed,” but then again, people who know me know that since I have low-ish blood pressure that happens to me sometimes when I stand up fast.

This was different. The next thing I knew, I was waking up from a dream. I was dazed and confused when I opened my eyes and saw a Chinese lady in front of me, staring at me. My first thought was, “Who is this person?” Only then did I remember I was at the doctor’s office. She helped me up over to another room, where I lay down. I told her my hands felt numb, and when she felt them she said they were cold. Thinking about how that was probably due to lack of blood flow made me feel queasy again. I asked for some food, since I remembered that people are supposed to eat something after donating blood.

The doctor left me alone for several minutes to recoup with some Goldfish and warm water. I still had this icky feeling of being drained and thinking about it made it worse, but how could I not think about it? Then out of no where tears came to my eyes. I guess I just felt overwhelmed by the situation. It doesn’t take too much to make me cry, particularly in self-pity. But I always feel much better and more determined afterwards.

When the doctor came back in, I asked her what happened while she took my blood pressure. She called the fainting “a vasovagal reaction” and asked me if I’ve been stressed out, saying that might be part of it. She also said I really needed to eat more salty foods, like chips and pretzels. On the bright side, I’m probably one of the only people (in America) to hear that one! My blood pressure was only 70/50, so I laid down for another half hour before I left.

That experience was pretty unpleasant overall, and now my parents think I’m extremely delicate. They even goaded me into calling an aunt of mine who is a practitioner of traditional chinese medicine (TCM) to explain my malaise and ask what I should do.

I looked up “vasovagal syncope” on Wikipedia and other sources, and they seem to suggest that it’s just a fancy name for “fainting,” not an explanation for it. Among the reasons it can happen are a phobia of blood and having a needle withdrawn from a vessel. I thought it was more of a physiological reaction than a psychosomatic one, but maybe the latter is what it was. I mean I find blood to be extremely unpleasant (I cringe at posters for blood donations, even though I feel like I should do it), but vasovagal syncope has never happened to me before.

I wonder if reverse placebo effects or reverse psychosomatic effects are possible. For example, if I am extremely scared of blood and that causes fainting, which I had absolutely no control over, could I use the knowledge that I fainted because of that fear in order to prevent fainting? Kind of along the lines of a placebo pill not working it’s magic because you know it’s just a placebo? I mean, I see no physical reason why reverse placebo effects shouldn’t cancel out the placebo effect. There’s no reason why your brain could only carry you far enough to trick you one way, but not another.

Anyway, two other recent happenings: I got a new blouse from Anthropologie! And, I got a new haircut!

Friends of mine (at least those who care at all about fashion) know I am kind of obsessed with Anthropologie. I discovered it freshman year and since then, I’ve slowly but surely been buying more pieces and incorporating them into my wardrobe. I now have about 8 or 9 items of Anthro clothing. I love the fact that the clothes are so unique, aesthetically pleasing, and not too “trendy,” by which I mean something that’s “in” now, but has nothing of substance to keep it “in” by the end of the season. Anthropologie clothes make you feel like you’re wearing a piece of history and often another culture, since many of their items have an “ethnic” vibe. You could say, “Well that’s contrived,” but I think Anthropologie does it in a very tasteful and understated way. Sometimes you look at an item and you just think, “That must be what someone from Sleepy Hollow would wear” or “That’s what I would wear if I owned a home in the country.” I love going online and looking at the catalog pics and envisioning the fantasy world the models appear to inhabit.

I agree with many shoppers at Anthropologie that the prices are exorbitant and gratuitous, and the quality of the clothes does not warrant the price. However, I must also say that you will find this to be true at many other mid-upper-end shops for women’s clothing. At some point, you need to recognize what you are primarily paying for: the fashion, not the utility of the clothes. And at least at Anthropologie you’re not paying inordinate prices for a lame shirt advertising the name of the store on it, like you would be at Abercrombie.

This is the Prairie Breeze Blouse I bought (and am wearing now):

(Disclaimer: If you object to copyrighted material being posted, feel free to let me know, and I will gladly remove it.)

Isn’t it darling? I’ve already gotten compliments. I have to say though, when I got home I realized I have quite a few florals already, but it’s too adorable to return and florals are nice anyway. I hope florals aren’t becoming my new pink though…people who knew me in high school know I wore way too much of that. What can I say? It made dressing easy– everything matched.

As for the haircut, I’m quite satisfied with it. It seems like I can’t get a haircut without being dramatic about it. This time, I got about 6 inches off. The last three times I got haircuts, I also got at least that length cut off. I guess it’s partially because I’m lazy about getting them, but I also like the big change I see when it goes from being really long to being short.

This time, I was seeking a cut that would be easy to keep, that would make me look more mature, and that would frame my face well. I ended up with kind of  a smooth and straight Victoria Beckham-esque haircut , if that helps you paint a picture. It’s a sideswept cut that goes down to about an inch longer than my chin, with the ends bending slightly inwards toward the face.

I figured I wanted my hair cut before I go to China, since I wanted to go with the hair that my new friends are supposed to get used to. That, and I wasn’t too keen on getting a fob haircut at a Chinese salon. Haha.

I think I’ll split the rest of what I wanted to write into another entry, since this one’s getting long.

Verily yours,

Dorothy