Post 100: An ode to my better half

For my 100th post, I had an entry written that made some reflections on this blog in general and some other navel-gazing junk. The gist of it all was that despite adding to the overall bloat of the internet with yet another self-indulgent men's style (and whatever else) blog, it made me happy writing it.

And really, that's what it's all about.

Instead, I've decided to talk a little bit about my wife for this 100th post, who, if I go back to the beginning, is the reason this blog even exists (for better or worse). She's influenced and changed me in more positive ways that I can possibly write in this entry.

So, I'll limit her influence to things that pertain to this blog. If you jump in the wayback machine, one of the first entries was a really brief rundown on my style interests to date. If you want to skip clicking that link, the basics are; I jumped around from one thing to another, and when I first met my wife I was kind of a aesthetic ascetic (with one memorable pair of shoes held together with duct tape).

If you can imagine it as a movie scene, picture a beautiful young woman walking into a room wearing vintage clothes with the faint scent of vetiver drifting off her while a gawky, awkward fellow shuffles and stammers and tries to somehow catch her attention. Amazingly, he does so, and after a long distance, over-the-internet fueled courtship, they finally get together. To add one more cliche layer to it all, the fellow realizes that when you have someone to dress nicely for, it becomes even more fun to do so.

I should mention that in addition to thrifting and a love of vintage clothes, my wife is also into textile history and preservation, and even has her masters degree in the subject. She's helped teach me to distinguish different fabrics by how they feel and even showed me how to determine unknown fibers by lighting them with a match and watching how they burn (and how it smells when they do so).

And really, as I mentioned above, that's the least of what she's taught me. We met just over 10 years ago and have been pretty much inseparable since. We have a happy house with two dogs, a big garden and a baby girl on the way.


She also puts up with all my silly habits, including writing this little blog, so the least I can do is dedicate #100 to her. The few of you who read this blog already know how awesome she is, and the rest of you will just have to take my word.

If you need further proof, check out this photo of her as a 12 year old. And no, her outfit was not a school uniform, that's just how she rolled.


Better half, all the way.