Clearance Sales and $1 Movies, aka, The World of Unemployment

When you're as lazy as I can be, you tend to postpone running errands until you have so many that you're gone all day.  Yesterday was one of those days, and I can gladly say that I successfully accomplished all three missions: flail over The Social Network, buy a new top and a little black dress, and have a fun dinner date with friends.

Since I've been unemployed since last May, I've had to severely limit my spending on books and DVDs.  The Social Network was released last week, and I've spent every day since gushing over the clips and quotes from all the glorious special features; however, I was very good and didn't buy it.  Instead, I went to the $1 movie theater and saw it on the big screen again.  I loved it just as much the second time around, and the fact that I knew every twist and turn meant that I didn't embarrass myself with incessant giggling.  One other point worth mentioning: I was the youngest person in the theater by A LOT.  Everyone else was at least sixty years old, so I kept wondering why they were seeing a movie about facebook.  I mean, at its heart it's really the story of a friendship betrayed (the friendship of HOT YOUNG ACTORS, that is), but surely understanding the social media context leads to a greater appreciation.

When the movie ended, I had two and a half hours to kill before I was going to meet my friends for dinner.  I've been trying to bulk up my wardrobe with professional clothes, so obviously I decided to go shopping for the one thing that I can buy.  I went to Burlington Coat Factory for the first time, and I have to say I was terribly disappointed, mostly by the horrible organization (if I'm looking in the "medium" section, I expect there to be mostly medium sizes, not a jumble of everything!).

My disappointment was short-lived, though, because I hit the jackpot at TJ Maxx.  I went in on a mission to find a simple long-sleeved black shirt (the one I currently wear with skirts is several years old), and I found one on the first rack.  With time to spare, I wandered over to the dress section, and I founded the cutest little black dress there.  And it was in the clearance section to boot!  It's a short-sleeve dress with a scooped neck and a bell skirt, originally priced for $129, and I bought it for only $20.  I tried it on again at home with a skinny red belt, and it is GORGEOUS.  Best dress I've ever owned.

After TJ Maxx, I headed down to Alabaster to meet my friends.  This week, we went the cheap route and ate at Chick-fil-A, but no one complained because on the plus side, we got to eat at Chick-fil-A! We had to break apart right after dinner, rather than meandering around the bookstore like we usually do, but it's so nice to have free time to see each other that none of us minded.