a day in the life of b.shigley

Every day seems to be a different adventure full of different emotions, sometimes dealing with emotions from the day before only this time the emotions are a little different with a  new perspective. Sometimes I really wish I could just turn off my brain and not think. 

People tell me about meditating and how they get to this point where they really aren’t thinking about ANYTHING at all. What the heck? How can you not think about nothing? I really have tried, but a thought sneaks in there and that leads to another thought and then bam, flood gates are open and the thoughts keep coming in. 

Sigh…

I’ve been thinking a lot about life and the fragility of life and last night, when I wanted to read, I instead sat at the bar at my home away from home (The Rooster & Moon), buried myself into writing a letter and then, with permission from one of the cafe’s proprietor’s, wrote “You are loved” and “You are beautiful” on all of the silverware wraps.

Maybe the best way to cope with sadness and being aware that life is so fragile is to just spread the love even more and let people know how much they are loved, even if you don’t even know them. 

it’s been a long time since my last meaningful blog post and so much has happened! since i really last sat down and wrote, i moved in with my boyfriend! so, i’ve been in transition for the past few weeks. i always told myself that i wasn’t leaving my apartment unless i completely fell in love or moved out of the country.  and, well… quite frankly, i’m in love!

i said goodbye to my cute capital hill apartment and hello to the new Browndie Palace. although i’ve traded in my solo apartment with tons of closet space for a 2 foot closet, i feel so at home. at first i freaked out. 2 feet of closet space?  james was ready to rearrange the storage room to make it my closet but i moved over a rolling rack and voila! closet situation fixed! my handbag collection is a little too much for the closet so we turned the ice box into my handbag closet!  perfect! who needs ice anyway :)

one adjustment is now having to commute to work. i am no longer 7 blocks away from Fashion Denver but 6 whole miles!  i can either a) drive or b) take the bus or c)ride my bike. so far i’ve done a & b.  also, i’m no longer in my capital hill neighborhood.  i’m on the cusp of Aurora and Stapleton. no more cozy little whole in the wall bars but either big box corpo places or east east colfax places.  it’s an adjustment for sure. however, i did discover a great little ghetto fabulous shop just blocks from me. that’s a plus :)

i love being in a house.  james bought this house 5 years ago. when i first met him, it seemed empty. it looked like he just moved in. over the chilly winter, we started nesting, hanging up his artwork, getting furniture for his house, beautiful dining room table and chairs, couch and love seat, shelves.  his house became a home. and then we had the idea to move in together and within 3 days of deciding that, i was moving my capital hill lifestyle over to our Browndie Palace. and voila! here i am!

i shall conclude this post and sign off in happiness.  

I’ve been working at my computer for the past few hours, setting up the week so the little administrative stuff is done so I can focus on the bigger picture for our next week. I’ve been faced with a little bit of negativity and misunderstanding that’s bothered me for the past 24 hours, but then I realized, that there really is nothing I can do. I have to move on and move past it, and let go.  

That’s when I thought it would be a good idea to step out into the raindrops and breathe, letting the cool air wash away any bad vibes that I feel. I wish I could meditate for longer periods of time. My attention span is short and my feet got cold out in the rain, so I came in.

JB is feeling a lot better and not contagious with his flu-like symptoms and it’s nice to be back in his loving arms. It’s also a wonderful feeling to be with somebody who understands me and who I can talk to about anything.

I’m grateful for wonderful, healthy, strong relationships that are full of love and support. I’m grateful for friendships that inspire me, guide me, and provide me insight into life.  

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On other notes, we went couch shopping today. There are many things one must look for in finding the perfect couch.

-Comfortability (obviously)

-Snuggle-ability 

-Wearability

-Softness

I think we found the perfect couch for James’ house! A good couch is the staple to any living room and it’s an investment.  

I remember moving into my very own apartment 5 years ago, without a boyfriend and finally living on my own.  The first thing I did was go out and buy a big beautiful red couch. In my 20’s and early 30’s, I’ve always lived with my boyfriend at the time.  And now, in my mid 30’s and completely in love, I appreciate my own space! A place where I can go that’s all mine. Of course, I love to share it with the people that I love, but what it comes down to is it is my safe haven where I can be me.  I appreciate having our own spaces and simultaneously, I love sharing our spaces. 

This is my big red couch that I bought 5 years ago. A representation of my independence. 

Wheeewy. I’m sleepy and want to be rested for a productive week ahead. I shall close by saying, that this was a successful Sunday. Full of relaxation, love, productivity, and couches. 

I’ve been a busy bee over here! Our Fashion Denver Showroom & Boutique is all set up and feels like new! Here are some snaps I took with my camera.  Yahooo! It feels good to have that project complete! I’m happy that I could be patient with myself during the process. Sometimes I get impatient and want to give up, but I did not do that :)

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

Wheeew! What a day. What a week. What a month. What a year. What a decade!  As you may or may not know, I’ve been going through some serious entrepreneur growing pains, learning to stay a float in this economy, shifting my business model, taking myself more seriously as a business owner, and understanding my value.  Along with all of this has come some serious tears of frustration mixed with feeling grateful for such an amazing group of people that help me through the “Entre-Maneur” (I need to tradmark this I think). 

Well, last week, mid week, while my assistant went to lunch, I was just not feeling the space in the showroom. I felt like things were stale and hodge podged together. Not because of any merchandising gone bad but because I was just so over seeing the same things in the same places.  By the time she came back from lunch, I was ready to start all over.

We spent the afternoon moving everything to the back, taking everything off of the walls, and basically, transforming our lovely boutique into a huge tornado of fashion. Things were everywhere with no real organization to them. And of course, that was the day people felt like shopping. I’d apologize for the mess and they didn’t mind. They’d sift through the piles and find something and buy it.

Then last night while slightly buzzed I was straightening up the chaos and had somehow managed to move things into a maze.  I thought it would be a really great idea to make Fashion Denver like a carnival ride. You walk in, take a ticket, and wander through the maze of fashion.

I woke up this morning wondering, “What in the world was I thinking?” Note to self, don’t drink before organizing.  Anyway, I realized that what I really want is a boutique that is organized, simplified, streamlined, stylish, contemporary AND NOT CRAFTY.

Justin Martinez, an amazing interior / architect /entrepreneur / designer, came up with a color theme for the shop and sent me sketches and paint names and where each paint color should go. I bought the paint yesterday and today, VOILA! A friend of a friend’s came down and finished all of the painting. Fashion Denver now has color! I felt the energy already shift with each shade. 

I spent a few hours with my friend Sierra who helped me figure out the layout a little bit more clearly. We went to Sak’s Fifth Avenue’s “Going out of business store fixture sale”. Mannequins were still expensive and racks and mirrors were over $200.00.. out of my budget at the moment.  But I did manage to leave with a great printing calculator, a ream of paper, and 2 nice trash cans.  The calculator was on my list of things to get today and I didn’t really think I’d be finding it at Saks!

I left the shop at 8:30, tired, a wee bit hung over, and super inspired to make some more progress.

It’s interesting how I’ve wanted to give the shop a makeover for quite some time, and just like that.. BAM! I did it because I was fed up with it. Now things are in disarray and I feel a little overwhelmed with the project, but gosh darn it! I’m so glad I am doing it! 

I think that it also helps that my beautiful boyfriend has been out of town because it really allows me to focus on this project.  I know if he was in town, he’d be helping me, but somehow it feels good to have done this on my own.  To have thought it out, manifested it, and made the change that I’ve been wanting to see.  

I wish I had cable right now so I could curl up on the couch, watch Saturday Night Live and fall asleep. I also wish I had a cat that could curl up on the couch with me and fall asleep in my arms.