yesterday I was Mrs. Landingham, today I am all over the place

Okay, so, I'm hoping to not be killed by a drunk driver in the second season, but I am totally Mrs. Landingham in my day to day office life.

I did bring my camera to work yesterday and I also did NOT take a single picture.
And I brought my camera to the scooter parking area intending to take pictures of each bike and tell their stories. Unfortunately, we went to an earlier train and none of the regular motorcycles or scooters were there yet. No pictures. Then I worked late and all the bike riders had gone home.
No pictures.



Here. Here is a picture of Mrs. Landingham whom I have the same JOB as. (We have nothing in common in real life as I have not lost twin sons in the Vietnam War on Christmas Eve [dear god what a plot line] nor am I a widow.)
She is the personal secretary to President Josiah Bartlet, and to a large extent controls access by the other characters to the President. She often addresses the President in a direct, abrupt maternal way that would be considered inappropriate by other members of the White House staff.
I do try not to address anyone in a direct, abrupt maternal way, but you know what? I'll bet if you asked around my office, people would say I do.
Okay, but I'm rarely inappropriate. Except for a small, very small, number of occasions.

Yesterday (let's change the topic, shall we?) two work-friends and I walkedwalkedwalked to a noodle joint for some lunch. The air had a crispness to it and though it was warm in the sun one could wear long sleeves. The noodles were great and after lunch we decided to walk through J Crew. I sort of want every single thing in JCrew right now and I blame it on back-to-school shopping.
I'm not talking about back-to-school shopping for my boys, I mean for ME.
I think I was well into my 20's when that yearly shopping trip stopped happening.
My mom and I would set out in the morning with one or two destinations in mind.
I can remember my excitement building when we reached certain landmarks on the road.
We went to Orbach's and Lord And Taylor mostly.
She would purchase outfits for me without restraint, or so it seemed to me. I'm sure she had limits but I never was made aware of them.
I could have whatever clothing suited me, boho one year, prim and Victorian the next, and we were harsh critics of the garments from the time I was small.
We'd shop until we were tired then have lunch (at The Bird Cage, in which there were real birds) and look over the bags of clothes and talk about the outfits and discuss what else might be needed: a blouse for that skirt, tights for that dress....
On the way home in the car I'd sit in the back and tell her what we'd ended up with - by then we had probably forgotten about one item or another and we'd get excited all over again about a particular pair of pants or a dress. (I would have researched in magazines to see what was popular and surely would have gotten at least one maxi dress or pleated skirt or pair of bell bottoms.)
When we got home she'd start dinner and my dad would arrive and I'd lay everything out on the floor in outfits and he'd admire our treasures.
And then a couple of weeks later, the weather would feel like it does now, and even though it might be 80 degrees in the afternoon, I'd be wearing my fall clothes. Lord knows, I'd never be wearing my summer clothes to school.

So, anyway, walking through JCrew yesterday, with two friends, we each picked up and sighed over several items. None of us are in a position for back-to-school shopping but it seemed, as we touched the gorgeous embellished tee shirts and caressed and admired all the cords and wool pants, as though we each remembered that feeling of having new things to start the year.