not a shop-a-holic.

Sure, we have a Cub Food's grocery store just 5 blocks off campus. Sure, we have a Wal*Mart a few miles off campus. Sure, we have a local pharmacy a 5 minute walk of campus.

But what about the other stuff?

I wore a uniform in middle school and a uniform through my first three years of high school so when I hit college I realized that color coordination is an okay thing. At Beloit is doesn't matter quite as much but I also found that my shopping was squished into short periods of time. My week-long mid-term breaks are centered around when I can get to Downtown Santa Cruz to buy a new pair of pants and another pair of leggings. When my sneakers start to fall apart on me through the snow and rain I pray they don't disintegrate before I can buy a fresh pair.

That's where the internet comes in handy. Amazon. Ebay. Threadless. Old Navy. Whatever we can click our mouses on.

Once I've learned my shoe size or pants preference for specific brands it's a breeze. Sometimes I even wing it and guestimate...

Recently, my favorite shoe company has become Simple Shoes. I love my black Satire's, my Joe Curren Satire's, and my darkearth Tomatoe's. Made from recycled plastic bottles, truck tires, organic cotton and water based glues, these shoes are durable and comfy.

Another favorite of myself and many students on campus for all our t-shirt needs is Threadless. Not only do we wear holes in these American Apparel and Fruit of the Loom Tees but some organizations even adopt them for themselves! Last semester, the fraternity Phi Kappa Psi used the "Communist Party" shirt!

Threadless recently had a $9 sale and my friends and I hit it up FAST. I already had three shirts from another sale but two more can't hurt...right?

And coming up are the Greek formals. I've been invited to go to Alpha Sigma Tau's Spring Formal with my friend Allison. Woo! Excuse to buy something I've been eying for a while: a red swing dress from Daddy-O's. It arrived yesterday and looks fabulous. I can get lots of mileage out of the dress, too.

But don't think it's just clothes. It's also strange things. Mattress pads, loose leaf teas, wigs, reference books, posters, appliances and music.

By the way, I'm waiting for two albums to arrive from the UK.... Foal's Antidotes and Reverend and the Maker's State of Things. They're cheaper to import from Amazon UK rather than Amazon US.




OH! Did I mention...I'm going to see CHEAP TRICK AND JOAN JETT on Saturday!