“When life gives you rainy days, wear cute boots and jump in the puddles.” — Unknown
I’m not a fan of rainy days. My hair does bad things. My feet get wet. And no matter what the temperature is outside, it always feels a little bit colder when it’s raining (to me anyway) — especially when you get back inside the air conditioning. Brrr!
But a few weeks ago, I decided to better prepare myself for rainy days. I already owned numerous umbrellas, but as far as true rain gear goes, my closet was noticeably lacking. First, I bought myself a cute little rain slicker that not only has a bright, pep-me-up color for dark days, it also folds up into its own pocket and makes for easy packing. It’s fun, it’s colorful, it keeps me dry, and best of all, gets compliments every time I wear it.
My second and best rain gear purchase, though, is my pair of Hunter rain boots. Not only are they tall, and blue, and waterproof, but they also have sparkles! That’s right, sparkles. Oh, I looked at the shiny black boots, and even tried them on, but the blue and the sparkles kept calling my name. “April, these boots will look so good on you,” “April, think how fun you’ll feel wearing sparkly boots in the rain,” they said (in my head anyway.)
Not everyone agreed. One of my friends said, “What will you do if you don’t wear a blue outfit?” My reply, “I’ll wear them anyway.” (If you’ve ever watched an episode of What Not to Wear, you’ll know that blue is a neutral and can be worn with anything.) And if you know me at all, you’re aware that I do like to mix things up with my wardrobe.
And I’m so glad I bought them! Yes they keep my feet dry, and yes they’re utilitarian, but they’re also fun, and comfortable, and actually make me look forward to rainy days so I can wear my boots. In the past, I took great pains to avoid stepping in puddles, and sometimes even walked through my work parking lot barefoot, carrying my shoes in my hand to avoid ruining them after a summer storm.
New me has a different rainy day attitude. Puddles? Yes please! I get to slosh right through them in my blue boots with sparkles.
