Sunday - Day of Rest of Day of Shopping?

But not on Sundays

Germany's version of the Supreme Court - Bundesverfassungsgericht in Karlsruhe decided today that Berlin should not allow shopping on Sundays during the advent season because it goes against the constitution. The church argues that Sundays should be a day of rest, God's day.

I am fascinated by this decision because I've had the experience of shops being closed on Sundays when I was in Germany. On one hand, it was pretty nice to enjoy a quiet day. The little pastry shop around the corner was open briefly on Sundays so that people could pick up fresh bread, but it closed around noon but overall, Sundays were relatively quiet in Frankfurt. However, because of this, Saturday evenings were all the more hectic since everyone tried to fit in last minute grocery shopping before the stores closed. I learned very quickly to avoid Saturday evening shopping at all costs. The court's decision in favor of the church is indicative of how traditional Germany is. Something like this would not survive in the US because American popular culture is focused on consumerism, commerce and making money.

Although I'm not a huge fan of shopping, I think people should have the option of choosing to shop or choosing to relax on Sundays. Let's assume for argument's sake that you forgot to buy some milk for a recipe you wanted to make on Sunday. Well, you'd have to scrap that plan because you can't buy milk on Sunday. Grocery stores are all shut.

Closet space

Closet space

I walked by a Gap store this morning and thought of a blog topic - fashion!
Actually what really inspired me was that I didn't like any of the styles they were presenting on the mannequins. I think the style that's popular now is anything that's a throwback to the 80's.

You see skinny jeans, slouchy tops that fall off the shoulder, long sweaters, flimsy dresses with frills and ruffles and the list goes on and on. I'm not saying that people can't wear that stuff. They do whether I like it or not. ;-) I just wouldn't like it on me.

I like to dress simply, comfortably and casually whenever possible. However, if casual clothing isn't an option, then my clothes should at least have clean lines and structure. No flimsy stuff or ruffles if I can help it!

In the long run, I think my strategy will pay off because if I invest in classic clothing that does not follow the trends, then it will be timeless and I'll always be in style. That's the theory at least. While I definitely don't think I'm a slave to fashion, I am very particular about my clothes because they can be an extension of my personality. My shopping trips are generally very brief because I can go into any given store, get an overview of the clothes that are being sold and I will know whether I am interested in anything.

Some reliable brands that I trust in the States are J. Crew, Banana Republic and Ann Taylor occasionally for business clothes, Land's End, Eddie Bauer and REI for casual wear. Some other miscellaneous stores I may wander into include Express, Zara, or United Colors of Benetton.

One of the hardest things to do in Germany was to shop for clothes because I was not really familiar with the various brands they had over there. In Frankfurt usually just went to Esprit. After I told a colleague of my shopping woes and style preferences, she recommended I check out a brand called Marc o Polo. It has some nice stuff, but it's really expensive.

P.S. - The photo above is of my closet. The only thing that stands out is the red Mandarin collar thing I bargained for in Beijing. Not sure on what occasion I can wear it though. Halloween? Ha ha !

Muffin top and other misc thoughts

Muffin top: (noun)
Literally, this refers to the top of a muffin. In the context of popular culture, "muffin top" figuratively refers to the flesh that pours over the top when women wear extremely tight jeans. Personally, I don't understand the appeal, but to each his own. Anything goes in San Francisco.

Keeping in line with random thoughts... this morning as I was sitting in the classroom one hour before Italian class was to start, I was wondering why some languages like Italian and German among others give inanimate objects genders, while English just uses the word neutral word "the". This is fascinating. I'm sure a linguist would be able to answer this.

The picture above was taken in the new Westfield shopping center on Market Street.