15 July 2002

K.T. and I were in Claire's, because I'd noticed they had a stand of nickle-free earrings for sensitive ears.

I've had trouble with metal allergies since high school. I can't count the number of times I've had my earlobes or fingers break out in hives because I tried to wear cheap jewelry. Or even good jewelry that was alloyed with nickel or rhodium to make it shinier.

I paid over $400 for titanium frames for my last pair of glasses. That was nice... for almost two years. But a month or so ago, I breaking out with little (thankfully near-invisible) itchy patches where the glasses touch my temple just above the ear. (I've got new glasses on order. Should be here in the next two weeks. All plastic this time, damn it.)

But just lately, I've taken to actually wearing earrings again - not just leaving my little silver studs in 24/7, but the oddly-shaped, dangly earrings I haven't worn for years except for special occasions.

But I was getting a little tired of the lack of variety. I only had about four pairs that I liked and could wear on anything like a regular basis. So I thought I'd give these nickle-free earrings a try.

They were cheap, after all - four or five dollars a pair. I thought I'd buy two pairs, and that would be plenty to let me know if I could actually use these or not.

While I was pondering my choices, K.T. found an adorable pair of rhinestone cherry earrings. They were cute, but I didn't think I'd be able to wear them often, so I put them back.

Finally, I made my two selections and took them to the register. "Buy two, get one free!" chirped the cashier.

I'm just convinced it's K.T.'s fault. Somehow.

I spent the whole damn weekend trying to convince Kevil or Zoya, one, to tell me a specific story. They kept putting me off and putting me off and putting me off.

Finally, around dinnertime on Sunday, I stumbled across a previous attempt at telling this story. It had a couple of good moments, and a couple of really awful bits - but it got them talking. I finally started writing. There's still a lot more of the story to tell, but I think I've made a good beginning.

This entry is taking me forever to write. Why, might you ask? Aside from the usual Monday slowness, that is?

Well... It seemed like a good idea at the time...

(No, I don't actually validate. But that may become my project for the next few days...)

--Liz