I can see clearly now the rain is gone

Yesterday was the first nice day in what felt like forever. Technically we'd had only one and a half truly gloomy days in a row, but the days preceding that were a mix of storms and cold temperatures. It had barely topped 80 degrees for over a week, and that's too cold for summer in my world! So really, yesterday's celebratory outfit is less about the lack of clouds and more about the 87-degree forecast.

I've been waiting to wear this dress for almost a whole year, having bought it sometime early last fall during a 50%-off-dresses sale at the thrift store. I didn't find anything of value that day except this dress, but this dress was worth all the effort! Look at all the colors! All the sparkles! It was practically made for me, and, the best thing about it? It was only 4.99$...before the discount!

It was such a catch, such a glorious embodiment of unadulterated joy, that I felt like I couldn't wear it just any day—I had to save it for a day when I truly felt good, and would have the time to give it the full attention it deserves. So that's how I somehow made it most of the way through summer without wearing one of the most exciting pieces in this year's wardrobe.

Not any more though! Today, with the sun peeking out and the temperatures warming up, and no immediate disasters weighing me down (it's been a rough two months for me), It finally feels like a day worthy of this dress!

I'm wearing it with a pair of shoes that also have a story to go with them! I bought these sandals last summer as part of an ongoing effort to get some versatile pale pink sandals. The glitter jellies were nice, while they lasted—this summer when I got them out, they had developed a toxic chemical stink that I could not remove no matter what I soaked them in. I finally threw them in the trash. I replaced them with a pair of glitter jelly flats that I have yet to wear (they just arrived a week ago), but sparkly is not always the right look (case in point: the glitter jellies did not enhance this outfit, which failed in so many ways, I'm still embarrassed I ever wore it, let alone posted it for posterity). I've got the pastel pink pumps with the grey tips, but they are too wooly to wear in summer. There are also my recently acquired millennial pink lace-up sandals, which were the perfect shade, but were also too big for me and gave me blisters—now that they've had their moment of glory, I probably won't wear them again. The sandals I'm wearing today are bubble-gum pink (somewhere between a powdery pastel pink and a saturated magenta). That wasn't quite what I had in mind when I ordered them (they looked paler online), but it's what I got. I have to say they were the perfect partner for this crazy-colored dress!

But now that I've worn these shoes a grand total of twice, I'll probably be letting them go as well, meaning the search for my perfect millennial pink sandal still continues. If I could find them at last, it would truly be a bright bright (bright bright) sunshiney day!