Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Fun With Proportions

I had a lot of fun with the proportions in this outfit. With the harness fitted up high on my ribcage and the long expanse of dress pattern as a backdrop, my torso was elongated. This combination had the potential to make my legs look shorter, but adding the platform heels and the near-matching tights elongated my legs and brought everything back into balance.

This outfit was remarkably comfortable, since there was nothing constricting my waist. Because of the softness of the leather and the adjustable laces in the back, the harness can flex as I breathe and yet still add structure and shape to an outfit. I love how it makes this simple floral dress look like a dirndl.

Dress: Noa Noa
Harness: Audra Jean
Tights: Foot Traffic, via Sock Dreams
Shoes: John Fluevog




Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Weekday Height

Wearing this outfit made me realize how much I've gotten used to wearing heels at work, because I felt much shorter than normal in these sneakers. However, I wear these and other low-heeled or flat shoes all the time on the weekends, and it feels quite natural. Since Mark and I are about the same height, I find that wearing tall heels makes it difficult to walk together, because as it is my legs are longer than his and the additional height really throws our proportions off. Not only that, but on the weekends we're typically just walking down to the farmer's market or going to grab a casual meal, so heels aren't really in order.

Do you have a weekday height and a weekend one? Is it influenced by who you spend time with?

Dress: Suzabelle
Belt: Lazaro
Leggings: Foot Traffic, via
Shoes: Simple

Monday, June 28, 2010

Unfussy



I can't even remember what was going on the day I wore this outfit, but I do recall that I wanted something simple and unfussy, perhaps in contrast to how complex my outfit was the first time I wore this cardigan. Unfussy to me means several things: the outfit should be comfortable so that I'm not always fidgeting in it; it should have very few layers or components so that it doesn't require frequent repositioning; and it should be well suited to any weather, meaning that it should have a warmer layer that's easily removable if it gets too warm. This one fit the bill: the cords have a nice relaxed fit, the shirt is plenty long enough to cover my midsection without having to adjust or tug at it, the shoes are one of the most comfy pairs I own, and the cardigan can be thrown on or off without even having to mess with buttons or a belt. Perfect!

Cardigan: All Saints
Shirt: Just Angels
Pants: Marlowe
Shoes: Fly London

Saturday, June 26, 2010

40 and Fabulous

The San Francisco Gay Pride Parade is turning 40 this weekend! I'm so proud that our city hosts the largest parade of its sort in the country, and one of the most famous and well-attended in the world. Here's wishing a joyous, fun, and safe pride celebration to all the participants. The weather is gorgeous this weekend, so come on out and show your PRIDE!  

Friday, June 25, 2010

Double Down on Adorable

Halloo, friends! I haven�t forgotten about you � and hope you�ve not forgotten about me! Thanks to Audi � who�s so very patient with me (and a genius with the camera), I have bunches of outfit photos and ideas to come. Plans to post more frequently now and again are in the works, but let�s step into the [not so] way-back machine for a moment:

My very good friend, Miss Amanda Willis, and I spent a fantastic April weekend in Las Vegas � for Viva Las Vegas: 4 amazing days filled with 50s silhouettes, burlesque shows, classic cars, rockabilly betties, and pompadour-ed paramours.

I�m telling you guys � the hair and outfits were AMAZING. I�d checked out the photo gallery before I left, and decided I needed to step up my game. Apparently, this translated (in my head), into making a dress.

My seamstress skills are rudimentary at best (though improving!), and having no actual pattern, I used this cotton swing dress from pinupgirlclothing as a basis:

Yes, that photo was taken in a bathroom. What? It's KLASSY!!

Several yards of brown paper, a small pile of sidewalk chalk, and many miscalculations later, I wound up with this:




























Something I like best about the 50s look � hourglass is queen. The silhouette is particularly flattering for those of us with a �[ahem]� generous bosom. A style that accents my waist, making the most out of those assets is one I can fully embrace. Plus, optional bonus: floofy petticoats! You know how we love to layer.

One of my favourite online shops, Stop Staring, had a booth at the convention � neither Amanda nor I could resist the unique opportunity to try on garments in person � or their VLV-bargain prices, and I scored a couple super hott wiggle dresses which may make their appearance on the blog at some point.

Let me tell you, these ladies know curves.





























White sweater: borrowed
Dress: made by Jess
Silver heels: ? TJMaxx long long ago
Parasol: 5 bux at the car show (it was HOT out there)
Apologies for the fuzzy photos � my camera (and photoshop) skills are due for a tune-up � also, some guy at the car show helped out by cutting off our feet.

xo
Jess

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Key to Success



This was such a comfy outfit, with the soft, stretchy layers and elastic belt. Even my finicky feet were comfortable in the boots, and by wearing thigh high socks instead of tights, I kept my torso from being too warm.

I've realized that thigh high socks are a key to success in dressing for San Francisco summers. When it's too cool for totally bare legs, but too warm for tights, a pair of thigh highs can take the chill off while allowing your upper legs to enjoy the summer breezes under the protection of a skirt or dress. With this outfit I rolled the socks down like the flappers used to do in the 20's, which served 2 purposes: it made the outfit look a bit more summery, and it showed off a little bit of my memento mori tattoo. Plus I thought it just looked cute and sassy. The socks stay up pretty well on their own, but the tall boots helped a little too.

Tune in tomorrow, when Jess makes her long-awaited return!

Shirt: All Saints
Tunic: Anthropologie
Scarf: Duke et Duchesse
Skirt: S
Socks: Sock Dreams
Boots: Bronx

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Built On Black

As much as I love a challenge, I just couldn't rally for Sal's Summer Black-Out for a couple of reasons. For one thing, the weather was just not cooperating when the challenge started, so it simply did not feel like summer at all. And secondly, I've been really drawn to the black items in my wardrobe lately and didn't feel I could live without them just now (it probably has to do with the black mood I'm in when I have to go to work!). So what I decided to do, rather than try to keep black clothes out of my summer, was to try to bring some summer to the black clothes.

If you've been reading this blog for awhile, you've heard me bemoan the black pants fallback that far too many people rely on to look "dressy." Because the fact is that black pants alone do not make an outfit dressy, and in fact they often counteract any cuteness that's going on in the top of the outfit. The most common mistake people make is to throw on black pants and shoes with a colorful top, without any further effort at integrating the top and bottom halves; the result being that the top is left adrift on a solid black background, and neither half of the outfit makes sense with the other.

For this outfit, I softened the impact of the black jeans by pairing them with silver shoes; the shoes are a neutral color and make sense with the black, but they also help to break up the block of darkness. I repeated the silver color with the crinkle-texture tank top, and further reinforced it by adding the pale pink cardigan with silver paillettes and metallic silver stitching. Finally, I secured the front of the cardigan with a black and crystal brooch; this not only gave me the shape I wanted, but also brought a black focal point to the top. I finished off the outfit with a bracelet and earrings that also contained some black stones.

The lightness and drape of the cardigan and tank made the outfit feel very summery to me, and I just love the contrast of the inky black against the soft, pale colors. And although the outfit isn't Summer Black-Out Challenge material, it does bring a little summer to an outfit built on black.

Cardigan: Anthropologie
Tank: thifted
Jeans: Diesel
Shoes: Born

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Complexity




This big, soft cardigan is yet another All Saints purchase. Taking Sal's advice on wearing an oversized garment, I kept the rest of the outfit sleek and form fitting so that my shape was not entirely lost. The shorts and leggings showed off the shape of my legs, while underneath the cardigan I wore a tight fitting, stretchy tank tucked into the shorts and belted.


This outfit had a certain level of complexity to it, which surfaced whenever I went to the bathroom. All that adjusting and tucking and buckling was difficult enough, and then there was the constant threat of the long tail of the cardigan and free ends of the scarf dropping into the toilet. Thankfully I was on my game that day and didn't have any mishaps, but there were a couple of near misses. The outfit was really comfortable though, which made up for the hassle.

Cardigan: All Saints
Scarf: local import store
Shorts: Mango
Leggings: Kersh
Boots: Fly London

I thought today I'd show you a picture of our front window view on a day when the skyline isn't obscured by fog. I love the way the rippled Victorian-era glass distorts the buildings, so I included a close-up so you can see it better. The beautiful domed building is City Hall, and behind it is the new-ish Federal Building, which is generally viewed by locals as either an amazing modern creation or a hideous eyesore (I'm of the former camp). If you look closely you can see 2 chairs sitting on the roof of one of the buildings in the center of the frame; one of these days I want to get a photo of the view when there are people sitting out there, because it looks even cooler. These rooftop decks are fairly common around San Francisco and are a great feature of the city.




Monday, June 21, 2010

Amazed

I continue to be amazed at the overwhelming response to last week's child-free post, and how many other child-free women came forward with support and similar stories. If you didn't catch it in the comments, I wanted to point you to this article by my friend and fellow blogger Fawn Fitter: Are You Being Denied the Best Birth Control?

Being denied a tubal ligation is far more common than you might think; if you are in this situation, you absolutely do not have to put up with it! Write to the hospital board or even fire your doctor; you have every right to call the shots on this important decision. And if it wasn't already obvious from all the comments that are still coming in, you are NOT alone!

On to the outfit. This one was a lot harder to put together than I thought it would be. I'd been wanting to pair this fun orange and burgundy skirt with navy, and originally I thought I'd finish the outfit by emphasizing the orange in the skirt, since orange and navy are such a great combination. But when it came down to it I didn't have the right orange items to make it work, so I repeated the burgundy instead.

The outfit is so colorful that I felt I should keep the bottom half as monochromatic as I could, but I threw a curve in there by choosing patterned tights instead of solid.

Top: Red Dress Shoppe
Obi belt: Sunhee Moon
Skirt: Skunkfunk
Tights: Biella
Shoes: Naot

Friday, June 18, 2010

Sheila



Here's that All Saints Lindy cardigan again, and hopefully this time you can get an idea of its weight, particularly in the back view where you can see the outline of the tank top through the cardigan. I just love tissue-thin fabrics; though the cardigan is semi-sheer it is still remarkably warm, and the featherweight feel of it is great for summer.

This outfit is my attempt at a Sheila-inspired graphic tee ensemble, though I'm not sure I did as good a job as she does. Part of it is our different builds; Sheila is busty and can thus make t-shirts look shapely and feminine, whereas on me they just look boxy most of the time. But the asymmetry of the cardigan gave this outfit the shaping I was after, while leaving it unbuttoned at the bottom revealed at least part of the pattern on the t-shirt. I love the sweep of the back seam on the cardigan and how it accentuates my curves.

The denim skirt is one I keep trying to get rid of, but end up hanging onto because I haven't found a good replacement yet; in fact, I pulled the skirt from the donation bin the day I wore it. It's a pretty cute skirt, but I'm not quite happy with it because I don't really like how the front slit looks. Also, it feels like the slit is exposing much more than I want it to. And then, something about the way the skirt is cut makes it ride up a lot when I walk, so I'm constantly tugging at it. And the waistband pokes out in a weird way. Oh, and I don't like the length either. Good god, I HATE this fucking skirt! Back in the bin it goes.

Cardigan, tank top: All Saints
Skirt: La Redoute
Boots: All Black

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Stevie



Here's some more asymmetrical goodness from All Saints, and an appearance from a very lazy looking Georgie. Just look at that sloppy posture; with all the sunny spots in which to lay around in the new place, Georgie has achieved new heights of laziness. For these shots she couldn't really be bothered to sit up straight and tuck her feet in, and in fact I thought she was going to slump on down to the floor.

The new top is the Bolly top; when I first took it out of the box I had a hell of a time figuring out which way it was supposed to go, so finally I went on the All Saints website to look at how it was configured in the photos. I'm about 80% certain I got it right. It looks gray here but it actually has tinges of acid-washed pink, which blended nicely with the soft shades of the 2 skirts. To give the outfit more of a colorful punch, I added a bright fuschia tank underneath the shirt.

With all these drapey, flowing layers I felt a little Stevie Nicks, which I guess isn't really a bad thing. If I grew my hair out and invested in a really large fan, I could do some fantastic photoshoots...

Top: All Saints
Necklace: Manu Lizarralde
Belt: Oscar de la Renta
Pink skirt: Anthro
Tulle skirt: Noa Noa
Shoes: Born

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Grateful

Have I mentioned recently how awesome you readers are? Seriously. Going back through all the comments on yesterday's post/rant, it struck me what an amazing group of people contributes here. Yesterday there were comments from all across the spectrum: people like me who have never wanted kids, people who are or were undecided, and parents with all sorts of great stories and perspectives. We're all over the board in terms of our experiences, and yet we're all together in agreeing that we should be supportive and accepting of each others' choices. It sucks that the rest of the world isn't like that, but man am I grateful for you. It's really nice to be able to throw in random topics and have everyone just jump on in with their thoughts; being able to discuss more than just fashion really keeps the blog interesting and fresh for me.

On to the outfit! This dress is one of my new items from All Saints (it's the Amil Dress), and is one I'd been eying for quite awhile. Unless I was just completely not paying attention, it seems like it was only available in gray when I first saw it, so I resisted buying it because I already have other gray dresses. But when I saw it in this dusty purple, I was sold.

I ran with the color theme and added my purple cardigan and fabulous purple and black boots. Originally I also had it paired with the soft ruffled skirt that my mom gave me, but for this outfit it was just a little too much; either the skirt or the cardigan had to go, and that day I needed the cardigan for warmth. To add the necessary length to the dress I just let the lacy trim of my pettipants hang out, which blended in against the black leggings. But the skirt/dress combo is one I'm looking forward to playing with the next time I wear this dress; the two look like they were made to go together.

Originally the fringe pieces around the bottom of the dress were MUCH longer -- some of them hung down to my mid-calves. And while it did look really cool I knew it wouldn't do for work, not only because it seemed just over the line of appropriate, but also because I knew I'd end up getting that fringe stuck in chair wheels, slammed in doors, and sat on by adjacent co-workers in meetings. So I trimmed it shorter, and I think it turned out great. The dress has plenty of interesting textural details all through the body and really doesn't need too much extra trimming at the hem.

Dress: All Saints
Cardigan: S
Necklace: Manu Lizarralde
Belt: Red Dress Shoppe
Boots: Eject

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Rantings of a Flakey Blogger

I've been a flakey blogger, reader, and commenter lately. First there was the big move, and before I could even get fully recovered from that, all sorts of other stuff started happening. Once the dust settles I'll fill you in on all the details, but for now just imagine several of the major life events happening simultaneously; that's my life at the moment. For the record though, I am NOT pregnant. And NEVER will be. Yesterday's reader question was most definitely made on behalf of someone other than myself!

Since I'm on that subject, allow me to share something that really gets under my skin*. I'll start by saying that I am child-free by choice, and in fact I've known pretty much since I was a child myself that kids just weren't my thing. For years I've put up with random people, some of whom barely know me, lecturing me on how I'll change my mind. I've put up with new parents insinuating about all the wonderousness I'm missing out on and how a woman really isn't a woman until she's a mother. I've even put up with doctors who flat out refused to consider giving me a tubal ligation, and one who even told me he would require my then-husband's PERMISSION to get one. I wish I were kidding.

What I will NOT put up with, however, is the parents who say things like this: "Oh, it must be nice to be able to go out to dinner" or, "Gee, it must be nice to treat yourself to new clothes and a pedicure." Yes, in fact it IS nice. But it's not like this was some big secret that the rest of the world hid from prospective parents, and frankly it's not my fault that other people made choices in life that required certain sacrifices which perhaps they weren't prepared for.

The implication in statements like these is that I chose my path simply for selfish, frivolous indulgences such as pedicures or a new pair of shoes, and that because I shirked the important job of parenting, I have time for silly pleasures. And that implication really pisses me off. I chose not to have children for a variety of very personal and very well-considered reasons. That I also get to enjoy my free time and indulge in some of the finer things in life is great too, but if I'd had a real drive to have children, none of those things would've mattered; I'd have made the appropriate sacrifices and not whined about it to people who didn't. We all make our own choices in life, and we should be supportive of each other regardless of how those choices might be different from our own. Not having children comes with its own set of sacrifices too, not the least of which is a general lack of understanding from the rest of the world.

Living child-free means living in the minority. And it takes a certain bravery and self-awareness to willingly put yourself there, to be sure. So just as we can admire the women who are loving, committed mothers (and I do!), so should we admire and support the women who choose a different path. Us non-mothers have plenty to offer the world too, besides just buying up its shoes.

Today's outfit:
Top: La Redoute
Jacket: Tulle
Green slip: All Saints
Skirt: LA Made
Shoes: John Fluevog

*Please note, this post is not in any way related to yesterdays' reader question or in fact to anyone who comments on this blog, it was just something that's been on my mind lately and which I was reminded of by all the talk about pregnancy.

Monday, June 14, 2010

Stumped!

It finally got warm enough to wear this little minidress without something over it... well, at least it did in San Francisco. By the time I arrived at work in South San Francisco however, I discovered this was really the wrong outfit for the windy, foggy day. What I wouldn't give to work in the same city I live in; it would make getting dressed so much simpler.

Today I'm calling on you to help me answer a fashion question, because frankly I'm a bit stumped. The question comes from a reader who quit her corporate job and donated all her summer office clothes to charity, only to later find herself back in an office environment, 2 months pregnant, with summer rapidly approaching. She now needs advice on building a new summer wardrobe for someone who:

- works in a fairly relaxed office environment
- has a budget of about $500 - $800
- needs a little extra room to grow

This question stumps me for several reasons, the foremost being that I've never been pregnant and therefore haven't a clue when it comes to what one might wear over a growing baby bump. But also, the mild climate in San Francisco means that my summer wardrobe doesn't need to vary that drastically from my winter one (as evidenced by the failure of this overly-summery outfit). What I've come up with so far is:

- Check out E.'s pregnancy posts on Academichic; that lady had amazing style throughout her entire term, and she employed a lot of great basics that shouldn't break anyone's budget.

- Look for stretchy jersey items that are not specifically maternity clothes; that way they can be worn during the pregnancy but also afterwards as well.

- Definitely try shopping in thrift stores, since most maternity clothes should be very lightly worn. That said, most clothes I've seen that are specifically designed for maternity wear are profoundly ugly, so even at thrift stores I think I'd branch out and shop in all the sections.

- Um, that's it. Like I said, I'm stumped. Stumped, I tell you!

OK readers, it's your turn. I feel certain you'll be able to put this lovely lady on the right path to affordable, summery clothes that will grow with her and be office-friendly. She also mentioned that she's about my size, so she wouldn't require any specialized sizing other than accommodating the baby. Let's hear it!

Today's outfit:
Dress: thrifted
Scarf: shop in San Luis Obispo
Pants: La Redoute
Shoes: gift from Jess

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Dreary Day

I apologize for the lighting here; this was a VERY dreary day and I neglected to adjust the aperture setting to compensate. I'm still getting used to the height of our ceilings in the new place; they're high enough that the bounced flash is much less intense, so I need to change the camera settings much more than I needed to in my old place.

I recently placed quite a large order with All Saints, so you'll see lots of new things cropping up. The first of the batch is this Lindy Cardigan, and it has the complete laundry list of qualities I love: asymmetry, interesting details, great quality, and it's lightweight but warm, which means that I can wear it most of the year in SF. It is actually quite thin and semi-sheer, though it's tough to tell in these dark photos. Next time I'll do a better job at making its transparency show.

Speaking of All Saints, the US online store has made some improvements since I first posted about it last October. They've finally added a Vintage section, and it seems like the prices are starting to be more comparable with the UK ones, although when I placed this order the UK site was having a 25% off sale. You do have to keep in mind that if you live in the US, you will be charged customs fees on UK orders; however, the VAT that's added into the cost of each garment will be subtracted when you check out. For the time being I'd still recommend checking both sites when you're contemplating a purchase and making a careful comparison in cost. Also, I believe the US site has their clothes listed in UK size equivalents (i.e., a size 10 listed on the site is actually a US 6), so be careful with the sizing! I'd be curious to hear if anyone has ordered via the US site, and what your experience has been.

Cardigan: All Saints
Tank top: Rapsodia (Argentina)
Skirt: Noa Noa
Socks: Sock Dreams
Shoes: John Fluevog


The gloomy view from our front windows last Friday; City Hall is almost completely obscured by fog.

Embracing the Wine Penguin

I thought today I'd bring you a travel-related post, since I haven't done so in quite awhile. It's not really about travel per se, but rather about a particular type of souvenir I sometimes bring back from my travels, and the meaning this kind of thing holds for me.

What you see here is what I affectionately call the Wine Penguin. I got it from a cheap housewares store in Buenos Aires, sort of a dollar store kind of affair but a step up in quality. The Wine Penguin cost me about $3, but its monetary value was ridiculously disproportionate to how much effort it took me to carefully pack and transport it through 2 flights and 18 hours' worth of airports, planes, security, and customs. Why all the fuss for a cheap ceramic pitcher, you ask? Well, because the Wine Penguin falls into a very special category of souvenir for me, the Quirky Local Thing category.

This type of pitcher is seen in almost every wine-dispensing restaurant in Argentina; sometime the pitchers are left plain white or brown, sometimes they are intricately hand painted, and often they bear the logo of the restaurant that uses them. It makes sense, too -- Argentina does have plenty of penguins, particularly down in the Patagonia region. And who could fail to be charmed by the sight of a plucky little penguin barfing wine into your glass? Jess and I certainly were, and soon we were noticing these pitchers pretty much everywhere we went.

Bringing a Wine Penguin home wasn't necessarily on the agenda the way my Republica Argentina buttons were, but when I saw one in the store I knew it was the perfect souvenir; something I could use all the time, that would remind me of my trip, and that was obscure enough that it made for a good story. The penguin was a Quirky Local Thing that I became familiar with through my time spent in Buenos Aires, and bringing one home was a way to integrate part of that local flavor into my everyday life. It isn't a blatant souvenir, it's just a little inside joke I share with Jess and with Argentina, and now with you. And that is the essence of the Quirky Local Thing: it's generally an everyday object that would easily be recognized by local people, but wouldn't get much notice from anyone else; it's a stealth souvenir.

It should be noted that Mark has not yet embraced the Wine Penguin. In fact, I think it's fair to say that he doesn't really see the point of the Wine Penguin. But every time I see it standing there waiting to pour me another glass, red wine dripping down its beak like a trickle of blood, I'm back in Buenos Aires at a rustic parrilla, with tango music and the smell of grilled beef in the air. My Wine Penguin is a small bit of Argentine culture transplanted to a little Victorian-style kitchen in San Francisco.

For more adventures with Wine Penguins, see the blog posts below. It seems I'm not the only one with a penchant for penguins!

from BrennerWorld: Penguins and wine go together, you just don't know it yet!
from Tableconversation: A Penguin to the Rescue
from Underground Art Blog: Terroir, Penguins, and Parrillas: The Inconsistent Pleasures

Monday, June 7, 2010

Body Art



Have you ever wondered what those tattoos on my arms are all about? Well, click on over to this annotated bibliography at Fashionable Academics to find out. While you're at it, you can read all the other contributors' stories about the inspiration behind their tattoos and the kind of reactions their ink elicits. It just goes to show that people with tattoos are much harder to categorize than many people think. Body art is a highly personal experience and has a different significance for everyone who wears it.



I put together this outfit with the intention of mixing masculine and feminine elements. The last several times I've worn these cropped pants I've put together more purely menswear-inspired looks, going so far as to add a tie to a couple of them (click here and here and here for the posts). Here I added the ruffle-trimmed cami and cropped cardigan to bring in some girly touches and give the pants a completely different vibe.

Cardigan, pants: Noa Noa
Cami: Anthro
Necklace: Betsey Johnson
Shoes: John Fluevog

Friday, June 4, 2010

Public Service Announcement

This was last Friday's outfit; at that point it was still rainy and cold, which gave way to beautiful Memorial Day weekend weather and has now been replaced with the most bizarre of meteorological conditions. It doesn't feel like any season at all; it's cool but not cold and simultaneously warm but not hot, with a random gusty breeze that isn't quite a wind. The air is oddly sticky, and the blue sky is punctuated with giant, low-hanging, flattened white clouds. If it were warmer I'd say it was earthquake weather.

Speaking of earthquakes, I've been on an earthquake-preparedness mission ever since we moved into the new place, securing larger furniture to the walls with heavy duty straps, reinforcing pictures with anchoring tape, and putting museum putty underneath vases and potted plants. It's one of those things I've thought about from time to time and have always put off until later, and I think many Californians have the same attitude. After all, it's not like we have an earthquake season every year, the way other parts of the country do with storms. The problem of course, is that if you put if off too long you won't be ready when the next one strikes.

So this is my public service announcement for the day: if you live in an earthquake-prone area, do not put off preparing yourself! Secure your stuff, make a disaster kit with food/water/medical supplies (don't forget one for your pets, too!), and put together a communication plan. These are simple safegards that can save lives, so make the time to do it. Having finished most of the securing in our place, I can honestly say that the time committment is minimal. Do it once, and you can rest easier from here on out.

Here are a few useful links; many of these sites also have information on hurricanes, tornadoes and other disasters:

Seven Steps to Earthquake Safety
FEMA Earthquake Guide
USGS Earthquake Preparedness
Earthquake Prepardeness Kit (from SF Chronicle)
Humane Society's Disaster Preparedness for Pets

Are you ready for the next Big One?

Blazer: thrifted
Dress: All Saints
Belt: Red Dress Shoppe
Skirt: F21
Boots: Bronx