The Braless Wonder
The European and I are going to the beach today. This means that I shall spent the next half hour or so trying to determine whether I’m feeling more confident about the state of my thighs (unlikely, given my futile efforts to rid myself of cellulite) or my stomach (also unlikely because here in Philadelphia we celebrate the 4th of July for about a week and half, which means you end up eating hot dogs and pasta salad and various iterations of cake for 10 days straight).
It will be our fourth-and-a-half date (the “half” because he was valiant enough to brave my parents’ annual roof deck BBQ after our picnic in Wissahicken this past weekend. He maintains the BBQ counts as a separate date; I maintain that it was just a continuation of our earlier rendezvous, even though he went home in between to watch the World Cup and change into yet another pair of fabulous shoes).
I haven’t been on a fourth-and-a-half date in about three years. So obviously the stomach/thighs debate is an important one, rendered all the more important by the fact that my date actually works out on a daily (and not semi-annual) basis and… well, let’s just say I’m pretty sure he’s going to look very good in a bathing suit.
Anyway, because I was supposed to move over two weeks ago and have already packed the majority of my wardrobe, it’s down to the very form fitting, very sexy fuchsia tankini (which covers my stomach but not my thighs) or the less clingy two-piece (which covers my thighs but not my stomach).
Someday I’ll have the confidence not to care, but today is not that day.
I would, however, like to pause and note one minor area of progress in the body image department.
Those of you who know me in the real world (or who read my cup size lamentations in Reverse-Trick-or-Treating) know that I am not exactly what one would call “well endowed.” As such, I’ve spent the majority of my adult life wearing padded bras, underwire, carefully draped scarves and strategically ruffled shirts.
On my first date with The European, however, I wore my blue and green chiffon maxi dress. Said dress does not zip over my rather generously sized ribcage if I wear a bra so I went without.
On our second date (the World Cup match), I came straight from work and even though I’d brought a dress to change into, along with a rather fantastic shoes and hat combo if I do say so myself, I completely forgot to pack a bra.
On our third date (the picnic at Wissahicken), I wore my low cut navy blue batik tank top. Said tank top is too low cut to accommodate a bra so I went, once again, without.
Finally, for our third-and-a-half date (my parents’ roof deck BBQ), I borrowed a dress of my mother’s. It was 90-something degrees out and since the dress had a bunch of floral embellishments along the neckline, I figured it was a safe bet to… you know… abstain.
Long story short (sorry, I get a bit carried away when I’m talking about clothes), The European has never actually seen me in a bra. Either he hasn’t noticed or he doesn’t care and frankly, I’m perfectly fine either way. Besides, you can’t do a better job of “just being yourself” than letting the girls go free, right?
Fieldwork in Stilettos 
11 Responses to “The Braless Wonder”
C is – or rather was – from what I gather in a similar boat to you in regards to the endowment department. In May she augmented said situation, something she’d been wanting to do for 10+ years, long before we met. Still, I was always happy with her regardless, and I bet the European is the same. It’s the woman that counts, not her cup size.
Augmentation, eh? Interesting… can’t say that I’ve ever considered it (surprisingly) but if it works for C, more power to her.
You ultimately want a guy who will think your whole body is just fine as it is, don’t you? Go to Gunnison Beach at Sandy Hook, New Jersey (my own kind of beach, and no shock for him if he’s European), and you’ll both save yourselves a lot of wondering time.
Hahha! I’m frightened now 🙂 We ended up near AC down the block from my parents’ rental house (which was a good thing seeing as it rained half the time!)
hahaha………I deamed of a black bra on fire last night!!! So yours was a little different………… you women give guys more credit than we deserve…….”You have boobs” and there is some reason your on your fourth date……don’t second guess it……….the media is so hard on images causing this constant drama on “If I…and cellulite….” it gets tiring BTW…..the European may be gay if he has that many fabulous shoes………be ware!! (tongue in cheek)
Haha! Well, I have fallen for many a gay man before but this one, I can assure you, is not.
Ok Ok………just saying………haha lmao……..thanks for reaching out. Hope you have a great weekend. (For seo purposes…. http://www.ravenzlo.com/ravenzlo – blog
Ooops Dreamed
I agree the cellulite conversation is tiresome…it is there whether you work out or not, we have been brainwashed by airbrushed photos…enough. As for the other, you know how I feel…let the girls run FREE whenever you can, it is healthier for you too, TRUE!!! His shoes were very cool. Maybe he can take the chauffeur shoe shopping or give him some hints?
True… I’m still curious how women on talk shows don’t have cellulite though. Like when they wear short skirts and sit on those bar stools on the set of Kelly and Michael. It is a mystery…
The power of MAKEUP and Kelly is a fitness addict and about 90 lbs dripping wet, so you can’t compare with her, also they do wraps and all sorts of special treatments before they go on these shows. I read an article about the prep that goes into public appearances, mind blowing the things they put themselves through…