Erika S. fun stuffs, outfits

NYC Pride

I’m thankful to live in a city where marriage discrimination hasn’t existed for the past year. What’s up Cali? What keeping you so backwards? People are people so why should it be?  Anyways, B and I checked out the NYC version of the Pride parade yesterday, and these are a few pics off his camera.

After escaping the crowds, B and I headed over to the Bowery Hotel‘s rooftop bar, where we caught a set by my hometown faves, Geographer.  I’ve gushed about them already here.  I found out about it last minute, from their FB page.  Good thing!  The show was intimate (only about 50 people, max!), fun and all around awesome.  Cool venue too.  I was soo excited to see them play.  I’ve been missing SF loads lately, so their set was a welcome reminder of SF.  I was major SUPERFAN.

It was the perfect cap to our weekend.  So was this awesome mural B and I happened upon while walking over to the Bowery Hotel.  It was fate, these shorts matched perfectly.

sunnies: f21 – v-neck: threads for thought – shorts: unknown/forgotten brand from tobi.com – bag: freitag – sandals: sweedish hasbeens for h&m – lipstick: nars heat wave (appropriate name considering the new york weather lately, no?)

Erika S. fun stuffs, outfits

faith/fate and same/sane

B and I went hunting for the elusive SF style burrito last last Friday in Williamsburg.  We didn’t find it.  Not even at Taco Chulo on Grand St, where they have a “Mission” burrito on the menu.  Not even close.  On the bright side, the Metropolitan Ave station has awesome mosaics.

There’s nothing new going on here fashion wise.  Same same, but different. B picked out my shoes, old faded blue Converse.  Waiting for the bathroom that night, some girl complemented me on my dress, pointing out that the shoes went well with the outfit. I looked over and B had the biggest shit-eatin’ grin on his face.  He was so proud of himself.

Well, three burrito fridays later, and I think we’ve found the closest thing (so far) to a Mission style burrito, at The Original California Taqueria (horrid reviews.  ouch!) over in Cobble Hill.  Seriously, that’s the name of the place.  It’s ok.  Not bad.

Erika S. outfits, teaching

evaluative

I made my seniors evaluate my teaching this year.  A simple survey and with a few short answer questions.  I got some real gems of advice from these ‘adults’, so I just have to share them. 

If you could say anything about this teacher to the students who will take this class next year, what would you say?

“As long as you don’t mouth off, nothing bad will happen”

“Don’t procrastinate like a fool.”

“Don’t take it your senior year because you will slack off.”

“Ms. Schenck is an awesome teacher!! Forget all the bad things others say about her!!”  (omg, what bad things?)

“Ms. Schenck is a very interesting person, she’s funny (that’s wassup!), open-minded, friendly and fashionable!”  (I got props for fashion!)

On that note, here is a camera awesome photo of my outfit today.  Pants were last seen here and sweater last seen here and the flats are by Frye.  Oldies but goodies.

Erika S. outfits, teaching

little victories

I have a student who is super shy.  So shy and unsure of herself that all year, she has barely said more than a few sentences in class.  I was also a very shy kid, so I can empathize with her.  Well, this shy kid had to do a solo power point presentation last week on the integumentary system.  She could have chosen to do a mini-book project instead, but alas, she opted to challenge herself and speak in front of the class, all by herself.  The day came, and she froze on the spot.   Really froze!

My class, as good as they are, kept encouraging her with “Don’t worry C__, you don’t have to be shy in front of us” and “you can do it C___, just pretend we’re not here at all” and other supportive things.  Still didn’t help.  She was still standing there frozen with large eyes.  I suggested that everyone in the class turn around so that C_____ wouldn’t feel like all the eyes were on her, every single student whipped around in their seats and stared at the wall.  After a 3 minutes of tortured silence, C____ began to speak, read her note cards and did her presentation, switching slides for the backs of heads.  It was a mini victory.  I wanted to hug each one of my 5th period students that day and stick them all in my pocket so that I could pull them out routinely and tell them how proud they make me.

On an outfit note, I bought these black jeans this past weekend at Uniqlo in NYC.  Love that store.  Cheap, good quality basics with a touch of designeyness (I just made up that word).  Just when I plan on moving to the only US city that has a Uniqlo, they announce that they’re opening one up in SF.  Bah.  I  have two paris of the same jeans, black and blue, mid-rise skinny tapered.  They are super stretchy, thick, super comfortable and holds its shape well for at least 3 wears.  All for $40.  Can’t beat it.  other than the jeans, my teaching outfit was pretty boring and basic.  T-shirt and jeans.

glasses: warby parker – jacket: h&m (old) – v-neck: thread for thought via nordstrom rack – belt: gap – jeans: uniqlo – shoes: bass – bag: j.crew

 

Erika S. outfits

three days strong

I’ve worn these sandals three days in a row now.  Still comfy.  score.

I really have nothing else to say today.  Except that I sent a kid (well, two kids) out from health class today because I just couldn’t take their behavior anymore.  I have mixed feelings when I send kids out.  First off, sending kids out is not a punishment to them, but a reprieve for me.  It doesn’t help them see the error of their ways, instead it denies them access to the lesson.  So in order to keep MY sanity, I have to take away their learning opportunity.  I feel bad about that.  But not until my blood pressure drops back down to normal.  These pictures were taken at lunch time, before I developed the perma-scowl that is inhabiting my face for the rest of the day.

sunnies and bag: f21 – v neck and belt: jcrew – skirt (last seen here), blazer and shoes: madewell

Erika S. outfits

blown to bits

My school is on top of a hill in SF, in the southeast section of SF.  This means it’s really windy up here, all the time.  So photographer Aimee and I were blown all over the place.  It was hella cold.  That’s right, I said hella.  I am a Northern Cali native after all.   Hella.

Those of you who follow me on pinterest (specifically my “things I lust after” board) know that I’ve been wanting these Madewell Whistlestop sandals for a little while now.  I saw them online when Madewell came out with them, and they are muuuch cuter in person.  B had to listen to me whine about how cute they were but how expensive they were at $138 for a few weeks.  I finally broke down and forked over the hard earned cash for them. Are these really worth a half a day’s pay?  The jury is still out on whether they were worth the $$.  They are cute, they are super comfy and they will be perfect for summer.  But I guess I could have settled with these or these that I already own or even Madewell’s own cheaper sandal here.  These better last at least 2 summers!  On Another note, I love my new bag!

cardigan (old) and belt: j.crew – top and sandals: madewell – pants: anthropologie (old) – bag and sunnies: f21 – necklace: hand-me-down

Erika S. outfits, teaching

in between the storms and the races

It stormed like crazy last night.  We don’t get real lightning and thunder very often here in SF, so when it does happen everyone talks about it.  City dwelling high schoolers reverted to grade school kids sharing their fears.  It’s funny here in SF: earthquake? “Meh, no biggie.”  Thunder? “OMG that was sooo scary!”  The storms cleared today, but it looks like another one might be rolling in this evening.  I took advantage of the lunchtime sunshine.  Too much blue?

My mom gave me this necklace about a year ago when she was going through a rough time.  She picked this necklace out when she was 12 years old in Saigon, Vietnam.  Her favorite uncle had given her money for something like this just before he died.  The character (in cantonese, which we speak at home) is “fook”, which means good luck or good fortune.  These necklaces are not meant to be taken on and off frequently, so I just leave it on all the time.  Wearing it all the time also means I tend to get sideways glances/stares from chinese people on the street.

Asian people tend to think I’m Caucasian and and vice versa.  Kids are usually obsessed with questions like “what are you Ms. Schenck” at the beginning of the year.  Last semester, I made it a point to tell them flatly, “I’m San Franciscan American” and left it at that, redirecting each time.  Mostly, they would get visibly frustrated and try to guess.  Eventually, after much explanation and discussion, they stopped asking.  They laughed when I pointed out that other countries don’t obsessively classify their residents by skin color (hello, I’m Chinese Brazilian!  or hi, I’m African Australian!).  They agreed that knowing my ethnic background would in the end have no relevancy.  But they still just wanted to know.  So they went out and asked around and eventually figured it out.  I understand when they talk shit in Chinese, after all.

shirt: levis (last seen here) – dress: many belles down (orange version seen here) – belt and tights: j.crew – boots: h&m – other necklace: unicorn crafts (last seen here) – bag: f21

Erika S. outfits

stripes and height

A kid said that I looked too serious today.  Must of been the new nude colored blazer I picked up from F21 yesterday.  It could have also been the height.  These Sweedish Hasbeens for H&M sandals put me at 6’3″.  Even the science department head remarked on how tall I was today.  Yeah, I’m tall.  But I still love tall-ish shoes.


glasses: bonlook – blazer: F21 – sweater: madewell – tank (underneath): target – belt: banana republic (old) – jeans: j.brand – shoes: h&m – bag: jcrew

Erika S. outfits

brunch with aly

Brunch with Aly!  We went to Savor, over on 24th street.  Easy, fast, yummy and won’t break the bank too hard.  Aly is my friend Marisa and her hubby Al’s kid.  Aly is almost 3 and a squirmy little kid, as expected.  She’s so cute!

big kid clothes– sunnies and cords: f21 – shirt: levis – t shirt: target – belt: old gap – shoes: vans – tote: marc by marc jacobs – that thing that looks like a pager but it actually a glorified pedometer: fitbit

Erika S. outfits

Furlough Friday

It was a furlough friday.  So Aimee, Anne and I went for a stroll around Aimee’s hood.  Right off of 21st street, there is this amazing mural.  Totally worth checking out if you happen to be near by, which is exactly what we did.  I needed to get a picture with the bambi deer thing.  I was picturing it trying to take a bite out of my butt, which is what Bambi tries to do sometimes (poor thing is just too short).

The ‘weekend’ called for the weekend uniform.  jeans, v-neck, a hoodie and my Freitag bag.  This bag is probably the oldest thing I own that I still love and use regularly.  I bought it in Switzerland back in 2001.  It’s so awesome and so well made it’s lasted this long even with hardcore proper use (just about every day for more than 5 years).  Check out Freitag, they make the best bags ever.  seriously.
rx sunnies: bonlook – jacket: old urban outfitters – hoodie: american apparel – t shirt: threads for thought via nordstrom rack – belt: old gap – jeans: current elliot – my most favorite old old booties ever: BP by nordstrom – bag: freitag – necklace: family heirloom

My mom helped me braid my hair this morning.  I saw it here a few days ago and wanted it.  And since I know people get curious and I field this question all the time (more than you can imagine): Yes, it did hurt.  No it does not hurt anymore.  I’ve had these for years (since 2004 I think).  Yes, I still like them.  

P.S.  I’m not mad, this is just how my face is.  People always ask me that too.