Saturday, March 13, 2010

Swap Meet Me In St. Louis Vuitton

Today I went to a clothing swap, and let me tell you, there's nothing quite like seeing your duds lying bedraggled on the ground to make you feel cheap. Not that the clothes were horrible or anything: I snagged a nice pair of Club Monaco jeans and a hilarious Garfield sweater that will be worn to death despite the fact that it's a size too small. But the little hillock of clothing lying in the middle of the living room? Sigh. Kind of a bummer, to be honest.

The whole clothing swap vibe is a little declasse. I tried on a running hoodie that would have been nice, except for the mold down one sleeve. Picking through a pile of clothes on the ground is just sort of humiliating. On the other hand, I love free clothes, and it was such a nice excuse to ditch the ill-fitting and out-of-season clothes that were clogging up my closet and draining my mood every time I tried them on.

Seriously: the clothing swap is the best thing ever, if you're looking for an excuse to dispose of the jeans you've been keeping since high school. Unless you are magic, you have gained some weight since you were sixteen. Oh, I'm not suggesting we're all ballooning up like those pillowesque characters in Wall-E. It's probably not more than a few pounds - a size, probably. I blame beer and its corresponding calories (delicious beer...oh, I can't stay mad at you!). But hanging onto those jeans, whether it's for aspiration, guilt, or some complicated blend of both, is no good for the soul. The only downside to slipping them into the swap pile? Watching your fellow swappers pull those Special Since High School Jeans on and have them be baggy. Annoying? Yes. Fact of life? Also yes.

I scored some jeans that are too big for me, since I love pants that are flexible and lend themselves to clambering. Skintight nonsense has never appealed. I also grabbed the aforementioned Garfield sweater, which delights me to no end. Did I mention there were also cupcakes? Absolutely, which does no-one any favours in terms of trying to slip back into the high school pants, but cupcakes belong in their own special category of Feeling Good, one that corresponds not at all with the category of Feeling Good that skinny jeans inspire. Plus, cupcakes help relieve the bummer feelings associated with going clothes shopping from the floor. I wish there were other food/experience overlaps: like, if pho was a proven way of combating job-interview stress, or grilled cheese sandwiches helped a sister out on bad hair days. That would be amazing, no?

So, long story short: skinny jean feelings and swap-related feelings of ick? And did I mention it was pouring horrible, mean, pissy mid-March rain all day? Not awesome. Cupcakes, Garfield sweater and a leaner closet, plus a post-swap trip to the Shopper's Drug Mart to buy Diet Coke and fancy juice? Very awesome. So: balance it out. Like everything, always.

3 comments:

  1. Pho is totally a proven method of combating every kind of stress ever. Pho, it's like the miracle cure-all. Too bad we have no Vietnamese restaurants in the Sault, and the stuff takes all frigging day to make at home.

    Come visit me, please! You can wear your Garfield sweater. :)

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  2. come to this swap!!
    http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/event.php?eid=118078224906406

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  3. Oh, I so would, if I was Illinois and could bear to part with my myriad ugly dresses. Will there be cupcakes? Because that might change my mind.

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