Tuesday, May 31, 2016

The Write Fit

                                                                     
       

It's time for another edition of Alex J. Cavanaugh's  Insecure Writer's Support Group. I was hoping to come up with something new and exciting for this month, but instead I decided on something that's worn out and comfortable. Be sure to visit the talented IWSG bloggers who are always available to lend a helping hand, but if you decide to stick around anyway, here's a little ditty from 2013:

                                                           The Write Fit    

Between working long hours, taking care of the home, and raising a family, many writers struggle to find time to write. There are so many obstacles that get in the way. As an empty nester, I should have less distractions than most people, though that's not always the case.

With our boys home for winter break, I was busy sorting out everyone's laundry. The other day when I was carrying their clothes from the laundry room up to their closets, I also put my husband's freshly washed jeans away. I specifically put them off to the side, so he could methodically arrange them in his closet.

The following night he told me that he couldn't find them. We were on our way to dinner, so I said that I'd help him look for them when we got home. Later I began searching for his pants. I checked all of the boys closets, as well as the laundry room. Still frustrated, I  plowed through the bag that was put aside for the cleaners. A task that should've only taken a few minutes, was escalating into a major excavation. I couldn't stop now, and my husband was so torn up about it that he passed out on the couch.

The next step was to search the boys' hampers. Maybe someone threw them in there by mistake. Even though I had just done laundry a few days ago, they both were completely full. I sifted through socks that may have been remnants from the twentieth century, and I still had no luck.

I finally had no choice but to go back into my husband's closet. Of course I found them immediately. By this time it was almost 2 a.m., and my husband woke up when our older son came home. Expecting gratitude, my husband had a different reaction after seeing his long lost jeans, "Oh those aren't the jeans I was talking about. They're only a size thirty four. They won't fit."

I saw him wearing the jeans just a few days earlier. I washed the jeans, and even put them away, but somehow someone else had snuck into his closet to trade his jeans for an identical smaller pair. I calmly told Cinderfella to try on his jeans, while I called in our son as a witness.   

 As the suspense was building, I explained how denim stretches to conform to your body. I also mentioned that you can't only go by waist size, because cut is an important factor. He had a huge smile on his face, as he buttoned his jeans. "I really do fit into a size thirty four." 

Then I pointed out how most of him fit into his jeans. My son laughed, and quickly closed the door in his room, so I wouldn't keep him up any longer. Though I knew that they were the right size, I was not thrilled to have wasted hours of valuable writing time. After this incident, they'll probably send me away to a quiet little place where I'll have nothing but time to write.

Postscript: At present day, my husband now fits into our son's size 33 hand-me-down jeans. Though he's about four inches shorter than our son, they're a perfect fit. He does some of his best shopping in our boys' closets, but they're not conveniently located across the hall from us anymore.    


38 comments:

  1. Hi Julie - lovely story ... and yes of course the conveniently fitting jeans have flown the nest ... what fun - and Writing to Fit - now that's another story ... but this is perfect for IWSG .. cheers Hilary

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  2. Enjoyed reading the blue jean story. Maybe, one day they will invent a one-size fit all.

    Shalom aleichem,
    Pat Garcia


    http://www.patgarciaandeverythingmustchange.com/2016/06/iwsg-june-2016-recovery-is-not-matter.html

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  3. Fun reading about your blue jean search, though I can imagine your frustration while searching. Even when we don't have kids at home, life gets busy and we have to schedule in our writing.

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  4. And look, you got a story out of it! Bonus!

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  5. My wife would say he was lucky to still be alive at that point...

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  6. Now that the retired man is home all day spending most of his day searching for knowledge on his iPhone, he has given himself the chore of emptying the dishwasher and folding the wash on the even numbered numbered days of the week. I spend the odd numbered days looking for what he put away.

    Congratulations to your husband on his 33" waist. It is difficult as we get older to maintain, let alone lower our size.

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  7. Oh my. My husband would be on the bad list for at least a few days after that. I'm glad you're the forgiving type. (Unless there was some fall out and you're sheltering us from it...)

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  8. Julie, I enjoyed this fun story. Sounds like a scene that could easily have been played out at my house too! :)

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  9. Hilary - Yes, they did fly the nest, and now someone else is enjoying them, as we gave them away when he lost weight. Thanks Hilary!

    Pat - Your one size fits all idea would be a big hit with many women. Then we could all say we're a size zero! Thanks Pat!

    Natalie - So true! I haven't had time to write an original blog in a while, and I feel horrible that I can't visit more often. Hope your daughter is home from college, and you have a wonderful summer together!

    Debra - It is always a bonus when a story comes out of a silly experience, especially when bloggers like you are nice enough to read it. Thanks Debra!

    Alex - Fortunately, he's made up for it, but I was less than thrilled at the time. Thanks for hosting another wonderful IWSG, Alex!

    Julie

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  10. Arleen - You are so funny! This sounds like a great premise for a story. Your hubby is very lucky to have you! I will pass along your lovely compliment to my hubby! Thanks Arleen!

    Crystal - As soon as I knew I got a story out of it, all was forgiven. Though I do like to mention it from time to time when the right moment occurs. Thanks Crystal!

    Connie - Yes, I suppose a lot of "boys" misplace their clothing. I just seem to lose everything else. Thanks Connie!

    Julie

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  11. Thanks for the laugh. Glad everything worked out, well, that you worked it out!

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  12. I'm damned if I would have taken all that time over a pair of jeans especially if hubby had gone to sleep. You are a very patient woman Julie.

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  13. GEM JULIE ~

    >>... and my husband was so torn up about it that he passed out on the couch.

    Guffaw-Out-Loud!

    That's just like me. I'm a very rugged kinda guy but I do have my breaking point. (Usually occurs about the time I remember I still have a beer or two left in the refrigerator. Purely coincidental, I'm sure.)

    ~ D-FensDogG
    'Loyal American Underground'

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  14. I guess shopping is a bit more tedious, with your son(s) having moved out. I'm impressed too that your hubs can fit into a size 34. Needless to say, I hope you're enjoying the perks of the empty nest thing - finding time to write and do other stuff when school's in session.

    Be well, Julie.

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  15. ROTFL! That said, I prefer shopping for my husband when he's at work...just saying. Hope you have some great writing sessions with the nest emptier.

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  16. I can't even remember when I was last able to wear a size 34 pair of pants. I can understand the persistence of your mission to find the jeans. Sometimes I'll get to looking for something in a search that starts vexing me to no end until I find what I'm looking for. Usually it's in the obvious place where I would have thought it should have been but I just keep looking past it somehow. The benefit of the search is that often I organize stuff that has gotten to be a mess and maybe even throw out some stuff. I probably need to "lose" more stuff.

    Arlee Bird
    A to Z Challenge Co-host
    Tossing It Out

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  17. Lee - Fortunately, I've been spending my time a little more wisely lately. Thanks Lee!

    Jo - "Patient" is putting it kindly! It was more of a case of stubbourness. I was on a mission, and I knew I couldn't sleep until I found those silly pants. Thanks Jo!

    Stephen - The older I get the more I find myself passing out even if I just sit down in front of the TV for a few minutes. Then I get my second wind, and stay up until the wee hours. Thanks Stephen!

    Julie

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  18. Robyn - I wrote this three years ago, and both boys are long out of the house now. The best thing is that they live together in the city. I benefit from my husband's weight loss too, as it cuts down on his snoring! Thanks Robyn!

    Elizabeth - I've done some of my boys' best shopping when they're not with me! I used to even be able to pick out suits for my husband that barely had to be altered. Nice to meet you, Elizabeth! Thank you!

    Lee - Yes, sometimes hidden treasure is found buried in a closet, or you end up with a bundle of clothes that are perfect for donating to Goodwill. So something good can come out of these late night missions. Thanks Lee!

    Julie


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  19. Julie,

    I love love love your stories. They always make me laugh. Honestly, I don't know how men survive without women. And yet, when forced to live on their own they somehow do. Or maybe they just loll around a lot on the couch. I'm not really sure.

    Robin

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  20. Hey Julie,

    Yes, you'd better be sitting comfortably! No, you're not imagining this, I'm actually here. Okay, in a virtual sense.

    Thank you for a thoroughly delightful story, Julie. Speaking of jeans, I shall now attempt to get into my 1970's flared jeans. The high-pitched voice I speak in after I attempt that, might give a clue as to my problems getting them up.

    Have a pleasant rest of your weekend. A multi-tasking dude. Yes, you read correctly.

    Gary :)

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  21. Robin - I've also noticed how sometimes the most brilliant men of all ages can't seem to find what's right in front of their noses unless it's very important to them. For example, if this incident involved misplacing a $20 bill or tickets to a baseball game, I wouldn't have had anything to write about. Thanks Robin!

    Gary - It's always a pleasure to see you especially with the image of you squeezing into those 70's flared jeans! Hope you threw on your fringe vest too! Like your groovy attire, falsetto voices are also trendy right now. Maybe Penny will take you out for a walk to show you off! Thanks Gary!

    Julie

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  22. Don't you hate that - you know it's there, but then it's not. My girls came home from Uni a couple weekends ago laundry in tow, and we had the opposite experience. I put her clothes aside, and that's where they stayed. Hope she has enough to wear. PS- I can now where their hand me downs too.

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  23. The odd thing about how jeans fit is the fact that my jeans always mysteriously shrink around Thanksgiving and Christmas...I just do not understand it!

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  24. I think I laughed more than I should. :P

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  25. Rhonda - Hope they're not wearing all of your clothes, before they wash their own! I'm very impressed that you can share clothes with your daughters! Thanks Rhonda!

    Keith - That is a mystery! Maybe you should consider wearing sweatpants for the holidays! Very funny! Thanks Keith!

    Lux - Well that's a good thing! Thanks so much, Lux!

    Julie

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  26. HA! I don't remember seeing this the first time around, so I'm glad you posted it again. Too funny! I especially like how your hubby was so "torn up" about the missing jeans he fell asleep on the sofa. (Men DO have a way of doing that, don't they?)

    Take care, kiddo. I hope you're still enjoying the writing gig.

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  27. I can't believe we missed this. What a great story. Recently something similar happened. My wife got me a great T-shirt for my birthday (a picture of a sad looking taco, and the caption says "I don't wanna taco bout it") and after wearing it once, I couldn't find it anywhere. We looked all over the house for it, we searched through the closet dozens of times. Nothing. I was convinced it just got thrown away by accident.

    The other day (months later) I was looking through my closet and found it immediately, like it had never left. We both are still going insane trying to figure out if it reappeared out of thin air or we're both really that blind/stupid.

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  28. Susan - Yes, I'm still enjoying it, but wish I had more time to chat with my partner in rhyme. Hope your summer is going well, and I'm so glad you went to visit your adorable grandchildren! Thanks Susan!

    Brandon and Bryan - I'm glad you found your fun T-shirt with the great saying! You could definitely put that in one of your cartoons. There are some mysteries that will never be solved, and fortunately this one has a happy ending, or Brandon took it, and his wife made him bring it back. Thanks B & B!

    Julie

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  29. Worn out and comfortable is a good thing! I've done this a thousand times, wasted time looking for something that's not lost. Sigh, it still irks me to think of the waste of it. :)
    Great story!

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  30. I'm taking a leaf from this story and heading to my son's closet now. Keep him busy will you. :-)

    Anna from elements of emaginette

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  31. That was a good, funny story. Loved it. My hubby got tired of hearing me laugh to myself, so I read the post to him. Oddly, he did not find it as funny as I did :)

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  32. I'm all too familiar with hand-me-down jeans. But they had better not be deconstructed skinny jeans! ;)

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  33. Yolanda - Just the other day my mom asked for something that I'm sure I put in a safe place when she moved, but I can't find it. It's scary that she's sharper than I am! Thanks Yolanda!

    Emaginette - Hope you made it safely out of your son's closet! Hope you didn't find any old half eaten school lunches in there! Thanks Emaginette!

    Dolorah - A little too close to home, eh? Many men just don't understand what we go through. Thanks Dolorah!

    Blue Grumpster - I guess you're not metro enough for skinny jeans, and I don't blame you. I think very few men can get away with wearing them, as opposed to women who can just throw on a loose fitting top and be on their way. Thanks Blue!

    Julie

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    Replies
    1. No, I'm not metro. Wait... let me check that.... No, my mirror says I'm not meant to wear skinny jeans. I love that mirror. It just never lies. ;)

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