Serendipity

I started my job this week. Yup, offered the job on Wednesday and started on Monday. Gotta like that! I have been training all week on the computer system with the are trainer. Lovely lady! I have a choice, apparently, wrt work attire. According to the "Manual" I have to wear the company shirt (LS or SS) or the company Cool Max Polo Shirt (LS or SS) with black non-denim, non cargo style pants or skirts with black shoes. OR, according to my manager and the trainer, I can wear office attire. I figure that if I get one each of the yellow shirts, I can make the polos from the silkweight PD (thank you Ressy!) in the stash and just wear a name tag to show I am staff. That leaves me with the need for black pants and shoes. That way, I have "official wear" for those occasions where it is a must (training and conferences) and can wear my own office wear the rest of the time.

So, knowing that the only black shoes in the Closet are strappy slingbacks (suitable for parties and dancing - should the Pilot ever acquire a right foot to go along with one of his 2 left feet LOL!), I needed to go shoe shopping! Stop clapping with glee, Phyllis! I know you wish you were here to help! I went to Payless first as I wanted a quick pair to get me through to the arrival of the first paycheck. What did I see in the front of the store? The sweetest little patent Mary Jane's with the cutest kitten heel. Perfect for the office and for the weak ankle. I fell in love instantly ... especially when I saw them in the red! Oh la la! Almost walked right out of the store with them then and there. Glad I didn't as I had not yet discovered that black shoe rule. So, I went home and finished my second pair of the HP Everyday Pants, this time in a lightweight brown wool crepe. Tomorrow being the Pilot's payday, I will go and get those black shoes.

So, about my pants. I finished the brown wool crepe HP Everyday pants last night. They look divine! Feel divine too … I wore them to work today and had a blast. Super comfy and stylish! After work, I thought I would go back to Payless and get those Mary Janes (in black) for work. Little voice in the back of head says: “Go to Winners and look for black pants; take MB’s advice” (buy some servicable pants OFTR for now and sew better ones on the weekends). So, deciding to listen to little voice, I drive past Payless and waved to the shoes in the window (Sorry Phyllis, the little voice was louder than your shouts of encouragement!) and parked at Winners. I went in and headed for the pant section, knowing that the likelihood of finding a pair of black pants was minimal. True enough, there were no pants in the pant aisle that fit, let alone were black! So, I wandered. I found a new section called "Collections". That little voice found an obnoxious twin who screamed "EXPENSIVE ... don't go there!". The little voice said very quietly "go look". So, being somewhat perverse and not liking obnoxious anything, I did.

I found a pair of wool knit pants in black with the neatest lines to them! Aside from being luscious to touch, they were a sewn on (as opposed to the Betzina method) fly front with a semi faced waist. Semi faced, you ask? What is that? Well, it was faced from CF and CB to the points at which you would put belt loops (I call it mid point of the side front/back). In between, it was a partial band. The other neat thing was that the fly shield had a cut on tab extension for a button. The fly was closed with a zip to the waist edge and held closed by a pant hook and eye. The eye was placed right at the seamline of the fly extension. Very classy, gives a wonderful smooth front and is oh so comfortable. How do I know? Cause I tried them on and them pants FIT! Oh yeah, baby! I need to drop the crotch a hair and fold the hemline up enough to make some cuffs, but other than that, they are on me for work tomorrow! And even better, for the quality and cut of the pant and the wool, I think that the price was worth it. I'll post detailed shots later so that you can see what I am talking about. I might be able to knock these off using some of the Sophia knits in the stash!

As I admired the look of these pants, I thought, I wonder how the brown wools made it today? Do they still look OK in the back after a day at the desk or are they all droopy? So, I took the black pants off (reluctantly, BTW, they are SO COMFY!) and put the browns back on; wondering, what are the chances that this one pair of size 14's will still be there tomorrow when I can spend the Pilot's pay. Then I turned and looked at the backside of the brown pants. And didn't see any wrinkles, so that is the good news. The bad news is that I could see flashes of my creme coloured undies! ACK! I must have snipped a thread when I clipped the crotch seam last night and it had given way. SERIOUSLY given way. My inner debate as to whether to wait a day was silenced. The reason for the little voice's constant advice to day was clear. I needed an emergency buy! After all, in about 15 minutes, I would be walking across an elementary school playground where my little gap would be at eye level for about 30 kindergarten students! And they are not known for their subtlety, are they? Out came the credit card and I changed the pants in the corner of the parking lot with the seat all the way back and down. Only then did I venture out to get Monkey Girl!

The moral of the story? Listen to that quiet but persistent little voice when you shop. You never know what you may be leaving behind you ... So, you'll have to wait for a shot of the brown pants until I fix that crotch seam!