From disaster, triumph
I knew there was another reason I wasn't looking forward to my sister coming. Not content with cooking bacon in my kitchen, she's now stealing my clothes.
OK, OK. Her clothes.
You see, I've lost a lot of weight (NEWSFLASH!). That has meant that I have effectively needed to buy a whole new wardrobe including things like a winter coat. Last winter I was a size 22. This winter I've mainly been a 14. There is no way I was wearing the old one. And coats are pricey, or at least thick, longish ones are.
I was just about to give in to the inevitable when, by a stroke of luck, I went in the spare room, opened the wardrobe and realised that, having become a size 14 I was the same size as my sister. And that by a further stroke of luck she'd left all her winter clothes at my house, because she doesn't need them in Gran Canaria. That was a very happy day for my bank account. I rummaged through all her clothes and retrieved jeans, jumpers, a suit and most welcome of all a smart thick coat that was ideal for work.
She knew, by the way. My mother tipped her off and the message that I got back was that the stuff she'd left here was stuff she didn't want, and it was fine for me to wear it.
Oh, how I wore that coat. It has kept me warm for many long months now, and I'd started to forget that it wasn't mine.
Until this morning, when the phone rang.
"I've found the detachable collar from my black coat but can't find the coat. Do you know where it is". Ah, that would be the black coat on the back of my office door, would it? "I was thinking of taking it up to Middlesborough tomorrow and then back to Spain with me". Ah, that would be the black coat that I rely on to keep me warm 5 days a week when I'm shivering waiting for the 6.28am bus to the gym.
This could be a slight problem.
There was only one answer. There's only ever one answer. Go shopping. Luckily I managed to find a replacement in the Next clearance shop for half price (it was meant to be £99.99 and was reduced to £48). More than I wanted to spend on a coat (ie nothing), but relatively cheap for a thick wool coat I suppose. And by rights I should have bought one in October, so at least I've delayed the inevitable by a few months.
And the coat has one redeeming feature, which makes it instantly buyable. It's a size 12 (US 8). Take your 14 to Spain, Annette, see if I care. I'll just be here wearing a smaller size. (That old sibling rivalry thing never really goes away does it!)
(The 12 on the label also reassures me about buying a thick coat at this time of year. I'm not a proper, consistent 12 at the moment, although the coat does fit. Sometimes I still need a 14. It is fairly likely I'll get to be a proper 12 at some point, but I don't know whether I'll go beyond that. But even if I do I find the thought of being smaller than a 10 inconceivable. Actually, I still find the thought of being a 10 inconceivable. So even if I do lose more weight, I doubt it will be enough to mean that the coat swamps me next winter, so I'll hopefully get more than a couple of months wear out of it).
OK, OK. Her clothes.
You see, I've lost a lot of weight (NEWSFLASH!). That has meant that I have effectively needed to buy a whole new wardrobe including things like a winter coat. Last winter I was a size 22. This winter I've mainly been a 14. There is no way I was wearing the old one. And coats are pricey, or at least thick, longish ones are.
I was just about to give in to the inevitable when, by a stroke of luck, I went in the spare room, opened the wardrobe and realised that, having become a size 14 I was the same size as my sister. And that by a further stroke of luck she'd left all her winter clothes at my house, because she doesn't need them in Gran Canaria. That was a very happy day for my bank account. I rummaged through all her clothes and retrieved jeans, jumpers, a suit and most welcome of all a smart thick coat that was ideal for work.
She knew, by the way. My mother tipped her off and the message that I got back was that the stuff she'd left here was stuff she didn't want, and it was fine for me to wear it.
Oh, how I wore that coat. It has kept me warm for many long months now, and I'd started to forget that it wasn't mine.
Until this morning, when the phone rang.
"I've found the detachable collar from my black coat but can't find the coat. Do you know where it is". Ah, that would be the black coat on the back of my office door, would it? "I was thinking of taking it up to Middlesborough tomorrow and then back to Spain with me". Ah, that would be the black coat that I rely on to keep me warm 5 days a week when I'm shivering waiting for the 6.28am bus to the gym.
This could be a slight problem.
There was only one answer. There's only ever one answer. Go shopping. Luckily I managed to find a replacement in the Next clearance shop for half price (it was meant to be £99.99 and was reduced to £48). More than I wanted to spend on a coat (ie nothing), but relatively cheap for a thick wool coat I suppose. And by rights I should have bought one in October, so at least I've delayed the inevitable by a few months.
And the coat has one redeeming feature, which makes it instantly buyable. It's a size 12 (US 8). Take your 14 to Spain, Annette, see if I care. I'll just be here wearing a smaller size. (That old sibling rivalry thing never really goes away does it!)
(The 12 on the label also reassures me about buying a thick coat at this time of year. I'm not a proper, consistent 12 at the moment, although the coat does fit. Sometimes I still need a 14. It is fairly likely I'll get to be a proper 12 at some point, but I don't know whether I'll go beyond that. But even if I do I find the thought of being smaller than a 10 inconceivable. Actually, I still find the thought of being a 10 inconceivable. So even if I do lose more weight, I doubt it will be enough to mean that the coat swamps me next winter, so I'll hopefully get more than a couple of months wear out of it).
posted by YP at 7:18 PM
3 Comments:
Well done on the bargain coat... and on being smaller than your sister.
And bacon isn't so bad, well not if you get the stuff - it's called short cut bacon here - it's just the bacon meat with all the fat removed.
I thought the one answer was going to be "No, I have absolutely no idea where that coat is." I guess you are a nicer, more honest person than me :) I don't a have a sister though, so I've never had these problems.
Been there - in reverse. I do have a sister, who is lovely, but a confirmed clothes-stealer. And still a size or so smaller than me, so although my tops look fine on her, I can't quite borrow hers. Yet.
Last time she was up: "Can I borrow my white jumper?" Bit of a Freudian slip there, I think!
£45 is seriously bargainous. I think you probably came out on top.
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