Old Corduroys

This always happens when I pack for a trip. I pack up all the clothes I usually wear, my favorite stuff, and I don’t want to dirty any A-list outfits, so the day before the trip I wear some stuff that’s been buried in the drawer for months. Like right now I have on my old grey corduroys and band T-shirt, an ensemble that hasn’t seen the light of day all year. And that’s just it. It’s the novelty factor, I guess. Just because I haven’t worn this stuff in ages, it suddenly stands out, it looks cool, it has me second-guessing my suitcase priorities. I’ll probably end up wearing these corduroys all week and, as usual, leave untouched ninety percent of everything I pack in my suitcase. I know this, and yet I go through the motions as usual. It’s a familiar pattern, but it doesn’t feel constricting to me. It’s comforting in a way. It’s fun. And that’s a relief, to observe me being me, with all my quirks and foibles, and for that to make me smile instead of cringe.