A seasonal closet clean-out sparks reflections on comfort, practicality, and a few hard-earned lessons about labeling trash bags before storing clothes.Metro Creative Graphics
Okay, I give up. It looks like our extended summer is behind us, and it’s time to put the shorts and tank tops away. For us, it basically means moving the flannel shirts front and center in the closet and shoving the short sleeves to the rear. Easy enough. Personally, I try to take this biannual opportunity to purge the closet of things I haven’t worn and make a run to the donation box.
The problem with my method is I am taking summer clothes to resell when what the shop really wants are the cold-weather items. My system is all off. What ends up happening is the things I want to dispose of get stowed for yet another year. And my brain says something hopeful like maybe next summer those shorts will fit and get one more chance.
I learned a lesson from a family member several years ago. She was stowing her summer clothes away for the next six or so months and making use of a trash bag to free up closet and drawer space. She walked away to do something else that needed her attention, and her husband, noting the big black bag sitting in the hallway, thought he’d be the good guy and take out the trash without being nagged. You can imagine the conversation that followed as the garbage truck motored down the street. The good news for her was she had to go shopping for all-new summer duds the following spring. For me, who also uses the trash-bag method of storage, I learned from her experience to label the bag for future reference.
Poor Ol’ Bill doesn’t have enough clothes to worry about. He wears jeans year-round, meaning he doesn’t have to deal with shorts. He seldom “dresses up,” making his closet easy to switch around. Flannels and cottons. Easy peasy. No storage involved.
I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, a clothes horse. At this stage of my life, I’m all about comfort. Fashion? Not so much. I dress for church and special trips away from the house, like grocery shopping or meeting a friend for lunch, but not being out there in the working world, I don’t feel the need to visit Summit Mall or SouthPark unless my curiosity leads me that way just to see what women are buying these days. One look at the price tags has me scurrying to the food court for a pretzel and a moment of reflection on just why I thought I needed an afternoon of torture.
When our granddaughter got married a year and a half ago, I was invited to visit the closet of a friend whose style is similar to mine and see if she might have something that would “work” for me. She evidently was more of a shopper than I am and offered up a nice selection of possibilities that I brought home and modeled in the comfort of my own living room. In the end, I found the perfect piece right in my own closet.
Now I hear you can rent a dress — over the internet! Order up a selection to be delivered to your door, try them on in the privacy and comfort of your own home, pick what you want, wear it and return it. Almost as easy as having a friend who loves to shop and share.
Meanwhile, back in my closet, I see a pile of shoeboxes I haven’t looked at for months. I’m in for a surprise there, I’m sure. The shoes I wear are front and center, and what’s in the boxes remains to be seen.
If anybody needs me, I’ll be up to my neck in donation boxes — or more likely, trash bags. Labeled, of course. Keep or toss.
