August 16, 2003
Clothes
It used to be that my best clothes were what women gave me;
now, they are what I buy at garage sales.
A typical remark is, "That's a nice shirt."
My typical response is, "Thanks....one dollar at a garage sale."
"Oh!" you say.
What that "Oh" means, I'm not sure.
Once, in a dark bar, I was talking to a friend, who,
to emphasize a point, placed her hand warmly on my right shoulder.
Feeling the silk underneath, she raised her eyebrows and mouthed
"Oh!" --not expecting me and silk to run together.
Because it was silk, because it was Janice, because we were sitting close in a dim bar,
I didn't want to admit it cost only a buck.
She might have thought I'm not only cheap, but also pretentious...
like a drunk who only passes out in upscale gutters.
So I ignored the raised brows and silent "Oh,"
but secretly I was very pleased at the impression I made.
Unfortunately, it went nowhere...Janice and I, that is.
I never saw her again.
Maybe, if I had told her where I got the shirt and how little I paid for it
she would have been impressed by my thriftiness
as well as my taste in garage sales.
Then, maybe, Janice and I would now be a couple,
cruising the streets cool Saturday mornings,
and she would come to me saying, "Darling, look what I bought for you. Only one dollar!"
And I'd say, "Oh!"