When I began this, my only thought was of taking a painless and leisurely route to culling my accumulated bits and pieces, sorting through what I have as part of the regular discipline of maintaining orderly peace and travelling light. But it occurred to me this morning that an additional benefit of it is the casual creation of a calendar to observe the days going by as we travel through the long house arrest of this transitional year. We've sat indoors dodging the ominous spectre of the virus, grateful for faithful and efficient delivery drivers, getting our first vaccine jabs as soon as our turn came, watching the seasons change and our hair grow. It's nice to think that once these 365 days of getting rid of 730 things is done, we will all have emerged. Churches will be open again and cafés, it will be safe to go on the bus and the train, friends will be able to visit for a cup of tea and a chat. Brexit has happened in the meantime, of course; and though thankfully Joe Biden and Kamala Harris prevailed in America, there's still turbulence on the political scene there, and we in the UK still have an irresponsible government with senior members who treat public funds as a private resource. And there's the maverick prince and his wife. Jeepers. So much going on quite apart from the social and economic impact of the virus itself and the deeper entrenchment of climate change. It's not entirely wise to wish time away — heaven knows what will be at the other end of any one winding passage of time. But still — even so — 365 days . . . let's be hopeful.
Well, today I am disposing of two very nice items of clothing — they'd go well together actually — a top and a skirt.
The top is a regular style from a firm called Cotswold Collection; really nice quality, well made.
The thing is I buy virtually all my clothes either second-hand on eBay or in drastic sale reductions. This particular top was in the former category. On the Cotswold Collection site these retail at £45, and this one was £5.99. I have one in the same style in an oyster colour, that fits and suits me perfectly, bought for a similar price. I hoped this one would be a slightly more red-burgundy shade (as it looks in my photo here and likewise the vendor's photos on eBay), but it's that dusty purple colour in reality. I can't explain it but the redder tint looks very nice on me where the plum purple makes me look as if I might have a heart condition. I am already mauve enough without augmentation. I don't know if the vendor accepts returns, but especially in the days of the virus I think it in any case inadvisable to have more transit of goods between private homes than strictly necessary — I don't want my eBay dithering to make me an unwitting super-spreader. Besides, the things I buy are so cheap that by the time I've paid (non-refundable) postage here, and then postage back again, what I recoup would hardly buy a cup of coffee. So I keep my mistakes in carefully folded condition and donate them to raise funds for homeless people. I reckon that way they are not wasted, people get a roof over their heads, the volunteer sector is supported, and the many economically challenged people who plentifully populate the town where I live have the opportunity to buy nice clothes in excellent condition. So I've packed up the top and skirt ready for when the Shelter shop opens up again in a few weeks time.
The skirt — another second-hand eBay purchase at rock-bottom price — is by the company Lucia, again a really nice firm.
It is a style that needs to fit snugly around the hips, and boy, does this fit snugly!! So very snugly as to make me look as if I have a pot belly, which I resent, and to somewhat compress my internal organs which I resent even more. Over the years, vanity sizing has become the way of women's fashion, and what I think has happened (judging by the style, which has not been in vogue for some while) is that this skirt was originally made and purchased a very long time ago and just hung in some dear lady's wardrobe until she died and her things were cleared out. So it may once have been the size it says it is, but we all mean something much more generous when we look for that size in 2021. Never mind. It's a pretty skirt with a lovely flow in a beautiful and subtle colour; it will suit a slimmer woman very well.
So that was Day 4.
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