The Clothes War

If there's one thing Greg and I do not have in common it's our spending habits when it comes to clothes. 

I am not a clothes horse in the least while he's a clothes Clydesdale. We've had many a discussion on this disparity.

It boils down to the fact that he feels he should be able to buy whatever catches his fancy. I'm more of a 'buy it only if I'm naked' kind of girl.

My oldest pullover is at least twenty-five years old. I wear my jeans until there's nothing left of them. They're not even worth keeping as rags. And we won't even discuss my sleeping clothes.

My clothes are sorted by acceptability. The best looking are for stepping out in public. (I don't want people thinking I'm riding the rails.) But as they wear out, they become my work clothes around the farm.

I'm picky about clothes. Not about style, but utility. If it can't move in all the directions I need to go, it's useless to me.

As for nicer things, after I retired, I donated all but one suit. I still have a couple of nice dresses too but I've had no reason to wear them for years. Luckily I don't change size much so they should fit me fine in case royalty comes to visit.

I can't even bring myself to say how many t-shirts Greg has. It's a lot. We have an enormous walk-in closet, and his stuff dominates three-quarters of it. 

I refuse to give him any more of my space even though I have plenty to spare. It's my hope I might fill up my side one day when stores decide to stock stylish duds for active people and not for the criminally trendy and teen-aged.

It's not that I don't like nice things. I like them very much. But really, how many shirts do I need for a week? Even if I change three times a day, seven days a week, that only comes out to twenty-one shirts.

To be fair, in the middle of a Texas summer it's quite possible to change three times in a day, so I'm perfectly okay with twenty-one changes of clothes.

It's the hundred and twenty-first set of clothes that drives me crazy.

So back to you. Are you a clothes horse or a clothes pony? 

Do you budget for clothing? We have a really teeny-tiny limit on how much we can spend a month for clothing. My thinking is that we have all we need, so anything we buy should be a direct replacement. 

...like a windbreaker. I need a windbreaker. In red. And rain-resistant. Size medium. Greg are you reading this? My birthday is next month. 

In other expensive news, I think my computer bit the dust. It's very old. For the last three years, we've been keeping it alive by swapping parts, cleaning, and debugging. This time I'm afraid it won't come back from the dead.

It's the hard drive. Unless the pros can repair it, I'll be getting a new computer. 

If you hear wailing and teeth-gnashing over the next two weeks, that would be me, trying to reload all my old software.


Comments

Unknown said…
Depending on how old the computer and your software, I would recommend against loading the older software if you have alternatives that may be free or low cost. I say this only because I know too well the pitfalls of dependencies when migrating apps and data. I always go with new when I can. :)
Maria Zannini said…
Diane: My Photoshop is new so I'm sure it'll be okay. My problem is how to un-install it on the old (non-functioning) machine so I can reinstall it on the new one. Photoshop is a beast about being on more than one machine. It thinks it's being pirated.
Stacy McKitrick said…
I hate clothes shopping, so I only buy when I have to, which isn't very often. My husband is the same way, so I guess I'm lucky (he probably considers himself lucky).

I feel your pain re: your computer. It's one of the reasons I replaced mine BEFORE my old one completely died. I was able to get the stuff I needed easily.
Jackie said…
Maria feel you on the "wear it till it rots", my favorite clothes were left behind in 2011 so of course they all burned and just like new furnishings for house I hate clothes shopping.

We have a walk in closet and now both sides are full with only a small amount of space on my side that I cannot hang things as above my head and can no longer lift stuff up on hanger that extra several feet so that space is used for the dirty clothes hamper to sit under.

Unfortunately in last several years we have also both gained weight so a lot of the clothes bought for both of us no longer fit, however since we intend to lose the weight the clothes will stay until we can wear them. That means that they may be in style again by that time! LOL

We have no budget for clothing as luckily we do not need to dress up often, also luckily my husband can wear his uniform shirts to work that his latest employer provided as well as the new fire retardant jacket and coveralls they are providing him.
B.E. Sanderson said…
You are my soul-sister - at least in matters of clothing. When we moved, I finally gave away the dress I wore to my sister's wedding in 1985. It was still good, but I needed to pare down. Don't get me started on sleep shirts. I wear them until my husband guilts me into making them dustrags. I do have nice clothes, but I never have the occasion to wear them.

Oh man, sorry about your computer. Good luck with the Photoshop. If it gives you trouble, try calling the company and letting them know - they might have a code you can input to make it right.
Angela Brown said…
I'm pretty much a clothes donkey. Work what I got until it falls apart.
Maria Zannini said…
Stacy: I hate clothes shopping too. Come to think of it I dislike almost all kinds of shopping, except books and chocolate. You can't get tired of that. :)
Maria Zannini said…
Jackie: Yeah, you were forced into a fresh new start.

Re: uniforms
I think uniforms are the way to go for work and school. This way no one can make assumptions on your wealth or lack of it.
Maria Zannini said…
BE: I hope the Photoshop people will help. I didn't buy the software through them.
Maria Zannini said…
Angela: Clothes donkey! I love it!
Sarah Ahiers said…
I'm a bit of a clothes horse. But i am also very good about donating clothes that i don't wear anymore or that don't fit. So even though there's a fair amount of new clothing coming in, there's a fair amount going out. And there are plenty of clothes i wear until they fall apart
Ouch. Computers last me a long time but they do need replaced on occasion.
I'm more a clothes pony. I tend to have mix and match for my 'going out' clothing so I have different looks.
For around the house, I'm like you. Wear it until it falls apart.
I like to shop, but I rarely buy. It's more like a treasure hunt for me, and I only buy stuff that's on sale. Even then, I stare at it a really long time and think when I might wear it. I've got quite a war chest of "in public" clothes now, so I'm pretty set.

The only exception is jeans. I so rarely find some that I like that I'll buy them if I like them. I still only have four pairs, and I change sizes a lot, so they're different sizes in constant rotation. Even then, they STILL have to be on sale. :)
Mike Keyton said…
Clothes pony I guess. I threw away a shirt last year. It was a Christmas present from my Seattle cousin in 1981. Good luck with the computer. I understand techno-stress. Truly I do😉
Unknown said…
It's the opposite for my husband and I. I LOVE shopping for clothing, but only if I have money for it. With Husband being the sole provider, I've learned to tame my shopping habits, to where I'm like you - only if I need it. Husband, on the other hand, wears his clothing until it falls off his body. Seriously. I've seen him go to work wearing tee-shirts that had huge rips in them. Twice, guys he's worked with have brought him in their old tees just because they feel sorry for him. I keep telling him to buy stuff, even at Value Village, but he says no. Part of it is, he doesn't like to spend money. He had to buy a second-had tux for KofC and I swear, he was turning green just thinking about spending them money.
Maria Zannini said…
Sarah: That's all I'm saying. I'm not opposed to shopping. I just don't want a closet crammed with clothes I don't wear.
Maria Zannini said…
Susan: My pc was the top of the line when I bought it and it's at least 9 years old.

I know it was time to replace it but I hate moving software and learning new operating systems.
Maria Zannini said…
Barbara: I'm real particular about jeans too. I try to keep three pair in rotation, but I lost two almost at the same time so I was scrambling to find replacements that I liked.
Maria Zannini said…
Mike: A shirt from 1981 is a good run.
Maria Zannini said…
Darke: LOL! Tim beat me out. I don't think anyone has ever bought me something because they felt sorry for me.

I keep my holey shirts for working around the farm. The goats don't care how I look as long as I bring the grub.
Rebekah Loper said…
If the hard drive is LITERALLY the only thing that needs replacing for your computer to be functional again, you might seriously consider just swapping it out. You may have to get a new operating system (that usually goes 'with' a specific piece of hardware, like the hard drive, so if you replace it, you have to re-buy the software, unless you use a free thing of some sort), but even the cost of a hard drive and operating system is going to be drastically less than a new computer. That's what I just had to do with my laptop.

As for me, I like clothes. I just buy them at the Goodwill store whenever they have a half-off sale. :D

Although that doesn't always guarantee that you'll find what you're looking for that day. *sigh*
Raelyn Barclay said…
For the most part, I'm a if I haven't worn it in a year or am madly in love with it, it's out. Goodwill and the Vets love me ;) That Man on the other hand, hardly ever buys clothes but I swear he has stuff in the closet from the 70's!

We don't have a monthly budget amount but try to set aside $100 a month toward clothing and shoes. Of course, most of that savings ends up being spent on the wee beasties' for back to school.

So sorry about the 'puter. I feel your pain. I'm with Diane, though, on buying new software where you can. If I see the mushroom cloud, I'll know what happened :)
Jenny Schwartz said…
Being a writer is a terrible disincentive to dressing up. I'm sure the neighbours think my style appalling. Never mind! In my books, my characters dress beautifully :)
Maria Zannini said…
Rebekah: I talked to the tech support guy and he said it could be a software issue.

Then Greg reminded me that we'd been fixing, replacing, and maintaining my computer for the last three years. It's nine going on ten now.

He convinced me it was time to get another computer with the fastest processor and largest hard drive I could find. This could help another issue we haven't been able to resolve. Because my programs are so graphics heavy, it's slow. A fast microprocessor could help a lot here.

I hated to spend the money, but maybe I can keep this machine for another decade too.
Maria Zannini said…
Raelyn: Mushroom cloud in Texas. Yup. That would be me.

I might have to start drinking tonight.
Maria Zannini said…
Jenny: Agh! Why didn't I think of that? No wonder I'm not obsessed with new clothes. No one ever sees me--well hardly.

And you're right. My characters are far better dressers than me. I live vicariously through them.
Both my husband and I are like you, I think. Very utilitarian, yet we like to look nice. I've always been this way, even when a teenager-- I like to have a few nice things but don't enjoy continual clothes shopping like my sisters do.
Maria Zannini said…
Karen: I was more apt to shop when I was in my 30s, but that was when I was in front of a lot of people.

Like Jenny said, there's not much incentive to dress up if no one sees you.
Shelley Munro said…
I wear T-shirts, jeans and shorts in the summer. That's my home wardrobe but I also have a holiday wardrobe :)
Like you, as things wear about they change from holiday to home. I do have a weakness for T-shirts and buy souvenir ones while on holiday. I get quite upset when they wear put.
Maria Zannini said…
Shelley: I have a secret fetish for university t-shirts. My very favorite (and now worn out) is a University of Australia logo on a teal background.

I'm afraid I loved that t shirt to death.
LD Masterson said…
The only thing I hate more than shopping for clothes is shopping for shoes. I just don't get the thrill. I'm like you in that I prefer to dress for comfort than style. Although I do have a weakness for shirts with my grandkids schools on them, or anything Red Sox.
Maria Zannini said…
Linda: I'm so hard on shoes that it does me no good to buy anything expensive.

Re: Red Sox shirts
Hmm...what a surprise. :D