Derry, Northern Ireland

Derry, Northern Ireland
A book I'm working on is set in this town.

Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Bought new shoes...

I hate shopping. That aspect of my gay gene must be warped or was excised when I was born, because unless I'm in a mood to find something special and don't know what it is so will keep looking until I find it, I just want to go into a store, buy what I need and leave. No checking this and that and contemplating anything in the way of fashion or pricing or alternate possibilities.

So after work, today...which kept me an hour late...I toodled over to Chili's and had ribs and a salad then hit Macy's to see if they had a decent pair of shoes I could wear to my niece's wedding, next month. It took me more time to actually find the men's shoes department than it did to zero in on a pair of Rocklands and start looking for my size. I found one pair in a 10 wide, pulled them on, took a dozen steps, took them off and bought them.

I took longer to eat my salad...but that's how it always has been with me. The only times I can remember actually shopping were when I was looking for a gift for someone and couldn't figure out what to get. Then I'd hit off-beat little shops, like along Third Street down from the Beverly Center in LA or along La Cienega north of Beverly, and dig through to see what hit my fancy. Occasionally, I'll do the mall thing but only for certain types of people and then normally for a married couple instead of a single.

Like for this couple I know who are big on wine tastings and a glass in the evening. I happened onto a selection of wine glasses in different sizes and shapes, depending on the vintage and type of wine, and a set of those worked great.

Then there was a woman I worked for when I first moved to LA -- she was one of those extremely demanding people so somehow I wound up being given the task of finding the right Christmas present for her from all the staff. It took me three days but I happened onto a set of silver Cross pens with a clip of hearts that was similar to her company's logo. Cost $200 but we went with that...and she was speechless, she was so pleased. I felt very smug.

So I can shop, I just don't like to. I don't buy clothes until I have to...which I'm getting close to needing to do; I need to be presentable at the wedding, but at least I don't have to buy a suit. Those things are like a straight jacket to me.

Maybe I'm more straight than I think...

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