Wednesday, January 14, 2009

The procurement of all things.

At the laundromat this evening, I had a sudden realization: 2008 was a year of major sports gear acquisition. Prior to K8, my only piece of "sports gear" (defined as apparel featuring the name or logo of any professional, minor league, or collegiate team) was a Michigan tee purchased at the Goodwill in Galesburg. This tee, which came with a hole already developing in one armpit, was used exclusively for exercise and/or bummery. I never wore it in public.

But this year, something miraculous happened: I started accumulating sports gear. A brief rundown of the acquisition:

1) Easter: Eric's mom sent me a care package, feat. candy (lots, assorted), a journal, and a Wisconsin Badgers tee. I wore the tee tentatively at first, feeling like a bit of a fraud, but eventually grew into it.

2) September: While in Madison for a wedding, E. and I stopped by the UW bookstore, where I purchased two tees, one that reads "Sconnie," the other featuring a cartoon of Bucky the Badger. The latter (which is, ironically, the better fitting of the two shirts) was $5.

3) November: Loitering in the activewear section of an unfamiliar TJMaxx, I found a Red Sox "baseball style" tee. Its cuteness (red sleeves, purposefully distressed logo, ruching at side seams) impressed me. And, it was only $7, so I bought it.

4) Xmas: E's sister got me a Wisconsin hoodie, to accompany my growing collection of t-shirts, and Eric got me a Brewers tee.

So there you go: Bam. Including the original Michigan tee (which is in a sorry state, but still used for exercise), I now have seven pieces of sports gear. I still don't have any caps, but I don't wear hats except when the weather demands it. Ditto pants, but sports pants seem much harder to come by than shirts. Will this sporty trend continue into 2009? I'm pretty sure it will. Goal: diversify teams.

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