My Little A-Lined Skirt

I went to buy an umbrella on my way home this evening. My umbrella broke while I was in Rome last week and I thought I had a few extra umbrellas in my car, but when I checked my trunk there was not one umbrella to be found. The forecast says rain tomorrow, so I could not be without an umbrella.

Conveniently, SYMS is on my way home...I usually never shop at SYMS anymore...I used to shop there years ago...when they had trendy clothing...now I find they usually have some good coats and fun socks, but their clothes have gone downhill. I know they always have umbrellas, so I thought I would make a quick pit stop, run in and purchase a small umbrella and be on my way.

Usually the umbrellas are right near the cash register, so I can run in, buy one quickly without passing any racks of clothing, and scoot out - 5 minutes max. It was 6:50 pm and I had promised my son I would be home by 7:00 pm to have dinner with him. Plenty of time to purchase an umbrella...how long does it take to pick out an umbrella?

When I went to the usual aisle where they have the umbrellas, none were there. I asked the saleswomen if they sold umbrellas anymore. "Yes," the saleswomen replied, "but we moved them right near the escalator...over by the skirts."

Skirts I thought...well I guess I can look at some skirts, even though I did come in ONLY for an umbrella. How long would it take to look at a rack of skirts? At 49, I'm still a fast shopper and I'm always up for a bargain. I figured they wouldn't have anything I liked anyway...but how could I resist, being the shopaholic that I still am (well not as much as BK - Before Kids that is).

I picked out an umbrella and went straight to the skirt rack, size 6, flipped through the rack (okay, I also flipped through the jacket rack, and the suit rack...while on my way to the skirts - there was nothing I liked anyway...lots of Harve Bernard suits from the '90s). By that time it was 6:55 pm, time was ticking. I moved down the skirt rack and as I got to the last few skirts in my size, there were a few quite nice A-lined skirts...two Nicole Miller skirts to be exact in incredible fabrics...Nicole knows her fabrics. I had to try them on...so I went in the dressing room...scouted out a spot (it was empty...everyone was home having dinner...where I should have been...although thankfully there was one other women in the dressing room two stalls away).

I put on the first skirt...too tight. I put on the second skirt...I liked it...it was green brocade with teal and gold designs running through the fabric...very different. It was a little tight (around the hips, oh how I hate those 49 year old hips, no matter how I try I can't get those hips to budge)...but I liked it. However, was it too tight? Or, to be specific, was it too tight for my 49 year old figure? I looked in the mirror to the front...it looked okay...I looked in the mirror to the side...it looked okay...I looked in the mirror on the other side and in the back of me...you could see a slight, slight, slight pantyline. I couldn't decide. I asked the nice women two stalls down..."what do you think...is this skirt too tight?...please tell me the truth," I said, "I won't be offended if you think it is too tight?" "I think it looks great," she said, "and how beautiful the fabric is...but, if you think it is too tight, then it's up to you."

Don't you hate when people do that? I wanted her to tell me if I should love it and buy it...especially when I'm on the edge of reasoning...or rationalizing...not put the monkey back on my back. I decided to see if I could sit down in the skirt...(mind you time was ticking and it was already 7:15 pm...so much for dinner with my son...although if I wanted to buy this skirt I likely would not want to be eating too many dinners...definitely not desserts)...I was able to sit down without splitting any seams. The deal was sold. Yes the deal was sold. Yes...the Nicole Miller skirt was going to be mine tonight. And with an original price tag of $255 and a SYMS price of $69, it was well worth the purchase (how could I reason otherwise?)

By 7:20 pm it was in the bag, along with the umbrella, and some stockings to match. What I am going to wear with it, I don't quite know...but, "I'll worry about that tomorrow"...as Vivian Leigh said in Gone with the Wind (love that movie...best line ever). The most important thing is I have my little A-lined Nicole Miller skirt...and I do love the fabric...plus at 49 I deserve a Nicole Miller skirt since I've never had one.

Better get to the gym tomorrow so I can still fit into my little A-lined skirt next week when I want to wear it...or course, now I'll have to take it shopping with me to pick out the perfect little top to go with this perfect little A-lined skirt.

Oh, I do love clothes...always have...and always will...no matter what my age.

And when I arrived home at 7:25 pm, my son hadn't even had dinner yet. "Did you get your umbrella, mom, by the way...the computer just crashed and we lost all our documents," he said. This never happened before and had I not bought my little A-lined skirt this evening, I might have been extremely upset...but, not tonight, I just said "what a shame...hope we can fix it tomorrow!"

Judi