Sisterhood of the Accumulating Gray Pants

We're in a deep freeze here in the Northeast. It's bad, and I was NOT prepared. The morning of the cold snap had me running around like a maniac, tearing open storage boxes in search of a not-too-dated-or-ill-fitting cozy sweater. I managed to find a college-era sweater jacket, and it was probably the first time I ever hoped no one would notice it was from Abercrombie & Fitch (hey, I went to college in CT, what do you want from me?).

While tearing apart my sweater stash, I found something embarrassing: Gray Wool Pants.

This is embarrassing for a few reasons. One, the pants still had the tags on. Normally I'd be thrilled that I just found "free" pants. But, they're a size smaller than I normally wear (embarrassment #2). Now, this would typically be an inspiration moment for me...if I didn't just unpack 3 additional pairs of never-worn gray wool plants - all a size too small.

I think that every year, I score myself some sale pants. I stash them away, thinking "next year, I'll be smaller." Unfortunately, when it's wool pants weather, I'm usually bulked up for winter. Not only that, but they are light gray pants. Ya know, those ones that look tailored and sophisticated on tall, fit women world wide? But on lumpy ladies like myself, they leave nothing to the imagination. I can't even Spanx it till I make it with those things when they're the correct size!

So, gray pants part 4 is on my stack of 'wish list' pants. Maybe next year they'll fit. Maybe this year I won't succumb to Banana Republic's seasonal clearance sale...