Little Things Mean a Lot

Happily moving on to more personal matters...

One of the tenets set out by Mrs. Leslie, when I made my move into part-time girl about two years ago, was that she wasn't going to do anything to help me with my "hobby." 190 blog entries later, it's obvious that there's a lot of water under the bridge since then. And of late, much is changing, in a good way.

Early on, I requested that I might have first dibs on any feminine garments that were pulled to go to Goodwill. I was refused outright. She wouldn't even entertain the idea. She was not going to help me.

Now, when I had my New Year's breakdown, as I was telling her that I thought status quo was do-able, I emphasized that I would need to enhance my wardrobe. My couple of decent outfits was not going to cut it. Twice this month, odd clothing items have come into our possession. The first was a cotton cardigan sweater that my wife rejected as too garish and middle-aged. She asked my opinion of it, and I agreed. She made a point of leaving it on the bed when she left the room. Later, she asked my opinion again. That's when I realized that she had meant me to try it on, and keep it if I liked it. After that, I did give it a trial and found it wanting.

Yesterday, she presented a bright red linen jacket that had been bought in a thrift store last year as a part of a costume for my daughter. She had no further use for it, and at size 14 is way big for Mrs. L. She was overt this time in offering it to me. It's a bit large for me also, but my shoulders do fit for a change. I will remove the shoulder pads(!), and see if I can use it somewhere. Not something I would've sought out for myself, but it could prove adaptable.

These are not great clothing items, but the significance is huge. She is acknowledging that Leslie has needs, needs that she is willing to assist with. She never wanted me to have a substantial female wardrobe, in fact was adamant about it. Now she's actively putting clothes in my hands. This is a development that I didn't see coming, and that makes it even more special.