Buying clothes is not something

I find any pleasure in. I avoid it if I can. 

I tend to wait until the item which needs to be replaced is no longer fit for purpose. There will be a hole in a strategic place or the elastic cannot be replaced and the shopping expedition can no longer be delayed. It will not be possible to do the same thing "online". 

Yesterday was one such day. Middle Cat had already muttered something about why didn't I go into the CBD's shopping mall to get what I wanted. I shuddered inwardly. 

I pedalled off and caught a train instead. I could have caught two trains to do this but of course I had missed the first one and what is an extra twenty-five minutes of pedalling? It delays the evil moment. This involved a considerable distance but most of it is a gentle slope downhill. I thought about other things while avoiding the worst of the traffic by going along a back route.

At the big suburban shopping mall I parked and firmly locked the trusty trike to the bike rack. A passing stranger handed over the trolley they had been using so I could use it as a walker. Of course the three places I had in mind were scattered over a long distance. Sigh!

I wonder at people who seem to spend all day in these places. It was  "mid-week" I suppose but it still seemed to be crowded...and surely all those teenagers should have been at school?  I prowled past them. I looked cautiously at the other shops which "might" also have something in them but I did not enter. They would be a last resort. They are "brand names" and even more expensive. I do not believe in paying to advertise a brand. It is possible to get the identical, or almost identical, article for less than half the price. "Sale" signs are no longer "sales". They occur all year round.

One shop had nothing even though the sales assistant (when I found one) agreed that there "should be" something there. It was still showing up on their stock lists. 

The second shop was even less helpful. There was another customer in there who was also struggling. She was using a long handled cane for the visually impaired and clearly struggling to see anything. It was common sense to ask her if she wanted me to read the label. She accepted the offer and we agreed that clothes shopping was not a pleasure.

"I research before I come," she told me, "But it does not always help that much." I knew exactly what she meant. There was nothing there in my size or hers.

We went to the next shop together and I left her talking to a very helpful shop assistant. There was nothing there for me.

I stood there feeling cross and scratchy. Give up and catch two trains? I started down the other side of the mall and came across a rack outside a shop. I looked but there was nothing in my size.

"What size are you looking for?" another customer asked me, "They have some more there - same price." 

I gave her a grateful smile and put my paw out on something which will do. It is not perfect and I will have to ask Middle Cat or S.... to adjust the length...but it will do. The price was reasonable.

I went past the rather nice greengrocer on the way out and bought myself half a dozen mandarins.... I think I deserved those.