I Won't Do That...or a Commitment to the Unlikely

I was looking down at my feet this morning after sitting down from my walk, and I noticed that I had done something that I suspect was a social faux pas that I promised all powers in the universe that I would never commit myself.  What was this heinous offense, you may ask.  As I glanced down at the source of my bipedal locomotion, I realized that I had become the slightly doughy 40'ish man that wore black 3/4 calf socks with athletic shoes and shorts.  This development was shocking enough that if begged to be captured for all posterity.  Here is what I saw.

White athletic kicks, 3/4 calf black socks, and by the hair of my legs you can easily see I am wearing this horrid combination with shorts.  It's either that, or I don't have any pants on which is a situation to terrifying to imagine, but since I mentioned it, you'll find it mostly impossible to keep the thought from crossing your mind...I hope.

About the only redeeming feature of this sad state of affairs is the fact that the socks are pushed down a bit and not hiked up in the fashion that has become associated with this terrible habit by males of my particular vintage.

This situation is something I promised myself that, "I won't do that."  Clearly that was a commitment to the unlikely.  Thinking about the sox, shoes and shorts resulted in thoughts of other things that I had decided as a youth not to do.  There were very good reasons this morning for becoming the cliche that I'd vowed to avoid, and the practicality of the decision outweighed any embarrassment I might have felt on this issue 25 or 30 years ago.  I'd like to think that I'd "grown up" a little since I first made the unlikely pledge.

Sadly, embarrassment and anxiety caused me to not do a number of other things in my youth that I probably have grown out of as well.  If I had things to do all over again, I would probably do things just a bit differently.  Here's a short list for those youths that might come across these musings for your consideration.

1.  I would have asked more girls to dance.  It would not matter to me if they said no because they were popular and I was not.  I'll never know the opportunities that I may have let slip through my fingers for fear (yes, fear) of being told, "No."

2.  I would have been friendlier with my peers who participated in the Future Farmers of America.  There are number of reasons for both my unwarranted rudeness as well as a number of reasons why it was an utterly undefendable stance.  This topic is probably worth a whole post on its own, so remind me about down the road and I'll share my insights.

3.  I would have been more daring in my choice of clothing, and I'm not just talking about wearing black socks with shorts and sneakers.  Nothing says confident like a bright pink tie and a royal blue shirt, and I allowed myself to discover this eye catching combination a bit earlier in my outfitting "career."

4.  Did I mention that I would have asked more girls to dance, and by more I mean all of them.  I would have asked them all to hold my hand and walk in the rain as well.  I had nothing to lose and so much to gain.

It's not too late for me yet (as evidenced by my nod to practicality exhibited in the picture above), but the runway is likely considerably shorter than it was 30 years ago.  Don't do what I did.  Live boldly, and don't take yourself too seriously.  That said, tomorrow I think I'll make a little extra effort to remember to bring the long pants.