Happy 40th Old Man!

So my husband has been picking on me since my birthday (in mid-January) and now it's finally HIS 40th birthday (never marry a younger man if he's the type that likes to poke fun at your age!).
But this post is not to rag on him about his age (I do that in person) but to share what might be one of the best presents I've given him in a LONG time! This year I contacted a fellow blogger (not sure I can call myself a blogger just yet!) Rick Green of Organized Doodles. He does caricatures from afar (he lives in Oregon) and I think he does a bang-up job! Here's a link to his post on my dear husband's illustration:
http://organizeddoodles.blogspot.com/2008/03/shellys-gift-some-difficult-lessons.html
Apparently I am a high-maintenance client...but that's a whole 'nother post for another day!

I think My Man was sufficiently surprised & pleased by his birthday gift. :o)

women vs men - the clothing size debate

It's like the age-old debate of why hot dogs come in a package of 10 while the buns come in a package of 8 (my own personal opinion is that they expect you to either drop a few in the fire...or you have kids that like to eat w/out a bun).

But here's my question....why is it that men can go out & buy pants w/out having to try them on..and women have to use a dressing room? If you're a working wife..you'll know what I mean. You go out to buy clothes, you try on 5 pairs of pants...you might buy 1 that fits the way you like. Let's say you wear a size 8 or 10. Depending on the pants, you'll take a size 6, a size 8, a size 10 and even a size 12 into the dressing room...because who knows what size this "brand" of pants decided to conform to. BTW, when I said you took 5 pairs in with you - I didn't mean 1 pant in 4 to 5 sizes...I mean 5 different pairs of pants...possibly in many different sizes.

Now, switch gears...it's the men's turn to shop. They walk into a store. They pick up 2 to 3 pairs of pants...look them over. Walk to the register. It's no wonder they can shop faster than us..they don't have to try on clothes! AND...why is that you ask? It's because THEIR clothes are not sized with one number....their pants are sized w/ waist & length measurements! So as long as they know how round they are & how tall they are...they're set to go!

So how come women are forced to use Small/Medium/Large ...or a number to figure out what size they are? Why can't they just use the same measuring system as men (or something similar)?

Case in point...I'm a short but normal sized person (my butt is the same size 8 or 10 as someone that is tall and wears a size 8 or 10). So I know what you're thinking...buy a petite, right? Well, I'm NOT a petite. A petite does NOT mean short leggs - it means short legs & skinnier waist and smaller butt.

So, my question is...why can't women's pants be sold using a waist & length size...or even better yet, waist, butt & length for those of us w/ a little more junk in our trunk?