Shrinking Apologist Update

When I was bugging out of my house the other day (pun intended), I only had moments to pack, and one of the few things I grabbed as three shirts from my closet. These were virtually the only clothes, other than the ones I was wearing, that I ended up leaving the house with.

Unfortunately, these were three old-and-not-very-nice shirts, but they were among the few clean ones I had left (doing laundry being a major goal of my labor day weekend). Grabbing these was dumb. What I should have done was grab an armload of dirty laundry and then found a place to wash it once I was settled elsewhere, but there you have it.

I thus emerged from my apartment with not enough shirts to make it through the week, no extra socks or underwear, and no extra pants–a combination of circumstances that would make it remarkably difficult to do laundry in any laundromat.

I decided that a trip to Wal-Mart was in order.

I might not end up looking stylish, but I’d be able to get through the week and do laundry in public until I can get back into my apartment.

I bought a cheap polo shirt, a couple of cheap grey T-shirt/undershirts, and an inexpensive pair of jeans.

Deciding on the sizes to buy was a little dicey, as all of my old clothes sizes are out of date, but my guesses were pretty accurate.

I know that different manufacturers use different sizing schemes, but I’m pleased to report that polo-maker Puritan and T-shirt maker Fruit of the Loom both now consider me to be just a “large” (as opposed to the XXL they used to consider me).

My pants-guessing didn’t go quite as well. I assumed that I’d lost four inches off my waist, but it appears that I’ve lost six, as I still need to keep my belt snug. Also, although I no longer need Wrangler “relaxed fit” jeans, neither–it turns out–do I need “regular fit” jeans. They’re too bulky on me. I really need “slim . . .”–er–“tight . . . “–er–well, let’s just say that I need whatever is below “regular fit.”

Incidentally, interesting Wal-Mart they have here in El Cajon. It’s not laid out like any Wal-Mart I’ve ever been to. Among other things, it’s two-story, and next to the human escalators they have special escalators to take your shopping cart up and down as well.

Author: Jimmy Akin

Jimmy was born in Texas, grew up nominally Protestant, but at age 20 experienced a profound conversion to Christ. Planning on becoming a Protestant seminary professor, he started an intensive study of the Bible. But the more he immersed himself in Scripture the more he found to support the Catholic faith, and in 1992 he entered the Catholic Church. His conversion story, "A Triumph and a Tragedy," is published in Surprised by Truth. Besides being an author, Jimmy is the Senior Apologist at Catholic Answers, a contributing editor to Catholic Answers Magazine, and a weekly guest on "Catholic Answers Live." View all posts by Jimmy Akin