Monday, July 19, 2004
Unlost Weight
Did a little shopping at the Nautica Factory Store in our new Chicago Premium Outlets mall by the house, and what do you know, they've decided to change the sizing labels.
Again. For the first time since I was sixteen years old, I now fit into what they're terming a "Large." I grabbed the Extra Larges off the rack, and Liz immediately said "those aren't XLs, those are at least Double XLs."
I'm all "No, honey, look right here at the tag. It says XL," and try them on. I'm in the changing room, looking at myself, and thinking, "where have I seen this look before." Oh, that's right. On fat rappers. A t-shirt fit like a mumu. While I'm a little excited that I now fit into a "large," I would have at least liked to have earned it. Now when I lose this weight, am I going to be wearing a Medium? Since when would a guy who's practically six feet tall and weighs 190 lbs be a Medium???
I'm getting a little tired of the industry doing this. One could argue that yes, Americans are getting larger, and therefore the definition of "large" needs to be retooled. On one hand, we're getting fatter, certainly, but on the other hand, bovine growth hormone has caused Americans to grow taller than we've been in any previous generation. However, when I wear a size "36" pants, and one brand's 36 is falling off of my hips (literally), and another brand feels like I'm trying to squeeze into pants from the children's wear department, I think it's time to re-set the system. Shouldn't a measurement that's meant to be in inches be accurate from one brand to the next?
