Blog Post No. 680

One of the earliest post I made on this site was about how I don’t like wearing pants. I’m not sure when the change happened, but at some point in the last 15 or so years, I stopped minding. I wouldn’t say I’m a convert and love pants, but they don’t bother me anymore. I say that as an awkward introduction to a story about how I just bought new pants for work.

Everyone knows that everything is ridiculously expensive and is just getting more expensive as we all get poorer. The problem is that I have a job and at that job, I need to be presentable which includes wearing pants. Not dress pants or a suite, but a decent pair of khakis or chinos (whatever those are).

Over my long number of years at the job, I’ve gone through a ton of pants. For years, I would wear the same pair or two until they got a hole and then go to Winners or wherever to find something basically respectable. Over that time, pants have gotten generally worse and filled with an overwhelming amount of stretchy material.

I’m not against a little stretch, but it’s gotten to be that the pants feel like rubber and never fit right. Since starting full time at the day job almost three years ago, I’ve been through two pair of pants. The ones I started with which were already well worn, and the worst pair of name brand waste of money I’ve ever spent.

I won’t say the name, but they are available most places including Amazon which I bought them from (and now try to avoid as much as possible). They weren’t cheap, but the reviews were good and (while I know they could all be fake) they were suggested over another pair from the same brand that I had been considering.

At first, they fit okay and were not crazy expensive, so I gave them a shot. They were more stretchy than I wanted, but it’s so hard to avoid that I figured I was stuck. After the first wash in cold water and being hung to dry, they shrank, a lot. I know showing ankle is the style (like the old 80s cuffs) but it was uncomfortable and I would spend all week stretching them back out only to have to wash them again and start all over. Plus, as I mentioned, they were so stretchy they might as well have been spandex.

For almost two years I willed them to rip or be damaged in some way so I could replace them and finally, get some better pants. The day finally happened last week and I went on the hunt for a better replacement. A couple years ago, I bought some cargo pants for my trip to Montreal and while they were more than I wanted to spend, they held up well and were comfortable, so I tried to get the same pants without the cargo.

It was a challenge. I went to the same store (which had moved and became maze-like in layout) and ended up having to try on 6 different pants to find one that fit right and felt comfortable (enough). Between cuts and even colours, the size differences were wild to the point where I might as well have guessed what would have fit.

Again, I spent more than I wanted, but I’m in a position now where I can afford to spend a bit more to get something better that will likely last longer than two pairs of cheaper pants. The boot theory of economics or whatever.

So far, the pants have been worth the money. Less stretch (unavoidable without spending a fortune) and a much better fit. If they last as long as the old pair, I’ll feel like it was money spent well-enough. I’m no longer constantly tugging on the bottom of my pants to try and stretch out the rubber legs. Though, I do have to be a little more on top of making sure my shirt stays tucked in.