say goodbye to "chairman mao" (m)

I have a article of clothing I have worn almost every day for 2 years.  It's from the J. Jill catalogue and it's a denim shirt/jacket with a tab color and knot buttons.  It looks like something the Chinese peasants wore during the revolution.  I named this shirt "Chairman Mao".  My boys and my husband hate it because it is so unflattering.  I won't tell you what else they say about it.

I wore this shirt throughout our trip to South Africa.  The travel guides said to dress unostentatiously and I thought this fit the spec perfectly.  I've worn it over my bathing suit in the summer.  I've worn it to shovel snow in the winter.  I've worn it over my nightgown at night and I've worn it shopping at the grocery store in my la-de-da town.

Oh, it's gotten faded and worn out in areas, but I thought that only enhanced its character. 

I had noticed that it has gotten to be very loose on me, but I was in denial.  Until today.  I put it on, looked in the mirror and saw that it not only looked faded, it looked way too big.  The shoulders slid off.  I had to face the fact that I had to say goodbye to my beloved shirt/companion.

Thankfully, I had the foresight two years ago to order it in the smaller size as well.

Say hello to Chairman Mao 2.