This is part of the Slice of Life Challenge hosted by the Two Writing Teachers.
Can someone tell me where runaway socks escape to? And why do they loathe my kids' feet so much that they flee as they do? They may be boys, but they are cute boys with adorable piggies that only smell if it's warmer than I expect it to be and I have let them run around in furry Crocs all day. Otherwise, there is no reason why socks need to disappear from our lives.
Seriously. I demand an answer.
Before kids, sure, a sock would go rampant here or there. But now that I have kids, it is a miracle if I can find a matching pair of socks. Honestly, in the morning as I root through the basket of unmatched socks, you'll hear me cry out, "Yes!" if I can find a match or a pair that closely resemble a match. It's a momentous occasion.
Did you really just ask me why I don't match the socks after I do the laundry? If I must explain...first of all, there is a-stinkin'-lot of laundry to be done in our house! Clothes end up in four places after they have been worn: 1. the hamper in our room, 2. the hamper in the kids' room, 3. the floor in the laundry room, 4. anywhere in the house that said clothes are taken off. AND, guess what? Kids love to take off their socks. It's like a game. They grab the toe and tug and tug and then woop the sock flies in the air. And when socks go flying in the air there is no controlling them. They just go. When it's time for me to do laundry, I gather clothes from everywhere and it gets mixed up and most of the time a sock doesn't get laundered with it's pair. Which means they don't get folded together. Which means they don't get matched. Which means they go into the sock basket. Which means every morning I am digging around searching for non-existent matching socks. Fun, I tell you, fun!
If you don't believe me, I have proof.
Anyone out there have a good system for sock management? Hit me!
By the way, I owe my inspiration for this post to all the renegade socks of the world and to Beep and Bah by James Burks. It is a must-read for anyone has felt like socks have gotten the best of them.
14 comments:
This made me laugh! When my husband and I were just dating we used to use a laundromat near our apartment. Almost every time we did laundry somebody else's baby sock would find its way into our load. Now that we have an actual baby in our house with his own socks, I still find it really cute. No real sock management ideas - socks were just meant to be free!
We have similar morning rituals. When my husband asks me, "what's wrong." I frequently respond, "just sock drama." I can second your "YES," as I understand the relief and disbelief that can occur when you are searching for a matching set! And the flinging...oh yeah, there is flinging. I once found three different socks in the ceiling high cupboard spaces that are above my son's closet. It's too bad socks are even necessary.
Ha - love this! It was worse when my kids were younger. Now, my nine year old is very good about putting his socks in his laundry basket. My six year old still sheds them wherever he feels the need. Somehow he is the one with less socks. Hmm. I think I see a connection here. :)
Oh, boy, we have some serious sock drama at my house, too, but I'm lucky! It's now a trend for teen girls to wear mis-matched socks! This works for my 13-year-old, but the 15-year-old athlete is more particular.
Thanks for a great piece!!
Chris
Your post had me laughing out loud, and who can't relate the problem of socks gone MIA? In fact, this post reminds me of an hysterical bit that Bill Cosby used to do about socks leaning back up against the dryer drum so that we can't see them when we pull the clothes out of the dryer - like little spies standing straight as boards up against the wall.
Fun slice, Jen!
Yes, socks have gotten the best of me--I admit it. Every week when all the laundry is folded, I look into the basket and there are at least ten unmatched socks looking up at me. Mocking me. I am no longer amused. Like you, I demand an answer.
O.K. ~ Not kidding, but as I'm reading your post, my husband walks in the room and says to my son, "We've got to get you some more socks, Sam." Being the stay-at-home Dad apparently that's the solution. Actually, he does have a system. He is rather dogmatic about buying certain kinds of socks for himself and ones with a different color band for Sam. Kind OCD, but he seems to like it???
I just read your post outloud to my husband. And he feels I didn't describe the system well enough(he agrees he's dogmatic about it). Apparently "each person should only have one kind of sock that is unique from everyone elses." Direct quote. It's so fun to make fun of him. I like your son's gray and blue sock. And I love how they "whoop" fly off! You made me laugh and we'll have to read that book!
My husband often grumbles we take two off and put them in the basket...where can they go?? I have an orphan sock heading off to the basket of the in the bedroom. I can't toss them, the moment I do one will reappear!!
We have such a sock problem in our house that I've tried several measures. Each helps in its own right - but nothing is foolproof. I put an initial on the bottom of each sock. I attempt to buy a different type of sock for each child. And each child has a Sock Sac (socksacs.com). Of course it only works if the child puts his/her socks in the sac. So the family rule is, if it's not in your sock sac, I'm not sorting it. You're on your own to find it in the missing socks bin. I have two children who use the sac religiously, 1 never, and the rest are somewhere in between. But it helps.
Love, love, love! I swear my washer and/or dryer eats our socks too (but never pairs, just a lone one here or there). I heard about someone who pins socks together before they was. That would require a lot of organization and coordination of the family effort. I am just happy when the socks get down the laundry chute!
We have never lost a sock. Hmmm...I wonder what you are doing wrong. JK-sock loss sucks. I mean stinks.
It is so nice to know I am not alone! My boys will say, "do my socks need to match today?". As long as they are both some what close in color! :)
Why is this so true? And I hate matching socks so throw all the clean socks in a bin in the laundry room until we can take time to match. There are always at least 3 rogue socks either happy or sad they've lost their partners. Now add a 9 yr old boy with sock 'issues' (seams, softness, padding...) Here...let's just wear flip flops. It's all good, we're in San Diego.
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