So long, Summer

photos by erik simkins

Clinging to the last days of summer like a desperate girlfriend. Don't leave meeeee ...

I wore this Alexander Wang dress to a wedding last weekend. Imagine me on the dance floor, air-drumming to AC/DC's "Thunderstruck," dodging splashes of beer and drunken heels, and that was my Saturday night. Good times.

There's a bit of a story behind this leather jacket. I thrifted it when I lived in Minneapolis, and it quickly became my favorite spring jacket. I like that it's a bomber style and not the ubiquitous moto. It also hits at the right spot, unlike most leather jackets that crop at the waist.

Anyway, I brought it with me on a trip and couldn't find it when I returned, so I became convinced that I'd lost it at the airport. I called the Lost and Found office about a million times, leaving detailed descriptions, hoping they'd find it in a bin at the security checkpoint.

My jacket never turned up. I eventually lost hope and resigned myself to its fond memory.

Several weeks later, I went over to my parents' house for dinner, and lo and behold, what did I find hanging in their front closet?

My dad actually took a picture of me crumbling to the ground, clutching my jacket in ecstasy, ripping the lining as I celebrated our blissful reunion.

Then, this past spring I walked through a doorway on my way into work and ripped a giant, triangle-shaped tear in the right sleeve. You should've heard my distress cry, like a lioness who's lost her cub. I still have no idea what caught on that sleeve — the doorframe was totally bare!

It took me months to get the sleeve repaired. There's only one leather seamstress in all of Seattle and she works the world's least convenient hours, clear across town. I had to take off work and arrange for transportation multiple times as she closed early the first time I tried to come by. Cue more distress cries.

Anyway, the jacket is finally all fixed and ready to roll. We'll never be apart again!

Have you ever had a piece of clothing or shoes that you'd do anything to save?