What’s with women and shoes? They like to shop for them, buy them and collect them. I’ve never understood this feminine phenomenon. Shoes are so pedestrian. Give me a good pair of sneakers and I’m good to go until they become ragged. Then I go buy a new pair.
Now my wife hates to shop for clothes, but she likes to shop for shoes. If she’s in a melancholy state, she goes shoe shopping. If she’s in a happy mood, she still goes shoe shopping. I just don’t get it.
She’s also adamant that things are put away at our house. Table tops are kept clean and uncluttered. This pertains to the whole house. Except my fishing room.
My fishing room is a bit messy. No, it’s a disaster. Picture the aftermath of a a F-5 tornado. Fly tying remnants are scattered all over, clothes in disarray, rods and reels, books and magazines and untold other things of varying importance.
My understanding wife doesn’t care what my room looks like as long as the door remains closed. My mess, my problem. “Don’t complain when you can’t find something.”
Recently, as I do on a rare occasion, I cleaned and organized my room. Not a one night affair, but most of a whole weekend. I found so many things I forgot I had. Many in duplicate. I couldn’t understand how I’d amassed this collection.
I’m not a hoarder, but to my surprise, I found things I had bought that I must have thought I needed. As an example, seven spools of yellow fly tying thread. Not one, seven. What’s wrong with my brain?
Obviously, I shouldn’t be allowed in a fly shop unsupervised. My obsession to have to buy something, or many somethings, is surely out of control.
It was then I had an epiphany. Buying fly tying materials was no different than a woman’s penchant for buying shoes. It is a way of rewarding oneself for some reason. A way to fill some need by buying something that simply makes us feel good.
Cleaning my room turned into an enlightening adventure. Best of all, I can sleep well knowing I’ll never again have to buy any yellow fly tying thread. I’ve got enough for two lifetimes now, and somehow that makes me feel good.
So ladies, buy all the shoes you think you need. It will make you feel good. And for myself, I think I need to visit the fly shop.
Oh the humanity…
