"Ode
to Blue Jeans"
The Des Moines Register
Feb. 17,
2010
Nothing defines
the span of my life more than blue jeans. They've been part of my life
experience since, as a doe-eyed 4-year-old, it occurred to me that
Saturdays were my favorite day precisely because I could wear jeans. All
day. And I did. I was a true blue rough and tumble denim kid.
What distinguished that first pair of baggy jeans with the big front pockets
was their devil-may-care ruggedness. I could scuffle over rocks, wade in the
creek, climb trees, hike hills and otherwise discover the great outdoors
with abandon. Unlike the skirts and dresses I wore to school and to church,
I could get jeans dirty and Mother didn't mind. She didn't even
complain when I came home with a rip in my pants. She just patched it
up and I wore and wore and wore those jeans until they wore out. Saturday
pants.
And so it's been throughout my life. I wear jeans whenever I can get away
with it, which is just about all the time. Blue jeans represent freedom to
me. Freedom from prim and proper. Freedom to discover my true nature.
A favorite pair of worn jeans develops a patina born of experience.
The more you wash them the more familiar they become. Soon they reflect
everything your life is about.
I customized my most memorable pair, worn in the early 1970s when I was
letting go of "shoulds" in my life, most particularly society's conventions
of what a lady should be. As an outward symbol of inner rebellion I
tore up my pretty satin prom dress, cut out a luscious 8-inch
butterfly, and appliquéd it to the right thigh of my bell bottoms a fabulous
cranberry tattoo. I wish I still had those jeans.
I happily pull on a pair of jeans practically every morning of my life.
During my horse ridin' cattle herding years I favored men's Wranglers, which
fit like a second skin. Later I preferred men's Levis 501's, red tag,
skinny leg, button fly, 100 percent cotton denim. Two pair became
wardrobe staples blue (for knocking about) and black (for dress-up).
Those jeans fit so snug I used them for weight loss. When they got a little
tight, it was time to lose a couple of pounds. I resisted buying a new pair
as long as I could, for I knew with certainty that if I abandoned
these favored jeans for a larger pair, I'd soon grow into them. By the
time this became a pattern I'd be fat. And sure enough, I was right.
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