I had occasion to attempt clothes shopping yesterday. It’s always been a daunting task for me, now more so since Caitlyn thinks that department stores are for running in. She knows she can get around (under) the clothes faster than I, and it amuses her no end to have me chasing after her.

I’ve never really gotten into shopping for shopping’s sake, although I certainly tried when I was a teenager. The chief problem is that I’m tall and narrow, and while the models and fashion industry say this is what women should look like, it’s still impossible to find clothes that fit right. Or, maybe not impossible, exactly. I would just have to take two whole days, try on everything in sight, and be ok with dropping $150 on a pair of jeans.

My fashion sense has evolved into something pragmatic. Basic. Classic. Hemlines go up and down, skirts go full and straight. I wear the same things day after day.

So, here’s what I want: a section in at least one department store (or a specialty store) where regardless of season or fashion, there are the basics. Jeans that sit at my waist and go to my ankles. Solid cotton skirts of middling fullness and length. Shirts I can tuck in. Long sleeves that go to my wrists. All in basic mix-n-match colors: black, white, cream, blues, burgundy, green.

Give me comfortable, affordable basics that I can wear around the house or around town, reading on the couch or chasing my kid. If I could get that without hassle, I might be willing to indulge in something “fashionable”, like the over-embellished shirt (printed! painted! glittered!) that no one would be caught dead in at the end of the season.