Pick your battles

[Alan H]

So I amble up to the fixture in the mens room and another lad ambles up to the one next to me. He goes on to tell me that he has a UK knockoff, basically a home-made version. He can wear it around the house, but his wife won't let him wear it outside, or out where anybody else but she can see it.

So I told him about X Marks the Scot and we had the usual discussion...

"If you told her that she couldn't wear pants anymore, how would that go over?"

"Does she think that wearing this outlandish article of clothing reflects badly on HER?"

"yes, I know that you were raised in Texas and she was raised in Kansas, but A.) I have friends in both those states who wear kilts all the time and B.) you're not living in Texas or Kansas right now, you're in Palo Alto, a University town here in California. Nobody at this University will care two hoots if you're wearing a kilt, or not."

For each of these items he had a response, and we concluded with the succinct phrase...

Pick your battles.

......which in fact I thought was a pretty wise response.

1.) As I get into my sixth year of wearing kilts a lot, I realize that to me, they're just a piece of clothing. How important is clothing? Is it worth a war in your home?

Well, maybe it is, and maybe it isn't? If it really and truly is just about clothing, then I'd say "no". If it's about respect and control and power, then I'd say "yes". Would my life be unutterably miserable if I didn't strap on a kilt a few times a week? Of course not.

2.) the idea that kilts are for real men and any man who knows about them, but doesn't wear them is a >fill in the blank< is a bunch of malarky.