After several days of sloth like adventure, i woke up one fine late afternoon, and decided to make myself useful - by unpacking stuff from my Bali trip. Hahaha yes... i am grossing people out i know.
Eventually, making myself useful led to the chore of ironing up my stacking pile of laundry that is threatening to reach the ceiling...
and while ironing, i found my.. White Jacket!
While it is generally a habit for me to ponder about a million and one things, when idling. By saying idling, it is by no means sitting down to stare into empty space.. rather it is how the brain actually floats off and think about anything it wants to, while the hands and eyes are busy. Now that is Idling!
Ironing this particular white jacket, definitely brought back memories back, and got me thinking..
It cost around $79 or $89 when it was out on the retail shelves, and it is probably one of the more expensive clothings that mommy was willing to part money with.
Being relieved that my grades did actually get me to the polytechnic, i figured out that the buying of that white jacket was more symbolic, rather than "functional" to her.
Yes she spoils me i must admit, but it is never within her character to splurge on clothings that are priced sky high because, coming from where the family trade is, we often get clothings at no cost at all- after all, we are in the manufacturing business of the "Fashion" industry, we know how much it really cost, to manufacture a piece of clothing, and how far the prices actually soar when they hit retail stores.
It probably did not occur to me at that time, as i was happy as a bird; thrilled actually, to think no further than how pretty my white jacket was and all. However, thinking back, a wiser self now - the jacket was meant to be an encouragement to study hard and bring home good grades, rather than the atrocious ones back in secondary school, but what she does not quite know; that the jacket also brought me my confidence. The confidence that i never quite knew i had as a kid, and the type of confidence that everyone sees in me now.
She did buy me quite a spanking cool wardrobe in preparation of school- my guess was that she was mostly glad that i survived my GCE "O" Levels, and kinda excited that her baby's growing up, and "going to school". After all, going to Polytechnic was like primary one all over again.
Yes admittedly, i am spoilt by my mom in her own way..
Looking at the jacket now, it is probably one of my most prized clothing of that era. It got me through my polytechnic orientation in general, and design school orientation a month later(which in my opinion was a huge step socially, because the last time i had to make friends in such a situation, was when i first stepped into primary school, as secondary school consisted of the same set of friends from primary school, i did not have to worry much about friends).
Though it probably sounded bimbotic to declare that when you look good, you feel good, and probably even dumber to declare that the white jacket was a hit with all the new friends that i have made during the orientation camp. I like the look of envy that i see in their eyes.
Considering the fact that she no longer pays for my shopping, it is indeed one precious jacket that hold sentimental value to me, to remind me how much my mommy loves me, and the journey that jacket embarked on with me - i always have it on me, probably because it was against the polytechnic school rule to be wearing tube or spaghetti tops, and the irony of all would be my penchance for tube tops.. Hahahahha
Yes i dress "saucy" as my lecturer likes to put it.
Ahhh those were the days.
