Have you ever experienced something that you just can’t explain? I’m a skeptical guy by nature, and I don’t believe in bigfoot or ghosts or anything like that, but recently something happened that made me feel like I was in an episode of The Twilight Zone. It all started when my girlfriend got me a present.
That’s not the weird part. She’s always doing thoughtful little things like that. This time, she bought me a flannel while she was out shopping. After she gave it to me, I told her that she was very sweet, but she had accidentally grabbed a large instead of a medium. I asked what store she bought it at so I could return it.
I guess she was kinda embarrassed by her mistake because she didn’t answer right away. Then she very rapidly told me that she had lost the receipt, and all sales had been final, and the store had burned down, anyway. She asked me to just try it on. Rather than rolling my eyes and explaining that I would be swimming in it, I decided to put it on to show her just how ridiculous it would look.
Here’s where things get strange. Not only did the shirt fit, but it also fit better than any other shirt I owned. It didn’t hug my sides or ride up over my belly. It didn’t strain when I lifted my arms above shoulder level. It even looked good in the mirror, and I wasn’t wearing an undershirt to help smooth everything out.
I double-checked the tag to make sure I hadn’t just read it wrong, but nope: there was still a big ol’ “L” staring back up at me. I tried on my favorite t-shirt to compare, since I have pictures from college that prove that it fits well. Now, though, I couldn’t help but notice a slight breeze on my tummy where the shirt just barely failed to reach my jeans.
I’m sure there’s some kind of rational explanation. The dryer probably shrunk all my old shirts. Or maybe there’s something wrong with the flannel itself, like that time my girlfriend got me those shorts with the factory misprint that said they were a 38 waist instead of a 32, which is my size. Those are now my favorite and most comfortable shorts! For now, I’m okay with chalking it up as one of life’s great mysteries.