Okay, really it was more like a mild bad dream, but the book I finished recently, Organizing for the Spirit, suggests taking time to enjoy the season*, and since it’s almost Halloween, that’s what I’m doing with this post.

I passed a bra store that I didn’t love last year (I mentioned it here) and decided to give it another chance.  My two everyday bras are beginning to feel insecure on the tightest hook, so this was my opportunity to try the Prima Donna Madison that I discovered in Gina’s closet.

Guess what the fitter insisted I take into the fitting room?  A 38E.  I asked to try the 34H as well (because that’s the size I’ve been wearing in Prima Donna Satin), and she said, “All right.  You want to test me.” 

I have definitely changed since I began writing this blog.  I would never have insisted on trying a different size  before, and I probably would have felt obligated to purchase at least one bra.  But after buying two Chantelles at this same chain last summer, only to discover later that Chantelle cups are too shallow for me, I’m learning not to buy anything unless I’m absolutely sure it fits.

When my fitter came back to check on me, she said the 38E was perfect.  I thought this was interesting since she’d originally wanted to put me in a 36F but couldn’t find one.  This is the first time a fitter has ever tried to put me in a band that is too loose, even on the tightest hook!  She subscribed to up-in-the-band-down-in-the-cup, but she didn’t get the memo that most of the support comes from the band.

When I tried the 34H, she pointed out that my bulging back meant it was too small in the band.  I tend to agree, but I would have liked a little sympathy.  After all, it’s a pretty big jump from a 34 to a 38.  Instead, my fitter felt competitive.  “There’s no way you’re an H cup,” she said.  “I’m a G cup.  I can give you a pushup if you want.”

And that was that.

What if I lived in a small town and she was the only fitter who sold Prima Donna?  I would likely trust her above anyone else.  We’ve all heard the statistic that 85% of women are wearing the wrong bra size, but I’m beginning to wonder about who makes the determination that a size is wrong.  It’s a very convenient statistic to throw around when you’re trying to make a sale to an intimidated customer whose breasts are exposed in your dressing room.

Tomorrow I’ll write more about my search for the elusive Prima Donna Madison, this time at the famous La Petite Coquette.

*I’ve included quotes about seasons from Organizing for the Spirit below.  I have not been prepared for any of the three Halloweens I’ve spent in this house, but this year will be different.  I’m going to stock up on candy and ooh and aah over the trick-or-treaters’ costumes.  We get a lot of trick-or-treaters in this neighborhood.  One year I hid in our basement!

“How often do we let the seasons whiz by without actually being present for them?  So many times we wake up at the end of summer, fall, winter, or spring and say to ourselves, “Darn! I wanted to do so much and now it’s too late.  Guess I’ll just have to wait until next year.”
. . .
I know it isn’t easy to focus on the moment, although we may understand that it’s the only sane and sensible way to enjoy our lives.  But what we can do is, at least, to live in the season we’re in and take some joy in the progression of nature.  We can let our senses be stimulated by what’s happening in our own neighborhoods and backyards.  We can think about what makes fall what it is and be there for it.

Of course, this will take some organization, because the primary reason we don’t do these things already is that we go around muttering to ourselves, “It’s not my fault.  I simply don’t have enough time.”  And you know what the answer to that is.  No one has ‘enough’ time, but everyone has all the time there is.  It boils down to understanding what’s significant in your life and planning what you do accordingly.”