I own a fake leather red jacket.

Well, I guess that’s not an accurate description; the jacket is not fake. It’s real – and it is indeed bright red. What’s bogus is the “leather.” It appears to me to be leather but it’s really not. It’s way too thin.

Anyway, I’m distracted; let me start again.

I have a red faux-leather jacket. It has a simulated  pocket (notice I cleverly avoided the use of the word “fake”) on the left breast area with a label specifying the brand. I didn’t know that was the emblem of a certain designer brand as I’m oblivious to those sorts of details, and would most likely remain so if not for my friends pointing it out (and being duly impressed). So, I guess I could say I possess a designer jacket.

That didn’t matter to me as I purchased it because:

• I was cold
• The jacket made me look “hip” (as much as a 58-year old guy can look “hip”)
• It was marked down at an outlet store to fit my budget

Now you know how I make buying decisions. Oops, I’m getting off-track again…

Take three… I possess a jacket.

It’s become my favorite jacket. I use any excuse to wear it (which makes for some not very positive fashion statements). It doesn’t keep me very warm, and where I live, that is problematic. Yet, it also doesn’t stop me — like the post office, neither rain, nor sleet, nor dark of night will stop me from putting on my thin, faux-leather, ruby-colored, favorite jacket. (Besides, on cold days, the red shade goes well with my blue skin.)

Okay Scott, focus!

Back to the matter at hand, it’s my “favorite.” That’s what I keep trying to point out. I have a great deal of outerwear (reference previous comment about our local climate), but this particular covering is top of the list (although I have a gray wool overcoat that vies for the title – but I don’t want to get sidetracked again).

I find it fascinating that that we choose “favorites.”

We have our favorite items of clothing, favorite TV shows; for glory sakes, we even have our favorite chair and outfit when we settle in to watch those shows. We’re creatures of habit.

So, why do we attach more affection to certain stuff than to others? And what starts the process?  It’s not like we sit with yellow legal pad, make a list, and lo-and-behold “number one” on that list becomes the “favorite.” It just happens.

When I purchased the jacket, I had the aforementioned criteria. Nowhere on that list was “must become my favorite.” It evolved. I donned the coat, looked in the mirror (to make sure it didn’t make me look fat), paid the bill, and resumed my schedule, albeit more colorful and very slightly warmer than before. Yet, with the passage of time, that coat has acquired a certain premier status in my wardrobe.

“Favorites” are a form of habit.

They develop because they are comfortable and make us feel better. Our favorite movies provide a sense of deep emotional connection. Favorite foods give us pleasure. Favorite people fill our need to be accepted and supported.

The problem is that — over time — things change. Our needs evolve. The stages of life pass us by. Clothes go out of fashion or get holes in them; they’re no longer flattering. What was at one time a supportive, positive, emotional connection no longer fits. I remember fondly my yellow bell-bottoms, paisley scarf, and lime-green Nehru jacket of the sixties. They were great for their time, but you’ll never catch me in them again.