Ode to the Hoodie...

It's winter here in Upstate NY and a hoodie is anyone's best friend.  When I think about it...what exactly the hoodie is, and what it means to me....I just can't help but love it so very much.  Let me explain.

For starters, what is a hoodie?  I guess that is something I should clarify before I proceed any further.  I personally think that every one knows, but several months after the birth of my daughter this summer, my father finally spoke up and asked the question, 'what the hell is a onesies?'   So that leaves me with the idea that maybe not everyone knows just what a Hoodie is.  For those that are unclear on the notion....It is a Hooded Sweat Shirt.  Nothing more.  Oh, but it is....it is SO much more then that.

It's your basic sense of cuddly warmth...as any sweatshirt is.  But it doesn't stop there.  Oh no...wrapping your body in snuggly cotton isn't enough for a Hooded Sweat Shirt....it wants to be more then that...it has high aspirations, you know?

Let's start with the hood itself.  How wonderfully convenient it is.  On a brisk fall...when the wind whips at the back of your neck, sending all the tiny little hairs on end and ushering a shiver down your spine...you simply pull up the hood and block out that breeze.  And how about it's matter of convenience?  I for one never like to carry anything that I don't have to....so an umbrella for example is out.  In fact I don't even own one.  So when we have in climate weather...which we do in CNY...I pull up that hood.  In fact, I have naturally curly, circus freak hair, so even one drop of rain and Poof!  I am a walking Brillo pad.....so anytime I look out the window and rain is falling down...or even the most gentle snow fall, I go for my hoodie.

And how about those hood strings?  I know....sometimes they are a pain...falling where they are most inconvenient...but what wonderful little play toys for the fidget-or.  When I am bored, uneasy, nervous, etc. I grab my hoodie strings and begin to play.  There's wrapping them around my finger, folding them into flower shapes....whipping them in a circular windmill fashion.  I have even been known, on occasion to suck on the little plastic string tips. 

Lastly...but certainly not least, is the Kangaroo Pouch.  I first discovered my love for the pouch last Halloween, when I found myself stuffing it with candy from our bowl and leaving the room.  I declared on that day; I love my Hoodie.  From that point on, I have noticed how, over and over again I am stuffing everything in my pouch.  It's a hands free world!  As I stated before I hate to ever carry anything.  I, unlike every other woman on the planet, own only one purse.  I never carry it unless I need to.  (Personally I think the Fanny Pack was one of man's greatest inventions, however I would never be caught wearing one.  How smart that is though, to keep everything strapped around your hip instead of in a bag that falls from your shoulder or in your hands!  Again let me restate however, that I have never actually owned or worn the dreaded fashion faux pas Fanny Pack.)  Instead I stuff what ever I need in my pockets, and what doesn't fit, goes....you guessed it...in my Roo Pouch of my Hoodie! 

The Pouch is not only for storage though.  It's not only a place to collect your nuts.  It's a hand warmer & occupier too!  Sometimes I find my self not knowing what to do with my hands.  When I am standing near someone and find myself feeling very awkward and uncomfortable, my hands become a large focus for my concern....where do I put them?!  I place them in my pouch.  OR on another occasion, I may find out that it's colder outside then I thought and my hands are cold....I stick them in my pouch!  (where they are probably unwrapping hidden candy.)

I once stated that it would be much easier if we had all been born with pouches like the Kangaroo, but then my mother very quickly pointed out that if that were so, we would all have to walk around naked....scratch that brilliant idea!

So that my friends, in a nutshell, is why I love my Hoodie!  The Warmth it provides, the hood for protection against the elements, the crazy strings to play with, and of course, the pouch...not only for storage, but also to keep your hands warm and occupied. 


A shirt made for Sweat,
or so we are told.
I'd rather snuggle up inside you,
when it gets cold.

Under your cover,
You Protect & Serve.
A head full of curls,
you safely preserve.

To cinch up so tightly,
or a simple play thing,
A fidget-or's dream,
I tug at your strings.

Now I rest peacefully,
warm on my couch.
as I joyfully snack,
on what I've pulled from your pouch.

Safe, warm, and cozy,
you hide all my goodies.
My comfort, my love,
My friend,
I love you, My Hoodie.


Hoodie Tip - Make sure you tie a knot in the ends of your Hood strings larger then the hole they are escaping from, so that when your Hoodie reappears from the laundry room, all clean and fresh, your strings are not lost inside the hood.  They're a bugger to get out there!