we always hurt the things we love the most

Usually my shorts die due to ruptured gussets, often after modern treatment methods lengthened their lives after suffering lesions in the pocket wall caused by prolonged exposure to keys and the corners of portable telephones. The combination of usually having too much crap in the thigh pockets and walking a lot quite fast means that the sub-gliffet inter-thigh crotch panels and seam are stressed with every step, usually leading to visible lines of weave-weakening approximately parallel to the central seam which swiftly expand and tear with continued use. As both the edges of the tears are always formed from massively weakened fabric there is little that can be done to make repairs without the addition of a prosthesis, usually a patch from another similarly-coloured garment. Given the inconvenient shape of the area and the potential for irritation of any exposed edges of fabric of suitable strength, the patch must extend almost to the knee on the interior though if an exterior patch is sufficient it need only extend around the damaged area sufficiently to be secured to healthy tissue.

These were specially-purchased for wedding and honeymoon in April 2008, though (as is often the case) they turned up as the single pair of that style (which makes it even more surprising that they were the correct size) on a Sale rack. I often think that when I next find an item of clothing or feetwear which fits really well (or, as in this case, also looks quite hard-wearing, has decent and deep pockets and actually seems designed for walking around in) that I'll have to get a couple of copies of it. With these I would have done so if I could, even if it had meant getting a pair in a stupid colour or a size or two too large. After wearing them round NZ for most of May I kept them in the wardrobe to try and preserve them and so that I had something suitably neatish for special occasions when I would normally have to resort to trousers to appear suitably-dressed. They were fished out towards the end of last year, when I started to run very low on non-indecently-ripped sub-knee shorts suitable for colder weather. They were alternated with another pair I'd almost forgotten about and not worn very often due to their relatively poor fit and small pockets, though this other pair succumbed to gaping holes just last week.

The pockets are intact, after repair quite early on. One of the rear pocket-flaps flaps a bit too much after being caught on a door-handle but it's safe for the time being. The area of usual problem remains unproblematic. The problem with these is that pretty much every step taken is taken with a camera bag dangling where its lower rear edge hangs at approximately this height. It may have been worsened by the first month of their use coinciding with use of my larger camera bag. I also used this larger bag throughout January and February when carrying two cameras and three lenses, also wearing these shorts more and more often as their colleagues failed. Finally, yesterday evening I noticed a slight draught. They're repairable, but not immediately so. They have been temporarily replaced with a new pair, but of a type known not to last more than a summer or two. They will be stored and protected and hopefully one day restored.