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On Having Enough Socks (2019)

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Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#21

Post by JKCalhoun »

Jedd wrote: post #18

There's a few comments - seemingly from our American friends - that seem to suggest that left / right socks are a thing. I'm hoping I'm parsing those comments poorly, but ever since the revelation that Americans don't have kettles , I'm prepared for the worst. I got fed up with poor socks a few years ago and embarked on a project to try to find the best, or at least consistently decent, work socks. That's work in the…

I tried toe-socks over a decade ago when I had a persistent toe fungi I couldn't shake with treatments, etc. The toe-socks were a win. I have worn toe-socks since.

Sadly, they very much are left/right specific (unless you topologist consider that you can turn one of them inside out to flip its handedness, but then the stitching seams are now on the outside!).

They are a little on the thin side and though I bought like 10 pair, they slowly but steadily wear through and need to be tossed. I wish I could say the lefts wear as often as the rights but I appear to walk in an asymmetric way. (Or, you know, Coriolis Effect.)

Further, finding replacements that match has been difficult (I would like them all to match so that left/right is the only factor in pairing them). Though I have bought the same brand, trying to get the matching length has been surprisingly hard. I'm not sure why.

When I find them again though, I'll order at least 20 pair this time.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#22

Post by not_the_fda »

I buy socks every 6 months, I have summer socks and winter socks. All the summer socks are the same color and brand, same with the winter.

When I buy the next seasons socks I give the old ones to charity. I buy 14 pairs at a time.

No pairing problem, and I always have socks.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#23

Post by inconceivable »

Jedd wrote: post #18

There's a few comments - seemingly from our American friends - that seem to suggest that left / right socks are a thing. I'm hoping I'm parsing those comments poorly, but ever since the revelation that Americans don't have kettles , I'm prepared for the worst. I got fed up with poor socks a few years ago and embarked on a project to try to find the best, or at least consistently decent, work socks. That's work in the…

more americans have kettles now because they're cheap and easy to buy on amazon. and home-made real coffee is more popular. also there are more 2nd gen americans these days with parents from asia. i think the venn diagram of rice cooker owners and kettle owners is pretty large.

i think it's the brick and mortar retailers that never caught onto the idea.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#24

Post by bravura »

Thorlo Padded socks are amazing.

I own maybe 8 pairs of their thick padded crew socks in black, which are versatile and great. e.g. for boots.

Their padded ankle socks are great for sneakers + sport.

And then I collect non-Thorlo beautiful colorful socks for dress shoes.

There hasn't been much handwringing in my life about socks since I adopted this approach.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#25

Post by wand3r »

not_the_fda wrote: post #22

I buy socks every 6 months, I have summer socks and winter socks. All the summer socks are the same color and brand, same with the winter. When I buy the next seasons socks I give the old ones to charity. I buy 14 pairs at a time. No pairing problem, and I always have socks.

I buy them at Marshalls and TJ Max and if you notice, a lot of the socks are mixed pairs. 6 pairs but each pair has a different logo on it. There are only a few that are all the same in a single pack.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#26

Post by ghaff »

Jedd wrote: post #18

There's a few comments - seemingly from our American friends - that seem to suggest that left / right socks are a thing. I'm hoping I'm parsing those comments poorly, but ever since the revelation that Americans don't have kettles , I'm prepared for the worst. I got fed up with poor socks a few years ago and embarked on a project to try to find the best, or at least consistently decent, work socks. That's work in the…

I'm American and I'm also not understanding the comments about pairing identical socks that were purchased at the same time. I just tend to buy them 10 pairs or so at a time, match them randomly, and wear them until individual socks get lost or worn out.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#27

Post by bottom999mottob »

adityaathalye wrote: post #16

I accidentally solved this problem by entirely side-stepping socks, because I could, because I switched from management to programming, and I don't live in a cold country. For about a decade now, I've worn open sandals pretty much everywhere and for almost every occasion. The few times I've had to wear socks (because, dress shoes), I've found some pairs handy in my closet.

This might be the play. I avoid wearing socks and closed-toe shoes as much as I can, but I've found many people in the West are disgusted by the sight of feet.

Cloud slippers are heavenly.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#28

Post by FredPret »

How to solve socks:

1. For each type of sock you need, find only one you like best, perhaps on Amazon or at Costco

2. Get a container for each kind - I have the soft shell travel zipup kind.

3. Buy en masse and stuff each container.

4. Don’t let anyone in your house discover your sock nirvana

You never have to match pairs again

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#29

Post by ianbooker »

bugmen0t wrote: post #9

So, what's the solution to pairing socks? Buying many pairs from the same. Sure. That makes sense. But what happens when half of them are lost or damaged and you can't buy the same kind? Do you end up as someone pairing socks again or do you throw away half of your socks?

Color.

I only buy socks in colors or patterns I do not own. Super simple.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#30

Post by SamoyedFurFluff »

klausa wrote: post #15
SamoyedFurFluff wrote: post #11

I’m not sure, I think people might be over complicating socks. I have an O(n) pairing process that is about the same complexity as if I had the same socks all the time. If I encounter a sock I haven’t paired, it’s laid flat somewhere clean. Then when I pick up a sock I can do a visual o(1) lookup to find a pair, otherwise it’s laid flat where the others are. Eventually the unpaired socks are first examined if I didn’…

You either have a very small amount of socks, or a very good spatial memory to be able to claim the visual lookup of socks on the surface is O(1). With my brain, it's closer to O(n!). (This is the worst, nerdiest collection of sentences I've written in my life.)

I do my laundry about once a week, so I’m at most ever looking at 7 socks to pair. If it takes longer I’m still looking at less than 10 socks to pair in the cache.
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