Ryan the Girl: Flannelynn

I'm getting ready to head out to the local pub to play a show with my band. Getting ready for a gig invovles a lot more attention-to-wardrobe-type-detail than I'm used to. Today I'm wearing my brand new boots and dress from Old Navy (everyone who knew me in high school and college is most likely gasping. Gasp! Ryan in something other than her Birkenstocks and red flannel? No! Surely not!). That's right. Birkenstocks and a red flannel (If this were a movie, the last part of that sentence would be echoing to emphasize the horror that the watcher is supposed to feel: "and a red flannel... and a red flannel... and a red flannel... and a red flannel... and a red flannel... and a red flannel... and a red fla-"). Stop judging! I LOVE my Birkies and my red flannel. In fact, I love my red flannel so much that I named it "Flannelynn."

Flannelynn and I found each other my freshman year of college. My good friend and I went to a thrift store, and there, right on the rack of $1.50 shirts, hung my dear, sweet Flannelynn. From then on, we were inseparable. I literally took her (yes, "her.") everywhere. It was the perfect shirt for me; I often found myself cold when others weren't, and I would just put Flannelyn on. My uniform was a band T-shirt (often a Beatles shirt), flared jeans, my Birkenstocks, and Flannelyn. I got so much crap for my red flannel. The whole reason I even wanted a flannel was that I tried on my friend Jared's flannel shirt once. It was so comfortable! Flannelyn eventually became my security blanket. I felt strange if I went somewhere without her. I've had her for like 6 years now, and she has ripped, lost buttons, stretched, and faded.

Nowadays, I'm trying to branch out a little in terms of what I wear. This is partially due to the fact that I play a lot of gigs and am hyper-conscious of the fact that people are looking at me. But, at the same time, I'm also a little sick of my old "uniform." Not that I am discarding it or anything. I just want to explore other options.

I haven't worn Flannelyn in awhile, but maybe I will tomorrow after work. That sounds nice!

Another funny thing: I went through my facebook pictures and counted 17 pictures that include Flannelynn. Maybe I should tag her.

Here is a "Visual Ode to Flannelynn:"