The Jimmy Pope Phenomenon: Swoons across cyberspace

Over the past few days, a video has been circulating that’s creating swoons across cyberspace. As in more than 8.6 million views, just since Nov. 6.

Secretly filmed by his roommate, a cute young guy dances with abandon in his black skivvies while mopping the floor after a Halloween party. The tune is Sheena Easton’s “Morning Train.” A couple of pups are in on the game.

His moves and gestures are smooth and totally in sync with the music. He doesn’t miss a swipe with the mop, even gesturing at a skeleton on the wall. Then he looks up and sees that he’s being filmed, drops the mop, and bursts into laughter. It’s all over in 35 seconds, leaving us wanting more. Much more.

The Games Stores Play

Did I mention that I hate shopping? The sales games. The card loyalty games. The coupon games. Every time I go into CVS and I’m asked, “Do you have your card?” I want to scream, but I respond in a clipped tone. “Use yours.” And the clerk duly swipes the store card. I get the discount without the yards of paper touting so-called bargains I have little use for.

However, I’ve been dealing with deferred consumer demand. My eyeglasses were 12 or 15 years old and it had been 10 years since I had an exam. I needed underwear. My favorite 400 and 600 thread count sheets were fraying and/or torn and I had resorted to mix and match; even that wasn’t working any more.

Where have all the sweaters gone?

Umm... No, not what I had in mind.

Update:I was prescient in writing this post back in 2014. An article from Dec. 21, 2023 from The Atlantic, "Read This Before You Buy That Sweater," confirms my frustration. Yes, I'm still wearing the sweaters mentioned below. Facebook memories has shared various postings from Branford Eagle holiday dinners. I still have those dressy clothes from that time -- and still wear them. 

I hate to shop. I enter a store and promptly experience sensory overload. Large department stores and malls are an anathema to me.
 
Part of it stems from the fact that I’ve never had the disposable income to consider shopping as a recreational sport. Another part is the decision-making process involved in selecting anything and the compulsion to make each and every purchase significant.

So it’s mid-winter and bitterly cold. We keep the thermostat low. Sweaters and turtlenecks are requisite attire for maintaining any kind of warmth. I have three or four warm sweaters that are suitable. One is from Bradlees and the other two are from WeatherVane. Anyone remember those stores? If you don’t, that’s an indication of the age of these of sweaters.

The last Bradlees closed in 2001 and Weathervane closed in 2004, but not before it morphed from nice women’s clothes into teen duds. So that makes these sweater a minimum of 10 years old, even 15, since I bought them well before the stores closed.

So where have all the warm wool/wool-blend sweaters gone?