Originally written May 2024
As most runners do, I wear compression socks after a long run or marathon. Unfortunately, I seem to have misplaced the bag containing mine — along with my massager, magnesium cream and supplement gel — at our accommodation in Canberra. I just assumed I had left it at home, so I got by without them.
My legs were still tired, though, so I thought compression socks might help. I looked everywhere but had no luck.
Then I remembered that I’d bought a new pair online last month.
I bought them because I wanted something a little tighter than my old ones, which are already size small. But because they were made in China, I thought an Asian small would be smaller than Western sizing.
Perfect, I thought.
Well.
It took me nine minutes just to put on the second sock. I didn’t time the first one because it never occurred to me that getting dressed could turn into an endurance event.
They were so tight I could practically feel the circulation leaving my legs.
But of course, I made sure to have my photo taken before taking them off. Priorities. 
I even told Graeme I might have to cut them off because I was scared I’d pull a muscle trying to remove them.
I think this may finally end my delusion that I can still wear an Asian small. 
You’d think I would have learned my lesson during my last shopping trip to the Philippines, when I discovered that I no longer fitted into a small there either.
Apparently, denial has excellent elasticity.
Compression socks do not.
Stories Along the Way 