Spatial Child

Even if I'm not good at calculating numbers, I somehow have a knack when it comes to calculating space and size. As a boy, I'd fix the living room by looking at the new furniture, looking at the space, and I'd do some spatial planning in my mind. Surprisingly, everything fits based on my mental planning. The same principle goes into buying things for my friends and family members. I'd approximate their size - be it clothes or shoes - and, more often than not, the sizes are correct.

Prichy calls it "Spatial Intelligence." She said I'm supposed to be good at making things fit. Every Christmas, her mom would be shocked at how the clothes I give her fit like a glove. It's as if I took a medida and measured her before getting her that pair of jeans and blouse. Once, I got Arnie a pair of wedge shoes in tartan here in Hong Kong. Again, I just approximated her shoe size. Good golly, miss molly -- they fit!

When I ran into my former colleague, she told me how flabbergasted our secretary was. Before I left the office, I gave the creative guys a souvenir from Manila; mostly Team Manila shirts. Our secretary deserved something different, though. Whenever I'd go back home, she'd inquire about jeans. Apparently, she has a friend who visited the Philippines and went shop crazy over Levi's and other denim brands. Her friend told her how cheap denim jeans were, and it was always part of her plan to ask me to buy her a pair. Something she never did.

So I decided to give her a pair of jeans as a present. I found a nice pair that Kate Moss designed for Topshop. Again, I didn't know her size, but got the size that I "felt" would suit her. Verdict? They fit perfectly! She couldn't figure out how I knew her size; if I saw it on one of the jeans she was wearing, or if I googled it. G's explanation was simpler: I was probably checking her out everyday for the past few years. Harhar.

During one of my shoe shopping sprees, a friend was impressed by the fact that I could buy shoes for my sisters. When asked how I knew their sizes, my reply was: "It's the responsibility of siblings to know each other's shoe sizes. We just have to."

Personally, I know the shoe sizes of my Dad, Mom, brothers and sisters. (Whilst I know my Dad's size, I'm not in tune with his taste. He's very finicky when it comes to that.) Heck, I can even buy shoes for my nephews, nieces and in-laws! Hmmm... maybe I can put that in my resume as "special skills."

Once I see a pair up close, it's clear to me whether it'll fit them or not. Just like this pair that I found recently.





These shoes are tres funky! It's not everyday that I see ombre, metallic snakeskin, cone-heeled shoes. That's why the moment I saw it, I knew it would be a perfect fit. And knowing my Ate, it'll fit not just size-wise, but more importantly, style-wise.