What's it gonna take?

The Belt

I've been working at the same job now for 3 years. One of my co-workers has been wearing the same belt every day since the first day I started. I have seen this belt deteriorate gradually over the years but to be quite honest, it looked terrible since day one. I have been wanting to ask him about the belt since forever...why do you wear it? what's it gonna take to retire this thing? today, I finally brought it up. He and I, along with another co-worker, were huddled up in his cube talking about what we were going to do with our day off next week (President's Day). All of a sudden, out of the blue, these words came flying out of my mouth, "Why don't you spend your day off shopping for a new belt?" I couldn't believe I had finally said it! It felt so good to finally get it out and clear the air once and for all. Afterwards, I was a little embarrassed for my brashness and was slightly afraid that he'd be offended. But come on, look at this thing! Fortunately, he was open to talk about the belt and actually seemed to be enjoying the attention. We all laughed when he admitted that he had purchased the belt during the Reagan administration and simply enjoyed the belt's sturdy construction and rugged appearance. He even told us he was considering buying a new one and was "probably" going to invest in a new one on saturday after he took his mother to her doctor's appointment. We'll see if it actually happens. If it does, call me satisfied.