Oh, my sweet, sweet Nike shorts. I remember the day you first came into my life.

It was my freshman year of college, and my roommate mentioned that she was all out of norts. "Norts?" I asked her. "What is that word you're saying? Are you even speaking English?"

Then my roommate pulled out a pair of Nike women's tempo running shorts – I did recognize you. I'd never heard the name "norts" before. Little did I know then that you would soon become a huge part of my life.

My one worn-out pair that I already owned quickly turned into six or seven as my addiction grew. I looked up all your different colors and put you on my Christmas list. My roommate and I tried to hunt down your rarer shades – I can still remember Avalanche Blue, which I never found.

I promise to love and accept you no matter what color or size you are. You're always beautiful to me.

You're perfect for the most humid South Carolina summers, and surprisingly warm fall days. You're great to sleep in. You even save my life every once in a while when I wake up and realize I forgot to do my laundry.

I promise to always make time for you. No matter how focused I am on a big presentation or how excited I get to dress up and go downtown, I will always cherish the times when it's just me, my norts, and my giant T-shirts relaxing. I'll always come back to you.

Thank you for being there as a small bit of comfort on my longest days. You're soft, well-broken in and familiar. Thanks to you, I never have to suffer through class in denim shorts.

Thank you for bringing out the best in me – you've helped me trick myself into running a couple of times because I'm already wearing you anyway. Plus, you've helped me trick a lot of people into actually thinking I'm athletic and not just wicked lazy.

I can never get enough of you. Whenever I see you in the store in a new color, I hear you calling my name. I'm drawn to you.

I'm sorry I bought a knockoff version of you that one time to save money. They were itchy and uncomfortable and just not the same. I learned in the weeks following that ill-advised purchase that you are priceless.

All day at work, I look forward to seeing you when I get home. When I put you on, my dear norts, I leave all the stress of my day and all the discomfort of my khaki pants behind me.

You're more than just a piece of fabric – you're a piece of me. Someday, when I look back on this era of my style, I'll remember that I was always running around campus in norts. That I wore you to pretty much every event possible – late night food runs, meetings, class, even parties once or twice. You were there at pretty much everything except job interviews.

Some people call me basic for always being with you, but I don't care what they think. I love you and that's all that matters.