Me, trying to figure out what the awful stench was that lingered in certain rooms--specifically, rooms the 9 year old boy had been in--a stench that got worse in close proximity to him: "son, what is that smell--is it your socks?"

Boy, with a big smile on his face: "yep!"

Me: "Buddy, you need to go change your socks!"

And then, realization dawned, because there was no way that smell could come from one day of wear...

Me: "dude, are those the same socks you wore yesterday?!?!?"

Boy, with the same big smile: "yep! And the day before that!"

Yes, three days in the same socks seemed to match what I was smelling.

I told him to go wash his feet in soapy water, and then put on CLEAN socks. And I thought long and hard about whether I should have him just throw the nasty socks away...

I love boys. It's all about convenience with them.