Who is Sock-Washy? My 3 yo daughter comes home from a weekend with my parents with a new friend, "Sock-Washy."

Sock-Washy is a black sock with a rolled up washcloth in it.

Apparently, my daughter misplaced the one of her several dozen stuffed animals she had brought with her to sleep with, and so my mother conjured Sock-Washy out of the ether. Or, more specifically, out of her suitcase and the hotel bathroom.

Not only did this comfort my daughter temporarily, but she brought Sock-Washy home, where it has assumed a place in the regular rotation of her cast of stuffed nocturnal companions.

It has no eyes, no face, no personality, no gender (most of her animals are insistently female) and no story.

It is simply Sock-Washy.

While my wife and I feel like idiots contemplating her pile of expensive stuffed toys (many of which, it should be noted, were also purchased by my Sock-Washy conjuring mother), we can't help admiring the zen beauty of Sock-Washy itself.

Sock-Washy.

Sakawashi (Japanese version)

Sokawashie (New England version)

Sock-Washy.  ¶ 4:48 PM