Trousers of Time
Why did we talk about the the Trousers of Time when she never wore them? He probably does, but it has nothing to do with his suit bottoms either. No one wears them; they're empty. It's an image of a shape with one entrance and two exits. One may imagine falling continually into the waistband, not knowing from which leg one may emerge. So does history occur: in myriad, often unconsidered, minor decisions.
The History Monks keep the Trousers pressed and mended. Occasionally they change the style to keep up with what the times should be; now and then one leg may be let out to extra-baggy or reduced to a stocking. Random chance is often good enough, but when it fails to provide the correct outcome Lu-Tze and the Monks of Oi Dong are there to help.
Referenced in
- Guards! Guards!
- Jingo - Vimes has a rare glimpse of the other trouser leg when he and and alternate timeline version of himself accidentally swap Disorganisers.
- Thief of Time
Annotation
The phrase "Trousers of Time" probably comes from the 1960's BBC radio comedy series "I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again" whose stars went on to be "Monty Python" and "The Goodies". One series included a Dr Who parody - "Professor Prune and The Electric Time Trousers" (said in a spooky voice with echo effects). The cast travelled the universe in the Time Trousers encountering dreadful jokes: "There's a library at the end of the left trouserleg", "Aha! A turnup for the book."