Why mend dad's socks??

I put a new project in Ravelry documenting how i mended one of dad's socks. i've done that before. i have a feeling people wonder why. 

dad's socks are kind of hard to come by. It's hard to tell from photos if socks are really diabetic socks or not. I thought I could recognize the fabric with enlarged stitches in photos, but what I order isn't always exactly what is shipped. Although they are marked diabetic they don't always fit the same or have the same construction. It can be a little hard to judge scale, too. 

this is what i use to keep the hole
from getting bigger

Then there's confusion over what is meant by diabetic socks. By definition they are supposed to be very stretchy so they don't put my pressure or friction on delicate/fragile skin. Special attention is paid to not having bulky or irritating seams. People and sometimes makers and (hopefully not, but maybe even doctors!) mistakenly refer to compression socks as diabetic socks. Those might be used by diabetics suffering edema in relation to other conditions, but they are nearly opposite in function as compression socks are tight to put pressure on the foot and leg. (Usually compression socks are graduated so they are tighter at the toes than at the knee. They are rated for range of pressure they're designed to provide to prevent or reduce swelling.)

it's always a bit confusing when terms disagree.