I bought a pair of very lightly padded cycling "underwear" from REI. They are for cycling but not for public display. I usually wear a knee length skirt with either some short cycling shorts or my REI underwear. I'm in and out of the grocery store, bank, library, LBS, etc. and feel more comfortable being "dressed."

The REI thing is an actual chamious but not very thick so I can wear it under pants, skirt, etc. My in-town riding is usually between 5 to 12 miles a day. Sometimes I wear a lycra scort that I bought from Terry this is not padded (dumb me -- I bought it for cycling) so I can go without a chamious but don't think I'd like to try jeans.