Well, here's a new and distantly connected rant. I have no idea what got me to thinking about this topic, I just did.
The topic: I just don't get it !
OK, I know that all generations have their own style that signals rebellion. A kind of poke in the eye to the older folk who . . .just don't get it. For my generation, it was long hair. Woo-eee, could I post some interesting pictures of self and (ahem) family members--but I won't.
The rock musical "Hair" -- see photo of a cast group -- captured this rebellious in-your-face preoccupation with hair. As I said, my generation's symbol.
But, I must confess, while I recognize some of the current symbols of rebellion, or at least of the "let's cut loose from the old folks", I just don't get these--To wit:
--oversize baseball hats. Popularized by Russell Simmons, and always worn at an absurd sideways angle. . .
--jeans that already have holes in them when you BUY them ( and they aren't cheap). . .
--saggy baggy pants. No other description needed. . .--and, finally, multiple facial piercings. One particular gripe with such piercings is when a student has a tongue ball that he (or she) insists on playing with, twirling, clicking, etc. WHILE talking to me.
I know, I know--this little list just makes me sound curmudgeonly, but--really, folks--I just don't get it. Maybe I need a new code: I J D G I
So, what's on your "I just don't get it" list?
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All photos are from various sites on the Internet. The face on the baseball hat model is purposefully blurred.
11 comments:
I wonder what tattoos will look like when they are middle aged and older.
The undergrads in my lab seem to like to wear jeans that are so long that they drag on the ground. And flip flops all the time, in every sort of weather.
LOL Ruth! I often think the same things... how funny will these tats and implants look when this chick is 90?
One thing that has surprised me has been the longevity of the baseball cap in whatever form. I thought it would be a quickly passing fad, but it has stuck.
I am always perplexed at people who park in the fire lane at the supermarket. Quite often it's a large SUV which makes it even more confusing. I picture people buying those gas hogs for off-road adventures, but if they can't make it to the front door from a regular parking space. . . ?
Don't get me started about pet owners who think it's okay to leave dog poop because they're in a hurry, on a cellphone, or are simply jerks.
And yes, I'm with you... nothing says "don't hire me!" like pants with the crotch at knee level.
The thing that really annoys me is to hear the teenage FEMALEs using the "F" word and worse. They seem to think it's attractive.
You pose a question that one risks showing his age by how he/she answers it. It is a trap.
I think everyone can dress, or alter their bodies with piercings or tattoos as much as they want. I just don't get it when they think they have a right to complain when people avoid them or fail to employ them because of them. To join the established order one has to conform somewhat.
Might I add, I have had a full beard since 1965 and it cost me my first church job when I refused to shave it off.
All I can say is, "Amen!"
I get all that stuff; you need a uniform at a certain age to set yourself apart from a different generation, and the more you can annoy them, the more righteous you feel. What I can't get--as AnvilCloud said--is how long some of these things have lasted. The pants-below-your-butt thing has been going on for fifteen years. Most things don't last five. But I kind of like that one. I like how they're all cool crossing the street, but then when the bus is bearing down on them, they have to hitch it all up and crow-hop. I could watch that all day.
What I don't get is the need to be talking on the phone constantly. I overhear bits of conversations are so BORING they couldn't possibly be of interest...it's just that they must be on the phone...walking, driving, shopping. I also don't get why people follow (or tweet) about such things as "here's what I had for breakfast." Have our lives become so uninteresting that we need to know what someone else is doing every minute of the day?
The more absurd kids dress/express themselves, the better. What else would I have to giggle at?
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