Fashion

I think the metamorphosis is complete. I'm finally at a point in my life where I'm paying some attention to fashion. It's been a long time coming. Just ask my friends and family.

I've always had strong opinions about practicality of clothes. Stupidity of clothes and accessory trends. Value in well-made pieces to be worn or used as accents. But it's taken me quite some time to mesh my opinions with the reality that even choosing not to act is an action. And inaction in fashion, well, it's like inaction in many things. It shows.

Recently, within the last few years or so, I've had to accept that fashion plays a bigger role in society than I wanted to admit. To show up poorly dressed IS a statement. At worst, it's a big raised middle finger. At best, it's a silent scream of, "I don't have to care about your concept of well-dressed, because my reputation, skills, connections, etc. are enough to speak for me."

I always wanted to be making NO statement with my appearance. I always wanted the things I considered to be my strongest attributes to be the ones that made the impression. When I finally admitted that I was going to be (and had been) making a fashion statement with my attempt at a non-statement I started to acquire nice quality fashionable pieces and coordinate them into a wardrobe that fit my fashion personality.

Where I am going with all of this?

Well, tonight I broke down and spent $70 on socks. That's right. Socks. Despite the last few years of slowly building a somewhat decent wardrobe and shoe collection, I never purchased socks. In fact, I think I may never have really purchased socks other than work out socks in my entire life. The only non-workout socks I ever had were gifts.

So, I follow my traditional practical pattern and wear what's clean and won't be needed for other activities, which means the workout socks (ooohhhh... new Balegas from E for Christmas) are off limits for work, and I'm stuck wearing the occasional nice stockings (when circumstances require it) but mainly knitted socks that I haven't thrown out from high school on, with the largest portion made up by the Christmas sock collection given to me by JayKay, circa 1996-98.

See, even back then, JayKay, a true fashion-lover and wonderful person who understands the connection between looking good, feeling good, and being great, knew I needed sock fashion help.

And today, my friends, I finally gave in.

To Evolution!