2008
cause nobody can do it like mix master can
maura @ 8:02 pm
Today I went to Manhattan to do a presentation (which went just fine, despite my nerves, phew). I wore my new (to me!) pea soup-colored wool skirt, which is now one of my favorite items of clothing. Winter has suddenly descended upon us here, though, which led this morning’s revelation. To plagiarize my facebook status update from earlier today: I finally understand the purpose of legwarmers! I think the next time I’m at the goodwill I’ll hunt for an old sweater so that I can cut the arms off to refashion into my very own pair. Get Jennifer Beals on the horn, I’m a maniac!
(I know that many ensure calf warmth in the winter by wearing boots. And those boots look lovely on those ladies! But I’m not really a boots kind of gal, short + stumpy as I am.)
To get to my destination I had to stroll down 34th St., past many of the fine clothing -n- shoe establishments of NYC (or any old mall): your Gap, your H&M, your Anne Taylor Loft, your Banana Republic. And as I’m walking by these stores, calves shivering, I can’t help but notice that they’ve all got the fancy duds showcased in their display windows. That’s logical, with the holidays approaching at breakneck* speed and all.
* First I wrote “whipneck,” apparently wanting to conflate the cause + the effect.
But as I’m looking in the windows it starts to dawn on me that all of the male mannequins are appropriately attired for the season in fancy (long-sleeved) shirts, toasty (suit) jackets and warm (wool) pants. And what are the lady mannequins wearing? Sleeveless silk dresses, sequined gowns w/spaghetti straps, etc. Stupid fashion! No wonder it’s so hard for women to simultaneously look a bit fancy AND not freeze to death in the winter. Bah.
3 comments on “cause nobody can do it like mix master can”
In law school we needed legwarmers for a skit. I said “Wow, who has THOSE anymore?!” forgetting I was in some kind of time warp (and this is me, talking to you all from the 70s and early 80s where I still reside)…the very snapshot of tact, always!
So the director, a 2 or 3L with theater experience, calmly says, “Oh, I have legwarmers,” as if they were part of a business suit or something.
Sheesh. That was a long 3 years for me!
I know, I am kind of scared by my own realization, it’s true. But today I wore leggings/long underwear-ish things over my be-tighted legs, and it really was so much better than 27 degree wind chill w/just tights.
I don’t knit yet (I like to say “yet” in a hopeful way, because I fully intend to learn how someday, though someday has = 10-ish yrs so far). But when I do, that is a great project!
I have never recovered from my own foray into legwarmers in 7th grade. Nor have I recovered from the other 7th grade girls forays into knickers. That is a fashion trend that should never resurface.
Do you knit? Because legwarmers would be a speedy project — maybe not as quick as cutting arms off of an old sweater, but as projects go it wouldn’t be too bad.