Alas, the transition from 'architect erk' to 'bike mechanic erk' isn't going as smoothly as I'd planned, especially considering the recent upswing in available freelance telecommuting positions for draftsmen such as myself. While I'd be very content doing zen shit like polishing bearing races, It would be sweet if I could snag a job where my commute is 20 feet and the local lunch spot is my kitchen, imagine the freedom!
Fear not though, soon there will be an ebb to my workload and I can resume blogging about the frivolities and tomfoolery of society and it's denizens.
One subject that has piqued my curiosity (and will surely soon be the focus of in-depth cultural analysis by yours truly) is the dramatic spread of hipsterdom throughout the country.
Only a few years ago, tight pants, day-glo throwback sneakers, and garishly patterned sweatshirts were merely a novelty of the late-eighties-early-nineties, places like NYC, and other dense urban places populated by kind-of-artsy 'twenty somethings'. Now, when taking bike trips and such to more rural locales, I notice that the hipness has been latched onto by youngsters everywhere.
This notion that it's hip to be hip ironically lies in stark contrast to what was previously deemed hip in the era to which hipsters seem to ascribe themselves. I don't usually take issue with most of the fashion faux pas I see (as I'm certain that to some, I probably look like a tool of one subculture or another), though some trends I find troublingly popular and under critiqued.
One such trend is girls wearing is 'mom-cut' jeans and shorts. You know, the ones with three extra inches of fabric above the natural waist and extra lateral room for post childbirth hip expansion?
I'm really not sure why this is becoming a 'hip' look. I can't speak for everyone, but when I see chicks in pants like this, I throw up a little in my mouth. Certainly, more shapely women can appropriate this (aesthetic?) mode to sexier ends, but for regular people with regular rumps, pants like this are just about the most unflattering thing one could wear.
I suppose if your goal is to quell cat-calls, then wearing these would likely aid in your de-sexification to positive effect. The flip side is that the wearer is rendered sexually mute and will experience difficulty securing a mate of the opposite sex; so maybe carrying mace or a rape whistle would be a bit more reasonable in everyday circumstances.
However, I am nonetheless worried about this influx of high-waisted pants. Has there been a spike in cases of Oedipus complexes amongst male hipsters? Because usually men aren't attracted to saggy butt-cheeks and cinched bellies, this must be the case. Either that or (the more likely scenario) women just don't really care what guys think and dress more so for each other in an unspoken, platonic fashion competition.
Whatever the case, please, women of the world, heed the satire of SNL!
My only hope is that like these women, hipsterdom is acting out a wardrobe deadpan comedy (WDC from now on) as opposed to truly and wholeheartedly liking antiquated failures of fashion. Who knows, Pharrell seems intent on pushing this wave of bubblegum bullshit to the breaking point by opening kitchy stores like the new BBC/Ice Cream store in SOHO.
'til next time friends, ride safe.
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