Why I dislike the fashionistas, but tolerate them

[peacetraveler22]

When we begin to compare ourselves to others, almost nothing good can come from it. There will always be someone we perceive as more beautiful, more intelligent, or more charismatic and accomplished. It took years for me to just accept who I am, which I think is a good, intelligent and compassionate human being. I don't read blogs about fashion because I really have no positive emotions toward this industry. Despite the mind tricks they play, I think one of the core foundations of this business is to make women feel inferior, not fantastic or worthy.

Almost all magazines or billboards depict glossy images of females with the most perfect genetics on the planet, sculpted bone structure, and often very unrealistic body frames. It's a fantasy world, and while I'm a dreamer, I prefer to live in reality in some cases, and appearance is one of them. I think people are most beautiful in their natural state, without all kinds of artificial painting and accessories. It somehow distorts the core essence of a being, and for me presents an added layer to peel back. I'm most attracted to humans in a more raw state, both physically and emotionally. Not those who hide behind fabricated illusions.

You can look at many scandals online and see that these visions of "beauty" generated by the fashion industry are also mere fabrications, created with the click of a mouse through Photoshop - cellulite wiped clean, a fleshy stomach smoothed and sculpted, the list of physical alterations is really endless, and they seriously warp the confidence of too many young girls, leading them to all types of eating disorders and neuroses about appearance. I find the behavior of these fashion industry beasts to be disgusting, and for this reason, I've never been a fashionista or given a damn about expensive brand clothing, handbags and similar things. Not in my 20's, and not now in my 40's. I understand some people get some type of satisfaction or euphoria from such things, and it is their right, but to say I have some relation to this mentality would be a complete lie.

I was reminded of this recently when one of my lawyer friends posted the image of a model wearing a pair of high-priced red sunglasses. I think they cost around $350, and I wrote to her that from a distance, it would be difficult to tell them apart from the free glasses I wore in San Antonio, when I viewed a 3D movie. These glasses were likely covered in all kinds of germs, snot from children and other unhygienic nightmares, but the movie was awesome and memorable. :) Of course, eyes and sight are precious gifts and worth protecting with quality eye wear, but $350!?! Is it really necessary?

People work very hard for their money, and if they're lucky enough to have some left over after bills are paid, they should spend it as they wish. My money goes mostly for basic necessities, and spare funds are directed to only two things - travel and music/concerts. Each time I hear a male lawyer in my office complaining about the price he paid for a new handbag his diva craved, my head spins and I think about how many trips I could have taken for $2,000. How many new places and people I could've encountered, and whether a $2,000 purse is really that much better in quality than the $40 one I carry?

That's it. :) There's no real point to the post, except to show this funny picture collage and express my views about a topic that's important to many women, but not all. In the world, there's room for both types of females, and male suitors all over the globe are actively pursing each. With a lot of passion and vigor. :)

Btw, I also wear make-up on occasion, put on dresses and heels, and like artistic photo shoots. But if a man should demand that I look this way everyday, he's definitely not the man for me. Because I'm really just a jeans and t-shirts kind of gal, ready to pick up and go on a grand journey to some exotic, remote corner of the world at a moment's notice...and heels hinder mobility in such places. :)

Have a great weekend!

Comments

[10-4.livejournal.com]

> People work very hard for their money

People are spending too much money, that they don't have to buy stuff they don't need so they can impress people they don't like.

Will Smith

[procurator0.livejournal.com]

so u were a black afro-am woman all along? i knew it!

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

Exactly. :)

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

Well, my curly hair texture is definitely similar to a black girl's. Numerous hairstylists have said it to me. I can easily rock an afro at any time, and sometimes do. :)

[procurator0.livejournal.com]

really? is that true what they say 'once you rock an afro, you cant rock...back?'

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

No, it isn't true. :) My natural hair looks like the first photo - curly and unmanageable. Sometimes I blow it straight when I have the patience because it's easier to deal with. But this takes two hours. Same woman, totally different look. Two for the price of one. :)

[mybathroom.livejournal.com]

Shannon, how often do you go to concerts?

[kremlin-curant.livejournal.com]

As I can guess young women are very materialistic. This is the main reason they love sugar daddies.

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

In my 20's, every week. Now, only when a band I really like comes to town, because I can't be out until 1 or 2 a.m. in small concert halls, and get up at 5 a.m. for work. :) Concerts in small clubs here usually don't start until really late at night - around 10 p.m. and end in the wee hours of the morning.

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

There are plenty of older women who are superficial also. But not all women. I think it's important to remember we are not all money hungry, shallow and brain dead females. Just as all men aren't assholes. :)

[kichiro-sora.livejournal.com]

You know how to raise topics!

> Despite the mind tricks they play, I think one of the core foundations of this business is to make women feel inferior, not fantastic or worthy.

I think this is foundation of all advertisement industry. There is a strong theory that people spend best when they feel depressed and vulnerable, and therefore we have abundance of the bad news in every media -> people feel depressed -> ads work best. I don't have TV and never watch the news, just in case :)

>Each time I hear a male lawyer in my office complaining about the price he paid for a new handbag his diva craved, my head spins and I think about how many trips I could have taken for $2,000.

We all know it's not about quality or creative design, it's about label and status. Which leads to funny situations when girls sniff each other, looking at stitches and other microscopic tell-tales to figure out if other girl's D&G bag is fake or not. Because there is no easy way to tell $2000 from $20 - boy, they were handed really wrong status symbol... But they still believe in it.

Which lead to another aspect of all those status things... - I think people who care about them are stupid. I like intelligent women. So when I see a woman who cares about fashion industry and all those handbags&things - that's immediate -100 points. I myself care only about quality, and ready to pay for a quality things. If you take watches - $2000 Swiss watch is really a good investment. The one I wear now is 15 years old, looking nice and stylish, and it'll stay that way till the day I day, which will make it's price/year ridiculously low. But for the most things - you can buy amazing hand-crafted things on Etsy that far surpass those brandname things. My wife buys hand-made handbags on etsy for 1/10-20 of those stupid brand bags. Same for closes like leather jackets - you can order one, to your specs, out of magnificient leather for fractions of what they sell in those stores...

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

There are too many words in this post for most people to read, and only one picture, so it will not generate much interest or discussion. :) This blog is a means of expression for me, creating snapshots of various phases and journeys in life. I document things here not only for readers, but myself.

About price/vs. quality, of course there's a correlation. However, in this post, I'm speaking about luxury brands, where I can find no justification for the exorbitant costs, except to create an impression of status. And as a trademark lawyer, I understand branding quite well. :) I don't buy extremely cheap clothing because it does not typically last, and easily stretches out of shape after one washing. But come on - thousands of dollars for a dress or bag? It's really ludicrous. People always cling to superficial things, searching for happiness in them, because it's easier than facing your inner demons and trying to become a better, or more stable person. This takes effort, introspection and time...the average person is too lazy for it. Finally, intelligence - it is the most attractive quality in a partner. I can't be with men who aren't curious or smart - this leads to immediate boredom after one week of dating, no matter how attractive they are.

[kremlin-curant.livejournal.com]

Right. Not just young females are material girls, but older ones also are. Not all of course, but lot of them.

[anna-sollanna.livejournal.com]

> Almost all magazines or billboards depict glossy images of females with the most perfect genetics on the planet, sculpted bone structure, and often very unrealistic body frames.
I think that there should be a law prohibiting to all these glossy Photoshop images appear without the corresponding title that "it is not a natural image" like it is done for stunts in different advertisements when it is printed that all the stunts are made by professionals and you should not repeat them. "This make-up is made in a professional studio with Photoshop, don't try to repeat it at home because you'll never succeed". Of course, it IMHO was a joke but the earlier girls learn that all these glossy images are fakes the more chances of not ruining their lives in the rush of unreachable "beauty" they will have.

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

Well, it's a very clever idea, that's for sure.:) I get really sick, and quite sad, when I see the Hollywood symbols young girls idolize now. I would put the Kardashian sisters at the top of the list - not sure if they're well known overseas? Almost all of them are fake, pumped up lips, ass hanging out of their shorts all the time...it's a horrible example for young girls to emulate. We need more healthy role models, there are way too few. In general, the world is fuc*ed, but I try to remain optimistic, and be a good role model for the young females in my social circle.

[saccovanzetti.livejournal.com]

Would you say that ideally, you would prefer to see people around you, in the streets and at work, naked or wearing underwear, weather permitting?

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

What is the purpose of wearing only underwear? By that point, you might as well just be fully naked. :) People should wear what they want. If you're comfortable in thousand dollar shoes, wear them. :) I don't care, or even pay attention to such things most of the time, unless someone is dressed very colorful (which I like), or looking like a complete slob. Btw, if you wish to work in a nude office, they exist. :)) http://www.officechai.com/stories/this-office-went-naked-for-a-month-as-a-social-experiment-nsfw/

[saccovanzetti.livejournal.com]

What is the purpose of wearing only underwear?

Hygene.

I am just trying to understand your point about a need to peel back layers of fashion disguising natural state of a human being. I kind of relate to that, but more often I wish people would dress up those elements of their natural appearance that I find aesthetically unpleasing.

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

When I was speaking about "peeling" back layers, I was mostly speaking about make-up, not clothing. In particular, some females who find it necessary to wear so much make-up, false eyelashes, and be painted on every day of the week. Why? It is not their true appearance, such that if a man suddenly wakes up next to the same person in the morning when the make-up is washed off, he would not even recognize her. It's like a form of false advertising, in my view. :) I prefer that a man appreciates me in my natural state, this is why when I did the online dating thing, I never put up glamorous shots. Just ordinary, every day ones, where I had little make-up on, my hair was covered in a hat, or up in a bun....this is the real me. Take it or leave it. :)) Of course, we all try to highlight our best features, but too many take it to extremes in my view. And about "raw" emotion, I don't think further explanation is needed. I like expressive, passionate and uninhibited people, not conservative robots, just going through the motions of life with no purpose.

[mb-b.livejournal.com]

"The main idea one tries to convey to others is that he has access to far more prestigious mode of consumption than they might think of him. At the same time, he tries to explain to those around him that their mode of consumption is far less prestigious than they had the naïveté to think. All societal maneuvering is subordinated to this. Moreover, only these issues cause lasting emotions in people."

--Victor Pelevin

[onkel-hans.livejournal.com]

When I come to VA, I usually buy a pair of sunglasses and a pair of reading +1.0. Each for $1. They last forever.
When I bought the readings for $150, they broke after 3 months.

BTW, these red frames look great on you (or is it otherwise?) and I do not like that black girl.

[saccovanzetti.livejournal.com]

I couldn't agree with you more on wearing makeup in private romantic encounters. However, I believe there is certain "safe viewing distance" for makeup in more formal situations that warrants its use - primarily so that imperfections of a human face would not get ahead of a substance of (business) interaction with a person, for superficial agents like myself.

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

Are you a man? If so, what type of insecurities are pounded into the male neuroses from an early age? I really can't think of that many from a societal standpoint. Men have it easier in this regard, or maybe I just can't relate because I'm a woman. :)

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

Which city in Virginia do you visit? Of course, beauty is subjective. :) But thanks. My frames have probably now been warn by dozens of other people by now, as you simply throw them in the bin after the short film ends.

[peacetraveler22.livejournal.com]

I do not agree with the last sentence in the quote.