Slaves To Fashion In A Snow Storm

I was born and raised in Alaska (lived there for 25 years)…. I know about snow and cold weather. I remember walking to the school bus with the temperature on the thermometer reading -40 degrees. It certainly didn’t take into account the wind chill factor. I remember my Mom making sure that my sisters and I had Halloween costumes that were big enough to fit over our snow suits. I remember going to school in the dark and coming home in the dark because of the lack of total hours of sunshine for the day.

I now live in Colorado. “Spring Time In The Rockies” usually means a fair amount of snow fall. This year we have seem to have gotten a lot more than the normal amount of snow. It snowed last Wednesday, and was quite windy. Because of my recent surgeries, I have to wear sweatpants because of the incision on my stomach. I was finally able to be able to bend over enough to get my tennis shoes tied this week, and so didn’t have to wear flip-flop’s like I did the previous week. I had my gloves in my Jeep, and a heavy sweatshirt on, and coat. I was completely flabbergasted at the number of women on campus that seem to be slaves to fashion in the middle of a snowstorm.

I saw some wearing nothing more than a skimpy t-shirt and jeans; some with a sensible coat, hat and gloves on, but yet were teetering along on 3-inch stiletto heels. My friend and I were sitting in my Jeep with the seat warmers on and the heater going, waiting for my next class to start. I thought about taking bets with her about which one might fall on their ass first as they made their way through the parking lot. We decided that one young woman was in fact wearing her plaid flannel pajama bottoms.

Did none of these women know that it was going to snow???? I knew that snow had been forecasted from various sources - my computer, the television, the radio in my Jeep, even my co-workers were aware. I simply couldn’t fathom that none of the fashion slaves knew about it! I had been walking from an earlier class to my Jeep, and a pair of these amazing creatures were walking toward me - holding on to each other, one of them with her stiletto heels, the other not wearing a coat. I overheard one say to the other, “But this is what I picked out to wear last night”. I couldn’t help but think (and actually had to bite my lip to keep from verbalizing my thoughts….. Really??? You actually are such a slave to the powers-that-be on 5th Avenue that you are required to wear what you chose the night before?

Now don’t get me wrong….. I myself own around 60 pairs of shoes and boots - I’m attempting to believe the futile notion that I could actually catch up to one of my sisters who has way over 100 pairs. I own a pair of $750 Manolo Blahnik boots that I’ve worn three times in the three years I’ve owned them. I also own sensible tennis shoes that I prefer to wear when it snows, and even have (somewhere) a pair of snow boots. I have a lovely pair of black leather gloves with red fox fur trim, however I prefer to wear a knit pair with a faux leopard print cuff. They are much easier to use when I have to pull out the snow brush and, unlike my leather ones, don’t shrink when they get wet.

Maybe it’s an age thing, but I simply can’t fathom the need to be a slave to fashion when the temperature outside is barely 15 degrees, the wind is blowing the snow sideways, and walking across a parking lot in 4-inch stiletto heels is something I would only do on my way to pick up my winning lottery ticket.