LABOR DAY, WHAT'S WHITE OR RIGHT

 

My mother (a transplanted northerner) used to laugh at the rule of no white attire after Labor Day. "Don't they know about winter whites?" she'd say.

I would laugh for a different reason. As someone raised in Florida I've known many a summer, fall, winter, & spring all to blur into one season. The weather remains hot and humid here well into winter months, plus summer seems to arrive earlier every year now and remain longer thanks to climate change.

Labor Day always brings forth memories of new classes along with new school clothes. Strict rules were applied to what a student could or could not wear. Seeing neighborhood kids as they head off to class it's clear this has lapsed! School should never be that casual.

One change I applaud is that designers no longer have the dictatorial power over our wardrobes they once had. Time was, when they declared hemlines 3 inches above or below the knee, or anywhere in-between that's what you were forced to accept. No other choices were available! -- This sucked!!!

I've always felt that hemlines should be determined by the weather and not designers. Ditto for styles, this should be up to the wearer only. (Of course I'm talking about adults here!) However there are plenty who have no idea how to put an outfit together and others who just lack good judgment.

What's with all these shredded clothes? Why would anyone with a functioning brain deliberately want to look like that!

And men in particular dress as if they've just given up, period!

As long as an outfit is clean and neat, wrinkle-free with no holes it's fit to be worn in public. But unless you're performing on a stage it should never be too revealing.

Now I am a strong believer in the old saying, "If you've got it, be proud and flaunt it!" However there's a time and place for everything. And there's a big difference between tease and sleaze. There's a better saying to live by: "An outfit should be tight enough to show you're a woman, but loose enough to show you're also a lady."

Unfortunately, today being a lady has fallen out of fashion. Looking over the styles marketed for teenage girls nearly everything is skin-tight with plunging necklines and backs; tops are low-cut with bare midriffs and shorts display half the derriere.

Had those been around during my teens I would never have been allowed out of the house! All of that would have been considered call-girl attire.

Nowadays I'm a senior citizen and home most of the time due to Covid. I keep my air-conditioner set at 80 degrees to save money and my blinds are drawn. I am free to dress for comfort or wear nothing at all. Sometimes in the privacy of your own home it's best to be naked. This is Florida after all!