Look at Her Shoes
So, as I've mentioned plenty of times....I absolutely love being comfortable. I mean I'm a girly girl, so I love being cute and trendy too. But only when necessary. Work, going out for the evening, going to a party--all of these are good reasons to dress cute. But any other time I will be dressed super casual. I couldn't help but laugh when I went to the grocery store Monday and saw tons of women dressed just like I was. Track shorts, ball cap, a tshirt and sneakers. It's like it's the uniform for a girl headed to the grocery store on a Monday morning. I got to wondering how many of them were like me and cleaned up pretty well, and how many of them....well.....didn't. Haha. Have you ever wondered that? I would look at a scrubbed out sister and think "Is that how she always looks, or is she just comfy and not trying to impress anybody like I am?" In trying to answer this age-old question, a memory came back that helped me come to a decision.
When I was in college, A&M opened a campus in Quatar in the Middle East. One of my professors would go there to teach seminars, and she would come back and describe it to us. The heat, the architecture, how sandy it was, and how the women dressed. She talked about this one day in particular where she was talking with a woman she had gotten to know over the several trips she had taken. She said that much to her surprise, this woman was very savvy. She was smart and had a quick whit and was quite funny. She knew a lot about current events and was charming to talk to. My professor told us she felt quite bad....she had stereotyped this woman based on her culture and what she wore. She assumed that she was quiet and meek and probably not very intelligent because that's how many women are conditioned to be in Arab countries. But this lady had surprised her. And then, something caught my professor's eye. Shoes. A pair of stylishly cute flats peeked out from under her new friend's long black garment. These shoes were the one way that her friend was able to express a little personality in the way she dressed. So as my teacher would meet women in this new country she visited, she would take a quick glance down at her shoes to try and help her discern the type of woman she might be about to encounter. I just loved this story and how observant and caring this showed my professor to be.
So, back to the grocery store (and a silly spin on the serious story I just shared). How can you tell if the woman you see is scrubbed out for comfort or if it's her usual type of dress? I'll tell you. Look at her handbag. If a sister's wearing sweats and has her hair in a messy bun and prrrrobably hasn't showered yet but is carrying a pretty gold studded black bag, you can bet that girl cleans up really well. If she's wearing a cute crossbody, she probably has good fashion sense. If she's got a fanny pack strapped to her hip, or has her wallet and old receipts practically spilling out of a too-small quilted purse with an adjustable strap.....that sister probably doesn't care too much about being cute and trendy. Nowwww....don't be thinking I'm saying there's a thing wrong with this. I have friends who fall into both of these categories and think there is a perfect place in the world for all types of sisters. I just had to share something this morning that gave me a chuckle. Just check out the handbag. :)
To give you an idea of what I'm talking about, here's my awesome outfit:
When I was in college, A&M opened a campus in Quatar in the Middle East. One of my professors would go there to teach seminars, and she would come back and describe it to us. The heat, the architecture, how sandy it was, and how the women dressed. She talked about this one day in particular where she was talking with a woman she had gotten to know over the several trips she had taken. She said that much to her surprise, this woman was very savvy. She was smart and had a quick whit and was quite funny. She knew a lot about current events and was charming to talk to. My professor told us she felt quite bad....she had stereotyped this woman based on her culture and what she wore. She assumed that she was quiet and meek and probably not very intelligent because that's how many women are conditioned to be in Arab countries. But this lady had surprised her. And then, something caught my professor's eye. Shoes. A pair of stylishly cute flats peeked out from under her new friend's long black garment. These shoes were the one way that her friend was able to express a little personality in the way she dressed. So as my teacher would meet women in this new country she visited, she would take a quick glance down at her shoes to try and help her discern the type of woman she might be about to encounter. I just loved this story and how observant and caring this showed my professor to be.
So, back to the grocery store (and a silly spin on the serious story I just shared). How can you tell if the woman you see is scrubbed out for comfort or if it's her usual type of dress? I'll tell you. Look at her handbag. If a sister's wearing sweats and has her hair in a messy bun and prrrrobably hasn't showered yet but is carrying a pretty gold studded black bag, you can bet that girl cleans up really well. If she's wearing a cute crossbody, she probably has good fashion sense. If she's got a fanny pack strapped to her hip, or has her wallet and old receipts practically spilling out of a too-small quilted purse with an adjustable strap.....that sister probably doesn't care too much about being cute and trendy. Nowwww....don't be thinking I'm saying there's a thing wrong with this. I have friends who fall into both of these categories and think there is a perfect place in the world for all types of sisters. I just had to share something this morning that gave me a chuckle. Just check out the handbag. :)
Comments
Post a Comment