Probably the most notable aspect of my date with Little Boy Blue had nothing at all to do with the date itself, but with a comment he made in regard to clothing.
I'd told him in advance that I'd be wearing a skirt. "Nothing dressy," I said, "I'll just be wearing it with a T-shirt, but skirts are cooler and simpler in the summertime."
At the putt-putt course, he insisted on picking up my golf ball for me, saying he had more mobility wearing pants. I told him that actually, skirts allow for more mobility, but I thanked him for being a gentleman.
He looked down at the article of clothing in question.
"Oh, so that is a skirt?" he asked.
I thought, fleetingly, Great. They've set me up with the village idiot. "Well...it's not a dress," I said.
"No, I mean...well, it's just that...um, it's not, you know..."
"Ridiculously short?" I said.
"Yeah."
I said, a little curtly, "I don't believe in dressing like a whore."
As we moved on to the next tee, I almost tripped over the sidewalk, lost in a dazy sort of thought train.
I don't own any skirts that fall above the knee. I don't look like a school marm by any stretch; I like my clothes stylish and classy. But for various reasons -- an old-fashioned sense of modesty, my attitude toward my upper legs, a duty toward a professional, feminine appearance, and a skin-tight budget that prevents me from purchasing the latest fashion in teeny weeny scraps of fabric that barely escape being called crotchless briefs -- my skirts can generally call themselves "mid-calf length."
What shocked me was not Little Boy Blue's expectation that skirts be shorter. What shocked me was that people five years younger than I don't have a word for the bottom half of a dress with a more than four-inch inseam.
This past week I spent scrutinizing the dress patterns of today's "young girls," and grew progressively more horrified and discouraged. Daisy Dukes have come back. Girls walk the streets practically nude, leaving nothing to the imagination and opening themselves up to the harassment our officials frequently complain about. Reserve has gone the way of the pterodactyl. I found myself watching overly tanned legs and skimpily clad skinny asses swaying down the street without faces and thinking forlornly, "What is this world coming to?"
I didn't think I'd start bemoaning that question for another forty years. But here I am, dressed in my mid-calf length nameless clothing that leaves a great deal up to the imagination without sacrificing grace or style, still the subject of many stares and whistles and vocal car horns, thinking what these young people are missing -- respect, self-possession and personhood, among other things. And I feel old. Mysterious, dignified, classy; but old.
5 comments:
I may be a few years younger than you, but I'm equally shocked that someone a bit younger would question whether the word "skirt" applies to the garment you wore. What gives?
Practically all of the skirts that I own fall just at the bottom of my knee. (At 5'4", I'm not long enough in the leg to pull off a mid-calf hemline like you ... they make me look rather stumpy and shorter than I really am.) I would consider anything above the knee unprofessional, and I don't particularly care to show off my thighs anyway, thank-you-very-much. But I can't imagine anyone questioning that my skirts are, in fact, skirts. It'd make me feel old, too!
I think past-the-knee skirts are classically beautiful. They also tend to attract the right kind of gentleman as opposed to the wrong one: at least you know he's not looking at your legs!
The only time I wear above-the-knee skirts are when I'm at the beach/pool (and therefore it's acceptable to show a whole lot of skin). But in the street? Not likely.
That guys sounds like a moron to me. I mean, I honestly cannot figure out how he did not know you were wearing a skirt. What did he think it was? Did he explain any further what he was talking about? I hope you got rid of him. He sounds a little on the dumb side, I'm not gonna lie.
P.S. If you end up marrying this dude, I'll retract my statement.
Rainey
My little sister visited me this weekend, and we went shopping. I needed some new work clothes, as well as summer clothes that aren't 2 sizes too big. She convinced me to buy a dress that shows my knees for the first time... ummm... ever. It is truly just above my knee, but I insisted on sitting, bending, double-checking, and worrying over it for a loooong time before buying it. At one point, I even exclaimed, "Are you SURE I don't look like a whore?!" And she just looked at me like I was her dorky older sister who would never be cool. It's a very nice dress, but I still wouldn't ever wear it for work or church and I insist on covering my lap with a sweater or scarf when I sit. My sister thinks I'm a prude, but I think modesty is underrated. I'm all about the mid-calf skirts. I do love my new dress though, and I think it's only a small departure from my normal style.
I agree that your date sounds like a moron. Sorry, but he does.
Yeah, the poor kid. But even if you can't label him the brightest bulb in the box, he should have been able to pick up on basic clothing identification. I just don't think the information was available to him.
SG, your dress sounds fabulous! Beachy summery dresses that come just above the knee are great. I'm with you on the shawl though -- I'm always afraid of airing more than I intend when my skirt is a bit shorter than usual!
Rainey, no worries -- I am N0T going to marry this guy. Nic, I totally agree about attracting the right/wrong kind of man (except that whistles and catcalls seem to predominate even if a girl is dressed in burlap sacking); and Beth -- I'm glad I'm not the only one feeling a little over-the-hill with such fashion styles today.
Here's to the beauty of the classic skirt!
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