Morning Rant: Glam by any other name is still a shallow trend

Inwardly I cringe whenever I open the HOME magazine found inside The London Free Press on Saturday because, no matter that per capita, household and national debt is continually rising, HOME and similar inserts across the land keep pushing, pushing, pushing homeowners toward the deluxe life because, of course, they deserve it.

‘A touch of glam’ said the cover of the Dec. 26 edition of HOME, followed by ‘transforming your home into a luxe escape from drab reality is an easy, affordable dream, trendwatcher Janis Wallace reports.’

Cringe.

We should dream about our homes? Transform them into luxe escapes with glam? Our reality is drab?

Should I even bother to look at the article?

Though the pursuit of glam sounds like the shallowest trend on the face of the earth I turn a page or two and read the inside headline:

‘Bling it on’

Cringe.

Opening paragraph:

‘Basking in bling isn’t just for fashionistas. Fashion-forward homes also are starting to show some flash and dash as glam style takes off as a top trend.’

Glam style is taking off? I must have been in my workshop when the countdown started and blast off occurred.

To be fair, I’m a cynic.


[Click here to see original photo site]

I’ve seen so many trends come and go (corduroy, flannel, plaid, polyester, leather, silk, cotton - and I’m just talking underwear here) that any mention of a new one prompts a red light to flash inside my little round head.

“Will this new trend last a week before we’re told to switch to something else?”

“Will I just learn how to use the rotary phone before it’s taken from my hands?”

“Will any decor I buy stay in fashion longer than the time it takes to pay down my Mastercard bill?”

To be fair again, the article mentions such things as ‘you don’t have to redo your (whole) house,’ and ‘(do) just small amounts,’ and ‘you don’t have to break the bank,’ all in cautionary or recessionary tones.

Like, bling it on but not ‘til you’re broke. Or, luxe it up but just a little, not like the last 60 years.

In my opinion, I’d rather see people follow the trend toward austerity and live small, reduce spending, pay down debt and save money for tough times ahead.

Because if you think reality is drab now, wait ‘til personal, household and national debt (and the high costs of global weather-related damage) grow even more.

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Positive Signs: Shoppers aren’t buying disposable clothing

Recessions hurt and heal at the same time.

People have less money and consumption habits undergo positive change.


[Wanted: Smart shoppers]

In a previous post I mentioned changes in the clothing and grocery industry. For example, that people aren’t buying disposable clothing is a positive sign, in my opinion.

I mention my response to other changes in this Wednesday’s column [see It's Almost Wednesday, side margin] but didn’t have space to write about the Recession Collection.

Because Michael Ball, founder and creative director of Rock & Republic, believes the days of the $300 jeans are gone (Associated Press), he’s offering the Recession line ($128 to $132US) alongside his premium denim line, which retails for up to $280US.

Though you won’t catch me dead or alive in jeans that are worth more than a month’s supply of groceries, and $300 jeans may mean things are seriously out of whack in this world of ours (I’ll stick to used jeans for under $10 from Valu-Village), I at least appreciate Mr. Ball’s efforts “to keep the economy rolling and help shoppers open their pocketbooks.”

And jeans aren’t disposable, are they?

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I don’t know... $300 jeans? The Recession Collection? Jobs are jobs?

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Plan B: The New Age of Austerity will be expensive

I plan to live until I’m 87. Call me cocky.

During my next 28 years I’ll spend a pile of money to live or survive and I think I’ll feel the pinch as my dad and his parents did during the great depression. [Chicken coops, penned rabbits and gardens are in my thoughts].


[Rabbit pen; "My next workshop project?": photo link]

Why so serious before Christmas?

As I said earlier, while we had access to about a century’s worth of cheap oil and natural gas, our Plan A was to burn them as quickly as possible with little regard for tomorrow.

We don’t readily discuss Plan B at any level (political, educational, coffee shop confessional), how to live or survive during The New Age of Austerity, the age of costly oil.

In my opinion, however, as disposable income contracts under pressure of high fuel, food, clothing, shelter, transportation, communication and recreational costs, serious discussions will begin in earnest, especially around tables where family and friends meet.

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Why are governments and businesses slow to come to the table?

Shouldn’t they be informing citizens and consumers more fully about future changes related to expensive fuels?

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More meaty quotes from The Omnivore’s Dilemma

I generally do my best reading while riding a recumbent bicycle in the basement.

My concentration is deep, pages fly by, I underline with jiggly lines many world famous quotes (well, they will be once everyone reads the same book and sees things the way I do), calories fall to the floor, beads of sweat form on my brow.

Not all of the beads are produced by the much-needed exercise.

In The Omnivore’s Dilemma Michael Pollan writes:

“When humankind acquired the power to fix nitrogen (make fertilizer from mountains of ammonium nitrate left over from WWll munition production in the U.S.), the basis of soil fertility shifted from a total reliance on the energy of the sun to a new reliance on fossil fuel.” (pg. 44)

Of course, being self-reliant is commendable in many ways but we supplant the sun at great personal and environmental cost.

The personal: Mountains of fertilizer turn into mountains of corn which, along with a mountain of antibiotics and truckloads of fat, feed millions of cows that become the meal of the day (in North America we eat a fifth of our meals in cars and feed a third of our children at a fast-food outlet every day) for an obese population.


The environmental: “The ultimate fate of the nitrates spread on cornfields (e.g. in Iowa) is to flow down the Mississippi into the Gulf of Mexico, where their deadly fertility poisons the marine ecosystem... creating a dead zone as big as the state of new Jersey”. (pg. 47)

I’ve finished only 20 per cent of the book so I’ve many miles to pedal before more important lessons have been learned.

But I can almost guarantee I’ll be less beefy by the time I reach the last page.