Packing.
Although July still has some time to make itself known before we creep into August, the summer is fast escaping. Next week I leave for vacation on Cape Cod, a regular summer trip that went on hiatus for a few years but has happily returned, and on August 1st, I can start moving into my new apartment in Boston. That project will probably be delayed, though, if I get some hours at work before leaving for my trip. Even if I don’t, a friend’s engagement party will call me back to New York in the meantime, because that’s something not to be missed.
All of these things– packing bags for two different vacations and to move everything from New York to Boston– has me thinking about just how much stuff (mainly clothing) I have. I spent some time packing boxes yesterday and then came across this article in the NYTimes.
If you can’t stomach the whole article, the gist of it is that a pair of friends decided to wear only six items of clothing for a month, underwear, shoes, outerwear, and accessories excluded. About a hundred or more people jumped on board after the women started a website, nearly half quitting, cheating, or giving up before the month was through. The funny thing is, many claim, that hardly anyone noticed, spouses, close friends, and laundry-washers included. But, those who did notice tended to relentlessly badger whoever was recylcing their outfits.
It’s obvious that many of the people who are involved are fashion-conscious or at least smart dressers, and some admit they are to a fault and hope that this experiment will help them break compulsive shopping habits. So the outfits the people featured in the Times article put together look great, but they’re definitely not cheap. A white Hanes t-shirt would probably start looking tired a lot faster than anything most of these people have lined up. At the same time, though, no one is claiming this is an anti-consumer/anti-fashion industry protest while they wear $400 jeans.
But the project does raise some interesting questions outside of your run-of-the-mill why is consumer culture so evil and where did I get these nasty shopping habits questions. It’s making people stop to think about what they own, what they use, and how they ended up with so much shit they don’t even like. The sixitemsorless-ers have also found that even when their six items don’ t come together into an entirely appropriate outfit for a special occassion, again, they say, hardly anyone notices. So, unsurprisingly, it’s a reminder that no one notices you as much as you do. Maybe those who are always trying to make a statement with their clothing will be humbled by the fact that, fortunately or unfortunately, most people you encounter don’t really care what you’re wearing. That’s not to say there’s no point in getting dressed however you see fit or to ignore the undeniable, if unfortunate, value of looking “right,” but when you don’t, there doesn’t seem to be much fallout. So, no pressure, I guess.
If nothing else, it’s giving me some inspiration to pack light as I get ready for vacation. If a businesswoman can make it work for a month, I can figure out how to bring less clothing than I might think I need on a three-week trip. Hopefully that’ll lighten my backpack, so I have room to bring all of you souvenirs.
