Are we falling victim to lists?
Why do we slavishly adhere to what’s considered to be currently
socially acceptable?
Why do we so willingly cast off the old and embrace the new?
To list a few
What’s hot, what’s not
What’s in, what’s not
Who’s in, who’s out
Where to go and what to see.
Where not to go and what not to see
and the lists just keep coming….
We must be taking notice of and responding to them otherwise they wouldn’t exist.
Surely our life should be about what we want, desire and enjoy, not what we’re told
we need, should covet and take on to make our life more exciting.
If speckled nail polish were to appear on the ‘what’s not hot’ list an entire generation
of users would stop using it. The small manufacturer who is on the ascendancy with
this short lived winner would go to the wall. His suppliers and distributors would lose
a customer and his loyal staff would lose their jobs.
On the ‘what’s hot’ and ‘what’s not hot’ lists our personal dress code is under
unrelenting scrutiny. List follower, Kyle Sandilands has the audacity to tell Australian
Idol contestants that their gear ‘just wont grove it.’ These poor sods are being
humiliated on National Television and have to stand and take it as he is the one that
holds the power - and the list.
Would it not be better to check them out behind the scenes and make the necessary
adjustments to their style before the show? Since when did a good voice have to come
with the ability to wardrobe plan under pressure? Surely it’s the singer and the song
that count, not the perceived wardrobe disaster.
A casualty of the ‘what’s in’ list, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark is a robotic
version of her former happy, casual and relatively carefree (I’m speculating here) self.
Apparently to be a successful Princess it’s important to adopt a reserved demeanour
and have that ‘current’ look –the one that the stylist comes up with. The ‘look’ goes
on a ‘must have’ list and before long there are Mary clones popping up everywhere.
Sadly our friends fall victim to lists to. One of my so called good friends
recently commented “you keep your clothes for a long time don’t you”
and in response to my quizzical look, replied “that coat you’re wearing; you
don’t see that look here”, implying that it is just so not this seasons. For the record it’s
this year’s model that I bought in Amsterdam. Obviously to make us acceptable and
pleasing to the trained ‘spot this year’s fashion icons’ eye we need to adhere rigidly
to the dictates of the local scene.
Food is another area that falls victim to the list mentality.
This is confession time for me. Yes, I do check out lists, purely in the name of
research (of course). Two food fads that I was pleased to farewell were building food
pyramids and covering half the plate in a sea of exotically flavoured ephemeral foam.
The café and restaurant crowd are fickle when it comes to embracing lists.
They act like the passengers on a sightseeing flight, all rushing over to the side with
the best view – the pilot has to adjust the trim to avoid disaster.
Then it’s back to the other side for a new and more exciting view.
I haven’t done a survey so I can’t confirm my hypothesis. That the ‘what’s hot’ and ‘what’s not’, and the ‘in and outs’ of food fads lists are the most thumbed through lists.
There is one list that I do half heartedly respond to though - the 'don't put off till tomorrow what can be done today' list.
I’m starting a comments list to comment on lists - interested?
All comments welcome
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