One of my favorite days during my senior year AP Literature class in high school was vocab day. Not because I was all so interested in the words, but because it meant all we would do for two hours was read words and definitions, and I could space out and take a bit of a break.
Most of the monthly vocab we were required to do was just a process of memorizing, providing the correct answers on the quiz, and then never using the words again.
Occasionally, though, there would be a word or two that stuck with me and actually got added to my vocabulary- most of them being jokes between my friend Laura and I. Instead of saying “salty” when describing someone we used “brackish”. When we were at basketball and I would throw up a long shot Laura would always remark how I just “jettisoned that ball”.
There was one word though that has stayed at the back of my mind - bellwether. I thought it was funny because the word either means ‘trendsetter’ or is used to describe the male sheep that leads all the other sheep into the slaughterhouse. I used to think these definitions were describing two different things, but as I enter into my era of loving fashion, I’ve come to see how they work in harmony.
There have been times I have put on a risky outfit, and it has been positive. Compliments, asking where I got certain pieces, and establishing a good ‘trend’ for my future clothes.
However there have also been times I’ve felt confident in an outfit, only to step outside or look at the pictures a few days later and realize that it was not good, and I would be leading everyone to the slaughterhouse if they tried to replicate it.
Having no interest in fashion the past 7 years of my life is slowly changing but I’ve missed the crucial experimentation phase most middle schoolers go through when they wear completely out of the box clothes. I’m not saying I want to go through that phase of embarrassment, but at some point it has to get out of my system.
What you must know if you continue reading my fashion thoughts, or looking through outfits I’ve constructed, is that I have no background in fashion. So if you decide to take inspiration from any of them, you might find yourself at the start of a new trend… or land you a spot in the slaughterhouse.
Hopefully, you have a better sense of clothing than I currently do so you don’t land in the slaughterhouse, and if not, we can grow together. I’ve always thought the solidification and advancement of friendship happens when you go through something difficult together.
Yours truly,
Calihan