Label Whores!

So much of what we do and who we think we are are based on labels! The clothes we wear, the car we drive and the neighborhood we live in all somehow determine where we stand in society... or so most think. I sicken at the thought of people today "keeping up with the Joneses" mentality to feel that they can fit in. The age of $250 True Religion Jeans is upon us all and infuriates me to the boiling point. the fact that a pair of 501 Levi jeans is over $50 now is very sad, but those aren't cool enough for kids or adults to wear anymore, they'd rather look cooler, or think they look cooler in a pair of jeans that look like some Northern Californian sprayed Pixie dust on them and said it was ok to dress like a woman, even if you're a man? The fashion world seems pretty much dependant on Hollywood for its guidance. If Britney or Jalo are wearing something it is now cool and accepted, regardless of how hideous it may be. Then you have the people driving cars they can't afford and have to look good when they are on the road to the $12 /hr job and the nice BMW with the cool wheels, probably leased and the kids at home wear walmart and second hand clothes to compensate for this... nice ? But with all of this being said there is something about a good quality pair of jeans, or car, or athletic shoes that somehow justifies is price. To be able to afford nice stuff is not a crime, to think that you must buy nice stuff and become a label whore is something different altogether. Here is the disconnect with people, the guy who buys a $25k Harley Davidson and ride a few thousand mile per year to the local watering holes to be seen on Harley, the love of riding is not there but the culture of the Harley Label is more important than the ride itself, for me being an avid motorcycle rider is a crime, ride hard , fast and plenty and stop when you're done riding and eat and relax, not 4 times along the ride to show off how shiny your overpriced toy is. This mentality to look cool, and then perceive yourself and cool and part of any culture for the sake of belonging to something that is perceived to be "cool" is as a Man , counter-productive. The difference between me and say my co-worker who owns a Harley is this, when going out for a ride I would say, "gonna ride 33 this weekend" the Harley rider will say," gonna take the Harley out to Neptunes the the Rock store, then meet my other Harley buddies at the coffee bean, did he forget to mention , "the Harley" pretty bikes but useless for doing any real riding. By the Way , My Ride is a 2007, GSXR1000 with all of the necessary upgrades and the areas faster riders as the pilot, enough said about that, there's more technology in my rear Ohlins shock than on any Harley made...period. Today's young kids are really in trouble and have been bitten by the fashion bug frenzy. have 2 teenage boys, one will buy the cheapest most practical school clothes, a pair of Vans that he likes and some black t-shirts and call that his school wardrobe, the younger of the boys will then go out and buy some 514's ,a pair of DC's a quicksilver tshirt or two and call this his school wardrobe, oh and he has a pair of true religion knockoffs he has failed to return to a friend of his brothers, so he is the label whore in our house. All things being equal I must say that certain things I like are very expensive, but almost none of them are household names outside their element, like golf equipment, Taylormade and Ping are a few clubs that i play, now some newMizunos, none of which are the most expensive in their field,nor the most popular however all respected names in the field of golf and functional for the game. For my motorcycles always get the best shock on the market, best pipes and brakes, all which serve a purpose and keep me safer than the stock equipment, my car is a stock white pickup which serves me well and hauls my motorcycle in the event of a long distance hookup that allows me to drive it there and unload. live in an older house, my childhood home that I bought from my mother and am content living there, not fancy but functional. Very simple clothes, hate to dress up and just seems that being cool was never an option, living within my means and my tastes has always taken precedence with me. I live very simply and very practically, i have owner nearing 20 motorcycles in the past 11 years and this is my only true vice if i have any at all, i love my bikes and have fallen in love with my 07 GSXR1000 that has been with me longer than any bike I've ever owned, I've always upgraded to the new model which explains the high number of bikes, that and my wife had owned 6 of those 20 bikes. So i am a simple guy with dual income , nice living, can afford the nicer things in life and sometimes get them because I like something, but never have i used somebodies' ad campaign or seen somebody have something that I said I had to have because a certain person wears it, drives it or would be seen differently if I owned it. Being somewhat practical and being my own person may sound boring and nondescript, but the reality of it is that succumbing to somebody Else's social structure is a marionettes string away from being the puppeteers main attraction. Think, live , breathe and exist in your own space for crissakes. a label will never determine who you are, but could show others how hard you are trying to not be the real you. When others start paying my mortgage , then i will care about their opinion, til then, keep trying to find the real YOU!