Just turn away; nothing to see here

With yet another Halloween coming soon it makes me think of some of the costumes I've been seeing around, and by that I mean people dressing up for others to create images of themselves.  Some call this fashion.

Lately I'm seeing a lot of skinny jeans around.  I believe this may be associated with the new standards being invoked for light bulbs, as the government is requiring that the light bulb market be dominated by low wattage offerings.  This, in turn, must be leading to lower light households, so that people can not accurately see themselves in mirrors.  How else can you explain people wearing skinny jeans in public?  I don't think I've seen anyone look good in these jeans.  Even my wife, who is a beautiful woman, is not at her best in these jeans, though she looks great in pretty much anything.  And men?  Forget it- they look like they lost a bet.

And of men, there is now something even worse called "meggings."  What is going through the minds of those men who are wearing these leggings?  Most women don't look good in leggings (think fuzzy spandex), but most have the decency to wear leggings underneath skirts, which is fine though not particularly flattering, and makes perfect sense on a cold day.  So if men want to wear leggings underneath their pants, fine with me.  We used to call those long underwear.  But wearing meggings alone (which are pretty much just pantyhose), that's like wearing Speedos on the street, and it's either cruel or crazy to subject innocent bystanders to such distasteful and generally unsightful narcissism.

image from businessinsider.com

Penny Wise, Pound Foolish

When our kids were very little I used a phrase enough that it became a family motto that went beyond the commonly held belief that you get what you pay for.  That phrase was "cheap China toy," which is now the code for anything that is so poorly made or conceived that it is not worth owning or doing. It originated with the observation that toys, especially electronics, that are made in China are almost always substandard at best and dangerous at worst.  But it's not just toys, as I talk to a number of people in various industries who tell me how poor Chinese goods are, such as the poor quality of steel, the poor the quality of clothing and accessories, the poor quality of manuals, etc.  And to top it off, so much of this stuff are illegal knock-offs.  But so many suppliers and retailers carry this cheap "stuff" because it's cheap.  I'm a pretty cheap so-and-so, but I'm making an effort to avoid Cheap China Toys, but it's often hard to do, as they're everywhere.  I hope whomever is elected helps solve this huge economic and moral problem (though I doubt any of our "leaders" "tener cojones" to do so), as it just isn't worth our collective souls to consume inferior Chinese goods and the accompanying lack of manufacturing standards, poor treatment of workers, disregard for laws and property rights, unjust trade policies, and more, just to save a few bucks.  It costs us a lot more than we think.

image from http://www.grand-china.com.cn/eng/images/factory_3.jpg

Words to Live By

Everything in moderation, including moderation.

Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots

The election is about a month away, so the ads and debates have begun.  I'm very impressed and excited with how much these politicians are fighting for me.  I think that just about every one of them is or will be fighting for me.  With all these people fighting for me, the next few years are going to be great!  Oh wait, didn't they tell me that last election?  And every election?  I can't remember, really, as the only time I see my elected representatives is when they want to be elected, but that's probably because they're all very busy fighting for me.

image from scoop.diamondgalleries.com