Dressing for who

Why do women spend hours over what to wear,how to look etc.Do they dress for comfort or do they dress to please others or is there something like dressing for oneself.I for one dress for comfort,to feel confident and yes to feel good about my self.If others approve so be it.Sometimes we dress for the occasion.All in all the decision takes some considering.
I wonder why women in Islamic countries dress up.In most of the middle east one will find that women spend money on designer wear and the best of cosmetics and all for what.They are well covered with only their eyes showing so why bother.Frankly I would love to dress like them.What bliss to be able to throw on a t shirt and shorts and the bhurka and ready to go.Who is to know.
This afternoon the discussion was on the same subject.Some of the women felt that it was a waste of time to spend so much time and effort when no one could see what one was wearing.The other woman thought that they were making an effort to look good for their husbands after all that was accepted.As usual I wondered aloud if they had ever stop to think that these women loved beautiful things and liked to look beautiful for that simple fact.They were dressing for themselves,they were being who they were and not what someone wanted them to be.The shocked looks that the well healed women threw in my direction was a sight to see.It never occurred to them that it was possible to dress for oneself.Prejudice I thought,here we were educated women so caught up in the media brainwashing of how women in Islamic countries are kept in the shadows and not allowed to express themselves.Here was a classic example of uncovered women who could only think of pleasing their husbands or society and on the other hand were the covered women just being themselves.So who is liberated I wonder.Ponder the thought

society calls

There are days that one simply don't want to know about and then there are days that are special.This morning was one of those days I wasn't looking forward to,it involved one society lunch and one radio interview,both of which I wasn't very happy about but agreed to in some state of fun which I quickly regretted.Not being able to get out of it I agreed to make the best of a bad situation.
All decked out in some decent clothes I went for lunch,arriving on time.....wrong decision,women especially the social butterfly types..are expected to come in fashionably late( so ok that should read as at least thirty minutes late).First lesson learnt.So I find myself a nice corner with women that looked like they wouldn't make conversation so there I was watching everyone come in.Much kissing and hugging later I find a few women that I do know and chat them up.
The show begins with a fashion show,jewellery is supposed to get all women excited (not this one) but the photographers were so busy one couldn't really see much,so after a while we troop for lunch.
The interesting part of all this was that we were in a room full of women with money and so called class,women who are the who's who of the city including people like me who get invited because someone thinks I am a somebody and the whole objective of the lunch is to get us to spend some money.Well I walked over to the sale section and was surprised to find that the actual buying was being done by two Muslim women covered from head to toe in the bhurka and wonder of wonders the bhurka was full of bling.Talk of fashion transcending all barriers.

In limbo

Today I am in that wonderful state of having to do nothing and if that's not enough the weather gods have smiled too so its a beautiful day.In between jobs is a good place to be except for the danger of getting used to it.Not such a bad thing I think,especially if it makes me happy,but for how long says my inner soul.Perhaps there are things to be done yes but for now I am happy to shop garden and cook.
Somehow job hopping is not what I do nor is it something I endorse but the world changed suddenly and so did perceptions.If one was in a job for a long time like I was,it was considered a virtue sometime back.It spelled commitment,loyalty and career mindedness.When the economy changed,the situations changed and job opportunities were a dime a dozen.Suddenly those virtues of yesteryear's were no longer of any value and job hopping became the norm.Along with this change came a certain cynicism.People move faster,get more money and live so called better lives but do they learn anything on the way,are we creating a future that's dominated by Google dependent people who have no passion or imagination.I don't really care anymore,changing the world is no long an option.Letting go is so blissful,it means I just need to work on my terms and throw it all up if the situation doesn't suit me.Everyone thinks being a woman make it easier to chuck up a job.I don't agree,its a mind game,its about being ambitious about ones personal life,its about wanting to do things that one cant do when one is too busy making money that one has no time to spend.
Oh yes its time to check out some plants,buy a birthday gift and catch up for tea with a friend and there one to some rest.The job market can wait.