And before anyone says “You MAKE the real things yourself!” (I’m looking at you, Grrl.), don’t forget that the stuff you use to make your things needs to be bought first! “DIY” is another real brand with a counterfeit idealism.
I’d love to make my own clothes and construct my own identity. Unfortunately I don’t have the time or the talent for this, so I buy all my clothes from Generic Clothing Store. Unfortunately even the clothes at Generic Clothing Store tend to try to dress me according to the zeitgeist. I just want neutral clothes, damn it.
I’ve been searching for years for a white office shirt that isn’t made out of cheap polyester, doesn’t have some kind of faux-Rococo logo printed on it and isn’t sold at a place that charges five times the price of Generic Clothing Store.
I’ve overheard hipsters making fun of the sort of people who shop at Generic Clothing Store. It’s like making fun of people who eat bread – why would you laugh at someone because they choose an attribute that means absolutely nothing?
Except for underwear, I buy most of my clothes at thrift stores. Have for years. As long as they don’t have holes in the wrong places, ragged hems, or weird stains, they’re good enough. I even get dressy stuff there – nice slacks, shirts, neckties and jackets.
I’d say I don’t derive much of my identity from my clothes, but maybe other people perceive it differently (“That guy must shop at thrift stores!”).
To have real totems, don’t you need monoculture? Totems in tribal cultures are basically affiliation signifiers: “I’m one of the Gumboot Chiton people and my personal deity is the Great Fern, and if you know other Gumboot Chiton people and have the same myths about ferns as I do, then you know some useful data about me.” Modern “fake” totems work in similar ways … I can predict (I don’t know with how much accuracy) which Bronte novel a girl with a picture of Edward or Jacob on her shirt is going to like better.
February 2, 2011
The M in the 3rd panel looks like the Golden Arches!
February 2, 2011
The lazyman’s lobster of self-actualization fills my fridge every day. Good strip :)
February 2, 2011
hmm. teeth.
February 2, 2011
I went to a thrift store once. Had a good selection of tapes. Clothes… I’m not sure why you’d shop there for clothes.
February 2, 2011
I know. I’m upset about Jack and Meg too.
February 2, 2011
And before anyone says “You MAKE the real things yourself!” (I’m looking at you, Grrl.), don’t forget that the stuff you use to make your things needs to be bought first! “DIY” is another real brand with a counterfeit idealism.
February 2, 2011
You could wear things you find on the side of the road. That’d look real -broke.
February 2, 2011
I’d love to make my own clothes and construct my own identity. Unfortunately I don’t have the time or the talent for this, so I buy all my clothes from Generic Clothing Store. Unfortunately even the clothes at Generic Clothing Store tend to try to dress me according to the zeitgeist. I just want neutral clothes, damn it.
I’ve been searching for years for a white office shirt that isn’t made out of cheap polyester, doesn’t have some kind of faux-Rococo logo printed on it and isn’t sold at a place that charges five times the price of Generic Clothing Store.
I’ve overheard hipsters making fun of the sort of people who shop at Generic Clothing Store. It’s like making fun of people who eat bread – why would you laugh at someone because they choose an attribute that means absolutely nothing?
February 2, 2011
Except for underwear, I buy most of my clothes at thrift stores. Have for years. As long as they don’t have holes in the wrong places, ragged hems, or weird stains, they’re good enough. I even get dressy stuff there – nice slacks, shirts, neckties and jackets.
I’d say I don’t derive much of my identity from my clothes, but maybe other people perceive it differently (“That guy must shop at thrift stores!”).
February 3, 2011
Mr Lapin must be an average size. Girl too.
February 3, 2011
Uhhhh… The BOOKstore? (Check the antiquarian case and see that pizza stains cost extra.)
February 9, 2011
Is the Lobster of Self-actualisation related to Bad Decision Dinosaur?
February 13, 2011
We surround ourselves with fake things because real things gave people cholera.
February 20, 2011
i wish you’d draw more fish.
February 25, 2011
To have real totems, don’t you need monoculture? Totems in tribal cultures are basically affiliation signifiers: “I’m one of the Gumboot Chiton people and my personal deity is the Great Fern, and if you know other Gumboot Chiton people and have the same myths about ferns as I do, then you know some useful data about me.” Modern “fake” totems work in similar ways … I can predict (I don’t know with how much accuracy) which Bronte novel a girl with a picture of Edward or Jacob on her shirt is going to like better.
April 14, 2011
My favorite documentary.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6718420906413643126#
April 16, 2011
Big fan of The Power of Nightmares, personally. It and The Weather Underground together make an interesting study.