After work yesterday I 'had' to attend a Silver Wedding party. I wasn't particularly looking forward to it, but had been told that many friends/acquaintances from my late teens and twenties would be there. The shocking thing was I only recognised half of them..now mostly in their early/mid 50s.
Previously fit lads, 5 a siding twice a week, cricket & rugby playing, had turned into bald, paunchy blokes. Their wives, who were 'fit' 30 years ago were similar. Only with more hair. Little dress sense, pantaloons hanging around their calves, strange old leather sandals, and two lads who previously drove an RS 1600i and a Mexico (remember them) now both drove Picasso's.
Now I don't have a six pack, and have a small beer gut, but can still spend a week backpacking the SW Coast Path from Plymouth eastwards in early August. Jog, if really necessary, and don't have a single cardi in my wardrobe.
It was a real eye opener, and in a sad way, lifted my spirits somewhat and made me resolve to look after myself more. Cut down on the blueberry pancakes , maple syrup and beer. Starting next year.
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>>
>> and two lads who previously drove an RS 1600i and a Mexico (remember them) now
>> both drove Picasso's.
Oh the shame of it.
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But people now in their 50's never had any dress sense, whats changed?
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>> But people now in their 50's never had any dress sense, whats changed?
>>
Yeah, I can vouch for that...and now that I've just turned 50 I can blame it on my age..yee-hah.
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As an example..I used to wear corduroy trousers???...brown.
I only stopped, when driving back from Devon one Christmas, I stopped at a motorway service station and as I got out of my TR7 I catastrophically ripped the whole backside of them. I'm not talking an inch or two...the whole of the back of the trousers were ripped and were flapping in the wind...exceptionally embarrassing, but lucky it was a holiday period and I had my suitcase with me with other stuff in...corduroys have been banned ever since.
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I used to wear Mustard colour (almost Yellow FFS!) needle cord corduroys with Purple shirt and bright Blue kipper tie.
But we're talking Summer of Love here (peace, man)
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I wore a purple and yellow kaftan....
I also had a leather jacket with a bell on the zip.....
Peace man!
Pat
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Shirt was actually Scarlet when I come to think about it!
:o)
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Green platform boots, purple loons, yellow Ben Sherman and red canvas jacket. Looked better than it sounds... back then.
>>>Now I don't have a six pack, and have a small beer gut, but can still spend a week backpacking the SW Coast Path from Plymouth eastwards in early August. Jog, if really necessary, and don't have a single cardi in my wardrobe.
Similar here.... About a stone over where the doctors says I should be and no pretence of fitness for fitness sake but still cycle about the place like I did when I was 12... and having teen girls at home means I'm immersed in teen culture which can be perplexing at times but is always uplifting. Last week I was mistaken across half the width of a football field for one of daughters 18yr old male friends... that's good enough for me.... tough for him though. Lucky to have all my hair still which seems rare at the type of occasion you mention legacylad.
If you talked across a variety of topics with my Mum on the phone you'd assume she was in her 20s.... she's 83.... her father was the same and I'll be very pleased if I have inherited those family traits.
Of course all my old school mates I meet who fit the somewhat negative description in the OP drive new BMWs and have far more money than me so it all balances.
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>> I also had a leather jacket with a bell on the zip.....
Was the bell there so that you would get an audible warning when someone was trying to unzip it?
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>>I wore a purple and yellow kaftan....
I've still got a kaftan!
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If us cool dudes dressed now like we did 'back then' some, um, man, from the 'gay community' would be wanting to walk us down the aisle.
:}
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You mean they didn't then... you weren't trying hard enough.
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>> I used to wear Mustard colour (almost Yellow FFS!) needle cord corduroys with Purple shirt
>> and bright Blue kipper tie.
>>
>> But we're talking Summer of Love here (peace, man)
I just KNEW you are a closet UKIP supporter, El Perro!
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>>I just KNEW you are a closet UKIP supporter, El Perro!
haha!
Not closet, I'm openly UKIP, I was thinking only this morning that there's no-way I could bring myself to vote for the Lib/Lab/Con trick again - even if it means letting in the Left by the, um, backdoor.
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>> After work yesterday I 'had' to attend a Silver Wedding party. I wasn't particularly looking
>> forward to it, but had been told that many friends/acquaintances from my late teens and
>> twenties would be there. The shocking thing was I only recognised half of them..now mostly
>> in their early/mid 50s.
>> Previously fit lads, 5 a siding twice a week, cricket & rugby playing, had turned
>> into bald, paunchy blokes.
That's why I'm convinced that current mortality forecasts are far too optimistic!
I had the same revelation a couple of years ago. Now a stone and a half lighter and a size down in shirts and trousers.
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>
>> I had the same revelation a couple of years ago. Now a stone and a
>> half lighter and a size down in shirts and trousers.
New wardrobe? sounds expensive
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>> New wardrobe? sounds expensive
Not too bad. I can wear shirts that are a bit big and just pull in the belt on the walking trousers I live in.
Did have to buy a new smart suit and none of my jackets fit properly now - so on the scout for bargains.
Just done the annual Craghoppers sale shop. I resist all other offers from them without difficulty. Three shirts and a pair of shorts for about £50 delivered, a bit below their usual prices...
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>> Just done the annual Craghoppers sale shop. I resist all other offers from them without
>> difficulty. Three shirts and a pair of shorts for about £50 delivered, a bit below
>> their usual prices...
The trouble with Craghoppers is they do such dull colours, but maybe the stuff wouldn't sell if it wasn't so conservative. It is very comfortable though, they're very well made and the things last for years. Just the ticket for the older types.
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Never looked at the website before.. not quite me for style but now I see they do midge and mossie proof underwear at sale prices I might just change my opinion.
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To my shame I did go through a short period of wearing Carnaby Street schmutter, velvet flares, shirts with long collar points, fat garish ties, shoes like a pirate's or a gentlemanly character in an illustrated children's edition of Gulliver's Travels...
What I really liked was button-down collars and narrow ties if any, under a Cecil Gee Ivy League made roughly to measure whistle. Narrow proper Levis for informal. And for most of the sixties and early seventies that's what I managed scruffily to do, more or less. In the City they even thought me a bit flash, damn hypocrites...
But oh dear, the quality of that Carnaby Street crap... seams gave way, velvet flares went bald, no class whatsoever, swinging London fashion capital of the world in a pig's ear.... even Cecil Gee used shoddy fabric.
I could never afford to dress properly anyway so it's just as well I don't give much of a whassername, even if I do like a decent whistle with cuff buttons that undo...
Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Wed 24 Jul 13 at 18:53
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Time and tide wait for no man - Westpig
