Do you lean more toward Style or Substance?
Some women will wear high heels that actually hurt their feet but that is a small price to pay to look nice. It might be useful to pay them a compliment about their shoes, as much women rarely refuse a genuine compliment about their dress and besides, a king word may help ease their pain. From my perspective, should I wear stylish shoes that cause pain or average shoes that are comfortable? Style or Substance? I’ll choose the latter.
Years ago, in the 1970’s, my father-in-law owned a Jaguar. At that time, Jaguars were considered terribly unreliable but they were very stylish. The joke was that you needed two of them as one of them was always in the repair shop. Therefore, he could only drive around half the time in his original classy vehicle as the other half, his Jaguar was in the repair shop. Call me boring but a less stylish vehicle that is reliable typically calls my name. Style or Substance?
One extreme example of Style or Substance comes from the '67 Ice Bowl in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Some football fanatics will remember the temperature was -13 degrees at the start of the game. According to my father, who attended the game, he remembers seeing some fashionably dressed women at kickoff wearing stylish outfits without warm coats, hats, gloves, or leg coverings. Before the end of the first quarter, they had mysteriously disappeared. Interesting, they may have had their 15 minutes of fame by being fashionable at such a momentous event but then missed one of the most iconic ending to a championship game in the history of the NFL.
I often see high school girls carry fashionable Vera Bradley bags to school instead of backpacks. Now, in their eyes, they look cool and fashionable but at what cost? It has to put a major strain on their arms and upper body with all the weight. Less fashion conscious and more sensible high school students use backpacks; they may not earn any fashion points using a backpack but the weight of the schoolwork is more evenly distributed throughout the body. In this situation, would you choose Style or Substance? I'm guessing much later in life, they'll have a change of heart.
Style or Substance? Often I’ll wear my soccer cleats as I mow the lawn and if you saw this for the first time, you’d think I was ready to referee a soccer game or kick around the soccer ball. It looks a little geeky to my wife and amuses my kids but it’s functional. The cleats help to loosen up the lawn thereby aerating the soil. No style points earned wearing these cleats but in my mind, it provides some substance.
Style or Substance? If you go to your stylish and modern auto dealer for a major repair, remember, they have to somehow recoup those costs. Yes, you have free popcorn, free coffee, donuts, and bagels not to mention free Wi-Fi so you’re styling at the auto dealer but as the expression goes, there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Thankfully, there’s an alternative. Locate a local grease monkey who could do the same work for half the cost. Of course, ask around for a reputable mechanic. Watch out for any convenience items. Yes, they may have coffee, which could be stale, or food that may not do much for your appetite but focus on why you’re there. Yes, their waiting room might be cramped and crowed, dusty and forget about Wi-Fi. However, if you can save a hundred or so by going to this reputable local mechanic, would you do it? Would you be interested in forgoing all comfort and style to save that much money?
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