Three Cheers for Inconsequence

My new shirt, it’s long-sleeved and shows the logo of the Cape Coastal Rowing Club of my southafrican friends. Its gaudy pink color fits perfectly to the suntanned skin that I brought home from SA: A real trophy which I worked hard for. “100 % Polyester“ says the inner label. One way or the other, such plastic material is presumably unavoidable for outdoor wear.

The flight from Cape Town to Munich ruins my ecological footprint. The fligt crew smiles at me who for hours defends the plastic cup in which water is poured in every now and then (the standard procedure is to offer a new cup every time). The Journal „Brigitte“, No. 01/2016, on my knees, I am reading an article entitled: „Green, green, green is all my sportswear. – If antibacterial or breathable: Adapting sportswear to today’s fashion involves a lot of chemistry …“.

I feel grotty. Think of one or another old folk in our rowing club back home, who persistently wears – which always makes me smile a little – his washed-out age-old sweatshirt. It is made of cotton and has proudly displayed the Club Logo over centuries. Moreover he wears age-old leggings containing no or very little Spandex, yielding a high degree of “uncoolness”. The outfit is completed by wide shorts from the time when the concept of functional clothes has not been invented yet, and by sport shoes from the past century.

Who claims that one is unable to row with such an outfit? The guys I have in mind in this context are excellent rowers anyway.

Well, the newest trend in sportswear is wool. It is indeed “cool” and, taking the most recent development, even fancy. How the sheep are treated, not in all but in most cases, is also described in the above-mentioned report. I knew it beforehand but would have preferred to be ignorant. The best solution recommended by the journal is to wear sports clothes for a long time – they do not deteriorate (or at least only in a fashion sense), see above. An interesting recommendation of a journal whose main focus is to keep the fashion market going!

I am unable to think this story to its end. Tried it often enough and always met a barrier called vanity and personal weakness. In a few days, I shall have the opportunity for New Year’s Eve pledges again. I may express a few, it might be worth a try. Cheers!

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