Faking & blending

Booth: Yeah, by now I usually have a feel for the person, what they wanted, how they felt, what was going on in their lives. With this girl, nothing.
Brennan: She thought she was ugly. She did everything she could to make herself beautiful. And all she did was make herself more invisible.

I caught up with Professor Fox yesterday, a friend who has known me for almost 2 decades (crap! Now I really feel old.*rolling eyes*). We talked about people from the past and how our society has changed. It was not the first that I heard about people becoming materialistic. In fact, I was told that there was a show which covered the worrying trend among the young(er) generation of resorting to “tapping their assets” for an easy way to a comfortable life.

When I first started working, the pay was peanuts compared to the responsibilities and hours. I never heard of fine brands and probably didn’t have time to shop anyway. Whenever I had to work long hours, I saw it as an opportunity to learn and improve my skills. In fact, once my MD apologised for making me staying late to help him with his presentation materials with the Board. I was heavily pregnant then.

Almost a decade later, despite being able to shop at Sloane Street or New Bond St, I still maintain the same rules on spending. Whenever I go back, I shop like a Malaysian. I love Vincci, Jusco, Tesco etc. I still think twice to buy something worth more than MYR50 because I remember back then, that amount was considered excessive.

I suppose since my circle of friends share similar traits, I find it strange when I hear their complaints of the society. For those who are in managerial posts, the woes often consist of the lack of determination among the young ones and their dissatisfaction with pay. Of course a graduate’s salary is never enough to buy Gucci or Prada. They either charge it to the credit cards, get a rich man (or woman) to help out or for those who can’t find one, they turn to fake goods.

People want to fit in. I get it. We change our appearances to blend in or to gain targeted people for fame or whatever reason. Probably it is because I have gazillions things on my mind that I don’t have the thoughts of blending in. But then again, I am known for being a weirdo anyway as my close friends have observed e.g. selective amnesia, life changing decisions, impromptu actions. It is also one of the reasons why I only have and maintain a handful of friends.

How far would a person go just to be accepted? It seems that there is no limit. When everything is superficial, what makes us unique then?

Perhaps it is also another reason why my friendship with Professor Fox remains strong despite the distance and time. Being able to buy fine things is nice but having good friends who enjoy a cup of teh tarik with you is way much cooler (and yes Fox dearie, I am workaholic as before but slowed down a lot).

*Ms B wanted to post about the art of seduction which she thinks her readers would love to read. She needs to do more research before posting*