And then the city goes grey...
I've never liked this time of year. Here it's even worse. I know it's the City so there's no direct sunlight, but I'd gotten used to that filtered greyness that says "day," now, at about 4:10 pm, that filtered greyness is taken away and it's full blown evening. About this time, I realize that I got out of bed, took a shower, walked to the subway (I put clothes on in there somewhere too), got to school, and have been in school and still have about 5 hours of work left to do. In other words...where did the day go? If I haven't already told you, I'm going into finals, which is, really, never good as most of you well know. Anyways, in that vein, I bring you...
In New York, we have a phobia of color. I heard this last week in an Art History class and realized how true that is. We're all about black here, black suit, black car, black tie, black card. We are Third style not Second (Think Roman Wall Painting). But really, if it's not black, its white, grey, brown...the only thing you aren't allowed to wear is color.
I have a friend with an irrational fear. Having just moved to the city, she has not yet acclimated to this strange monotone phenomenon, her winter coat is several shades of Lavender. She fears that should she be on the subway someday and a crazed lunatic does open fire, she will be the one to be hit because she will be the only one who looks like an Easter egg.
But the trend does grab you quickly. Already I am one of three people wearing grey to the Holiday party. What is the reason? What is the motivation? It's easy, it's formal, it's simple, and most importantly, it won't get that dirty.
This city is a dirty place, one of the only places where the snow falling already seems a little grey, why should we sacrifice our colors to the pesky soot, dirt, and grime? Really, the only spots of color are umbrellas, they all seem to make a statement, whether it be "I'm grumpy," "I'm a tourist," "I just bought this," or even "I have really bad taste in art." Aside from that, the city streets tend to look like two black strips of paper with a highlighter line of cabs going through them.
Perhaps the ultimate answer to that question is our desire to fly under the radar. We want to be able to weave between people, sneak past before the light changes, ignore the homeless guy on the train, and it's a lot harder to do that if you don't blend it. Wearing color is tantamount to taking cupcakes on the train (I've actually done that, and believe me you get a LOT of attention). We don't want to get noticed on the street because we don't want to have to notice people on the street. We're busy, we've got places to go and things to do, we are the men in black.
So the question is, is this a winter phenomenon? What will happen when the city thaws, when spring comes and instincts start telling us that it's time to get noticed? Will the colors come back with the leaves? Will I finally be able to use that bright green bag?
Only time will tell...
In New York, we have a phobia of color. I heard this last week in an Art History class and realized how true that is. We're all about black here, black suit, black car, black tie, black card. We are Third style not Second (Think Roman Wall Painting). But really, if it's not black, its white, grey, brown...the only thing you aren't allowed to wear is color.
I have a friend with an irrational fear. Having just moved to the city, she has not yet acclimated to this strange monotone phenomenon, her winter coat is several shades of Lavender. She fears that should she be on the subway someday and a crazed lunatic does open fire, she will be the one to be hit because she will be the only one who looks like an Easter egg.
But the trend does grab you quickly. Already I am one of three people wearing grey to the Holiday party. What is the reason? What is the motivation? It's easy, it's formal, it's simple, and most importantly, it won't get that dirty.
This city is a dirty place, one of the only places where the snow falling already seems a little grey, why should we sacrifice our colors to the pesky soot, dirt, and grime? Really, the only spots of color are umbrellas, they all seem to make a statement, whether it be "I'm grumpy," "I'm a tourist," "I just bought this," or even "I have really bad taste in art." Aside from that, the city streets tend to look like two black strips of paper with a highlighter line of cabs going through them.
Perhaps the ultimate answer to that question is our desire to fly under the radar. We want to be able to weave between people, sneak past before the light changes, ignore the homeless guy on the train, and it's a lot harder to do that if you don't blend it. Wearing color is tantamount to taking cupcakes on the train (I've actually done that, and believe me you get a LOT of attention). We don't want to get noticed on the street because we don't want to have to notice people on the street. We're busy, we've got places to go and things to do, we are the men in black.
So the question is, is this a winter phenomenon? What will happen when the city thaws, when spring comes and instincts start telling us that it's time to get noticed? Will the colors come back with the leaves? Will I finally be able to use that bright green bag?
Only time will tell...