A La Mode

The fashion kind of mode - not the ice cream kind.

I've decided in recent weeks that I am hopelessly out of fashion. To wit: for the last couple of years, I've had a terrible time finding pantyhose. I can find colourful tights -- and I buy those -- but just not the sheer vaguely skin-toned ones. It never occurred to me that these were dreadfully out of style -- until I read that Kate and Pippa Middleton were bringing sheer hose back into fashion. Someone really should have told me. I get how this works in the summer time, but really, in the winter?

Second case in point: my boys have been insisting on wearing ankle-high white sports socks with everything for the last year or so. Every time I fold their laundry, I cluck to myself that I'm glad I'm raising children who aren't driven by trends, who have no idea how girly and geeky low cut white socks are. Finally one day, we had a conversation about this and it turns out that Mom is wrong, that every kid going is wearing such socks. I go out and buy myself some ankle socks.

Tonight, we're watching our guilty summer pleasure, America's Got Talent, and the host is wearing a white suit, or possibly a pale pink jacket and white pants. I think this is campy until later when I'm reading about a film director at the premiere of Harry Potter, wearing a very of-the-moment white suit.

Really, there should be memos issued. It's not my fault if I don't know, is it? I suppose at the very least I can provide entertainment to the more savvy fashionista masses.

It reminds me of years ago when I was working with university students and they played ABBA. For me, only half a dozen years older than then, ABBA was the music that was on the turntables of the people I babysat for. ABBA and Supertramp. I almost couldn't believe my ears - it had to be some ironic postmodern joke, right? But no. ABBA had become so uncool, it became cool again. And then, Mamma Mia - everyone was into ABBA again!

So, no hose -- or, at least, keep an eye on the Middletons to see how that works for them-- yes to ankle socks, and dress my husband like he's in Saturday Night Fever.

Okay. Got it.