June 17th

Two rants today –

1. Yesterday I went shopping for new jeans, usually it was a pretty straightforward deal — go to the store and buy another pair of Levis 501s (or 514s when I was fat and weighed over 100kgs). Now it becomes a terrible ordeal — about 10 years Levis had made a change to a timeless classic — 501s, then made them skinnier trying to be “hip”? I am a normal guy, physically at least — 182cm, 87kg (ok — here I could lose 5–7kgs, I have a slight belly pouch) and should be able to fit in most normal jeans. But I couldn’t, trying on “straight” or “regular” or “boot cut” types of jeans I just couldn’t either pull them on or when they were on, they were so tight I couldn’t move or bend. And besides 90% of jeans I saw at four different stores yesterday were marked as “skinny” — I shudder to think how people can wear those… After a couple of hours, I finally found a pair at C&A that I was quite ok with. But I am terribly disappointed at jeans companies (Levis, Wrangler, Mustang) about how they treat normal middle-aged men — there no longer make suitable jeans for us, it seems like 90% of jeans are made for skinny teenagers. And it is actually us who have money to spend on those clothes. I guess creating a new brand image is more important than keeping loyal customers happy and returning.
2. I am a huge hypocrite. I ranted so many times against inconsiderate bicyclists for all the stupid and dangerous things they do around cars and pedestrians and other bicyclists. And yet, now that I ride my bike daily, I do the same exact things that made my blood boil when I saw bicyclists doing while I was driving or was on a stroll. I ride my bike across pedestrian crossings even though I know very well that I am supposed to walk my bike there. I ride on sidewalks, weaving among pedestrians. I ride against the traffic (if it means a quick shortcut). BUT — I am making a great time and that is what matters, right? I am surprised how easy it is for me to accept this hypocrisy, I just turn it into a joke and I guess that makes it fine. It isn’t, I need to take a deeper look at myself and try to change my behavior because it bothers me and makes me uncomfortable with myself.