Oscar's Cultural Observations : Freitag Bag Havers
The idea was that this was my take on of those 'Frankie's Cultural Meditations' pieces, but I'm too nice and couldn't keep it as an unabashed roast at the end.
Despite her outward aura of confidence, she is a sad sight to behold. A dedicated follower of fashion, she has been duped into spending 100s of euros made at her part-time barista job on a bag made from a piece of trash, at least it will last for decades —although, If she really cared about the environment, she'd know there are billions of dirt-cheap second hand bags available littering the Earth. For now, her Freitag bag remains on exhibition slung around her shoulder, but this perennial purse will be undoubtedly relegated to the back of her closet once it goes out of style. It will languish there along with the trench coat from the winter of ‘21, the corduroy jacket of ‘22, and the Arcteryx jacket of '23, all of them hanging over the yellow Onitsuka Tigers that haven’t seen a single step since last year. All these trappings of yesteryear's trends peek through the door at her as she wears her brown leather jacket and ushanka, and weeps over her cheating boyfriend — who’s still clinging to the notion that a mullet, moustache and several stick ‘n’ poke tattoos can substitute a personality — a combo that’s got him some mileage, but is now running on fumes. Perhaps one day that colourful satchel will end up on a Depop listing, in the hopes that some of the funds spent on it can be recouped and put towards the next receptacle de rigeur. Style for her is a game of musical chairs, the late adopter is the loser, she must stay ever vigilant. Who knows what will come next, maybe a Leopard Skin Pill-Box Hat, as the great Bob Dylan once sang. That new Timothee Chalamet movie did just come out after all. She bears the torch handed to her by those infamous Tumblr users of 2013, the American Apparel sporting teens who all stood in a line against a wall for that one photo. She dreams of escaping this cycle of fashion Samsara one day, of being an 'it girl' the likes of Chloe Sevigny in her prime, of being someone with the ability to imbue items with ‘coolness’, rather than be captive to whatever trends trickle down to her, a mere slave to the fashion rat-race.
At some point in our lives we've probably all fallen victim to peer pressure, or wanting to be admired, and to an extent being influenced by others a bit is normal. But I'll tell you one thing that can help her: having the courage to exercise some of her free will—to be her own ‘it girl’ for once. Sure, you may end up looking fucking stupid, but at least you’ll be free.