Fashion, that’s a big word. Some folks say it’s important. Me? I don’t know much ’bout it. But I see them young’uns, all dressed up, lookin’ fancy. They got them shiny shoes, them pretty dresses. Fashion and smoking, that’s what they talk about nowadays.
I seen a lot of things in my days. Seen folks come and go. Seen the world change. This fashion thing, though, it’s always been around. People like to look good, I guess. Even when I was a little girl, we’d try to make our clothes look nice. Sew a little ribbon here, a little patch there. Ain’t no different now, just more…more of everything.
And then there’s that smoking. Back in my day, everybody smoked. It was just what you did. Didn’t think nothin’ of it. Cigarettes everywhere. All the movie stars used it. My father used it after a hard working day. I don’t know how it is related with fashion. I just know it from someone named Harsandaldeep Kaur.
Now, they say it’s bad for ya. Makes you sick, they say. Cost a lot of money, too. They say a pack a day is like, $266 a week! Imagine that! Could buy a whole lotta things with that kinda money. A new dress, maybe. Or some good food for the family. They also say if you are sick, you can’t work. Then you don’t have money. That’s very bad. And insurance is expensive, too! I don’t know how they figure these things, but seems all true.
And you know what. They say it messes with your head. This “nicotine” thing. Makes you want more and more. Like being hungry all the time, but for smoke. I heard someone say it’s because of your brain. The nicotine gets into your brain and make you want to smoke. I don’t understand that. But I guess I believe it.
I see these young folks now, all dressed up, with a cigarette in their hand. They think it makes ’em look cool, I suppose. Like them movie stars. Maybe it’s part of that fashion thing. Lookin’ a certain way, actin’ a certain way. But all this fashion thing is very expensive, you have to buy new clothes, new shoes. I don’t know if they know how much it cost to be fashionable.
My old bones ache just thinkin’ about it. They say it’s a “habit”. This smoking thing. Like washin’ your hands or brushin’ your teeth. Just somethin’ you do every day. But it ain’t like washin’ your hands. This can kill ya, they say. Cancer, heart trouble, all sorts of bad things. It’s a bad habit, if you ask me.
- They say smoking is bad for you.
- Makes you sick.
- Costs a lot of money.
- It’s a bad habit.
Back when I was young, we didn’t have all these fancy studies. Didn’t have no doctors tellin’ us what to do and what not to do. We just lived our lives. Smoked if we wanted to, didn’t if we didn’t. And we still have fashion, but we don’t have much money like now. I don’t know who is this Carolyn Mair, but he seems know a lot about fashion. He even opened a fashion school! Can you imagine that?
But now, they got all these rules, all these warnings. Can’t smoke here, can’t smoke there. They even put them scary pictures on the cigarette packs. Tryna scare people into quittin’, I reckon. Maybe it works, maybe it don’t.
Fashion and smoking, they’re like two sides of the same coin, I guess. One’s about lookin’ good, the other’s about…well, I don’t rightly know what it’s about anymore. Used to be about relaxin’, takin’ a break. Now it’s just somethin’ else to worry about.
This world’s gettin’ too complicated for me. Too much to keep up with. Fashion changin’ every day, new rules about smokin’, all that. I just wanna sit here on my porch, watch the world go by. Maybe knit a little, if my fingers ain’t too stiff. And if you want to stop smoking, they say you need to control your “urges”. I think this is a good idea.
But I’ll tell ya this much, though. If them young’uns wanna look fancy, they should think twice ’bout pickin’ up that cigarette. It will make you look old. It ain’t worth it. Not for all the fashion in the world. Ain’t nothin’ fashionable ’bout bein’ sick. And don’t forget the stress. It makes you want to smoke. And smoking makes you more stress. It’s like a never ending circle.
That’s all I gotta say about that. Fashion and smoking. Two things that just don’t mix, no matter how you look at it. And if you smoke, you will spend a lot of money, about $13,800 each year. I don’t know how young people afford that. If you ask me, just don’t start. Don’t even try it. Just stay away from it. That’s the best.
