One day Brenda and I ran into Ike at the student union. I introduced them and later she commented on his clothes and told me “I don’t know what you see in him, he’s slovenly and always looks grouchy.” Later Ike told me, “She’ll dump you.”
“Why do you say that? I asked.
“Because she’s not a serious person and you are. She’s trying to make you into something you’re not. When you’re not what she expects, she’ll dump you.”
Well, I had to admit that Brenda didn’t like my clothes. “Too preppy,” she said. At the time that she was commenting on my perfectly acceptable ensemble, she was wearing had on a short skirt over tights with one white leg and the other violet with images of white cats. Her lipstick was purple; she had three rings in each ear, and her blonde hair had just been colored – no dark roots.
For my clothes, I usually wore polo shirts, chino slacks and loafers. It wasn’t long though until I had running shoes, faded jeans and tee shirts with messages.
Next it was my hair: “John, you have lovely brown hair. It would look so much better long over your ears and ruffled instead of short with a part that looks like you were hit with a hatchet.”