Hand-Me-Downs: Or Is It Hand-Me-Ups

I never had an older sister (this is not a complaint; I am unpressed by the general nature of that relationship), but I did have an older cousin, M. I didn’t get a ton of clothes from her, but it was pretty damn exciting when I did. It’s all in how you think about it, right? I never thought of the wide skirt or assorted blouses as ‘worn’. To me they were vetted – they had been stamped with the seal of approval from my cool cousin, so I was thrilled.

This makes me believe more and more in marketing – If I thought I was poor, it would have been embarrassing, but I thought I was special, so it was terrific.

Today, I get hand-me-ups from my daughter. I just received a pair of black and white sandals that I never would have bought (or paid that price), but they are just different enough from my normal style that it’s a bit exciting. I hate to admit that a pair of shoes passes for exciting, but…there it is. Last month, again from my daughter, I received the best shirt with tiny blue apples; adorable. The funniest thing about this clothing gift is how delighted my daughter is when she sees me in her passed-along clothes. She absolutely lights up, almost as much as when she spends money at World Market or buys a new pair of shoes (shoes are on my list as a topic for another post).

You do realize that this post is way more about the psychology of sales and marketing than familial bonds. As a kid, my hand-me-downs were cool. As an adult, my hand-me-ups are cool. Really, maybe somebody just needs to take over my wardrobe because I seem to be very susceptible to the meaning I give this stuff.  

No need to buy another copy of Not The Trip We Planned this week. I suggest you donate the money to Public Media. We ought to sit shiva for an organization that brought quality programming to kids who wouldn't otherwise have had access.