I am not sure exactly when it happened, but these days it feels like normal is the new weird!
I realized this yesterday as I found myself at an event talking to a gal with multiple body piercings, tattoos (including a large green worm on the side of her face!), blue and purple hair, and jewelry that indicated her sexual fetishes and preferences.
As I looked around, I realized I might have been the only woman there without a tattoo, or body piercings (besides pierced ears), or unnaturally colored hair, or jewelry or clothing that didn’t somehow make a statement. Yep, I was a normie!
Now I am not saying there is anything wrong with being an individual, or expressing oneself, but it struck me that in a world where everyone is desperately trying to be more edgy and individual than anyone else, and as a result are having to go to greater and greater extremes to do so, normal has become the new weird.
It made me wonder will a return to traditionalism be next? Will it somehow become hip to be square?
After all every reaction has an equal or opposite reaction, so they say. When nothing is shocking anymore, is the only logical way left to stand out to be not at all shocking? To be shockingly not shocking?
What do you think? Please share in the comments!
Hi! I realize this blog entry is from a few years ago, but I just felt the need to post my opinion on this subject. I’m a 52 year old woman from the San Joaquin Valley in California. This part of California is more conservative than other parts of California, but there are many people here in the valley who are into tattoos, body piercings, and wildly colored hair. I am not one of those people. Quite the opposite. I never judge these people for the choices they make, but whenever I see this, I can’t help but wonder why they would want to do this to themselves. I don’t find it attractive at all, and I have no desire to do these things, no matter how “hip and trendy” these people might think it is. I have my natural hair color, no tattoos, and the only things on me that are pierced are my earlobes. (It’s just one hole in each earlobe Back in 1988 when I was 20 years old, I had my ears pierced. This was before body piercings came along. But my hair is so heavy, that I can’t keep it back away from my ears, so I quit wearing earrings years ago.). Fortunately, nobody has ever tried to get me to get any tattoos, body piercings, or to color my hair any wild colors. They respect my choice not to do these things. In turn, I don’t judge them for their choices. But I do know that the day will come when these things will no longer be all the rage. Even if people did try to convince me to get some tattoos, body piercings, and wild hair color, the answer would be no. I just want to be myself. I don’t feel the need to do things like this just to fit in and be seen as “hip and trendy.” If some people see me as a square because of this, that’s their problem. I’m no more perfect than anyone else. I’m just expressing my individuality differently – by not latching onto trends.