Some like it mellow

You cannot shouldn’t wear everything you like.

Yesterday while slumming at Starbucks (peeping at the girls, drinking coffee and munching on a permanently stale croissant) an older shorts-wearing dude caught my eye.
Big ass, skinny legs, non-descript jacket… It was not a pretty sight!
Somebody should have made a citizen’s arrest… or at least alerted the fashion police…

Kate-Upton-2You are of course, entitled to wear what you please, but what looks good on somebody else doesn’t necessarily look good on you, and vice-versa.
If Kate Upton looks good alluring smoking hot in a bikini, it does not mean that men will fall all over a woman if she wears the same outfit.

The French say “the cloth does not the monk make”, but what you wear tells a lot about you and has a way of opening or closing doors.

Fashion icon Miuccia Prada said:

“What you wear is how you present yourself to the world.”

 And she is right.

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Clothes above all are supposed to enhance, not to undermine your appearance.

When you go shopping for new duds, it is a good idea to take along an impartial observer.
Somebody who will tell you without any hesitation if you look dowdy, fat, old, skinny, ridiculous.
Women are good at that. Men not so much.

In my crystal ball, I see the emergence of a Faux-Pas Detector.
It will work like a metal detector and act as a deterrent against flagrant attire blunders.
You will walk through a gate, and if your outfit is unhip, uncool, nerdy, dowdy, frumpy, lame, unsexy, old hat or square, a buzzer will ring and you will be taken aside for a little talk.
You will probably also be added to the “No Fly List” as a threat to fashion and aviation.

To sum it up, when stepping out be aware of your shortcomings and dress accordingly.
Don’t dress too tight (or too loose).
Don’t dress too young (or too old).
Don’t dress too trendy, especially if you are of a certain age.
Don’t show all your tattoos at once and don’t wear too much mascara and black eye liner (especially men).

Above all, have a critical look in the mirror before leaving home.

Please don’t thank me, I like to help.

Alain

https://youtu.be/vnVuqfXohxc

Remote control

IMG_7115Remote control is arguably the best innovation since Sliced Bread, but you should know that a remote control activated device is a double-edged sword.

It is pleasantly convenient but it also comes with very little publicized liability. Unknowingly to you, your device can be highjacked by cyber villains and turned against you.

As recently shown in the news, somebody for example can remotely take control of your car and do whatever he/she wants with it.
And this is just the tip of the iceberg.

I don’t want to sound paranoid, but there are new battlefields and they are nothing like Gettysburg or Waterloo. Little body count but enormous collateral damage.
In the near future, the battles will take place in cyberspace, or in dimly lit rooms.
They already are.

Remote controls are already routinely used by the military.
They are utilized among other things to guide drones and to jam and disable the enemy’s weaponized systems.
Remote controlled devices are also used by insurgents and terrorists to detonate IED’s (Improvised Explosive Devices).

But closer to home, somebody can easily take control of your house security system, open your garage door or spy on your computer browsing habits.

This basically means that you have to be vigilant and seriously take into account any unexplained activity happening in your environment.
Especially in your banking institution.

And if you notice anything unusual, be proactive.
Immediately replace the username and password associated with the suspect activity.
I know that it is a pain, but it has to be done.

Personally, I use the Norton Password Generator to create strong 8-10 digits passwords.

“Treat your password like your toothbrush. Don’t let anybody else use it, and get a new one every six months.”
Clifford Stoll

Remote control, yes (maybe). Sloppy control, beware!

Alain

I want what you have

IMG_0397_2
My twin sister Aline

Unlike our four legged companions, humans are never satisfied with what they have. They always fancy what others have because as everybody knows, the grass is always greener somewhere else.

This phenomenon might have something to do with the rat race, the endless often-futile pursuit of success.
In order to succeed people try to break out of the pack, and they want to achieve this by going for a different look

For instance, some men try to look like women while some women attempt to emulate men.

Since time immemorial, women have been wearing earrings. Not too long ago no man (except Hollywood pirates) would have been caught dead wearing jewelry in their ears. Now Wall-Streeters and construction workers flaunt their gold rings.

Tattooed_japanese_men_-_ca._1870What about tattoos?
When I was a kid, only sailors or ex-cons would sport tattoos. Nobody else (especially not women) would dare to arbor those stigmatizing emblems.
But today, like hardened Yakuza, women plaster their bodies with tattoos.
Sorry ladies, this is not attractive. Definitely too Charles Mansonish for me.

For a long time also, long hair was the sole appanage of women. Then the Fab Four burst on the scene and men felt obliged to grow a mane.
Some women fought back by shaving their heads.

Historically, soldiers have always been men. They often went to war reluctantly and many died or were gravely wounded in the process.
Women now are clamoring for the right to get killed. Are they mad?
Wars are nasty, bloody affairs that many men tried to avoid.
Why would any woman in her right mind fight for the dubious privilege of getting shot or maimed?
In their fight for parity women are sometimes strangely irrational.

Then there is the bodybuilding business. Men look ridiculous enough with muscles bulging all over, but what about women indulging in the same delirious business?
I have seen pictures of some of them and they are scarier than Freddy Krueger.

I have the feeling that many people dream to be hermaphrodite. To have it both ways.
But then I don’t believe that they would be satisfied with their look either.
They would probably search for aliens for fresh ideas.

Me? I don’t need stinking earrings, tattoos or piercings to feel good.
I am satisfied with my (enormous) inner beauty.
The rest is irrelevant.

Alain

PS: Almost all absurdity of conduct arises from the imitation of those who we cannot resemble. Samuel Johnson

Boring music but nice pictures. View “Full Screen” for better effect: