Already Been Worn Out Jeans For Sale

My wife used to have a part-time job at Bloomingdale's Department Store. One time when I went to pick her up my confusion about the world I live in went up another notch or two.

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When I was a small person, my mother would periodically send me down to Weinstein's Department Store to buy a replacement pair of Blue Jeans. This was not a big department store but a small family owned neighborhood establishment. She would give me a $5 bill to make my purchase. I would pay Mr. Weinstein $3.47. After I had completed my purchase, I would worry my little self all the way home. My concern was, if I kept throwing money around like this, would my parents be able to make ends meet.

When I returned home with my new pair of Levis my mother was always expectant (expecting the change).

Why was I throwing my mother’s money around like that? It was because my present pair of jeans was worn out, had holes in them and they just looked terrible.

At Bloomingdale’s that day I saw numerous pairs of jeans on display that looked like those I had replaced when I was a kid. They were worn out looking, faded, frayed and had lots of holes in them. It looked like they had been recycled from Mr. Weinstein's trash dumpster behind his store.

They had been, of course, made to look old but they were new. The most shocking part is they did not cost $3.47. These jeans cost $260. Why do they cost $260? Is this high price because the manufacturer had to pay some Chinaman to wear them for two years to make them ready for sale to trendy Americans?

Something is wrong here. Wine and Tabasco Sauce have to be aged before those products are ready for sale. This may be the same principle. These jeans are “aged”.

The line above could very well be the end of this foolishness but the silliness is going to go on a wee bit more.

Yesterday’s newspaper ads tell me that trendy (trendy = silly) Americans are handing over their money for the likes of:

• Bikini swim suit top for $265 and bottom for $135 (total $400). If the manufacturer would beat the suit with a hammer and rip some holes in them with a pitch fork, they could really charge a lot.
• A Rag & Bone (whatever that is) Sweater for $425. Mr. Weinstein sold the likes of them for $8.95 plus tax.
• A Yacht Club Chronograph for $23,100. It looks a lot like the $14 Timex on my arm at this moment.

All these products above are, of course, a much higher quality than those that were for sale at Weinstein’s and Woolworth’s 5 & 10 Cents Store… Or are they?

Would I kid u?