TODAY I'M AN SPACE COWBOY
Wouldn’t it be great if you could reinvent yourself on a constant basis? There is something enviable and liberating about watching performers like Bowie, Madonna, and of course Lady Gaga change their personas every two seconds - [okay, Bowie has taken a breather from all this reinvention stuff and Madonna is pretty much tapped out, but she gave it a good run]. Not that at this point in my life I need to start sticking prosthetic nipples on my shoulders or horns on my head as Gaga does.
But think about it, how great would it be to reinvent yourself every so often - a little internal and external redesign to spruce up the place and keep things lively. You certainly could stave off boredom by parading in a host of new characters to introduce to all your loved ones. 'Yes, family and friends, this month I’m going to be a cowboy and love all things horsey. Why? Because I can…oh, and I’m bored of being the girl that reads books and cooks Thai food. So there.' Then again, my partner would probably have me sectioned if I came home wearing spurs and chaps, and wonder who was sauntering around the house singing Western theme tunes. Then again, he may actually dig the whole chaps thing, I’ll have to check with him on that one.
The possibilities of reinvention are endless really; one month you could be a hippie chick and get really into growing your own organic vegetables, hydroponically of course, and then WHOOSH, by the next month, you could decide that you’re going to start hanging out at tide pools cause saving the oceanic ecosystem is imperative man! So you may begin to feel a bit like Sybil, and people would probably start to tire of your theatrics, but think of all things you’d learn and things you’d be exposed to, even simply on a superficial level. Go on admit it, you know half of you went to summer camp or somewhere no one knew you and started styling your hair differently and talking with a mild Bostonian accent just to see if you could get away with it.
In high school I used to dress differently almost every day. At the time, I was probably just trying to figure out my look, but I remember also thinking that being restricted to one style of dress was just boring really. Some days it would be a big hippie floral skirt and sandals, other days a more conservative preppy outfit, then out of nowhere, an Anthrax t-shirt and ripped jeans. I’m sure my mother started to wonder about my mental state. Then again, she had other teenagers to contend with, so perhaps she was used to the vacillations of the adolescent mind and figured as long as I was breathing, all was well. Hey Mom, it could’ve been a lot worse, I could’ve grafted horns to my head and left the house in my underwear!
Then again, perhaps all this reinvention stuff is just exhausting, and by the time you figure out who you are, you're so happy to have gotten to that point, changing seems like far too much work. Although, saying that, Gaga may have something with the nipples on the shoulder thing, it’s better than having them dangle round one’s knees. :-)