Bow-legged Shuffle And A Missed Ride

Kids of every generation wear clothes that befuddle us old folks. Weirdly dyed hair, piercing of body parts not meant to be pierced occur, tattoos that are a bit much, and other oddities. For the most part I just shake my head in amusement quite frankly.

(Although apparently I'm not always amused. I remember my son coming home one night about 8 years ago when he was nineteen with blue hair. I do recall not saying anything though. As he walked into the living room and glanced over at me I apparently didn't hide my dismay very well. He also misinterpreted my look of dismay as one of anger because his first words were, "Dad, don't worry, it washes right out and I'm going to wash it out right now." I never uttered a word in response. I can say I think back on that night with amusement now though.)

There is one fad, or style, if you will, that seems to defy running its course though. (The use of the term style is used loosely here. The term running plays a role here though.) That's the wearing of pants hanging down somewhere between the bottom half of one's ass and one's knees. 

It seems like the first time I saw young guys running around with their pants hanging off their asses was about 10 years ago. I remember thinking how ridiculous this latest "fad" or "style" was and that it couldn't last long. Apparently it has endured though because young guys still run around wanting to show us their boxers, or lack thereof of undergarments.

Watching them try to walk a straight line amuses me. They all invariably have to wear a belt cinched tightly to keep the pants somewhat held above their knees and can't actually walk placing their feet directly in front of them. Their feet have to shuffle forward, placed about a foot to the outside of their shoulders, to keep their pants from falling down around their ankles. Trying to run had to be hilarious, but until Sunday I hadn't seen that feat attempted.

I was standing outside Sunday at work taking a smoke break. The mall exit I do this by also serves as the bus stop exit. As I was standing out there the city bus was there and it was the last bus of the day coming/leaving the mall. As the bus started to pull away a young guy burst out of the mall and started running after the bus. At first I thought there was something wrong with the kid and he had some kind of disability by the way he was running. His legs were splayed way out to the right and left of him as he "shuffled" after the bus. His pants were losing altitude as the bus faded from my view, as well as his view. He finally gave up the chase, with his pants now located below his knees. 

I wasn't laughing just yet though. Plenty of other people were though. He then started to shuffle back to the mall trying to pull his pants back up. This effort caused me to laugh. He kept yanking at them and they wouldn't come up over his knee area. Apparently the belt was cinched so tight he had to stop and release the belt buckle, then the pants nose dived around his ankles, with him then holding the belt in his hand as it slipped out of the belt loops in his pants completely. I had tears running down my face as he stood there with his pants down around his ankles and a belt dangling in one hand.

As he commenced his walk of shame shuffle back to the mall entrance I noticed he was a tad upset. Missing the last bus I surmised could do that I thought. Compounding that with the fact that I was still laughing encouraged him to threaten me with an "ass kicking" as well as he shuffled up to the mall entrance. Stupid kid. All this did was to get me laughing much harder at him. When I informed him threats from a kid who couldn't keep his pants up weren't to be taken seriously he muttered a few curse words at me and went back into the mall.

Gee, I sure hope he found a ride home.