When I was still living under the rule of my mother (and let's be honest, I kind of still am), she would always look at me standing or walking and command in her very German way, "Posture!" I try to stand up straight, to do my very best "Top Model" walk in high heels, but sometimes it's just too much of a chore. I used to worry about this: was my slouching unattractive in some way? Fortunately, not long later, I read the Betsy-Tacy books and learned about a thing called the Debutante Slouch.
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| This is from a 1920's fashion magazine, or so says Google Image Search. |
The Debutante Slouch is the languid pose of one who is just too exhausted from being beautiful and sophisticated all the time. It's usually accompanied by blasé expressions, sighs, anemia, or complaints about prohibition and/or women's suffrage.
I went to a work party this afternoon, and while standing in a group, I thought*, oh no! I should stand up straight, but sometimes "straight" means rigid and awkward and uncomfortable, and let's face it, it's a social gathering so I'm already contributing enough rigid, awkward, and uncomfortable to the situation, so I debutante-slouched. Hand on the hip, pigeon toes, and all. I wish I had a picture of myself in this position, but I didn't think of it until just now, the time when I'm already in my pajamas and therefore not feeling very sophisticated at all.
Perhaps when Laura Taylor (the Tacy to my Betsy) visits me in the spring, we shall have a Debutante Slouch photo shoot, and then eat onion sandwiches and sing Annie Laurie.
*Because I had plenty of time to think as I wasn't really very active in the conversation. I'm not great at jumping into conversations in any case, but they were all talking about movies I hadn't seen.
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