That's right - Sloth - one of the Seven Deadly Sins.  "But what can you possibly mean?" you say.

Well, I'll tell you.  Webster's gives the following definition for sloth - aversion to exertion or work: laziness.

LAZINESS!  And I'm talking about laziness when it comes to appearance - when it comes to attire.  Over the last couple of decades, something very disturbing (at least to me) has happened in this country.  Slowly but surely, COMFORT has become king.  No longer is it paramount (or at least considered good form) to be "well turned out."  No, it's all about, "I want to be comfortable."

Well I say "to heck with comfort."  I'm tired of seeing people dressed like bums in public places.  It's fine to dress however you want when you're in the privacy of your own home and garden; but please spare the rest of us the sight of your baggy sweatpants, dirty jeans, stupid tee shirts, skanky cut-offs - well, you get the picture.

And before you get all high and mighty on me (it's a free country and all that nonsense) I'm NOT the only one who feels this way.

The Pulitzer prize winning fashion writer from the Washington Post, Robin Givhan, had a fantastic piece in yesterday's Sunday paper: "A Rough Reality Beneath a Slick Surface."  Now Ms. Givhan was writing about the AMC series "Mad Men."   And while she was writing about the ugly realities of the time: sexism, anti-Semitism, racism; she also wrote of the show's homage to early '60s style.  And she added that renowned designer Michael Kors loves it so much (and so delights in the style) that he hosted an advance screening for the Season 2 debut.

But these particular words of Ms. Givhan's struck me: "... everyone looks spectacular.  Those glossy good looks gin up nostalgia for a period when even the average person was a thousand times as glamorous as his or her counterpart today."

Let me repeat that: "the average person was a thousand times as glamorous as his or her counterpart today."

What a shameful, and honest, statement.  Whatever happened to pride in one's appearance?  No doubt some people feel like they're not being treated as well as they should be.  I say, "look in the mirror."  And don't tell me that's "superficial."  There's a saying that's been around forever, because it's true: You only get one chance to make a good first impression."

Read the entire Washington Post article here.

Do you feel the same way?  Or do you feel like it's a relief not to have to conform to strict codes of style and appearance?  I'd love to hear your thoughts.