Dear Crabby,
I’m sure you heard of an incident last month where two young girls weren’t allowed to wear leggings on a flight. Since I’m single and don’t have any daughters, I never paid much attention to the legging craze. Now I see them everywhere! Are they really appropriate to wear as pants, or am I being sexist?
Thanks!
Donald Dunagree
Dear Mr. Dungaree,
I do vaguely recall the story you’re talking about. And if I’m not mistaken, they were relatives of an airline employee and must adhere to a different dress code than the rest of us. Anyway, this isn’t the first time people have gotten their panties in a twist over this particular article of clothing. Why are people so fascinated with them? Do they possess magical powers? Honestly, they look like instruments of torture to me. I prefer my pants with a little more room, but my granddaughter swears they’re comfy. And like you, once I noticed her wearing them, I noticed them on nearly every woman I saw. In fact, some of them seem to be wearing a variation of the exact same outfit: black puffy jacket, black baseball cap, and of course, black leggings. Do they call each other, or is it one of those things that women just know about? My daughter also wear leggings by someone named LuLaRoe (her parents were probably hippies) and says they feel like she’s wearing nothing at all. It seems like for the prices these leggings fetch, I would want to know I am wearing something! But we had leggings in my day too, ya know. Yep. They were called long 
underwear. The best thing about them was I didn’t feel like I was wearing pantyhose (not that I have personal experience with that, mind you) and they sure kept my lower half toasty during some of the nastier Michigan winters. I may have even slept in them sometimes, but never in my wildest dreams did I think to wear them without pants… outside… where people could see me. Guess I’m just an old-fashioned guy at heart. As far as whether or not leggings are appropriate to wear as pants, well, that’s a tough one. I don’t presume to have any fashion sense. At least that’s what the women in my life tell me – that I have no fashion sense. And, it’s a slippery slope for men to weigh in on the topic. Either we’re going to be labeled sexist or we’re gonna be told we’re wrong. Either avenue will lead us to trouble and possibly a slap across the face for being cheeky. I guess as long as the woman looks nice, they’re OK. They’re not my cup of tea, but then again, I’m sure some people take issue with my cardigans. Something about them being too old man looking and smelling like mothballs. So I guess people should focus on themselves instead of being the fashion police. You may not want to wear this or that, but if someone else does, let them and move on.
Hope that helps. I’m off to Walmart to stock up on khakis. Ya know, like Jim Harbaugh wears. Except I’m sticking with the pleated, baggy fit (Jimbo switched over to the slim fit).
Thanks!
Dear Crabby
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