I experienced the totally puzzling red dress phenomenon first hand.
I used to work as an architect in the greater Boston area, and I had one red dress. It gave total body coverage, no cleavage or slit up the side, screaming: Look At Me! Look At Me! But I noticed that when I wore the red dress, some of the men I passed on my way into the building or on my way across the park to get to my car, felt compelled to tell me how great I looked. I got wolf whistles from passing cars. One guy even said quietly, as he passed me, "Mmm mmm, sure do look good in that dress." I felt like a cupcake with sprinkles. If I was wearing any other color: nothing.
I frequently had lunch at the cafeteria in a bank nearby. One winter day I set my tray down at an empty table, took off my coat, and sat down. I was soon joined by a man who, after greeting me said, "I want you." You guessed it, I had the red dress on. He gave me his card, a stock broker, and with puppy dog eyes asked me to call him.
I told my husband about the strange powers this dress seemed to have. He was not happy to hear about it. But he did agree that I looked really great in that dress.
I still have it and I may pass it down to my daughter so that it can journey through the generations, and maybe someday science will be able to shed light on the origin of its mysterious powers.
I've wondered if it is a regional thing or is it hard wired into the brains of men everywhere?
If anyone can shed light on this, I'd be really interested.
I don't think it's a regional thing.
ReplyDeleteMen here in Hell would react to a lady in red.
They just wouldn't do it with any type of class what so ever.
They'd just stare, wolf whistle, yell out of their truck window....that kinda stuff. ;-)
Amazingly, one of the whistles came from a guy in a suit, driving a Jaguar.
ReplyDeleteWell, actually, I can't swear I was wearing the red dress that day.
I feel, in the spirit of honesty, that I must confess that today I couldn't squeeze into that dress if my life depended on it!
Just reading this post made me want a red dress. The power is tremendous. Must shop.
ReplyDeleteIf I may offer a male perspective:
ReplyDeleteFirst, skirts and dresses trump all other outfits. Well, those that can be worn in public.
There's a reason why fire trucks are red. Red says "I want attention. Look at me!"
And, so long as the lady in red does not resemble a fire truck, we are very happy to oblige.
While a medium red commands "Attention!", bright red hollars "Achtung!"
Perhaps your husband would prefer that you wore a similar dress when you go out with him.
And perhaps, given the attention that dress commands, you might want to reconsider giving it to your daughter ...
Oh, and the type of guy that drives a Jag is the type of guy who would wolf whistle.