I am a cliché

[ablutiions]

Standing on the service station forecourt doing a few yogic stretches on our drive to holiday, I realised that I'm a cliché:

Middle aged Londoner, heading for a West Country holiday in my small eco friendly(ish) car, wearing a Boden cardi, and 'trendy' mum trainers with a flowery real cotton face mask dangled from my wrist. having eaten sourdough toast for breakfast. Oh, and carrying a chilly water bottle, natch.

And usually I'd be in France, but you know, Covid and all that.

Anyone else a walking cliché?

I'm a writer and the ultimate cliche - can't think how to finish this thing I'm doing and I'm on MN.

Writer cliches:

All other people ever ask is how much £ you make (rude) and where you get your ideas from (who knows).

Insanely untidy hair. No way could I have been an accountant. My appalling multi-parting chose my career.

I have been giving up fags for 30 years.

The cat is fat and spoilt.

I am exhausted and cannot read your book.

We are as tolerant as we are touchy. I dumped a lifelong friend cos she published a convo we had as friends when I was in the bath and she was on the loo. Ow, how vulnerable can you get - the bath FGS - I felt violated. Still do.

People's eyes light up when you tell them what job you deliver. That's scary. Writers care about what words they deliver, that's all. I tell everyone I'm an editor (also true but less enticing).

Pyjamas are a historic & glorious literary cliche no decent hack abandons. But - big but - once out blinking into the daylight, we're all remarkably well dressed and clean, just in case someone says something wince-making about scruffy artists.

Writers don't tend to have showy dinner party literary discussions. They gravitate towards each other for the washing up, murmuring over the sink about people and their books, which are sort of interchangeable if you've been there for them from the off.

No writer drinks much, cos you've got to work your arse off in the small hours, and partying gets in the way.

Byron and co were cliches that didn't last long.

I just paid £3 for £180 dress in sale, I'm dirt poor but I'm bloody stylish. I grow veg and dont eat meat. I make Christmas gifts for friends and family. Drink beer and love dark chocolate, 60s music and dancing anywhere. Sad old hippy and like I said, i dont care. Sounds more like a dating ad dont it 🤣

I’ve not read any more of the thread, I got held up with your mention of glorious slippers. I’m a huge slipper fan and feel I may need your inside slipper knowledge.
Spill the beans please.

@MoreSoupVicar

I'll join you in the wankery then Fresh croissants for breakfast with strawberry conserve, note - not jam, and real coffee, sitting on the terrace wearing proper sheepskin slippers (sourced from a small family business, I love that part 🤣) that are as far removed from uggs as you can get Us wankers stand proud, shoulder to shoulder

I’ve not read any more of the thread, I got held up with your mention of glorious slippers. I’m a huge slipper fan and feel I may need your inside slipper knowledge. Spill the beans please.

I’m in my holiday wearing Breton too, skinny jeans (with skinny legs), and superga trainers. I feel I look quite the kate Middleton but probably don’t.

I had rye bread for breakfast. Is that ok? Finished the sourdough yesterday.
I’m not an avocado fan so had marmite on one bit and Crunchy mani life peanut butter on the other
That’s let me down hasn’t it…

Was at an outdoor event today when a group of drunken men walked by and bellowed (to the tune of Seven Nation Army),

' Oh look it's a Karen...oh look it's a Karen!' (and on and on)

Does this mean I'm middle-class? Feels like an upgrade tbh!

@catinboots21

These threads is so cringe. No wonder the whole world thinks MN Is full of twats.

Also me 😬😬😬

Ugh... this kind of stealth bragging is nauseating.

Calling yourself a wanker for eating smashed avocado is kind of funny.

Boasting about where you holiday, your car and expensive sportswear is excruciating.

I’m Virgo and my husband is Leo. Neither of us speak Breton.

34 year old social worker.. style of professional dress consists of leopard print, colourful, camo, florals (usually spring and summer only) all teamed with converse or vans. Drive a Ford Focus that has had one too many bumps in the very small office car park (couldn’t care less). The footwell of my car resembles a bin. Wild hair only washed when absolutely necessary. Opinionated. Committed to social justice. Can’t stop talking. They say you swear because you are passionate. To complete cliche would be.. always late.. but in all seriousness I am a law abiding citizen so I actively avoid that 🤣.

Yup, charity worker here - husband big in his corporate job , painfully stereotypical.

Urrrgghhhhh this thread is painful. Uppity women stealth boasting is a vomit inducing cliche in itself.

I thought it was going to be funny, things like being goddess in the kitchen, rampant in the bedroom, which is definitely the only cliche I am
I’ll wait for the cliche passive aggressive responses….

This is why I’m not holidaying in the West Country ..
Why would i want to see you lot on my holidays ?

LOL, different cliche, but I'm an elderly woman on a walker, living with a cat, and feeding the neighborhood strays. I've named them all. EVERYTHING should have a name!

@allycat4

These threads are excruciating.

False self-deprecation.

🤮🙄

So very saddened reading those who feeling they have become a caricature of someone. Perhaps too much money? Not sure why? Too much free time?

So very saddened reading those who feeling they have become a caricature of someone. Perhaps too much money? Not sure why? Too much free time?

I think part of it is reversion towards the mean, so whatever our background, although in adolescence and our early twenties we may strike out more originally, as life gets busy we often revert to closer to our family influences and immediate peers.

Some of the things here getting repeat mentions are also comfortable and reasonably flattering to the short and dumpy amongst us who can’t be arsed or lack the time to source cooler brands.
I’m a prime example; I have a preference for natural fibres, I’m 5ft tall with big tits and I’ve been on the lardy side (overweight but not obese) for a few years now. The dreaded Boden do loads of their range in petite and are strong on cotton, wool and linen.
Seasalt do really easy to wear cheerful clothes in natural fibres too. They aren’t cheap but they aren’t Joseph prices either.

Breton tops are similarly popular because they look nice on most people but popularity makes them ubiquitous and then naff…

For a long time I was time poor, so unintentionally moved towards a narrow “uniform” of fairly classic but boring staples that I didn’t have to give much thought to putting on. Mad dangly earrings gave way to studs that my disabled daughter wouldn’t accidentally rip out of my ears; jeans or leggings that I could get on the floor with. When my ageing and arthritic mum gave me her engagement ring, I wore (and wear) it every day. I also have my own engagement ring and a Cartier watch that was a gift, it’s lovely and why on earth would I leave it in its box in my knicker draw?

Many popular middle class cliches are actually good products. I do cook and make my own bread, so I got a Kitchen Aid aged forty and use it many times a week. AGAs make wonderful food, I don’t have one and won’t be getting one but I love them. I don’t love them because they are expensive, I love them because the crumbles and roasts cooked in them at my boarding school and later at friends’ houses were peerless, and they are such a warm heart if the house.
It’s still occasionally startling to think that spiked peroxide hair, fishnet and black lipstick wearing me has morphed into middle-class-cliché me, and to feel a pang of loss and surprise. We don’t see ourselves as others do most of the time.

I remember in Paris is burning where they discuss shade and there is a lot of that posturing on here. We are all consumer prossies by the sounds of things. It’s all a bit trite and leaves a turdy after taste . All everyone’s doing over time is building a data profile online anyway. Rather like the kids that stole trainers in the riots and lost their voice. We all get bought off it’s no different than a chance to really say something much prefer it when we throw something into the fire.

@ablutiions

My god I'm such a wanker

You do sound insufferable I’ve got to say! 😅 (The yoga stretches on the forecourt are your biggest crime.)

This thread is a good example of why so many people find the series ‘Motherland’ difficult to watch (or dislike it). A sitcom based on cliche.
I guess many people uncomfortably identify with Amanda’s character.

But surely it doesn’t really matter?
Your soul is your soul. Whether you enjoy sourdough or white sliced bread is the least important thing about you.
All this signalling about superficialities just reeks of insecurities.
It’s ok to be you.

@Supersimkin2 that's fascinating. I don't know too many writers (or not very well) ,

Interesting re the hair (!) and the dinner party chat.

@LemonRoses 😂

I find these so fascinating because I’m a foreigner and we don’t really have this in my country. My country is usually split between the villagers (many not highly educated) and the city ones with university education and more European tastes in music and food etc. Obviously, city dwellers looked down on the country folk and country folks think city people are “stuck up country people that just about managed a law degree”.
But in England I found myself being in the “on their way down” upper class as a very sad DMIL informed me. We holiday in the DH family castle in Oban and Mediterranean villa bought in the 70’s when they sold a house in Chelsea that auntie Arabella used in the 60’s to do the society parties. I wore DH’s family jewels (including a 4th generation tiara) to my wedding and I have a house full of inherited antiques.
There’s a lot of pomp and ceremony but in the end DH had to use his very expensive education to build a career because money has been spend like water by previous generations. It’s fun tho to see their behaviour.