YW Gothlings

[angelwiththesword]

i've been wearing black for many many years.
and it has never ceased to amaze me how many dumbasses out there constantly come up to me and ask the following question in a slackjawed yokel voice:

"dude. are you a goth?"

what exactly IS a "goth"?
i know the origins of gothic people, them basically being medieval crusaders.
later they just became people who tended to wear dark clothing and listen to classical music.

but in recent times, being goth means the following steriotypes that have been placed on people who:
-The use of extreme black clothing, light colored makeup, unusual hair styles, body piercing, bondage items, etc
-Wearing of symbols such as a Christian cross; an Egyptian ankh or "Eye of Ra," or "Eye of Horus;" a Wiccan pentacle, a Satanic inverted pentacle. etc.

etc etc etc.

why do i wear black? convenience. i know some people who will literally spend anywhere from fifteen to thirty minutes a day finding stuff to wear. they want to match, they want to look good, and all that jazz.

i have made the ultimate clothing selection. 4 black t-shirts, 1 black dress shirt, 2 pairs of black pants, and numerous undergarments of any color and socks and such. shoes are black, and my jackets are black.
i listen to rock music.
and i wear a chinese pseudobuddhist "sei but jeung" (translated literally: four not idols/animals) charm under my shirt.

i walk around, and often enough, if not by friends i just meet, or just some bystander i don't know, i get the question: "are you goth?"
what is a "goth?"

goth is undefinable, since it is so broad a term.
i am just sick and tired of dumbasses out there who are constantly catagorizing other people. that person's a geeno, that person's a punk, that person's a goth, that person's a nerd.

what are all your experiences?

[kimpossible]

are you shitting us? i hope so.

[angelwiththesword]

about what?

[BeTheReds]

Goth in DENIAL!

[Deadpool]

A funny thing happened to me at college. I made a friend recently who came from out of town. I noticed he wore black a lot. I really didnt think much about it. One time I was walking with him down a hall and this gothy/wiccan looking kinda girl, also in all black walks by and he makes a comment on how cute she is. So I say "Man, isnt she goth? Aren't they kinda weird?" (Where I live there are rarely any goths here. Hell I think she may have been the 2nd goth ive ever seen here in my life) We the guy gets all offended and hes all "Hey man I'm goth. Were just like you guys. In fact i know some cute goth chicks that I know you would love" HAhah, so i had to explain myself on how I never come into contact with goth people and how there are never any here so all my experiences with them have come from comedies poking fun at them. :( Talk about embarassing.
<img src='http://images.quizilla.com/T/Telal/1000605914_Cgothtalkazrael1.jpg[/img]

[kimpossible]

what the hell does wearing black have to do with anything? from what I've seen, goth as in the commericialized 1990s' version is a default cool Hot Topic uniform thing that white geeky suburbanite kids adopt when they feel identity challenged. as in 'ooh I scared older white Republicans (normals) as a caucasian spooky kid with dyed black hair and my black clothing because they thought I was supernatural like the Crow and vampiric and stuff' when in all reality these 'normals' would be more scared of 'normal' people with black skin than white kids in black clothing. or 'foreigners.'

i think i'm agreeing with you. unless this is actually a disguised attempt of yours to say 'people ask me if I'm goth, therefore I must be goth.' you don't come across as that sort of guy but you have LARP'd, which makes me wonder.

dude, I've been around SO MANY pseudogoths... so many wannabe hardasses that think wearing black equals 'i'm so cold and deathly' that seeing any mention of wearing black and Asian anything makes me suspicious. but for real, you're cool as is. you've always struck me as the real-deal modern day martial artist. i guess this is just weird and confusing to me...

[SunWuKong]

Originally posted by angelwiththesword@May 26 2003, 12:15 AM
and i wear a chinese pseudobuddhist "sei but jeung" (translated literally: four not idols/animals) charm under my shirt.
actually you're thinking about the wrong jeuhng.

it's actually http://www.chinalanguage.com/cgi-bin/char.cgi?56db.gifhttp://www.chinalanguage.com/cgi-bin/char.cgi?4E0d.gifhttp://www.chinalanguage.com/cgi-bin/char.cgi?50cf.gif

and the literal translation is "four not resemble". in reference to the fact that the creature doesn't look like anything anyone has ever seen.

[SunWuKong]

Originally posted by Deadpool@May 26 2003, 12:41 AM
"Hey man I'm goth. Were just like you guys.
hahahah

oh man if somebody said that to me, i'd bust out laughing. he's talking like there's "goth", and then there's "you guys". he's talking like goth is some sort of identity which... is no different from anybody else... so that it's not really an... identity...

hahahah

[MellowDrama]

What's scarier than Goths?


Asian Goths! :o

[YuheiCarreau]

Originally posted by angelwiththesword@May 25 2003, 10:15 PM
why do i wear black? convenience. i know some people who will literally spend anywhere from fifteen to thirty minutes a day finding stuff to wear. they want to match, they want to look good, and all that jazz.

i have made the ultimate clothing selection. 4 black t-shirts, 1 black dress shirt, 2 pairs of black pants, and numerous undergarments of any color and socks and such. shoes are black, and my jackets are black.
Let's be honest here: the reason you have an all-black wardrobe is not because it's convenient, it's because you're clueless about fashion :P .

Why don't you like being called Goth? You like the real pale girlies anyway, where better to find some than a Goth club?

And WTF is a geeno? Is that one of those you-only-hear-it-in-California things, like hella, or am I losing touch with the youth of today?

[Deadpool]

Originally posted by MellowDrama@May 25 2003, 09:25 PM
What's scarier than Goths?


Asian Goths! :o
I have never seen this before......it would blow my mind like the time I saw an Asian punk, with the dyed hair and 80s ounk get up, squating and panhandling on the street. I was walking with a friend and we did a double take. It didn't look right. It was weird. We felt sad for her and disgusted at the same time. I guess we had a bit of that model minority mentality back then.


Anyways. I like tottaly agree with angelwithsword and junk. Society is like soooo superficial and so totally judgemental. It only depresses me. I think im gonna hide in my dark basement and listen to NIN.

[kimpossible]

hey, at least you all have naturally black hair...

[himura-dono]

*has a fetish for cute goth girls* either pale skin or really dark skin (regardless of race). yummay. :)

[himura-dono]

Originally posted by YuheiCarreau@May 25 2003, 09:44 PM


And WTF is a geeno? Is that one of those you-only-hear-it-in-California things, like hella, or am I losing touch with the youth of today?
dude....he's a fookin canadian. he's up in your territory, not ours. :)

[Craig]

Originally posted by Hello_Hapa@May 25 2003, 11:17 PM
hey, at least you all have naturally black hair...
We do ? Not according to the warped American definitions of hair colours.

[Deadpool]

Geeno = Sterotypical Italian?

[AngryABCGirl]

What exactly is a goth?

[YuheiCarreau]

Originally posted by Deadpool@May 26 2003, 01:28 AM
Geeno = Sterotypical Italian?
You're thinking of Guido.

[Deadpool]

Originally posted by YuheiCarreau@May 25 2003, 11:39 PM
You're thinking of Guido.
No no. Ive heard the term Gino used a lot too. They use Gino here more than Guido.

[teaz0r]

this boy i know dated a goth. it was funny.

[SunWuKong]

moving to rant...

[shy]

Originally posted by AzNBuffGrL@May 25 2003, 11:35 PM
What exactly is a goth?
it's been awhile since i've been goth but...

it was more then just wearing black cloths... yes, i had an onhk hanging from both ears and wore this dragon around my neck carrying a crystal. i had red-black nail polish and matching lipstick.

i listened to alternative, new wave stuff... which some would say wasn't 'goth' enough because hardcore goths were into more heavier stuff. sometimes. i don't know.

i wasn't into wicca but i'd hang out at the comic shop at the graphic novel section... vampires man. vampires.

if i was a real, true goth, though, i would have also hung out at 'santuary', this club for goths. people there would wear capes and fake vampire fangs (not the plastic ones... but one's fitted for their teeth!) my friend went there once out of curiosity. he bumped into a chick by mistake. he tried to apologize to her but she hissed back at him.

looking back, i was more of a wannabe then anything else...

i'm so normal now, in comparison, that i'm boring. :P

[SunWuKong]

Originally posted by shy@May 26 2003, 11:20 AM
it's been awhile since i've been goth but...

it was more then just wearing black cloths... yes, i had an onhk hanging from both ears and wore this dragon around my neck carrying a crystal. i had red-black nail polish and matching lipstick.

i listened to alternative, new wave stuff... which some would say wasn't 'goth' enough because hardcore goths were into more heavier stuff. sometimes. i don't know.

i wasn't into wicca but i'd hang out at the comic shop at the graphic novel section... vampires man. vampires.

if i was a real, true goth, though, i would have also hung out at 'santuary', this club for goths. people there would wear capes and fake vampire fangs (not the plastic ones... but one's fitted for their teeth!) my friend went there once out of curiosity. he bumped into a chick by mistake. he tried to apologize to her but she hissed back at him.

looking back, i was more of a wannabe then anything else...

i'm so normal now, in comparison, that i'm boring. :P
see, it's stuff like that, that just makes me think that goth people are pretentious. even more so than "preppy" people.

"I'm a non-conformist. Just like all my friends."

bunch of kids with too much time on their hands and no direction.

[Tao]

Originally posted by shy@May 26 2003, 11:20 AM
my friend went there once out of curiosity. he bumped into a chick by mistake. he tried to apologize to her but she hissed back at him.

HAHAHA, this topic's funny


I agree with SWK, these people just want to stand out from the white-bread communities that they are in, so they have to resort to wearing black lipstick and capes and fangs in order to get the attention they so desperately crave.

[shy]

Originally posted by SunWuKung@May 26 2003, 07:28 AM
see, it's stuff like that, that just makes me think that goth people are pretentious. even more so than "preppy" people.

"I'm a non-conformist. Just like all my friends."

bunch of kids with too much time on their hands and no direction.
if you're talking about the 'hisser', i'd say she was more disturbed then pretentious. that or she was on something that night.

or both.

preppies, goth, mods, skinheads... dude.... they were all pretentious in their own way. but there's always a handfull from each group that were really down to earth and friendly to everyone.

[Green_Jade]

i wear lots of black, dyed my hair jet black... and i'm not goth...

although..at my school it was more accepted, i might have just gotten mistaken as a photo major while wearing all black.

[angelwiththesword]

Originally posted by YuheiCarreau@May 25 2003, 09:44 PM
Originally posted by angelwiththesword@May 25 2003, 10:15 PM
why do i wear black? convenience. i know some people who will literally spend anywhere from fifteen to thirty minutes a day finding stuff to wear. they want to match, they want to look good, and all that jazz.

i have made the ultimate clothing selection. 4 black t-shirts, 1 black dress shirt, 2 pairs of black pants, and numerous undergarments of any color and socks and such. shoes are black, and my jackets are black.
Let's be honest here: the reason you have an all-black wardrobe is not because it's convenient, it's because you're clueless about fashion :P .

Why don't you like being called Goth? You like the real pale girlies anyway, where better to find some than a Goth club?

And WTF is a geeno? Is that one of those you-only-hear-it-in-California things, like hella, or am I losing touch with the youth of today?
it's purely for convenience.
firstly, black will match almost any other color out there
secondly, when i wake up in the morning, i pick up any one t-shirt, drawers, socks, pants, and walk out my bedroom door.
it takes me 7 seconds flat to get dressed in the morning.
and seeing as i am not a morning person, this is a good thing, because you wouldnt' want me walking out the front door with some pink on blue on orange on some other splurge or random loud colors.

and are you saying that i AM, in fact, goth because you say the way i dress and my taste in women point in that general direction?
i don't see the logic in labelling me, and catagorizing me into some social class that i clearly am not in.

speaking of fashion, i don't care much about it.
and quite honestly, i am disgusted by the number of people i know who will spend half their pay cheques on a set of clothes.
it disgusts me that people will quite literally pay 300 dollars for some brand name jersy, or 200 bucks on a pair of shoes, or pay 100 dollars on a shirt or pants.
there are people in the world who would kill to be able to splurge like we do. wasting our money on pointless brand names.
i mean, seriously. why buy a pair of 150 dollar nike running shoes, when you can go to the local sears outlet store and get a pair of sneakers just as good for 15 bucks? because it says "nike" on it?

[mr. x]

hey angel, is there an official website of that strongbad guy?

[YuheiCarreau]

Originally posted by angelwiththesword@May 26 2003, 02:57 PM
it's purely for convenience.
firstly, black will match almost any other color out there
secondly, when i wake up in the morning, i pick up any one t-shirt, drawers, socks, pants, and walk out my bedroom door.
it takes me 7 seconds flat to get dressed in the morning.
and seeing as i am not a morning person, this is a good thing, because you wouldnt' want me walking out the front door with some pink on blue on orange on some other splurge or random loud colors.

and are you saying that i AM, in fact, goth because you say the way i dress and my taste in women point in that general direction?
i don't see the logic in labelling me, and catagorizing me into some social class that i clearly am not in.

speaking of fashion, i don't care much about it.
and quite honestly, i am disgusted by the number of people i know who will spend half their pay cheques on a set of clothes.
it disgusts me that people will quite literally pay 300 dollars for some brand name jersy, or 200 bucks on a pair of shoes, or pay 100 dollars on a shirt or pants.
there are people in the world who would kill to be able to splurge like we do. wasting our money on pointless brand names.
i mean, seriously. why buy a pair of 150 dollar nike running shoes, when you can go to the local sears outlet store and get a pair of sneakers just as good for 15 bucks? because it says "nike" on it?
I ain't saying you're a Goth, I'm just pointing out that there are some advantages to being perceived as one.

And just admit it dude, it's not that black is convenient, you just don't have a clue how to dress yourself. It's OK, I have no fashion sense either.

I feel the same way you do about people buying ridiculously priced clothes, but we all have our idiosyncracies. I go out and buy tons of books, even though I could just read 'em at Barnes & Noble or the library; I also spend a lot of money on art (rare book of prints from the 1920's... $180 :cry: ). And my roommate blows all his money on videogames.

[angelwiththesword]

Originally posted by mr. x@May 26 2003, 03:10 PM
hey angel, is there an official website of that strongbad guy?
I LIKA TO SAY: "HOLY CRAP"

http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail.html

[mr. x]

LOL, is strongbad like a mexican wrestler? its funny but i dont know WHY its funny....

[Deadpool]

Hes a Mexican goth. They do things differently down there you know.

[thaite]

Originally posted by angelwiththesword@May 26 2003, 01:57 PM
i mean, seriously. why buy a pair of 150 dollar nike running shoes, when you can go to the local sears outlet store and get a pair of sneakers just as good for 15 bucks? because it says "nike" on it?
No way, man. There's a world of different between a $15 pair of running shoes and a $150 pair.

Do some running and find out for yourself.

[angelwiththesword]

Originally posted by thaite@May 26 2003, 10:06 PM
No way, man. There's a world of different between a $15 pair of running shoes and a $150 pair.

Do some running and find out for yourself.
i've worn both.
at one point in time, i had a pair of Nike's on sale, and now i use the 15 dollar no name ones from the local sears outlet store.

personally, i can't tell the difference.
other then the fact that one is a helluva lot cheaper.

i used to be a sprinter on my middle school track team
i do running now to train for my military physical evaluation
i do my martial arts

truthfully, what you do when you buy a pair of brand name shoes is the following:
10 dollars for the shoe
140 dollars for the name

it's absolutely disgusting

[thaite]

I agree that all things being equal, the price difference would be appalling for shoes of equal quality.

But I do not believe that the shoes are of equal quality, and therefore justify a difference in price. I cannot justify $150 running shoes -- I can justify $50 - $80 running shoes, and I'll take those over the $15 pair.

[Emperor_Mike]

Actual manufacturing costs for many name brand items are substantially lower than the selling price. The markups are appalling and can be as high as 500-600%. When you buy really expensive things you're only paying for a fraction of of the total cost. The rest goes to marketing, production, salaries, etc, etc. Quality should be the issue when shopping and not the name. The obsession over having expensive "high quality" brands is what's causing so many people to spend themselves into a corner. After all, you're paying for a label and who in their right mind would do that? I know I wouldn't. You don't get rich by spending ridiculous amounts of money on things that don't appreciate over time. Save the money and invest over time!

Shoes might be a different story (as having good quality shoes are a must if we're on our feet a lot) but as far as clothing, bags, and the like are concerned, it'd be prudent to think things over before purchasing a costly item.

[Napoleon Chynamite]

A lotta Asians at my school dress in all black and have jet black hair. Nobody ever calls them goth.

[kimpossible]

Originally posted by angelwiththesword@May 27 2003, 06:48 AM
truthfully, what you do when you buy a pair of brand name shoes is the following:
10 dollars for the shoe
140 dollars for the name

it's absolutely disgusting
True. But the value is in the brand. It costs that much because people will buy it at that price. Plus, it doesn't preclude the existence of quality differences in the materials used between the cheaper product versus the expensive. There are products where this would be true (name brand/generic medications) but this doesn't make it a universal truth.

Even in brand name knock-offs, there are quality differences in the knock-off grades. The basis of a knock-off is swapping out the more expensive materials for cheaper materials and cutting corners in the manufacturing process - to some extent it could be craftsmanship. [This is of course ignoring distribution channels and efforts to maintain brand equity, etc.]

Why the hell am I explaining this? Like anyone cares. I'm going to stick with my original Spooky Kids Suck statement.

[teaz0r]

Originally posted by angelwiththesword@May 27 2003, 09:48 PM
truthfully, what you do when you buy a pair of brand name shoes is the following:
10 dollars for the shoe
140 dollars for the name

hahahhahahahahaha.

i /must/ take you shoe shopping.

[angelwiththesword]

no need.

i just got a new pair a couple weeks ago at the sears outlet store about 3 km away from me. they cost $19.99 CAD

[Emperor_Mike]

I'm all for smart spending. :P