Limited Vision

There's something wrong with my eyes. Well, actually, that is nothing new. I have very poor vision in one eye and 20/20 in the other. If I lose the sight in my good eye, I will be on the street corner with a tin cup selling pencils for a living. With my wiener dog guiding me around. But I am not talking about real vision. I am talking about perception.
I have never been in fashion. Even way back in 6th grade, I could not get with the fashion program, as so many of the girls were able to do. I remember a hot pink A-line knitted skirt (just below the knee) that I wore with a cream-colored blouse with roll-up sleeves. I thought it was the coolest thing around. My sister says she still has nightmares about that outfit being worn day in and day out.
I haven't changed much. As a young person, during the 60s and the 70s when bell-bottoms came into fashion, I hated them. Absolutely hated them. Would not wear them. By the time that bell bottoms were no longer in fashion, I found a pair on the CLEARANCE rack and tried them. Guess what? They were pretty decent. The fad had died but Jeanne Kraus alone would wear them as a fashion statement.
Now that bell bottoms have resurfaced, I hate them again. I don't know what happened to the fashion part of my brain, but I don't get it. Friends are stylish. They buy the "right" brands, whatever they are. All of my favorite brands are labeled "CLEARANCE."
I guess it all came to light the day I was shopping in J.C. Penney's one day. I found a dress that I liked and after trying it on, and thinking that I looked hot in it, headed to the register to pay for it. A little old lady in a walker came by and nicely commented on my choice. "Dear, that is a great dress for you. It will flatter your figure so nicely."
"Thank you." I smiled at her. She reminded me of my late grandmother, probably about 80 years old.
Then she hit me with a bombshell. "I have the same dress at home."
Yes, it was true. I had picked out an old lady dress. What's more, I thought it looked great on me. What's with those mirrors in the dressing rooms?
Perhaps relying on CLEARANCE as my clothing label has its pitfalls. But as long as nobody tells me I'm out of style, I'll be okay.