Posted on 11/09/2005 6:55:21 AM PST by laney
Gwyneth Paltrow is one. So are Angelina Jolie and Leonardo di Caprio. Chances are your bikram yoga teacher has the major characteristics and so does the guy who makes your fruit smoothie at Jamba Juice. Donna Karan is totally in on it.
The salesperson who helps you find the right Botanical Kinetics moisturizer at Aveda is probably one, along with your eco-tourism guide at Costa Rican surf camp. Richard Gere may be the proto-one and Uma Thurman was pretty much born into it. What is influencing Hollywood stars and Wal-Mart shoppers, fashionistas and Filenes basement-dwellers alike? Its called metrospirituality, and chances are you already know or even
Do you go out of your way to buy organic food? Have you thought about the wu wei in your home? Have you tried yoga, belly-dancing, or surfing recently?
Are you attracted to traditional crafts from other cultures or have you started knitting? Do you own a Prius or have you thought about buying a hybrid car? Are you a tea connoisseur or an organic wine- and beer-drinker? Is there a certain aromatherapy scent that brings you comfort, especially in candle form?
If most of your answers are yes, then count yourself among the growing numbers of metrospiritualsthe kinder, gentler post-Yuppies who want to treat the earth and native cultures with respect, connect with their inner source and inspiration, test their bodies and expand their minds with ancient physical practicesand do it all with serious style.
Jim Twitchell, a professor of English at the University of Florida and author of many books about consumer culture, including "Adcult USA: The Triumph of Advertising in America" (1995), attributes the demand for luxury goods to a need for salvation or epiphany through consuming.
Throughout history, Twitchell argues, "The primary deliverer of sensations was the church. Thats where you went to have an epiphany. The sensations of luxury mirror the sensations of epiphanythe ability to give the consumer the sensation that Ive come to the end of the line, Im saved, Im there, I dont have to wrestle any more." The metrospiritual takes luxury-buying to a new level--reaching outward for connection to the planet and to each other.
According to Sharon Lee of youth-trend forecasting firm Look-Look, "Theres lots of desire to be spiritual and have more meaning than a commercial, purely secular lifestyle provides. And theres a smorgasbord of product offerings that have gradations of spirituality woven into them." The words you see and hear again and again on the many products that help define and support the metrospiritual lifestylelike Freshs Crème Ancienne which is made by hand at a monastery in the Czech Republic--are "calm," "enrich," "renew," "inspire," "experience," "connect," "heal," "ancient" and "conscious," for starters. is a metrospiritual Metrospirituality is the mainstreaming of Taoist, Buddhist (thanks to Richard Gere and Umas dad, Buddhism scholar and practitioner Robert Thurman), and Hindu values, among others, into an easily digestible, buyable form.
Take Hampton Chutney Company, for instance. This highly popular New York-area food empire makes traditional Indian dosas and uttapamsthe kind of thing you might make and eat at an Indian ashramwhich is exactly where the owners, Gary and Isabel MacGurn, met in 1990. They now have three thriving outposts at very tony addressesone in Long Island's Hamptons, one in New York City's Soho, and one on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. At the Soho store, pictures of yogis decorate the walls and devotional Indian chants pour soothingly out of the stereo.
And what are you actually getting if you have the patience to wait on the slowly snaking line? Semi-fast food that is nutritious and delicious (the Number Six, for example, is masala-spiced potatoes with spinach, jack cheese, and tomato), served in an atmosphere heavy on the good yogic vibes. Youre getting food with a stamp of individualism and thought, an exotic staple made American and virtuous in some ineffable way.
Virtue is a key feature of the metrospiritual lifestyle, and those in the fold expect it not only of themselves but also from the companies to which they give their business. Of course, as Sharon Lee points out, "Lots of companies are doing a superficial job and lots of companies are doing a really meaningful job" of being responsible global citizens. At Origins, part of the written mission is to "do whatever we can to protect the earth and its resources." On Aveda's website, the idea is to "strive to set an example for environmental leadership and responsibility."
Metrospiritual companies that practice what they preach believe that popular, profitable products and social responsibility are not mutually exclusive propositions. Whole Foods, an emblematically metrospiritual company, is in the midst of a massive expansion of its $3.9 billion business. Not surprisingly, the Whole Foods web site echoes the now-familiar mantra, "We believe in a virtuous circle entwining the food chain, human beings and Mother Earth: each is reliant upon the others through a beautiful and delicate symbiosis."
There's apparently a market for the organics.
I understood flax seed to be something you planted in order to grow textiles?
SD
"6" - 'nuff said.
Yea I was in a Wholefoods last week and was thinking of making some grilled cheeses when I got home so I grabbed a medium sized Tomato off the shelf, went to the register thinking it would cost about 50 cents and the lady charged me 2 BUCKS! What a racket.
I've said it before....but it's worth repeating....(FF-Favorite FReeper ping)
I've had ENOUGH!! OK, I have had it. I've taken all I can stand and I can't stand no more. Every time my TV is on, all that can be seen is effeminate men prancing about, redecorating houses and talking about foreign concepts like "style" and "feng shui.
" Heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, transsexual, metrosexual, non-sexual; blue, green, and purple-sexual - bogus definitions have taken over the urban and suburban world!
Real men of the world, stand up, scratch your butt, belch, and yell "ENOUGH!" I hereby announce the start of a new offensive in the culture Wars, the Retrosexual movement.
The Code :
A Retrosexual man, no matter what the women insists, PAYS FOR THE DATE.
A Retrosexual man opens doors for a lady. Even for the ones that fit that term only because they are female.
A Retrosexual DEALS with IT, be it a flat tire, break-in into your home, or a natural disaster, you DEAL WITH IT.
A Retrosexual not only eats red meat, he often kills it himself.
A Retrosexual doesn't worry about living to be 90. It's not how long you live, but how well. If you're 90 years old and still smoking cigars and drinking, I salute you.
A Retrosexual does not use more hair or skin products than a woman. Women have several supermarket aisles of stuff. Retrosexuals need an endcap (possibly 2 endcaps if you include shaving goods.)
A Retrosexual does not dress in clothes from Hot Topic when he's 30 years old.
A Retrosexual should know how to properly kill stuff (or people) if need be. This falls under the "Dealing with IT" portion of The Code.
A Retrosexual watches no TV show with "*****" in the title. Example..."***** Eye for the Straight Guy" *The censor took care of this 'un...
A Retrosexual does not let neighbors screw up rooms in his house on national TV.
A Retrosexual should not give up excessive amounts of manliness for women. Some is inevitable, but major reinvention of yourself will only lead to you becoming a froo-froo little puss, and in the long run, she ain't worth it.
A Retrosexual is allowed to seek professional help for major mental stress such as drug/alcohol addiction, death of your entire family in a freak treechipper accident, favorite sports team being moved to a different city, favorite bird dog expiring, etc. You are NOT allowed to see a shrink because Daddy didn't pay you enough attention. Daddy was busy DEALING WITH IT. When you screwed up, he DEALT with you.
A Retrosexual will have at least one outfit in his wardrobe designed to conceal himself from prey.
A Retrosexual knows how to tie a Windsor knot when wearing a tie -- and ONLY a Windsor knot.
A Retrosexual should have at least one good wound he can brag about getting.
A Retrosexual knows how to use a basic set of tools. If you can't hammer a nail, or drill a straight hole, practice in secret until you can -- or be rightfully ridiculed for the wuss you be.
A Retrosexual knows that owning a gun is not a sign that your are riddled with fear, guns are TOOLS and are often essential to DEAL WITH IT. Plus it's just plain fun to shoot.
Crying. There are very few reason that a Retrosexual may cry, and none of them have to do with TV commercials, movies, or soap operas. Sports teams are sometimes a reason to cry, but the preferred method of release is cussing or throwing the remote control. Some reasons a Retrosexual can cry include (but are not limited to) death of a loved one, death of a pet (fish do NOT count as pets in this case), loss of a major body part.
When a Retrosexual is on a crowded bus and or a commuter train, and a pregnant woman, heck, any woman gets on, that Retrosexual stands up and offers his seat to that woman, then looks around at the other so-called men still in their seats with a disgusted "you punks" look on his face.
A Retrosexual knows how to say the Pledge properly, and with the correct emphasis and pronunciation. He also knows the words to the Star Spangled Banner
A Retrosexual will have hobbies and habits his wife and mother do not understand, but that are essential to his manliness, in that they offset the acceptable manliness decline he suffers when married/engaged or in a serious healthy relationship - i. e., hunting, boxing, shot putting, shooting, cigars, car maintenance.
A Retrosexual man can drive in snow (heck, a blizzard) without sliding all over or driving under 20mph, without anxiety, and without high-centering his ride in a snow bank.
A Retrosexual man can chop down a tree and make it land where he wants. Wherever it lands is where he darn well wanted it to land.
A Retrosexual will give up his seat on a bus to not only any women but any elderly person or person in military dress (except 2nd Lt's) NOTE: The person in military dress may turn down the offer but the Retrosexual man will ALWAYS make the offer to them and thank them for serving their country.
A Retrosexual man doesn't need a contract -- a handshake is good enough. He will always stand by his word even if circumstances change or the other person deceived him.
A Retrosexual man doesn't immediately look to sue someone when he does something stupid and hurts himself. We understand that sometimes in the process of doing things we get hurt and we just DEAL WITH IT !
I prefer my home grown veggies to store bought any day. I even make and can my own salsa from maters and peppers I grow in my garden. Personally I think factory farmed stuff is pretty bland.
Bikram yoga whipped MY butt and gave me sciatica.
And for the record, in the REAL WORLD of interior design, fung sui is nonscience.
I hereby announce the start of a new offensive in the culture Wars, the Retrosexual movement.
Where do I sign up, sir?
Hey F.A.!
Sign up?? Sign up?? Heck I already had you penned in as Sgt. of Heavy Equipment...
For the record, you don't have to call me sir, I earn my living, same as you...
8^)
I'm in!
One thing though:
[snip] Some reasons a Retrosexual can cry include (but are not limited to) death of a loved one, death of a pet (fish do NOT count as pets in this case), loss of a major body part.Am I allowed to tear-up at my daughter's wedding?
Don't feel bad hun,
I like yogurt and flax seed too.
(I scored a 19 on the test).
Whatever :)
You have sciatica too! I have a blown disc at L4/L5 bulging the nerve on the left side. I had my shots about 2 months ago and I am finally doing better. Grrrrr! I hate it.
I scored a 24 :o)
Hey there back @ you. We've been extremely busy this quater, but "I made the time" to jump on for a few seconds today....
All work and no play makes SISU a......
8^)
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