So yesterday I got super annoyed tying my Doc Martens cause I kept mixing up the color meanings. Saw some punk kid at the mall with mismatched laces and thought, “Right, gotta sort my own cheat sheet out once and for all.”
The Great Lace Dump
First thing? Emptied my whole damn shoebox onto the floor. Boot laces, sneaker laces, random bits of string – it looked like a rainbow puked in my room. Dug out my oldest boots, the ones with faded purple laces I put on years back. Could I remember what the hell purple meant? Nope. Totally blank. Typical.
Going Old School with Pen & Paper
Grabbed this battered notebook I keep for random junk. Skipped the laptop cause it just distracts me with stupid notifications. Needed pure focus. Started jotting down colors I actually had or remembered seeing:
- Black laces (obvious, right?)
- Red ones (always confusing)
- White laces (simple… maybe?)
- Pink (saw someone rocking these last week)
- Yellow (shockingly bright pair somewhere)
Realized quick that meanings can flip depending on who you ask or where you were in the 80s. My head started hurting.
Testing & Tangling
Pulled a fresh pair of white laces out and just started tying them onto different shoes – boots, chucks, even my dumb house slippers. Looked ridiculous. “Is white for purity? Or white power? Or just liking the color white?” Felt stupid staring at a slipper. Tried yellow next. Looked cheerful, but meant “anti-racism” to some. Huge mess.
Took the purple laces off my ancient boots, stared at them like they owed me money. Gay pride? Anarchy? Or maybe the dude just liked purple? That’s when it hit me: It’s personal. Half these codes are local or made up on the spot. My notebook had scratches and coffee stains already.
The “Good Enough” Cheat Sheet
Said screw it to “perfect accuracy.” Made my own damn list based on stuff that stuck:
- Black: Basic, can mean anarchist if all-black outfit… sometimes.
- Red: Messy. Left-wing stuff, anti-Nazi… or just liking red.
- White: Skinhead pride (original, non-racist kind) or just clean look.
- Purple: Gay pride or anarcha-feminism. Kept that.
- Pink: Feminist, queer vibes usually.
- Yellow: Anti-racist/anti-fascist. Bright & hard to ignore.
Scribbled big fat note at the top: “MEANINGS CHANGE. DON’T BE A JERK. ASK IF CURIOUS.” Done. Taped it inside my closet door. Finally.
Wore yellow laces today just cause. Some guy nodded at me. Maybe he knew. Maybe he liked the color. Who cares. I finally know what I mean by it.
