又中又英｜Fashion trend

Young people change fashion trends so fast nowadays that they leave older people like me in the dust. I bought skinny jeans when they were the fashion trend. Skinny jeans are no longer fashionable among Gen Z people. They prefer baggy (loose) pants. I stopped wearing skinny jeans a few years ago. They are uncomfortable and I don’t look good in them because I have very thin legs. I now wear regular, not baggy, jeans.  The word “trend” has several meanings, but a fashion trend is the latest style of clothing, shoes, or other things that many people wear.

To leave someone in the dust used this way means to leave that person far behind because fashion is changing too quickly for them to keep up. Skinny jeans are very tight jeans. Gen Z, an American term, is short for Generation Z, which means people born between 1995 and 2012. These young Americans are called Zoomers. Their latest fashion trend is wearing long socks, often with short pants. They say only old people wear very short socks completely hidden by shoes or sneakers. A Wall Street Journal article said some Zoomers wear socks that reach halfway to the knees or even higher.

I think Zoomers are too young to know long socks were fashionable many years ago. Policemen in Hong Kong during the early colonial days wore short khaki pants and long socks. Japanese schoolgirls wear long socks as part of their uniform. I have always worn regular socks that reach a little above my ankles. Such socks go well with suits. Long socks are silly. They are also not practical during hot summers.

今時今日，年輕人的時裝潮流（fashion trends）轉變急速，快得令我這樣年長的人望塵莫及（leave older people like me in the dust）。當緊身窄腳褲（skinny jeans）還是時裝潮流（fashion trend）時，我也有買過，但緊身窄腳褲（skinny jeans）在Z世代當中已經不再流行。他們寧要鬆身（baggy）的褲。幾年前我已不再穿緊身褲（skinny jeans）了，它們穿起來並不舒適，我也穿得不好看，因為我雙腿本身就很幼。我現在會穿普通但不是鬆身（baggy）的褲。Trend一字有幾個意思，但fashion trend就解作衣着、鞋或其他時裝的最新潮流。

To leave someone in the dust在這裏的意思是令那人感到大大落後，因為時裝潮流變化急速，令他們總追不上。Skinny jeans就是非常緊身的牛仔褲。美國詞𢑥Gen Z是 Generation Z的簡寫，意指1995年至2012年出生的那代人。這些年輕美國人被稱為Zoomers。他們最新的時裝潮流（fashion trend）是穿長襪，通常配短褲。他們說，只有老人才會穿很短很短，短得完全藏在皮鞋或運動鞋裏的襪。一篇《華爾街日報》的文章說，一些Z世代（Zoomers）的人會將襪穿到腳的一半，至膝蓋甚或更高處。

我認為Z世代（Zoomers）太年輕，不會知道長襪在許多年前也曾時興過。香港的警察在殖民時期，就是穿卡其色短褲和長襪。日本女學生也是穿長襪作為他們的校服。我總是穿一般長度的襪，稍高於腳眼的。這種襪跟西裝很搭。長襪很傻。它們在炎熱的夏天時也不實際。

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Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻