Memories can have a bit of a love/hate relationship with our minds. For instance, I love thinking back on my high school days – the friendships, the fun, and the anticipation for what the future might bring. But then I see the pictures. Of me. In the 1970s. Looking and dressing like I did. Seriously, of all the decades throughout time, was fashion ever at a lower point than what we wore in the 1970s? What were we thinking? Were we thinking at all? No wonder I didn’t date much.

Let’s take a virtual tour through my 70s closet:

Immediately, we’d see a light blue denim leisure suit with large panel pockets. You couldn’t miss it. It kind of leaps out at you. This would be worn over a silk paisley shirt with Peter Pan collars. And for formal events, all we need do is to add on a Puka shell necklace and we’re ready to hit the town. We be stylin’.

For everyday wear: Bell bottomed blue jeans, (preferably ripped and faded) and a t-shirt is all we needed. And we had multiple mix and match pairings to choose from. During the summer, we would just take scissors to those jeans and make ourselves a pair of cut-off shorts which inevitably became shorter and shorter as we tried to even up the sides until the pockets kind of peeked out from the bottom legs.

For the winter, as the weather turned cold, we owned a large assortment of dickies. False turtlenecks worn beneath collared shirts. Turns out, we weren’t fooling anyone.

And don’t get me started on hairstyles (which is a misnomer – we didn’t style anything… we just let it grow. Long.) Unkempt would probably be the best description I could use. Greasy could be another.

But probably our biggest embarrassment would be in the swimwear category. Speedos were king around our neighborhood. And we wore them without shame. It wasn’t until much later that we saw just how unflattering they can be.

So, we can see that reflecting on memories is often a mixed bag. I have many fond recollections interrupted by just as many cringe-worthy memories. But even those fashion faux-pas memories are ones that I cherish. As should you. They are part of who we grew to become and let’s face it… they are uproariously funny to watch again and remember… as embarrassing as they may be.

Michael Ondrasik and Home Video Studio specialize in the preservation of family memories through the digitalization of film, video, audio, photos and slides. For more information, call 352-735-8550 or visit www.homevideostudio.com/mtd.