I kinda got used to having weird looks about how I look, just like I get weird looks about what I'd say in social situations, weird looks about what music is blaring on my headphones or whatever the ringtone of the week is mine at the moment. Over years, and especially the last 2 to 3 years, I stopped caring about trying to "fit in" and just be me. Just like a lot of things, it relieves a lot of stress if I don't have to mind social convention and dress like I should dress my age (whatever type of weird derivation of popular belief that might be). I'm really not stating that I try to be weird, I just try to be me, and even if I only drop the clothing thing, I'll still get weird looks. In a way it makes it easier to just expect weird looks, lol. At least I don't have to worry why people give me a look anymore.
Besides, I think it's highly impractical to own both a wardrobe for "social convention" and one those other moments. I rather just buy clothes anywhere I want, and wear those instead of being like "I can't wear this because of X". And just taking along in consideration the entire "I don't feel comfy wearing a suit" but I feel less stressed out and more comfy if I just wear the things I usually wear, is pretty much another deal.
However; speaking of clothes and outfits. I've had my really, really big share of clothing and what's "suitable", so here's a true story from my teens (which I might have written down somewhere on this board; or another).
Back, when I was 15, I got more and more into lots of rock music. Yeah, I was into that stuff ever since I was 10 years old, but at some point I had more control over what I wanted to wear, had a job, thus had money and I could buy my own stuff, along with getting some cash from mom & dad. So through some people I got the adress of mail-order service who had catalogues and had a lot of alternative clothing. Probably something that US people might refer to as Hot topic or so. So, I got the catalogue; browsed through it found some designs by bands I liked and ordered some.
For good measure I asked my mom if she thought it was ok that I'd buy some things there, showed her what I wanted to get and she was fine with it.
Hence, I ordered, and got home some shirts. The next day after I got my order, I put on one of the t-shirts, went to school.
I remember having my first class of computer science and it lasted about 15 minutes before the studentcounselor came over to where I was having my class and asked me to leave the class with him for a few minutes for a talk. So at the hallway he was like "can I take a look at your shirt?" So I stood up right a bit and showed him my shirt, which depicted a woman nailed on an inverted cross by metalband Cradle of filth. The back of the shirt said "Desire me like satan". He gave me an odd look and gave me a nod of disapprovement telling me "I cannot accept this". I was like "why?". And he was rambling about how it was "wrong" yet that never got to me. To me it was just a print on a tshirt to show my appreciation for that band. Other people could wear their shirts with brands on it (or even other bands) but they picked out me and told me it was "wrong". Subsequently I got sent home.
I got home and told my mom the deal and she was irked by the fact that they've sent me home and didn't contact her (I was 15 at the time) that there were issues with me. My mom told me "well, put on another shirt, I'll drive you to school". Took another shirt I ordered, put that on, missed about 2 hours of class when I came back in. Ironically enough I was having Social sciences class back then. Went in and the teacher immediatly was like "Can I see your shirt" (as the story about my shirt spread around in the first break). He looked at me and sent me back out, apparently a shirt with a man having smeared lipstick depicted wasn't ok either. Granted, the back said "I'm the god of ****" (which actually is a Charles Manson quote as far as I know; but that stuff isn't that sensitive in Holland in general. The shirt itself was by band Marilyn Manson). Probably they only saw the relation between the word god and **** in one sentence and didn't really put anything in context there. So I got sent out, sat in the hallway a bit and as a precautionairy measure asked the schooljanitor (who was supervising my next 2 hours before school was out), if my shirts were ok to him. He thought they were fine, so I stayed instead of bailing out.
So far for one day (a friday) in my school as a teen. Had my weekend, monday was next. Went shopping with mom over the weekend bought another new shirt.
On monday got sent home again. That ended up cause I was wearing a shirt by band Morbid angel which depicted a rather demonic looking angel with a backprint saying "angel of disease". Yes, it was a female angel and there was a bit of nipple showing. But that, to me was only noticeable if you'd keep staring at it and inspect the print extensively. So, got home, my mom went raging mad over it, went back to school to have a word with the counselor. I was in his office as well, and it ended up with my mom calling him old-fashioned, because according to his statement it was just because he didn't like the image, and the were a bit out of line according to "what's normal". Yet there's no ruling about what's normal. We didn't have uniforms (which funnily enough was something my mom suggested). But apparently I was beyond the norm.
Due to stress I ended up at a therapist because I felt like I had to deal with a variable in life which I didn't understand. "What's correct, and what's not?; and what are the rules for that? Where are they written? Who made them up?" Up to this day I'm still someone who in general doesn't do it to provoke, but just don't really "care" about it. And apparently there's a lot of cases where I am explicitly made to care for it. Perhaps a reason why people don't care for it, is because they do not understand it that much, and they need rules that apply to everyone, at all times.
Anyway, so I took off 2 weeks and my mom reported it to inspection that there's a reason I was taking off a few weeks, and that school had to sort out "their ****" because they're somewhat of a cause I need a therapist.
On a sidenote; my mom kinda likes controversy a bit, but she also believes in "having her way if she thinks it's fair". Thus, after the talk with the counselor, my mom took me to the local newspaper (though it's available through the entire country). So we had a talk with a journalist explaining the deal, later in the day they sent over a photographer for some shots and the next day I was in the newspaper. The day after I got phoned by 3 national newspapers and did an interview through the phone with them about it.
So, after a two week break I went back to school. And yet, school didn't sort it out anyway, because apparently I was still in their crosshairs. This time... I got sent home again... for a shirt that I've been wearing since day 1 of the year. Heck, I even was on the classphoto they made wearing that shirt. This time it was a shirt of the band White Zombie having a cartoonish zombie on the front and 666 mutha****a (in that pseudo-gangsta spelling) on the back. So, apparently wearing what I did before wasn't ok anymore either. The school still didn't have any rules for it though.
The same incident took place 3 times after that all for wearing shirts by Cradle of filth bearing some scantilly dressed women and much like the shirt from the first time probably had some kind of slang on it. I liked the shirts for it. I saw some dark humor in it. But still they couldn't tell me what was wrong, cause no one ever told me "it's wrong cause it depicts nude women in some way", it always was the "I don't like it".At some point my mom went back to school asking the counselor if those women even got him excited and all. He turned a bit red-ish... so that's probably the answer, lol.
However, at some point, after that 2 week break, it went on from one teacher talking to me in private, that each teacher wanted to have his part of the cake. They all had their reasons to not like it. Some teacher thought it was ******** there's attention about it even. At some point it even came down to me reporting at the "teachers lounge" before classes for a inspection of what I was wearing... on a daily basis.
In the end I ended up at the principals office with mom and dad, and my parents walked out on him because he could not bring a valid argument about what was wrong. He just kept to his "just because" and he offered no alternatives about it. Yes, one teacher offered to buy me a plain t-shirt. But I do not want to wear a shirt that I don't like... yes, I might be that decadent of a first world problemmaker, but that's not really solving a problem through legal means either.
In a few weeks the things were going on I got contacted by a journalist from a magazine who did an article about it. That magazine was weirdly enough one where I was featured in an article about clothing, whilst pretty much the entire article was with women WITHOUT clothing. Wasn't a pornomag though.
The only thing I however did in an effort to provoke them was getting my high school diploma wearing a tshirt that said "this is ********" (which I got for free from the company that sold those shirts)