Being that I’m 28 and childless, I came late to the Silly Bandz party.  The first that I heard about the brightly colored, figure shaped, silicone bracelets was when an area school started banning them.  So imagine my surprise (read: jaw dropping shock) when my post-college aged Scheduler started wearing these tween fashion staples to work. 

I believe the conversation went something like this:

Belle: Girl, tell me that you’re not wearing Silly Bandz in my office.

Scheduler: Oh come on, they’re conversation starters.  You wouldn’t believe the number of guys who’ve walked up to me and asked which shapes I have.

Belle: By “guys,” do you mean men or 14-year-old boys looking to make a cougar out of you?

Scheduler:  Men.  It creates an opening for them to talk to you.  And if you like the guy, you can give him one and he’ll remember talking to you when he sees it on his wrist the next morning.

Given that my long-lasting celibacy pact has somewhat obliterated my perspective on the opposite sex, I decided to Google her claims to determine whether they had merit.  After all, the Internet is The Great Fact Checker and Sergey Brin is its king.

Lo and behold, Young Scheduler is not the only person of marriageable age diving headlong into teen fanaticism with her Silly Bandz.  From the New York Daily News:

Adults on the prowl are using the colorful bands instead of bad pickup lines to make love connections.

“I had no idea what they were,” said financial planner James Santos, 32, who lives in Tribeca.

“I went on a date with a girl. She gave me one. Two days later, another girl gave me another Silly Band. I felt important.”

So otherwise normal grown-ups are utilizing children’s toys to make inroads into the competitive bar scene?  Interesting.  But just because the Bandz have a purpose, does that make them fashionable?

Celebrities sure seem to think so.  Aside from Justin Bieber who has his own line of Silly Bandz, Sarah Jessica Parker, Rebecca Romijn, Shakira and Neil Patrick Harris are all wearing them. 

I suppose I understand if parents of young children choose to wear them.  (My Mom and I briefly sported matching slap bracelets in the 90s.) And while using them to strike up a conversation with the hot guy at the end of the bar makes sense, I still don’t think that they’re work appropriate.  Especially if you work on the Hill.

After all, you wouldn’t wear a Disney Princess charm bracelet or a Thundercats t-shirt to the office would you? (If you would, please know that while Thundercats are AWESOME, this is not okay.)

Thus, I suggest a Silly Bandz compromise, I won’t judge you for wearing them to the bar if you promise not to wear them to work.  Deal?