What-I-did-over-summer-vacation essays used to be some of my favorite assignments. One week this summer changed all that. It was the tumultuous week I worked at Abercrombie & Fitch.

During my week-long employment I was subjected to numerous meetings our managers used as retail pep talks. It was then that we dissected the ÒLook Book,Ó a sort of inner-store bible full of proper hairstyles and words of encouragement on how to be a Òrepresentative of the A&F style.Ó

It was during these speeches that I learned pearls of wisdom such as ways of cheering up when you realize that you canÕt properly fold denim and how to keep the tissue paper inside the perfectly crafted T-shirt displays.

The most vital of all of these mottos, however, struck a chord and a funny bone. I bit my lip as hard as I could when I actually heard my manager say, ÒWe work hard, we play hard, we wear cool clothes.Ó

It was at this point that I looked around at my fellow employees and realized that there were no black faces in the store. There were few minorities, and many, many fluffy fleece vests. There were starry-eyed girls staring at oversized photos of naked skiing men on the walls of the store. I knew right then that I needed to get out.

These are clothes. They are nice clothes, yes Ñ well-made and comfortable. But theyÕre clothes.

TheyÕre sweaters, socks and egotistical T-shirts. They are not a way of life or a representation of what the Òin-crowdÓ is wearing. At least they shouldnÕt be. They should merely be what God (or your respective entity here) intended them to be Ñ covering for the body.

Adam and Eve never went crazy over button-fly carpenter jeans Ñ leaves worked just fine.

Every human being is capable of greed and idolatry. In general, everyone wants to belong, be a part of something sometime in his or her life. But what human beings should not want to be is conformed.

I admit to owning three pieces of this storeÕs clothing Ñ the required two tops and a bottom outlined when you first enroll as ÒBrand Representative.Ó What I do not own is a respect for the store or the ideology it promotes. ItÕs this sort of mentality that strips the human spirit of originality and the beauty of being different.

ItÕs easy to walk into a store, see everyone wearing the ÒcoolÓclothes and race to the nearest dressing room to become Òcool,Ó too. ItÕs not easy to walk into a store and recognize that the people wearing the clothes are trying to sell the lifestyle, not the cotton.

In a nice world, people would be judged by whom they are, how theyÕve contributed to society and if they bless a friend after he sneezes. In a perfect world, people wouldnÕt be judged at all, especially not for the shirts on their backs.

Only in an insane world would the ideal hair accessory be a mandatory one-inch tortoise-shell headband.

So live in a sane world. Walk into your nearest store-oÕ-conformity and take a stand. Go crazy. Move the sweaters out of place. Wave your long, long hair and two-inch (oh my!) hot pink headband in their faces. Even if it means Ñ eek! Ñ buying the clothes, be yourself. Just know that youÕre buying clothes, not you.

• Arrogant & Fashionable