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In the past week or so we have been talking about Existentialism, so I got to thinking about how I could relate this philosophy to my topic for my last blog.

Basically Existentialism is the mindset that a person can do what ever she/he wants for what ever reason she/he decides with the knowledge (and carelessness) of what the worldly consequences might be.  

Anyways, I thought about outcasts and hipsters and blah blah blah, all those typical terms for "different" in the styles of wear these days... But I wasn't satisfied with writing about any of those topics, even though technically that is the biggest example of Existentialism in the clothing.  So I started thinking a bit harder, and realized what this whole project was supposed to be for... to figure out why I wear what I wear each day.  And I have found some great answers my friends.

1) Self-made trends are hard to break for anyone, and by being self-made they are Existential.  For example: my obsession with wearing college shirts brings on criticism, but it has become a habit to constantly wear a shirt with that kind of emblem on it, so what's the point in breaking that habit?  If I like to wear them and they follow the "rules", then what is the issue?  Also this is in no way stubborn, because it affects no one but myself... so who gonna stop me?

2) Each morning is a new challenge for each individual in this hostile and indifferent universe.  For instance: regardless of the days before or after today, every living day, you have to personally make the decision of what footwear, pants/shorts, shirt, jacket or sweater or lack of jacket or sweater, and accessories to wear.  So universally people make up routines, whether it be I wear this outfit every wednesday, or I'll only wear this shirt with these pants.  The options are bottomless, and it has been thrilling to find out my own personal routines.  I only wear Nike white crews socks, or no socks.  I always wear the same belt, it's either khaki pants or khaki shorts 90% of the time, college collared shirts or button downs, and then I have a strange rotation of shoes (tennis shoes, cowboy boots, and loafers).  

3) Is it cold outside?  Do my shoes match?  Are my pants going to fall off? Am I going to get a wedgie in these boxers?  These are the questions I have asked myself every morning since I started writing about this topic about a moth ago... and since then I am proud to say, my shoes have always matched,my pants have not fallen off, I have been comfortably warm, but I have still gotten a few wedgies...  It was crazy to see myself actually recognizing these thoughts that were going through my head, when I usually never notice them.  It made me start to wonder what else I'm missing out on.  This was the biggest realization that I've had throughout my personal thought inspection.

I have learned more about myself and my decision making through this research than I think I did  about my specific topic.  I would say that I did successfully answer all of my original questions, but all that did was arise more and more questions... and I think that was the point. 

Interview Blog

"Comfort is the first and only aspect I consider when choosing my clothes for the day" ~ my mother.  I do not understand how I have not thought of this yet.  I guess I just assumed, like most people I may add, that comfort was always implied.  Stereotypically though, I categorize that as a very feminine thing to say.  I have noticed a common trend at my school...  This trend includes females dressing much more casually and "comfortably" while males dress a lot more formally.


Does this represent a character trait differing between genders?

Difference Between Thoughts

The answer to the first question of the interview conducted with my mother (How do you choose what you are going to where in the morning?), got me thinking more than I ever could imagine.  Thank you mom!  I also realized a very key thing when thinking about the differences between male and female attire...

Women have a name for Every Single subsection/article of clothing, whereas men say "Polo" for any collared shirt or pants/shorts, that's it.  Does this mean that men are more simple than women?  Or that we (males) do not typically care about stupid things (ex: clothing)?  Or that women are over the top drama queens as a species (yes, they are their own species)?  To be honest, I really do not know they answer to any of these questions.

Man vs. Woman

"I usually swap between the same five accessories all the time, but never the same shirts or pants that often." ~ my mother.  On a minor note, I also found this quite interesting.  I never really notice what accessories she wears and I see her everyday, but I have noticed the amount of clothes that females in general own...  I wonder why they always tend to "need" or want more and more.

Who would have thought that I'd ever be interested in why my mom wheres what she wears each day?  Not me.  But I am proud to say that this interview has led me to some rad observations that I cannot wait to keep expanding on.