Bostonian Pride

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Walking around Boston, Massachusetts you will notice that there is a great deal of Red Sox pride out there--a LOT of pride. In about an hour sitting at a Starbucks on Newbury Street, you may see 15 or even 25 Boston Red Sox caps go by. It is not rare sighting to see 30 Boston sweatshirts pass you by throughout your day. The Boston Red Sox fan base is rapidly growing especially due to the tremendous victory that we had last year for the World Series!

At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, one of the hundreds of universities here in Boston, MA, fashion is not always the #1 priority for its students. Studies definitely put their studies in precedence over fashion. However, the Boston pride is still very prevalent among the students here on campus. Just as on the streets of Boston, it is guaranteed that you will pass by a Boston sweatshirt or Red Sox cap on your way to class. There is no way that you can avoid running into the easy-to-spot Bostonian. From afar, you can easily spot the signature "B" written onto the paraphenelia or the classic red-pair of socks presented on the cap or shirt.

However, although there is so much Boston pride around the MIT campus, like most colleges, everyone here is not an original Bostonian. About a total of 18% of all applicants to MIT consist of Northeastern natives. By the time it comes for students to make their decision on schools, about 4-5% of these students end up being from the heart of the Boston metro area. Naturally influenced by their surroundings with the overwhelming amount of Red Sox excitement around the city, it is difficult to remain neutral to the Boston home team of the Red Sox. It is especially even more difficult to root for the rival team of the Patriots. With this said, it is not even just the native Bostonians that love the Boston city along with their amazing baseball team. About 9% of the current MIT population claims to be "original" Boston Red Sox fans and are avid users of Boston t-shirts and baseball caps.

Walking through campus, it is very difficult to pick out the natives from the rest of the population. You may see someone dressed in a Red Sox sweatshirt, along with a Boston cap, and even maybe wearing a "B" logo on their backpack, but this is no indication that they are an original Bostonian. There are many "poser" Bostonians due to the hype about the Red Sox and the city as a whole. However, who is to say that this is bad? Natives may not appreciate these intruders, but it just a way of spreading the excitement about Boston to a larger population - the college population.

The Popped Collar

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This is a new phenomenon that has come about within the past 5 years. The polo is a widely known style that can be worn in many ways and in many colors. There are two extreme thoughts on the topic of popped collars. There is the:
1) anti-popped collar personalities
2) highly approving popped collar personalities.

It is very rare that you will come across someone who thinks popped collars are "okay". Some may claim that people are "posers" if they wear a popped collar, or that maybe some may be trying to be cool, but I say that popped collars are merely a way of showing that you are care a little about your looks. Instead of just slipping on a shirt, with the popped collar you show that you took a few moments out of your life to style yourself in the morning.

There are more than one way to wear the popped collar. I am not saying that everyone can look good in a popped collar, but you have to have a certain type of attitude and a certain type of style.

California Thugging

California has a lot of stereotypes, one of which is the Abercrombie surfer OC type. Another is the alternative rock skater. While traveling in California, I found the "California Gangster". This young man dresses as if he is on his way to rob a convenience store, however he is actually an upper-middle class college student at UCLA. The gangster look is an enigma, and I have yet to figure out the appeal. I would not expect this to occur at MIT.

~sent from Audiovox Smartphone

Slippers Keeping You Warm

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Whoever said that slippers are silly was wrong. These are probably my favorite set of shoes out of my entire shoe collection. Although they are only used at home or around my dorm room, they are the most comfortable shoes that I own. With their soft soles and inner lining, slippers keep your feet twice as warm than merely wearing socks. Even wool socks can't keep your feet as warm as slippers do.

There are many types of "slippers". I am not talking about the flip-flop type of sandles that many people wear, but I am talking about those warm fuzzy slippers that you can wear around with your jeans, pajama pants or even with a suit if you are just coming back from work.

-Fun Slippers-

Some slippers that are very prevelant around the dormitory are "fun slippers". These are shoes that are usually very fuzzy and have a type of mystical character or animal head propped on top of the slipper. There are monsters, monkeys, ladybugs - almost anything you can imagine. I have even seem someone walking around on an open banana peel! Although it is true that it seems that more girls enjoy finding "cute" or "funny" slippers, but once every blue moon you will run into a guy with a good sense of humor walking around with turtle slippers.

-Comfortable Slippers-

If you are more about comfort than style, these are the type of slippers that you probably have. You will see if you look closely, maybe about one in every ten slippers that you come across will be fun slippers. They are not all that common because the idea behind the slippers are to be original. However, if EVERYONE is original, then we are just all the same again.

Winter Wear

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With the harsh winter ahead of us, it is time to start pulling out those down coats and ski jackets. However, this is no reason to forget your fashion. Yes - the number one priority should be warmth. Whereas some may want to sacrifice warmth for fashion, this is the one instance where you should NOT choose fashion over practicality. It is not worth it to freeze.

With this said, this is not to say that you can't find both a fashionable jacket along with a warm jacket. Walking around campus in the dead of winter, you are guarenteed to see all types of winter wear. As the weather gets colder you will see the shift in jackets. Each season has a different type of jacket for the season:

• Spring - This is when you should pull out that blazer. For men and women, wear you're light blazer with a t-shirt underneath to create the casual look.
• Summer - The light sweater or zip-up sweatshirt is perfect. On the rare nights when there is a light breeze, you need something to wear.
• Fall - You should consider buying a fleece jacket or fur-lined coat. These are attractive and still warm enough to protect you from the fall days when the breeze is a little too much for a light sweater.
• Winter - This is when there is a huge change in jackets and outerwear. Those big puffy jackets come out, and everyone is wrapped up in a jacket from head to toe so that only a sliver of their face is showing.

If you are going to remember one thing about winter wear, remember the bigger the better! You want to keep your body warm. Buy a down coat. Buy it with a fleece lining. Buy it with fur around the hood. Anything and everything possible!