Natural Habitat

I've caught myself doing something rather odd lately.

Sometimes I find myself apologizing for lounging in my oversized sweatshirt or pajamas in the evenings.

What we wear has something interesting to say about us, there is no doubt, and I've found that what I choose to wear is something of a comfort zone for me. Just as Sam Gosling studies people's spaces for clues about their personalities, likes, and dislikes, most of my clothes hold some kind of significance.

 For some reason there is an inherent conflict with what I usually wear and the roles that I hold both around campus. I think this is because I am and yet am not in what I like to call my "natural habitat". When in public, I feel most like myself in a pair of chacos, a v-neck t-shirt, maybe my bookbag, and either plain shorts or jeans. This seems pretty normal to me, but most of the reasons that I love my clothes are deeper than just the fact that they are comfortable. Yes, anyone who knows me will tell you that I am a stickler for comfort, especially my fellow camp-counselors, from whom I heard "L-Mac...YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE HERE WHO WEARS CROCS. AND WE ARE AT OUTPOST." more times than I care to recount.. But my Chacos mean something to me.. my first pair was worn out from years of traipsing around the North Georgia and North Carolina mountains, my new pair of Chacos was given to me by a fellow camp counselor near the end of one of the best summers of my life. They not only nurse my once-broken right foot, but they just feel like me. Comfortable, chill, and fairly functional. My t-shirts are really only ones which I care about: Alpha Gam, Camp Glisson, AWARE.. All things which have not only taken up time and afforded me with t-shirts, but have shaped who I am as a person and why I want to represent them around campus. 

Going back to the original point, I feel more comfortable and more open when I'm in clothes that represent who I am and how I feel. Especially while doing homework, my two favorite grey sweatshirts are a staple, and if I happen to be able to run around in pajamas... All the better. One of my goals in the near future is to be okay with being in my natural habitat. Yes, I love dressing up for date nights, formals, badge attire days, interviews, and the like, but I have found in the past that people don't ignore you completely if you choose to dress comfortably and in a way that represents you. 

In this vein, I would like to take a page out of some pretty good psychology, and let my clothes not only say something about me and the things I do, but maintain a wardrobe which reminds me of fun times and allows me to stay as close to my little creative cave as possible.