my comfort outfit wasnt designed with the south in mind...

Baggy jeans, hooded sweatshirt, t-shirt, and flip flops. This is my ‘comfort outfit’. I wear it when I have had a bad day, feel over whelmed because my brain is running a mile a minute, or just when I feel the need to escape on the couch for a while. It is like a bubble, an extremely comfortable bubble, where the rest of the world melts away and I instantly feel better.

There are even little subtle details within the outfit that make all the difference. The sweatshirt must have a hood but can not have a zipper down the front. It must be a pull over hoodie sweatshirt. Bonus points if the sleeves are a bit too long causing only my fingertips to hang out. The jeans need to be baggy - not tight jeans designed to make my butt look better. The jeans need not to have rips but having them be worn in is preferable. The t-shirt portion of this outfit is pretty interchangeable and doesn’t need to meet any criteria other than to be an actual t-shirt and not some designer baby doll shirt. To have it be a bit baggy is best. Almost always it will be my heather gray t-shirt from middle school that still fits today. The green lettering has completely worn off, there are holes from constant wear and maybe even a few stains, but I can not bring myself to throw it out. It has been my favorite t-shirt for over a decade. Finally, the flip flops. I usually only have one pair at a time so whatever is in my closest does the trick. However, I am not a fan of foam bottoms and rubber tops nixing most popular brands and styles immediately. This is a shame because Old Navy always has the coolest colors for flip flops.

This outfit has been in rotation for over ten years and has become a staple of mine since high school. Even on a day where all I had done so far was roll out of bed and all I had to do was go to class, I knew I would need that outfit. My friends had become conditioned to know that if I arrived to first period in a light gray hoodie with the ripped front pocket, Lucky Brand ‘Baggy Fit’ jeans, and black Reef flip flops – I was going to need that extra hug (or cafeteria knock off Pizza Pocket!) at break.

Most people will read this and laugh pointing out that I wear this outfit almost 365 days a year… and they would be right. I am a slave to the staple of t-shirt and jeans fashion. However, I am not wearing ‘the’ outfit that often. The subtle details of the completed ensemble, like the extra baggy and more worn-in/well loved articles of clothing, make all the difference.

Yet, moving to the South has made this outfit basically extinct. The 100 plus degree weather makes it impossible. I have tried variations such as the baggy jeans worn with a tank top. An old ratty t-shirt with a pair of shorts. Flip flops at work. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. If the outfit is not in its entirety, it doesn’t create the bubble effect I so desperately need. I have totally went out on a limb and even opted for baggy track shorts and ratty t-shirts as my new pajamas (instead of the usually naked as a jaybird approach). I thought the extra material that I was not used to while sleeping would create a bubble and I could feel comforted. Believe it or not, it did actually help. As I would drift off to sleep, I would feel better in my odd little bubble. However, this was short lived. When I woke up the next morning, I’d feel sticky and sweaty. I guess its even hotter at night here than I expected.

So, apparently my comfort outfit is unfathomable in the summer months in the south. Damn. Looks like I will just have to move back to Seattle… as if I needed another reason.