Flip-flops and Shorts

[The_Cylon_Surfer]

Well I really need some help... I work at a univserity in the UK. For the past year maybe even two years I have noticed and have been completely baffled by a wierd fad. This 'fad', 'craz' or just general stupidity whatever you wish to call it is the wearing of shorts and flip-flops to university WHATEVER THE WEATHER as if you were spending the day on the beach!!! Please note this only seems to effect male university students and not the general population of the UK.

If your a perpetrator of the the above obscurity can you please help me to understand what its all about?

There is no beach anywhere near here (midlands - central UK), the weather in cold & shit, it has been for the past 6 months at the very least. Does this make you look cool? Well at the very least in your own eyes? Does it enable you to pull chicks? Are you students generally so poor that you can no longer afford full length trousers and foot wear that actually covers your entire feet? Have you now reached such a high pinnicale of knowledge that you know somthing about this clothing combination that I dont? Why is it that while dressing this way you all seem to be thinking in your derranged minds; "I'm the dogs bollocks" or "Just look at me, thats right Flip-flops and shorts! ooo right".

My opinion of this is that you all look like fucking morons. Quite simply there is no beach here, no surf, infact nothing that would make anyone want to dress that way at this time of year.

Help me understand - I, at the very least, need to know if I should carry on giving you my pitty or if I should just be laughing & pointing at you because of your obviously metal problems.

 

[Bob Evil]

It is 'one of those things' ... some students invent stupid little fads like that, get their mates to join it ... and then, over time, the new kids who come along, join in, cos they think it's 'witty' & 'original', and that it will baffle the 'establishment' & the 'locals'... when it's really just tedious student humour.

It will die out, soon enough ...

 

[Ace Gunman]

Though I'm not a part of this, it's a fairly common university-wide trend. Decades ago there was a shift in acceptable attire at college via the hippy movement. Since that time college students have been dressing more and more casually. Though it's probably less popular now, in the mid-late 90s wearing nothing but your pajamas to class was a widely accepted trend with students.

Getting out of the specifics of how, and into the why... it's because casual equals personal comfort. Shorts aren't just to be worn to the beach as you repeated multiple times, they are fully socially accepted attire for any day-to-day situation (at least, in North America). Now, the logic behind wearing shorts/t-shirts/etc when it's cold, that's a generational issue. Today's youngins (myself included) sacrifice warmth for personal style. It's an image issue that defies logic and comes down to vanity (we don't want to look like this, basically).

In the modern age there is no divide between countries. The internet connects us all and strips us of our customs. Now instead of North America being the so-called melting pot, it has become the entire planet. The trends of North America, the trends of the UK, it's all blending together. In this particular case, it seems that your locale has adopted a custom of ours.

 

[CockroachMan]

I thought this topic was about electronics >_>

Did a google search and found what flip-flips were.. it's common to dress like that over here, but it's hot in here! But in England? WTF?

 

[The_Cylon_Surfer]

t's common to dress like that over here, but it's hot in here! But in England? WTF?

Yes my point exactly.

Today's youngins (myself included) sacrifice warmth for personal style.

In the summer or even in the hotter points in spring I can accept this but when its -5 outside or even below 15 I fail to see how QUOTE

it's because casual equals personal comfort

is in any way shape or form comfortable. And as for personal style...surely if its a 'fad' or 'craz' (I.E. a large group ,from what you state worldwide in local) then surely it falls out of the realms of peronal style....

I am not that old, but I fail to see how this is "cool" in any way apart from the obvious. Surely it has adverse effect of your sex lives and could very easily lead to an embarressing moment in front of a young lady. At least they're not emo's ...I guess.

 

[MADKATZ99]

Your thinking about it too much.

Thongs are easy, and shorts are comfortable.

Not so much of a "WHOA THAT GUYS COOL LETS DO WHAT HES DOING!!!!". well maybe it is, who knows what kind of crazy stuff people do in the UK.

Here wearing shorts and thongs is nothing out of the ordinary.

What do you wear? The alternatives to shorts are what, cargo pants and track pants? Those are both gay. I dont wear anything but shorts and somtimes jeans, no matter what season it is.

It does sound a bit stupid to wear cold clothes in the cold... but I would rather catch a cold than look like a tool wearing somthing like cargo pants.

 

[Bob Evil]

Cylon, trust my reply

Also, the rest of these people aren't in the UK ... they don't see the daft student crap that goes on over here ...

 

[The_Cylon_Surfer]

Also, the rest of these people aren't in the UK ... they don't see the daft student crap that goes on over here ...

this is true...

QUOTEIt does sound a bit stupid to wear cold clothes in the cold... but I would rather catch a cold than look like a tool wearing somthing like cargo pants.

You would look like a 'tool' in the UK wearing shorts November through to May. Thank god for natural selection, we could do with less people like these in the gene pool.

 

[Psyfira]

I have a mate who wore shorts around uni in summer, his knees were a thing of legend

But in Winter? Nah.

 

[MADKATZ99]

You would look like a 'tool' in the UK wearing shorts November through to May. Thank god for natural selection, we could do with less people like these in the gene pool.

Style knows no climate boundarys!

 

[IainDS]

I'm SO doing that next year.

 

[legendofphil]

I have a friend at uni that wears 3/4 lengths all year round. He did wear a pair of full length jeans once and bitch about it all day.
But flip-flops no way.

 

[Little]

Oh its all universities?? Phew, thought it was just mine!! I haven't noticed the London uni students doing it though, but yeah Loughborough students do it lol. But yeah its weird... noticed a few people were jeans and flip flops the other day as well =/ like wtf.

 

[Awdofgum]

Jeans and flip-flops is a huge Florida thing, and I'f I'm not mistaken it is actually a Southern thing.