Friday, January 29, 2010

cold weather prompts...

I went for a run this morning. I felt like the negative degrees in Celsius warranted long pants and a warm hoodie. Unfortunately, with my boyish haircut and a baseball cap, this made me look like a prepubescent boy trying out for the middle school cross country team. While I'm sure I got some double-takes because of gender-confusion, I did not get honks by guys in trucks, which I appreciated. I know that I shouldn't take shelter in the fact that I am hijacking social stereotypes to escape my issues with the way society views the female race... but ah, I do.

I was talking with a close friend of mine, and she revealed that she felt like the girls of her pledge class melded into one person. Not talking about humans trying to achieve portmanteau, she was addressing the fact that these women, probably of different personalities and backgrounds, were buying into the social ideal of looking a certain way. They looked like clones.

Of course, this brings up the question about UVA "culture." Does the typical UVA man wear penguin-studded shorts, Northface outerwear, sunglasses holder, and a UVA baseball cap backwards? How come I am attracted to anything that walks in something other than salmon-colored slacks and boat shoes? Will I ever understand why UVA girls seem to reach a consensus that Northface and Uggs are the way to go?

The answers to these questions are up to you, me, and every UVA student here on Grounds. For example, I do not wear Northface and Uggs. I have friends who do not wear Northface and Uggs. In fact, they don't know what Northface and Uggs, and they happen to be from out of the country, where Northface and Uggs are just not known. The fact that UVA also includes these friends and me, as well, answers these question. I am also a UVA woman.

The UVA Men's Basketball Team lost yesterday. Apparently they shot one in in the last seconds of the game, and went into overtime. Unfortunately, that is where they lost. We're still number four in our league! Go, Hoos, go!