Do not wear jodphurs to a party filled with frat wannabes...

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I have a friend named Walker. He has a very weird passion in life: wearing anachronistic military outfits in places where one would not be expected to do so. He has an extensive collection of American, British and Soviet military uniforms from the early to mid 1900s, as well as pirate gear. He wears these outfits all the time. That would be jarring enough as it is, but he is a little over 6’4", so he REALLY stands out in these uniforms when he wears them in public. The reaction is usually positive, with people of both sexes complimenting him and asking about the clothes.

However, we travel in circles of quirky bohemian hipsters, so that is kind of expected. Last night, though, we went to a party in a massive college apartment complex filled with frat-guy wannabes, where there are a thousand guys named Chad and girls named Amber, Jeep Grand Cherokees everywhere, and loud shitty radio rap blaring from every house. I wouldn’t normally go to a party like this, but I had hoped to see some old high school friends, so off we went.

I was having a decent time, reminescing with some very drunk pals, although the crowd was not my scene at all. I was stunned to see Walker burst through the door in full British East India-style officer garb. Khaki jacket with a leather belt, strap and holster, officer’s cap, jodphur breeches, and knee high leather riding boots. Everyone else in this party was wearing Hollister polo shirts or t-shirts and cargo shorts and had spiked hair. It could not have been a more epic or colossal clash of cultures and values. However, this is the kind of stuff that Walker lives for. He walked right in with a case of Bass Ale and began socializing.

People were taken aback, to say the least. Some people who knew him in high school expressed astonishment at his outfit. One guy in a Navy baseball cap jokingly saluted him (but in a friendly, not mocking, way.) But most of the people at the party merely stared at him, probably both put off by his brash disregard for their collegiate social customs, and intimidated by the idea of someone having the balls to walk into a party like that wearing such a weird outfit. He went and sat down in an anteroom to talk to some people. After a period of time, a very cocky, aggressive looking, short guy wearing a fratty button-up shirt with spiked hair came up to him. “I’m not trying to make fun of you,” he said, “but why are dressed like that? What kind of statement are you trying to make?”

Walker explained that he was simply fascinated by archaic uniforms and that he also liked the way he looked in them. The short guy then said something to the effect of that it was his right to dress however he wanted, but that it was very strange and weird. Then he said, “the problem with this group here is that it’s a fuckin’ sausage fest.”

My friend Joey took that as an insult to Walker, and was also extremely offended by the “sausage fest” comment, and stood up in front of the short guy. Joey is a little over 6’6" and the short guy could not have been more than 5’4". Joey moved right into the guy’s personal space, intimidating him. He said, “you better back off.” Joey moved even closer to the guy, who realized that he was completely outmached, and fled the scene.

The whole incident was bizarre and awkward. Joey does not usually get into it with people over stuff like that, but he was having such a bad time at the party and was so disgusted with the whole scene that he was not going to stand for any kind of disrespect (there was no doubt that the short guy was definitely being disrespectful and challenging in his tone and words.) Moreover, I have never seen such a huge clash of cultures. Walker is not a student at IU, he goes to Oberlin, and he comes from an environment where wearing weird outfits is accepted and admired. I would guess that none of the people at the party had ever had any kind of contact with someone like Walker before, and were very shaken up by his being there. It would be like a punk rocker with a mohawk walking in, but even weirder because at least punk rock is a recognizable subculture.

Anyway, I am through with the college party scene as it is conventionally understood. There is simply not enough open-mindedness, diversity, and tolerance. I’m sure I sound like an elitist snob, but I just ready to move on in my social life. This is a time for broadening my horizons, intellectually and socially. High school is over. There’s no reason to continue it in college.

2

OK, before someone calls me out on this, let me explain that I myself do not think that Walker is in the wrong for wearing his outfits. I called it “weird,” but it’s weird in a good kind of way, a creative and unique way that I admire.

Furthermore, I’m not going to stop going to parties, as my final paragraph might lead you to believe - I’m just not going to those kind of parties. I could elaborate, but I think you know what I mean by “those kind of parties.” Let’s just say they’re the kind of places where the word “faggot” gets thrown around a lot.

3

I never really went to any parties during college except for a very drunken Frosh week. After doing it for a while, the whole get-drunk-till-you-pass-out-or-puke (or both!) routine gets very very old. It was tough, because I grew out of it sooner than most of my friends, who would harrass me all the time to go out and have “fun”.

Welcome to grownup world! Start throwing your own parties. (Jodphurs optional)

But really, you

4

Oops.

Let’s finish that with:

But really, you have to expect that a guy dressed in strange old uniforms is going to get some funny looks and comments. Even more true when he’s surrounded by drunken immature macho types.

5

What’s a “sausage fest?”

6

I think that is a reference to the male/female ratio being out of balance, i.e. too many guys. I have a wonderful vision of Walker looking fabulous in his uniform, being tall, stately and with the proper mannerisms and shorty fratty ooking like an oompa loompa, trying desperately to find a girl who is no less than 3" shorter than him so she can still wear heels without messing with his ego.

I kinda hoped that Walker had gone all British Colonial on him.

Some stories just don’t end how you want them to.

7

How on earth was this:

“disrespectful” to your friend? It seems to me to be a general comment on the party as a whole.

I doubt anyone was “very shaken” with him being there, they probably just wondered why someone needed to call that much attention to themselves, and if it was some stunt to get girls. I guess maybe that explains the “sausage fest” comment, but even then I don’t see that as “disrespectful”, just saying “dude, it might work but there aren’t enough girls here.”

No offense to you, but between “Walker” and this “Joey” guy who’s looking for a fight, it sounds like your friends are somewhat sadly attention-starved and angry at the world.

8

I agree. I don’t see an insult here (except maybe an insult to the senses (I hate uniforms)). You’ve got to expect to attract attention, both good and bad, when you choose to buck tradition.

9

That sums up my feelings, and I say that because I have been in that state of mind before. I understand they are your friends and all, but there was no cause to physcially intimidate someone whos no taller than 5 ft 4 inches especially when he tried to go out of his way to specify he’s not trying to be insulting. What if I walked around wearing a pink puppy dog hat and anyone who came up to ask me about it got socked in the face by one of my friends? Would you consider that to be ok? Truthfully, you and your friends are lucky you didn’t get mobbed when your friend tried to take it to the next level, it was after all their party.

And trust me that is not a clash of cultures, that’s a bunch of college kids imbibing alcohol. Shit like that happens all the time, a true clash of cultures is something to behold.

If you guys were having such a horrible time why didn’t you leave before something like that happened? Surely you were getting a bad vibe, you should have followed your intuition. My opinion of course, and know that I’m not blaming you for the incident.

10

Let me add I don’t see anything wrong with the OP’s friend dressing like he does, and if he was an entertaining guy I’d happily invite him to a party, uniform or not. But the circumstances as related in the OP sound like some large part of the story was left out, because I just can’t draw the same conclusions at all that the OP does, or see his friend “Joey” intimidating someone over the comment (which seems directed at something only perpendicularly related) as being reasonable.

11

I think by “sausage fest” the guy meant that the breeches were showing off Walker’s attributes in a way that he (being immature and jealous and plagued with a fear that his penis was small) could not deal with. Perhaps he’d heard females commenting on it, and maybe one or two of them were catty about it because they figured they didn’t have a shot at that particular sasuage. So, the frat boy took it upon himself to defend the females" delicate sensibilities. :rolleyes:

12

Chalk me up as another one who doesn’t see the disrespect in the “sausage fest” comment, although I do kind of roll my eyes over Frat Boy’s complete bafflement concerning the OP’s friend’s choice of costume. When I was about twenty, I showed up at the Rolling Rock Hunt to meet some friends wearing a Panama hat, a ruffled shirt and bow tie, and carriying a silver-headed walking stick, and caused great consternation amongst my peers, despite my having thought it was an excellent choice of costume for such a hoity-toity event.

I therefore find the idea of wearing early twentieth-century military uniforms as one’s regular street clothing interesting and highly amusing (as for the pirate gear, wasn’t there a character in the movie Dodgeball who did that?), but really, one would think the person wearing the outift would be used to a hearing a bit of comment on it. A lot of people seem to interpret such modes of dress as somehow taking the piss out of them, and get upset about it. They’re wrong, of course, but it’s not totally unexpected behavior.

As for the shocking, shocking discovery by the OP that a large number of college students are actually pretty conservative and routinely display herd behavior, well, who knew?

13

Well, the “sausagefest” comment could be taken to mean that the breeches were indecently tight and should not be worn in public after all. I did an image search for jodphurs to try to remember what they looked like, and the first image I got was of skin tight riding breeches.

14

Clarifying, I do not myself agree with frat boy. I could see how immature people might be intimidated/upset at the sight of a fit male body in tight pants though.

15

Comes from the “American Pie” sequel in which the guys throw a big party at their beachfront house, but realize that only guys are attending. The house is filled with horny college boys, but there are only one or two girls, prompting Stiffler to coin the phrase, “sausage fest.”

The method used to attract chicks to the party is, in my view, one of the moments that separate the “American Pie” movies from the baser party-sex romps like “Porky’s” and that gawd-awful “Van Wilder.”

16

I’ve heard the term used to describe male ballet dancers or other males in skin tight pants too though.

17

As others have said, there was no insult here, and your friend Joey acted like a moron.

As for Walker, if he likes wearing his uniforms, then more power to him.

18

Condescend much?

You and your friends drop by a party you “wouldn’t normally go to,” your friend (who doesn’t even go to that school, much less hang out with that crowd) has a few words with one of the other guests, then your other friend steps in and wants to pound on someone who’s a foot shorter.

Your friend Walker is an attention whore, your friend Joey is either an asshole and a bully, or becomes one when he has too much to drink and you whine about open-mindedness.

I think the college party scene can bear the loss.

19

You also claim they were “intimidated” by your friend Walker.

Rather then being “Shaken up” and “intimidated,” maybe they just thought he was weird or insane. You’re attributing a level of influence to your friend Walker as some sort of huge threat to the “Frat boys” that he simply doesn’t have. If you try to look weird, don’t be surprised if people think you look weird. Someone who deliberately draws attention to themselves by assuming a bizarre appearance has no right to complain when people say “you look bizarre,” which is all, really, that anyone did.

Your other friend Joey is just a contemptible asshole. He wasn’t interested in defending Walker, he was just looking for a reason to pick on someone smaller than he was.

At least Walker didn’t wear a pirate outfit, though, which is just pathetic. That is so three years ago. The whole “Arrrr, I’m a pirate!” thing is really worn out.

20

I don’t know Walker, but I don’t see anything in the recounting where it shows him to be an attention whore. I dressed wierd in high school and still would if I could get away with it in adult life. Dressing all rebelious and going out to picket places that do animal testing or whatever is being an attention whore, not giving a fuck what people think and dressing in the clothes you want to wear is not giving a fuck about what people think and living your life the way you want to. That may not be true for Walker, but there’s no reason to think otherwise until we find out different.