Why do so many people wear shorts in the wintertime now? I’m serious. I realize it won’t be winter for a few months. But it still has me perplexed. Fashion statement? And aren’t they still cold? Just to be clear, I am seeing people with winter jackets, winter hats, even the occasional scarf. And shorts! (Also, FWIW, I live in Detroit. But I see it on TV for other places too [like New York, for example].)
BTW as long as I am asking this, I feel compelled to share story. Back in 1997 (when I was still quite young;)), I was taking a comparative religions class in a local community college. And I had this somewhat older, but still rather hippie, I would say, teacher. Sarah Mclachlan’s Building a Mystery was on the charts at the time. And one lyric said ‘You wear sandals in the snow…’. Anyways, my teacher did wear sandals I noticed. But would he wear them in the snow, I wondered. One day, after a storm I suppose, I got my answer. He wore sandals-in-the-snow–but with socks! Is that cheating?
My wife and I work at a high school in Vermont. Every winter, all winter, idiot kids wear shorts to school. You’d think parents or administration would not let that happen, but apparently it’s so ingrained in the culture here that nobody cares.
One day it was hella cold, windy, and snowing like a bitch, a basic Vermont winter day. I saw a student I knew walking to school, wearing shorts. When I crossed paths with him later I asked why he was wearing shorts. He just tells me that his people have lived in Vermont for 12 generations and the cold doesn’t bother them. When I pointed out that he was adopted and didn’t know who his parents really were or where they were from, he just shrugged and walked away.
Some other kids will say they wear shorts in the winter because the building is too hot, while they try to open the windows and turn on fans which just pisses off normal people who are actually cold.
One time a girl wouldn’t shut up about how hot she was, in June. So I finally told her to just take her super heavy sweatshirt off, but she couldn’t since she wasn’t wearing anything underneath it.
I think the answer is simply that some people are idiots, and they do stupid shit.
I as an adult have been known to go out with shorts on in the winter to the grocery store which is right near me. I wear a coat and just dash in and out from my car. For regular trips during the winter I wear pants/sweat pants. I have seen the same - mostly from guys - traveling to and from the gym. I suspect like me they have a pair of sweats in their gym bags in case of emergency.
Having said that it is almost always kids who I see doing this. They may be returning from a sporting activity with family and just didn’t change. And i have also seen them outside in the cold waiting for the bus in shorts.
I have asked parents I know about this and they have basically acknowledged the stupidity but claim that they have to “pick their battles”with their kids.
Personally I think it is a generational thing as no parents I know would willingly allow their kids to leave the house in the winter with shorts on.
Do any other 50 + year olds agree with this?
In the defense of the younger generation, when I was younger playing basketball outside in the summer I had some friends who would show up in jeans and if a real game got going would play in their boxer short underwear and no one batted an eye. Not me though.
If my core and feet are kept warm, it doesn’t seem like too big of a deal. I don’t wear shorts that often really, but if it’s over 40 degrees F out, and I’m just doing errands, it’s no problem.
It’s 40 degrees out now, but will probably get up to 70. I just have a few errands to run. So I may wear shorts, hiking boots and a fleece top. Fashion isn’t my thing.
I used to see a guy on the way to work in Anchorage in winter, not only wearing shorts, but riding his bike in the snow. On top of that, he was elderly, with a long white beard. His skin was always bright red from the cold, but he soldiered on.
“If the high temperature will be below 50, or the morning temperature is below 40, you HAVE to wear Long pants to school. I’m not going to get a call from Child Protective Services for not properly dressing my son”
That was the rule when my youngest was in elementary school. We finally solved the problem at that time by purchasing the pants with zippers at the knees.
I have a photo of him that was taken when he was in college: 37 degrees and raining. He is riding his unicycle to class with his backpack on his back, holding an umbrella over his head. He is also the only person in the photo wearing shorts.
Here’s the other part of that equation, once someone has acclimated to wearing shorts in the winter, it’s uncomfortable to use anything warmer. If I go with insulated pants I feel not only too warm but my temperature balance becomes off. I feel too hot and too cold in different parts. During winter hiking trips I needed to strip down to shorts and t-shirt and get cold to reestablish my temperature equilibrium, at which time I could start insulating my core to warm up properly. Apparently my body has learned to shed heat through my legs and depends on that system of shunting excess heat to them expecting that heat to go away.
Some people can get used to it and be fine and comfortable as long as one’s core is covered. While I rarely use shorts in the winter, I do usually use light pants that most would assume should be summer only. I can also often go without gloves well into the teens or below while skiing. It perhaps has do do with the time people spend outdoors in winter conditions.
If nobody else cares, I’m wondering why you care? Why do you think it’s any of your business?
If they were cold they’d wear something else. The fact is, you don’t really get cold if you wear shorts - try it! Are they complaining about the cold? No. Are they getting ill? No. So why be insulting? Let them wear what they want to.
For many centuries people in the Scottish Highlands wore kilts all through winter, and went barefoot as well most of the year. In England from the mid-19th to mid-20th centuries upper-class schoolboys wore shorts and short coats all through winter.
It seems to be a non-issue unless you’re a grumpy curmudgeon looking for something to complain about.
I wear shorts a lot in cold weather. I prefer shorts because they are more comfortable, and my legs don’t really get cold. My upper body and arms get cold much easier than my legs, so I’m one of those people you will see with long sleeve shirt, maybe a coat, and shorts.
If I’m just running to the store, even if pretty cold I’ll still do that. If I’m going to be walking around an outdoor mall in December, then I’ll throw on pants when it’s in the 30’s.
I wear shorts in the winter when we’ve had sub-zero temps then a rise into the upper twenties. I do this because I’m comfortable. To me, shorts/t-shirt and a hoodie is fine in 25-35 F weather.
I am personally much more comfortable in shorts than long pants, anytime anywhere. I find pretty much any building on earth to hot for long pants to be comfortable, and would much rather be in shorts. I also am perfectly fine in shorts outside down to 35 degrees or so, if calm and dry weather otherwise. between 35 and 0, I notice the cold, but it takes at least 5 minutes before it bothers me in anyway.
What it all adds up to is that if I am going to the store or a restaurant, and I know 98% of my time will be inside, or in a car, the shorts are much more comfortable. When I am allowed to wear shorts at work, and the parking is reasonably close, I’ll wear shorts there too.
I naturally run hotter than most people. An air-conditioned home at 74 degrees (F) is downright broiling to me; mine is usually at about 68. So that’s one reason.
For another, I’m never outside in the winter for more than a few seconds - between my door and my car, between my car and the door to where I’m going, that’s it.
Third, I just don’t like clothing touching my skin, and AFAIAC, less is more. Shorts are more comfortable than pants. FWIW, I wouldn’t wear shoes, ever, if Western culture didn’t have its head so far up its own ass about bare feet.
I wear shorts (and sandals) whenever appropriate all year as well. Back in high school in upstate NY, we had outdoor activities in t-shirt and shorts when it was 38 degrees and above. Even had shirts vs skins.
Good times in The Army. I could handle formation calisthenics in sweats/hoodie in the winter time, but when it was time to do some running I was the only one who tossed the sweat suit and ran in T-shirt & shorts no matter what the temperature.
If I’m working hard/working out I just don’t get cold, and I hate hate HATE having stuff gripping my legs & feet. Yes, that means I find pants, socks, and shoes uncomfortable and wear them only when I have to. So with my legs never feeling cold and me not liking things touching them anyway, I’m in shorts pretty much year round unless I’m dealing with a blizzard. I’m sure it looks a little odd sometimes to see bare legs in cold weather, but what’s even weirder is questioning someone’s intelligence just because they aren’t a sissy. (Not aimed at Jim B.)
