A Different [Preppy] Drummer

In Mark Twain's 1897 travelogue, "Following the Equator", he begins with his maxim, "Be good and you will be lonesome."  Now, I'm no English professor (yet), but I take that to mean that if you are well-behaved and tend to conform with the mainstream, you might not be too popular.  In fact, you might be viewed as a one dimensional bore. And that to do things a little differently - to PAVE the road less travelled - you stand a chance to live a better life - rich with a multitude of friends and experiences.

I couldn't agree more.

One thing I've attempted to do in The Cascadian Prep "blog" (really "experiment") this past year is to approach things a little differently than the majority of my Cascadian cousins; to challenge the norm, and, at times, to admonish the mainstream. I have done this all with tongue planted firmly in cheek. And I have done this, hopefully, with a "prep twist." I love "prep" because it's what I grew up with and I'm proud of my upbringing. So naturally, it's the sensibility I've sought in the lovely Pacific Northwest for the past 12 months.  Well, I have been disappointed with what I've found... the hipsters who wear fancy-stitched jeans, untucked dress shirts and black (always black) Euro-trash shoes have really dug in here, as have the hoodie & backward-hat wearing, skater shoes set. "Northwest Prep"... Cascadian Prep may just be for blogs.

I think it boils down to pride - pride in oneself and pride in where one was born and raised. "Original  Prep" (New England) and "Southern Prep" are as distinct and full of pride (not vanity) as their regional dialects and accents. Both of these parts of the country have rich history and deserve to be proud of their traditions. Cascadia, on the other hand, is a region with unparalleled natural beauty, but no distinct regional dialect, accent, traditions or hometown pride... NONE.

So I think to myself, we must be patient; we are the new kids on the block, after all. These things take time; give it another hundred years. But until then, don't be "good". Be a little uncommon... be a little unexpected... be a Cascadian prep!

You Are A Tourist [in your own town] - DCFC

Seersucker in Seattle - GTH Pants?

For God's sake, when does it end? It broke 70° F here yesterday, so in a rapturous moment of summertime cheer, I busted out my Jos. Bank blue seersucker pants. I snuck these new babies into my closet, right under the nose of the Mrs. I found that when I procure new garb, if I can sneak the package off the front porch, get it out of the plastic bag and into my closet undetected, I'm home free. Well, not this time.

"When did you get those?" she asks wryly.
"Oh, I've had them a while. They've just been in the back of the closet." I reply.

"First with those red pants, now with the stripes? Can you say 'mid-life crisis?'"
"No!  I can't say 'mid-life crisis' and I won't, I won't, I won't."

An LA stomach with an Oakland badonkadonk

The rumpled writer in repose

I have to admit, I do, at times, resent living in a region where seersucker pants and jackets are as uncommon as the Oregon Spotted Owl, but come on, why should the South and Eastern Seaboard have all the fun?  And as far as the West Coast goes, California probably encourages seersucker to be worn to their famous garden and poolside parties. So WTF Pugetropolis?

That's OK, I'm wearing them anyway, but I probably will wait until the temperature hits the upper 70's/low 80's, when Cascadians are whining about how oppressively hot it is.  I will wear them when my fellow citizens are so tired and rundown from the heat that they can't muster a smirk or laugh. And if they do manage a chiding laugh, I will respond with a laugh and remember what that favorite of all seersucker-wearing icons - Mark Twain - said. 

 Against the assault of Laughter nothing can stand. - Mark Twain

Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society. - Mark Twain