According to Gonz: What to Wear

Dear Reader,

Since I have been in Chicago, my relationship to clothes has changed immensely. I have found that I pay a lot more attention to what I choose to wear and it seems that buying or wearing a new outfit seems to just make me feel better. I don't think this classifies me as a shopaholic nor do I believe that I have begun to put more of an importance on material things, but there is something about clothes that just makes you feel good.

Everyone puts some consideration into what they will wear each day and thus everyone has some sort of style. Clothes are such a reflection of who we are and sometimes the first impression we give to others. Yes, it is a bit superficial to judge someone based on what they are wearing, but it is almost inevitable. When see a rough looking man sitting on the street with torn up or stained clothes you most likely think dirty, poor, homeless, maybe you even become sympathetic toward the guy. On the flip side, when you see someone who is in clothes or jewelery that is very expensive you may think rich, successful, stuffy, or even conceited. These judgements are second nature to most people and while we may want to break away from them ourselves, it is still important to consider that the majority of people still have these thoughts. Thus the way we present ourselves is very important.

Perception has played a role in my recent obsession with clothes, but it is due to both an outside and self-perception. While many of my friends know me to be very fun-loving and humble, I am often told that people's first impression of me is that I am very cold or stuck-up. Part of me coming to Chicago was to get away from all the people that I knew and kind of be able to start over. I was not re-inventing myself, it was more like I was finally beginning to be myself, completely and in all situations. One the first things I wanted to change was the horrible first impression that I gave. It is hard to change the way you think or your basic habits or mannerisms, but it is easy to just throw on a different pair of pants or shoes. The arrogant vibe that I give off sometimes is due to shyness and fear of rejection. I used to get made fun of a lot in grade school, so the only way to battle that was to have no reaction, to have no emotion. This is what makes me seem aloof at times. To battle this, I have changed up my wardrobe to include brighter colors and to be honest I just try to have more fun with it all everyday. I think this makes me seem brighter visually and just overall more approachable, but there is something about it that also just makes me feel different. Anytime I am giving any type of presentation, I make sure to wear something that makes me feel comfortable, but more importantly confident. I want to feel like I am the best looking thing walking down the street that day cause it makes me feel like I can take on anything that may come my way. Generally anytime I do just throw on whatever, I feel uncomfortable and off the whole day. It may be that the colors seem very contrary to my mood or that something is just does not seem to fit right that day, almost in an awkward way. I know this may sound silly, but being able to change the way I dress has helped me to slowly change the way I act. And I mean this in a better way. Everyday I try to wear something that makes me feel good about myself, because this makes it easier for me to be myself. This last semester I began to get compliments on the way that I look, sometimes from students not even in my class, and you know what, that makes feel good regardless of how superficial it is.

I hope that one day I can feel as confident on the inside as I am beginning to appear on the outside.

- Gonzalo

ps. Is it just me or does it seem like the days where you put a lot of effort into what you wear you don't see anyone, but the days you dress like a slob to do a quick grocery run, you run into like half of your graduating class? Just wondering....

Today I did a mini-photo study of the different clothes we wear