This past summer was Berkeley’s coldest summer season in the past 25 years. As the rest of the country and most of California basked in the sun, the East Bay refused to warm up with windy breezes and gloomy fog. In a recent YouTube presentation, California Institute for Water Resources researcher David Swain said that he expects the temperatures in August and September to be unusually warm in the East Bay, as the summer warmth closer to the coast may just be taking longer to get here because of coastal winds blowing warmer water off the coast. The high-pressure system that typically brings warmer weather was misplaced this summer, sitting over the Pacific Northwest and California instead, revealing the culprit for the windy cloudy days.
As Berkeley High School opens its doors back up to its over-3000 students, new fashion trends come in as well, one of the biggest being the rise of the flip-flops – whether they are Rainbows or knockoffs from Sports Basement, flip-flops can be seen in every hallway you walk in. Emma Candler, a BHS junior, said, “Wearing flip-flops to school makes me feel summery and free.” Candler said she started to opt for her Rainbows after she lost her Birkenstocks, which are another popular shoe brand when going sockless at BHS. “I think people are starting to feel more comfortable dressing differently at school, and showing more as we get older. I don’t see any freshmen wearing (flip-flops) but I feel like we’re more comfortable with this school because we know it better, so people start to wear flip-flops because they feel more comfortable,” BHS junior Manon Turpin said.
Benjamin Vu, a BHS junior, started a tradition called “Flip-flop Fridays” where his friend group will all wear flip-flops. Vu said he and his friend began wearing flip-flops in sophomore year. “It was very ridiculed at the time, but people are starting to accept it now,” Vu said. Simon Spinrad, a BHS junior, said he enjoys wearing flip-flops and “feeling free, especially my toes, it’s really nice especially on a hot day.” Spinrad noted that he used to wear flip-flops all the time outside of school. He said,“I’ve been wearing them forever … I never wore flip-flops to school until it became socially acceptable. I feel like as soon as some boys had their feet out on the bulletin, it was safe, it was free,” Spinrad said. “I just want to create a space where everyone is okay with wearing flip-flops and showing off their feet,” Vu said.
Alex Sokulsky, a BHS senior, explained that flip flops were more popular as a fashion trend last year than this year. However, on the contrary, she observed that wearing flip flops is far more normalized this year than in previous years. “I feel like more people were in flip flops last year, really. And I mean, people are definitely talking about it more last year (than) this year. I feel … it's on the rise, but it's also like, people don't think about it as much. It's just like, oh yeah. It's just more normal,” Sokulsky said.
In addition to looking good, Sokulsky enjoys wearing flip flops for their ease, versatility, and overall dynamic functionality. “I think a lot of times it's a lot of work to wear real shoes. And then today, I was actually not planning to wear flip flops, and then I have a really big blister … so then I just put (on) my flip-(flops),” Sokulsky said.