Please ignore my running shoes

One of the many reasons I avoid going through freshman and sophomore year photos is that I inevitably end up regretting it. It’s not that I was fat(ter) back then or that my hairstyle has (marginally) evolved since — it’s the whole package.

I started freshman year with zero fashion sense. To be fair, I’d just graduated from eighth grade, a time when showing up to school with bedhead and a neon orange long-sleeved shirt was totally acceptable.

During freshman year, I combed my hair only sporadically, doing just enough to make sure that I didn’t look like Ted Mosby from “How I Met Your Mother.” On top of that, I wore many bright green shirts, not only because of #FreshmanPower but also because it was the first thing I saw when I opened my closet in the morning.

Sophomore year wasn’t much better: I mostly wore free T-shirts, hoodies and running shorts. I even stopped combing my hair for roughly three months.

Now, at the start of junior year, I’ve decided to try something new. I found a bottle of old hair gel in one of the bathroom drawers. I don’t quite cover my hair with it, à la Cristiano Ronaldo, but I do use enough to make my hair look a bit  more suave.

Of course, my style change only goes so far — I haven’t revamped my wardrobe entirely because that’s too expensive. Instead, I have stolen some of my dad’s unworn clothes.

That’s right. I’ve gone from the “I literally woke up like this” look  to the “I stole this sweater from my dad’s closet” look.

But I still have a problem with my shoes: I’ve always had wide feet, so buying street shoes from Nike or Converse has never really been an option. Plus, because I run cross country and I’m too lazy to bring an extra set of sneakers, I usually just wear my electric blue Asics running shoes to school.

And let’s be honest here: Very few things look cool or “swaggy” with electric blue sneakers.

In short, when you see me walking around campus wearing running shoes with my “I’m a middle-aged dad” clothing, feel free to judge but please do understand my situation. With my inconveniently wide feet and unwillingness to pay good money for clothes, I don’t have many other options.

Above all, I’d prefer it if you just ignore my shoes and allow me to continue dreaming that I look somewhat professional.