Weather in Utah can definitely make it hard to differentiate when it is actually time to bust out the spring clothes.

There is always a transitional period between cool winter-wear and spring attire. As I’m sure some of you may have noticed, this is a tricky situation in the way our weather goes. This is only tricky because one does not want to be caught out in public in the wrong attire for the current weather condition. Even worse than the social awkwardness that comes from this is the actual repercussions of wearing shorts and flip-flops when the leftovers of a cold winter wind pick up.

I do not know what would be worse: being out in the spring sun in winter bundle-up wear, or being caught on a random winter day in spring tank tops. There are obvious drawbacks in not wearing enough clothes to keep you warm on a pre-spring day, but the drawbacks for wearing winter clothes on a spring day are little more personal. Sweating. That is the drawback. You think the day seems cold because you’ve made the mistake of taking a morning class and didn’t know that the sun was going to come out and turn campus into the desert town from “Rango.” Then you begin to sweat underneath your long sleeves and start to feel like the high noon in the summertime. There is nowhere to go after you’ve started smelling like a summer bum in winter.

We all have that one friend who protests the winter by bringing out their spring clothes way too early. If they wake up and the sun so much as peeks past the inversion, they are in Daisy Dukes and spaghetti straps. And when it does finally get cold that day, the friend will simply say they are on strike of winter, because that’s how the weather works. If we all wear spring clothes long enough in protest, it will soon become spring.

I think my favorite weather-transitional outfits would be the ones that incorporate both winter and spring. For example, at the grocery store the other day, I was buying treats when I saw a girl in shorts and a sweatshirt. I assume when she got dressed she felt it was sunny enough to show some leg, but still wintery enough that she should keep her body warm. Another example would be the tank top/winter scarf combination. Note how I mentioned “winter” scarf, not hipster scarf that is suitable year-round as long as you thrifted it before it was cool. Now, this outfit is great to show that you are not only ready for the incoming summer weather, but that you understand that you live in Utah and the weather could take a cold nosedive at any minute.

At one time, I think someone tried to fix the confusion of winter-to-spring wear by making those zip-off pants that then become shorts. Brilliant idea that was! That way, you can avoid the socially awkward moment of not being appropriately dressed while simultaneously making a completely different awkward moment when you meets eye with a stranger mid-zipping your pant leg off.

When it all comes down to it, the best bet is to not see this time of year as either winter or spring, but light-jacket weather. Jackets are amazing transitional wear. If the sun decides to shine for a minute in the day, you can just take the jacket off and stow it away in your backpack until the inevitable moment when the sky turns dark and winter air lingers again.

Whether you’re holding on to the comfort of winter wear or protesting the cold with spring tops and shoes, keep it classy, Weber State, with a light jacket.