Caitlin: The KU Graduation ‘Walk of Shame’ Blues

Although I spent Friday and Saturday attending college graduation parties, by Sunday morning—the actual date of KU’s commencement ceremony—the event had somehow slipped my mind.

So on my typical Sunday morning jog, I chuckled as I passed a girl all dolled up, walking barefoot with strappy high-heels in hand. It wasn’t the first time I’d witnessed the walk-of-shame; hung-over girls, faces smeared with leftover mascara, all chagrined and intensely concentrated on the ground as they weave through the chatty churchgoers crowding up their sidewalks. “Really?” the girls think. “At this hour? Go back to bed people, take four liqui-gels and go back to bed.”

Anyway, my theory would have proved true on any other Sunday morning, but it quickly dissolved after a few short steps. As I dodged a car blocking the walkway, a woman appeared…a mother…carrying her daughter’s graduation cap and gown, her proud grin producing a blinding beam.

Duh.

As I learned last May during my own graduation festivities, comfortable attire is key. Lawrence is known for it’s laid-back vibe, so it is no surprise that although personal styles at graduation parties are various, casual clothing reins supreme. Many parties involve backyard bbq, music, beer drinking, and yard games, so clothing must be functional. I mean, you never know when you’ll be challenged to a game of Jumbo Jenga—and trust me folks, it can get dirty…

Still, many of my girlfriends did wear sundresses. “I wore a white dress to my high-school graduation,” said recent KU graduate Katy Clagett. “I chose white for my college graduation dress, too. Seems to be the trend.”

Perhaps it is for new beginnings.

But regardless, most men (as well as American hip-hop duo Atmosphere) will agree: “Every day that gets to pass is a success [and] every woman looks better in a sun dress.”

At the end of the night, crossing Mass Street to head home after one last day of partying, I cut through Pita Pit, where lo and behold, I spotted one more girl holding some uncomfortable looking heels. Only this girl was wearing shoes—her boyfriend’s oversized sneakers that were much too big for her own feet. But, honestly, I can’t say I blame her—no shirt, no shoes, no service—drunk or no, a girl’s gotta eat.