The function of clothing, first and foremost, is to protect us against the elements. Yesterday’s gloomy weather left many people

unprepared, yet pleasantly surprised. The Daily Wildcat caught up with people on campus to find out how they fared with the erratic Tucson weather.

Photos by Jacob Rader

Kyle Gutierrez, a media arts junior, was comfortable all day in his second-hand sweater, American Apparel undershirt, jeans from Ross and second-hand shoes. His hat was a gift. Gutierrez grabbed his clothes haphazardly from the closet and set off for the day. When he was younger his parents allowed him to dress himself. He would wear cowboy boots with sweatpants and beanies with tank tops.

Valerie Oliphant, an international studies junior, chose her outfit based on her activities for the day. “”I like dance and I thought it was going to be rainy today,”” she says of her black shorts that say “”Dance”” on them and her pink plaid rain boots. She had an inkling that it would be cold outside, so she wore a purple sweater over her tank top and leggings under her shorts, but she was still cold. She finishes off the look in Louis Vuitton sunglasses. She started off her mixing and matching style early. “”When I was younger I would wear two different shoes and two different socks. I thought it was cool. Or I would wear a mini-skirt and a parka.””

Lulu Anderson, a psychology junior, greeted us with a smile that matched her lively outfit. Anderson wears relaxed light blue sweatpants, a gold belt that can be used as a headband or scarf, an embroidered peasant tank top and a bathing suit top under it. Her flats are gold with a gold brooch on top of them. “”Fashion sense just comes easily to me. It’s more of my personality, it just comes out,”” she said. Anderson never thinks about the weather when she is getting dressed and despite the strange weather she was not cold today. “”I usually am cold but I wasn’t today. It’s wonderful. It feels like when you’re on the beach and the sun comes in and out. It’s beautiful.”” Originally from Africa, Anderson moved to the United States when she was 10 years old. “”My mom sewed my own clothes. I would say I get 95 percent of my fashion sense from her.””

Tiffany Lo, a marketing senior, knew it would be cold outside so she wore American Rag jeans. Then her reasoning seemed to waver, thinking that Tucson weather is rarely extremely cold, so she wore a blue camisole with a lace detail. “”Earlier I was cold even though I had a jacket. Then it kind of warmed up,”” Lo said. Her parents used to give her a lot of fashion freedom and Lo remembers wearing a lot of cotton purple shorts when she was younger.