The Beauty of Plaidurday, and why it's Important

Today is the first Friday of October, which marks the holiday known as Plaidurday. Started four years ago by Yooper afficinado, Bugsy Sailor, it's premise is simple: Wear plaid as a celebration of your love for it. Yet digging past the face value of this "holiday" shows the true importance of it all.

The history of plaid is a surprisingly long one, so much so that is has it's own Wikipedia page dedicated to it. While it's birth and rise to prominence belong to Scotland, it's current foothold belongs to the northern portions of North America, as well as to hipsters all around the world by way of flannel shirts, hats, backpacks, etc. Even the holiday itself is a sign of the growth of plaid. Simply check out Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and you'll see the reach that #Plaidurday has. It's the lumberjack look that is cool and appealing. Personally, I think it's because it represents a strength, endurance, and masculinity; amongst many other things. Yet for many it is simply a "look", or an image they are trying to achieve.

Yoopers or Hipsters? Photo courtesy of here

In the Upper Peninsula it is so much more than that. It is a lifestyle. You, your family, and everyone in between has been rocking that plaid as long as you've been alive. You haven't been wearing it to look cool or because it's trendy. You are wearing it because it's functional for our lifestyle. It suits the needs and day to day grind that is the Upper Peninsula. It is within that sentiment that lies the reason that Plaidurday is important. It is a great commonality of the UP and its people. We don't all like the same sports teams, we all come from different areas and backgrounds, and we for damn sure don't all have the same political ideals. But we all have that favorite flannel. The one that is weathered and oh so cozy. It shows character and carries a history from actual use, not because it came off the rack and was advertised that way. So my friends, when you wear that plaid today wear it with pride, the way your Yooper forefathers have done for decades before you. Because just as the weave of both the pattern of the plaid and the material it's on, Plaidurday weaves us all together. Cheers to the weekend everyone...