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Salute Your Shorts
Cinco de Mayo this year happens to coincide with No Pants Day, the one day of the year when it's actually appropriate -- encouraged, even -- for all of us who aren't Leslie to stroll around downtown in your skivvies. What's the idea behind it all? Not a whole lot, other than seeing huge crowds of "students, respectable businessmen, or cherished community leaders" showing off their ghaostly thighs. Also, they're hoping that you'll "take your drab, wretched life a little less seriously, at least for one day."
Thanks, No Pants Organizers!
And what's a holiday without theme songs! The tracks below were posted on the No Pants myspace:
Sara Hamman - I Wish it Were No Pants Day [mp3]
Wally Pleasant - No Pants Day Anthem [mp3]
Jerm Pollet - Will You Be My Date on No Pants Day? [mp3]
Stinky del Negro - No Pants Day [mp3]
A few selections from the Official Q&A, after the jump.
So I can wear a skirt instead? or "Hey, no problem, I was gonna wear a dress anyways!"
You're very clever, but you're missing the point. Articles of clothing like skirts, shorts, kilts, and dresses don't count, because people are encouraged to revel in the absence of pants, and not replace pants with other clothing. The point is to relax and enjoy the humor inherent in people not wearing pants. A good rule of thumb is to pretend like you were going to wear pants, and then just fail to put them on.
How long has this been going on?
No one knows for sure how long No Pants Day has been celebrated... some reports place it as early as '85/'86, but for all we know it started long before then. We've been actively promoting No Pants Day for 5 years now, ourselves. If anyone has any concrete evidence or tales of earlier celebrations, please let us know at info@nopantsday.com.
Did you know that in Britain "pants" means underwear? Shouldn't it be No Trousers Day instead?
Hmmm.. this holiday could be extremely interesting in Britain, then. But seriously, No Pants Day just sounds catchier, doesn't it? And besides, this gives British people something to mention when you bring up the holiday around them. They laugh and say, "In Britain, 'pants' means...." etc, etc, and they feel good for being the center of attention. So bully for them!
