Why do kids dress for June when it's January?

[The Straight Story]

Why do kids dress for June when it's January?

NEW YORK -- Among the great spectacles of winter, along with the northern lights and frozen lakes, are coatless kids.

No coat, no gloves? No prob!

These teens and tweens are chillin' out, literally and figuratively, in their sweatshirts and kicks. Maybe a boy will accessorize with a baseball cap, and a girl might choose stylish boots - but nothing weatherproof, please! Some boys even wear shorts year-round, and many parents say they've given up the fight.

For example, Jack Rogers, 12, of Fishers, Ind., was wearing shorts last week. "I know lots of kids who do that," he said.

His grandma doesn't understand. "It's 15 degrees. Why doesn't he have a coat on him?" she asked.

"I told her, 'I have to pick and choose my battles,'" recalled Jack's mom, Shelley Rogers Landes. "I need to let him make decisions that really are inconsequential at the end of day."

In a telephone interview, Jack explained his reasons for dressing light in winter: "Coats are just a hassle, putting it all on. It makes me bulky. I just like to be in short sleeves."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/03/AR2011010302833.html