The slovenly look is no longer verboten

To be frank, this inexorable trend to favor a much more casual, if not swinish, approach to donning duds is not entirely unfortunate. Your correspondent has never been accused of being a candidate for the cover of GQ.

To be brutally honest, my closet contains a number of remnants from the Clinton administration. During a recent search for discards worthy of Goodwill, several pairs of fraying, gray Fruit of the Looms that had the earmarks of the pre-flip phone era were discovered.

These delicates are now being used to help wash and wax our soiled vehicle. But I digress.

It’s fair to state that no one has done more to make “dressing down” more acceptable than John Fetterman, a Democratic senator from the state of Pennsylvania.

Fetterman, a large, lumbering individual, prefers to wear shorts and a sweatshirt while working on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. He has been doing so consistently, although his colleagues have lately come up with a dress code that will limit his wardrobe selections on the floor of that august legislative body.

His hulking presence has become something of a fashion statement, although it has been noted that his own personal medical issues may have a bearing on his choice of clothing.

Still, his appearance, for better or worse, has opened a door of acceptance for those of us who shun coat and tie like a raging rash.  

ARAGON’S DEBUT CLASS REUNITES: Back in the day, when public schools were sprouting regularly along the Peninsula like lilacs in the spring as enrollments rose dramatically throughout the region, students had to learn to be flexible.

Campus-switching was common as new schools opened their doors. The 60-year reunion of Aragon High School’s Class of 1963, the first in school history, is a case in point.

As freshmen in 1959-60, most of them attended San Mateo High. After one more semester there, they moved southwest to the newly-opened Aragon facilities along Alameda de las Pulgas.

Those graying graduates will celebrate their milestone this week, from Friday through Sunday, with activities centered at the Grand Bay Hotel in Redwood Shores.

Some of their one-time San Mateo classmates are expected to attend the festivities, according to Phil Abrams, chairman of the Aragon reunion committee. Happy anniversary.

HIGH SCHOOL ENROLLMENT DATA: The construction of Aragon High was a reminder of San Mateo County’s Baby Boom enrollment surge that lasted through the 1960s. Then the pupil numbers began to ease off — a lot.

Plummeting enrollment figures finally required the closure of more than 50 public schools. Four of them were high schools: Ravenswood in East Palo Alto; Crestmoor in San Bruno; Serramonte in Daly City; and San Carlos.

What follows are last year’s official enrollments for the county’s 17 comprehensive public high schools:

Menlo-Atherton, 2,369; Carlmont, 2,322; Sequoia, 1,937; Hillsdale, 1,858; Aragon, 1,749; San Mateo, 1,691; Woodside, 1,696; Burlingame, 1,480.

Westmoor, 1,302; South San Francisco, 1,262; El Camino, 1,183; Mills, 1,153; Jefferson, 1,133; Capuchino, 1,087; Half Moon Bay, 1,011; Terra Nova, 735; Oceana, 533.

NINI’S VENUE SLATED TO REOPEN: Word on the street is that the former Nini’s Coffee Shop, located on the San Mateo/Burlingame border one block west of Highway 101, is preparing to reopen as the Kiki Bakery/Cafe before the end of this year.

Referring to Nini’s (a go-to diner for more than a half-century), one of its ex-chefs is offering his signature home-fried spuds, among other treats, at Johnny’s First Toast on El Camino Real, just south of 12th Avenue, in San Mateo.

GYM CONSTRUCTION IS DELAYED: Construction on a new gymnasium/fitness center at Burlingame High School has been delayed due to issues with architectural drawings required by the state of California.

A completion date is not anticipated until March of 2025 at the earliest, according to an email from the San Mateo Union High School District.

Email: johnhorganmedia@gmail.com.