No birthday present with your card? No prom dress?

The Scientist wrote:

Reepicheep-chan wrote:

Homecoming dress, guys! A ~Prom Dress~ and a ~Homecoming Dress~ are two completely different things!!

As a non-American, I have no idea what the difference is. Or are you being ironic?

The hipster glasses on her avatar should have tipped you off.

At least in my part of the US, there are no appreciable differences between a homecoming dress and a prom dress. YMMV, depending on region, though.

rae wrote:

The Scientist wrote:

Reepicheep-chan wrote:

Homecoming dress, guys! A ~Prom Dress~ and a ~Homecoming Dress~ are two completely different things!!

As a non-American, I have no idea what the difference is. Or are you being ironic?

The hipster glasses on her avatar should have tipped you off.

At least in my part of the US, there are no appreciable differences between a homecoming dress and a prom dress. YMMV, depending on region, though.

Silly, silly people. Don't you know that the prom dress has to be more fancy then homecoming? Or at least cost more money?


Ignoring the fact that this might be more a thing between the father and mother then the kids, who REALLY can sue their parents for how they parented you? Is there a case of it happening and the kids winning? I know there are cases of being named an adult so you don't have to be with them anymore, but does anyone know of a case in which they managed to get money out of the parent?

bleachedblackcat wrote:

Silly, silly people. Don't you know that the prom dress has to be more fancy then homecoming? Or at least cost more money?

Haha, yeah you can go to homecoming every year, but you only get one prom. So unless you are in the homecoming court, the prom dress is typically a nicer dress.

Actually I just made that post because I was getting irritated at the title saying 'prom' dress when the article says 'homecoming' dress, and as such felt compelled to make a post making fun of myself for giving a shit. IDK, is that irony? Because if it is I am better at being a hipster than I thought.

Really though I am not real hipster at all, I just appropriate the parts of hipster culture I like best.

Reepicheep-chan wrote:

Really though I am not real hipster at all, I just appropriate the parts of hipster culture I like best.

ilu for this

And yeah, it seems that it is a regional thing. Of course, in my area, the availability of dresses was fairly limited since it was a rural town. I don't think anyone actually bought a dress, unless they already had another purpose picked out for it. A few people (like me) made at least one dress, and no one was shocked.

Geez, people will sue for any reason now.

rae wrote:

ilu for this

<3

I wish I was skilled enough to make my own dress in highschool, my mother made my prom dress.

Well, since Homecoming happens in the fall, and Prom in the spring, there is a stylistic difference between the dresses half the time for that reason alone. Homecoming tends to mean a more casual/formal style, like a ballerina-length skirt, and a little less fancy. Nails are done, hair is done, but not necessarily by a stylist. The dress may be worn to several dances. Winter Formal of course means a long dress, in a blue, black, or silvery color, though purple is also acceptable. Warm colors that were acceptable for Homecoming are not okay for Winter Formal.

Prom, on the other hand, is a much bigger occasion. It is a seniors-only event, unless a senior asks you, and is kind of an emotional wreck for some people, since it's their last school event before graduation. The dress is picked out months beforehand, the accessories match it, the shoes cause hours of agonizing decisions, and your appointment at the salon is made months in advance, because every place is booked within a month of the date. (Most schools in an area have prom on the same night) For a lot of couples, this is kind of their ending note, since a lot of people leave after high school.

So, really, throwing a fit over a Homecoming dress in the first place kind of confuses me. Now, if football is a big deal in this area, Homecoming takes on more importance, since Homecoming is directly linked to the football season. (It is still not as big as Prom) And a Big Damn Deal is made by all, especially if you have the honor of being a football player's date and your team had a good season. Maybe she was a football player's date?

bleachedblackcat wrote:

Ignoring the fact that this might be more a thing between the father and mother then the kids, who REALLY can sue their parents for how they parented you? Is there a case of it happening and the kids winning? I know there are cases of being named an adult so you don't have to be with them anymore, but does anyone know of a case in which they managed to get money out of the parent?

I've dealt with one person who thought there should be, at any rate: a self-proclaimed Libertarian on the JREF fora who quite seriously maintained that all child abuse laws should be repealed, that parents should be allowed to do anything (short of murder or catastrophic brain injury) to their children ... but that the children should, on reaching majority, be legally entitled to sue for damages. Because money makes everything all right. (Assuming the parent had any.)

Cactus Wren wrote:

I've dealt with one person who thought there should be, at any rate: a self-proclaimed Libertarian on the JREF fora who quite seriously maintained that all child abuse laws should be repealed, that parents should be allowed to do anything (short of murder or catastrophic brain injury) to their children ... but that the children should, on reaching majority, be legally entitled to sue for damages. Because money makes everything all right. (Assuming the parent had any.)

Yet another "nifty" idea that would help make society an every-man-for-himself hell if it were put into practice. The Libertarians have got hundreds of 'em.

bleachedblackcat wrote:

Ignoring the fact that this might be more a thing between the father and mother then the kids, who REALLY can sue their parents for how they parented you? Is there a case of it happening and the kids winning? I know there are cases of being named an adult so you don't have to be with them anymore, but does anyone know of a case in which they managed to get money out of the parent?

Hmm, child actors? There's been a few cases where parents have squandered a child's income from a commercial / movie instead of putting it into into something reasonable like college (or not touching it at all, since technically, it isn't their money). Not sure if the kids won anything back.

Sakurelf wrote:

bleachedblackcat wrote:

Ignoring the fact that this might be more a thing between the father and mother then the kids, who REALLY can sue their parents for how they parented you? Is there a case of it happening and the kids winning? I know there are cases of being named an adult so you don't have to be with them anymore, but does anyone know of a case in which they managed to get money out of the parent?

Hmm, child actors? There's been a few cases where parents have squandered a child's income from a commercial / movie instead of putting it into into something reasonable like college (or not touching it at all, since technically, it isn't their money). Not sure if the kids won anything back.

That's happened a lot to child stars--they earn the money, the parents spend it, and the kid is left with nothing (some famous examples include Gary Coleman, Macaulay Culkin, and Jackie Cooper). In cases like that, the parents deserve to be taken to court. This case, however, sounds a lot more like whining. Parents don't owe their children gifts (it's nice to get them, but if you don't, such is life) or homecoming dresses. There were more serious allegations, like the mom slapping the boy on the head, but most of this suit just sounds really frivolous.

This is perhaps the most frivolous lawsuit I've heard of. And I've heard of one where a man continually ate 5 Big Macs a day and then sued McDonald's for making him obese.

But what is this Homecoming gig? What's it for?

Your mom.

The Scientist wrote:

But what is this Homecoming gig? What's it for?

Didn't I just say that it is tied in with football? The Homecoming dance happens after the homecoming game, generally the last game played on home ("homecoming") soil. A Homecoming Court is elected, with a King and Queen (Or in the case of my junior year, a queen and a queen, the school's Golden Couple). The Court consists of all the runner-ups, called Princes and Princesses. The football players are the "heroes" of the dance, if they had a good season, and getting to be a date for one of them is a big deal to a lot of people, though in some schools the football players always escort the cheerleaders before joining up with their actual dates.

It happens in October, sometimes November. Generally not though, since Winter Formal is in early December.

Lapin wrote:

The Scientist wrote:

But what is this Homecoming gig? What's it for?

Didn't I just say that it is tied in with football? The Homecoming dance happens after the homecoming game, generally the last game played on home ("homecoming") soil. A Homecoming Court is elected, with a King and Queen (Or in the case of my junior year, a queen and a queen, the school's Golden Couple). The Court consists of all the runner-ups, called Princes and Princesses. The football players are the "heroes" of the dance, if they had a good season, and getting to be a date for one of them is a big deal to a lot of people, though in some schools the football players always escort the cheerleaders before joining up with their actual dates.

It happens in October, sometimes November. Generally not though, since Winter Formal is in early December.

You know, all laid out like that...
That's one of the stupidest fucking things I've ever heard.
I never paid attention to how Homecoming worked - I never went to dances, so I never got this. But wow, what a moronic tradition. :/

We don't really have 'Prom' or 'Homecoming' here in the UK. So we can't see the big deal.

But apparently the Royal We is alive and well.

Electron Blue wrote:

Lapin wrote:

The Scientist wrote:

But what is this Homecoming gig? What's it for?

Didn't I just say that it is tied in with football? The Homecoming dance happens after the homecoming game, generally the last game played on home ("homecoming") soil. A Homecoming Court is elected, with a King and Queen (Or in the case of my junior year, a queen and a queen, the school's Golden Couple). The Court consists of all the runner-ups, called Princes and Princesses. The football players are the "heroes" of the dance, if they had a good season, and getting to be a date for one of them is a big deal to a lot of people, though in some schools the football players always escort the cheerleaders before joining up with their actual dates.

It happens in October, sometimes November. Generally not though, since Winter Formal is in early December.

You know, all laid out like that...
That's one of the stupidest fucking things I've ever heard.
I never paid attention to how Homecoming worked - I never went to dances, so I never got this. But wow, what a moronic tradition. :/

I only went to one Homecoming and I skipped Prom in favor of a concert. However, most people who attend, including a lot of my friends, really had a good time at the events and made some great memories. I mean, it's essentially a big party where you get to wear a pretty dress and dance with people. I do not really see anything wrong with them. They're silly, yes, but so is the rest of high school.

Only once or twice have I been to a dance, which aren't nearly as big and fancy. Not once have I ever went to a prom. I never saw reason why to go. Just to see everyone all dolled up and pretty-looking, and spend the whole night waiting to find out the Prom King and Queen were obviously the two most shallow and despicable, manipulative students in the class?

Fuck that noise! I'm not going to spend $35 on a ticket to a dance where all that's played is crappy hip-hop and tone-deaf kids with the occasional techno! I'd rather be at home surrounded by friends playing DnD! That at least is worth my time!

I says the prom is just an excuse for an ego trip and to emphasize how top of the popularity contest you are. And to not have your mom buy you a prom dress just makes you a shallow, vile little branch of human evolution I will gladly see stamped out of existence.

Reepicheep-chan wrote:

Really though I am not real hipster at all, I just appropriate the parts of hipster culture I like best.

Being hipster too mainstream for you?

TheIan wrote:

Only once or twice have I been to a dance, which aren't nearly as big and fancy. Not once have I ever went to a prom. I never saw reason why to go. Just to see everyone all dolled up and pretty-looking, and spend the whole night waiting to find out the Prom King and Queen were obviously the two most shallow and despicable, manipulative students in the class?

The Prom Queens, and the couple that won the next year, all won because they were generally well-liked people who got along with everyone. People loved them for a reason.

Quote :

Fuck that noise! I'm not going to spend $35 on a ticket to a dance where all that's played is crappy hip-hop and tone-deaf kids with the occasional techno! I'd rather be at home surrounded by friends playing DnD! That at least is worth my time!

So...do that. I think my senior prom had a band and a DJ. But I don't see how the two things are very different. You're spending time with your friends, doing something you find enjoyable, that harms no one.

Quote :

I says the prom is just an excuse for an ego trip and to emphasize how top of the popularity contest you are. And to not have your mom buy you a prom dress just makes you a shallow, vile little branch of human evolution I will gladly see stamped out of existence.

Well, I seem to remember a lot of people in high school being popular because they were just cool people. They were nice to people, they played good pranks, they had cars. I mean, I wasn't a popular kid. I had my own friends, and they were mostly drama geeks/NHS/party kids, depending on who I was hanging out with. But I liked the popular kids, because they were, well, nice.

grmblfjx wrote:

Being hipster too mainstream for you?

Yeah. The hipsters really ruined hipsterism for me, you know? It was better before it was cool.

Lapin wrote:

But I liked the popular kids, because they were, well, nice.

I never went to homecoming (and unfortunately spent the night of prom hearing the world through two ear infections and a sinus infection), but the Homecoming Queen and Princess were really cool people my senoir year. The Princess was a casual friend of mine who played Tuba in band of all things (funny watching her at recitals carring that thing with 3-inch-heels on). Most of the popular kids were popular because they were likable. Hell, my little brother was a popular kid in high school. He can be a dick, but he is far from shallow and manipulative.

Harley - you don't have any kind of graduation party in the UK? Over here, most schools organise a formal (as in dresses and suits) party known colloquially as a "grad" or "debs" depending on what part of the country you live in. It's usually held the September after the Leaving Cert (ie the time of year you'd be going back to school if you weren't DONE WITH THAT SHIT FOREVER, BETCHES!!!)

I went to an all-girls' school, so we had to round up boyfriends/escorts on our own time. I couldn't be arsed though, so I went solo to mine. I also drove myself as I was one of the very few people in the class who could.

TheIan wrote:

waaaaaaaah, high school

TheIan wrote:

Fuck that noise! I'm not going to spend $35 on a ticket to a dance where all that's played is crappy hip-hop and tone-deaf kids with the occasional techno! I'd rather be at home surrounded by friends playing DnD! That at least is worth my time!

$35? Really? It's $70 at the school I work for.