I'm not sure how it happened, whether I woke up one day and decided to throw out every piece of khaki I owned, or if my anti-khaki platform fomented gradually. Regardless, sometime during late 2002, I started dating kids in art school, so I couldn't very well go around wearing the lame-o boot-cut chinos I'd had since high school.

I expunged my wardrobe of khakis—as well as anything labeled J. Crew or Abercrombie. I started shopping exclusively at Savers (America's Favorite Thrift Store!) in East Providence and bought a lot of really dumpy old lady sweaters and small boy T-shirts for under $3 each. Though my thrift store-only policy lasted about two months, my aversion to J. Crew remained until last week. I was on my lunch break when I saw an adorable pair of polka dot flats in a random storefront. I looked up and gasped in horror. It wasn't some unique West Village bootery, it was the enemy of hip, the 'Crew.

Against my better judgment, I went inside. The dormant preppy inside me was nudged back to life, and before I knew it I was standing on line with a pair of slacks in hand. They were navy blue sailor pants with several buttons along the front, adorned with tiny anchors. The pants laced delicately in the back. I've been wearing them almost every day since then, every so often smoothing the wrinkles out with the flat of my hand and admiring their oh-so-appropriate drape. You know what they say—you can take the girl out of Westchester, but you can't take the Westchester out of the girl.—Jessica Grose

LINKS
• The enemy has a website
• America's favorite thrift store