The hellish season we call winter, or rather the 9 months of the year non-snowboard and skiing people spend bundled up inside, has officially begun.

Some would argue that winter began a while back around the first day the temperature dropped below 50 degrees. I choose now to say that winter has officially begun because Thanksgiving is over.

This Autumn-ish holiday should really have a setting of fall. With the pumpkin décor from Halloween still ubiquitous and the smell of nutmeg in the air, Thanksgiving is the stamp of approval that we may transition to our winter-frame-of-mind.

Approaching this moment calls for the dreaded wardrobe switch. This is when my family pulls up bins of winter clothes from the basement, replacing the shorts and other apparel that stuffed our drawers and closets for barely a few months, for our winter clothing.

Along with this clothing shift, when we bring out our jackets and wool socks, we bring out the boots and dare I say, our Uggs

Whenever I see Uggs on the street I automatically think back to fifth grade when they monopolized the shoe scene. In middle school front lobbies you could only see the dirty water print of an Ugg boot, and at the sleepovers, mountains of Uggs collected by the front door.

Welcome the newly fashionable minds of underclassmen. And in a minor victory for fashion, they refuse to even put on the boot.

I can attest to this boycotting, as the phrase “Ugg boots are Ugg-ly” was thrown around in my casual conversation when my friends and I talked about the prestigious shoe.

However, within the past few months I have come to the realization that I am freezing. It’s happened. Since moving here in fifth grade, I will admit to it, winter sucks.

And to put it bluntly, it depresses me. There is nothing worse than waking up at six for school, being forced out from under your warm covers, only to step into an ice box of a room. (I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Mommy, turn up the heat!)

Once you have fully risen, the act of removing layers to get into a completely different outfit for school can be torturous. WHY CAN’T I GO TO SCHOOL IN MY PAJAMAS?

As a lover of fashion, and as one who has literally planned out outfits for every day weeks in advance, I also start to feel depressed for a second reason; I DON’T WANT TO GO TO SCHOOL IN MY PAJAMAS! I want to wear the outfits I pick out for myself late Sunday afternoons when I’m actually supposed to be cleaning up my room.

So here is the travesty this weather has forced me into: either I push through and ignore the elements, or I complain. Then it dawned on me. The solution to this entire equation: are Ugg’s.

I’ve noticed the number of Uggs sprouting in the hallways of New Trier this winter, more than the usual few that you can see every year.

Whether you think Uggs are ugly or not is irrelevant to the argument. I know that fashion has long rejected the Ugg. However, the function of the boot—warmth—is unmatched, and that is what is important here.

And let me tell you, when it comes to warmth and coziness, everything that I am looking for during these depressing months, lies inside an Ugg boot.

Would a serious fashionista consider my opinion relevant now that I have personally marked Uggs as an acceptable item of clothing for a sad and cold high school senior? No. But we don’t care about those stuck up, frozen people anyways.

Uggs are undeniably comfortable, and you will see me rocking my faux short chestnut pair from Costco (quick tip: Costco Uggs are seriously more fluffy than the real ones, and also $100 cheaper) every so often this harsh winter.

For this winter, function outweighs fashion in my book.