An Ode to the Vacation Shirt

Oh vacation shirt, how do I love thee, and all the wonderful emotions you and your various colorful shapes and palm trees evoke.  Nothing says, "sorry I don't give two shits about a damn thing because I'm busy sipping daiquiris," like a Hawaiian or Paisley print shirt.  And as I approach my third Redlands vacation, I find myself eager to prematurely dawn my never-been-worn vacation shirt.  But I must show restraint, because I still have another day of latte pouring and coffee grinding ahead of me, before I can dedicate every waking moment of the next four days to lounging about without a care in the world.  It would be blasphemy to dress myself in that most sacred of vacation attire a day early.  So in the meantime, let us take a gander at some of the greatest men to ever sport a vacation shirt. 

While the vacation antics of these two men were seldom relaxing or mellow, Hunter S. Thompson and Dr. Gonzo certainly lived it up fully and certainly had not a care in the world.  The controversial thing about Hunter and his vacation shirt is that supposedly he was never really on a vacation.  He had journalistic responsibilities throughout his entire drug and alcohol infused stay in Las Vegas.  Eh, could have fooled me.

Here we have another fine example of a man truly embracing the vacation shirt.  Like Hunter S. Thompson, Ace Ventura lived the freewheeling life while still doing his job.  Ace's vacation shirt is exceptionally vibrant and colorful, further accentuating his zany personality.  The world's most famous pet detective never gave a god damn about what people thought about him and took any opportunity to visit exotic lands and soak up the culture.

Ok, so perhaps my list is a little short.  But the point of all this is, as long as you maintain some semblance of work ethic and the desire to be a productive member of society, you can wear a vacation shirt and run around like a maniac annoying all those around you who are too lame to join in the party.