The Year of Air Max?

By Stephen Pierce 

In 2017 and 2018 we have been blessed with a boat load of heat including the Air Max 97s, Air Jordan 1 “Shadow”, different colorways in the Yeezy 350, Air Jordan 3 “Black Cement”, the introduction of the Air Max 270s, and the entire Nike “OFF-WHITE” collaboration. The sneaker game has seen a resurgence in street culture as well as the fashion industry. But the brand that has taken the crown this year is easily Nike and it’s not even close.

                                                 Astrid Andersen's Fall 2018 Runway Show

The re-introduction of the Air Max 97 and 98 has been the turning point for Nike this year. Not only did it fit the vintage and dad shoe craze that is popular right now but they are extremely comfortable, and there is nothing better than being comfortable and fashion forward. And if you didn’t know before this  

                                                         f.johnny.free/ via Instagram

year the Air Max 97 was allegedly inspired by the bullet trains in Japan, but in actuality it was inspired by metallic finishes on mountain bikes. There is no real reason for me saying this, it is just a random fact I wanted to include. But none the less the sneaker is fire and the impact it is having on the culture right now is intriguing and in my opinion showing appreciation to sneakers that have changed the game.

                   

Nike was able to capitalize on the hype of the Air Max 97 and 98 and introduced the Air Max 270 which is the first Air Max that is constructed to be strictly a lifestyle shoe. Some of the colorways that have come out have just been meh but there is a lot of potential with the sneaker.

                                          

                                          

And finally the Vapor Max and “OFF-WHITE” collaboration was the cherry on top. Nike showed how versatile an Air Max sneaker’s can truly be and why they have had the crown this year. I hope more fire releases this year and beyond from the Air Max line and I hope that everybody appreciates the recent releases because eventually they are going back in the vault and it’s going to be a while before we see them again.

Life After College Pt. 1

By Stephen Pierce

After the last sip of Henny is consumed, the last L is rolled, the last cup of Top Ramen is gone, and the jawn from last night has finally left reality is slowly setting in. The reality is that the college life is finally over. No more cramming for an exam, no more rushing to class the next morning after Thirsty Thursday. Real life is slowly settling in and it is going to be scary. The college life is all you have known for the past four to five years and now you are stuck. I am here to tell you that it’s OK to feel the way you are feeling.


Once you have crossed that stage you are entering the most important part of your life, your actual life. There are no more meal swipes or cafeterias to steal from, no more flex dollars(shout out to West Chester University) or local pizza shops that are open until 2:00 in the morning when you have the muchies. You are going to have to learn how to cook and survive on your own. But that again is OK because not only will you get that since of gratification of learning something new, but if you want to invite some girl or guy over you can impress him or her with your new found cooking skills. Trust and believe learning these new things will take you a long way in your personal life.

Personally, after completing exit counseling and seeing how much I owed in student loans it lit a fire under me to pursue what I love and to never quit. The most important thing to do after college if you already don’t know is to pursue what makes you happy. If you don’t know what that is find it and if you are afraid for whatever reason to express it do it, because at the end of the day you have to do what makes you feel whole. There are no more classes to study for or papers to take up most of your time you can now dedicate that energy to what you like, and you never know day if you are dedicated enough to whatever you are passionate about that can become your occupation. This is our time to be who we want to be and to pursue what we want to pursue. This is also the time to try new things that you never thought you could have seen yourself doing before

At this time it is our moment and it will forever be our moment because we have achieved something that our forefathers have died for and have been oppressed for.
At this time we most likely won’t get that dream job right away and that is OK but you have to be able to sustain yourself self. There is nothing worse than asking your mom or pop for some money to go out, it’s embarrassing. I’m not saying work a job that is going to make you feel miserable but something to allow you to do the little things for right now.


It is our time to live our life and to live it to the absolute fullest because you can only live it once and we are currently blessed to do whatever we want with it. If you don’t have kids go ahead and travel and enjoy what God has made. If you do have kids, it may be a little more difficult because you have a family to provide for but nothing is stopping you from putting in that work for your future and your happiness for not just you but your family as well.

We are blessed with an opportunity to graduate from college but now the real fun begins. I know it is scary but that is OK, now is not the time to shy away from the opportunity but to embrace it because now it is YOUR life.