Let's Talk About...Orange

Ok. Halloween is just around the corner. It is the only time of year when that much-maligned color, orange, is front and center. Orange somehow connotes "scary," doesn't it?

When did orange get such a bad rap? After all, it is a completely natural color. Orange is found in pumpkins, oranges, flowers, and Tang. I am not talking about peach or coral. I am talking about straight-up orange. Yet, it is hard to find orange so predominant at any other time of year. Nowhere is this more obvious than in wardrobes and home décor.

I recently went shopping with my son who wanted to add some color to his otherwise muted wardrobe. We scanned the racks at Nordstrom. There are lots of blues and grays and beige and black. An occasional green would pop out. But no orange anywhere. I guess orange is no longer the new black.

I used to own an orange wool coat that I loved. Yet I only wore it with earnest in the fall. I don't know, it just seemed so bright. So...well...orange. But when I asked my daughter to choose any coat or jacket in my closet, that is the one she chose. Go figure. Orange sneaks up on you.

Since orange is a perfectly fine color, shouldn't we be giving it some credit other than on Halloween?

For example, how often do a bride and groom choose orange as one of their wedding colors? My guess is infrequently, unless they are diehard Broncos fans.

We may love our pumpkins, pumpkin spice lattes, our orange juice, fall leaves, and Thanksgiving cornucopias, but after that, we abandon all allegiance to the color and move on to Christmas red.

What is up with that?

My brother has owned not one, but two, much-coveted orange Honda Elements (not at the same time). That color may not work for a Cadillac, but for that workhorse of an Element, it is perfect. And he doesn't have to worry about finding it in a big parking lot.

On the other hand, orange is the color of a bad spray-on tan. Never a good look.

San Francisco Giants and Broncos fans love orange. There is Orange Crush, orange Creamsicles, orange chicken, Orangina, and Orange Julius. After that I am at a bit of a loss identifying where orange is the predominant color anywhere. Maybe orange just doesn't sell.

My nephew, Lukas, who plays professional soccer, says orange "boots" (soccer shoes) are "very Valencian" and therefore, "can be cool." That is encouraging.

However, I think the caveat "can be" depends on how good of a player you are.

People see red when they are mad. They feel blue when they are sad. But there is no orange feeling except in the movie Inside Out 2 where "Anxiety" is depicted in orange. Poor anxious orange.

Yet don't we all love fall colors? We describe them with words like "blaze" or "fire," but don't we really mean "orange?"

Sometimes the moon looks orange which is beautiful. But that only happens once in a blue moon.

But at this time of year, orange gets a little much deserved airtime and is proudly on display next to its black counterpart. And then it gets put away in a big box labeled "Halloween decorations" and is stored in the basement for 11 months.

So, before you put all those Halloween decorations away and throw out that misshapen jack 'o lantern, consider reviving the joy of the season throughout the year by proudly wearing orange.

That said, you might want to think twice before buying an orange sofa or getting an orange spray-on tan.