Back from The Cleaners, part 2

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I recently brought my Barbour jacket in for reconditioning. Today I got it back from servicing. You wouldn't think that merely picking up your coat at the cleaners, which is effectively what I did, would be such a big deal, but in a way it was. The salesman was polite and called me 'Sir'. When he brought my coat out from the backroom, he asked whether I wouldn't like to wear it out, as it was bit chilly today. When I said yes, he held it open and helped me into it. I almost burst into tears. No-one ever treats me like a gentleman. the Barbour in action

So I found this picture of myself being a gentleman in my Barbour coat, that is sitting outside in the countryside drinking British beer in front of a table festooned with freshly made sausages and the head of a pig. (yes, that's really a pigs head. It's a long story best saved for another post.) I wish I could remember what prompted the aloof scowl on my face. I'd like to think of something romantic, but it was probably just the smell coming off of that table.

Worthwhile Compromise

Tonight I had the all to rare occasion to wear a whole suit. I had the first of a series of "crits" in my architecture studio class. Actually, these days such an occasion hardly requires a suit, but I made the reach for an excuse just the same. So I brushed the dust off of my Brooks Brothers medium grey 3/2 sack suit. This suit is the cornerstone upon which my entire dress wardrobe is built. Grey Brooks Brothers suit: $14.99

Blue and white pencil stripe shirt from 'Georgetown University Shop': $4.99

Repp tie from the long gone 'Simon's Copley Square', where I used to work in high school: $1.99

On the bottom, black oxfords (in need of a polish) and grey socks

Besides being the perfect background for any shirt and tie combo I can throw at it, this suit is what I might call a 'worthwhile compromise'. It's not all wool, but rather a blend of wool and (gasp!) polyester. While there's no denying the superiority in every way of wool, this suit fits me so well and comes in so handy and wears so hard that I figure it was worth buying. The pants have even served from time to time as a foil to my navy blazer. I get complimented on looking well every time I wear it. Maybe it will help me land a job that will pay me well enough to buy new (i.e. not thrifted) clothes for myself. A fella can dream , can't he?

p.s. dirty little secret: it actually has a tag inside the jacket with washing instructions on it...don't tell.

Economy

Photo New York Times, 18 June 1970

I came across this photo recently in a book called Radical Perspectives in the Arts. It's a collection of essays published in 1972 by the likes of Jean-Paul Sartre, Milan Kundera, and of all people Fidel Castro on the relationship of art to Capitalism and/or Socialism. I thought given the current state of affairs, this photo was apropo. From the caption:

"Bankers Hear President's Speech. Officials of the Chase Manhattan Bank watching Mr. Nixon on television yesterday."...On the left, next to the television screen, is David Rockefeller, Board Chairman of the Chase Manhattan Bank. Two weeks earlier-while the stock market plunged in defiance of Keynsian law- he urged the president to make this speech so as to reassure the public.

Those guys may be a bunch of no good bankers, but at least they dressed like men you could trust.

Perhaps today's version of the same photo would consist of a group of former Washington Mutual employees in fingerless gloves, huddled around a barrel fire under a bridge, with hip flasks of cheap vodka in their pockets, hurling rotten tomatoes at good old W while he hands us his latest line of sh*t.

(note: this post was supposed to be my attempt at dark political humor. Please lets not have too heated a discussion over it. Thanks)

Gingham Checks

I like a big Gingham check dress shirt. It's a nice break from blue, white, pink and university stripes. They work great for dressy casual in the fall with items that are solid colored, but textured.

Grey vintage cashmere and wool herringbone sport coat: $4.50

Navy and white Gingham button down from the clearance rack at (gasp!) Banana Republic: $11.99

Navy cotton knit tie: $2.99

On the bottom:

Tan Italian wide wale corduroys: $4.99

Navy socks with white and kelly green dots, Florsheim loafers

(I realize the loafers have been getting a lot of play recently, but what the hell, they're comfy and they go with everything.)

On an unrelated note: since the last thing I would ever want to do is discuss professional sports on this blog, I'll make this quick. Boston Red Sox vs. Chicago Cubs at Fenway Park in the World Series. An event that many say would bring about the end of the world. Well, if that's true, I can think of worse ways to go than half asleep on the couch with a cold can of beer in my hand and that on the t.v.

Back From the Dry Cleaners

I just got my new(old) Harris Tweed back from the dry cleaners, the garment that christened this blog. Of course, I couldn't wait to wear it. I feel quite certain that this jacket will be my new best friend for the next 5 months or so. For tonight, I decided to go with the 'English Literature teacher who possibly smokes pot' look:

Harris Tweed sport coat: $2.99

J. Press 'Burlington Knot' necktie: $1.99

Blue button-down oxford from 'The Holbrook Company': (can't remember, but $cheap)

On the bottom, my new clean dungarees, grey patterned socks and brown Florsheim 'Longwings'

On an entirely non-clothing related note, my young son and I recently had lunch in a real relic of a diner. The place absolutely warmed my heart. I think the pictures speak for themselves:

I Like Clean Clothes

I don't know how any one else feels about it, but I think the whole rigmarole people have created over washing/not washing your jeans has gone too far. To wit, this.

I find several things wrong with this whole childish concept.

Firstly:

As I mentioned in a previous post, Dungarees are in fact work pants. You really shouldn't be wearing them unless you plan on wrangling horses, digging ditches or going down a mine. That being said, to treat them as precious bit of high fashion is silly, and to pay fashion price is far worse. Certainly we all own them, wear them and love them, but we're talking about jeans, not a Gucci suit, for cripes sake.

Secondly:

Does anyone remember being a kid and having the same pair of jeans for years? I can remember playing in them, running in the dirt, really beating them up, and they didn't look half as bad as the one's in the link above. Maybe it's because my mother used to wash them, thereby alleviating the abrasive qualities of dirt.

Lastly:

Ask a woman, any woman, how cool she thinks it is when a guy wears pants that haven't been washed in a year. I'll wager you get a different response.

Call me a dork if you will, but I prefer clean clothes.

Haiku

Really wish I had

Embroidered corduroy pants

Blue with red lobsters.