DRESSING UP ON SUNDAY

With the invention of ‘Casual Fridays’ the world has finally turned 180 degrees and is heading backward! Gone are the days of respect for the things that mattered most, our churches, schools, friends and families. We seem to be on a course where we will soon be going out in public in our pajamas if we wear them to bed, and if not, you will start to see a lot of ugly sights.

Back in the 30’s and 40’s, people dressed up to visit or go to church. You got on a plane in the 50’s and you wore a suit or dress depending on your inclination. All that was; is no more. I can remember my mom painstakingly putting on makeup to go shopping, being dressed and meticulously combing her hair before she went out. Dad wore a suit to work, topped off with a grey fedora and overcoat that made him look successful. 

I often see people in pajama pants in supermarkets and convenience stores, and wonder how they don’t feel naked somehow, or at least freakish in public. You go to a funeral parlor to pay your respects, and what do you see, people in jeans and sloppy clothing, while the family of the bereaved look at you like you stepped out of the closet in a hurry. Where is the respect for the dead and bereaved? Dressing nice will not bring the dead back, but it will reflect on how you felt about them when they were alive.

I know I’m crotchety, but my sense for respect is the issue here, and what we are not seeing is the presence of such in today’s society. When I went to church as a youngster, I had to wear a suit and tie, as much as I hated it that is what I did. If I visited my grandmother on a Sunday, a suit and tie was the uniform of the day. It simply meant that I respected my grandparents or at the least my parents respected them and showed that through their kids. It was also a clear indication that I went to church that morning.

I’m no saint in this matter, I too have succumbed to the temptation that comfort is better than respect, and have committed some of the major faux pas’ I’m complaining about. I recall once going to a funeral and being called out by TLW (The Little Woman) for wearing jeans! So I’m no saint. I started to wear casual clothing when I used to go to church, yet I was appalled by seeing people wearing clogs, beach sandals, slippers and muscle shirts with their shorts. 

Going on an airplane was an exciting big deal once. To do so meant you were going away, and doing so in another world, the world of travel. You dressed up, you looked decent, after all, you were a stranger in a new place. I’m sure you noticed how people dress today for a flight, the same way they go to church! 

In the workplace, more and more the trend is toward casualness, and maybe it is a good thing, I don’t think so but maybe. If you worked in an office like I did, often you might pay a visit to another office on business. I know I did, often to a clients place. They dressed for business and looked successful and I did likewise. This only helped make new business and kept the mutual lines of both respect and communication opened for all the concerned parties. Today you go to an office and you see the guy in the sneakers, opened plaid shirt, with exposed blue t-shirt and jeans standing around with a coffee mug in his hands and find out: he’s the CEO!

I liked the old days, I liked to see people look nice and I felt better dressed like that too. Granted it is a lot more easy to be casual in dress, and if you re dealing with a crisis, dealing with it casually is  helping you to relax through the hard times.

There is this dream I have with a recurring theme, I’m in an office working or a large company. I’m sitting at my des and go off to a meeting, and as I walk along the hallway passing all these offices on my way to the conference room, I look down and realize I’m in my underwear! I then feel the self-consciousness that is so overwhelming I wake up!