If I haven’t covered it already, I’m a simple guy in most respects, the biggest of which is likely to be with regard to the clothes I wear. Jeans and a tee for most of my life. Collared shirts are most likely to be solid colored, or if they are patterned, it’s only because I saw the mannequin with the shirt/pants combo, and I knew it was safe.
I’ve gotten married twice, and both times, the venue and so the attire was simple: slacks, a white shirt, once with a tie. And I didn’t even have to pick out the clothes for those occasions.
I own one tie. And I only have that because my Mo had an event she wanted me to go to with her. I went to Kohl’s, told the sales clerk what was happening, and he went to work. That was five(?) years ago?
Well, at the end of the month, Nora and I will be braving the Minnesota winter once again to attend the wedding of one of her cousins. The requested attire is semi-formal. I’ll be honest, I don’t really know what that means other than I can’t wear jeans. It was time to dust off that Kohl’s outfit and see what we had.
It all seemed okay when I tried it on for Nora to approve. A little big on me as I’ve been losing weight. But the shirt is purple, which will match her outfit for the event. We just need a sportscoat. Off to Men’s Wearhouse!
Of course we went right to the clearance section, only chumps and snobs overlook bargains. But who the hell knows what size jacket I wear? Not this guy. Turns out 44L is a decent off-the-rack fit. Oh, and look, here’s a style that might work: score.
We had brought along the outfit to verify colors and such, so we thought I might as well put it all on to get a good look. Well, with a proper fitting sportscoat the rest of the clothing looked pretty baggy. Before I knew it we were looking at slacks and shirts.
Oh look, here are matching slacks for that coat, which means a suit. And this shirt is ridiculously sharp, or so I was told. Do we need a new tie? Well, this all looks so good, maybe not. But let’s look at them anyway. Turns out the tie that would work the best would have become the most expensive item in the outfit. We passed.
I have a suit now. First time in my adult life. First time since my First Communion way back when. Nora really seemed to like the way I looked dressed up, so I told her that so long as she picked out the clothes, I’d wear whatever she liked for events and date nights and such. Pictures to follow.
What’s your favorite outfit?