Nov. 3, 2017
In recent weeks I have worn a suit to work. I bought a new furry woolly suit a few weeks ago and have alternated between it and my old one. I also bought new shoes that gave me blisters and made me cry. Enough time has passed that by now it feels natural rather than silly and those shoes don’t eat my feet as much as they used to.
I think I feel calmer before I go to work as a result of wearing the suit. Suits are very little fuss. Pick the suit, pick the tie, job done. Besides, a suit flatters a man of my age and inclination towards biscuits. And finally my tie collection gets to see the light of day!
A suit’s not that expensive. If I can get a year out of each suit, or a bit more than two years by alternating between two suits, I reckon it’s cheaper per month than the average mobile phone contract. It might cost me a bit more now that it’s getting colder, because I will need a new coat as well. Now the dark nights are drawing in, I’m having to dash home to beat the chill.
Of course, I’ve had questions about whether I’ve had a job interview. These made me think about one particular interview in August 2014 where I pretty much got undressed out of my suit. I took off the jacket, then the tie, then rolled up my sleeves. I don’t know what sort of signals that body language sent out. Was it nerves? Was I expressing a preference for stripping over writing web interfaces for smart meters? To this day, I’m not sure. I hope these days I send out the sense of calm and assuredness that I feel from wearing a suit.