Thursday, November 13, 2008
Polyester Tuxedo
I was looking through the envelope of smaller flyers Haband sends me every few weeks, eazy snap stretch shirts & velcro fastener shoes & gadgets you see at a garage sales but never buy because they don't have batteries in them. Anything I like I save & use as a bookmark. There was a burgundy imitation velour sports coat, $49.99, alright but not as nice as the watermelon you won't believe it's not linen blazer they had during the summer. & a polyester tuxedo for $69.99, shirt extra. Well, very cool indeed. Then I remembered that everyone I ever knew who had worked for a caterer had owned a cheap tuxedo, & a variety of "formal" costumes, & those could be purchased from restaurant supply stores & places that sell uniforms for many occupations. They had to be inexpensive because accidents happen when you're carrying trays of greasy finger foods around backyards or serving cherries jubilee to drunks who grab at your ass. One friend with a drawer full of bow ties & cummerbunds in assorted colors gave me a black bow for a reception I attended where I wanted to resemble the little man on top of the wedding cake. "I don't even buy them," she said. "I pick them up off the tables when we clean up." Haband is merely passing off a waiter or bartender uniform as the real deal.
***
Emptying the closet last week so the plumber get in there to replace a pipe in the wall, I discovered an L.L. Bean jacket I'd forgotten about. It's a variation on a style Bean always sells called "Nor'easter." Many pockets, light insulation, zipper, snaps, pull strings, & a tuck-a-way hood. They're usually pricey. My art teacher gave it to me. I've gotten a few good things from him, being selective because he has no interest in clothes. I think his wife, an impeccable middle management dresser, tells him to get rid of stuff. She probably bought the jacket for him. This jacket looks old, but it's only in Act Two for a Bean coat. In Act One, a Bean jacket hangs in the coat closet near the front door. Act Two is a hook on the wall by the back door. Act Three you crumple it up & toss it in the trunk of the car. Sometimes there's an Act Four when it ends up covering the lawnmower during winter. They're rarely seen even in suburban rummage shops. I'd never worn it, so I took it out for test walk to decide if it was worth running through a washing machine. A washing machine can kill an old jacket. It was very comfortable, loose enough so I can wear a hoodie under it on colder days, which would make it good down to freezing temps. Presentable enough.
Last year I was wondering if I could get through another winter with my current two heavy jackets, both old, favorite is waist length, exterior o.k. but the lining in shreds. So I compared jackets at a WFMU staff meeting & was astonished at the rags some of them wore. My old coats were fine.
"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." Thomas Jefferson
***
Emptying the closet last week so the plumber get in there to replace a pipe in the wall, I discovered an L.L. Bean jacket I'd forgotten about. It's a variation on a style Bean always sells called "Nor'easter." Many pockets, light insulation, zipper, snaps, pull strings, & a tuck-a-way hood. They're usually pricey. My art teacher gave it to me. I've gotten a few good things from him, being selective because he has no interest in clothes. I think his wife, an impeccable middle management dresser, tells him to get rid of stuff. She probably bought the jacket for him. This jacket looks old, but it's only in Act Two for a Bean coat. In Act One, a Bean jacket hangs in the coat closet near the front door. Act Two is a hook on the wall by the back door. Act Three you crumple it up & toss it in the trunk of the car. Sometimes there's an Act Four when it ends up covering the lawnmower during winter. They're rarely seen even in suburban rummage shops. I'd never worn it, so I took it out for test walk to decide if it was worth running through a washing machine. A washing machine can kill an old jacket. It was very comfortable, loose enough so I can wear a hoodie under it on colder days, which would make it good down to freezing temps. Presentable enough.
Last year I was wondering if I could get through another winter with my current two heavy jackets, both old, favorite is waist length, exterior o.k. but the lining in shreds. So I compared jackets at a WFMU staff meeting & was astonished at the rags some of them wore. My old coats were fine.
Labels: home furnishings
