You Are What You Wear

My husband was invited by the banker of his place of employment to attend a golf outing at the banker’s Country Club in Muttontown. My husband said yes--he loves golf. But this whole doing business on the golf course thing is new to him.

My husband is not into fashion. He views clothing as perfunctory. Sometimes that annoys me. But then I remember that that is also what makes him so malleable—he wears what I tell him to with little or no opposition.  It’s not a bad thing. And he is smart enough to know that his fashion sense is often deserving of a tutorial-- dressing well is my domain not his. So not only was I not surprised that he asked me what he should wear to the golf outing, I was pleased that he did so. I believe clothing, while superficial, says much about a person. And while I do not rigidly subscribe to the idea that clothing makes the man, I do believe that what you wear clues people into what you are all about.

So I asked my husband what message he wanted to convey to the banker and the rest of the foursome. And he said what do you mean? And I said well, if you want to look cerebral then you will wear the Emory University golf shirt. If you want to look like a regular guy you will wear the Nautica shirt. If you want to look like the Country Club guy you will wear the Cherry Valley shirt. If you want to look preppy you will wear the Lacoste or Polo shirt. If you want to look more  hip you will wear the Tommy Bahama shirt. And if you want to look like a serious golfer your will wear the Calloway or Greg Norman golf shirt.

And when I finished my litany he said I just wanted to match. Clearly He was unaware that choosing a golf shirt was so complicated. And I told him that sometimes clothing is more than matching—it’s an outward message about the inward person--and he had to pick his message. So he paused—and eventually said I guess I want to be the Country Club guy—I’ll wear my Cherry Valley shirt.

As Cinderella once said The perfect shoe can change your life. Cinderella understood: clothing  (and accessories) matter. They aid in closing the deal.