Pajama Rules

The uppermost floor of one of the academic buildings at Manhattan College served as a male dormitory. A friend of mine who resided there woke up at 8:04 am for his 8:05 am class. He simply ran down the steps and attempted to attend class in his sleepwear. And while the professor acknowledged my friend’s brave attempt to arrive to class on time, he sent him back upstairs to his room to change into more appropriate school clothing.

One morning when I drove Briana to Locust school a woman got out of her car to help her son out. She was wearing fleece pajamas and bunny slippers. Her son, noticing how the other children looked oddly at his mother, yelled out Mom get back in the car!!   

When I went to Atlanta this past weekend an elderly gentleman was in the elevator with my husband and I. We were all headed down to breakfast. The gentleman was wearing a cotton pullover sweater over what appeared to be a plaid flannel shirt. But when I looked down at his feet I saw the same plaid flannel fabric peeking out from under his gray gabardine trousers. Clearly he had put yesterday’s clothing on to mask his sleepwear.

I wear old athletic clothing—comfy clothing—former platform tennis clothing--to bed at night so that when I wake up in the morning I am already dressed to drive to the train station. But for my foot wear—flip flops or Uggs---I look as if I headed for some type of morning exercise program. I am clean and not in predictable sleepwear (although technically in my pajamas.) And I feel quite stealthy in the knowledge that I am wearing double-duty clothing.

But this morning I had to drive straight from the train station to my mother’s ophthalmologist’s office so I did not have time to change into more doctor’s office-like clothing. I assumed that since I was going to the opthamalogist where the patients are elderly and by nature of the location are seeing impaired that no one would question my attire. But when the doctor entered the examining room he looked and me and said You look like you are off to go hunting. And I am pretty sure it was not a compliment. I am pretty sure it was a passive aggressive way of saying my ensemble should only be worn in the wee early morning hours in the woods where only the deer could see me.          

So I have to wonder---is it ever okay to wear your pajamas out in public?---even if it is under your trousers or carefully disguised as athletic clothing?   And if it is acceptable, at what time is it deemed a faux pas to not be in “afternoon” clothing? Because if I were making the “no pajama” rule it would be up until 9:00 am on a weekday and noon on a weekend. And if you are cleaning the house or paying the bills you get a little extra grace. No one wants to clean the bathroom after showering and getting dressed for the day--- and paying the bills often makes you sweat.

The other day as I drove down Brook Street I saw the woman who was wearing the bunny slippers to Locust School years earlier. She was dragging rubbish to the curb. She did so in pink microfleece pajamas. And when she met my gaze she smiled and waved hello. She was shameless. And there was nothing to be embarrassed about. Her son no longer lived at home to criticize her and it was only 8:00 in the morning. According to my dress code she was well within the rules.