PERSONAL REFLECTION

I Wore a Tie to WFH Today

It was glorious

I wore a tie to the office today. God, it was gorgeous. It’s a navy blue knit tie, the kind that’s hard to wrangle because the knit is clunky. But when you squeeze it and pull it just the right way, after four or five attempts, it finally sits in a fat, tight triangle — eh, more of a trapezoid — just below your neck.

Because I wore the tie, I wore a crisp, white button-down shirt (drycleaned: February 2020). It had to be tucked. So I also wore dress pants. And a smooth brown leather belt. One decision begot the next. Before I knew it, I had shoes on — a pair of cherry Oxfords. And perfectly tied laces. I got dressed. To commute to the desk in my living room. It was glorious.

It’s been eleven months of jeans and dark t-shirts, hoodies and hats. The occasional plaid shirt makes an appearance for important Zooms, but it’s more a prop than it is dressing. Pants, at least those with a zipper and belt loops, have been optional for 300 days. I never imagined that casual and comfortable could get so excruciating. At this point, everything feels like a oversized Kmart sweatshirt.

I have always loved getting dressed up, but I never knew just how valuable the act is to the psyche. Especially in the winter, when it’s dark and cold, when the world…