Wednesday, May 16, 2012

The Guy in the Powder Blue Tuxedo

Nix is being inducted to the Junior Beta Club this evening. I'm very proud of her achievement. Now I just have to figure out what to wear. I wish these things came with picture instructions. I'm fairly sure the geek shirt and jeans I am currently wearing won't cut it, but do I go full dress and heels? At times like this I am reminder of a great old family story.
My mother's cousin is a trail lawyer. Early in his career, he informed his client that he needed to dress nice for court. When he arrived at the courthouse he spotted his client immediately because he was the guy in the powder blue tuxedo. Since then, he has learned to be much more specific in his instructions.
My mom always says that you don't want to be the guy in the overalls or the guy in the powder blue tuxedo, which is really just a silly way to say, "Dress to the middle".
I'm not good at this. I've never pulled a full tuxedo moment, but I do tend to err on the side of fancy. If someone is going to look at me funny, I'd rather them think I just came from working in an office instead of working in a corn field.
Nothing makes me more anxious than the term "business casual". What does that even mean for a woman? For a guy it means khakis and a polo shirt, but that is too casual and not enough business when you are a girl. It's like "semi-formal". All that means is guys get to wear a regular suit, but girls still have to wear something formal with maybe a short hemline. How is that fair?
For tonight I've settled on a somewhat casual black dress with no jewelry, and low heel sandals. It is a little dressy, but when I'm not being a geek, I like to pretend to be fancy.
Update: Nailed it! I totally fit in. Well, in dress anyway.

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