Welcome to Friday, ladies and gentlemen, the day in which we rejoice in having lived through another work week, the day in which we ask ourselves: Is it too late to marry well and quit our jobs?
The answer, unfortunately, is yes. It is too late.
But what of my questions regarding the weekend? Is there still time to catch up on Mad Men? Should I clean my house? Should I attend the semi-quarterly, semi-questionable Saturday Bloody Saturday Bloody-Mary-a-Thon on, you guessed it, Saturday?
The answer to these and other questions are at our fingertips.
Say hello to my little friend: my iPod, set to shuffle and played during my morning bus commute not only lends a soundtrack to the backs of the heads of my fellow commuters but offers compelling insight into the days ahead.
I Want You (She’s So Heavy) by The Beatles
The Puzzle by Brother Ali
Jesus Left Chicago by ZZ Top
Never Do This Again by The M’s
Pinball Wizard by The Who
Ace of Spades by Motorhead
Hmm. “Yes” on the Mad Men. “Ask Again Later” on the cleaning of the house. What about the Bloodies, though? Dagnabit, this is a tricky one: heavily British, although Brother Ali is from Minneapolis, and while Jesus may have done left Chicago, I hear he’s bound for New Orleans…
Perhaps we move on. Perhaps it will be revealed...
Fridays are, across the U.S. of A., and around the world, for all I know, known as an office’s “casual” day.
And by “casual”, we mean in dress.
I was 19 years old at the time of my first full-time job. The 19-year-old Pearl was not an altogether thinking person, prone to impetuosity and foolish choices in attire. My interpretation of my first “Casual Friday” – back at a time when we office minion were required not only to wear nylons with our skirts (bare legs were unprofessional) but also, closed-toe shoes (toes were seditious), and wimples, as I recall – was to show up dressed in heavily embroidered jeans, four-inch wedge heels, and a sleeveless shirt that stopped being solid material just below the bra-line and from there dissolved into fringes to just below the belly button...
It was impressed upon me – both verbally and visually – that this was inappropriate work attire, although I seem to recall the all-male engineering department insisting that it was the only appropriate thing that had happened for days.
Things have changed, as they are wont to do. Here at Acme Napkins and Grommets Casual Friday is in full swing – the execs have ordered their shirts with “light starch”, normally reserved folk hint at off-work preferences via jewelry choices, and those freshly out of college are wearing rubber flip-flops and tee-shirts that came free with certain liquor purchases.
Me? The belly-baring shirts of my youth have been retired, out of respect for the viewing public; and the thought of wearing a Jagermeister tee-shirt to work makes me as nauseous as the drink itself.
I’m a bit nostalgic for being clueless, though. There was something freeing about being slightly unconscious about how people perceived you. If only I could get that feeling back...
Oh, hey! Guess I just got my answer regarding Saturday Bloody Saturday. The answer is yes, go.
The iPod moves in mysterious ways.
About Bob Dylan
6 days ago
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23 comments:
What happens when you think you are clued in, when really you are clueless?
My first day at work in a professional office I wore what my mother picked out for me. Yes, I know :) But she had worked downtown for many years and assured me that my pale khaki pants from the Gap and my black sleeveless v-necked top was PERFECT for my first day.
I almost cried when my immediate boss told me that "sleeveless shirts are inappropriate" and not allowed in the office.
Of course, now, almost 10 years later, I see youngins running around the office in no sleeves, flip flops, and velour track suits. On a Monday. Really?!?
Per'nally, the less you were the better I find it, but hey! I'm old and I've forgotten what inappropriate looks like anyway!
God! I wish someone would be 'inappropriate" around here!!!
Dammit! It's twenty past 3 in the afternoon where I am.
We didn't have casual Fridays where I worked. I think they were afraid what might happen. After all, it was T-shirts and jeans the rest of the week. And I had holes in both most of the time.
I've yet to experience a casual Friday, probably because I'm still in school :)
I have heard about them though, though I don't think they're as popular in the UK.
Wishing you a wonderful weekend, Pearl.
We have eschewed casual Fridays and have returned to the standard uniform of stripy blouses and black trousers. We embody dullness.
Is Mad Men that good Pearl? Is it just good looking men with rather large chins looking intenly at each other?
Can I afford to add it to the other 25 American dramas that I watch?!
Motorhead.....now Pearl..have I told you about the time when me and a rather dishevelled looking Lemmy shared a beer in the Marquee club?....
Now there's a real man...with a real chin...and wart...
We have casual Friday here and sadly enough, it is the younger people (myself included) that dress better than the older folk. One lady even comes in wearing pajama pants and slippers. REALLY????
Oh jeez... Lemmy.
I was mom to a boy who worked "with the band" a long time ago .. listening to some of your playlist is like taking a nostalgic walk in the past .. of my child lol.
I cannot watch anything with Charlie Sheen , but I am so voting for Sat AND Sun Bloody-Mary-A-Thons!
Tail-Kinker, now why can’t I get to your blog?! I can’t click through to you… At any rate, I suspect that all things pass and that we’ll go back to dressing more formally. Either that or it will get worse. Either way, I’m watchin’!
Symdaddy, a little inappropriate is just good fun…
Douglas, I agree with management on that one. If it’s holey jeans and tee-shirts, what would the word “casual” inspire?!
Sam, thank you. I do plan on a wonderful weekend and hope you do the same. (And I suspect the UK may be a bit more formal in the work place. Be glad of it!)
Madame deFarge, there are many days I wish I had a uniform to put on, although that might get old and inspire craziness on the weekend…
Greenfingers, I’ve never actually seen Mad Men, but people seem, uh, mad about it so I have to wonder what the fuss is about. And as I stated on your site, you and I have another thing in common in that I, too, have had a beer with Lemmy!
KT, I am glad to hear it, although the thought of having to work with someone who’s wearing pajama pants and slippers makes me frown in a you’re-giving-me-wrinkles-you’re-so-weird sort of way!
A Broad, no! Is Charlie Sheen in Mad Men? Yuck. No, I don’t like him, either…
Could you wear attire suitable for another trade on casual Fridays? Maybe turn up to the office in Grease-covered overalls, or a chef's hat, or a mastic ashphalter's uniform.
Or maybe all three at once!
Oh, I'd be good at this.
We have a woman who wears inappropriate any day she feels like it. Unfortunately, it's more inappropriate in a "ummm? Did you even LOOK in the mirror before you walked out of the house" kind of way.....
Go yes--to the bloody mary served with a clueless chaser.
;)
Jules, maybe come to work dressed as a character in Mad Men?!
Gigi, more and more I’m getting the feeling that there are a lot of ineffectual mirrors are out there!
Ann, I wished I’d said that.
Ah yes... sometimes I wish I was that same boneheaded kid that casually called his boss a D-Bag one morning.
The M's? I'll have to give them a listen.
There's a perk to getting older. The cluelessness returns. ;)
I can wear what I want, anytime I want. I once wore shorts that caught fire, I had to rip them off and watch as they burned away completely leaving me standing there in my undies... and if lose clothes get caught in a machine and I get torn to shreds I guess that'll teach me?! Hmmm,I guess theres a reason for the work clobber...
I work at home. All too often, I have worn the same thing day and night for up to four days running.
The Fred Effect
I've never worked anywhere that had casual Fridays. All my days are casual! The only thing that would make it perfect would be if we could wear flip flops. But then, it's kinda hard to run after the kidlets in flip flops without flopping.
Lucky me, I have only had 2 jobs that I had to 'dress up' for. All the rest are jeans, tshirts and flipflops unless of course you go into the plant. then it only has to be closed toe shoes. . .
On Fridays, where I am now we can wear shorts! But we are not much in the public eye so it makes all the difference!!
My my Pearl, you sure do have a lot of bling on your blog. Are you dressing your seln like your dressing your blog?
Enjoyed this post, especially the title :-)
wendy house
Back in the day, which happened to be Wednesday, I had a boyfriend who listened to Motorhead. I made many a foolish choice with him, in both my attire and otherwise.
Saturday, Bloody, Saturday?
Absolutely
I only have SIX DAYS of work in the office before I switch to telecommuting for a few months and then retiring. I'm torn between wearing my nicest outfits one more time and wearing whatever-the-heck is sort of clean and not too wrinkled. "Whatever" is winning.
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