Summer 2025 Writing Group (June). . .

A slightly more casual look today for the second of four writing group sessions on campus this summer. Organized by one of our associate deans, several of us have committed to joining each other once a month as accountability partners. In other words, we set up shop with our laptops around a huge table in an air-conditioned room and work in silence for three hours (lunch provided) on our respective projects. Uninterrupted by children, pets, spouses, UPS deliveries, shiny doodads on the desk, or anything else that might interfere with prolonged concentration. It's amazing what you can get done with a chunk of time like that.

Attire-wise, another variation of the typical uniform but with a distinctly summertime vibe this time around. I didn't shave this morning (I know, I know. . .), so I decided to forgo the usual necktie of some kind and go with an open-necked shirt instead. Mercer & Sons this time with a vintage Brooks Brothers jacket, Land's End khakis, and Allen Edmonds monkstrap loafers worn with a matching belt from Ben Silver. And the Panama hat yet again of course.

The combination of items worked very nicely for our sunny, warmer day. Spring has been quite cool up to now, except for two days in early May, with certain things in the flower beds delayed by about five weeks and other plants like the Coral Bells still in full bloom. Usually, these are beyond their peak as we approach mid-June.

But I digress!

Home now, and have changed into old, faded Nantucket red shorts, a blue and white micro-square short-sleeved sport shirt, and (in a few minutes) non-skid lawn shoes to haul out the mower and get the yard squared away once again. It has been over a week since the previous session, so things are looking a bit, um, full shall we say. Yep. Suburban dad strikes again. Uh-huh.

-- Heinz-Ulrich

Comments

The Problem of "Business Casual" Attire. . .

This is how it's done. Business Casual the RIGHT way, ladies and gentlemen. Even during the summer months. A photograph (taken by Studio B Portraits ) which appeared in 425 Business Magazine in May 2017. T his post on the problem of business casual dress began as a quick postscript to a previous blog entry last week but quickly grew and grew as additional thoughts occurred, were developed in more detail, and revisions made. So much so, that it seemed, eventually, like a better idea to make the initial P.S. afterthought into its own entry . Are ya ready, Freddy? Then, here we go. . . ------------ U nless you actually plan to sell beach snacks and trinkets on Cozumel, become a serial barista, or greet customers at a fancy nightclub after taking out huge student loans to attend university somewhere for four or five years, plus an MBA afterward, it's really a better idea to err on the side of (somewhat) more formal work at...

Vintage Bowtie Monday. . .

A nd it's September 30th! Week Six of the Fall 2024 semester. Already. To celebrate being alive, today I wore a vintage J. Press bow tie with a shirt from Mercer & Sons, suit by Brooks Bros., and shoes (with matching belt) by Allen Edmonds, the latter resoled in August, 11 years after their last recrafting at the AE factory. This time, I simply wanted the shoes resoled, rather than a full recrafting, so did not send them off. I took them instead to the last apparent cobbler in the Lansing area. But it still took about a month until the work was finished given their backlog of business. No matter, it was still summer. And the crowded shelves behind the counter in the shop were good to see. One of the cobblers is a soft-spoken young guy with long hair (But he knows his shoes!), so hopefully they'll be around for years to come. All items shown already in the rotation for at least the last two or three years....

Friday on Campus Style. . .

S omewhat atypically, I was on campus for several hours today helping with an interview that is part of a larger documentary project on which a colleague and I are working. Although I am behind the camera (I'm the audio guy in fact), what better reason does one need to dress presentably? Exactly. Everything worn, barring the recently purchased University of Wisconsin socks, a gift from the Grand Duchess, has been in the rotation for a while now. And, of course, there was the Panama hat, which I'll wear until we pass October 1st when the felt fedoras reappear. -- Heinz-Ulrich

Classic Style

Search This Blog