[speaker001:] Okay, what do you usually wear to work? [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Well, uh, I am basically retired now.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] I was a member, I was in education and in administration,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] so basically I wore dresses. *slash...
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] And, uh, heels, and I was never one, uh, because my work often took me into court, uh, never was one that got, uh, accustomed to wearing pants suits and pants to work.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] But that was just me. I know many people are co-, very comfortable in the classroom and what have you wearing pants.
[speaker001:] [Door].
[speaker002:] Uh, it, I guess I was just old enough not to, uh, be very comfortable in it.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] How about you?
[speaker001:] Well, I work at T I and they don't really have, uh, dress code, so to speak there. It's pretty lax about, um, you know, we-, you can pretty much wear whatever you want to, and I wear anything from jeans, when I'm feeling really casual to, uh, suits and dresses when I'm meeting with a customer or, I, I teach training classes, *need slash
[speaker002:] Oh.
[speaker001:] and so when I'm teaching a class, obviously I wear a suit or dress, *sd so. *slash error
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] It, it, uh, definitely fluctuates mainly with what I'm going to be doing that day and kind of what my mood is and when it's raining,
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] I'm more likely to wear jeans and, and when it's really cold I'm more likely to wear jeans or pants or sweaters, or that type of thing.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] Um, but it just really depends on the weather and my mood and then, you know, obviously when I'm doing anything that I'm in front of people, or, or making presentations, teaching, whatever.
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] I'm going to dress up more [breathing].
[speaker002:] And I think that does make a difference, because when you do have to be in front of people,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] uh, I think you, the, the tendency there is to wear dresses and suits and, and, uh, more classical style of clothing.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] What about the mini skirt?
[speaker001:] There are a few people every now and then that wear those to work. There pretty strict about that, though. Um, I've never worn, I just wouldn't, I mean even to, well jeans aren't exactly professional but, for some reason a mini skirt is, to me a little more unprofessional to wear to work than jeans just because it's, maybe it's just because of the sexist views and everything but you just feel like you're, you're being, showing too much le-, I don't know, I wouldn't want to wear a mini skirt to work.
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER] We-,
[speaker001:] I have seen a few people do it though, but they, they weren't overly shor-, and they weren't overly revealing. They were pretty much in good taste, but, um,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] for me I just, I just, cou-, wouldn't want to do that.
[speaker002:] Well there are mini skirts and there are mini skirts.
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] There are some that are really short and then there are some that may be will come like four inches or five inches above the knee.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh, that's what I've seen.
[speaker002:] and again it depends upon the size, the shape of the person,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] as well as the shape of the person's legs.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] Now, I also, uh, even though I retired from education, I, uh, I do modeling and I teach at a modeling agency here.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] And, uh, so, when we are doing wardrobing and we have, uh, two, two hour classes in wardrobe, we do discuss a great deal, the mini skirt and the types of clothes to wear on the job.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] Uh, even though I may have them from sixth grade on up through, uh, grandmothers,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] in my class. And, uh, whe-, I always try to emphasize the, clothes that you wear should not necessarily be the greatest fad,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] because maybe they, those are not the clothes that are the most, uh, appealing to you, or the most, uh, complimentary to you.
[speaker001:] Right.
[speaker002:] But, uh, the mini skirt many times will evoke comments you don't really want.
[speaker001:] Right [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] And, and then, uh, then you're in the situation where you're very unhappy.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh. Well I feel like too, on the job, when, you know, there's men around and some of the managers are men, you just, you know, you don't want them looking at your legs [LAUGHTER] necessarily.
[speaker002:] That's right.
[speaker001:] And, uh, to me I just wouldn't feel comfortable in that at work, but, uh,
[speaker002:] Well, I, I, uh, I have to, uh, agree with that, even when they was very, very popular in the early sixties,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] uh, I, uh, uh, again maybe because I was at the school, there were still many teachers who wore mini skirts,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] uh, we had no regulation against it and a lot of the kids did of course, and it could be very embarrassing for the men teachers.
[speaker001:] Right [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Because they were not that careful in how they handled themselves in those mini skirts.
[speaker001:] Right.
[speaker002:] And so, I think, uh, uh, of course, now I go the other extreme, I do not like to see, in the corporate areas, uh, all the women dressed like men,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] with the suits and, uh, white shirts and ties and what have you so that they all look exactly the same.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] Uh, I don't like that, I don't, I think there should be individuality in dressing.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh. Even with the very tailored look of a suit, sometimes I like to have someth-, a lit-, just a little something that's feminine.
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] Not, you know, you don't want to over do it but, just a little, a touch of it just to say, yes, I am a woman,
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] but I can be professional too.
[speaker002:] Well, I, and I don't think that you have to be manish and extremely tailored to, to look professional.
[speaker001:] Right, uh-huh.
[speaker002:] I think that you, you make of that what you wish and you can go the opposite direction and, uh, over do all the frills and laces and flounces and what have you, which don't belong in the, in, at least in my opinion, in the work place,
[speaker001:] Right.
[speaker002:] Uh, but that, that you can have a classical look without a lot of, a great deal of adornment and what have you and still be very feminine.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] Because that was one thing I always fought against. I started out as a physical education teacher.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] So I was always fighting against the idea of looking tailored or manish,
[speaker001:] Right.
[speaker002:] uh, and people would never, ever guess that I was Phys Ed and, um, and that pleased me,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] uh, and so, then I, of course, just continued what I considered the best style of clothing for me at work and, uh, and I find even, even at home here now, I, I will wear blue jeans or I'll wear shorts and what have you, uh, and be very comfortable but when I go out somewhere, then, uh, unless I have a pair of dress slacks, I don't usually wear a lot of blue jeans.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] I have difficulty getting them to fit me comfortably any how.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh [breathing].
[speaker002:] And, so, uh, uh, I just feel that, uh, you know each person has to dress to their own liking and for their own comfort.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] But, uh, there are certain norms that companies should be able to, uh, put out as guidelines for their employees.
[speaker001:] Right, that's what I, one thing I like about T I is that they aren't overly strict about what you wear and they don't, you know, your boss doesn't come up to you and say now remember, tomorrow you have a meeting so you'd better wear a suit.
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] I mean, they, they leave it up to you and your judgment to,
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] to use good judgment and dress tastefully and dress for whatever occasion you may have.
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] The only real restrictions they have are, uh, no halter tops and no shorts, even the long walking short of the squirts, the, the split skirts,
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] anything that, that could be considered shorts they don't allow.
[speaker002:] That's good.
[speaker001:] And they don't allow, uh, any sweat, any sweat shirts or t shirts that might have vulgar, or, you know, anything like that on it, but,
[speaker002:] Yeah, uh-huh.
[speaker001:] other than that, it's pretty, pretty lax and I think that's good because it does allow people to be individual and it allows you to kind of dress the way you feel that day.
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] Or, you know, if you want to be comfortable and casual you can, and sometimes I think you may be more productive if you're comfortable with what your wearing and can be, be, feel more relaxed. *slash needed
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] Whereas, uh, sometimes when your in the suit and feel, kind of almost stiff and you're not, you know, maybe you don't, uh, can't get as comfortable to sit down *sv and, you know, like when I'm writing training material, I prefer to be more comfortable unless I know I have to meet with a customer later during the day.
[speaker002:] Right, right.
[speaker001:] So, that's I think, that is good that they're like that. I do know there's a lot of companies that are very strict about what the employees wear and they must wear blue or gray or black and a white shirt and,
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] you know, no variation, and I don't, I don't quite agree with that.
[speaker002:] Yeah, well, I don't either. Fortunately I don't have to work in those companies [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Right.
[speaker002:] But, uh, I, I, uh, did have a group come over from one of the banks, over the children's hospital where I was volunteering and, uh, they were doing a presentation and every one of the young execs coming up were dressed exactly a like, men and women. They all had on the gray jackets and the gray trousers or sla-, or skirts and the white blouses and the same color tie. I mean you could hardly tell the women from the men except for the lengths of the pants. *need slash
[speaker001:] Uh, right.
[speaker002:] And one was a skirt and one was a pant. *sd
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] And, uh, and I think that's sad because that doesn't allow for any individuality.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] That 's, uh, can stifle creativity.
[speaker001:] Right, I agree.
[speaker002:] So.
[speaker001:] Well, it, I guess we've talked probably long enough.
[speaker002:] I guess so, well it's been nice talking with you.
[speaker001:] Nice talking to you too, I enjoyed it.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh, bye, bye.
[speaker001:] Bye, bye.