Saturday, October 31, 2009

The Office Halloween Party

On Thursday I learned that the usual company dress code would be suspended on Friday so we could (and were encouraged to) come to work "in costume" for Halloween.

What a dilemma. What to wear? At first, I thought of wearing a business suit. That would scare most of my colleagues to death, since I do not dress up unless I absolutely must. Then I thought, "why should I make myself so uncomfortable? I am much more comfortable in leather than in a suit!"

Over lunch on Thursday, I overheard some of my colleagues talking about what they were going to wear. The usual stuff -- witches, goblins, and even some who said they would dress up to be a lookalike for some prominent Members of Congress and the current Presidential administration.

When I got home on Thursday night, I discussed the matter with my partner. I suggested various ideas -- motorcycle cop, cowboy, punk rocker -- all of which I could easily create from my gear and boot closets. He suggested that I be careful about what I select, as I shouldn't go "too far" when it comes to displaying fetish interests. Even though it is Halloween, wearing a cop uniform in the office would cause some people to ask the obvious questions: "you own that outfit? Why?" I really didn't want to "go there"....

I settled on "biker." Just regular-old "biker." People in the office know I ride a Harley. There are some photos on my desk of me on my bike, and I have shown up on the bike at occasional office gatherings like the annual summer picnic.

I donned a pair of black denim jeans, regular "biker chaps," a Harley T-shirt, a leather vest, and wore a pair of light-on-my-feet Chippewa engineer boots. I was comfortable in this attire all day, and other people smiled and said, "Happy Halloween," without saying much more. I went along with the spirit of the holiday at work, and got to wear my leather, but didn't overdo it.

Man, what a dilemma for a leatherman....

Life is short: wear your boots and leather!

P.S.: I won "honorable mention" for "most creative." Go figure.

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