Steve Jobs is said to have adopted his signature dress of blue jeans and a black mock turtleneck because he didn’t want to waste time or energy thinking about what to wear. Adopting a uniform allowed him to dress each day without thinking about it. He didn’t have to make decisions about which shirt or which pants. He didn’t have to think about what goes with what. I read this about him when he was still alive. However, I met him face to face one time. I officiated at a wedding he attended as a friend of the bride and groom. He wasn’t dressed in a black shirt and blue jeans. He was wearing a suit and a tie. I don’t know if this meeting was before he adopted his uniform or if there were occasions when he broke from the usual and thought about what to wear.

After he died in 2011, I tried imitating his style for a while. However, I could not afford the expensive brand of mock turtlenecks he wore, so I found a less costly substitute. I frequently wore a sports coat over the mock turtleneck when I felt occasions demanded a bit more formality. I never got to the point of dressing that way every day. I still wear dress slacks, a dress shirt, and a tie on Sundays.

I like dressing up. When I was in college and graduate school, I sometimes put on a dress shirt and tie just because it made me feel good. That was a long time ago. In those days, professors wore ties to lectures, and teachers in elementary and secondary schools wore ties to work.

In the early days of my career, my clothes varied quite a bit. I wore T-shirts and jeans when leading youth camps and rallies. I wore dress clothes and ties when I was working in the church office and leading worship. Most of the time, when I dressed up, I wore white shirts. Later in my career, I switched to colored shirts even on Sundays and eventually stopped wearing ties on weekdays. However, I wore ties on Sundays and when I officiated at funerals and weddings throughout my career.

Near the end of my career, a friend died of pancreatic cancer. He was an attorney who loved clothes. After his death, his widow set up racks of his clothing in her living room and invited a group of his friends to come and take some of his clothes. I was nearly the same size as him. The only alteration needed was to shorten the pants' legs. I ended up getting several suits, dress shirts, and other clothes from him.

Then I retired. At the point where I owned the most suits I had ever owned, I retired. Not only did I retire, but I moved to the Pacific Northwest, where people don’t dress up. I wear dress shirts and ties to church and am the only person in the room wearing a tie. In a conversation with our lead pastor, she commented that an occasional sports coat was fine, but a suit took things too far. I decided to ignore her advice on how to dress. Some weeks I feel like wearing a suit, and so I do. I wore a beautiful gray wool suit last Sunday and felt good. Before my friend’s widow gave me some of his clothes, I had never had money to buy Brooks Brothers dress shirts or a Hart Schaffner Marx suit. I feel pretty good wearing that suit. I had worn it when we celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary. I bought a new tie for that occasion, and I wore that tie last week to church on my birthday. I was the only one in church wearing a tie and the only one wearing a suit. Maybe I’m a rebel who dresses in a countercultural fashion.

I don’t seem to dress like the locals for everyday activities. After needing a couple of procedures to remove squamous cell carcinoma, I am no longer comfortable wearing short pants or short-sleeved shirts. I have several lightweight shirts that offer sun protection. These are sold as fishing shirts, but I frequently wear them as everyday shirts. And, as a man in my seventies, I favor cargo pants even though I don’t have things to put in all those pockets.

Yesterday, it was cool when I was riding my bike, so I put on a sweatshirt over my regular shirt. I also wear a bright reflective vest when riding my bike. I want to be seen by those driving cars. As I rode, I looked at other people walking in our village. We have a lot of tourists and retired people living here, so I’m sure that many of the people I saw were not heading to work, though casual work dress is the preferred work dress around here anyway. One gentleman I passed while biking was walking on the path wearing a winter parka, zipped up to his chin. Under the parka he was wearing short pants and sandals with no socks. I wouldn’t have made that fashion choice if I were cold. I’d go for socks and shoes. Then again, I don’t own a pair of sandals, and as someone who doesn’t wear shorts, my legs are pretty white, probably not a sight to be displayed in public. I also saw a woman wearing a long black coat and boots underneath. She looked like she expected it to start snowing any minute. She was waiting at the bus stop, talking to another woman dressed all in black.

I’m 72 and still can’t figure out what to wear. I have, however, decided there is no point in trying to fit in. I just get dressed and don’t worry about what others might think. And, based on my observations, many other folks don’t seem to care what others think of how they dress.