My closet was once filled with tailored suits, sports coats, and flashy ties. Johnston & Murphy, Florsheim and Allen Edmonds shoes were for work; Cole Haan, Ferragamo and Donald Pliner for going out. Sneakers were for playing sports.

Formal work attire gave way to “Business Casual.” Suits went by the wayside, replaced by collard shirts and dress pants. Eventually, jeans and sneakers entered the office environment, and as long as one didn’t cross the line between tasteful and risqué, a more relaxed look became the norm. Then, in 2020, the Pandemic came along.

I had worked in an office building for 43 years. Over that time, I adapted to the changing dress codes, but always maintained a professional appearance in line with changing fashion. I enjoyed it when one of my colleagues commented on a new piece of clothing.

Covid 19 changed everything around me. The office building in which I worked was empty, and I was walking around my house in sweat pants and long sleeve tee shirts. My daily shaving routine slipped from every day, to three times a week. The only time I put on a collard or polo shirt was when I had a video chat meeting. Since most women in my office kept their cameras off, I can’t even imagine what they were wearing, no less speculate on whether they applied make-up on any given day.

The pandemic is now behind us, but many of the habits it spawned remain. An abundance of office buildings (mine included) remain vacant. Working from home commonplace, leaving the way we dress and groom up to us.

As I write this, I am reminded of the Progressive Insurance commercial about turning into your parents. I can see my dad wearing his favorite maroon zig zag patterned polyester pants with a mismatched shirt and two-inch wide belt with rows of perforated buckle holes. He wore it more times than I care to admit. It drove my mom crazy. She would threaten not to go out of the house with him unless he changed.

Most mornings, I grab one of fours pairs of sweat pants (gray, black, navy and charcoal) and top them off with a college pullover. We have plenty of them since my immediate family went to three Big Ten schools. I can’t remember the last time I wore dress shoes. And, a tie, forget-about-it. I’ve gotten so used to what I wear, that I think nothing of heading out the door in these dudes. Well, until my wife stops me and says, “Really, Frank, you aren’t going out like that are you?” That’s when I realize that if I don’t listen to her, I will indeed turn into my dad, and a change of clothes quickly follows.

When our kids were little we used to tell them to use their indoor voices around the house. A twist on that thought for adults might be to remember that your “indoor attire” may shout to others in ways you don’t intend them to!