Long time no post, I know. I'm sorry. I have no explanation except that I'm pretty terrible about journaling and keeping up with it, I always have been. I'm here to give it another shot though.
At work the other day, a coworker said something to me that has been rattling around in my brain. This happens a lot, someone will ask me a question and I only have the time to answer it in part and then something interrupts or they walk off thinking that they get the basic gist of it but the other parts of the answer just keep floating though my brain. Its frustrating for a lot of reasons but that is a post for another day. Today I want to purge the rest of this answer from my head.
At work we get to pretty much choose our work uniform. Usually it ends up being something loose and baggy but we also get the option of wearing the more traditional and professional chef coat (or in this case shirt) and chef pants (baggy pants). I have chosen the second option for my work attire for almost as long as I've worked there while a number of my coworkers have chosen a loose and comfortable t-shirt with baggy pants.
During a conversation my coworker and I were having, he told me never understood why I chose the chef jacket option. Admittedly Chef Jackets have a reputation for being fairly hot because of the heavy fabric and long sleeves, though the jackets I wear are nothing like that and are very breathable. I think of all the reasons I had for my choice I told him that wearing the same thing everyday made planning for work a literal no-brainer. I never have to go through my shirts and try to figure out which one I want to wear for that day. There is also the added benefit that I don't end up ruining the shirts I have that I like. I can't tell you haw often I have ended up with a grease stain on a shirt that I wore to work one day or ruined a colored shirt because we were working with bleach that day. Honestly, I was content to leave it at that but then I had a conversation with another girl cook, who is visiting the city, that touched on the subject again.
So, long story cut short (and yes, this IS the shortened version), here are my reasons and reasonings.
1.) it really is VERY nice to not have to think about what I'm going to wear to work on any given day. So many of the shirts I have aren't necessarily casual and the ones that are are lower cut than I'd ever like to wear at work. I have found that practical girl shirts for work are tougher to find then one might think. They are either too low cut, an awful quality, or they aren't long enough to not ride up the whole shift.
2.) I like that only a small portion of my closet will ever smell like work. I also like that only a small portion of my closet with have to suffer through the stains that go along with work. What kind of stains? Let me list just a few; grease, tomatoes, beets, red wine, bleach, and by far the grossest..... pit stains. Yep, it not pretty and certainly not lady like but its the honest truth. Speaking of ladylike...
3.) This uniform I choose is not flattering in the slightest. Whenever I wear it I look like a giant rectangle and I am perfectly content with that. These clothes become more than just loose unflattering cloth they are the great equalizer. They say, I don't care what I look like here and I certainly hope you don't either. I'm at work to work. I don't want to worry about my wardrobe ever. What's more, I don't want anyone else to think about what I'm wearing either. The few times I've varied from my drab garb I have heard everyone's two cents about my Batman shirt, or my Xmen shirt, or any number of other things. In the kitchens that I have worked in sexual harassment hasn't ever really been a thing. sure you get a creeper or two but ignore them and everything usually works itself out. Feeling exposed, in some ways feels worse than if someone else thinks you are. You get self conscience and flustered and are always doing a self check which gets in the way of your focus. Which brings me to my next point.
4.) On top of keeping me 'covered' and feeling overly self aware over something so trivial at work it sends another message to the people I work with (or at least I hope it does) that I'm there to get stuff done. I look the way I do because I don't have time to flit about flirting with everyone, that's not my goal. I want to be taken seriously, not just looked at like a girl who is afraid to break a nail or some such bother. Other girls I know don't have a problem asserting themselves when the challenge arises and they do great. Personally, I want to look professional (yep, drab and floppy is the professional cook way, its a safety thing) because I want to be looked at like a professional.
Strangely my attire, though it has been meant to hide me in the kitchen has apparently made me stick out as weird or something which is a real shame. There are so many things about me that are so much weirder and are far more interesting! Unlike the emperor from the fable I refuse their fashion trends, I don't care if everyone is doing it, I won't expose myself to the masses because...
5.) My uniform is my armor.
Goodnight.
:-) This reasoning is a big part of why we are friends! Our brains are kindred spirits! *LOL* Love ya, lady! I personally think you look very professional in your chef coat... And I wish I didn't have to rummage through my closet every night silently judging all the clothes I possess and how they would fare at school the next day. Uniforms would be so much less stressful! *lol* Totally get it! And you don't look like a rectangle, btw... You just look super professional and clean (ironic, I know, 'cause kitchens are where you cook and make a mess, but alas!). :-)
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