How to Dress for Work When You Never Leave Home
The first rule is: Pretend you’re leaving
I put on high heels today for the first time in — I don’t even remember. Six months? Eight? It was ridiculous in every way. I was giving a talk via Zoom to a group of folks in Paris who were celebrating the 100th anniversary of their library, so it was a gala affair, and even though it was only 10 am where I was (Los Angeles) it was evening in Paris, and they were dressed up, so I thought I should dress up, too. Since the pandemic, I’ve been dressing from the waist up when it comes to Zoom, because unless I stand on my desk, no one sees anything below my shoulders. For this Zoom talk, I put on a black cocktail dress and was about to slide into my usual Birkenstocks when I was seized with the rare urge to put on heels, which really were more appropriate for the dress.
Once shod, I clunked across the living room and out to my office, wobbly as a colt, because I have completely forgotten how to wear heels. I think I scared my dog, who is outraged by people making odd movements (i.e., roller skaters, skateboarders). As I began my Paris talk, I almost wanted to hoist my leg up and show everyone that I had dressed for the occasion, but I thought better of it. The second I was done, I clunked back into the house and put my heels back in their box, where they will sit for…
