Today a friend who reads my blog and knows me in real life asked me if I was ever going to change the red banner at the top of my blog. I told her that I’d love to, as the photo is quite outdated, but I can’t find where my blog lets me change that section.
The photo there was taken nearly 9 years ago, which is super weird to think about. 9 years!
My friend asked if I still had the shirt I’m wearing in that image. I had to think about it for a second, but not only do I still have that blue dress shirt, but I still wear it on a regular basis. It’s even older than the photo–I got that shirt 12 years ago (2003).
My friend mentioned that she had a wear-around-the-house shirt that she got back in 1996–that’s 19 years ago!
I don’t shop for clothes often, and I keep my clothes for a long time, so I started wondering about the oldest piece of clothing I own that I still actively wear.
The last part is key, because I do have a few funny shirts I got from studying abroad in Japan during the summer of ’97. That’s 18 years. But I don’t actually wear those shirts.
I was about to settle for the aforementioned blue shirt when I realized there was one more candidate: A grey shirt I received the spring of my sophomore year at Wash U for participating in the residential college olympics.
It’s a great shirt. It fits perfectly, and the material is super soft from years and years of washing. It’s over 14 years old. I snapped a photo of it below (Walter is there for scale).
What about you? What is the oldest piece of clothing that you still wear on a regular basis? Why have you hung onto it after all these years?
I still wear some flannel pajama bottoms that I made in 7th or 8th grade to sleep. It’s getting to a pretty rough shape. I might turn them to sleeping shorts. Hmmmm… You know how people frame jerseys. I can frame them. The reason they are not in the trash because I made them and I don’t ever want to throw them away.
Those are some old pajama bottoms! But I bet they’re very worn-in and comfortable.
Oh, they are comfy. A little short since I already have to hem them once because they ripped at the bottom. They are the best and they just fit how I like it. Big, baggy loose pants that keeps me warm at night. 🙂
I still wear a black t-shirt from my martial arts classes where I grew up. The phone number is mostly faded, and it’s stretched out a little bit since I first got it as probably a 13- or 14-year-old, so at least 20 years. I keep it because (1) I look like the wrong guy to mess with, (2) I feel like I really earned that t-shirt after 5 years of practice and (3) I want to try calling this number one day to see if it still goes to the dojo.
Those are all awesome reasons to keep that shirt as long as possible. 🙂
I love my almost 20 year old shirt– it’s the softest pajama shirt now that it’s finally broken in. I have no idea why I originally kept it, but now that it’s lasted 19.5 years I figure I may as well keep it until it falls apart and is completely threadbare. 🙂
Here’s a picture of it (with reference cat Hodor):
https://imgur.com/yt6RDas
Isn’t it nice how shirts get so soft over time? I’m glad Hodor appreciates that too.
I got a T-Shirt of the “Tour of the Universe” ride at the CN Tower in Toronto way back in 87 which my other half now wears occasionally!
I have another T-Shirt from 96, which my first boss did for all the staff in an old overcrowded office – listing things not to do – like turn your back on your chair because someone will take it.
For an item of clothing I still wear myself, I have a “Don’t Hassle the Hoff” T-Shirt from only 07 – though the printed image/words are pretty worn/broken now, still gets a chuckle from bored TSA agents.
1987! Wow. That’s impressive. I hope you keep wearing the Don’t Hassle the Hoff as long as possible. 🙂
I have a World Cup ’94 t-shirt that’s still in remarkably good condition. Also, since it was “in” to wear clothing that now would be considered too large, the shirt that once swallowed my 13/14-year-old self now fits quite well.
1994! Well done, sir. Yeah, because of my desire to wear oversized clothing in middle school, all shirts from that time would now fit me perfectly.