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Paul Daugherty
Enquirer columnist files news and observations

Paul Daugherty
Paul Daugherty has been an Enquirer sports columnist since 1994 and has been chronicling Cincinnati sports since 1988. He has covered almost every major sporting event in America, as well as five Summer Olympics. Along the way, he has been named one of the country's top-5 sports columnists four times, and Ohio columnist of the year on seven different occasions. Last year, he was voted 2nd-best sports columnist in the country, by the Associated Press Sports Editors.

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Friday, January 11, 2008

Wearing a Suit

One of the joys of this job is, I can go through an entire working career without having to dress like an adult. I can look like an unmade bed (or worse, like my bud Chip T. Rosecrans) and it doesnt matter. Which is a long way of saying I wore a suit yesterday for the first time in 20 years.

I emceed an awards function for the local realtors association, at Music Hall. I agreed to do it months ago. I got the script Monday... Bottom of Page 1: Attire: Suit and tie.

Uh-oh.

Not "business casual'' which for me means clean Levis and a T-shirt without holes. Not "jacket required'' meaning a Jack Nicklaus Golf windshirt. Suit and tie.

I wanted to go out Weds. night and look for one -- Men's Wearhouse, right? Dick's? Big Lots? -- but I didnt have time. So I went to the closet.

I own 2 suits, Weddings and Funerals. Weddings is tan. Funerals is Navy blue pinstripe. I won't say they're old, only that to discover their true ages, you'd have to carbon-date them. Thank god for neighbors. A few minutes before I had to leave, a couple buds came over with winches and crowbars and I got my 34-inch waist into my 30-inch suit pants. By the time I finished at the awards thing, the belly fat had been shoved up to my forehead and I looked like a lab experiment. When I finally took off the pants, I could feel the blood start circulating in my feet again.

Moral of the story: I do a lot of speaking. I'd be happy to speak to your group. If you need me in a suit, ask a TV guy instead. I think the sear marks on my waist are permanent.


30 Comments:

at 11:02 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

You're right, doc. Suits suck. However, the only thing worse than having to wear a suit, is wearing a bad suit. Be a man, pry $600 out of your empty nest bank account, buy a new navy or black suit, and that way you don't go out in public looking like a Daryl again:)

 
at 11:09 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

All I can say is if you're complaining about a 34-inch waist at your gilded age, let us introduce you to the Seinfeld episode where he was using a Sharpie to change his jeans size label from 31 to 30 because, well, "I don't want to be a 31."

I'll also introduce you to the fajita platter at Uncle Julios' Rio Grande, on Bethesda Avenue, to welcome you to your new friends, the AARP.

 
at 12:26 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

My best friend is a successful dentist and wears scrubs everyday at work. He owns I think one suit. The one he wore the day he graduated from The OSU dental school back in 1976. Amazingly, he doesn't need a shoehorn to get into it.

 
at 12:45 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Paul a sportswriter wearing a suit?
Isn't that an oxymoron? I thought that was like the President and VP being on the same plane. Not allowed to happen.

Robert Young
Milford
BTW: What happens if you ever win a Pulitzer?
"I'd like to thank my parents, co-workers and The Mens Wearhouse"

 
at 1:54 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

You know I think a lot of those TV guys just wear jackets and ties. They might be wearing sweat pants or something that you can't see on camera. Maybe if you had just stayed behindthe podium you could have worn running shorts.

 
at 3:58 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Doc-
had a similar situation..3 years ago I left corporate america to work for a small company... jeans, t-shirts and flip-flops are normal dress. I had to go to a meeting in Atlanta... but before made a trip to JA Banks... $500 later I looked like I belonged... I've never been so uncomfortable... the only time in 5 years with a tie on... for 8 hours. I've been to hell... glad to hear your not a slave to fashion either.

Bill in Fairfield

 
at 7:13 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

If your belly fat got shoved up to your forehead, you probably really did look like C. Trent

 
at 7:23 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

What're you, 5'-2" tall? No grown man has a 31" waist. Congrats if that's true.

 
at 7:46 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

I don't understand this badge of honor for being ignorant and devoid of sophisticated attire. A man looks his best when dressed in a suit and tie. He projects an air of authority and competence. From the female perspective, he looks a hell of a lot better, too. I hate that looking like a schlub has become so fashionable.

Anyone can wear shorts and a t-shirt. It takes a man to rock a suit.

Katie -- Mount Lookout

 
at 8:05 PM Blogger Paul Daugherty said...

Wow, Katie, lighten up... are you a tailor?

 
at 8:50 PM Blogger ctrosecrans said...

i'll have you know i've worn a suit twice in the last month

 
at 12:47 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Katie,
You had it part right. A man rocks in a suit. That's the way I would say it. I've got nice suits and get lots of compliments on them when I wear them but I, like the best general sportswriter in Cincinnati, enjoy Keystone Light and the two don't really go together.
In a suit, I drink vodka tonics or a nice single malt but I look forward to getting home to a clean crisp clear beer that tastes nothing like "real" beer according to people with an acquired taste.

 
at 1:52 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Oh, Katie. "a man looks his best when dressed in a suit and tie"... Really? We are such a soft and sloppy society. Look, a good suit can be very comfortable but even the best ones don't compare to jeans and a tee shirt. Business suits were invented by double-chinned dolts who discovered a way to look "sophisticated" even though they could no longer exert themselves for 30 seconds without turning red and vomiting. To many lazy doughboys, a good tailor is priceless. However, a "schlub" in a suit and tie is still a "schlub".

Jason
Milford

 
at 9:57 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

I agree with the first post - go with a nice charcoal gray suit. You can wear it for all occasions. Oh, and by the way you need to donate the tan and blue suits to goodwill so you are not tempted to wear them ever again. A tan suit for weddings, are you some kind of closet Carey Grant?

 
at 9:57 AM Blogger Paul Daugherty said...

Jason, my man:

You rock.

 
at 5:46 PM Blogger Unknown said...

Pretty lame; who cares what you're confortable wearing? And why slam people who prefer wearing suits? Wear what you want if it is a matter of principle damn the program. If it's not; then be a decent guest and go with along with their program without complaining. My sons have better sense.

 
at 7:28 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

By the same token, Katie, women look best in mini skirts, panyhose and high heel shoes.

Leave the suits to men.

 
at 12:10 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

NEW BLOG FOR REDS FANS...

Hey Paul and everyone, have you heard about this new Reds blog called LetsTalkReds.com? I checked it out today and it looks like it is going to be pretty cool.

It is all about giving fans a chance to really talk about what's going on. They publish on the site things that fans write (essays and stuff) about the team. It also has polls, videos, discussions, and LINKS to all of the best places to find out rumors and info from all our Cincinnati writers. It's pretty cool. Check it out and support it. We need more sites like this.

 
at 4:53 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey now, Paul, I'm light as a feather. Making a point is not necessarily a show of distress. Otherwise, you'd have jumped from whatever floor you work on years ago.

Regardless of my mood, the point holds, notwithstanding Jason's opinion. In fact, Jason's point only helps me make mine. Indeed, a suit will not change a man. But it can change the way a man acts. This is especially true in social settings among strangers, where people take their cues based on their impressions. Those impressions are formed first visually. And being in a suit elevates a person's own self perception. There are as many (maybe more?) villains in the country club as there are at the biker bar.

In the end, the point is the more we dress like slobs, the more we act like slobs.

As for Anon 7:28 PM, one wonders what he wore while writing that bit of solomonic wisdom. Well, his mother's basement is probably cold this time of year, so maybe it was sweats.

Katie -- Mount Lookout

 
at 10:16 AM Blogger Paul Daugherty said...

hey chena... who "slammed'' anyone for wearing a suit? This post was intended to be an amusing poke at myself. Maybe you and the fashion maven Katie should exchange your suits for a sense of humor.

 
at 11:10 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Another gal here, and Katie's right. People react differently to a guy in a suit, just like they do when a woman's dressed in a pantsuit instead of sweats (my personal favorite...but I digress). Single guys, you want to get a nice girl? Show up after work in a bar with a suit on - coat off immediately of course - for a few Friday nights and you'll see what I mean. It may just be the giftwrap, but do you want to look like you're a present wrapped from Nordstroms or a cheap gift bag? Impressions count.

You want people to take you serious, you've got to dress serious. Writers have the luxury of rarely being seen - but when you are going to be seen, Paul, you should pony up and get a nice suit. But you don't need to drop $600 to do it - just hit the sales at Dillards. Twice a year they have great prices on suits. And pricewise, all dress shifts and ties can and probably should be bought at TJMaxx. And the downtown TJMaxx (only) actually carries great brand name suits and sportcoats for GREAT prices.

-Mary

 
at 12:37 PM Blogger Unknown said...

Butterball -- poor writing on my part; I was reacting to the entire string of posts and you did endorse jason's position that "Business suits were invented by double-chinned dolts ..." Yeah, he does rock.

I would be more than happy to exchange suits with Katie; although it may be an unfair exchange material-wise for me.

The bottomline is it is not really that important; I think Mike had the best commentary on this one. Love ya

 
at 1:47 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Jeez, Paul, you're touchy in the morning, and you don't even have to wear a suit! Maybe it's the Mike Brown thing you just reported on, but the seesaw is definitely dipped on your side, if anywhere. You know a good suit can make you feel like a million bucks, maybe you should try that.

Thanks, Mary. I agree. Is that Nordstroms open yet?

 
at 10:50 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Paul here is the point.

In our twenties, we all looked good in a suit, as it normally fit correctly and heck it made us look older and sophisticated.

Now past the big 40 or 50, its the opposite, dress down to look younger,
plus our belly fat, is a painful exercise to suck in for more than a few nano seconds.

There is a point to be made, that
when suit and tie is noted as the dress, it does not leave any thing to debate. And this is a good thing. I presume you have been perceived as the odd man out on many semi-formal and formal occasions if you you have not donned a tie in 20 years, or maybe you really don't get out of the house at all.

Agree totally with the Keystone Light, however my preference recently has been red dog, or if I am really feeling extravagant, Rolling Rock.

 
at 11:17 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Warning: Chauvinistic comment to follow.

Ladies, Paul isn't in the bars Friday night and/or isn't going to see the CEO for a million dollar budget next year.
A suit to go to a Bengals press conference?? or cover a game in San Fran??
You're exposing your goofiness and giving women a bad name - I don't appreciate you doing that to my wife.

 
at 11:20 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Katie, I've seen women who rock in a suit - so you're wrong.

 
at 3:32 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Mary here again. I'm not saying Paul should wear a suit all the time, or that he should be in the bars. Of course, some of you are, in fact, single, so you can consider that piece of advice just for you.

But...life happens, and there are times you just need to have one nice lightweight wool suit that FITS in your closet ready to go. And maybe two sport coats, summer and winter weight, and two slacks. Men in their 40's and 50's still look better in a suit than not, and ou're always selling yourself. This ain't hard, boys.

 
at 8:18 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Mary, Just curious >> do you hand out your "pieces-of-advice" in the Friday night bar scene??

How does that work for you??

 
at 7:27 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

8:18, when you don't like the message you just slam the messenger? I'm not saying any of you have to dress up like a jim dandy every hour of every day. Thou protesteth too much.

 
at 8:36 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Just a final thought to this blog - Paul & most here can have/share a laugh at their own expense.
Try it ladies - it's really a very good thing!

 
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