About 20 or so years ago, we were going to Tucson, Arizona, that is right on the Mexican border - in July! I was going to present an award at a small scientific society banquet so I told my wife she had to take along a dress. We were in our 60s and she really resisted doing this, but I eventually convinced her that it would be very embarrassing if she didn't wear a dress. So we got to Tucson and, boy, it was HOT. I'm not sure how hot but probably over 100 degrees.
When the time came for the banquet my wife dutifully put on her dress, pantyhose,and made herself up. She looked beautiful, if a bit wilted, and off we went to the banquet. As we were walking into the building where the banquet was to be held, we were passed by some women geologists wearing cut offs, knapsacks, stringy hair, and flop flops. My wife stopped me and glaring at me said., "You will never get me to do this again!
Some years later I was again to present an award at a large scientific society meeting in Denver, but I knew better than insist she bring a dress. The banquet was to be held in a large fancy hotel. We were in a crowd mulling around in the lobby before the banquet hall when in came the women geologists again, straight from the field, I guess, dressed in their costumes of stringy hair, knapsack, cut offs, and flip flops. My wife and I just looked at each other and smiled.
How times have changed. I now live in a continuing care facility, and it is very rare to see a woman in a skirt or dress. Pants are the rule, though actually in the summer, a dress or a skirt is cooler than pants if the legs are bare. Think of Arab men in the Middle East wearing their long tunics, equivalent to long dresses (actually called a thawb). And of course, in Scotland there is the men's kilt, a sort of skirt even though it never gets real hot in Scotland.
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