New Year's Eve / New Camera

As a holiday gift to ourselves, Shannon and I purchased a new point & shoot camera.  It will be helpful with our upcoming trip to Belgium, but also with the formula.  Not having to haul my DSLR around for every pict will be nice.  Tonight was the first image taken with the new camera at Mike G's shindig.

the outfit

Jeans 7 + Yellow Pattern Socks 5 = 12 = December

(Thur) Brown Long Sleeve T 5 + Brown/Tan Plaid Long Sleeve 11 + Black Cardi 15 = the 31st

Streamlining

Today I was able to start packing up some socks that won't be needed because they will not work in the formula for the rest project.  There is a light at the end and I can see it.  I think?...

Retiring a Special T

Today was the last time that I wore my original lite grey heather Jaguar Climbing T. The shirt has been permanently retired from the formula. It was originally called to duty back in Autumn of 2005. I printed the graphic for my first year of coaching the Jag Climbing Team. It was semi-retired in Fall of 2008 because of excessive wear, but was repaired and brought back into service for the formula project. Check out the final presentation of the T at my website.

the outfit
Jeans 7 + Blue Pattern Socks 4 + Black Belt 1 = 12 = December
(Sat) Lt. Grey T-shirt -7 + Olive Long Sleeve T-shirt 3 + Blues Plaid Short Sleeve 9 = the 5th

Day 200

200 days in...  While it seemed like the first 100 days took forever, the last 100 have gone by pretty smoothly.  Well over the halfway point and cruising towards the finish.

the outfit

Jeans 7 + Grey Pattern Socks 2 + Canvas Belt 2 = 11 = November

(Mon) Lt. Blue -2 + Green Stripe Long Sleeve Button Down 18 = the 16th

A Visit from the Lame Sauce

Damien came to visit us for the first time in Syracuse.  Poor kid drove 10 hours round trip to spend less than 36 hours with us.

the outfit

Jeans 7 + Grey Pattern Socks 2 + Canvas Belt 2 = 11 = November

(Fri) White T-shirt 6 + Lt. Green Long Sleeve Button Down -5 + Black Crew 5 = the 6th

Halfway Done / November Reward

So today I am officially over the halfway hump. It's all downhill from here with less than 6 months to go.

As an added bonus November is the first and only time during the project that the month starts on a Sunday. Being that the days of the week t-shirt point values count from 1 to 7 (Sunday through Saturday), my upperbody wardrobe for the next week will only need to consist of a single T-shirt. This is a treat and a reward for making it this far.

the outfit
Pumpkin Socks = October 31st
(Sat) Charcoal T-shirt

Awful stache = 0 points on anyone's list

Blogger Sucks

Just wanted to note that half the reason for my delinquency with blogging is that I spend three times the amount of time that is actually  needed, trying to get the formatting to not glitch on me. Seriously, is it that hard for a program to format simple text.  My apologies for all the formatting errors with the text size and blocking.  I officially give up on this crappy program.

In need of positive low point socks!!!

So I've been not wearing socks for much of September. It seems that while I have every possible color of stripe socks (negative points), I don't have as many pattern socks (positive points) as I thought. It would be especially handy to have some grey pattern socks (2 points), which when added to blue jeans (7 points) would give me the total needed to represent the ninth month. Fortunately my canvas belt (also 2 points) has been able to make up the difference. In theory I could wear plaid pants (10 points) and multi-colored stripe socks (-1 point) to make up the value, but that seems even more ridiculous than not wearing socks.

In an attempt to warm my feet I've made several unsuccessful shopping trips. It appears as though I will have to go to the internet to find adequate socks.

the outfit

Jeans 7 + Canvas Belt 2 = 9 = September

(Fri) White T-shirt 6 + Grey Sweater Vest 12 = the 18th

Hanging with the Fam / Day 129

Taking a break from the many nieces and nephews while spending the weekend at my childhood home.

the outfit

Plaid Shorts 7 + Colored Footie Socks 2 = 9 = September

(Sun) Red T-shirt 1 + Olive Long Sleeve T-shirt 3 + Green & White Strip Short Sleeve 2 = the 6th

Exciting bits for the gallery

While the gallery images are in order from day one to the present, I'm working on adding dates as well as a caption for each. Captions will divulge locations, events and/or reflections from the day of the photo. Give me some time to catch up with that as I have 120+ days to edit. Keep checking back to see what new information I've added.

Stolen Bike / Day 121

My bike got stolen a few days ago, so I'm waiting for Shannon to pick me up from the studio.
the outfit
Jeans 7 + Black Belt 1 = 8 = August
(Sat) Charcoal T-shirt 7 + Olive Long Sleeve T-shirt 3 + Orange/Grey Plaid Short Sleeve Shirt 19 = the 29th

Raising the Flag / Day 114

Moved the Buckeye flag to the front porch for the college football season.
the outfit
Solid Shorts 6 + Canvas Belt 2 = 8 = August
(Sat) Charcoal T-shirt 7 + Blue Gingham Plaid Shirt 15
= the 22nd

This is how I dress myself / Day 103

This is neither fashionable nor practical. On most occasions I hate what I am wearing. While some might like the idea of having their clothes chosen for them each day, it really does take the fun out of getting dressed. I'm longing for the weather to change so that I might have some different options.
the outfit
Plaid Shorts 7 + Black Belt 1 = 8 = August
(Tues) Olive T-shirt 3 + Green/Blue Ball Pattern Shirt 4 + Solid Colored Neck Tie 4 = the 11th

Back in the Cuse / Day 95

Late night ice-cream run

the outfit

Solid Shorts 6 + Canvas Belt 2 = 8 = August

(Mon) Light Blue -2 + Charcoal Grey Long Sleeve T-shirt 7 + Orange Retro Short Sleeve -2 = the 3rd

Buckeyes Columbus, OH / Day 92

Picnic with the Pops and TBDBITL

the outfit

Plaid Shorts 7 = July

(Fri) White T-shirt 6 + Blue Ginham Plaid Shirt 15 + Yellow Floral Pattern Shirt 10 = the 31st

Sedona, AZ / Day 88

The four points, that a solid colored neck tie offers, in most cases is the difference between two shirts and three.
the outfit
Plaid Shorts 7 = July
(Mon) Navy T-shirt 2 + Yellow/Blue Plaid Short Sleeve 21+ Solid Colored Neck Tie 4 = the 27th

Ikea Phoenix, AZ / Day 85

I love Ikea!

the outfit

Plaid Shorts 7 = July

(Fri) White T-shirt 6 + Olive Long Sleeve T-shirt 3 + Blue Gingham Plaid Short Sleeve 15 = th 24th

Putney Picture Day / Day 74

The Putney School Summer Session One
the outfit
Jeans 7 + Grey Stripe Socks -2 + Canvas Belt 2 = 7 = July
(Mon) Navy T-shirt 2 + Navy/Green/White Plaid Short Sleeve Shirt 11 = the 13th

First Night in Vermont / Day 55

Back at Putney for the next few weeks. Hanging in the Hostel.
the outfit
Solid Shorts - 6= June
(Wed) Orange T-shirt 4 + Charcoal Long Sleeve T-shirt 7 + Red/Yellow/Blue Plaid Short Sleeve 13 = the 24th

Last night in AZ for a while / Day 50

Green balloon sculpture on head = Good Times
the outfit
Solid Shorts 6 = June
(Fri) White T-shirt 6 + Red/Yellow/Blue Plaid Short Sleeve 13 = the 19th

Hanger I-5, Cottonwood, AZ / Day 44

Henry, Doug, and the plane...
the outfit
Solid Shorts 6 = June
(Sat) Charcoal Grey T-shirt 7 + Navy Fish Shirt 6 = the 13th

The longest game of dress-up

Today I realized that I am currently playing the longest game of dress up. Technically I have 11 months to go, until I finish.

Same outer shirt, different day-shirt

See "Quirk #1" to fully understand this...
For the dates of 5/23 to 5/30 I made use of the fact that I could get by with the same outer shirt for an entire week.
See the whole week in the gallery.

The Farm, Cornville, AZ / Day 31

Its way to hot to be wearing three shirts...
the outfit
Solid Shorts 6 + Brown Belt -1 = 5 = May
(Sun) Red T-shirt 1 + Charcoal Long Sleeve T-shirt 7 + Brown/Orange Plaid Short Sleeve 23 = the 31st

The Big Texan, Amarillo, Texas / Day 23

Everything is bigger in Te-has
the outfit
Solid Shorts 6 + Brown belt -1 = 5 = May
(Sat) Charcoal Grey T-shirt 7 + Heather Grey T-shirt -7 +
Orange/Brown Plaid Short Sleeve 23 = the 23rd

Trying to upload excel file to blog

So those that have seen me in the past few weeks know that I currently carry a pocket sized excel printout of my wardrobe points in my wallet. Many have expressed interest in witnessing the specific breakdown of categories, point values and insanity that I follow each day as I dress myself.

Working on it...

Marking the date with fabric & thread / Day 19

So today I got up and got dressed with my daily outfit. Wore it all day until I had to get ready to play soccer with my Tuesday night team. Shannon and I were planning on going to dinner after the game and I planned on getting back into my outfit to go eat and take my picture at that time.

After being kicked in the face during my game and having to go & get stitches, food was out of the question. While I still had my t-shirt color to mark the day of the week, The key to marking this date was not the clothes that I was supposed to wear, but the blue thread that was stitched into my face.

I hate v-necks NYC / Day 13

Some people can totally pull off wearing v-neck t-shirts. I am not one of those people. So the only purplish T that I own is this awful v-neck. It was either this combination or pack even more clothing than I already had. Note to self… buy a new purple shirt for Wednesdays.

the outfit

Blue Jeans 7 + Grey Stripe Socks -2 = 5 = May

(Wed) Violet T-shirt -4 + Grey/Pink/Blue Plaid Short Sleeve 17 = the 13th

Planning for trip to NYC

I’m about to do the first of many trips that I have planned for this summer. Next week will be the first test of the formula and my ability to do this while I’m away from home. I’ve planned the entire week out in order to pack for the trip. I’m definitely taking more clothes than I normally would.

Shopping made easy

In the Formula there are “open” slots in several categories where I can add some more flexibility and variety to my wardrobe (not just in style, but also in point values).
Example: I don’t have many stripe/print short sleeve button-down shirts. By adding a shirt to this category I would gain some very useful mid-range even-number point values.
Thus, shopping is as easy as seeing where I can add diversity to my points.
Currently I also need stripe long sleeve shirts as well as another pair of plaid shorts. Though I don’t really have money for new clothes, being that this is my primary creative exploit at this time, I am justified in buying new clothing in that they are essentially art supplies.

Why don't coats and shoes have points?

I’ve had a lot of people ask me if coats and shoes counted for points and if not, Why?
Simple, shoes and coats get taken on and off too much. Plus, I had enough values in the basics (shirts, pants, socks and accessories) to create a working model without having to make it even more complicated than it already is.

Day Four

Neck tie for no reason
the outfit
Blue Jeans 7 + Grey Stripe Socks -2 = 5 = May
(Mon) Navy T-shirt 2 + Black Long Sleeve Button -2 + Solid Color Neck Tie 4 = the 4th

Quirk #1

Only a few days into the project, I am noticing patterns and odd quirks about the formula. The most obvious oddity, which for whatever reason didn’t register with me while I was making the formula, is in the incremental point growth of the daily t-shirts. Because they have the potential to add 1 point in value each day progressing from Sunday through Saturday, in theory I could wear the same outer shirt all week as long as I sport the appropriate t-shirt for the day. Fortunately there are negative point values as well as positive credits, to add flexibility and variety to my wardrobe.

How It Works

While each item of clothing has a different point value, the basic idea is as follows.

The Month of the outfit is determined by the combination of items on the lower body. Each item has a designated point value. The total of all lower body points equals the number for the month of the year. January = 1, February = 2, March = 3…

The Day of the Week that the outfit is worn is determined by the color of the outermost T-shirt. In addition to marking the day, the T-shirt color has a point value that also contributes to the date.

The Date of the outfit is determined by the combination of items on the upper body. Each item has a designated point value. The total of all upper body points equals the number for the date of the month.

Rules for long sleeve T-shirts

Long sleeve T-shirts equal the same day and point value for color as short sleeve T-shirts.

A long sleeve T-shirt over a short sleeve T-shirt counter acts & cancels the hidden shirt.

A long sleeve T-shirt under a Short sleeve T-shirt contributes points to the date, but does not effect the day represented by the outer short sleeve T-shirt.

Special Rules / Unique Exceptions

Green T-shirt and Blue Thread (in lip) = Memorable Injury = May 19th

Silver Paisley Neck Tie = Anniversary = June 28th

Pumpkin Socks = Halloween = October 31st

Red and Green Socks = Christmas = December 25th

Heart Socks = Valentines Day = February 14th

Emergency Back Up

In the event that a proper date cannot be achieved, an emergency kit of patches (including all months, days and numbers) has been generated to uniquely mark the date. The patches are to be sewn to an available shirt. The shirt must then be retired at the end of the day as documentation for the project.

The Idea for the Formula

The Formula is the latest evolution of my continuing work with clothing (fabric, thread, buttons…) and it’s association to memory. It originated out of a desire to wear a unique combination of clothing items for each day of a single year. In developing a method that would prevent me from repeating an ensemble, I decided to connect the clothing choices to the month and date numbers, a combination that only happens once a year. As if that wasn’t enough, I also implemented a scheme for connecting the specific day of the week as well. The entire formula was established from my current wardrobe, assigning types of clothes as well as different colors, textures, patterns and fabrics with point values.

The result is a journal of my life, organized by what I wear. While not entirely, in most cases the specific day, month and date, can be figured by the clothing I am wearing. Though at times the formula is tedious, it is not intended to be torturous. Keep in mind it was developed as a way to uniquely mark each day for an entire year. On occasions, days may be marked by items not directly discussed in the formula, just as long as that combination is impossible to be repeated at a later date. Ultimately it is for everyday to be different.