If you happened to stop by my house unexpectedly, upon ringing the doorbell, you’d very likely be greeted by me, wearing the ensemble pictured at left. (Click the snapshot for a larger copy of the picture).

This is my current Slugwear ensemble, which I define as those special, comfortable, much loved items of apparel that one wears in the privacy of one’s house, long, long after it is advisable to do so. I think my total financial investment in my favorite Slugwear outfit is about twelve dollars. Despite its humble origins, I’ve probably spent thousands of hours in this outfit, eating many wonderful meals, listening to countless delightful albums, and laying on the floor (because I’m not allowed on the couch) watching hundreds of great movies. That’s some fine return on investment, let me tell you.

My current Slugwear ensemble consists of a pair of draw-string waisted, knee length, blue plaid shorts that I bought at the Latham K-Mart on Route 2 about 15 years ago. The hems have been completely torn out of the legs, and the right pocket is ripped across the top, so that it hangs down uselessly to my side. At some point, I splashed bleach on the shorts, so they’ve got sickly white spots all over them, most prominently on the lower left side, as you can see in the photo.

My favorite Slugwear shirt came from Target. It’s probably about eight years old. The cuffs on the sleeves frayed at some point, so I tore them off. They collar is torn down the right side, so it may have to go the way of the cuffs at some point soon. A couple of days ago, I barked my shin while walking around during the night on a storage bin that was left in our front hallway (insert Helen Keller joke here), and it bled pretty extravagantly, but fortuntely, Slugwear is also handy for minor household medical emergencies, so the stains you see all over the shirt can be explained by me mopping up my wounds with my sleeves. How handy! Thank you, Slugwear!

I am operating on the assumption that I am not alone in having a much loved, overworn household ensemble for evenings when company is not expected. What are your favorite Slugwear items? And do your family members live in fear that you might actually go out in public in them?