When I made the move home, I travelled light. I took the opportunity to winnow my wardrobe, tossing or donating anything that was outdated to worn out, or just didn’t suit me anymore. I wasn’t worried, since I knew I had no idea of what I’d really need until I knew what I’d be doing.

The summer wardrobe for Durham isn’t complicated when you aren’t working: a couple of pairs of lightweight cotton pants, a pair of shorts, a skirt or two and a few T-shirts and shirts and you are good to go. I knew (and hoped) that I might be talking to people about work, so I ordered a cotton blazer and pants for the interviews that never materialized. (At least they are still fresh and ready for this year.)

Winter came, and I swapped out the lightweight pants for a couple of pairs of jeans and a pair of slim black pants. (After discovering that the wool pants I’d brought with me had all shrunk (*cough*) over the summer in their garment bag, I was mildly relieved that I had nowhere to wear them.)

Now that I am working a few days a week, and aggressively resuming my hunt for a more substantial job, it is time to assess what I have and what I might need. Here’s what I found:

Black turtlenecks: 3. Cotton ribbed, cotton loose fit, and silk-merino blend. Black V neck sweaters: 2. One is slightly longer and newer than the other. Black T-shirts: 3. One long-sleeved crew neck, one long-sleeved scoop neck with detachable scarf, and one short-sleeved crew neck. Black cotton button down shirt, elbow length sleeves. (Do we see a pattern here?)

White shirts: 5. One basic  cotton button down, one waffle weave cotton button down with French cuffs, one cotton tuxedo style ruffle front, one “safari” style cotton button down, and one linen button down. (I like what I like.)

But I branch out- I have the same safari shirt in natural colored linen, and a short-sleeved, cotton ribbed turtleneck in a nice tobacco color.

And I couldn’t figure out why I was bored with my clothes…