Forever in Bluejeans

AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTSometime in my mid-20s, I stopped wearing jeans.I’d spent my youth romping around in baggy hand-me-down Gap jeans, their knees stained with grass. As a mopey teenager, maturing under the twin moons of skateboarding and hard-core punk, I favored dark skinny jeans that hugged my calves. Emerging from college, I saved up for a plywood-stiff pair of raw denim from the French label A.P.C. I wore those slim-straight jeans into oblivion, until holes sprouted at the pockets and they grew feline-like whiskers at the knees.And then one day, I just quit them. As I slid into the work force, I became preoccupied with being taken seriously. I had a beard but looked younger than my 22 years, my face still bearing the aftershocks of acne. Jeans, to me, underscored that.I migrated instead to dress trousers, cotton in summer, wool in winter. They were wider than the J.Crew norm, but I had only black and navy. The whole idea was for no one to notice them.I vacillated between crewneck and V-neck sweaters, and cycled between striped shirts and solid ones. But for years, those pants were a constant.A few years ago though, I tired of them. It was as if I had eaten the same coconut-flavored yogurt for breakfast for a decade until one day, even the thought of it made me retch.I decided my wool pants were a stylistic void, a dark wormhole where something more varied, or just something worth even a split-second of closer inspection, could’ve gone instead.This is what can happen to all of us with clothes. Our eyes wander, taking in new influences. You see someone in a chartreuse sweater and suddenly your gray knits feel creaky. A friend arrives to dinner in a tweed coat that you can’t stop looking at, and with that, your peacoat is cooked. It’s good to be open to change.I was open enough on a reporting trip in Paris — cry for me! — three years ago that when a pair of beautifully battered bluejeans beckoned to me from across a vintage store, I bought them. They were by Yohji Yamamoto, fleecy from decades of wear, and priced at $175. When I became a dad a yearish later, I put on those jeans day after sleep-deprived day of my paternity leave. They became my literal Dad Jeans.Despite their princely sounding provenance, the Yamamotos are essentially recreation straight-legged Levis, only a bit crisper in shape. Their indigo hue gives way to white from wear; their knees are frosted with cloudlike wisps. They’re like something James Dean would have worn in “Giant.”I wear them at least three times a week now.I’ve learned that my fears about appearing unserious were unfounded. Glance around on your commute and you’ll realize it’s nearly impossible now to discern someone’s job based on how they dress. Jeans are really a norm in most offices.And now I can’t seem to stop buying them. I’m up to seven pairs in a range of washes and fits, in a foolhardy pursuit of perfection. In the wearing, deficiencies come into focus: One pair is too short, another too wide, a third too … blue? I’m currently hunting the utopian pair of dusty, straight-legged black jeans. A pair of Levi’s from eBay is en route to me as I write this. I’m sure when they arrive, I’ll love them. Well, that is, until I get sick of them.More from Jacob:Critic’s notebook: How Jensen Huang’s signature leather jacket came back to bite him.Get The Fashions delivered to your inbox.THE LATEST NEWSU.S. FLIGHT STOPPAGEImageCredit...Erin Schaff/The New York TimesAir travel in the United States remained snarled on Saturday after the F.A.A. shut down flights for more than four hours Friday evening. U.S. officials blamed an aging air traffic control system for the breakdown. Follow our live coverage here.It was only the second full ground stop since 9/11. The Homeland Security secretary said there was no evidence of a cyberattack, but added: “We’re not going to rule it out.”Chaos spread through airports as some 6,600 Friday flights were canceled, along with more scheduled for today. What happens to those stranded travelers?PoliticsImageCredit...Rory Doyle for The New York TimesEven Scott Colom’s fiercest supporters were skeptical he could pull it off. Here’s how the Democrat toppled a Republican incumbent to become the first Black person elected to the Senate from Mississippi since Reconstruction.The Supreme Court said it would review the Trump administration’s policy of categorically denying asylum claims by people crossing the southern border.Representative Lauren Boebert, a hard-line Republican and Trump ally, narrowly lost her bid for re-election in a conservative Colorado district.The Democrats who will soon control Congress plan to rein in White House budget powers and boost funds for climate, education, health and housing.A popular Ohio restaurant hosted Vivek Ramaswamy after his attack ad featuring Amy Acton’s mother. Then customers turned against it.Around the WorldRussia, negotiating with Trump’s envoys to end the war in Ukraine, revived its demand that NATO pull back its troops to positions they held in 1997.Gadi Eisenkot, who is trying to form the next Israeli government, accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of fueling a racist campaign against the country’s Arab citizens.Nvidia ScandalTreasury Secretary Scott Bessent blamed the Commerce Department for not sanctioning Megaspeed, the Singaporean firm at the center of the Nvidia spy scandal.Silicon Valley start-ups face an uncertain future after the abrupt resignation of Jensen Huang, whose company holds some $48 billion in stakes in hundreds of companies.More on A.I.Anthropic’s financial picture could get murkier when it goes public, because of employee stock compensation and the growing costs of the A.I. build-out.Dario Amodei, the company’s chief executive, often warns about the dangers of A.I. Others in the industry are getting fed up with his message.Other Big StoriesThe Brooklyn district attorney’s office opened a criminal investigation into a building collapse this week that killed eight people, including two children.Sister June, the oldest Shaker in the United States, died at 88. Only two practicing members remain in the country’s last active Shaker group.THE INTERVIEWImageCredit...The New York Times“I turned 40 a couple of years ago, and I suddenly felt more present in my body and more connected to my sense of confidence and sexuality than ever.”— Olivia Wilde, who directed and stars in the Oscar contender “The Invite.” She spoke to David Marchese about identity, relationships, career and “aggressive rage.” Watch, listen or read a transcript.GAMES OF THE WEEKImageCredit...Leah Hennel/Getty ImagesHockey homecoming: The N.H.L.’s best team, the Carolina Hurricanes, are playing the Seattle Kraken in Finland this afternoon at 1 p.m. Eastern. It’s a homecoming for Sebastian Aho, the Finnish center who has been the engine behind Carolina’s offense for the last several years. But it won’t be a vacation: The Hurricanes cherish their blue-collar, work-through-everything reputation. They lift a cinder block after every workout.Football for breakfast: European audiences are also being treated tomorrow with an N.F.L. game in Munich. The Detroit Lions are playing the New England Patriots — two teams The Athletic projects will make the playoffs. Kickoff is at 9:30 a.m. Eastern. — Matthew CullenTHE WEEK IN CULTUREOPERAImageCredit...Sara Krulwich/The New York TimesToday’s final performance of the Metropolitan Opera’s blockbuster premiere of “Lincoln in the Bardo” will be live-streamed on YouTube. It’s the first time the Met has streamed an entire opera, a move that could transform the institution’s audience.Chile’s principal opera house struck a deal to have its dance students trained by the Paris Opera Ballet School.Film and TVAfter a long and drama-filled hiatus, Johnny Depp returns as Dickens’s notorious holiday miser in “Ebenezer.” Our critic says he isn’t playing Scrooge so much as trying to mount a comeback.The new Netflix series “The Body” leans on millennial nostalgia to tell the story of teenagers caught up in a suspicious death.In “I Play Rocky,” the director Patrick Farrelly charts Sylvester Stallone’s effort to get “Rocky” onto the big screen. Watch him narrate a breakthrough scene.More CultureThe Times and the New York Public Library announced their list of this year’s best illustrated children’s books. Take a look.Did you get married in the last five years? We want to know where you splurged, where you saved and how much money you really spent.RECIPE OF THE WEEKImageCredit...Dane Tashima for The New York TimesMaple Roasted ChickenMillie Peartree’s maple roasted chicken thighs have a smoky, tangy sweetness from the combination of maple syrup, cider vinegar and a dash of smoked paprika. If you let them marinate overnight, they’ll be able to absorb even more of those complex flavors. So, throw them together today for a satisfying Sunday supper tomorrow.REAL ESTATEImageCredit...Katherine Marks for The New York TimesThe Hunt: A New York couple tried living in the suburbs, but decided the city better suited their needs. Could $1 million get them a Manhattan two-bedroom? Play our game.What you get for $800,000: A 1900 house with Craftsman-style details in Saugatuck, Mich., a 1977 Gambrel house in Hartford, Vt., and a 1950 cottage in Greenville, S.C. are all on the market. Which would you pick?$1.5 million homes in Mexico: A four-bedroom with modern touches in Cuernavaca, a contemporary home with a pool in Chapultepec and a seven-bedroom Mexican-colonial in Acapantzingo are all on the market.T MAGAZINEImageCredit...Victoria SambunarisImageCredit...Caroline Gutman for The New York TimesChop house: This vacation home was built from an old Virginia barbershop.Fresh energy: In newly magnetic Marseille, a family of designers are incorporating the city’s gritty past into their work. Look inside their home.Going car-free: It’s not always practical. Here are the places it works best.ADVICE FROM WIRECUTTERJust get them a sweater from ScotlandAround this time every year, friends ask me the same question: Where to look for a great gift sweater? Wirecutter, of course, recommends many excellent sweaters, including a classic rollneck and various cashmere options. But my personal advice is always the same: Get your loved one a sweater made in Scotland. The country’s wool mills and knitters manufacture some of the greatest sweaters in the world. Many of them have been doing so without pause since the 19th century. Shetland wool sweaters are a reliable place to start. They come in an armada of colors, a range of price options and are exceptionally durable. Even for the person who wants for nothing, a Scottish sweater is an excellent gift that’ll last for years. — Alexander AcimanNOW TIME TO PLAYJacob Gallagher is a Times reporter covering fashion and style.Related ContentAdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENT