Cold Weather Dress Code for Witnesses

by WTWizard 21 Replies latest jw experiences

  • WTWizard
    WTWizard

    With the advent of cooler weather (at least in Canada and the northern US), one might think of how the Witnesses are going to cope. For certain, dress codes are going to have different effects now than they did when it was broiling hot.

    Men are going to be more comfortable now. Cooler weather means that the coat is not going to create as much heat stroke risk as it did in the heat of mid summer. Of course, there is still the issue of inflexibility (you should start wearing it all the time now that it's October and no longer summer) when warmer weather returns (as it frequently does this time of year). At least the men get to wear pants when it gets truly cold.

    Not so the "sisters". The panty hose will be less uncomfortable (unless you live in Florida, that is). But, once it gets below freezing, and more so if it's windy, the opening under the skirt is going to allow cold air in. Being cold usually results, and in bitter cold conditions, it can lead to frostbite that having pants (and thermal underwear) could have prevented. Of course, the Watchtower Society doesn't care--the Governing Body isn't out there in the heat or cold, nor do they keep in tune with the fact that a cold snap this time of year is often followed by a prolonged warmup.

    Not only is this going to be colder, but the weather in many parts of the country is about to turn rainier. Umbrellas are only useful if it is not extremely windy (and I do not recommend carrying a metal-pointed umbrella in a thunderstorm since the sharp metal point makes a decent lightning rod). This makes for sloppier sidewalks, along with falling leaves. Slips and falls, especially with those dress shoes (high heels are the worst), are more common as some of those leaves can be slippery when wet. Of course, the people running the Watchtower Society do not realize this.

    And, as many in the North know well, this is going to be followed soon by snow. Canadians and those high up in the Rocky Mountains are first hit with snow, and soon those in the Northern cities will experience snow. Usually, at first it isn't that deep. "Sisters" usually start wearing boots at this point, since those flimsy high heels are extremely prone to getting cold in a big hurry, and it only takes a little snow on the fallen leaves to have a nasty fall. Men will continue wearing dress shoes until the snow reaches about 3"/7 cm deep at which point snow will get inside the shoes. Boots are often worn at this point for men as well.

    The problem is that the Watchtower Society has that "look" that has to be maintained regardless of what the weather does. People have to look like Witnesses, and that means having a suit coat on top of a dress shirt for men and a skirt that is about 2"/5 cm below the knees for women. This is OK in moderate, dry weather. But, once it starts getting colder, the women are going to suffer, and they suffer first because of that opening under the skirt and their wimpy shoes (that is, wimpy in providing insulation). They do not realize that this look is not sustainable outside the temperature range of about 65-72 F/18-22 C. Men can dress like this comfortably down to about 45 F/7 C (though at this point, they will likely need something to protect their fingers from the cold), but women start getting cold at only 65 F/18 C because of the dress.

    Of course, this can cause severe problems. The women dressed like this when it gets extremely cold can get frostbite, and if they are forced to stay outside for field circus all day in rural areas, they can even get hypothermia. Children are at especially high risk because they are smaller and they are ordered to stand still no matter how cold it gets. Fingers get numb, and it is harder to write the numbers legibly and quickly like the Watchtower Society demands. Feet get very cold, especially with the high heels and having to stand still for prolonged periods of time. Even those who are resistant to the cold are susceptible to cold in the extremities, as well as when they are forced to stand still for a long period. Again, children are more susceptible.

    Don't those idiots running the Watchtower Society realize that going out in field circus is not only taking away from worthwhile activities, but it is physically dangerous? It might be only a nuisance now, as it starts getting chillier in the northern tier. And those in the south might be wondering what's with the complaints about the cold. But, I challenge Ted Jaracz to go out in field circus, dressed in a skirt that is Watchtower approved, on a windy day at 40 below, and have to stay out there for hours at a time. It would serve him right if he freezes to death.

  • itsallgoodnow
    itsallgoodnow

    i always wore leggings under knee high boots with the required skirt thrown over. I was always more comfortable in winter than in summer. sweating it out in the texas heat is really not fun. you can always wear more clothes, but you can only remove so much in the heat.

    that goes for everything else, not just for witnesses in field service, IMO.

    but, I have no experience with extreme cold.

  • nvrgnbk
    nvrgnbk
    Don't those idiots running the Watchtower Society realize that going out in field circus is not only taking away from worthwhile activities, but it is physically dangerous?

    They don't care.

    But, thankfully, most JWs are getting wise to it.

    A little door-to-door, from the car, then to the coffee!

    A few RVs, pray they're not at home, then back to the Hall!

    You can only repress the human spirit for so long.

    The Tower is crumbling into oblivion.

    The apathy of the vast majority of Witnesses cannot be denied.

  • snowbird
    snowbird

    It's not the cold we have to worry about down here. It's the intense, searing, stupefying heat! My daughter - brave, zealous soul that she is - didn't pioneer this summer because of it.

    The last time I attempted field service, I became quite teed off because the PO was driving around in his a/c SUV while everyone else was trying to find someone at home. My daughter and I went down into this little hollow where there was only one way in or out. I was trying to watch for dogs and fight off flies and gnats at the same time. I thought to myself, "Why am I doing this?"

    We walked back to the main road and I flagged the PO down and told him we were leaving. He was none too pleased, but I didn't care. Why should we face the heat, dogs, flies, mosquitoes, etc. while he drove around looking important? The WTS is nothing but a sham. There is nothing Christian about it.

    Sylvia

  • REBORNAGAIN
    REBORNAGAIN

    As I had just posted to another comment, I too had to wear skirts in -20°F temperatures. BUT....some people did have brains. In Germany, even though it was never thaaaaat cold, the bro's did allow women to wear pants, if their coats were long enough to cover most of the pants. E.g. knee high boots, pants tucked in and the coat hanging just below the knee. Who would know if we had pants on.

    After attending OTHER churches since leaving the Borg, and seeing people attend with jeans and t-shirts on, at first I didn't like it, but then I got to thinking, God loves all, no matter what they wear. Clothing do not make a person better than a bumb who wears rags. If we worship our higher source, He/She will appreciate the worship, no matter what we wear. Don't you think?

    LINDA

  • Cellist
    Cellist

    We always wore pants in the winter. When it got really cold it was long underwear under wool pants time. In the coldest weather that was my attire to the meetings too. We had a long highway drive.

    Cellist

  • Bumble Bee
    Bumble Bee

    Man I hated FS in the winter! My toes always froze!! lol

    I think JW's take way more coffee breaks now, and for longer, than when I was still going. I know several that do phone sercive and letter writing instead of going door to door.

    BB

  • Bonnie_Clyde
    Bonnie_Clyde

    Wearing pants was not an option in our area. I always wore a satiny type long underwear, high boots, knee huggers which hid the underwear, two pairs of socks. The boots were very expensive since I bought the warmest available. Sometimes two pairs of gloves, wool scarf, two sweaters, and the list goes on. I remember working with the special pioneer in our congregation. The weather never seemed to bother her, and since I was half her age, I felt I shouldn't let it bother me either. But all I needed was one door and my feet felt like ice. In no time I would ask to go on a coffee break and felt guilty because I couldn't stand it any more. One day I asked the special pioneer how she stood having cold feet. She said, "Oh my feet don't get cold." It finally dawned on me that I was suffering needlessly and didn't really need to be out under those conditions.

  • ESTEE
    ESTEE

    We were never allowed to wear pants. I dressed wearing two or three pairs of tights under my skirt/dress during the Saskatchewan winters (minus 30 below Celsius). It didn't stop my hands from freezing, though as I showed a mag article, etc.

    Glad I left.

    ESTEE

  • wha happened?
    wha happened?

    I lived in the San fernando valley in Los Angeles and the heat is unbearable in the summer. Then like a bunch of 'tards we throw a suit on and walk around in the heat. I thought it was distracting to see someone on your doorstep sweating like a pig while he would hold up a magazine. During the summer we had this one brother who had the bookstudy at his house. He would not turn on the air. Finally I got tired of it, (I was reading most of the time so I had to wear a coat), so I offered to pay him to turn on the air. He accepted and I handed him a check. Oh wait did I forget to mention he was the PO?

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