FAREWELL TO FORMAL

The world changed in May when Twitter announced its staff can work from home on a permanent basis. (Although ‘permanent’ here might mean it is introducing a seven-day-week — you know the way

Big Tech isn’t too keen on people having a life...) It definitely means the end of the office as we know it.

That’s a problem for people throwing up office blocks all over Dublin and Cork. One of the options being discussed is to turn these potentially redundant skyscrapers into vertical farms. (I’m not making this up.) The idea is that homeworkers go to live in the country, while our city centres get turned into farms. Basically, the city and rural Ireland swap places. It remains to be seen if this is progress. But all this home-working solves a big problem. Social distancing in clothes shops is going to be a doddle, because they can take out all the racks of any formalwear that is worn from the waist down. From now on, workwear is expensive on top and a tracksuit from Penneys down below. My guess is the expensive top will go too, and we’ll all be in sports gear by the end of the year. Finally, we can stop pretending and dress as ourselves every day. Now that actually is progress.