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"Check this out," my husband said, laughing. And there they were. In an ad. They were labeled "patio dresses." But they were, in fact, the same shapeless, knee-length house dresses that my mother-in-law used to wear. A little like a house coat, except that you pull them over instead of buttoning them up.

My mother-in-law accessorized with her Girl Scout shoes -- brown, lace-up, low heels -- and as often as not with an apron tied around her waist. Rushing from oven to stove and back again. Grandchild balanced on one hip. The look suited her.

So there's that ad, and it hit me like a well-aimed brick that it's targeting my generation. All the boomers growing old in America. It's only natural that we women would want to put aside our T-shirts and jeans and go straight to house dresses.

Speaking only for myself: Hell, no. I won't go.

-- Teresa Prout