Questions Or Comments

The Duke men's lacrosse team returned to the field yesterday with a triumphant 17-11 victory over Dartmouth. A cool sun was shining on Durham, N.C., and 6,485 fans showed up, nearly setting a school record. At the same time, nearly 700 miles up the coast, 610 fans braved near-freezing temperatures to watch Bryant University fall, 6-5, to visiting Adelphi. More on Duke Defiance and sadness linger as Blue Devils lacrosse team returns with 17-11 win over Dartmouth in season opener. Pg 1a Rick Maese -- Points after Boo birds: It must be nice to build your pedestal just high enough so that you don't have to hear those dissenters shout from down below.

It was standing-room-only at the Judicial Proceedings Committee as dozens of people appeared before impassive state senators to support a bill that would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.Offering few questions or comments yesterday, the committee members gave little indication of how they might vote on what would be the state's first gay rights act.Sen. Janice Piccinini, who sponsored the legislation, was the first of more than 40 people to go on record in favor of the bill.

Mayor Martin O'Malley is scheduled to appear today on WBAL-AM in the first installment of a regular radio show. The show, to be aired every other Tuesday at 11 a.m., will allow listeners to call in with questions or comments for the mayor. News reader Bill Vanko will field the calls, but he is not the show's host, according to Mark S. Miller, news director for WBAL (1090 AM). "There will be no screening of callers," Miller promised. "These guys do have, for some folks, a mystique. This does give people some access to their leaders."

Q: My wife has always shopped for my clothes (except suits). Now that she's working she no longer has time. What do you think of catalog shopping?A: Catalog shopping has several advantages. It saves time, avoids the frustration of standing in lines and getting poor service, offers a broad range of available sizes and colors, and is often less expensive.For the person who works -- or hates to shop -- the convenience is hard to fault, provided you know what you like and your taste tends toward the traditional.

Q In an earlier column you mentioned wearing a business suit with a full-bodied white shirt. I had imagined that tapered dress shirts could be used in place of the standard cut by anyone who had a slender enough torso to manage. Are there other criteria?A: You have hit on an interesting dilemma: How to dress to show off one's well-maintained -- or perhaps newly arrived at -- trim self and still dress like a "gentleman." For years elegant, upper-crust menswear has been synonymous with easy-fitting -- if not downright full -- clothes.

Q: My son is a student and will be interviewing for jobs in civil engineering this month. He's young (23), a body builder, and has long, unstyled straight hair. He doesn't own a suit or sport coat.What clothing would you suggest he purchase for interviews and, subsequently, for work? Are some brands or cuts designed for the muscular build? What color, style and fabric is best for a RTC first suit purchase? Also, please comment on the selection of appropriate shirt, tie, belt and shoes and, if possible, hair style.

QI have a fine wool topcoat that's still in good condition. It's longer than my weekend car coat, but my wife complains that it's out of style.A: Recently I've noticed men wearing raincoats and topcoats that are too short. (To the knee or just slightly above the knee qualifies as "too short"). This one small flaw can mar an outfit's overall effect.Though the pendulum swings slowly, men's coat lengths do change. For the past quite-a-few years, the accepted coat style has been long enough to cover the knee.

Q: Do only style-setter types wear suede shoes? Some stores refer to them as "nubuck." Is there a difference? What kind of clothes do they go with? Are they ever acceptable for business? Are some colors more acceptable than others?A: Elvis started a far-from-elegant fad with his "Blue Suede Shoes," (ruining suede for a whole generation of clothing-aware men). But suede shoes had been popular years before he shimmied and shook them into pop-chart culture in the 1960s. In the '20s, tanners, trying to sell some low-grade leathers, began sanding the hides to create a new leather look.

Q. My 2 1/2-year-old daughter has been sleeping in her toddler bed for months. For the past two months, however, she's been waking up crying about four hours after going to bed. Then, she does not want to sleep in her bed or room. She wants to sleep with my husband and me.Sometimes I am able to get her to go back to her bed, but minutes later she is up again.For a while, she was telling us that she was scared. We did everything to reassure her, but she still does not want to stay in her room.

Q: My wife is encouraging me to buy a light suit. I don't know if it is appropriate for work or should it be worn for social occasions?A: A "light suit" for a man's summer wardrobe can mean any of three types of suits: 1) a light-colored and light-weight cotton seersucker suit, 2) a khaki-colored tropical-weight wool, or 3) a light-weight poplin suit that is just as likely to come in navy or deep gray as in tan. For this all-too-brief time of year, a little more leeway is allowed and somewhat more leisurely dress is not only tolerated but expected.