The demise or disuse of the necktie saddens me.

The tie gave men personality and character. It denoted social position and taste. It has, however, fallen on lean times.

My business uniform consisted of slacks, a sport or suit coat, a dress shirt and a tie. Surely it was warm and sometimes confining, but when I was dressed that way, I knew I was working.

It was like a police officer strapping on her weapon or a dentist putting on a white coat.

Even better, when I took off my necktie, I knew I was off duty.

Discarding the shaped piece of silk cloth was symbolic as well as real.

You could tell a good deal about a person by their choice of ties. Each tie makes a statement.

When I retired, I took more than 120 ties from my closet. I left a few in case of a funeral or formal event.

I miss wearing a tie. It gave me a chance to assert my individuality.

Another good thing about wearing ties regularly is that it gave people an idea for potential gifts, although I rarely was gifted with one I would choose myself. Yet I cherished those bought by my children, no matter what.

Neckties are also great things to purchase while on vacation. I have them from all over America and several foreign countries. You can easily get them in a suitcase, and the baggage handlers have a hard time breaking them.

But slowly, men began shedding their ties. First it was teachers. When I was a child, all male teachers wore suits and ties to school.

Then it was physicians. Around the hospital you can tell the administrators from the doctors by the presence of a tie. Doctors rarely wear ties, though they often wear a stethoscope around their neck, instead.

Grocery clerks in most supermarkets wear ties. I am not sure why. Their aprons should be uniform enough. Interesting to me is that female grocery clerks often wear ties, too.

Morticians also wear ties a good deal. It makes them look more formal, I guess. You probably would not want a man in shorts and a Raiders T-shirt taking care of your deceased loved one.

I miss ties, but not enough to go back to wearing them.

• Mike McLellan can be contacted by calling and leaving a message at 830-4201 or e-mailing him at DrMikeM@sbcglobal.net.