It’s About Making Babies!

I find there is a quiet search that has been going on for several years.

Pluma made a very good quality t-shirt, that they sold at Sam’s Club for several years.

Only the Pluma company went out of business about eight years ago - 1999. So why are people still, today, looking for a good alternate? The t-shirts were that good.

Russell Athletics made Pluma t-shirts under the ‘Pluma by Russel Athletics’ for several years.

But now, five years later, those last Pluma shirts are showing some wear. Seriously - these plain, seriously heavy weight cotton jersey shirts are well made, wear like iron - and were sold at a plain price. About $5-8 each. They came in maybe 5 colors, part of the year there was a long sleeve version. Pluma specialized in fleece - there was an amazing line of quality, heavy fleece shorts, pants, and sweatshirts in basic colors. For $5-10 each. Amazing. I have a sweatshirt on that is over 10 years old, now, and t-shirts that range from 2 years old to 6 (well, those earliest ones are starting to wear out). Why do I like these shirts? They are comfortable, dependable, I don’t like shopping that much. And they are plain. I might want to wear something about a movie or a saying once in a while, but logos and cartoons don’t define me. (Hopefully my actions, my words, and my smile do well enough.)

There was some excitement on the Pluma front. One of the seekers was told that Wal-Mart expected to present a trial product - a 7 oz (most t-shirts are 5 oz or lighter) cotton jersey t-shirt that is supposed to be comparable to the venerable Pluma shirts sold in Sam’s Club. Today I ran across a modest rack - 2 shirts of each size only - of Walls brand ‘construct quality’ heavyweight t-shirts. For $10.44. Plain, but with a pocket. I got a grey one - they only had blue and grey. There was a shooter style and a ‘three button henley’.

Otherwise it looks like the best alternate to the Pluma tees is the Max-Weight® heavyweight T-shirts from Camber Sportswear. They list two online vendors. http://All Seasons Uniforms is a GSA Schedule provider, Go Bros is the other vendor listed. It appears that GoBros hasn’t added the new Camber shirts to their other athletic apparel listings.

The All Seasons Uniform site lists the Camber shirts at a moderate price - $17-21, depending on color and regular or tall sizes.

The 7 oz and 8 oz shirts are great for screen printing. They print well, and your logo or design lasts for years. When the shirt or printing start to show wear, the message actually gets stronger - the customer is still pleased with the message and the garment.

A lighter shirt is the Gildan Ultra Cotton Heavyweight T-Shirt. At 6.1 oz cotton jersey (some colors add a poly blend) this looks like an intermediate-heavy garment - but priced attractively for screen printing, sport teams, and other bulk uses. Lots of colors. They list for $8.99, but are on sale today (3/24/08) for $3.58 each. There is no indication how long the sale lasts.

BlankShirts.com lists several t-shirts, including the Gildan Ultra and Russell Athletics Jerzees. Several styles of shirt, colors, etc.

Amazon.com lists the Champion 7 oz. shirt for $8.49 - $10.49, depending on size and color. This may be my next try, if the Walls shirt doesn’t hold up to the Pluma standard.

I will be trying out this new Walls t-shirt. Hopefully there won’t be anything to report for a few years.

So I was thinking about a couple of DVD movie themes. About a sequence of three (maybe four) movies that made a coherent sequence or group. From movies on my shelf.

Cops and Criminals:
Say Nicolas Cage in “Con Air”, Tommy Lee Jones in “US Marshall”, Arnold Schwarzenegger in “Eraser”

Reluctant Hero:
Mark Wahlberg in “Shooter”, “Chain Reaction”, “Transporter”.

Tommy Lee Jones’ “Volcano”, and

Laughs at work:
For me, there was Michael J. Fox in “The Secret of My Success”. And then there was Danny Devito, Jane Seymour, and Judge Reinhold in “Head Office”.

Romantic Comedy:
Or, “She’s The One”, “Kissing Jessica Stein”, Jennifer Aniston in “Along Came Polly”, and Sandra Bullock in “While You Were Sleeping”.

Situation Comedy:
Then after Mike Myers’ “So I Married An Axe Murderer..”, Goldie Hawn in “Protocol” and John Cusack’s dark “Grosse Pointe Blank”.

Light romantic comedy:
John Cusack’s “Must Love Dogs”, “Mumford”, and .. OK, this should be “Under The Tuscan Sun”, which is OK once in a great while, but I really like “Love Actually” better. Alternate would be “Return To Me” with David Duchovny, Minnie Driver, Carroll O’Connor, and the song from Dean Martin.

Action Comedy:
“Six Days, Seven Nights” with Anne Heche and Harrison Ford. “Mannequin”. Will Smith’s “Hitch, maybe?
Action:
Bourne Identity, Supremacy and Ultimatum would be an easy action call. But what about “Bourne Identity”, “Long Kiss Goodnight”, and Kurt Russell’s “Executive Decision”.

Or an all-girls thing:
“Saving Face”, “Kissing Jessica Stein”, and Meg Tilly’s “Bound”.

WWII:
Cary Grant in “Father Goose” and “Operation Petticoat”, followed by John Wayne’s “In Harm’s Way”. No, better reverse the order, from serious to flip.

Irreverent Comedy:
Eric Idle and Robbie Coltrane are delightful in “Nuns on the Run”, and Coltrane’s follow on “The Pope Must Diet” was pretty good. “A Fish Called Wanda” has a British flair, but is more about crime that church comedy.

Silly Academy:
There was the king - “Police Academy”. And the ripoff, “Hamburger: The Motion Picture”, and then Bill Murray in “Stripes”.

Old West Retreat:
Robert Redford’s “Jeremiah Johnson”, “Ballad of Little Jo”, and sorry. The only gritty, loner, out-west I have to go with these classics is .. the musical. “Paint Your Wagon.” You know, Clint Eastwood with “I talk to the trees” and Lee Marvin’s “The first thing you know.” Sorry.

Role Reversals:
“She’s The Man” is fairly recent. But years ago there was “Just One Of The Guys”, and “My Chauffeur” - all with lessons to teach. For a late-special, play the animated “Mulan”.

In the Palace:
“Dave” with Kevin Kline, Harrison Ford in “Sabrina”, and Annette Benning in “An American President”.

What movie theme for three consecutive nights, or a long afternoon-evening event, makes sense to you?