The year was 1960 when, at the tender age of fifteen, I decided to leave my outport home of Princeton for the bright lights of St. John's -- the only city I had been to at that time in my life, so it was quite intimidating for me. Leaving home, my Mom and Dad and newborn sister Sharon was made easier knowing that I could depend in so many ways on family already living in the city. For example, I could live with them for a while until I got established. It took little time for a young bayman to blossom into a well-dressed Townie. Nudging me in that direction, it wasn't long before my family tactfully made known to me that the coat I was wearing needed to be replaced, so they kindly took me to a department store to buy me a new one. No, not just any coat, it was a long one called an overcoat my first. It was brown in colour, and when I put that beautiful coat on, I have to tell you I suddenly felt no longer a bayman, but a seasoned Townie. After all, if you had bought a coat from a department store with the grand name of The London, New York and Paris wouldn't you feel "in style?" Not having a car at the time, I walked all over St. John's in the year that followed. Unfortunately, the fog and the rain took its toll. As the year came to an end, my once-beautiful overcoat was becoming a little faded, in fact more of a greyish colour. Nevertheless, although I've had many overcoats over the years, most of them navy blue, I'll never forget that handsome brown one that gave me the much-needed confidence to face my new life in the city. Here I am on Morris Avenue, proudly wearing my first overcoat.   Submitted By: Hayward Prince