A Blog by Gail Cushman
How many hats, caps, bonnets, fedoras, and boaters do you have? Me? Maybe thirty, maybe forty, but for sure, too many! It’s a constant battle. Just this week I have three new hats, two Marine Corps and one labeled 406, which is the Montana area code. I don’t have a 208 cap, which I think I should, but maybe my kids will send me one when they read this blog. I don’t have any USA caps, another wardrobe deficiency.
I’m particular about the hats I wear. They have to have a sloping front, not straight up, and the bill has to be curved, not straight across, as the style is now. Color and fabric don’t matter, but I prefer an adjustable clasp in the back. I have been known to wear them backwards so I always look them over back and front when I buy them.
The Cowboy has an overabundance of hats, lots of Cowboy hats and too many baseball caps, many of the ilk he calls “seed caps.” I’m not sure what a seed cap is, but they might have something to do with farming, Coors beer, and the kind you wear in the summer to keep your head cool. A lot of his seed caps are green, John Deere, maybe. The Cowboy’s hats come in a lot of materials, felt and straw and have name brands on them. He tips his hat to ladies when he meets them, and quite often they blush. It’s part of his charm. He gave me a cowgirl hat, but so far, I have not worn it. One of these days, maybe.
I have two caps I don’t wear, but don’t want to get rid of them. I have a “Cuba” cap, which I bought in Cuba, but can’t possibly wear it here. People would think I was promoting Cuban values, which of course, I am not. I also have one from the most southern part of South America, Ushuaia, fin del Mundo. I like it a lot, but don’t want to wear a cap that says, “end of the world.” People might think I’m a pessimist or something.
I have a couple of St. Louis cardinals caps, which is my favorite baseball team. They are baby blue, which makes no sense because everybody knows that Cardinals are red, not blue. I used to have several, well maybe more than several, Florida Gator caps. They were in pretty bad shape when I moved to Montana, so they got the boot.
I have two caps from Paris, who wouldn’t want caps from Paris? I wore one to our wedding ceremony, so am keeping it for my next trip to Paris. I also have two from Puerto Rico, but I don’t like either, so they are at the bottom of the pile.
I have a fedora from long ago, back when Indiana Jones’ movies first came out. I bought a fedora because I liked the movie. I don’t wear it much anymore, but I’ll keep it around. It also serves as a Columbo hat, just in case. And I’ve accumulated quite a few rain caps, which can be difficult to find when I need them. They always seem to be in the wrong place.
I have three caps from King Ropes, a rope-making mecca, in Sheridan, Wyoming. They make great caps, but you can’t buy them on line. We’ve been there three times and have three caps. I liked them so much that I bought our grandson one. He’s on his way to Montana State in Bozeman and I thought he should have a cool hat that Montanans appreciate.
The problem with hats, though, is that they are difficult to store and when you store them, they grow, I mean four or five hats will suddenly be eight or ten hats that I’ve never seen before. I have several stacks of hats and have to dig through them when we go out. I can’t seem to create any order among my chaos of hats.
I think hats and caps are a necessary form of identity. They tell the story of your life, trips you’ve taken, people you’ve known, things you’ve done. Better than a scrap book, they are also more fun than a collection of T-Shirts, and last forever.
Gail Cushman lives in Columbus, Montana, and writes books and blogs.
