the perfect hat on the 4th of july

The perfect hat. Almost too much natural wear and tear nowadays.

Believe it or not, this is the first time I have ever counted the number of stars and stripes. It's the "right" number. 13 is a great number!

Made in the U.S.A.! As it should be.

Today is the perfect day to write about my hat.  I have had it for about 20yrs.  It has more sentimental value than is probably healthy for an inanimate object.  It’s the perfect day to wear my hat.  It’s an AMAZING hat.  It’s the best hat in the world.  It was made in America.  It fits my big fat head perfectly.  The quality of the construction is outstanding.  It was made in the mid-90’s when a brand (in this case Ralph Lauren) made products correctly first.  Not with profits in mind first.  You see, this hat is fitted.  It is a size XL.  You can hardly find sporty, regular hats nowadays that are made in various sizes.  And I’m pretty sure it’s because companies don’t want to go through the hassle of making various sizes (S, M, L, XL) with nothing more than a guess of what the demand will be for each size for people who first have to like the design enough to fork over some dead presidents.  The variables are too many to make it worth it for the modern corporation.  But that is the wrong approach.  Because I would BUY MORE HATS if they fit me better.  One-size-fits-all DOES NOT FIT ALL.  I, and many others like me are living proof.  For me, I get can them on my head, but the hats become mis-shaped, and they are too tight.  On the other end of the spectrum of cranial apertures, the really small headed people probably don’t like the way the hats fit either.

So here is my solution that is a compromise between making 4 different specific sizes and making one-size-fits-all crap.  Make TWO version of the one-size-fits-all.  One size fits the Small and Medium.  One size fits the Large and Extra-large.  If you happen to have an amphibious head size that falls exactly in the middle of the two, then you probably have a preference of whether you like the hat a little bit bigger, versus a little bit smaller, so then even those near-perfect-sized-head people get a more specific choice!

Today is also my mother’s birthday.  She moved to the United States in the mid 70’s with little more than a few thousand dollars and along with my dad, an endless supply of grit.  She and my dad are naturalized citizens of the United States.  And today is the birthday of the United States of America.  A country that has provided more opportunity for more people in the world than any other.  We are a nation of immigrants who are not anywhere near perfect.  We are full of all kinds of conflict and debate: economically, politically, and socially.  But if you take a broader view of the world and where we stand in it: we don’t suck the most as a country and society.  And that’s okay for me for now. 

Happy Birthday U.S.A.!  and Happy Birthday mom!!