But now, it's in this condition, a bite taken out of it...
I could buy a new one but it's so expensive I'm afraid I'd feel pressured to wear it because it was expensive. I'm therefore working on how I think about it. Something like distressed jeans or perhaps evocative of a character in a Western movie — someone who's been through a life-changing ordeal.
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82 comments:
... or perhaps someone who loves her doggo!
Get TRT and grow a big-ass mustache like Sam Elliot. That would work. And no one would question the hat.
It's 'gender o'clock' in America, after all. All the newspaper editors say, "do, do-do, do-do, do-do, do, do-do, do-do". (My apologies to Lou Reed.)
Why did Meade bite your hat?
Or is this the result of some sort of "If that is true, I'll eat my hat" bet?
The hat looks nice, if you only wear it indoors no need to worry about appearance.
But your fans won't be able to sleep tonight wondering why your hat got bit.
John LGBTQBNY Henry
As a long time fan I would volunteer to buy / send you a replacement, but how do I know Meade won't just take a bite out of the new one the next time he gets excited?
That photo looks like an old-timey reporter combined with Joni Mitchell.
Did you write that you’d “eat your hat” it something you read in the New York Times turned out to be false?
It's a great hat. But I'm sorry, the bite taken out of it is not a good look.
I will say this: (and I may be saying it to rationalize some spending on my own, but...)Life is short. We're only here for so much longer. You owe yourself a new Borsalino fur felt fedora. One more- for the road, as they say. It's a style you can wear casually or for those elegant nights you and Meade do around Madison. (do people still do elegant nights?) Or just settle for a Stetson. Nice hats for much less.
By the way, what did you do to get Meade that mad?
Ok, I’ll bite, how did that happen?
Very 1883.
Something like distressed jeans or perhaps evocative of a character in a Western movie — someone who's been through a life-changing ordeal
If the life changing ordeal is My expensive hat had a bite taken out of it, then yes, you can pull that off. Anything else? Nice try, but no.
1. There's always room in your life for another Borsolino. At least there is in MY life.
2. There's such a thing as an item with too much character to wear as clothing. It's now an art object. Deserves display.
Now I have to drive to St. Augustine and visit the hat shop. Poor me. See what you've started? I've been enabled...
as an owner of 6 fur felt hats (3 fedoras);
i was GOING to ask "ain't that too hot to wear in the house?"
THEN i remembered how Cold you say you keep your house.. and it all started to make sense)
Also, Virgil? i think you should see how much fur felt hats cost before volunteering
(My cheapest Stetson was $250... 14 years ago)
I'm not sure - are you DIY at all? If so, you could do a visible mend (google it) with some felt. If not, I'm sure there is someone in Madison who could mend it for you inexpensively. It's a crafty town.
The Village Hat Shop (in San Diego) is a great place to shop/browse/buy hats)
https://www.villagehatshop.com/product/fur-felt/451139-846950/borsalino-alessandria-shaved-fur-felt-fedora-hat-black.html
How about a green fedora?
This should be your new profile photo.
https://www.lockhatters.com/
you only live once
Needed fiber, huh?
Terrific photo. Wear it the way it is. Looks like Alec Baldwin missed.
Apparently it's a thing, the first time my father met my mother at a frat party, he took a bite out of her straw skimmer. They've been married 61 years.
In any event, you do a good Drudge impersonation, Ann.
I'll eat my hat.
U)used to indicate that one thinks the specified thing is extremely unlikely to happen. "if he comes back, I'll eat my hat"
Just sayin'
Gotta wear the chaps with that!
Did you maybe lose a bet?
I love it.
Should we start a gofundme? Seems like the least we could do.
A sexy 71 year old. Blondes do have more fun.
It still performs as you need it to - keeping the sun out of your eyes. Embrace the bite!
Lost a bet?
use feather to fill out brim
feather in hat
Have you considered taking it to a shoe repair shop? The old timers in that business can work miracles.
Also, my wife is a volunteer for our local community theater where she does sewing (hemming, alterations and repairs) on costumes. She has 6 colleagues. Their team can fix almost anything and will do it for the price of a nice donation to the theater. I'll bet the same is true in Madison.
I now have an image of cruel neutrality personified ;-) Great pic.
From years of wearing cowboy hats I can say with certainty: One that fits exactly right is far more important than what it looks like.
The Webb Wilder look.
If anything, I feel like the bite would make the hat easier to wear. I don't have anything nearly as fine as a Borsalino, but even with just a nicer Stetson I hesitate to wear it out in case it rains and the hat gets ruined.
That said, if you're looking for a cheaper everyday substitute, may I recommend Akubra? They're cheaper, but still pretty high quality (rabbit fur, I think), and very durable. I've worn mine out in the rain pretty regularly for maybe 10 years now, and they're still just fine.
Sashiko. Japanese repair stitching. Good luck!
Absolutely keep and wear this hat.
Well it would go well with bib overalls. Just saying--and maybe a jug of moonshine in your hand.
All kidding aside, how did that bite happen? Long ago a friend of ours had a puppy that loved to chew shoes---but only the left ones in a pair. Which dramatically increased the rate of destruction in her closet. [The lady loved shoes and a big shoe rack.]
They are very nice hats...what the heck happened?
Got to be a good story.
If not, you can make one up.
did Zeus do it?
Next time you roll thru Colorado - if you happen to be in Fairplay - there is an awesome hat shop there. Hours may vary. website kinda sucks.
Ann, I had a life-changing conversation with a stranger on the street 6 months ago.
Him: You look terrific!
Me: I'm a septuagenarian.
Him: You're a princess.
A princess deserves a beautiful new hat.
Put it on a fence post. Ask a friend to come over, a friend with a rifle. Have him/her shoot a single round through the top part. Then wear it with even more pride knowing that's what an 1880s cowboy would do after a little dust-up in the saloon.
No, folks, she's not kidding about how expensive those hats are.
Sometimes a hat is just a hat.
The accident gave rise to Gertrude Stein's mordant remark that "affectations can be dangerous".
Balfegor said...
just a nicer Stetson I hesitate to wear it out in case it rains and the hat gets ruined.
that's The Nice Thing about fur felt, they're basically waterproof.
My 5X Stetson Wagon Wheel gets worn in the rain, when ever it rains. It's been more damaged by the sun than the rain, i'd say. Of course, that one is only 10 years old
Nice picture. Too bad about your hat!
The female Indiana Jones look lives on. Do you have a whip as well?
(Oh, maybe I shouldn't have asked that question.)
Only know cowboys from the movies, but farmers.... I have experience with, and I are one. Once they get their free hat broke in just so, the 50 other brand new hats, also free, have a hard time making it into the rare rotation openings.
When I saw the tear, before the headline, I immediately thought of Willy Nelson's guitar with the big jagged hole in it. The man should be able to afford a new guitar, but he doesn't need to.
But, your hat still works, so wearing it is a fine choice, the only down side is having to explain the damage, to those people that see their life goal as the conversation starter in every situation.
Heh- I at home minus one gallbladder.
I know how it feels.
It’s still a keeper. It looks great!
Never felt a thing under whatever they gave me. The awake part smarts.
That’s the point haha.
How about a GoFundMe appreciation campaign to buy Ann a new Borsalino? How much would you need?
Seriously, if Donald Trump can ask people to chip in for his airplane repair why can't Ann ask for a new hat?
10th Street Hats on the web and in NM has a large selection of hats and not that expensive.
Check them out!
"10th Street Hats on the web and in NM has a large selection of hats and not that expensive."
I don't want an inexpensive hat. I only want this hat in its distressed condition or the same hat new.
At Althouse, every day is international woman’s day.
Get the same hat new- I’ll hit the button.
And hat/tip you!
Re: gilbar:
that's The Nice Thing about fur felt, they're basically waterproof.
My 5X Stetson Wagon Wheel gets worn in the rain, when ever it rains. It's been more damaged by the sun than the rain, i'd say. Of course, that one is only 10 years old
That's the way I treat my Akubras . . the Stetson Whippets I do wear are all "Sovereign," but I don't know what that means in terms of the composition and quality of the felt. I think it should be fur felt, but it feels a bit delicate. I'll try one next time it rains, though -- I've had it at least ten years, so unless it shrinks into unuseability, at worst I'll just have to steam it back into shape. I have other hats so it's not like I'll be left hatless if it's unrecoverable, I suppose.
I think it looks cool with a chunk out of it. Makes for a good story. Who are you trying to impress with an expensive hat, anyways?
I bought an expensive Akubra while living in Australia and it has sat on a shelf for fear of damaging it. This post has inspired me to wear it out and make it more of a story. Dress hats are so 1950s.
That is a rueful smile.
I only want this hat in its distressed condition or the same hat new.
I would vote for "use it in its distressed condition." It still fits fine from the photo, and even with the bite, it looks like it provides fine shade protection, the brim still has its shape, etc. Maybe not ideal for a garden party or whatever, but for everyday use it looks pretty functional.
Get one of those shark jaws with the teeth and attach it over the bite.
Voila! Conversation piece.
Our hostess rockin’ the long hair under that expensive hat. :)
You new portrait picture is very nice. That hat looks great, even with a notch in it.
As seniority arrives, we become blessedly bereft of filters and of boundaries, which in turn frees us to lurch into eccentricity. A hat with a bitten brim offers, in turn, nascent stories to tell, tales to compose, which can bolster the joyful exuberance of senior eccentricity. Rock on Ann, become a singer of tales with your hat aloft, a hat-trick to catch the eyes of beholders. And grow some rat-whisker eyebrows to round out the look.
Bob Wilson
If it was me, it would be a new Borsolino. Aren't you worth it? Mrs. Mezz wanted to buy something extravagant for me for my b-day, and I couldn't think of what that could be. Now I know what that can be.
My favorite hat is a brown felt Fedora from the Bee Hat Co. I understand they are no longer with us. Great hat. Indestructible, and I've tried.
Witches often wore tattered clothing. She probably floats, too.
Mysterious Meade is curiously missing from this thread. He was last seen cavorting with Annie "Oakley" Althouse, and now her hat is "blank". h/t "Match Game 22"
I still sometimes wear a hat -- somewhat battered -- that I bought on 6 May 1978 in NYC. For the longest time I still had the receipt, because it showed the date as 5/6/78.
The hat already had a story. Now it has an even richer story. The hat’s worth the story.
Which doesn’t preclude you from getting a new one too.
When you make the show you'll be eccentric. Until then you're just a slob...
Just wear it as is and explain to everyone who asks you promised Meade back in 2020 if candidate Joe Biden was turned out to be the worst demented asshole to ever seek the highest office in the land you'd eat your hat.
Buy a new hat - don’t wear a hat that presumably a dog took a bite out of.
Tocross!! So cute.
I named a calf Fedora. She’s probably 2months old or so. When you’ve been naming animals your(my!) whole life- you start really stretching your vocabulary and imagination. It suits her.
I liked your old photo better but realize that people saying that will probably make you more inclined to use this one.
Life is a life changing ordeal. One in which you'll were lots of hats. When the hooks get rusty I'll toss it and buy another one.
I think your hat shows great character and your love for Zeus.
My grandfather wore Stetsons. My father wore Stetsons. I ordered a Stetson fedora last week. Members of my family look good in Stetsons.
And they are made in America. Maintain our Strategic Hat Reserve!!!
AA, "I don't want an inexpensive hat. I only want this hat in its distressed condition or the same hat new."
Buy the new hat. YOLO.
After looking at this hat, I'm inspired to buy one just like it. And a Stetson. I love my Pendleton and Panama hats and always get compliments which, for me, are greatly appreciated. I don't have a crazy head of hair like AA does.
Ann's quandary reminds me of the dialogue between Denzel Washington and Clive Owen in "Inside Job."
"DW: Oh, please, do not say proposals... My girlfriend, she wants a proposal from me.
CO: You think you are too young to get married?
DW: No, I'm not too young... too broke. Maybe I should rob a bank.
CO: Do you love each other?
DW: Yeah, yeah, we do.
CO: Then money shouldn't matter.
DW: Thank you, Mr. Bank Robber."
If you love the hat, money shouldn't matter.
A good source for well made hats, both men and women, is Worth & Worth in NYC. Good selection of styles and well made. Sizes are accurate. Can be bought on-line. A bit pricey but some styles are occasionally on sale.
I second Worth and Worth. Mr. Palacios has a great story, which he’ll be happy to tell you if you visit, and his hats all have stories too. He’ll make whatever you want and give any hat a custom touch just for you. I put off going for a long time, but with a size 8 head, custom is my only option, and I’m glad I went. They’re expensive, but it’s not the sort of purchase you regret.
I say put a patch on it - ideally in a contrasting color.
"Pride makes us esteem ourselves. Vanity makes us desire the esteem of others." Hugh Blair
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