Tie a Day, Number 60

This is a tie with a Porpoise. It is a whale of a tie! The jokes don’t work in text. It is all in the delivery…

Thursday’s tie was picked out by Sammy. He ran into the room just as I was finishing ironing. I tried to tell him that I didn’t know he was coming to help me and I had already picked a tie to go with the shirt that I ironed.

This sent him off the deep end. I was suddenly the worst father ever. As I tried to appease him by saying that he could pick a tie for my next tie wearing day, he angrily stomped out of the room.

I chased him down saying that he could pick a tie for me to wear, but it needed to match the clothes I had prepared for the day. I was picturing a day wearing the lost Christmas tie with large candy canes and little Christmas trees that I had somehow missed wearing during the holiday season. I hoped that I could smooth things over with him and wear a tie that was close to matching.

The anger written on his face was something I hadn’t seen since the time I was 17 and drove the family car way over the lease agreement mileage limit (it is not my fault my parents left the keys with an irresponsible young person when they went out of town for long periods of time). I talked Sam into coming back to “Tie World,” and as his 6 year old anger bubbled over he slapped at the ties as if to say, “All of these ties are crap, and you sir, disgust me!”

Settling on this World Wildlife Fund tie with porpoises and killer whales, he held it up to me like it was his favorite toy that I had crushed with my big, stupid adult shoes. Looking over his shoulder as he left me holding my whale tie, he cut his eyes at me as if to say, “Learn your lesson old man; there better not be a next time.”

Tie a Day, Number 59

Tuesday's tie was one that I picked out. Sam forgot to help me.

This brown paisley masterpiece is attractive but not overwhelming. The large pattern, with an intricate design using tan, brown and ivory as the main colors, is very nice.

Sometimes I feel a bit overwhelmed by the world. I need to get back to the basics and come down to earth. This tie keeps me firmly rooted to the ground using earthy tones and a natural design. Whether I am trudging through the jungle or attending a dinner party, this tie lets me be comfortable with who I am.

Big Brown and Tan Paisley Vintage Tie, circa 1989, $27.50, J. Peterman Catalog, p. 27

Tie a Day, Number 58

Monday’s tie was one that Sam picked out for me to wear. I can’t remember wearing it, but because it has so much black in it I feel like I must have worn it at least once. Black has been one of my favorite colors for a long time.

Solid black with peacock feathers outlined in red silk, this is a very nice tie. It probably would have gone much better with a red shirt, but that is not my color.

It is interesting that a friend was telling me that she saw 5 peacocks on the Eastern Shore just the day before. Coincidence? Sam did not know about the possiblity of peacocks being a part of a trip story that I would hear. Odd.

I don’t know if I believe her, but if she believes that I saw a monkey in a tree near Roanoke in November (which I completely lied about just because I thought it was funny), then I will believe her story about peacocks. She said two of them were white. Ghost peacocks?

Tie a Day, Number 57

Sam ran into my bedroom early Wednesday morning ready to pick out a tie for me to wear. I had to explain to him that I had already ironed the shirt that matched the tie that I picked out for the day. Because I had my stuff ready to go, I suggested that he choose a tie for the next day.

I don’t know exactly what he looks for when selecting ties, but he is very thorough and checks out all of the available ties before deciding. He managed to find the one Christmas tie that I missed during the holiday tie parade in December.

“Oh, Dad! Wear this tie with the candy canes on it. I like this one!”

People without young children do not understand how hard it can be to explain things to them. Sam could not accept that it was not socially acceptable to wear holiday attire once the season has passed.

“I like candy canes. Why can’t you wear this tie?”

I think I did what any parent does when they don’t really have an answer, or don’t have the time to adequately explain the situation, I made up a story, “Well Sam, you see, a long time ago they made a law to prevent people from celebrating holidays after the holiday has passed. This way it keeps holidays special. You wouldn’t want me to go to jail for breaking the law, would you?”

Only slightly disappointed, he picked out two ties for my next two tie wearing days.

The tie that Sam had me wear on Thursday was one of only three solid color ties that I own. This tie is silver silk and highly reflective. Almost mirror like, this tie is perfect for communicating with passing aircraft if you happen to find yourself stranded in the wilderness. This silver beauty could be a valuable and adaptable part of your survival kit (mirror, tourniquet, rope, small lasso), and it can serve double duty as a good looking tie for a night on the town.

The Silver Surfer could wear this tie...

Tie a Day, Number 56

I love this tie! A shimmering grey tie with plant designs in the raised up silk. My only issue is that the tie is a little on the thin side and it is quite long. There is actually more tie there than I can evenly tie around my neck.

In the big scheme of men’s wear, I don’t take many chances. I think it all goes back to that day in the 4 ^th grade when I wore my sunset in the woods t-shirt that had the deer grazing on the front… Even though it was the 70’s and people wore ugly clothes and got away with it, the sunset deer t-shirt was mock worthy in elementary school.

Maybe I was scarred for life, but at least Wednesday was a good tie day.

Tie a Day, Number 55

I often find myself thinking, “Why do I keep so many ties that I have never worn? Surely, I could give them away to someone that has no old, out of style ties of their own.” The tie I wore Tuesday was one I am certain I have never worn before.

It went with my outfit, but it just does not fit into the category of “ties I want to wear.” Perhaps I should broaden my horizons and wear things I don’t normally wear to acclimate myself to new styles, like a space suit or something. I have always wanted to go into space. I could just think of it as astronaut training, except with strange and ugly ties instead of a fully enclosed space suit.

This tie is very earthy, with large brown and green leaves on it. The tie is made of fine silk and the design has the look of painted on water colors. It really complimented my brown belt and shoes that I always wear. I also like the dark green, but all together it is just not something I like.

I think I have decided that half of the ties I own, I don’t really like. I will probably keep them though, maybe it is for selfish reasons, but they are a reminder of my father and I have to keep something from him, don’t I?

I am just not ready to give up the big, leafy, weird looking ties just yet.

Tie a Day, Number 54

Sam rushed up the stairs this morning to make sure he got to help me pick out my tie. I was barely out of the shower and had to remind him that he already picked out today’s tie yesterday. He was thrilled that he was able to dress Dad for the second day in a row. I may have started a trend with him.

This is the Calvin tie. This tie has a repeated picture of my oldest son Calvin staggered across the front of it. He was two in this picture and I am pretty sure I received this as my back to school gift from Amy in 2000.

Today, Calvin is eleven and almost as big as me. Soon he will be bigger, and I will make him kneel when he talks to me. I am not sure how they figure these things out, but according to the Doctor, Calvin should be 6’ 3” someday. All that height skipping right over me in the family tree…

Amy laughs because she says I falsified a legal document just so I can claim my true height to be more than reality. It is not my fault that the DMV has a flawed licensing system. Here’s some news for you, I don’t weight 160 pounds either! Stick that in your document falsifier…

I can’t help but feel like I have cheated Savannah today. I talked about her brothers, but today is her birthday. My baby girl is eight. She may be too old to be called that by anyone, except me, because no matter what- she will always be my baby girl.

I can call her that because I got to deliver her. It was one of the most special times in my life. In the delivery room, the nurse practitioner asked me if I wanted to deliver her. Amy had an uncomplicated pregnancy, and since things were going smoothly, I was ready and jumped at the chance. And when Savannah was born, I was the first to hold her. I feel like I have had to let her go just a little every day since.

Happy Birthday Savannah.