I remember my father Philip. When he was sixty three, the age that I am now, he would never have worn a T-shirt. When he dressed in the morning he put on a formal shirt with a collar, a tie and if the temperature was chilly a V-necked jumper. T-shirts were for young people.
Even when digging the vegetable plot, he would still wear his shirt and tie. The only time he loosened up and donned plain cotton polo shirts was when he was away from home on a warm holiday.
Dad died in 1979, long before internet and mobile phone technology swept The Earth .like a modern plague or a wave of light - depending on how you look at things. He would have been amazed that this month his sixty three year old son went online to access the website of Medicine Hat Tigers ice hockey team in Alberta, Canada..Once there, I ordered and paid for an XL supporters' T-shirt.
It arrived yesterday - all the way from Medicine Hat. Another stylish T-shirt to add to my little collection. But isn't it amazing that we can do things like this nowadays? When Dad was my age, it would have been exceedingly difficult to acquire a Medicine Hat Tigers T-shirt. There would have been letters, crackly telephone calls, an international bank transfer and oodles of time. You would have had to be very determined.
You might imagine that I am a fan of Canadian ice hockey but you would be wrong. I have only ever attended one ice hockey match and I found it rather tiresome (Sorry Red!). There was far too much scoring going on for my liking and too many stoppages. So why Medicine Hat Tigers? Simply because of the tiger image and the word "Tigers". It is the same nickname proudly borne by Hull City AFC - the football team I have loyally supported since Dad first took me to see them when I was nine years old.
Think of the new T-shirt as a fashion statement. If you would like to order some cool Medicine Hat Tigers apparel of your own, go here.
We all have our collecting fads, mine used to be empty wine bottles before bottle banks came along. Are you one of those older guys that we see walking to a match wearing his team's latest shirt.
ReplyDeleteOlder guy yes - but with bulging biceps and a ripped torso. It's not like bird watching that knows lad!
DeleteThat's what happens when you try and fit into your old size shirt. Too in your face for me, bird watching is all about stealth - being there but not being seen.
ReplyDeleteYou need your own special T-shirt Derek! Go here:-
Deletehttps://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B06XNS6D62/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1493202996&sr=8-2&keywords=bird+watching+t-shirt
Want me to send you a Clemson Tigers t-shirt? They're sold everywhere in SC.
ReplyDeleteThat's so kind of you to offer Jennifer. Previously I had visited the official store of Clemson Athletics and noticed one or two designs and prices I liked with the word "Tigers" prominent but some other designs don't appeal to me. Can I just say Maybe for now?
DeleteSure. Let me know if you see one you like.
DeleteEven for digging the vegetable plot your Dad wore a tie? I wonder what made him think that necessary.
ReplyDeleteI am all for people dressing properly and do not like seeing slobby men and women in town or even "just" at the supermarket. But there is a limit to what is reasonable, and to be honest, digging the garden wearing a tie seems a bit... well, unreasonable.
Neil, if it wasn't for the internet, you and I would have never become acquainted, and I would have never heard of Fred Fox, let alone have his portrait on my wall!
Also, I would not know O.K., and even if I did, it would be a lot more bothersome getting my almost weekly train tickets instead of simply booking them via my mobile phone. (I'd still do it, though; he is worth any effort.)
Here in England they named a sauce after your sweetheart. Go here:-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OK_Sauce
DeleteIt is popular with the Chinese.
My dad was not unusual in wearing a tie almost all the time. It was simply considered the correct way for men to dress. Nobody really questioned it.
The internet is a wonderful tool...and if used correctly, as with all tools (except the tools who should be ignored and not given the time of the day), we learn so much by having the internet at our fingertips. The internet opens up the world to us...and the doors of online stores!
ReplyDeleteYour father lived in a different time...with different values. Too many good values of the past have gone, never to return...unfortunately. That he dressed the way he did when gardening was his choice...and even if it seems odd to us today...it also showed he had respect for himself; for others, and for what he'd learned as a child and as a young man, no doubt.
I certainly don't judge him for his chosen apparel. He was simply a man of his time - just as I am.
DeleteYou've only got to go back as far as Percy Thrower and his Gardeners World, to see that gardeners did indeed wear ties. Look at men at the seaside 50 years ago and they would be sitting in deck chairs on a baking hot day in a suit and tie - they must of been so hot.
ReplyDeleteThey may have been hot but in fashion terms they were cool dudes.
DeleteYou'll be the talk of the stadium! (Do football players play in stadiums here, or is there some fancy British word for them?)
ReplyDeleteWe call them football grounds. Repeat after me Steve..."Football grounds". Excellent!
DeleteThat's awesome! I happen to be a huge hockey fan, and my wife's all-time favorite player played for Medicine Hat in the 80's. They're actually a junior(amateur) team, so it's even more impressive that you latched onto their logo.
ReplyDeleteI will look so cool walking down the street in my Medicine Hat Tigers T-shirt... but I shall also wear trousers!
DeleteOh gosh, my Dad was just the same. He always wore a collar and tie and even a jacket in company. Even when everyone else was fainting in a heatwave, his collar would be buttoned up and the tie tightly pulled. I never saw him in a T-shirt (or even a polo shirt) either. Old school.
ReplyDeleteOur fathers just followed the crowd. It was what was expected of older men after the war.
DeleteNow I just feel like a slob!
ReplyDeleteWell I'm a slob Jenny. You can have me any time.
DeleteHahaha! Good one, you deliberately misunderstanding blogger, you :)
DeleteOh...oh dear. I apologise for any unintentional offence I may have caused.
DeleteThis post brought back memories. My father was a shirt and tie man (even had collar studs too). One Christmas my sister bought him two short sleeved shirts for summer. He vowed he would never wear ssuch a thing, but then there was a hot spell and he put one on and was instantly converted.
ReplyDeletePeople forget how formal things used to be. Women in trousers! Good heavens! Jeans? They're what cowboys wear! Tights? Disgusting! Did you see the doctor the other day? He was putting luggage in his boot and his shirt sleeves were rolled up!
DeletePoor old rRd is not a hockey fan but you should have bought a Red deer rebels shirt. So I do cheer for my home team. However, your main point is the revolution in communication and business,
ReplyDeleteHull City are not called The Rebels Red! Come on Medicine Hat! Let's slaughter The Rebels! Come on The Tigers! Let's go!
DeleteI know Medicine Hat as I have relatives (my wife's brother) who live there. I have a Vancouver Canucks ice hockey team tee shirt, a gift from my wife's other brother who lives in Vancouver. (My wife is not Canadian). I prefer your one - ice hockey tee shirt that is.
ReplyDeleteAs my father was also called Philip, I hereby anoint you as a new Hull City fan! Rejoice Philip! You will look so cool in a Hull City shirt sir!
DeleteGo here:- http://www.tigerleisure.com/#
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