Hatless in New York blog.

Temps have modulated a bit. The difference between –3 F and +7 F, both accompanied by a stiff little wind (yesterday morning vs. this morning), is remarkable. Neither are particularly pleasant, but if the higher number follows the lower one, it's almost a relief.

Geof Huth, living in New York state, sent me an e-mail with the following subject line: You Wear Hats in Winter? Followed by, "Geez, Dees." He signed the message, "Hatless in All Ways But Name." (Huth means "hat" in German.) Probably Geof doesn't agree with my take on bareheaded people in the pit of winter. But, to be exact, I don't wear a hat either, but a stocking cap. I don't wear hats much at all, in fact; I leave that to my brother Jay, who has a collection of hats.

Caps, however, are for temperature extremes. Stocking caps in winter, and variations of visor'd caps in extreme summer sun. The one I like best is a multicolor job, a pattern bordering on psychedelia but not quite there, which I bought from a vendor in Thailand. I've never seen the likes of it on the streets of North America, apart from my own head.