Newer hat

A few weeks ago, when I was on a bicycle ride, I found a hat laying in the middle of the road.  It was a black hat with red.  Grease Monkey.  Since the later 1990s I pretty much have only worn hats - as my default hat - that I found when bicycling.

Back when I lived in Minnesota in 1998 or 1999 I found an all red Ohio State hat on the road when bicycling. I wore that hat until July 2015 when Donna found and bought me a new Ohio State hat, which is pretty much identical to the old one.  This new hat was so nice that I would only wear it on special occasions.  It was so nice and clean and new and bright red that I hated to get it dirty.

In the meantime, back in 2015 while riding my bicycle, I found another hat with red.  A Papa John's hat.

So that has become my default ranch and riding hat, even though I have never eaten a Papa John's pizza.  I eat Papa Murphy pizzas and have thought of asking them if they would swap hats with me, but never got around to it (and Papa Murphy hats - while nice looking - are all black with no red in them.)

Other hats have come along but they haven't replaced my Papa John's hat.  The other hats are either too nice, or not just right.  I've gotten several CHS farm hats (nice), found an all black Double R ranch hat (not quite right), and found a pink Harley Davidson hat this Summer.   As you can see from the Papa John's hat, I will wear most anything.  But a pink Lady Harley Davidson hat from Nevada just wasn't me.

So a few weeks ago I thought I found a replacement to my Papa John's hat, which I was excited about.  That feeling lasted about 3/4 of a mile when a guy on a dirt bike rode up to me and pointing to the Grease Monkey hat on my bicycle rack, asked if he could have his hat back.  It had blown off earlier when he had accelerated his dirt bike on the road.  It was a work hat and a favorite hat of his.

Darn.

Of course I gave him his hat back.

Well, tonight when I was riding on my bicycle (yet again!) a pickup came up from behind and slowed down to drive along side me.  I wasn't riding on a road with a nearby bicycle path so it wasn't one of those busybodies who feel the need to tell me to ride on a bike/walking path and not on the road.  It had rained earlier in the afternoon, and then I had to put out another large bale for the cattle.  So my day's bicycle ride was a little later and by the time I was approaching home it had gotten dark.  So I figured this was another busybody who felt the need to tell me I was riding after dark.

But this time the pickup driver was the guy who earlier asked for his Grease Monkey hat back.  What a surprise as he lives almost 5 miles away from me.  He had another Grease Monkey hat from work and asked if I wanted it.  Sure.

With each hat I am getting less and less red in it.  But I think there is still enough red.  The hat fits nice, I've modeled it, and I think this hat may become my default ranch and riding hat and I'll retire my Papa John's hat.