bow ties

i've been leaving the hospital late a lot, usually around 7 or 8pm. my record thus far this year came in november during the middle of a very busy in-patient month when i stayed, working solidly, until 10:30pm. 15 and a half hours. truth be told, i really love what i do and usually don't mind the late hours, particularly since my boyfriend lives 2 hours away. sometimes, though, i stay late for the free hi-speed internet access. i only have dial-up at home, which is really just not worth the money.

well, for the last few weeks, i keep seeing the same man every night as i walk through the empty hallways...this grey-haired, wizened attending, of what specialty i'm not sure, who is always dressed impeccably, right down to his polished shoes, tweed jacket and bow tie.

this is the detail that first caught my eye.

the bow tie.

no one wears bowties anymore, right, except your grandfather who smells faintly of pipe tobacco? wrong. there appears to be a resurgence in the popularity of the bow tie...i've seen some young(er) men wearing them lately,too. like today, for example, my attending in the ICN was wearing a bow tie...dark navy blue with hunter green frogs and little black flies. very cool, if you ask me. it's also quite practical if you think about it. they don't hang down into your tomato soup and they can't be used to hang anyone so people in psychiatric facilities could wear them without fearing for their lives or the lives of others.

they're also pretty cute and somewhat stylish...even J crew is selling them this year. i asked my boyfriend if he liked them. he indicated that he did, but that he did not own any. nor does he know how to tie them. this is the problem, as i see it: what happens when there's no one left who knows how to tie a bow tie? this would be tragic. so, you see, we must encourage this bow-tie-wearing resurgence.

i'm going to learn how to tie them, just in case.