Walking around in my younger days, feeling the need of looking sharp, wearing the jacket, tie and coat all day, five days a week, and then shedding that accoutrement that made us be the best we knew how, and trading in the clothes for something that would be construed as broken down shorts and a T-shirt, with a pair of faded tennis shoes to make it work, seemed to be the way of the world. Now that I have reached the age of someone who is old, I realize that I wear clothes that were new long before you were born. I wear socks that are black, cover my feet and legs up to my knees, shorts that have been in and out of style three times and NOTHING compels me to wear a necktie any longer.
But back in those days, when I did wear the "clothes of the day", I had the opportunity to go with Joseph Carter to the Tulsa Gridiron and watch what Tulsa Press make fun of the politicians back in the day. Joe was the director of the Will Rogers Museum, before he was twice a White House presidential aide to President Johnson and Carter, had worked the newpapers since completing coursework at Tulsa University in 1954 and ended up back in Oklahoma working for Governor David Hall, and Cameron University in Lawton before finally running the Memorial in Claremore.
The day came, we went to dinner, the Gridiron, and road the worlds roughest street car ride through Tulsa, and ended up at the Press Club. Joe (and Will Rogers) were lifetime Democrats, which they can be forgiven of based on their actions.
It was a good time, and everyone enjoyed themselves and at some point I said,
"Joe, that's a great tie you have on. It looks really great", just being nice.
Joe immediately, without any sense of hesitation, he reached up, grabbed that tie with both hands and tossed it directly to me. He said "You deserve to wear a great tie, wear it in good health".
I have now had that tie coming on thirty five years. Had the great fortune of talking to Joe a few times since and he is now 91 years old and is just as wild and wooly as he has ever been.
Sometimes getting old isn't so bad.
Ralph Peck
Photo by Ralph Peck
Claremore, Oklahoma
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