What Hat Are You Wearing Today 1?

[DJH]

The white Beaver Brand is a stunning hat BJ.

I'm running Christmas errands, Stetson 7XCB

 

[delectans]

Birthday Wishes

Christmas Eve morning. We celebrated Ryan's 16th birthday last night with some of his friends at our home. With his birthday falling on the day before Christmas Eve, it is always a challenge to make certain that his special day is not lost amongst the Holiday bustle, and so it was that last Saturday, Lydia and I hosted an outing for some of his closest friends.





A fresh blanket of snow had fallen overnight. I started the morning off tossing a few with Corky.



Dim Sum at our favorite place, always a delight but merrier with good friends. Ryan is sporting the Sky Grey Royal DeLuxe Stetson we found the previous weekend.



Birthday noodles following Dim Sum. I was so busy eating and chatting that I forgot to take more pictures of the delicious little treats.



With the two young ladies who planned to join us stricken with the flu, and with a group of brilliant scholars, athletes, musicians and naturalists amongst the boys, I made an impromptu change of plans. Our first stop after brunch, Twin Cities Reptiles.



Nepal Flying Tree Frog.



Rhinoceros Iguana.



Rhinoceros Iguana basking atop Sulcata(African Spur Thigh) Tortoise.



Both species can attain impressive size and longevity.

 

[delectans]

We next visited The Raptor Center at the University Of Minnesota, a place near and dear to us. Ryan had done volunteer work here as a very young child, cutting up mice for the birds. The staff have a special fondness for Ryan and he was privileged to fist his first raptor at the age of six. I switched to my Royal Hat Works lid.



American Kestrel.



Peregrine Falcon.



Bald Eagle. Minnesota is home to the largest population of these magnificent birds outside of Alaska.



In the aviary.



Great Horned Owl.



All of the birds in the aviary have injuries which make them unable to be fully rehabilitated and released back into the wild. They serve instead as goodwill ambassadors and education birds for the public. Birds considered releasable are confined to isolation quarters and receive a bare minimum of human contact.



Another Peregrine Falcon. This is "Juneau", a mature female.

 

[delectans]

Another Great Horned Owl, "Samantha"



Samantha is a light-phase variant, her color adaptation more common in the northern and desert areas of her species' range.



On the University Of Minnesota campus with the boys. Ryan traded his letterman jacket for a wool coat for the sake of wearing the Stetson.



The James Ford Bell Museum Of Natural History. Established in 1872, the current building dates to the early 1900s.



Wonderful frieze of the American Bison adorning the front entrance.



Terrarium habitat in the Touch And See Discovery Room.



Checking out the tropical plants in the greenhouse.



The Bell Museum is planning to eventually move to a new, state of the art facility to house and better display its amazing collection. I will dearly miss the old building, full of architectural details, nostalgic charm, and lovingly crafted, beautiful dioramas which embody an old-school museum of natural history.



Completely enchanted.

 

[delectans]

Back outside in the fading light.



Folwell Hall.



Built during 1906-1907 in the English Renaissance Revival style, and incorporating Jacobean and Elizabethan architectural elements, the ornate granite, Italian marble, brick and terracotta building now houses the departments of foreign languages and literature.



Eager for a late afternoon treat, the boys bounded towards our next stop...



...located just beneath the historic, and iconic Dinky Dome.



Frozen yogurt at Chilly Billy's. A hedonistic concoction that can only have been whipped up by a teenager.



My slightly less decadent, fruity topping selection.



A delicious and refreshing end to our day long excursion.



Into the sunset.

 

[delectans]

Golden light at sunset.



Folwell Hall's splendid exterior decoration includes sculpted faces and figures such as cherubs, gargoyles, eagles, as well as whimsical ornamentation in the form of cats, rabbits, and even a few gophers.



Sunday morning, at our favorite Nepalese restaurant in the Twin Cities, and a special favorite for Ryan, the Himalayan. Stetson Standard Quality.



Arriving at Orchestra Hall in the afternoon for A Scandinavian Christmas with the Minnesota Orchestra.



Pre-concert treat to some angelic voices in the lobby.



The girls of the Twin Cities Girls Chorus on stage following their enchanting performance of Teodoro Cottrau's transcription of 'Santa Lucia'.



In the Scandinavian countries of Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark, 'Santa Lucia' has been adapted to accompany the Winter Light Festival Of St. Lucy. The procession is traditionally led by a young lady wearing a crown of candles. To the girls' left, Paul Dahlin and the Swedish fiddlers of Äkta Spelmän. Paul is widely regarded, even in Sweden, as the keeper of a traditional art form from the province of Dalarna, that is now sadly all but lost.




One more photo in front of my beloved blue 'stacks' outside following the concert. Sadly, these iconic decorative and functional elements will be removed next year as Orchestra Hall undergoes a major transformation.

 

[delectans]

African Rock Skinks.



Marsh Terrapin. Just love the comical expression on these engaging turtles.



We went back to Twin Cities Reptiles in the late afternoon so that Ryan could do more research. The boys had formed a natural history club over the weekend, and, following my suggestion, named it 'The Linnaeus Society'.



Bearded Dragon, a pastel colored morph.



At The Glockenspiel, for their special Christmas supper.



Our favorite German restaurant, The Glockenspiel. The proprietor, originally a sausage maker from Bayern, also runs an incredible German specialty meats processing firm, Deutschland Meats.



Warming up with some delicious Leberkäse.



The Hühner Frikasse was out of this world.



Heavenly Rahmschnitzel, served with traditional German Red Cabbage.

 

[delectans]

Bis später!


Have a very Merry Christmas, everyone!

 

[RBH]

Great photos Al, Merry Christmas to you and your family!

 

[jwalls]

Merry Christmas to you all!!

 

[BR Gordon]

Al, what a absolutly wonderful montage of photos. It appears that each of your outings is more interesting than the last. We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy and safe new years.

BR

 

[BR Gordon]

BJ, great photo, love the white hat.

David, your 7XCB looks really good, that's one that is on my wish list.

jwalls, as always, great looking hat.

We wish you all a merry Christmas and a happy and safe new years.

BR

 

[DJH]

Great stuff, AL - thank you for letting us come along with you!

I hope you and your family have a super Christmas.

 

[JAVIER]

New Catch of the Bay: My Grey, Kevin McAndrew Hat Maker By Appointment Furmans Jackson-Battlecreek The felt is super soft to the touch (just like my Borso); The hat handles, very, very soft - may need a little stiffener (debating it) as it does not hold a “shape”.


It’s has a 2 inch Brim, 4 Inch Bashed Crown, 1 7/8 Black Ribbon work with a Cool Bow!

 

[Ordinary Guy]

Nice catch,,,, I like the bow ......

 

[Cicero]

Nice catch,,,, I like the bow ......

+1
Smashing bow!

 

[rlk]

Knox Vagabond King

 

[job]

Very appropriate look for the season. Beautiful hat.

 

[Historyteach24]

Wearing my new Borsalino for Christmas eve

 

[bowlerman]

Amazing photos, Al! Thanks, as always, for sharing. One of these days when I take my wife to the twin cities I'll get her to eat something other than Five Guys Burgers and Fries (a commodity the likes of which doesn't exist in South Dakota, so it's always a priority when we head anywhere near Edina...)!


Egghead-- those are great photos too! Great hat too-- It looks less green in these photos than the ones you originally posted when you got it-- or am I thinking of a different lid?