Classic Style

Remember, you're not at home alone where no one else can see you.  Try to act like you have just a bit of polish and sophistication. U m, boys?  If you feel the need to 'adjust' yourself, visit the bathroom and do so in private. The rest of us don't want to be included in whatever power dynamic exists between you and your privates.  Yes, they're still there.  Don't worry.  They're not going to fall off.  Honest.   Same thing with fixing a wedgie.   And if the problem is frequent, it's either time for a very frank conversation with your doctor, or you need to change the size/style of your underwear.  Seriously. -- Heinz-Ulrich

K illing time this early morning before over freshly fragrant dark roast, black.  Random thoughts for the final day of February 2018 include: 1) Shaving with a mug and brush. 2) Live, professional level jazz 10 feet in front of you, improvised without a net. 3) Navy flannel suits 4) Repp stripe neckties 5) Watching a painter work at his or her canvas. 6) Well-executed and presented student learning team discussions 7) Glassy toe boxes and heel caps with a highly buffed sheen from leather moisturizer on the rest of the shoes. 8) Daily use of horsehair shoe brushes that belonged to your grandfather. 9) 6x2 double-breasted suits 10) Double Indemnity (1944), Scarlet Street (1945), Raw Deal (1948), Night and the City (1950) 11) Navy calf-length dress socks in wool with almost everything. 12) Acting or musician personalities, past and present, who could/can actually hold up their end of a conversation.  -- Heinz-Ulrich von B.

The sort of table I like sitting down to when dining out, or, frankly, at home.  Oh, yes.  Annoying so-and-so's that we are, we have tablecloths and candles on the dining table most of the time here at Totleigh-in-the-Wold.  Nothing new there.  So too did my parents and grandparents. I have drawn fire from some readers since this blog's inception in 2012 for, among other things, insisting on polite table manners in public and at home.  Clearly, these people don't see the point.  And how dare I touch on such a hot button topic, or suggest that others need some work where social skills are concerned.   One memorable reader called me "Grandma" in a strident comment connected with one post several years back.  Why do I suspect this was a high school or college-aged boy emboldened by the safety of relative anonymity?  It's easy to see why the sobriquet was warranted however.   After all, manners are false.  Intended...

I have no idea what Sean Connery is like in real life as an older man.  He was certainly a rough and tough guy in his younger years by many accounts, but Connery nevertheless managed to come across as polished and urbane in his James Bond guise 50-odd years ago. 1) Navy grenadine necktie 2) "How do you do?" accompanied by a firm handshake. 3) A moderated speaking voice. 4) Uncluttered living and work spaces. 5) Discretion in all things. 6) Understatement 7) The power of handwritten thank-you notes versus email. . .  or (more typically) nothing. 8) Pleasant table manners 9) A mouth free of chewing gum 10) Telephone conversations in private 11) Inoffensive personal habits. . .  even when at home with the door closed.  12) Polish, sophistication, and good grooming always 13) "The Dearborn" by Optimo Hats of Chicago 14) A subdued olive green knit silk necktie with a pink and white university stripe OCBD shirt worn beneath a Harris Tweed...