This is a HUSKY A-1A AVIAT Aircraft that we used to use as line patrol, until we went to rotor wing like the 206 Bell Jet Ranger that provides better detail observation.
Enduring styles that last not just a few decades but for centuries must provide in addition to form and function, great fit, fabric, and a great feeling. These are articles that provide us confidence along with our fitness.
I can think of four articles of clothing that meet these criteria- khakis pants, blue jeans, khaki or a button-down Oxford Shirt, and a great pair of cowboy boots for women or men. In the above photograph, I took a flight yesterday to a small book signing.
Great Enduring Fashion is Created from Necessity
Going back to the rough riders that made khakis pants an instant classic in the 1890's or just a little sooner when Levi Strauss fabricated and introduced his blue jeans both were articles out of necessity for prospectors traveling to California and Alaska to secure their fortunes. Or the Rough Riders that coined the name Chino that became synonymous with khakis pants because the fabric was manufactured in China. Both introduce America to what would become popular fashion apparel even today.
The Charisma of Indiana Jones
You add the Indiana Jones leather-style flight jacket to the mix with khaki pants, and you have the sheer definition of charisma that made Football (Soccer) visitors fall in love with America this summer. The big screen production from cowboys taming the west, to rough riders, and to Indian Jones have our foreign visitors discovering the real America spirit despite what our media has portrayed.
Foreigners have Discovered the Wonders of America
They have found a new delicacy as well, what we call Bar-B-Que ribs, brisket, and pork with all the sides. The tale of stories from their grandparents that reached back to when American Soldiers, Sailors and Marines arrived in Europe and Pacific theaters discovered that those descriptions weren't based on fiction, but factual that wasn't embellishments. That charisma that was described to our visitors by their grandparents was actually what they found during their visit to watch what we call Soccer.
Success starts with Hard Work and Failure
But like the 49’ers that prospected for gold and silver to find wealth was actually what made America great that included hard work that included failures. But this was what built the perseverant spirit of America that our soccer visitors are attracted to and admire. This American Spirit was built without a lot of men and women shedding their sweat, blood, and tears. If there is one lesson learned from the American Spirit it is that success is built on hard work ethic.
But this perseverance manifests itself in classics like blue jeans, khaki pants, and shirts, with what pilots of World War II made a part of the American character that Steven Spielberg captured in the instant classic in ‘Raider of the Lost Ark’. These are fashions that we should embrace and enjoy wearing because they fit almost any circumstance, we find ourselves, tie is definitely optional.
I used to do a lot of flying during my career and when you get out of the cockpit for business, nothing beats blue jeans or khakis pants with a button-down Oxford or khaki shirt with a leather flight jacket. It is an example of American charisma. These are like the Timex watches- They take a beating but keep on truck-in with that great look and feel.
