Saturday 7 March 2009

The ties that bind

Coming to Berkeley is a humbling experience. Everyone around here is so much more talented, so much more stylish, just so much more everything. All our friends speak at least two languages (even some of the Americans!), and my attempts at self-improvement by learning Spanish are constantly corrected by four-year-old Maya.

Everyone has traveled further, for longer, and to more places than me. They've all earned more in their jobs, done more hardcore volunteering work, have all given more for their country, play sport better, look cooler in sunglasses...

So it's always a pleasure to be called upon to utilise some specialist skill for the greater good of the community. Thank goodness for a strict English education that forced me to wear a tie every morning of my entire school life (apart from mufti day, of course).

This morning my years of training and practice were called into action when Amir needed to dress smart to interview a prospective Haas student. His looking up how to tie a knot online was no replacement for on-the-ground experience, and so I took him through the Double Simple, the Half Windsor, the Double Windsor, and the Cravat. Growing in confidence I pulled out the Bow Tie Knot (which admittedly looked a little odd when using a necktie).

After some discussion, and the complaint that his newly ironed tie was now more than a little creased, we settled on the Four in Hand - the classic schoolboy configuration. Luckily I was able to curtail my regression there...



The rabbit goes up the hole, around the tree...



Oh yes, looking sharp!



Amir take a Tony Blair-style walkabout around University Village before departing.

More evidence on Dana's blog.