Independently Speaking By Brent Olson
The views expressed are those of the individual author and not necessarily those of DTN, its management or employees.
Grizzled
One of my many flaws is that most mornings I take a few minutes to read bits and pieces of the New York Times. Lately I’ve been kind of captivated by the fashion section.
Since I’ll never be an astronaut, there’s no chance of me visiting an alien planet. Reading the New York Times fashion section is as close as I’m ever going to get. But lately, I saw an article that made me think I do have something in common with those folks.
A photo from a fashion show featured one of the models wearing a Carhartt cap. I found that vastly amusing and told a friend. They told me it’s a thing, and that they had personally seen a Carhartt store in Paris.
I didn’t see that one coming, and I confess to finding it a bit irritating. It seems to me that you should have to earn the right to wear Carhartt, not just have room on a credit card. I know there are people who work for a living in Paris, but that wasn’t the look I was seeing in the fashion section of the New York Times.
I remember when I started seeing Caterpillar caps, boots, and clothing for sale, in places you don’t expect to run into too many heavy equipment operators. I didn’t see that one coming either. For instance, I have a Caterpillar cap that I’ve kept for over 30 years. I’ve hung onto it because it cost me $100,000.00. Of course, they threw in a tractor when they gave me the hat. It’s pretty ratty now, but I still treasure it because it’s a memory of something very real and I’m a firm believer in “real.”
It made me think that I finally had a chance to be on the cutting edge of fashion. I think I’ll call it, “Grizzled: The Fashion That’s Hard to Fake.”
It could be my one and only shot at being a model. I don’t mean to brag, but I nail the “grizzled” look, and it’s not even hard for me. If I go out the door in the morning and everything I’m wearing is a decade old, I probably wouldn’t know it. But if I did, I’d call it a win.
One thing the fashion world gets wrong is the pattern of torn clothes. Who wears pants with the knees purposefully ripped out? Someone who’s never changed a flat tire on a gravel road, that’s who. I recently did an inventory and the holes in my clothes tend to relate to the parts that get too close to hot metal — during welding for example. I don’t think I’ve ever had a hooded sweatshirt with front pockets that were still functional, but I’ve never seen Gucci get that right, or the worn spot from the jackknife you carry in your front pocket.
Looking beyond the clothes, I see a lot of models who shave their heads. I’m proud to say I’ve mastered that look, without needing a razor. I realize that whether you cheat and use a razor or become hairless the old-fashioned way, the end result is the same. But can some 25-year-old model fake all the dents, divots, and sun damage that my head has accumulated? Seventy years of not looking where I’m going has given me a reasonably unique cranium, and it’s time I tried to monetize it. Something I have as an advantage is that it’s a look not very many people want to imitate. The competition to look like me won’t be too ferocious.
“Grizzled: Fashion That’s Hard to Fake.” Catchy, isn’t it?
Copyright 2025 Brent Olson