My hat.

Mon chapeau.

English version below the pictures

La semaine dernière les infirmières rencontrées à l’hôpital où j’allais faire une dialyse étaient stupéfaites : “Monsieur Fauquet, vous avez oublié votre chapeau !” Et les ambulanciers d’ajouter : « il n’y a pas de Monsieur Fauquet sans chapeau ». En effet, je ne portais pas de chapeau bien que j’en porte toujours. Cela m’a rappelé un “poème” que j’ai écrit en 2009.

In my hat and in the garden 2022 En chapeau dans le jardin

Last week the nurses   encountered at  the hospital where I went for dialysis were amazed: “Mr. Fauquet, you forgot your hat !”. And the paramedics added: “there is no Mr Fauquet without a hat”! And  Indeed , I was not wearing a hat although I always  do. This reminded me of a “poem” I wrote in 2009.

Mon chapeau

Comme je le dis toujours j ‘ ai besoin de mon chapeau.
En hiver, il me protège la tête du froid,
En été, du soleil brûlant
Au printemps et à l’ automne, de la pluie.

 Je porte un chapeau depuis 1961 ;
Venant de me marier
J’ avais besoin d’un casque
Pour me lancer dans la grande aventure.

 Ce chapeau est doté d’une fonction sociale.
Nul ne peut m’imaginer sans,
Tant il est mon signe et mon étiquette.
Fauquet est l’homme au chapeau !!

Vous pouvez le soulever légèrement pour dire bonjour.
Vous le levez plus ou moins selon votre degré de déférence.
Quand vous vous inclinez devant quelqu’un,vous pouvez d’un geste large
balayer le sol avec votre noble chapeau ! Classe !

Combien de fois ai- je vu dans une réunion
Mon chapeau utilisé pour faire une quête, 
pour faire le tirage d’une loterie
ou encore pour collecter des bulletins de vote ?

De nos jours peu d’hommes portent le chapeau.
Par suite, quand vous êtes dans une réunion, à l’église ou au cinéma
Vous ne trouvez rien pour l’accrocher.
Vous pouvez vous retrouver assis sur votre chapeau, écrasé et aplati.

Plus moyen de l’utiliser sauf pour le jardin .
Comme il est précieux pour protéger vos cheveux de la terre et de la poussière.
Il absorbe votre abondante sueur  et bientôt vous voyez une chute d’eau
venant des bords du chapeau en avant de vous, épargnant vos yeux et votre face .

Enfin le vieux chapeau sert pour des travaux dans la maison.
Il est très utile quand vous peignez un plafond.
Quelquefois il arrive que votre tête heurte la peinture fraîche

Et votre chapeau montre une sorte d’auréole faisant de vous un saint !

Aucun risque que je mange mon chapeau .

                                 Michel Fauquet .2 Juin 2009

the new on the left , the old after work of painting on the right.

        My hat

As I always say, I need my hat.
In winter it protects my head from the cold

In summer from the burning sun
In spring and fall from the rain

I wear a hat since 1961.
Being just married
I needed a helmet
To face the big adventure

This hat gets a social function.
No one can imagine me without it
So much it is my sign, my label.
Fauquet is the hat man!!

You can lift it slightly with a smile, to say hello

You lift it more or less high according your deference.
And when you bow to someone you can with a large movement
Sweep the soil with your noble hat. Classy !

How many times  did I see in a reunion
My hat passed around to collect money

Or used in a lottery to pick the winner ticket
Or again to collect the ballots in a vote.?.

Nowadays no many men wear a hat
So, when you are in a reunion, at church or theatre
you don’ t find anything to hook it
You can find yourself sat on your hat , crushed and flat !

Then, no way to use it excepted for the garden.
How precious to protect your hair from the dust and the dirt!
It absorbs your abundant sweat and soon we get a waterfall
from the edges of your hat ahead of you avoiding eyes and face .

At last the old hat is used for works in the house.
It is very useful when you are painting the ceiling
Sometimes your head hits the fresh paint

And your hat shows a kind of halo which makes you a saint

 There is no risk I eat my hat !!   

                            Michel Fauquet June 2, 2009

June 2009 Juin 2009

About fauquetmichel

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122 Responses to My hat.

  1. blb1 says:

    Love this! My dad wore a hat, I’ve got it now. Wil wore a ball cap and I don’t like them, no class as a hat. 🙂

  2. A man in a hat shops for seeds for his garden.
    I hope you have regained your hat.

  3. Wonderful photos and lovely, engaging poem, Michel! The vegetable garden is beautiful, and I like the photo of you choosing seeds! Wishing you happy days!
    Love ❤
    Cheryl

  4. Caro says:

    Cher Papa ton entrée me fait sourire ….c est vrai que le chapeau fait parti de ta personnalité….ainsi que la pire avant.il y a tellement de gag avec tes chapeaux😅ils te vont tellement bien et sont tellement utiles😉.
    Bonne soirée je vous embrasse bien fort Carole

  5. suester7 says:

    Ahh, your signature hat! Loved reading your humorous poem about your hat.

    Here in Singapore, we don’t have the custom of wearing hats. I think we should though, with our hot weather!

  6. cocosangel says:

    It’s true the young men now doesn’t wear hats. Unless during winter they would wear the torque, but during the summer nothing. Or the cap.
    I was admiring the vegetable garden.

  7. Moi, le chapeau et une grande révérence est le code auquel s’attend ma pharmacienne. Quand je ne le porte pas, je reçois un “Ben, le chapeau ?”
    Chapeau et révérence, Michel et Janine.

  8. joyce says:

    a delightful poem michel. yes, you are the hat man 😉 are you in good health enough to work in your garden?

  9. Annick says:

    Le chapeau te va bien Michel et c’est vrai que c’est bien utile , mais attention en cas de tempête “Qui sème le vent court après son chapeau” 😀

  10. neilc693 says:

    bravo ! comme dit, c’est un peu d’autrefois . . . mais l’homme qui le chapeau bien porte, il est tres élégant . Je n’ai jamais porté de chapeau, je ne me considère pas comme le type sartorielle exemplaire, mais certains des savants peuvent réussir à ce faire—surtout les physiciens. maintenant je me demande, où sont les photos des mathematiciens . . . ? (we are too unfashionable, except maybe that fellow Villani.)

    • Quand je vois la photo des deux éminents physiciens je peux dire qu’ils avaient quelque chose “sous le chapeau” .
      Tu connais beaucoup de choses , Neil, y compris Cédic Villani , un chercheur en mathématiques mais qui n’a pas eu beucoup de chance en politique .
      Je ne le vois pas porter un chapeau ! 🙂

      • neilc693 says:

        bien entendu Einstein et Bohr étaient vieux-monde, mais Oppenheimer aussi (l’autre link, sur le premier mot), l’americain, était une créature privilégiée et de richesse, donc on s’attendre d’eux à la bienséance dans le vêtement . . .
        Villani a remporté la médaille de Fields, ce qui apporte la renommée. 🙂 Je savais qu’il se présentait (Maire de Paris) mais je n’ai pas suivi l’actualité de sa carrière politique. je comprends que sa prédilection est cravates archaïques et ornées et montres à gousset (“fob watches”) . . .

      • Villani est un éminent mathématicien . Mais il a voulu faire de la politique . Il avait été élu député en 2017 dans le camp de Mr Macron président de la république mais il a échoué dans l’élection à la mairie de Paris puis cette année aux élections de députés à l”Assemblée nationale . Je crois que sa voie ,c’est la recherche scientifique et ses applications
        Amitiés
        Michel

      • neilc693 says:

        quelquefois un intellectuel fait l’essaie de politique, avec telles des résultats . parmi les americains, je pense à Norman Mailer ou Gore Vidal, les romanciers littéraires . on ne peut pas reprocher les intentions, mais peut-être purement pratiquement, à-propos de ne pas perdre du temps, il devrait se borner à mathématiques . . . même les mathématiciens considerent sa spécialité avec la crainte révérencielle.
        J’ai encore du mal à trouver des photos de mathématiciens avec des chapeaux ! Seulement David Hilbert, un autre homme de l’ancien monde. . .

      • When we want to say of someone that he is intelligent and educated we say or we used to say “he has a lot of “things” under the hat”! 🙂
        My father wore an old-fashioned cap during the week but on Sunday he wore a hat!

      • neilc693 says:

        The expression I’m used to is “to have something between the ears” 🙂 The hats and ears of these men definitely encompass much !

      • Thanks, Neil, I like also the English way to express the same idea. 🙂

  11. murisopsis says:

    Michel I remember this poem from Xanga days! I also remember the trouble you had in finding a new hat when your old one had seen better days!! And it is true – the hat can “make” the man. Love Val

  12. A wonderful post! You are the hat man. God bless.

  13. sherazade says:

    Grazie mille Michel per avere condiviso con noi questa delicata descrizione di te e legame con tuo cappello! I suoi moltissimi usi per ogni occasione.
    Buona settimana mon ami🌻💙❤️

  14. calmkate says:

    absolutely delightful! A gentleman is made by his hat 😉

    My father always wore a similar one, except his ‘work’ one was covered in grease/oil as he loved working on cars. When returning home from my first 18 months overseas my father was surprised my friends found him easily when I was held up with a customs check … I told them he would be the only man in the airport with his hat still on. Most people take them off inside, but not father 🙂

  15. Kathy Colvin said on FB:
    Your garden looks wonderful!! It’s so hot here right now…. in the 100’s Far. My garden is very sad, wilted and a lot of it just burned under the sun. Maybe it needed a hat!!! 🙂 Thanks for the lovely post. love, kc

  16. Louisa - Midlife Wellness Coach says:

    What an amusing story/poem. I enjoyed reading it. Sometimes, it’s nice to break from your life-long habit and do something different, no? 😀

  17. HA! I always love hearing about your hat and seeing it! 🙂
    I remember your poem from years ago on Xanga!
    I remember always commenting about The Adventures you and your hat have had, Michel! 😉
    Love your hat photos you shared! All men should wear hats! So stylish! 🙂
    (((HUGS))) 🙂 ❤️
    PS…”Some sunshine is good for the soul, but I always make sure I wear a hat.”
    👒 🎩 🤠 ⛑ 🎅🎓 👑

  18. Lavinia Ross says:

    I enjoyed your poem and photos, Michel! It is good to still see you in your garden, with hat, too!

    Much love to you and the family, ❤️
    Lavinia

  19. mrswrangler says:

    Beautiful poem. Wrangler always has a ball cap or cowboy hat on. Most people probably think he is hiding a receding hairline but he has a full head of hair.

  20. Tribo, OCarm says:

    Beautiful, Michel…. now I feel like wearing a hat…

  21. A classy man in a classy hat, an unbeatable combination. Love your poem, superb. ❤️🌹

  22. judyrutrider says:

    Great poem! We gardeners know the value of a good hat.

  23. It’s great that your hat has been with you for such a long time and is part of your identity.

  24. whyzat says:

    I chuckle when I think of you discovering that you have sat on your hat!

  25. Priti says:

    Wow beautiful lines ! Your hat not only protect your head but it can be used in many ways 🙂 well shared 🙂

  26. Marion says:

    Very good reasons to wear a hat, Michel! 🙂🕵‍♂️

  27. LGail says:

    I love to hear about the hat and my friend wearing the hat 🙂

  28. 🤠 Hi. Good piece of writing!

  29. Lakshmi Bhat says:

    That is a wonderful poem about your hat. Here we see very, very few men wearing a hat. But many wear caps. Your garden looks very good. Regards.

  30. saintvi says:

    I love your poem! I was able to read some of it in French, but had to read the English when I ran into too many words I haven’t learned yet. I agree that it’s just not you without a hat!

  31. Loved your Hat Poem Michel.. and wow… also love your veggie garden… A mans Hat is something he gets comfortable with…. My hubby wears a peaked cap for working and a trilby for going out in. lol… He is always saying I will eat my hat… 🙂
    So enjoyed your photos… And you choosing seeds for planting 🙂
    Wishing you a very happy week Michel
    Much love ❤

  32. kmaidy says:

    bonsoir Michel,
    effectivement il te protège du froid et de la chaleur ton chapeau,
    il prend soin de toi,
    et en plus, il termine bien ta tenue !
    surtout ne le perd pas !
    avec des bises !

  33. Rachel says:

    A hat comes in handy for many things. As long as I have known you the hat has been by your side.
    Enjoy the days of summer, my friend. 🌻

  34. neilc693 says:

    The garden photo reminds me that now it will soon be full season. some of the Asteraceae are starting to flower in the meadow, the black-eyed Susans and the chicory. and the butterflies are starting to appear. Soon the thistles and the dragonflies will be out, and all the rest. 🙂

    • I have too Asters at the end of our lawn; . It is an invading specie. But very appreciated by the bees at the fall. Those asters also are named “marguerite de la Saint-Michel ” because they are in bloom at the autumn and St Michel’sDay is on September 29.
      Another specie that is spreading in the edges of th veggie garden is the Goldenrod (verge d’or en français )
      About thistle I let growing an enormous one ner a shelter.
      am waiting its blooming to picture it . This is splendid! 🙂

      • neilc693 says:

        It sounds like your fields and meadows are similar to ours. I also see some familiar hollyhocks coming out again, and I think there are clovers and other plants on the way.
        People think of thistles as weeds, but they are very attractive. et ce chardon géant, l’artichaut, c’est délectable aussi 🙂

      • Thank you, Neil, for reminding me of the relationship between thistle and artichoke. Indeed the artichoke flower looks like a large thistle flower.
        I also have a few hollyhocks here and there in the lawn and garden: pink, yellow…

      • neilc693 says:

        Le printemps et l’été et le jardin, ils me rappellent de la poéme par Wallace Stevens, “Cy est pourtraicte, Madame Ste Ursule, et les unze mille vierges” (il etait amateur de la langue française—but apparently this title is a sly misdirection)
        If I had a potager such as yours, I would try artichokes and asparagus and other delicious things uncommon-for-nowadays-home-gardeners . . . mâche, dont tu as parlé, se suggère—there is a quite similar Cantonese variety, apparently.

      • Je ne connaissais pas le poème de Wallace . Merci. Neil.
        When we bought the house in 1986 there was an (one) asparagus in the garden . But I was too busy by work and did not know the way to grow ,
        So I did not grow this plant . En plus le pauvre terrain de mon jardin n’aurait pas donné de bons résultats
        Pour les artichauts , c’est une bonne idée .
        Amitiés
        Michel

  35. Susan Joos says:

    I love your hat poem – truth with a dash of humor!

    Another use for a hat is to protect your eyes from the sun. Recently I have taken to wearing a hat when I go for a walk wearing sunglasses over my prescription glasses, because otherwise there is a most awful glare! I only have one hat but it makes me want another, perhaps less heavy on my head in the warmer weather.

    Not so long ago, you just didn’t see a man without a hat.

  36. Nancy Stuebs said
    Your hats hold so many memories! Ken used to wear western hats, but now just his red and white baseball cap that has his old business name on it—Ken Stuebs Masonry. Your garden looks so good. We cannot take good care of our small spots very well anymore. Just flowers and plants now—no food. ❤

    • About caps and hats everyone has its habits
      Good idea to put the business name on the cap .
      About the gerden it is a without ed adaptation . We do what we can, Nancy. ❤

  37. Julie says:

    I always think of you wearing your famous hat , I can see why the nurses thought it was strange to see you without your hat. Your vegetable garden looks like its growing well this summer. I am looking forward to watching the Tour of France which starts today

    • We have reduced the veggie garden . The drought was threatening but rain came at time and the vegetables are growing well .
      I will watch too te Tour de France .
      Love<3
      Michel

  38. Véronique says:

    Le chapeau de mon père
    est extraordinaire
    Et qu’il est beau
    mon père en chapeau !!!

  39. atagrandma says:

    I cannot imagine you without your hat. My oldest son wears a hat whenever he goes out, and my youngest son just bought himself one. One of our good friends always wears one now, because he has had melanoma, and he spends time in Africa directing Water for Good. I bought myself a cap with a large brim so I can wear it when I watch my great grandson at his ball games.

    • Your sons are right to wear a hat, Gracia. And the same for your friend suffering from melanoma to protect the skin of his head
      And your wide-brimmed cap means you won’t be blinded by the sun when you watch your great-grandson play sports.. ❤

  40. Marsha Bryant said on FB:
    Morninglorie! I went to wish a friend Happy birthday and on his site he asked not for wishes for himself but that we would reach out to someone we care about that we haven’t talked to in a while…well I thought of you ❣️ have a great 4th of July and since that’s not a French holiday I will wish you an early Bastille day! ILYM ❣️ — avec Will Mink.

  41. Frances Winslow said on FB:
    Remember, it was the French who gave us aid during the revelution and helped us to win our independence from England. We can thank Michel Fauquet’s ancestors! Could we have even done it without the aid of the French!?

  42. Anne-Marie says:

    Le chapeau te sied bien, Michel.
    Mon père en portait aussi et je trouvais cela “classe” !

    Bel été bien à vous en Picardie !
    Amitiés,
    A-M

  43. How are you doing this week, Michel?
    We had a very busy 3 day weekend and holiday.
    (((HUGS))) ❤️ 🙂

  44. Love this. My grandaddy wore a hat a lot. My daddy still wears one outside a good deal of the time. Hugs

  45. Alex Tse (she/her) says:

    J’aime le poème et l’histoire de l’homme au chapeau! Le jardin est magnifique

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