The Red Hat

So a colleague left us today and we did the bouquet and pressies and speeches thing; and she left behind a red hat which she said was for us to put on if we ran out of ideas because it encouraged problem solving thinking.

My sister always used to say "red hat no knickers" which has its origins in the way prostitutes allegedly used to advertise their wares in days gone by. In Italy Little Red Hat is another name for Little red Riding Hood. Minni Red Hat was the paternal granddaughter of Little Bear a famous Indian chief who had the longest hair in the Cheyenne. In France Nain Rouge was a folklore figure who became invisible when he put on his red hat which had two feathers in it. Curiously a similar character crops up in Brazil, smoking a pipe and Irish leprechauns are also said to make themselves invisible by putting on a red hat. The dominant religious order in Bhutan is the Red-Hat sect (Kargyupa). And in Japan Shinto statues are decorated with red hats to bring luck.

I could go on but the point is that something as simple as a red hat clearly has huge symbolic significance the world over. Must be something to do with red being a magical colour - sexy even - and anything you put on your head is personality altering.

Another day like today in the office I might start wearing it permanently - I need inspiration to overcome the brick wall of work. But so nice to see some sunshine, and so nice to finish work for the week. Hats off to that ...